Michael Yavnieli to Direct Scott Organ’s Tragicomedy, PHOENIX at the Broadwater

The Play is Presented by Aegis Theatre Company October 4–19

After a sold-out run last spring, Aegis Theatre Company brings back, Phoenix by Scott Organ, directed by Michael Yavnieli at one of LA’s favorite theatres, the Broadwater Black Box in Hollywood.

Phoenix is a playful and intelligent production with courage and compassion that runs October 4 through 19. Friday & Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm at the Broadwater Black Box, 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. Hollywood, 90038 Tickets are $25 and available online at EVENTBRITE .

The play stars Emanuela Boisbouvier as Sue and Gus Schlanbusch as Bruce and the production team includes Beverly Hills Playhouse alum Michael Yavnieli (Director), Nick Howard (Technical Designer), Caitlin Grace (Stage Manager), Sandra Kuker PR (Publicist) and Molly Sazer-Hopf (Digital Designer).

Theatre History

Phoenix originally premiered at the 2010 Humana Festival of New American Plays and at the time Ross Reports said “Phoenix is at its best when it surprises…The playfulness and intelligence…make us feel we’re in on a smart new joke instead of being way ahead of a stale old one.” 

The New York Times recommended, ” …allow yourself to get intoxicated by the pleasures of… romantic comedy.” 

Bios Courtesy of the Production Team

Emanuela Boisbouvier (Sue) – is a Monégasque/Italian actor based in Los Angeles. She graduated with degrees in Political Science and Theater from UCLA, and is currently working on an Artist Visa in the US. Her recent theatrical credits include Finding Avi at the La Jolla Playhouse WOW Festival and The Motherf*cker With The Hat at Bold Theater. On screen, she most recently starred in the upcoming indie feature film Jaunt, directed by Alexi Papalexopoulos.

Gus Schlanbusch (Bruce) – Graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in Theatre and has also studied with the British American Drama Academy, the Prague Shakespeare Company, and the Stratford Shakespeare Festival of Canada. Gus is a founding member of Aegis Theatre Company, with whom he has directed past productions of The Aliens And Dread, as well as producing Route and Phoenix.  Chicago theatre: Arcadia; The Grapes Of Wrath; Domer. Television: Chicago PD.

Michael Yavnieli (Director) – Began directing theater in 2019, and Phoenix represents his sixth stage play as director. In 2019, Michael helmed productions of James McLure’s Laundry & Bourbon + Lone Star in Los Angeles and San Francisco; then I Am My Own Wife, Dinner With Friends and Cock for Crimson Square Theatre Company in Los Angeles, receiving positive reviews for all, and garnering mention (for Cock) as one of Medium.com’s Top Ten LA Theatre Productions of 2019. In 2022, he produced and directed David Ives’ All In The Timing + Mere Mortals, which starred Patrick Warburton, at the Zephyr Theatre. Yavnieli is also an actor, having appeared in over thirty television and film productions and over forty theatrical productions in his three-decade professional career. He is the founding teacher of MY | Acting Studios, and studied his craft for many years at the Beverly Hills Playhouse.