Congrats to Roslyn Cohn!

Congratulations, congratulation to the wonderful actress Roslyn Cohn, who has been listed among the top actors and actresses performing roles in the LA area by critic Joe Straw for her performance in my tragedy “Fifteen Men in a Smoke-Filled Room!”

Joe Straw gives out his “Straw Awards” every year recognizing the best performances he witnessed over the course of the year – performances that stick with him after the curtain falls.

Roslyn Cohn starred in the role of Florence Kling Harding, the acerbic, difficult wife of presidential candidate Warren G. Harding, who worships the stars and foretells the future.

Roslyn Cohn as “Florence Harding” and John Combs as “Harry Daugherty”

“Fifteen Men in a Smoke-Filled Room” was produced late last year by Theatre40 of Beverly Hills (many thanks to its Artistic Director, David Hunt Stafford!).

The show received several very good reviews and Straw was very complimentary of Cohn:

“The one exceptional bright spot in this production was the performance of Roslyn Cohn as Florence Kling Harding.  Her level of concentration was superior, her backstory put life into the character, and the levels in her ambiguity in character kept one guessing throughout the night. In an especially dramatic moment, near the end, Harding exercised incredible strength not turning around knowing full well what was going on.  Cohn put might and backbone into Harding. And, there was an insatiable craving of wanting more from this brilliant performance.”

Here is the full list of winners for the Last Straw Wards of 2019.

Enter “I and the Emperor”

I’m very pleased to announce I have a finished a new historical drama of which I am very proud – “I and the Emperor.”

Briefly, “I and the Emperor” explores the unlikely, turbulent relationship between the 16-year-old Betsy Balcombe and the aging Napoleon Bonaparte during the latter’s exile on the island of St. Helena. The play is ultimately the story of Betsy herself, who comes to understand life, with all its peaks and valleys, through understanding the complexity and tragedy of the exiled Emperor in her backyard.

At its heart, “I and the Emperor” is a sometimes droll, sometimes dramatic, but ultimately touching and thoughtful coming-of-age tale. As a theatrical piece, the play is noteworthy for its two powerful leading roles and several strong supporting characters and that it requires only 7 actors (2 women, 5 men) and a simple unit set to bring its story to life.

Napoleon and Betsy Balcombe

(Napoleon and Betsy Balcombe, from an etching in Balcombe’s memoir.)

You can read a synopsis of the play here!

“Fifteen Men” recognized!

I want to thank the website Better Lemons for recognizing the recent production of my play “Fifteen Men in a Smoke-Filled Room” by Theatre40 of Beverly Hills!

“Better Lemons was founded by Publisher Enci Box with a commitment to support LA’s arts and entertainment community with aggregated reviews, original content, production resources, and marketing services.”

Each year, Better Lemons recognizes the plays that received the best and most reviews in the Los Angeles area on their platform (both reviews by critics and audience members) – called the Double Sweet Award!

Better Lemons Award

As I scrolled down the list of recognized plays, I came across this:

"Fifteen Men" Better Lemon's Recognition

“Better Lemons” had over 1,200 theatrical productions registered on their system in 2019 and “Fifteen Men” was one of only 92 to receive at least 10 reviews by critics that were overall positive!

Many thanks again to Better Lemons for this honor and for their great work in the LA arts community!

Great ad for “Philosophus”

Many thanks to Eldridge Plays and Musicals for putting together a wonderful ad for the January/February edition of Spotlight.

Spotlight is a multi-annual magazine published by the American Association of Community Theatre (AACT), one of the key organizations in the United States for community theater groups.

“Published six times a year and distributed to 1,800 organizational and individual members, Spotlight is also available to members and non-members for viewing online. The January-February issue is mailed to over 7,200 community theatre contacts.”

"Philosophus" AACT Spotlight Magazine Ad

You can check out the full January/February issue of Spotlight here!