L.A. Premiere of the Global Sensation ‘White Rabbit Red Rabbit’
4 min read
The play that no one knows — not even the actors.
The Fountain Theatre, in association with Nassim Soleimanpour Productions, presents the Los Angeles premiere of White Rabbit Red Rabbit, the global sensation by Iranian playwright Nassim Soleimanpour that explores the restrictions, censorship and denial of individual choice faced under a harsh regime.
A theater experience like no other, performances take place May 11 through June 22.
At each performance, a different actor will step onto the stage and be handed a script they’ve never seen before. No rehearsal, no director. Every night is opening night — no repeats. A partial list of “rabbits” — made up of actors who have performed at the Fountain, film and TV actors, faith leaders, writers, teachers and other artistic leaders — includes Sufe Bradshaw (VEEP), Guillermo Cienfuegos (artistic director, Rogue Machine; director, Fountain Theatre’s Between Riverside and Crazy), Candy Clark (American Graffiti),Behzad Dabu (How to Get Away With Murder), Ellen Geer (artistic director, Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum), Sandra Tsing Loh (NPR’s The Loh Life), Joshua Malina (The West Wing, Fountain readings of All The President’s Men and Ms. Smith Goes to Washington at City Hall), Simone Missick (TV’s Luke Cage, Fountain Theatre’s Citizen: An American Lyric), Maddox K. Pennington, (nonbinary writer, professor, stand-up comic and citizen of the Cherokee Nation) and Paul Raci (Academy Award nominee for Sound of Metal, Fountain Theatre’s Cyrano).
Roll out the names…
Every Monday, the Fountain will roll out the names of “rabbits” on their website and social media who are set to take the stage that week.
Barred from leaving Iran for refusing military service, Soleimanpour conceived White Rabbit Red Rabbit as “a message in a bottle” — a way to use the actor’s voice to communicate the experiences of an entire generation living in a restrictive, harshly censored society directly to the audience. Wild and utterly original, the play explores themes of freedom, control and the human condition, with a focus on the lives of young people. It’s emotionally vulnerable at times, hilarious at others, and always pushing the boundaries of what it means to be present: spontaneous, playful, interactive and unpredictable. Join the Fountain team for a piece of baklava and a conversation in the upstairs café after every performance.
Continuing the company’s legacy…
“As the Fountain’s new artistic leader, I’m committed to continuing the company’s legacy of developing, producing and presenting work that uniquely and unabashedly examines the human condition,” says artistic director Raymond O. Caldwell. “Now, more than ever, I believe it’s vital that we use our stage and programming to launch our audience into vital conversations about the fragility of democracy. White Rabbit Red Rabbit asks us to interrogate our individual and collective responsibility in the face of authoritarianism.”
White Rabbit Red Rabbit has been translated into over 30 languages and performed over 3,000 times worldwide. According to the UK Guardian, “We’re asked to consider risk, complicity and conformity, but ultimately White Rabbit Red Rabbit explores the laws of live theater — the way in which an audience lets disbelief ebb and flow; our pleasure in watching an event take shape even without rehearsal.”
Outstanding productions of meaningful new plays.
The Fountain Theatre creates, develops, and produces new plays that bring to life the urgent social, political, and cultural issues of our time, reflecting the vibrant diversity of Los Angeles and the nation. Its educational outreach programs inspire young people to become engaged citizens and leaders of tomorrow. The L.A. City Council commended the Fountain for “achieving a position of leadership in the Los Angeles theatre community… producing meaningful new plays of social and political importance that enrich the lives of the citizens of Los Angeles.” The Fountain is the recipient of the Los Angeles Drama Critic Circle’s Margaret Harford Award for sustained excellence in theater, presented for “outstanding productions of meaningful new plays and first-class performances spanning three decades.”
Los Angeles Times theater critic Charles McNulty hailed the Fountain, stating, “No L.A. theater has done a better job of asking us to reexamine our lives through the lens of acute contemporary drama.”
Performance Dates & Times
Performances begin on Sunday, May 11 at 7 p.m. and continue thereafter on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through June 22. Tickets range from $25–$45; Pay-What-You-Want seating is available every Monday night in addition to regular seating (subject to availability).
The Fountain Theatre is located at 5060 Fountain Avenue (at Normandie) in Los Angeles. Patrons are invited upstairs to relax before and after the show at the Fountain’s café. For reservations and information, call (323) 663-1525 or go to FountainTheatre.com.
*Information courtesy Lucy Pollak Public Relations.
