Performances:
Saturday, April 15, 3 p.m.
Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

A reception will be included as part of the performance.

ADMISSION:
Admission is free. Reservations required. RSVP beginning Wednesday, March 22, at 9 a.m. 

Saturday, April 15, 3 p.m.:
USC Students, Staff, and Faculty: RSVP
USC Alumni: RSVP
General Public: RSVP

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.:
USC Students, Staff, and Faculty: RSVP
USC Alumni: RSVP
General Public: RSVP

DESCRIPTION:
On April 29, 1992, Los Angeles erupted into chaos and violence after four white police officers were acquitted in the beating of African American Rodney King. The Hotel Play asks what, if anything, has changed in the past 25 years. In this unconventional theatrical work, a group of friends whose high-school graduation was interrupted by the civil unrest in 1992 gather to celebrate their 25th high-school reunion at a hotel in South L.A. There, they must confront the consequences of actions taken in their youth, revisiting sources of trauma, uncovering secrets, and discovering relationships. Set in hotel rooms and a banquet hall, The Hotel Play provides an immersive experience for audience members who travel from room to room with the characters on a journey out of turmoil and toward collective convergence.

Following the performance, USC architecture professor Amy Murphy will lead a discussion about the politics of neighborhoods, the tension between public and private spaces, how place and race intersect, and how The Hotel Play simultaneously remembers where L.A. was in 1992 and dares to hope about where it ought to be. 

The Hotel Play was commissioned by Center Theatre Group and Playwrights’ Arena to mark the 25th anniversary of Playwrights’ Arena, a theatre dedicated to exploring the diverse voices of Los Angeles. Conceived by Playwrights’ Arena’s artistic director, Jon Lawrence Rivera, The Hotel Play was written by seven female Los Angeles playwrights associated with USC: Paula Cizmar, an associate professor in the School of Dramatic Arts; Velina Hasu Houston, director of the MFA program in Dramatic Writing; Jennifer Maisel, adjunct faculty at the School of Dramatic Arts; Nahal Navidar, MFA 2014; Julie Taiwo Oni, MFA 2009; Janine Salinas Schoenberg, MFA 2007; and Laurie Woolery.

Additional Links:
Playwrights’ Arena Facebook
Paula Cizmar Official website, Twitter
Velina Hasu Houston Official website

Presented by USC Visions and Voices: The Arts and Humanities Initiative. Organized by Paula Cizmar (Dramatic Arts), Velina Hasu Houston (Dramatic Arts), and Amy Murphy (Architecture).