ALWAYS OPEN

Always Open

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 10, 2019
Press Contact: Ryan Carbrey
[email protected]
(415) 493 8330/(831)419-9384

‘Always Open’

Set in 1994, Always Open follows a group of friends who inhabit a 24 hour diner in the middle of the night when two new arrivals force them to evaluate themselves. This ensemble comedy explores the relationships of friends as they idle their lives away among soda refills and nachos.

The play takes place at 11:45 at night in two acts. The first is inside the diner and the second takes place outside during the same time period. Inspired by the works of Alan Ayckbourn the two acts interact with each other and things you think you know in the first act are re-contextualized in the second when you see what really happened. While a comedy about smart alec friends too clever for their own good, the play also packs a heart. To quote the new comer Murphy, “For people with not a lot going on, they have a lot going on.”

“Always Open” plays at the Broadwater Mainstage as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival. 1076 Lillian Way, Los Angeles, 90038.

Performances:
Sunday June 16th @9pm
Thursday June 20th @10:30pm
Wednesday June 26th @10pm
Friday June 28th @11:30pm

Tickets $15 – https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/5985

For Audiences 18+ 90 minutes

Where: Broadwater Mainstage, 1076 Lillian Way, Los Angeles, 90038

Directed by Susan Lee
Written by Ryan Carbrey and Richard Moser

Cast: Michael Hettler IV, Matthew Clark, Sherita Davis, Paige Fockler, Susan Lee, Daryl Leonardo, Alex Kotsyk

Audience reviews:
“This is a time capsule in the best possible sense – for the importance of Nirvana in all our lives in the early 90s, and also in that post-high school pre-responsibility haze in which slackerism is both an inescapable inevitability and a great source of truth about the transition that is about to take place. By the end of the play it shows you that it had much more going on than you realized when you first sat down. Solid acting by all involved!”

“Feels like it was plucked straight from the 90s – it captures the narrative feeling of Pulp Fiction (and gives you the same sense of storytelling vertigo), but it’s as if Quentin Tarantino picked up a Chasing Amy/Clerks-era Kevin Smith script.”

“Well written, very well acted. Sometimes smaller shows with bigger casts can have trouble connecting with everyone but this cast of 7 worked great as an ensemble. I was very impressed. Well worth it to check out.”

“A lot of really funny moments but also strangely touching moments (and a few really awesome rocket science-y and profound stuff lol)”

“Very fun and witty play — it gets deeper as it goes on. You think it’s just about witty verbal banter, but then the layers are revealed and it packs a punch. Enjoyed it very much.”

About the team:
Ryan wrote this with Richard Moser as a farewell to the Chabot College stage where he had became a playwright and dramaturg for other emerging writers. During that time he managed multiple ACTF Region VIII nominations for original work and went on to have plays featured in other festivals. For Richard and Ryan this was the most personal work. While not autobiographical, they sought to capture those last moments of weightlessness when you were responsible for your self but in no hurry to get to the rest of your life. Ryan eventually graduated from UC Santa Cruz studying Film and Playwrighting. Richard has a Masters in English and teaches in Sacramento.

Susan Lee (Life On Its Side Studios @LifeOnItsSide) is a comic book creator, a fine artist, a writer, as well as an award-winning director. Her directing style is directly influenced by her time studying acting with Susan Strasberg. Her directing credits include “Gross Indecency, the Three Trials of Oscar Wilde”, “The Jamb”, and the short film, “Mastermind” (world premiere San Diego Comic-Con) as well as the award-winning play, “Juche Rules”.

Press comps available through the Hollywood Fringe website or by emailing Ryan directly at [email protected] (415)493 8330

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/alwaysopenatfringe/