Download THE INVISIBLE THEATRE

INVISIBLE THEATRE - PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Cathy Johnson or Susan Claassen
1400 N. First Ave, Tucson, AZ. 85719
Administration – (520) 884-0672
Box Office – (520) 882-9721
[email protected]
www.invisibletheatre.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THE INVISIBLE THEATRE
presents
KEVIN BARTINI & GABRIELLE MIRABELLA
in
A New Comedy About Love & Marriage
Written by ANNABELLE GURWITCH and JEFF KAHN
With additional material by DAVID KOTELES
Directed by PATRICK WALSH
Based on Original Direction by DARREN KATZ
Made possible in part through the generous support of the Milton and Elizabeth Kahn Fund
of the L&R Lawrence Family Foundation
WHERE:
The Berger Performing Arts Center
On the campus of the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind
1200 W. Speedway Blvd.
Tucson, AZ 85745
WHEN:
Saturday, March 9, 2013 at 3:00 pm
Saturday, March 9, 2013 at 8:00 pm
TICKETS:
Ticket Price: $42
To charge tickets by phone, call (520) 882-9721
To purchase tickets on-line, go to www.invisibletheatre.com
and click on the OvationTix logo
Discounts available for groups of ten or more
RUSH TICKETS:
One half-hour prior to curtain for any scheduled performance,
tickets are available for half price, subject to availability
RUNNING TIME:
75 minutes with no intermission
Celebrate 2013 with You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up!
A comedy that People Magazine called “LAUGH OUT LOUD!”
As it continues its National Tour starring Kevin Bartini and Gabrielle Mirabella.
After 17 years of marriage, writers-actors-and real-life-married-couple Annabelle Gurwitch (Dinner
and a Movie, Fired!) and Jeff Kahn (The Ben Stiller Show, Forty Year Old Virgin) have adapted their
hilarious, often moving, memoir, YOU SAY TOMATO, I SAY SHUT UP! for the stage.
In this 75-minute tour de force, YOU SAY TOMATO, I SAY SHUT UP, takes a humorous look at a
relationship that seemed doomed by opposing personalities from the start. After trials and tribulations
they learn to navigate the conflicts that come with romance, money, and children by embracing each
other’s differences, taking on parenting as a competitive sport, and dropping out of couple’s therapy.
Their delightfully crazy lifestyle has managed to keep their relationship intact, up-ending every idea
you ever had about living “happily ever after.”
This uproariously funny story is sure to strike both laughter and terror into the hearts of any couple
(not to mention every single man or woman who is contemplating the connubial state). The book was
developed through sold-out performances at The Comedy Central Theatre and at Upright Citizens
Brigade in Los Angeles, and made its New York premiere at The New York Comedy Festival 2009.
“BOLD…HUMOROUS. AND COMPLETELY REFRESHING.”
WomanAroundTown
“LAUGH OUT LOUD!”
People Magazine
“HILARIOUS”
Judd Apatow
“KAHN AND GURWITCH ILLUMINATE THE INSANITY OF MARRIAGE. THEY MAKE YOU WANT
TO EMBRACE YOUR SPOUSE FOR THE SAME REASON YOU WANT TO STRANGLE THEM.”
Ben Stiller
“FINALLY, A MARRIED COUPLE THAT DOESN’T HIDE BEHIND SUCH TEDIOUS TRAITS AS
PERSONAL LOYALTY, GOOD TASTE, AND AN OVERALL SENSE OF DECORUM!”
Liz Tuccillo, co-author, He’s Just Not That Into You
“LIKE LOVE LETTERS WITH MORE LAFFS!”
Media Bistro
“ANNABELLE GURWITCH AND JEFF KAHN ARE THE LUCY AND DESI OF THE APATOW
AGE”
Lauren Lonnatti, Marie Claire Magazine
“STRONG COUPLES, WHO ARE ABLE TO LAUGH AT THEMSELVES, CAN MAKE IT THROUGH
ALMOST ANYTHING.”
Bettyconfidential.com
WHO’s WHO - The Cast:
KEVIN BARTINI (Jeff) - Stand-Up Comedy Fans the world over have taken notice of Kevin Bartini’s
cutting edge, quick witted biting sense of humor. After twelve years honing his skills in New York
City, Kevin has become one of the brightest stars on the comedy landscape. Kevin is the warm up
comic for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He has also worked for two seasons as an audience
warm-up comic for Who Wants To Be a Millionaire. Kevin has also appeared on television on
Discovery Channels Cash Cab, The Game Show Network’s Newlywed Game and NBC’s Saturday
Night Live. Kevin got his start in theater working with the likes of The Williamstown Theater Company,
Barrington Stage Company and Shakespeare and Company. Kevin lives in NYC’s Morningside
Heights with his wife Jessica and their cats Archie and Edith.
www.KevinBartini.com Twitter.com/KevinBartini
GABRIELLE MIRABELLA (Annabelle) - is a Florida native with a degree from the Manhattan School
of Music. After studying in NYC for both theater and opera, she is currently cramming as many new
and wonderful opportunities into her career as possible. Gabrielle is thrilled to be a part of such a fun
and original project. Some of her favorite regional theater credits include Velma in HAIRSPRAY,
Laura in SWING! and numerous original “MattocS” productions in the Tampa Bay area including
NEW YORK NIGHTS and A JOYFUL NOISE.
