HOW TO BE A VIRGIN (IN 12 MORALLY AMBIGUOUS STEPS)

A WORLD PREMIERE PLAY BY
CARLA NEUSS

June 2 — June 25, 2016
Studio C Theatre
IN WEST HOLLYWOOD

Lucid Dramatics has announced a limited engagement of How to Be A Virgin (in 12 morally ambiguous steps) during the Hollywood Fringe Festival 2016. A world premiere play by Carla Neuss, it will take place at the Studio C Theatre in West Hollywood. Directed by Payden Ackerman, How to Be a Virgin is previewing on Thursday, June 2, 2016 at 8:30pm before opening on Thursday, June 9, 2016 at 8pm. The play will run for five performances through June 25 only.

Summary
In the style of solo performance, How to Be a Virgin introduces us to The Virgin, a 30-something Christian feminist who is part of the 2% of the population who is still a virgin by the age of 30. According to her, there is a tried and true recipe for being—and staying—a virgin: 1) moral peer pressure, 2) an unconsummated first love affair, and 3) an abiding commitment to feminism. But it hasn’t been easy. A hilarious and unexpected journey through twelve different stages of love and lust, How to Be a Virgin shines a light on this oft-neglected portion of the population and comes to some surprising conclusions about love, sex, and identity in the world of a 21st century quest to “give it up”.

Creative Team
Playwright Carla Neuss
A southern California native, Carla attended UC Berkeley, majoring in English and Theatre. Following this, she interned at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, supporting the production of five world premiere productions. During her time there, she worked with Tony-award winning director Sharon Ott and Pulitzer Prize winner Amy Freed. Carla earned her Masters degree in English and Theatre at Oxford University, specializing in medieval theatre Carla has directed eleven plays in California, New York, and the U.K. As a playwright, her work has been twice awarded in the Oxford New Writing Festival as well as in the Soho Theatre’s Verity Bargate Award for Emerging Writers. Carla currently works as a director, dramaturg, producer, and playwright in Los Angeles. This is her sixth play.

Actor Katelyn Schiller
Katelyn Schiller is an Orange County and Los Angeles based actor. She trained in acting at Whitman College and Walla Walla University in Shakespeare and Restoration Theatre before earning her a B.F.A. in Theatre Performance from Central Washington University, with an emphasis on Devised Theatre and Japanese Noh. She returned to Los Angeles for an internship at A Noise Within Theatre in Pasadena, deepening her training in Shakespeare and Biomechanics, and appeared in several ANW productions, including an Ovation Nominee for Best Production Pericles, Prince of Tyre. Recently she’s appeared in two Sarah Ruhl productions: The Chance Theater’s production of Passion Play and Stages Theatre production of Dead Man’s Cell Phone. In 2015, Katelyn’s wrote and starred in Murder Blood Bear Story which earned a nomination for Best Solo Show Performance at the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Murder Blood Bear Story is currently touring around the country and recently earned the Best in Festival Award at the Maui Fringe Festival 2016.

Actor Joshua Bross
Josh Bross holds a B.A. in Theatre Arts from Cal State Fullerton and has worked onstage and onscreen throughout California. Most recently he performed in Dreams in Overalls, a devised musical aimed towards youth, showing that through grit and perseverance we can overcome struggles and hardships of all degrees. Alongside his work as an actor, Josh is a creative writer and is currently working on his first novel with Penman Productions.

Director Payden Ackerman
Payden Ackerman is an award-winning theatre director, acting coach, and playwright. A Southern California native, Payden holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Arts with an Emphasis in Playwriting from Cal State University, Fullerton. As a playwright, Payden has been produced in Orange County, Los Angeles, Portland, and Seattle. He is also a trained dramaturg, specializing in New Play Dramaturgy and Devised Theatre. He directed the award-nominated solo show, Murder Blood Bear Story, at the Hollywood Fringe Festival 2015. Payden is a Professor of Theatre Studies at Mt. San Jacinto College.

Tickets:
General seating admission is $10 and tickets are available online May 1, 2016 at http://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/3447

Location:
Performances take place at Studio C, 6448 Santa Monica Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. 90038

Dates/Times:
Thursday, June 2, 8:30pm
Thursday, June 9, 8:30pm
Monday, June 13, 5:30pm
Saturday, June 18, 11:00pm
Saturday, June 25, 7:00pm

Hashtag: #howtobeavirgin