TEXAS LOVES LYLA!

A drag comedy about bullying and gay teen suicide.

Texas Loves Lyla!
Written & Directed by Jeffrey Wylie

The talk radio queen of South Texas hits the web, tackling ignorance, adult bullies, and gay teen suicide in this musical comedy of drag-landish proportions.

Jeffrey Wylie takes an irreverent and bold approach in addressing the reasons why people bully, and what we can each do in helping the victims of this terrible epidemic.

“I wrote this piece to my 15 year old self. Even though I wasn’t yet openly gay when growing up in south Texas, I was called ‘fag’ and ‘sissy’ in school, and felt such intense shanger (shame + anger) that I actually believed I was a bad person who was going to burn in hell.
It is appalling that today, in 2012, we still have parents—and even church leaders—who think it’s okay for their kids to bully others, and who, in some cases, even encourage their kids to pick on other children who are different.” Jeffrey Wylie

www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/798

Texas Loves Lyla!
Theater Asylum – 6320 Santa Monica Blvd
Friday 6/8 @ 10pm
Thursday 6/14 @ 5:30pm
Wednesday 6/20 @ 7pm
Friday 6/22 @ 7pm

Open Fist Theater/Fringe Central – 6209 Santa Monica Blvd
Saturday 6/9 @ 11:30pm
Saturday 6/23 @ 4p

Contact:
Evan Martinez
323-445-1029
Email:
[email protected]

JEFFREY WYLIE (Playwright/Producer/Director/Lyla)
Enjoying his 41st year on the boards, LA performances include Ledge, Ledger, and the Legend at The Lounge Theater, The Limitations of Genetic Technology at Theater of NOTE, Go Aks Alice at Celebration Theater, and of course the five wonderful years he played Skip Tumehlou in the improv sitcom The Plush Life, at Mr. Dan’s legendary Cavern Club Theater at Casita del Campo. Jeffrey studied theater and television production at Trinity University, eventually pursuing his dreams in the film program at Columbia College in Chicago. An accomplished theatrical director—most recently last year’s The Booby Prize (Hollywood Fringe Best Comedy nominee)—Jeffrey also has produced & directed half a dozen short films, including Krazy Girls! (Outfest Best Short), and The Gay Garden Show (PlanetOut audience award), and greatly enjoys producing and DPing for other directors. This summer he was Director of Photography on the new comedy web series Where The Bears Are, launching August 1st (WhereTheBearsAre.tv). Jeffrey has been a member of Fierce Backbone since its beginning, where he developed his first solo show, TEXAS LOVES LYLA! in workshop.

LAURA BUTT (Producer/Shirleen) Laura was not seen in such wonderful local productions as Lyla Live! (Show Runner) and Little Black Veil: A Drag Queen Romantic Comedy Musical (Stage Manager). She is busy with her own production company, A Grain of Salt Productions, under which she has been writing/producing/acting in Bad News, a web comedy series. She is also finishing up a short film in which she made her directorial debut. She was a professional actor for many years, and has been seen in many theaters throughout Los Angeles. Laura has a BA in Theater from USC.

JERRY PEREZ (Technical Director/Norman) is excited to be working on Texas Loves Lyla!, with the Fierce Backbone Theatre Company, and especially excited about working on his first Hollywood Fringe production. He received his BA in Theatre from the UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television. Although his focus was in acting Jerry has always enjoyed all of the technical aspects of theatre, from soundboard operation to stage manager. As such, he is happy to be able to make the most of his talents for Texas Loves Lyla!—in both technical and acting aspects.

FIERCE BACKBONE is fielding an unprecedented 7 productions in the 3rd Annual Hollywood Fringe Festival this June, including 3 programs of shorts, 2 plays and 2 solo shows.

“The art of writing has for backbone some fierce attachment to an idea.” Virginia Woolf