January 9, 2012...Burbank...The Colony Theatre is thrilled to present the fifth production of its 37th season of shows, the Pulitzer Prize nominee, OLD WICKED SONGS, written by Jon Marans and directed by Stephanie Vlahos. OLD WICKED SONGS will preview on Wednesday, February 1; Thursday, February 2; and Friday, February 3 at 8:00pm and will open on Saturday, February 4 at 8:00pm and continue through Sunday, March 4 at The Colony Theatre, 555 North Third Street (at Cypress) adjacent to the Burbank Town Center. Stephen is a young, brilliant American pianist who has come to Vienna with the hope of regaining his shattered confidence. His teacher is a lonely, eccentric, elderly professor with a shadowy past. As the glorious music of Robert Schumann floods the professor's studio, the past collides with the present, deep secrets are revealed, and the men slowly discover they have more in common than just the music they love. Nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Old Wicked Songs travels an emotional journey that weaves together profound sorrow, boundless joy, and soaring inspiration.

The award-winning Colony Theatre was founded in 1975 as a 99-seat Equity-waiver theatre in Silver Lake. Over the years the company was so successful artistically, and built such a large subscriber base, that in 2000 it was able to move into a 270-seat theatre created for it by the City of Burbank, becoming one of only 5 mid-size professional theatres in the LA area that produces a year-round season of plays and musicals, and that employs actors under contract with Actors' Equity Association. Since the move to Burbank, The Colony was named one of "25 Notable U.S. Theatre Companies" by the Encyclopedia Britannica Almanac for 8 years in a row and voted "Best Live Theatre in LA" in The Daily News Readers' Choice poll. The company's audience is so loyal that in an era when subscription is declining dramatically, and when the industry-wide "gold standard" renewal rate of 80% is considered unattainable, for the past two seasons The Colony has achieved a subscription renewal rate over 90%. This season, at a time when many theatres are shortening their seasons and canceling performances, The Colony is expanding, for the first time in its history presenting six shows instead of the usual five.

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM

JON MARANS (Playwright) was a 1996 Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Drama for Old Wicked Songs, which won the New York Drama League Award, the L.A. Drama-Logue Award, and was included in Otis Guernsey's Best Plays of 1996-97. Old Wicked Songs has been produced throughout the United States and translated and produced in a dozen countries around the world. Mr. Marans' other works include the plays The Temperamentals, A Strange and Separate People, Jumping For Joy, Child Child (Preston Jones Award winner), and Opportunity Knocks (Backdoor Theater Award), as well as the musicals Legacy of the Dragonslayers (based on Studs Terkel's Coming of Age) and Irrationals. In the film industry, Mr. Marans worked as a story editor and script doctor for Stonebridge, Michael Douglas's production company at Columbia Pictures. In television, he was a staff writer / lyricist for the 1991 New Carol Burnett Show on CBS and wrote for Cookin' in Brooklyn, a "comedy-reality" show on the Discovery Channel. Mr. Marans is a graduate of Duke University in mathematics and music and also studied at both the BMI & ASCAP Musical Theater workshops. 

STEPHANIE VLAHOS (Director) comes to The Colony Theatre and the directing profession with the experience of a former career as a professional singer. A graduate of Yale University and the Juilliard School, Stephanie has worked in solo performance in diverging musical arenas with such luminaries as Pierre Boulez, Andre Previn, Van Dyke Parks, John Adams, Ry Cooder, Sir Peter Hall, and Gordon Davidson. A recipient of the Chanel Diva Award, she is best known in Los Angeles for her work as an opera singer with L.A. Opera in roles such as Nicklausse in Tales of Hoffmann and Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream. She has also sung internationally in a number of critically-acclaimed performances of operas and concerts. Stephanie is currently Artistic Director for OPERA POSSE, and she recently directed the company's critically-acclaimed production of Amahl and the Night Visitors at the Pasadena Playhouse. She is also a theatre coach / stage director for the Domingo-Thornton Young Artists Program at L.A. Opera as well as Director-In-Residence at the Cole Conservatory Opera Institute at Cal State Long Beach. In 2007, Stephanie was among 30 artists nationwide to be nominated for the prestigious United States Artists Grant in directing, and she was recently honored with a request to sit on the USC Thornton School of Music Board of Councilors.

