Louis & Keely Returns to Los Angeles In New Production At The Geffen Playhouse

LOS ANGELES (December 14, 2015) – Hershey Felder presents Taylor Hackford’s Louis & Keely: ‘Live’ at the Sahara, written by Vanessa Claire Stewart, Taylor Hackford and Jake Broder. This new production features Anthony Crivello (Tony Award Kiss of the Spider Woman) and Ovation Award winner (and recent ceremonial host) Vanessa Claire Stewart who originated the role of Keely Smith. Academy Award winner Taylor Hackford, who helmed the prior Los Angeles production in the Geffen’s more intimate Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater, returns to direct. This new production is presented by award winning performer and producer Hershey Felder whose prior works (The Pianist of Willesden Lane, Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin, and many others) have enjoyed multi-extension runs on both Geffen Playhouse stages and internationally.

Louis & Keely Performances begin December 30 and must close January 17 with a press opening on Wednesday, January 6 in the Gil Cates Theater at the Geffen Playhouse. The production travels to the Laguna Playhouse for a limited engagement beginning on February 24.

Louis Prima and Keely Smith shared a larger-than-life marriage and a groundbreaking Las Vegas act featuring unforgettable songs like “That Ol’ Black Magic,” “Pennies from Heaven,” and “Embraceable You.” Louis & Keely: ‘Live’ at the Sahara has grown from a local Los Angeles hit to a national musical phenomenon. After earlier award-winning and extended productions in Los Angeles and more recent acclaim in Chicago, Louis & Keely: ‘Live’ at the Sahara returns these outsized personalities and talents to the city in which the show was born.

Hedy Weiss said in the Chicago Sun-Times that Crivello and Stewart, “Have crawled so far inside their roles that the temptation is to proclaim: What happened in Vegas not only didn’t stay there, but has come roaring back to life, decades later. Crivello, a wiry fellow with a fabulously craggy and expressive face, takes total possession of Prima, capturing the man’s manic, almost clownish energy, his loose-legged dance moves, his playful singing, and his palpable compulsion to win over an audience. You can’t take your eyes off him and you really have to wonder how the actor will make it through an eight-show week.”

“Stewart, a petite stunner with a voice that beautifully captures the distinctive richness and power of Smith’s, is terrific in the way she grows up in plain sight — from a shy teenager in a cardigan and saddle shoes, to a twenty-something who asserts her independence, to a woman who commits herself to marriage, motherhood and show biz, but finally cannot deal with Prima’s professional jealousy.”

Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune said that these performers, “Do justice to the real artist. There’s no question that Stewart and Crivello fall into that category. A classy new show recalling an age when you could forget your quotidian troubles, old school.”

Hershey Felder Presents Taylor Hackford’s

LOUIS & KEELY: ‘LIVE’ AT THE SAHARA

Written by Vanessa Claire Stewart, Taylor Hackford and Jake Broder

Directed by Taylor Hackford

CAST

Anthony Crivello as Louis Prima

Vanessa Claire Stewart as Keely Smith

with

Erin Matthews as Duchess and others

Paul Perroni as Frank Sinatra and others

PERFORMANCE DATES

December 30, 2015 through January 17, 2016

Press opening Wednesday, January 6, 2016

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Monday No performance

Tuesday – Friday* 8:00pm

Saturday 3:00pm and 8:00pm

Sunday 2:00pm and 7:00pm

*No performance on Friday, January 1, 2016

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets currently range from $43 – $76. A special New Year’s Eve performance is currently priced at $129. Tickets can be purchased in-person, online at www.geffenplayhouse.com or by phone at 310.208.5454. Fees may apply.

LOCATION

Gil Cates Theater at the Geffen Playhouse

10886 Le Conte Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024

ABOUT GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE

Geffen Playhouse has been a hub of the Los Angeles theater scene since opening its doors in 1995. Noted for its intimacy and celebrated for its world-renowned mix of classic and contemporary plays, provocative new works and second productions, the not-for-profit organization continues to present a body of work that has garnered national recognition. Named in honor of entertainment mogul and philanthropist David Geffen, who made the initial donation to the theater, the company was founded by Gilbert Cates, and is currently helmed by Artistic Director Randall Arney, Executive Director Gil Cates, Jr., and Co-Chairs of the Board Martha Henderson and Pamela Robinson. Proudly associated with UCLA, the Geffen welcomes an audience of more than 130,000 each year, and maintains extensive education and community engagement programs, designed to involve underserved young people and the community at large in the arts. Following a strong 2014/2015 season during which five productions extended, the company’s 20th anniversary season features eight productions (two world and three West Coast premieres) featuring some of the nation’s leading playwrights and directors. www.geffenplayhouse.com.

MEDIA CONTACT

Katy Sweet & Associates Public Relations

katy@katysweetpr.com/310.479.2333