Conundrum Stages
presents
Café Conundrum
Friday, August 8th
An evening of cabaret delights and coffeehouse treats that
will satisfy any appetite for live performance
July 15, 2014
Sunrise, FL
After 6 years of variety showcases, Conundrum Stages will present its first ever production at the Sunrise Civic Center Theatre at 8 pm on August 8th. The production will feature a wide variety of exciting talent from across the tri-county spectrum.
Spotlighting both cabaret and coffee house acts, Café Conundrum will feature local stage actors, comedians, musical soloists, and performance poetry all in an effort to recognize the multi-faceted South Florida talent scene. A number of long-time contributors to Conundrum Stages presentations are slated to perform – including singers John Lariviere and Jeanne Lynn Gray, actors Fern Katz, Barry Katz, and Skye Whitcomb, comedians Rhett Thompson and Pam Bruno,andmusicians Serena Stroppa and The Good Guy.
“We are excited to do our first ever production,” says Kevin Johnson, president of Conundrum Stages. “And to do it with these talented artists/entertainers who have dedicated their time to our past presentations – I couldn’t be happier to share the stage with them. Café Conundrum is going to go a long way towards showing our local audiences that there is true and incredible talent in these parts. Special thanks goes to Lily Mazurek and the City of Sunrise for giving Conundrum Stages this opportunity to perform.”
Conundrum Stages was established and incorporated in 2008 as a multi-disciplined performance company providing platforms for Southeast Florida talent to showcase their material. Its origins go back as a play reading project in 2004 known as the Ghost Light Series featuring local stage artists in established works from playwrights from Arthur Miller to Anton Chekhov. After establishing its new operation, Conundrum expanded its programming to feature other disciplines of live performance including original music, poetry, comedy, and dance. Conundrum now has established recurring and annual showcases including The SpeakOut: An Evening of Poetry and Song, VOCAPALOOZA, Funny Business, Sirens & Strings: An Acou-chix Experience (2011-2013), and Holiday House. In 2012 Conundrum Stages reformatted the Ghost Light Series as a play reading festival and will return to Empire Stage in Fort Lauderdale for its second edition in September. For more information about Conundrum Stages, visit www.conundrumstages.net or find Conundrum Stages on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
Café Conundrum will be presented at the Sunrise Civic Center Theatre on Friday, August 8th, 8pm. Tickets are $12 general admission, $10 for students with ID, and $8 for children. For more information and to purchase tickets, please call (954) 747-4646 or visit www.sunrisefl.gov .
Café Conundrum
A tasty night of variety in theatre, music, comedy, and performance art featuring a wide variety of contributors from the talent roster of Conundrum Stages
Date: Friday, August 8th
Time: 8 pm
For Tickets: (954) 747-4646 or visit www.sunrisefl.gov
General Admission, $12, Students w/ ID, $10, Children, $8
Sunrise Civic Center Theatre
10610 West Oakland Park Blvd, Sunrise 33351
Café Conundrum Performers:
PAM BRUNO – Pam is an accomplished stand-up comedian who made her Conundrum debut last December for our annual Holiday House presentation at Acoustic Koi in Dania. With her clever, understated wit and laid back style, Pam delivers comedy from an angle that has won audiences over all across the country. She is a hit in comedy clubs, corporate settings, and private parties, and has taken top honors in many comedy contests. Pam has worked with many nationally known comedians, including Wendy Liebman, Louie Anderson, Elayne Boosler, and actor/comedian Bobby Lee. A founding member of many comedy groups and appearing in web series Adventures of a Sexual Miscreant and Labor Days, Pam is also creator of – and instructor at ‘Laugh Now’ Workshops, teaching everyday comedy to everyday people. For more information about her comedy, please visit www.pambruno.com
THE GOOD GUY – James Carrey also known as The Good Guy has been a Conundrum contributor since 2010, when he read a scene from Death of a Salesman in our 2nd anniversary event at the Tamarac Theatre. Since then he has been performing his original music with Conundrum in programs including our showcases at the Van Dyke Café in October 2012 and October 2013, as well as our Funny Business program in October 2013. He most recently played at our Year 6 Open Mic Tour at the Cabaret South Beach. James is also an accomplished theater actor and playwright, performing in productions including Cannibal: The Musical, Assassins, and the All-American Genderf*ck Cabaret to name a few. Under his Crashbox theatre imprint, he has produced and written CRASHFEST and UNLEASHED, both performed at Empire Stage last year. Now devoted more to music, James’ works can be found on Facebook, Twitter, & Soundcloud under TheGoodGuyMusic.
