Tag Archives: Lucy Kirkwood

We’re back! The Children returns for its final 3 weeks of performances

Posted on January 7, 2022 | Leave a comment

by Terri Roberts

Happy New Year! After a long and tumultuous 2021, the hope and promise of the first calendar page of 2022 has arrived.

At the Fountain, we have much to look forward to in the months ahead. New, exciting productions are already in the works (more news on them to come), but first we wrap up our LA premiere presentation of Lucy Kirkwood’s Tony-nominated drama, The Children. This critically-acclaimed production returns to our indoor stage on Saturday, January 8th, to begin the countdown of its final seven performances.

Directed by Simon Levy, The Children stars Ron Bottitta, Elizabeth Huffman and Lily Knight as longtime friends and work colleagues at a British nuclear power plant who are reunited after decades apart when one of the trio surprises the other two with an unplanned visit and an unthinkable request. Kirkwood’s funny and astonishing play is a taut and disquieting thriller about responsibility, reparation and moral accountability. The Children is a provocative legacy drama that asks the big questions we often try to avoid but ultimately must always face: what is our responsibility to the future? To ourselves? To our children?

Lead L.A. Times theatre critic Charles McNulty declared that, “…we hang on to every word… Lucy Kirkwood’s The Children follows the wisdom of the environmental slogan “think globally, act locally.”… What Kirkwood excels at is creating characters that audiences want to learn more about… The Fountain bravely continues to bring L.A. audiences important contemporary works the larger theaters in town still haven’t the courage or vision to produce.” (CLICK HERE for links to reviews and to read pull quotes from them.)

If you haven’t yet seen the show, you still have time. The Children runs through Sunday, January 23rd, with performances Saturdays and Monday the 10th at 8pm, and Sundays at 2pm. (Dark on Monday, the 17th, in observance of Martin Luther King Day.)

CLICK HERE to make reservations.

Please Note: All Covid protocols are followed and enforced. Audience members will be temperature checked and must show proof of full vaccination to be admitted. Masks are mandated and must be worn at all times inside the theatre, except when eating or drinking. Our upstairs café is open and waiting for you.

Terri Roberts is a freelance writer and the Coordinator of Fountain Friends, the Fountain Theatre’s volunteer program. She also manages the Fountain Theatre Café.

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Posted in actors, COVID-19, creativity, Drama, environment, Fountain Theatre, Hollywood, Los Angeles, plays, reviews, stage, The Children, Theater, theatre

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Rave reviews for L.A. Premiere of THE CHILDREN

Posted on December 8, 2021 | Leave a comment

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The LA premiere of The Children opens at the Fountain Theatre

Posted on November 9, 2021 | Leave a comment

Photo by Jenny Graham

by Terri Roberts

Twenty months ago, the Fountain Theatre was forced to close in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Downstairs our stage was dark. Upstairs the café was empty. It was an unimaginable time.

All of that has changed now. The success of preventatives (vaccines, masks, etc.) have allowed theatres to finally re-open with safety measures in place, and so last week the Fountain flung open its brand new double front doors to accept audiences back to our beloved indoor stage. There, on Andrew Hammer’s picturesque set for a British seaside cottage — beautifully lit by Christian Mejia, detailed by props designer Shen Heckel and sound designer Marc Antonio Pritchett, and costumed by Naila Aladdin Sanders — we introduced Lucy Kirkwood’s 2018 Tony-nominated play, The Children, to Los Angeles theatre-goers. Twenty months is a long time…and when the pre-show recording welcomed everyone back, the audience erupted in spontaneous cheers and applause!

The Children, directed by Simon Levy, is set in the afterworld of a life-threatening, and wholly preventable, environmental disaster. Also an unimaginable time. Long-married Hazel (Lily Knight) and Robin (Ron Bottitta), both retired nuclear engineers who worked at the local power plant, have moved to this isolated cottage following an explosion at their former workplace. Their pick-up-the-pieces quiet coastal life is upended, however, by the arrival of Rose (Elizabeth Elias Huffman), an old friend and fellow co-worker, who arrives with secrets and surprises that bring even more upheaval and fireworks.