WHO’s WHO - The Creatives:
ANNABELLE GURWITCH (Creator/Writer) - Actress and writer Annabelle Gurwitch gained a loyal
comedic following as the co-host of the cult favorite Dinner & a Movie on TBS. Annabelle turned
being fired by Woody Allen into her first book and comedic documentary Fired! which Oprah
Magazine called "entertaining and slyly subversive." Annabelle was a regular commentator for NPR
for numerous years and has written for More, Glamour, Marie Claire, Men's Health, Los Angeles
Times, The Nation, The Los Angeles Times, and regularly blogs for XOJANE and The Huffington
Post. People Magazine gave the You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up book raves calling it “laugh out
loud.”
Annabelle has appeared on The Today Show, Oprah, Bill Maher's Real Time, and made numerous
appearances on CNN and Fox. TV hosting includes three seasons of WA$TED on Planet Green and
programs on ABC, HBO, and the Style Channel. Her acting career includes numerous plays OffBroadway and over 50 guest roles on shows like Medium, Boston Legal, Seinfeld, and Murphy
Brown. Her films include Shaggy Dog, and Melvin Goes to Dinner.
Most recently, Annabelle starred in the world premiere of Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Donald
Marguiles’ A CONEY ISLAND CHRISTMAS at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. Currently, she’s
working on a comedic memoir about turning fifty for Penguin coming out in the spring of 2014. She
loves twitter; you can join her @AnnabelGurwitch. This is her second book and her second marriage.
JEFF KAHN (Creator/Writer) - is a writer/performer who began his career on MTV’s The Ben Stiller
Show. A few years later, he won an Emmy award for writing on FOX’s The Ben Stiller Show - it was a
moment so unexpected and shocking that he literally cried. Jeff has written on several other shows
including, Later with Greg Kinnear, Austin Stories and Dilbert. His essays can be read online at
FreshYarn.com and in his wife’s terrific and very funny book, Fired! He also has written and produced
numerous television pilots, in particular, a spin‐off of All American Girl starring Margaret Cho. He can
be seen on HBO reruns of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Entourage and The Larry Sanders Show, and has
been seen in films including, Tropic Thunder, 40‐Year‐Old Virgin, and The Cable Guy. Online, Jeff is
featured on the show, The Writer’s Room. This is his first book and first marriage. Annabelle and Jeff
live in Los Angeles with their 14 year old son, Ezra. Their beloved cat Stinky has gone to the great
litterbox in the sky. They now share their home with two kittens, Anthony Perkins and Alexander
Puskin.
DAVID KOTELES (Additional Material) - has had plays produced on the east and west coasts,
including his award-winning, GLAAD-nominated comedy BALD DIVA!: THE IONESCO PARODY
YOUR MOTHER WARNED YOU ABOUT. BALD DIVA! was later published in NYTE’s anthology
Playing with Canons: Explosive New Works from Great Literature by America’s Indie Playwrights.
And it was listed on numerous end-of-the-year (“Best of the Season”) lists for best play of 2004.
David's enjoyed numerous New York productions, workshops and readings of his work at such places
as Ensemble Studio Theatre, Manhattan Class Company, The Rattlestick, Alice's Fourth Floor,
Primary Stages, The Perry Street Playhouse, Manhattan Theatre Source, Clemente Soto Velez, the
Fresh Fruit Festival, the Homogenius Festival, Cherry Picking, the Red Room, and the Westbank
Café. A graduate of the Columbia University School of the Arts, David has studied playwriting with
Theresa Rebeck, Anne Bogart, Eduardo Machado, Leslie Ayvazian, Frank Pugliese, and Kelly Stuart.
He was also honored with the Richard Rodgers Scholarship and a Howard Stein Fellowship while at
Columbia. David graduated summa cum laude from Queens College, where he was made Phi Beta
Kappa and earned the John Golden Award for Playwriting. He has also written several (as of yet
unproduced) film scripts and TV pilots, and David was a finalist for the Writer’s Lab at the Sundance
Film Festival. He’s a staff writer on the webisode sitcom, Ernie’s Girls. And he currently lives in Los
Angeles, where he is desperately trying to be a Hollywood sell-out.
PATRICK WALSH (Director) – Theater - Director: Hangar Theatre – MACBETH, THE EMPTY
OCEAN, THE ADVENTURES OF THE DISH AND THE SPOON; Chautauqua Theatre Company –
THE BROTHERS SIZE; Victory Gardens – PUSH COMES TO SHOVE; Rubicon Theatre Project –
LUCY DREAMING; Theatre Building Chicago – FIFTH OF JULY, ONE FLEW OVER THE
CUCKOO’S NEST; Bailiwick Repertory Theatre –TWO SPOONS, HARAM IRAN; Mad Hatter Theatre
Productions – CHICKEN BONE BEACH; Props Theatre – CLOSER; Trail’s End Theater – INTO THE
WOODS, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM. As Assistant Director: Guthrie Theatre Goodman
Theatre; Dallas Theatre Center; Steppenwolf Theatre Company; Chautauqua Theater Company, and
Next Theatre. Patrick is a member of the 2009 Lincoln Center Directors Lab; the Recipient of an SDC
Foundation Observership, as well as a Chautauqua Theater Company Directing Fellowship, and a
Drama League Directing Fellowship.
