LOS ANGELES: Fountain Theatre has announced its 2019-20 season, featuring six productions.
“Our 2019-20 season is our most ambitious ever,” said co-artistic director Stephen Sachs in a statement. “It perfectly reflects who and what we are as a theatre organization. It’s a season of diversity, a rich mixture of new plays representing a wide variety of communities. Our goal is for Los Angeles to see itself on our stage, and this season certainly offers that.”
The season will start with Hype Man (Feb. 23-April 14), by Idris Goodwin, about a hip-hop trio on the verge of making it big on national television when a police shooting of a Black teen forces them to confront questions about their art. Deena Selenow will direct.
Next up will be Daniel’s Husband (May 4-June 23), by Michael McKeever, about a “perfect” couple grappling with the idea of marriage and the denial of fundamental rights. The cast will include Bill Brochtrup, Tim Cummings, and Jenny O’Hara. Simon Levy will direct.
The season will continue with Jiehae Park’s Hannah and the Dread Gazebo (July 13-Sept. 1), a comedy about a woman who adventures to Korea with her family following her grandmother’s mysterious death.
Next up will be Between Riverside and Crazy (Sept. 21-Nov. 10), by Stephen Adly Guirgis, about a former cop fighting to hang on to his rent-controlled Riverside Drive apartment.
Following will be the world premiere of Jane Doe (Jan. 18-March 8, 2020), adapted by Sachs from Frank Capra’s 1941 film Meet John Doe. The contemporary retelling follows a newspaper writer fabricating a letter to his column from a homeless woman named Jane Doe who plans to kill herself.
The season will conclude with If I Forget (March 28-May 17, 2020), by Steven Levenson, about a Jewish family at odds with their culture and history who reunite to celebrate their father’s 75th birthday. Levy will direct.
Founded in 1990, the Fountain Theatre produces both new works and reimaginings of established plays.