Saturday, November 6th, was the official Opening Night for The Children. Following a thrilling performance, folks headed upstairs to our charming café for a tasty reception courtesy of Butler Pantry Catering. The entire building was filled with joyous embraces, vibrant conversation, and laughter and gratitude for being back together again.

Please enjoy these photos from our LA premiere production of The Children and the Opening Night reception. For information and to make reservations, CLICK HERE.

Production photos by Jenny Graham

  • Pre-show at the Fountain Theatre Cafe
  • Opening Night guests
  • Yummy treats from Butler Pantry Catering
  • Debbie and Ashley Posner
  • Actor Ron Bottitta
  • Conversation on the deck
  • Director of Development Barbara Goodhill, Director Simon Levy, Executive Producer Karen Kondazian, Jacqueline Schultz

Terri Roberts is a freelance writer and the Coordinator of Fountain Friends, the Fountain Theatre’s volunteer program. She also manages the Fountain Theatre Café.

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Posted in actors, cafe, designers, director, environment, Executive Producer, Fountain Theatre, nuclear engineers, The Children, Theater, theatre

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L.A. Premiere of Lucy Kirkwood’s ‘The Children’ opens Nov. 6 on the Fountain’s indoor stage

Posted on September 27, 2021 | Leave a comment

What is our responsibility to the future? What legacy do we want to leave? The Los Angeles premiere of The Children, written by Lucy Kirkwood and directed by Simon Levy, asks those questions and more in its Los Angeles premiere at the Fountain Theatre. Performances begin on the Fountain’s indoor stage (with all health and safety guidelines strictly adhered to) on Saturday, Nov. 6. The run continues through Jan. 23.

Kirkwood’s funny and astonishing Tony-nominated play is a taut and disquieting thriller about responsibility, reparation and what one generation owes the next. With the outside world in chaos following a devastating environmental disaster, two retired nuclear engineers live a quiet life in a remote cottage on the lonely British coast — until a surprise visit from a former colleague upends the couple’s equilibrium and trust.

The cast includes Ron Bottitta (Hir, Faith Healer, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Arsonists at the Odyssey Theatre; Superior Donuts, Yes, Prime Minister at the Geffen; Oppenheimer, Honky, Razorback at Rogue Machine Theatre, where he also hosts the company’s Rant and Rave spoken word series); Elizabeth Elias Huffman (artistic director of Chain Reaction Theatre in Pittsburgh, most recently seen on stage in The Oldest Profession by Paula Vogel at Portland’s Profile Theatre); and Lily Knight (Ovation, LADCC and Stage Raw award nominee for A Small Fire at the Echo Theater Company; A Delicate Balance at the Odyssey; Three Days in the Country, The Crucible, Peace in Our Time, The Autumn Garden at Antaeus, where she is a member).

“What I love about the play,” says Levy, “is that it tackles these enormously important contemporary issues about our responsibility to the planet, to each other, to future generations, and grounds them in funny, complex, identifiable characters grappling with a moral dilemma that, quite frankly, all of us are confronting, right now, in real time.”

“The nuclear disaster the town is struggling to survive could be anything — it could be COVID, or climate change,” says Fountain artistic director Stephen Sachs. “The moral dilemma is: what world are we leaving to our children?”

The Children premiered at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 2016, then transferred to the Manhattan Theatre Club on Broadway the following year. In 2019, The Guardian placed The Children on its list of “greatest theatrical works since 2000.” London’s The Independent called millennial playwright Kirkwood “the most rewarding dramatist of her generation.”

The Fountain creative team includes scenic designer Andrew G. Hammer; lighting designer Christian V. Mejia; sound designer Marc Antonio Pritchett; costume designer Naila Aladdin Sanders; choreographer Annie Yee; and dialect coach Nike Doukas. The production stage manager is Gina DeLuca. Stephen Sachs and James Bennett produce for the Fountain Theatre. Producing underwriters include Sheila and Alan Lamson, and Carrie Chassin and Jochen Haber. The executive producer is Karen Kondazian.

Proof of vaccination and mask-wearing will be required of all patrons. Admittance limited to ages 12+. All current CDC and local guidelines regarding seating and masks will be followed at each performance.