JEANNE LYNN GRAY – Jeanne was also associated with the Ghost Light Series prior to Conundrum’s incorporation. Her Conundrum debut was participating as a musical guest in both our annual SpeakOut poetry/music event, the On The Boards Alternative Theater Festival and the first VOCAPALOOZA all in 2011. She performed for Conundrum’s 5th anniversary program at the Broward Center, last June. Jeanne is a Carbonell Award winner for her role as Queen in the musical, The Life, a full-time cabaret performer and a lead singer for the TK Blu Band. Other theatre credits include Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical, Company, Ragtime, and Ain’t Misbehavin. Vist her website, www.jeannelynngray.com.
FERN & BARRY KATZ – Fern and Barry are Chicago transplants who have been in South Florida
since 1976 and will be celebrating their 59th wedding anniversary in August. They made their Conundrum debut last June performing a short play for our 5th anniversary show at the Broward Center, and reprised their roles for an art walk in Dania last October. In 1999, The Katzs helped found Actors Community Theatre of Davie and have performed in several of their productions. Fern’s other stage credits include Secrets of the LaCroix, I Hate Hamlet, and Sordid Lives while Barry performed in Nuts, The Music Man, and Tinsel and Turkey. The Katzs have also been in several films and commercials. Be on the lookout for them on the new Paul Giamatti TV series, Hoke. Fern and Barry are delighted to be working with Conundrum Stages on this endeavor called Café Conundrum.
JOHN LARIVIERE – John has been an avid Conundrum Stages contributing performer since participating in the Ghost Light Series prior to Conundrum’s incorporation. Under the Conundrum banner, he participated in a reading of Neil Simon’s The Gingerbread Lady and has given his vocal talents in showcases like The Wonderful World of Conundrum Stages, Vol. 1: Lights Up (2009) and our On the Boards Alternative Theatre Festival at the Tamarac Theatre (2011). John has also performed in both VOCAPALOOZA showcases in 2011 and 2013. John has appeared at professional theatres throughout South Florida in shows such as Rags and Sunday In The Park With George. He regularly headlines as a cabaret singer in area clubs and theatres, and most recently premiered his cabaret show Moon River: The Music of Johnny Mercer. He will next be appearing August 14th – September 14th in a tribute to Al Jolson, Fanny Brice and Eddie Cantor called You Made Me Love You. John is also the General Manager of the Plaza Theatre in Manalapan.
SERENA STROPPA – Serena has been a Conundrum contributor since 2010, making her debut at our 2nd anniversary show at the Tamarac Theatre, performing her original music. She has worked with us for two years through our Sirens & Strings female acoustic program as well as other programs including Holiday House, VOCAPALOOZA. She also played at the Van Dyke Café. Serena now has 2 covers of “Am I Wrong” (Nico & Vinz) and “Story of My Life” (One Direction) available on I-Tunes. Visit her Facebook page under Serenastrr and Youtube under SerenaD Medori.
RHETT THOMPSON – Rhett is a comedian based in Miami. Born and raised in Akron, Ohio, Rhett cut her teeth on the New York comedy circuit. She made her Conundrum debut in 2011, performing at the On the Boards Alternative Theatre Festival. Since then, she has twice performed for our Sirens & Strings female acoustic show, hosted Conundrum programs including Funny Business, Part 2, Conundrum Stages Live at the Open Stage Club and most recently, our Year 6 Open Mic at the Cabaret South Beach. Rhett’s podcast, “Blackanese Chick”, can be found on iTunes, Stitcher, and podOmatic. Please go to www.BlackaneseChick.com for more information and upcoming performances.
SKYE WHITCOMB – Another transplant from the Ghost Light Series, Skye made his Conundrum debut in 2009 acting in a reading of Harold Pinter’s The Homecoming. Skye also directed a reading of The Fall of the House of Usher, an adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, and has participated in our annual SpeakOut poetry/music event for the past 4 years. Theatre performance credits include Neverwhere, In Development, and Lombardi. Skye is the founding Artistic Director for Outré Theatre Company, directing productions of The Wild Party, An Iliad, tick,tick…Boom!, Much Ado About Nothing, Mr. Marmalade, and Thrill Me: The Leopold and Loeb Story. He is looking forward to the upcoming Outré season which includes the plays Back of the Throat and Othello, and the musical Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson. For more details, visit www.outretheatrecompany.com.
presents
Says director Ruchala: “When Rosalie (Grant) asked me to direct a Shakespeare play this summer, it seemed like the stars had aligned. The Comedy Of Errors Is one of my favorite Shakespeare comedies. Pure silly fun, this play is a romping good time for the whole family. Twins, Shipwrecks, mistaken identity times two, chases, and shootouts; I know our modern twist on this classic will keep everyone entertained. I am doing this as an homage to the late artistic director and star of Palm Beach Shakespeare Festival, Kevin Crawford,” Ruchala continues. “Before he passed away unexpectedly last winter we had discussed him helping me cut the script. Luckily, His brother Todd was able to recover this version – which we will be performing.”