ABOUT THE CAST AND DESIGN TEAM

TAVIS DANZ (Stephen Hoffman) has performed on Los Angeles stages in everything from musical to classical theatre. He played Tom of Warwick in the National Tour of Camelot appearing alongside Michael York and Lou Diamond Phillips, and locally he has been seen in productions at The Geffen Playhouse, The Ahmanson, and The Getty Center with the National Theater of Greece, as well as in productions at The Pacific Resident Theater and Universal Studios Hollywood. A graduate of UCLA's Department of Theater, Film and Television, he has also appeared in co-starring roles on "NCIS," "Numb3rs," and "Greek."

JOHN TOWEY (Professor Josef Mashkan) has made his living as a professional actor for the past forty years and has acted and sung on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in many theatres across the country. He was a member of the acting companies for three seasons each at The Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., The Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, and The Public Theatre in New York.  He has also performed in two productions at The Pasadena Playhouse, five at The Mark Taper Forum, and five at The John Anson Ford Theatre. Under the direction of Sir Peter Hall, he was seen in three Shakespeare productions and a revival of Amadeus at The Ahmanson Theatre which had a five-month run on Broadway in 2000. He has also guest-starred in over 40 television shows and films including "Murphy Brown," "Empty Nest," "The X-Files," and "Crossing Jordan."

OLD WICKED SONGS has assembled an award-winning design team. The Scenic Design is by Stephen Gifford (LA WEEKLY Award - Lady). The Lighting Design is by Jared A. Sayeg (Ovation Award Nomination – Trying). The Costume Design is by Kate Bergh (Reprise! – Cabaret). The Sound Design is by Drew Dalzell (Ovation Award – Songs For A New World). Props design and set dressing is by Colony Theatre resident designers MacAndMe.

ABOUT THE SCHEDULE AND PRICING

OLD WICKED SONGS will open on Saturday, February 4 at 8:00pm and continue through Sunday, March 4. Performances for OLD WICKED SONGS are Thursdays & Fridays at 8:00pm; Saturdays at 3:00pm & 8:00pm; and Sundays at 2:00pm. Ticket prices range from $20.00 - $42.00 (student, senior and group discounts are available). OLD WICKED SONGS will preview on Wednesday, February 1; Thursday, February 2; and Friday, February 3 at 8:00pm at The Colony Theatre, 555 North Third Street (at Cypress) adjacent to the Burbank Town Center. Opening night performance with reception - all tickets $50.00. There are question-and-answer talkbacks after the performances on Friday, February 10 and Thursday, February 23. For tickets, call the Colony Theatre Box Office at 818/558-7000 ext. 15 or online at www.ColonyTheatre.Org.

For more information, press interviews, photos or for press comps, please contact David Elzer/DEMAND PR at 818/508-1754 or at ELZERD@aol.com or visit www.demandpr.com. The Colony Theatre Company is a 37-year old organization dedicated to bringing the finest-quality theatrical productions to Los Angeles. The theatre is located at 555 North Third Street, at the corner of Cypress, in the heart of Downtown Burbank. For further information, call (818) 558-7000. Fax: (818) 558-7110. E-mail: colonytheatre@colonytheatre.org. Or visit our website at www.colonytheatre.org

The award-winning Colony Theatre is Burbank's premiere professional theatre. It was voted "Best Live Theatre in L.A." in The Daily News 2006 Readers' Choice poll, and has been named one of "25 Notable U.S. Theatre Companies" by Encyclopedia Britannica Almanac for 8 years in a row. The theatre is located at 555 North Third Street, at the corner of Cypress, in the heart of Downtown Burbank. For further information, call (818) 558-7000. Fax: (818) 558-7110. E-mail: colonytheatre@colonytheatre.org. Or visit our website at www.colonytheatre.ORG.