A Noise Within Presents AWAKE AND SING! March 20, 2010

A NOISE WITHIN,
LOS ANGELES’ CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED
REPERTORY THEATRE COMPANY,
PRESENTS CLIFFORD ODETS’ AMERICAN CLASSIC
AWAKE AND SING!

Saturday, March 20 – Sunday, May 23, 2010
(previews begin Saturday, March 13)

A Noise Within (ANW) presents AWAKE AND SING!, an American classic by CLIFFORD ODETS, opening Saturday, March 20 and closing Sunday, May 23, 2010 (previews begin Saturday, March 13), directed by Andrew J. Traister. Featuring veteran actor Len Lesser (Jacob), who is well known to contemporary audiences at Seinfeld's "Uncle Leo" and highly regarded ANW Resident Artists Deborah Strang (Bessie Berger) and Joel Swetow (Myron Berger), the play also features Alan Blumenfeld (Uncle Morty), Molly Leland (Hennie Berger), David Lengel (Sam Feinschreiber), Daniel Reichert (Moe Axelrod), Adam Silver (Ralph Berger) and Alan Waserman (Schlosser).

Awake and Sing! is set among the economic ravages of 1930s New York that threaten to destroy the tenuous ties that bind the Berger family. In order to keep the struggling clan intact, matriarch Besse Berger is willing to crush her children's dreams, but the irrepressible spirit of youth refuses to be extinguished in gifted social dramatist Odets' soaring ode to what is good and true in the American character.

“Odets captures the essence of the human spirit – the tragic and the comic – displayed in a Jewish family in the Bronx fighting to keep their heads above water at the height of the Depression,” says Traister, who notes that Odets has been called the American Chekhov. “Families do whatever they can to survive in tough times, regardless of their ethnic background. There is a depth to this family’s love during trying times that may not be near the surface of their emotions. As we get to know this family over the course of a year, we discover the vagaries of their life, the choices, often sad, sometimes comic, that propel an existence filled with many varied endings.”

A Noise Within was founded in 1992 and quickly established itself as one of the nation’s leading theatre companies. It continues to maintain its celebrated status as the only year-round classical repertory company in Southern California, attracting fiercely loyal audiences and high praise from the media for its productions of great works of world drama and also as a leading regional force in arts education. Since its inception, the company has presented more than 120 plays from the classics of world literature, each season producing plays from authors ranging from Shakespeare and Molière to Ibsen, O’Neill and Shaw to Miller and Williams. The theatre’s consistent dedication to quality has been rewarded with more than two-dozen Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards as well as numerous LA Weekly and Back Stage Garland awards. Past highlights include a collaboration with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in a performance of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Hollywood Bowl. ANW's next chapter provides the long-awaited opportunity to sink deep and lasting roots when it moves in 2011 from its long-time leased base in Glendale to a spectacular, permanent 35,000 square-foot home in Pasadena. The mixed-use development is located in the historic Stuart Pharmaceutical building at the corner of Foothill Boulevard and Sierra Madre Villa Avenue. The facility is designed to expand A Noise Within’s artistic possibilities, offer a greater scope of educational opportunities, meet ticket demand and allow the company to expand its role as a leader in the presentation and preservation of classical theatre.

Single Tickets are $44 (Friday and Saturday evenings, Sunday matinees); $40 (Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings, Saturday matinees); and $30 (previews). Groups (10 or more) are $25, or $30 on Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees; School Groups (10 or more) are $16, or $20 on Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees.

A NOISE WITHIN is located at 234 South Brand Boulevard, Glendale, CA 91204. To purchase tickets or for a full season brochure, call 818-240-0910 x1 or visit www.ANoiseWithin.org.

WHO:
A Noise Within – one of the nation’s leading repertory theatre companies

WHAT:
CLIFFORD ODETS’ AWAKE AND SING!

Cast and Crew:
Andrew J. Traister (Director)
Monique Fisher (Assistant Director)
Caitlin Hart (Directing Intern)

Alan Blumenfeld (Uncle Morty)
Molly Leland (Hennie Berger)
David Lengel (Sam Feinschreiber)
Len Lesser (Jacob)
Daniel Reichert (Moe Axelrod)
Adam Silver (Ralph Berger)
Deborah Strang (Bessie Berger)
Joel Swetow (Myron Berger)
Alan Waserman (Schlosser)

Scott Kriloff (Stage Manager)
Michael Smith (Set Designer)
Julie Keen (Costume Designer)
Danielle Horn (Costume Assistant)
James Taylor (Lighting Designer)
Merrianne Nedreberg (Props)
Rebecca Baillie (Production Manager)
Adam Lillibridge (Technical Director)
Monica Sabedra (Wig/Hair and Makeup Designer)
Brittany Baughman (Scenic Artist)

WHEN:
Previews:
Saturday, March 13, 8 pm
Sunday, March 14, 7 pm
Wednesday, March 17, 8 pm
Thursday, March 18, 8 pm
Friday, March 19, 8 pm

Opens:
Saturday, March 20, 8 pm

Runs:
Sunday, March 21, 2 pm
Sunday, March 28, 2 pm
Sunday March 28, 7 pm
Wednesday, March 31, 8 pm
Thursday, April 1, 8 pm
Friday, April 23, 8 pm
Saturday, April 24, 2 pm
Saturday, April 24, 8 pm
Thursday, May 6, 8 pm
Friday, May 7, 8 pm
Saturday, May 8, 2 pm
Saturday, May 8, 8 pm
Sunday, May 23, 2 pm
Sunday, May 23, 7 pm

WHERE:
A Noise Within
234 South Brand Blvd., Glendale, CA 91204

TICKET PRICES:
$44 (Friday and Saturday evenings, Sunday matinees);
$40 (Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings, Saturday matinees);
$30 (Previews).
Group rates and special rates for school groups available

TICKETS & INFO:
818-240-0910 x1 www.ANoiseWithin.org

Official Website: http://www.ANoiseWithin.org