PLAYFEST ANNOUNCES STARS OF SIGNIFICANT PLAY
Two of Durango’s favorite stars, Wendie Malick(“Just Shoot Me,” “Hot in Cleveland”) Dan Lauria (“The Wonder Years,” “Pitch”) star in the reading of award winning playwright, Lee Blessing’s new play “A Body of Water”.
Durango PlayFest announced today that Wendie Malick and Dan Lauria are returning to town in August to star in the recent play A Body of Water. Malick has extensive stage and film credits including plays such as Big Night, The Santaland Diaries, the Guys and Blythe Spirit and films such as Adventureland, The American President and Bugsy. Her many television credits include recent appearances on This is Us, Darrow and Darrow, Grace and Frankie, American Housewife, Mom, NCIS New Orleans and Rush Hour. She was a series regular on Hot in Cleveland, Just Shoot Me, Dream On, Frasier, Good Company, CSI, NYPD Blue, LA Law, The X Files and Seinfield. In Durango, Wendie has been seen in The Guys and Love Letters.
Dan Lauria has appeared as a guest star in over seventy television episodic programs, more than twenty Movie of the Week productions, plus a score of motion picture credits. Dan is a very familiar face to the off-off and regional theater scene having performed, written or directed over 50 professional stage productions. IN 2010/2011 Dan was seen on Broadway as the legendary coach Vince Lombardi in Lombardi. However, Dan is most recognized as the dad on the highly acclaimed, Emmy-Award winning, ABC show, The Wonder Years. Dan has just joined the family of This is Us and has appeared with his Malick in the Anne Nelson play The Guys in numerous theaters around the country, including in Durango. He also appeared with Wendy in Durango in Love Letters.
Durango native, Elizabeth Gray will also be appearing in the play. She is a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and also attended The Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London. Her New York credits include Scissoring at The Signature Theatre, and Marie Christine at 3LD. She has also performed a number of times with the local Durango theatre company, The Merely Players.
A Body of Water was written by award-winning playwright Lee Blessing. Mr. Blessing wrote A Walk in the Woods, which was nominated for Tony and Olivier Awards and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Among other honors, his plays have twice won the Steinberg/American Theater Critics’ Association Award. Both the Signature Theatre and Profile Theatre in Portland, Oregon have devoted full seasons to Blessing’s plays.
A Body of Water will be directed by Christy Montour-Larson. Christy is based out of Denver and is a multiple Denver Post Ovation and Colorado Theatre Guild Henry award-winning director. She was recently named Top Director by Westword Magazine, 5280 Magazine and CBS4 Denver. Christy’s work has been seen in Colorado at many venues state-wide, including Curious Theater, Denver Center for the Performing Arts and Creede Repertory. She has also directed productions at numerous theaters nationally and has directed over 50 staged readings, including Minneapolis/St. Paul by Lee Blessing. She teaches directing and acting at Metropolitan State University and Denver Center for the Performing Arts and is a member of Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.
Durango PlayFest will take place the week of August 6, culminating with staged readings of three new works on August 10 and 11. During the week of rehearsal there will be meet the artists sessions and a Playwrights Panel free and open to the public.
The PlayFest Advisory Committee is comprised of Terry Bacon, Richard Ballantine, Christina Erteszek, Jim Foster, Bud Franks, Fran Franks, Fritz Geisler, Margie Deane Gray, David Hill, Hunter Johnson, and Felicia Lansbury Meyer.