Benefit gala at the Kirk Douglas Theatre on June 4th
The Ojai Playwrights Conference (OPC) will celebrate 25 successful seasons with a Benefit Gala to be directed and produced by OPC Artistic Director Robert Egan at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City on June 4. This is their first major OPC event in LA.
The gala tilted “Caring and Daring Together,” will feature scenes from some of the best known plays developed at OPC and will also honor the inspiration, vision and commitment of Luis Alfaro, Olga Garay-English and Kerry English (posthumously) with OPC Awards.
The event not only will celebrate the rich history of OPC’s work, but will also celebrate the legacy of Egan’s leadership for the past 21 years. He has announced that he will pass the baton to a new artistic leader at the end of 2022.
Since 1998, theatre professionals and audiences have converged in Ojai to participate in the development of new plays for the American theatre. Plays developed at OPC have gone on to have numerous productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and at regional theaters across the country.
Some have been nominated for and won prestigious awards. Both “Fun Home” by Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori, and Jon Robin Baltz’s “Other Desert Cities” were Pulitzer finalists. “Fun Home” won the Tony Award for Best Musical.
In 2019, OPC received the LADCC Gordon Davidson Award for distinguished contribution to the Los Angeles theatrical community.
Other featured playwrights will be Kimberly Bellflower, Bill Cain, Stephen Adly Guirgis, Daniel Gurira, and others.
Actors Christine Lahti, Steven Weber and Jimmy Smits, among others, will be appearing in scenes from some of the best-known playwrights and plays supported through the OPC development process, along with newer works by more recent OPC playwrights.
Funds from the benefit will support OPC programs, including the New Works Festival, set for August 7-14 in Ojai this year.
The evening will begin with a ‘welcome’ cocktail hour at 6 p.m. and continue with the anniversary show at 7 p.m. and a post-show party with guest artists.
Call 805-633-1170 to purchase tickets or go to: https://www.ojaiplays.org/benefit2022
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