DARREN KATZ (Original Director) - is currently Resident Director for THE LION KING on
Broadway. Recent directing credits include I GOT SICK THEN I GOT BETTER at New York Theatre
Workshop (co-directed with James Lapine), THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING
BEE (2nd National Tour), HAPPY SUNSHINE KUNG FU FLOWER (The Zipper Factory), and the
development of original shows at Pace University and NYU/Strasberg Studios. He is directing and
developing numerous new theater pieces, including SUNRISE AT HYDE PARK by Tom Wilson
Weinberg and Peggy Stafford; SEXURITY by Yuval Boim (Joyce Soho); THE BIRTHDAY BOY by
Wes Webb; and THE WASP WOMAN by Phillip Chernyak and Blake Hackler (NYTE).
AJ MATTIOLI (Production Stage Manager) - is delighted to be coming back to his routes of Stage
Management for TOMATO! Mattioli has Stage Managed over 25 shows in NYC. Most notable credits
are FACESPACE, LECTURE WITH CELLO, and SEE HOW BEAUTIFUL I AM. At Queens Theatre,
he has worked on over 200 shows since he began working there in 2007. Recently, AJ opened his
own company called Mattioli Productions, LLC which serves the LGBTQ community as a media
specialist. As quoted by Times Square Gossip (AJ) "could very well be considered the voice of the
LGBT community in the independent film world.” The May 2011 issue of The Advocate included
Mattioli in their issue of Forty People Under 40 to Look Out For. With his films An Affirmative Act,
Lady Peacock, and his Mini-Series The Coffee Shop it is obvious that this Transmale is definitely
making his mark.
GILLIAN ALBINSKI (Costume and Production Designer) - is currently the Prop Master for the hit
Showtime series Homeland, having previously served as the Prop Master for Season 5 of the Lifetime
series Army Wives. A graduate of the theatre program at Penn State, Gillian has spent the last 15
years working in the film industry and her credits include such projects as The Strangers, Shallow
Hal, The Royal Tenenbaums, Leatherheads and He Got Game. For Blumenthal Performing Arts, she
has previously production designed Les Lankhorst: Red, Hot & Swing, Embraceable Me and
Charlotte Squawks. In 2011, she celebrated her 15th Anniversary happily married to Douglas Young.
JOHN G. HARTNESS (Lighting Designer) - has directed, designed and performed in dozens of
shows in Charlotte and the surrounding areas. Among his favorites are RENT, CORPUS CHRISTI,
HAMLET, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, THE TAMING OF THE SHREW, ANNA KARENINA,
JEFFREY and RAGTIME. When away from the theatre, John is the author of the best-selling urban
fantasy novels The Black Knight Chronicles.
JEFF MONTGOMERIE (Sound Designer) – Every time Jeff thinks that he has retired from the
theatre, something seems to lure him back. In previous lives he has designed sound, projections and
lighting for Davidson Community Players, Off Tryon Theatre, Innovative Theatre, The Cleveland
Playhouse, Pasadena Playhouse, Chelsea Stage and Geva Theatre. He has also mixed live
performances by Wynton Marsalis, Doc Watson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Koko Taylor, BeauSoliel, and
Loonis McGlohon. He currently manages the North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia branches of
Barbizon Lighting Company, selling theatrical, filmmaking and television equipment.
OBB (Producer & Booking Agency) - Was established in 2005 as a booking agency dedicated to
the promotion and awareness of Off Broadway as a brand of excellence in theater to audiences
outside of New York City. Since that time, OBB has grown into a full service booking agency and
production company placing Broadway and Off Broadway productions, Special Events, and award
winning Solo Shows in theaters across the country and the world. Past and current shows include
The Aluminum Show, Footloose, The Wedding Singer, Blast, Celebrity Autobiography, The
Improvised Shakespeare Company, Judy Gold's 25 Questions for a Jewish Mother, Robert Wuhl's
Assume The Position, My Mother's Italian, My Father's Jewish and I'm in Therapy, Dixie's
Tupperware Party, One Man Star Wars, Irving Berlin's I Love a Piano, 'S Wonderful and many more.
www.obbnyc.com.
Invisible Theatre
Booking Agency – OBB
1400 N. First Avenue
Tucson, AZ 85719
Box Office – (520) 882-9721
Administration – (520) 884-0672
Fax – (520) 884-5410
www.invisibletheatre.com
1650 Broadway, Suite # 408, NY, NY 10019
New York, NY 10019
Phone – (212) 586-7777
Fax – (212) 586-7809
www.tomatoplay.com