INSANITY TAKES OVER THEATRE ASYLUM IN WEST COAST PREMIER OF ‘BYE-BYE

Bye-Bye

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: April 22, 2015

Contact: Jon Argenziano
[email protected]

Billed as “100 years of horror; one of hour of non-stop laughs,” “Bye-Bye” by award-winning playwright Kealy DeWitt will reinvent bedlam during the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Under the guidance of MarkYourCalendar Productions’ director Robert OMeara and producer Jon Argenziano, the farce plays five weekend performances between June 7 and June 21.

Based on the true story of Byberry, one of the most notorious mental institutions in US history and the inspiration for the classic 1948 film “The Snake Pit,” playwright DeWitt deftly weaves 100 years of historical figures into “Bye-Bye,” using actual recorded testimony and verified events to create an uproarious, no-holds black farce that catapults the audience into a sometimes gripping, often incredulous and always entertaining theatrical experience.

“I am more than thrilled to be directing the West Coast premiere of this hilarious and very important play,” OMeara said. “It’s one of those rare pieces of theatre that skillfully uses humor to make the frightening and unwatchable not only funny, but touching and—I hope—memorable.”

Since DeWitt wrote more than 40 characters into the play, OMeara needed an especially gifted set of actors to bring “Bye-Bye” to life. “The playwright specifically stated a nine actor maximum, and that’s what we have. Everyone is equally important to the story and, for me, it’s one of the strongest, most versatile set of performers with whom I’ve had the pleasure of working.”

The cast of “Bye-Bye” features CJ Armstrong (Into the Woods; Romeo & Juliet), Candice Dalsing (Beauty and the Beast; Carnival), Geoffrey Lloyd (Brighton Beach Memoirs; Peter Pan), Victoria Longwell (As You Like It; The Heidi Chronicles), Norman JR McKenzie (Almost Maine; Revenge of the Space Pandas), Daniel E. Moore (The Industry; Vicky and Sam), Eric Pierce (The Graduate; Barefoot in the Park), Danielle Marie Savka (Julius Caesar; The Laffer Curve Massacre), and Heather Smith (On Golden Pond; Alice in Wonderland).

Bye-Bye tickets are $12 and can be purchased online (http://hff15.org/2350) and at the door. Apply the discount code “OMG” for opening night seats purchased online. Performances are June 7 at 7:30 p.m., June 13 at 1 and 9 p.m. June 20 at 7 p.m. and June 21 at 7:30 p.m. Theatre Asylum is located in the center of Hollywood’s Theatre Row at 6320 Santa Monica Boulevard on the Corner of Santa Monica and Lillian.

For inquiries, email [email protected].

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