For reservations and information.

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Posted in Acting, actors, Climate Change, environment, Fountain Theatre, Hollywood, Los Angeles, nuclear engineers, The Children

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NOW CASTING: LA Premiere of Lucy Kirkwood’s timely and riveting “The Children”

Posted on August 27, 2021 | Leave a comment

The Fountain Theatre returns to indoor performances in October with the Los Angeles Premiere of the acclaimed Tony Award-nominated drama The Children by Lucy Kirkwood. With case numbers of the Delta variant trending downward in Los Angeles, the Fountain plans to reopen its indoor stage in October with all health and safety guidelines in place after nineteen months of closure due to the pandemic.

The Children is set in a small cottage on the east coast of England, where Hazel and Robin, two retired nuclear scientists in their mid-sixties, are living. A recent disaster at the local nuclear power station where they used to work has devastated the area, and they live under the threat of radiation pollution. Electricity and water are rationed, and they keep a Geiger counter to check for signs of radiation. However, Hazel is determined to preserve some semblance of normality and live the healthiest life she possibly can. So, Robin now farms, while Hazel practices yoga and devours salad. But when Rose, a former colleague whom they haven’t seen for 38 years, suddenly turns up, she disrupts their precariously ordered existence. Rose is determined to fix the problems they have caused for the next generation, even if it means certain death. Without ever mentioning climate change, Lucy Kirkwood’s brave, funny, humane, and chilling play asks us to confront the responsibility each generation must face for how it leaves the world. What is our responsibility to the future? Especially as we get older. What legacy, future, do we leave our children?

NOW CASTING

[ROSE] 64 to 68 years old, all ethnicities female. LEAD. Nuclear scientist/engineer. Sharp wit. No-nonsense. Strong-willed. Independent. A survivor. But these are shields to hide regrets and deep pain. Never married. Never had children. Lived in America for many years. A city person. She’s on a mission to save the world, to be accountable. She has many secrets, including being the former lover of ROBIN. She’s come to visit HAZEL and ROBIN after 38 years, out of the blue, with a request, with one of those secrets that is the turning point of the play.

[HAZEL] 64 to 68 years old, all ethnicities female. LEAD. Nuclear scientist/engineer. Retired. Has lived in the countryside most of her life. British droll sense of humor. She’s the homemaker, the caretaker. She believes in routine. She believes routine and salad and yoga will keep her and ROBIN and the world safe. She just wants everything to be nice, to be okay, to be controllable. But when that’s challenged by ROSE, she can be a fierce, formidable foe. Married to ROBIN for 40 years. Mother of 4. Grandmother. She will do anything to keep everyone safe. And she will not let ROSE steal ROBIN from her… and she will not let ROSE’s secret mission destroy her world.

[ROBIN] 64 to 68 years old, all ethnicities male. LEAD. Nuclear scientist/engineer. Retired. Down-to-earth. British droll sense of humor. Has that lived-in look. Husband of HAZEL. Married for 40 years. Father and grandfather. Former lover of ROSE. He’s the jokester. The little boy. He needs to turn pain and discomfort into humor and playfulness whenever possible. He’s also a workaholic. Always got to be doing something. Working the former farm. Taking care of the animals. Fixing the cottage. Can’t sit still. Like ROSE, he, too, has secrets… but ROSE’s secret request forces him to confront a moral dilemma that will change everything.

Producer/Theatre Company: Fountain Theatre
Artistic Director: Stephen Sachs
Director: Simon Levy
Writer: Lucy Kirkwood
Casting Director: Stephen Sachs
Audition Date(s): Sept. 2, 2021
Callback Date(s): Sept 7. 2021
Rehearsal Date(s): Sept 13, 2021
Preview Date(s): Oct. 20, 2021
Opening Date(s): Oct. 23, 2021
Closing Date(s): Dec. 19, 2021
Rate of Pay: AEA 99-Seat Contract
Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA

Submit to: Actors Access or email casting@fountaintheatre.com

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Posted in actors, Art, Arts, audition, Fountain Theatre, Theater, theatre

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