Setting Up Play Times

How about a family night out at the theater? Too expensive? Not on your usual list of family fun? “Kids’ Week at the Theatre” hopes to change your mind.

From March 1 to 8, more than 30 Los Angeles-area theaters will be offering families two free children’s tickets (ages 18 and under) per paying adult to a variety of theater productions--musicals, comedies, dramas--in addition to free backstage tours, open rehearsals and other activities.

The event, inspired by New York’s “Kids’ Night on Broadway,” is part of a national program; it is presented here by Theatre LA, a nonprofit association of L.A.-area theaters and producers, and by A.S.K. Theater Projects, a local and national source for the theater and its artists.

“We really want people to start making theater part of their entertainment choices,” said Briget Wandruff, director of operations for Theatre LA and Kids’ Week program director. “The idea is to build the audiences and the artists for the future, and the only way you can do that is by opening the doors and letting people know that theater exists.”

Offerings range from the Santa Monica Playhouse’s musical comedy version of “Cinderella” to the much-anticipated, Tony Award-winning tap musical “Bring In ‘Da Noise, Bring In ‘Da Funk” at the Ahmanson Theatre. (Note: “Ragtime” at the Shubert Theatre is not participating.)

Other productions are strictly for older teenagers, such as Charles Ludlam’s two-man horror comedy “The Mystery of Irma Vep”--John Fleck and Tony Abatemarco play all the parts--at the Tiffany Theatre and Actors’ Gang’s production of Oscar Wilde’s enigmatic tragicomedy “Salome”--which is “a little gritty, a little raw,” Wandruff said.

Wandruff also wants potential audiences to know that theaters come in all sizes, “you don’t have to wear Armani” and that many are in local neighborhoods. Many companies also cross cultural lines, she said.

Wandruff cites the East West Players, an Asian American company presenting “Pacific Overtures,” Stephen Sondheim’s musical about international relationships, and Towne Street Theatre, “one of the only African American nonprofit theaters in Los Angeles,” which can be seen in its NAACP 1997 Theatre Award-winning production of Sheri Bailey’s drama “Passing,” set in the Harlem Renaissance period of the ‘20s and ‘30s.

“The audience itself is theater,” Wandruff said. “It’s a collective experience, a kind of magic and a journey you cannot get from films or watching television.”

Following is a partial list of events; for information, call (213) 614-0556.

Preschool and Up

“Cinderella,” Santa Monica Playhouse, 1211 4th St., Santa Monica, March 1, 1 p.m. (310) 394-9779, Ext. 2.

“The Adventures of Denton the Dragon,” Kanebell Enterprise, Celebrity Centre Theatre, Garden Pavilion, 5930 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, tech/dress rehearsal: March 5, time TBA; performance, March 7-8, 2 p.m. (818) 702-7655.

6 and Up

“Bring In ‘Da Noise, Bring In ‘Da Funk,” Ahmanson Theatre, Music Center, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 628-2772; March 4-6, 8 p.m.; March 7-8, 2 and 8 p.m.

8 and Up

“Damn Yankees,” Actors Co-op, Crossley Terrace Theatre , 1760 N. Gower St., Hollywood, March 2-6, 8 p.m.; March 8, 2:30 p.m. (213) 462-8460.

“Pacific Overtures,” East West Players, 120 N. Judge John Aiso St., Little Tokyo, March 7, 8 p.m.; March 8, 2 p.m. (213) 625-7000.

12 and Up

“Harriet’s Return,” Geffen Playhouse, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Westwood, March 4-5, 1:30 p.m. (310) 208-5454, ask for Dave Barr.

“Ivanov,” Pacific Resident Theatre, 705 1/2 Venice Blvd., Venice, March 5-6, 8 p.m.; March 8, 3 p.m. (213) 660-8587; for tours and meetings with cast: (213) 871-1488.

“Life Support,” Actors Alley at the El Portal, 5269 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, March 5-6, 8 p.m.; March 8, matinee TBA, (818) 508-4200; ask for Jill Jones.

“Morning Star,” Colony Studio, 1944 Riverside Drive, Silver Lake, March 5-7, 8 p.m.; March 8, 2 p.m.

“The Mystery of Irma Vep,” Tiffany Theaters, 8532 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, March 1, 7 p.m.; March 4-5, 8 p.m. (310) 289-2999.

“Passing,” Towne Street Theatre, 799 S. Towne St., Los Angeles, March 1, 3 p.m.; March 7, 8 p.m.; March 8, 3 p.m. (213) 624-4796.

14 and Up

“Volpone,” A Noise Within, 234 S. Brand Blvd., Glendale, March 1, March 4, 7 p.m. (818) 546-1924.

15 and Up

“Eden” (staged reading), Coronet Theatre, 366 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood, March 2, 8 p.m. Free to all; reservations not required.

“Two Divas and a Dog” (staged reading), Tiffany Theatres, 8532 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, March 2-3, 8 p.m. Free to all; reservations required. (310) 289-2999.

17 and Up

“Distracted by the Landscape” (open rehearsal), Moving Arts, 1822 Hyperion Ave., Silver Lake area, Los Angeles, March 2, call for evening time. (213) 665-8961.

“Salome,” Actors’ Gang, 6209 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, March 5-6, 8 p.m. (213) 660-8587.

All Ages

Backstage tour, La Mirada Theatre, 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada, March 4, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.; by reservation only, (714) 994-6150, ask for Laura Moore.

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (rehearsal), Los Angeles Women’s Shakespeare Co. at Gascon Center Theatre, 8737 Washington Blvd., Culver City, March 7, (310) 453-5069.

Backstage tour, Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., West Los Angeles, March 7, 2 p.m.; by reservation only, (310) 477-2055.

Other participating theaters: Can~on Theatre, 205 N. Can~on Drive, Beverly Hills, (310) 859-8001; Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Ave., Hollywood, (213) 663-2235; Sisu Productions, (213) 860-9933; Synthaxis, Lankershim Arts Center, 5108 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, (818) 752-2253; Virginia Avenue Project, (310) 828-7443.