[NEohioPAL]PRESS RELEASE: Wild Plum Productions returns to CPT w/ TOUCHED: BODIES OF WORK

[Dan Kilbane]

News for Immediate Release
Monday, November 8

Contact:
Maura Haas, w: (216) 651-5428, mhaas at lgcsc.org <mailto:mhaas at lgcsc.org>
		Tim Marshall, w: (216) 651-5428, c: (216) 288-5682, tmarshall at lgcsc.org
<mailto:tmarshall at lgcsc.org>

Wild Plum returns to Cleveland Public Theatre
with Touched: Bodies of Work

Touched: Bodies of Work, a festival of works with an LGBT twist.
Featuring Dan Kilbane, Denise Astorino, Elizabeth R. Wood, Brad Speck,
Katherine Harvey, Shelby Scanlon and Ken Roderick Nicholson.
With works by Linda Eisenstein, Katherine Harvey, Miriam Axel-Lute and Maura
Haas
Directed by Maura Haas
November 18-28 2004
Cleveland Public Theatre’s James Levin Theatre

(Cleveland, Ohio) - Who or what touches you? This question of sexuality,
sensuality and spirituality will be explored in Touched: Bodies of Work,
Wild Plum Productions’ festival of works with a lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender twist at Cleveland Public Theatre.

Wild Plum last graced CPT in 2003 with Hers, His, Ours and Mine, a sold-out
festival of relationship-oriented one-act plays. In a sense, Touched picks
up where that performance left off as it looks at love, lust and the trials
that come with both.

Touched combines movement, poetry and one-acts to present a slice of life of
LGBT people looking for love, in all the right and wrong places. The
performance begins with a queer spin on Romeo and Juliet (whole cast) and
segues into original works by local writers, including noted playwright
Linda Eisenstein, Oberlin College alumna Miriam Axel-Lute and director Maura
Haas.

Eisenstein’s Marla’s Devotion (Astorino and Wood) is an offbeat comedy about
relationships -- and the exquisite difficulty of making changes that
actually change anything. Her second one-act featured in the show, A Rustle
of Wings (featuring Kilbane, Speck, Nicholson, Scanlon), details the
heart-pounding attraction between an average bar-goer and a mysterious,
leather-clad noir angel.

Axel-Lute’s 100% Queer (performed by Wood) is a poem about the trials of
being an out bisexual person in a world that’s far too black and white for
someone who loves all. Haas’s Beating Flame (performed by Astorino) deals
with taking hold of your life when love takes over you.

Songs by Katherine Harvey of the transgender musical revue, The Sissy Show
(www.sissyshow.com) are featured throughout the performance.

An opening night reception on Friday, November 19 begins after the show at
CPT’s Detroit-Shoreway neighbor, the Lesbian/Gay Community Center (6600
Detroit Ave.). Press and community partners are also invited to the
Thursday, November 18 preview night of Touched.

Touched runs Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., and
Sundays at 3:00 p.m. Ticket prices range from $10 - $15, and can be
purchased by phone by
calling (216) 631-2727.

An accompanying art show which explores themes from Touched, opens at the
Center’s Wild Plum Galleries with a special reception on Friday, November 26
at 7 p.m. Featured artists include Kris Barnes (fiber arts & bookmaking),
Liz Bowman (multimedia), Judy Pezdir (painting), Toni Federrio (painting)
and Shahin Afnan (digital media). The exhibit runs through February 25.

For more information on Wild Plum Productions, call (216) 651-5428 or visit
www.lgcsc.org/wildplum.html.

###

Wild Plum Productions
Wild Plum Productions is a cultural arts organization dedicated to promoting
and producing queer art, theatre, musical performances and more. Since 2003,
the organization has produced a sold-out festival of one-act plays at
Cleveland Public Theatre, the Center/Wild Plum Gallery Series and a series
of Open Mic Night poetry and spoken word events. Wild Plum’s new works
festival, “Touched: Bodies of Work,” will be held at CPT’s James Levin
Theatre November 18-28. Wild Plum Productions is a programming partner of
the Lesbian/Gay Community Center of Greater Cleveland.
















Wild Plum Productions Fact Sheet

Production: Touched: Bodies of Work

Artistic Staff
Works by Linda Eisenstein, Katherine Harvey, Maura Haas and Miriam
Axel-Lute.
Directed by Maura Haas.

Cast
Dan Kilbane, Denise Astorino, Katherine Harvey, Brad Speck, Ken Nicholson,
Shelby Scanlon and Elizabeth R. Wood.

Performance Dates and Times
Preview Night		Thursday, November 18, 7:30 p.m.
Opening 		Friday, November 19, 8 p.m.
Closing			Sunday, November 28, 3 p.m.
Run			November 18, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28
Times			Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.
			Fridays at 8:00 p.m.
			Saturdays at 8:00 p.m.
			Sundays at 3:00 p.m.

Ticket Prices
Friday and Saturdays $15
Sunday: $12
Thursdays $10

Reservations and information
(216) 631-2727

Location
CPT’s James Levin Theatre, 6415 Detroit Avenue

Wild Plum Web site: <http://www.lgcsc.org/wildplum.html>
CPT Web Site: <http://www.cptonline.org>


Photo Cutlines

Bethdenise.tif (female couple)
Elizabeth R. Wood (l) portrays Joey, the uptight lover of a new age lesbian
played by Denise Astorino in Touched: Bodies of Work, a festival of
LGBT-themed works at Cleveland Public Theatre Nov. 19-28.

Danbrad.tif (male couple)
Brad Speck (l) meets a mysterios noir angel played by Dan Kilbane in
Touched: Bodies of Work, a festival of LGBT-themed works at Cleveland Public
Theatre Nov. 19-28.

Danshelbrad.tif (two males, one female)
Brad Speck (l) turns his attention to dancer Shelby Scanlon - and away from
his lover Dan Kilbane in Touched: Bodies of Work, a festival of LGBT-themed
works at Cleveland Public Theatre Nov. 19-28.