The Ruskin Group Theatre, in association with Playwrights 6, will present a workshop production of G. Bruce Smith’s new comedy, The Mitchells, on four Sundays, beginning September 11.
The Mitchells will launch Ruskin’s “Something New @ 2” Series, which will showcase new works.
“This series presents us exciting prospects to discover new theatrical jewels,” said Mike Myers, Ruskin managing director.
The Mitchells tells the story of a young man who is confronted with having to disclose to his ostensibly conservative parents that he is gay – before he is “outed” on a national Diane Sawyer television special.
The full-length play is based on Smith’s Christmas with the Mitchells, a one-act that was part of Playwrights 6’s “Christmastime is Queer,” staged in 2002 at the Celebration Theatre in Hollywood. The one-act was a finalist in the 2003 GLAAD L.A. Outstanding Theatre Awards.
Playwright Smith has received honors from such theaters as Sonoma County Rep and the Long Beach Playhouse. His play The Last Pitch won the 2000 National Playwriting Award from the American Renegade Theatre in North Hollywood and had an 11-week run in 2001, garnering “Pick of the Week” in L.A. Weekly. A founding member of Playwrights 6 and a former journalist, he has written for the Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Daily News, and other publications, and is currently public information officer at Santa Monica College.
The full-length Mitchells was named a finalist in the 2005 New Play Contest at Theatre Conspiracy in Fort Myers, Florida and a semi-finalist in the 2004 Ashland (Oregon) New Plays Festival.
The Mitchells is directed by Jonathan Levit, who also directed Christmas with the Mitchells. Performances are at 2 p.m. Sunday, September 11, 18 and 25 and October 9 (no performance is scheduled for Sunday, October 2) at Ruskin Group Theatre, 3000 Airport Avenue at Santa Monica Airport.
The Ruskin Group Theatre, founded in 2002, not only produces plays, it has done extensive outreach, teaching and performing in correctional facilities, boys’ homes and nursing homes throughout Southern California.
Playwrights 6, founded in 1999, is believed to be the only playwright-managed theater company in Los Angeles. In its short history, Playwrights 6 productions have earned several L.A. Weekly Theatre Award nominations and Backstage West Garland Award honorary mentions. Playwrights 6 productions have also made several “Critics Top 10” lists and garnered several “Critic’s Picks.”Tickets for The Mitchells are $10. Call (310) 397-3244 or go to http://www.ruskingrouptheatre.com
