LIFE, DEATH & DURAN DURAN COMES TO HOLLYWOOD FRINGE!

Sam Shaber: Life, Death & Duran Duran

Life, Death & Duran Duran comes to Hollywood Fringe!

After a successful run at Edinburgh Fringe, acclaimed artist Sam Shaber brings her unique musical storytelling to L.A. with tales of dreams, loss and rock band obsession.

LOS ANGELES – According to New York indie rocker Sam Shaber, life has three guarantees: you’re born, you die and if your name is Rio, you dance on the sand. Shaber was born hungry like a wolf for rock stardom. So, she grew up to sing about life and death and built an acclaimed musical career…as well as a truly unique theatrical experience.

Coming off a wildly successful premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe, Sam Shaber: Life, Death & Duran Duran makes its U.S. debut this June at The Complex as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival. In this original musical storytelling experience, Sam Shaber tells personal tales of adolescent dreams and lost loved ones. Each moment of loss is balanced with a vignette of Shaber as her obsessive, pre-teen, Durannie self (i.e. piercing her own ear with a push pin and declaring herself a future worldwide rock star) to create an emotional roller coaster of laughter, tears and catharsis. Between spoken word and her own songs, which she performs live on stage, Shaber reminds her audience that our loved ones become a part of us forever, and that is what keeps us dancing on the sand.

“I’m not an actor…I’m a musician and a storyteller, so I take a different approach to making theatre because I can only be myself,” Shaber said. “Life, Death & Duran Duran is me talking directly to the audience, sharing very painful, personal stories, and playing my own songs that further express the emotions of those stories, balanced with the humor of looking back at the absurdity of teenage years spent obsessed with a band. Even though these stories are so specific to me, audiences seem to really connect with them, as though they can see my life as a mirror to their own. This is really a show about life.”

As a singer songwriter, Shaber has toured over 200,000 miles and released 12 independent albums, first as a solo folk artist and more recently with her band The Happy Problem. She’s also worked with bands in several other genres, including The Good People of Planet Earth, The Bashful and The Org. Shaber has performed in a variety of storytelling events and has hosted at UCB. A Moth StorySlam winner, she will soon tour as part of The Moth 2018 Main Stage season.

She debuted Sam Shaber: Life, Death & Duran Duran at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2017 to five star reviews. She’s looking at a New York run in the fall and possibly back overseas. The show was co-created and is directed by Edinburgh Fringe veteran and award winner Lynn Ferguson, who also worked as staff writer for the Late Late Show and a script consultant for Pixar’s Brave.

When they sat down to create the show, Shaber shared deeply personal songs of a friend who was killed in a car accident, her admiration of her father, struggles with infertility and of course, her obsession with Duran Duran, and what Ferguson saw, or rather heard, was a cohesive theme about someone still searching for something she set out to find long ago.

“That’s what connects people to this show,” Shaber said. “It’s personal to me, but it’s something we can all identify with and understand. I want audiences to laugh and to cry, but more than anything I want them to walk away with a reaffirmation of life and love. This is a show about how rich life is when you have people who become part of you, inspire you, and fill you with love. That’s truly affirming.”

Calendar Listing Request:

Sam Shaber: Life, Death & Duran Duran
Directed by: Lynn Ferguson
Performed by Sam Shaber

SYNOPSIS:
Coming off a wildly successful premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe, Sam Shaber: Life, Death & Duran Duran makes its U.S. debut this June at The Complex as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival. In this original musical storytelling experience, acclaimed New York indie rocker Sam Shaber tells personal tales of adolescent dreams and lost loved ones. Each moment of loss is balanced with a vignette of Shaber as her obsessive, pre-teen, Durannie self (i.e. piercing her own ear with a push pin and declaring herself a future worldwide rock star) to create an emotional roller coaster of laughter, tears and catharsis. Between spoken word and her own songs, which she performs live on stage, Shaber reminds her audience that our loved ones become a part of us forever, and that is what keeps us dancing on the sand.

DATES AND TIMES:
Part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival
Friday, June 1 – 7:30 p.m.
Friday, June 8 – 9:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 10 – 6 p.m.
Saturday, June 16 – 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, June 21 – 10:30 p.m.

LOCATION:
The Complex (Ruby Theatre)
6476 Santa Monica Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90038

TICKET PRICES:
General Admission: $12

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
http://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/5065

CONTACT INFORMATION:
Sam Shaber
(917) 453-0502
[email protected]

QUOTES ABOUT “SAM SHABER: LIFE, DEATH & DURAN DURAN”

“*****A winning raconteur. Sam Shaber is a highly intelligent and compelling performer.” - British Theatre Guide

“What a performer! Life, Death & Duran Duran was one of my highlights of the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe. This show is life-affirming and funny as well as poignant. A must-see.”
- Janice Forsyth, BBC Scotland

“Shaber displays her bright vocals on her own compositions, switching from electric to folk guitar, often neatly seguing into some of her idols’ songs. Shaber’s warmth and sincerity mean that the show, while emotionally raw, is never maudlin.”
- The Times

“The stories are heartfelt and her singing is stunning. She owns the stage when she sings.”
- Three Weeks

“Sam weaves together her life’s journeys into a coherent and satisfying whole. Life, Death & Duran Duran is solid storytelling: unapologetic about both its sentimentality and compassion.”
- The List

“A beautifully performed and written monologue with incredibly catchy songs, Sam’s show was a joy to have as part of our programme in 2017. We’d love to have her back in the future!”
- Katy Koren, Gilded Balloon