WEST COAST PREMIERE OF
MISHA SHULMAN’S
AWARD-WINNING AND CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED PLAY
“DESERT SUNRISE”
STARRING OREN DAYAN, MIRIAM ISA
AND “GENERAL HOSPITAL’S” DOMINIC RAINS
DIRECTED BY GRAMMY-NOMINATED RECORDING ARTIST AND SONGWRITER ELLEN SHIPLEY

PERFORMANCES BEGIN JULY 10 THROUGH AUGUST 9
WITH THE OFFICIAL PRESS OPENING ON JULY 11
AT THE LILLIAN THEATRE

LOS ANGELES, CA (June X, 2008) – The critically-acclaimed and award-winning play DESERT SUNRISE, by Israeli Army veteran Misha Shulman (Off Broadway’s The Fist), will have its West Coast premiere at The Lillian Theatre (1076 Lillian Way) in Hollywood. Ellen Shipley, the renowned Grammy-nominated recording artist and songwriter (“Heaven is A Place on Earth”), returns to her theatre roots, as she directs this moving play about an Israeli soldier, a Palestinian shepherd and his Palestinian girlfriend, as they share their stories one memorable night in the West Bank desert, and recognize in each other the same fears, desires and tenderness. Set to star are Oren Dayan as Tsahi (NBC’s “Life”), Miriam Isa as Layla (Mambo Repossession) and Dominic Rains as Ismail (Dr. Leo Julian in “General Hospital”).  Performances begin July 10 with the official press opening set for Friday, July 11.

DESERT SUNRISE begins with a chance encounter between an Israeli soldier (Dayan) and a Palestinian shepherd (Rains) seeking refuge in a desert valley in the Israeli occupied West Bank. Warily, they circle each other, quarreling, laughing, joking, dancing, fighting their way to a place of mutual acceptance. Just when it seems they have forged a bond, the Palestinian’s girlfriend (Isa) – fueled by rage, despair and radical fundamentalism – abruptly alters their trajectory.
 
Over the course of one memorable night, the three – mistrustful and reluctant yet filled with longing for connection – share their stories and recognize in each other the same fears, desires and tenderness. Inexorably, they embrace one another with understanding, forgiveness and empathy.
 
The production uses the region’s languages, music and dance to envelope the audience in the mystical beauty and harsh realities that shape the protagonists’ experiences and underscore that these two cultures are inextricably bound. That deep fraternal connection is reinforced by setting the action in The South Hebron Hills, the same hills walked by Abraham, father of both the Jewish and Muslim nations.

“Initially I got interested in the South Hebron Hills through my father's writing. He wrote memoirs about his experiences in the West Bank (“Dark Hope, Working for Peace in Israel Palestine”). A few months after reading his memoirs, I went to the South Hebron Hills several times with Ta’ayush, the peace movement he works with and that I later joined,” said playwright Misha Shulman.  “What struck me was the very clear wrong in that particular place. Although much of the West Bank is ambiguous, ethically speaking, with people doing both good and bad, in the South Hebron Hills it's not. On the one hand, you have the Israelis treating the indigenous population abominably for no reason except racial supremacism.  On the other hand, you have the poor locals, living in caves, refusing to turn to violence despite their oppression by the settlers and the army, as well as receiving no care from the Palestinian authorities.  This shattered a lot of my conceptions about Israel and the cultural education I received, especially since it was fully supported by the government. I had to write about it.”

Shulman added, “I felt like there was a real possibility to make peace if only people were stripped of the armors of fake logic they feel the need to fall back on all the time. The history as they were fed it, the present as they are fed it, the fear of the big bad other side.  I asked the audience to try and see a simpler truth than the great complexity of what we’re all constantly scared into thinking and feeling. To see the truth which is so apparent in Ta’ayush.”

“In Desert Sunrise, I hope that audiences will peel back their layers of old beliefs and bias, will empathize with characters in search of their fundamental humanity and in some way, will encourage compassion and the dream of peace,” said director Ellen Shipley.

Joining the creative team with Shipley are Jenna (choreography / dancer); Ralph Schuckett and Shipley (music supervisor); David Fofi, Adam Hunter and Elephant Stageworks (scenic design); Ronda Brooks (costume design); Matt Richter (lighting design); and Russell Boast (assistant director).

DESERT SUNRISE originally opened Off Broadway at Theater for the New City in 2005.  The production was originally directed by Misha Shulman.  The New York Times wrote that Shulman’s play is “elegant and affecting” and compared the play to Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot.  NYTheatre.com said that the production was “moving and unforgettable.” DESERT SUNRISE received the 2005 Andrew and Eleanor Mcglinchee Prize from Hunter College.

Desert Sunrise LLC presents DESERT SUNRISE, produced by Anita J. Lee (producer) and Ellen Shipley (executive producer).

DESERT SUNRISE plays at The Lillian Theatre, 1076 Lillian Way in Hollywood. Performances begin July 10 and play through August 9, with the official press opening on Friday, July 11. Performance schedule is Thursday through Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 3:00 p.m.  Tickets are $25.00 - $30.00 and are available by calling 323-960-7784 and online at www.Plays411.com/DesertSunrise.
BIOGRAPHIES:

OREN DAYAN (Tsahi).  The multitalented Oren Dayan was born on January 1, 1987 and raised in Tarzana, California. He is fluent in Hebrew and his multiethnic look stems from Israeli and Austrian origin.  After graduating from El Camino High school, he got his feet wet in performing as a motivational speaker, speaking in front of crowds between 400 and 17,000 people at the ripe age of 18. After succeeding in that world for a few years, he decided to try acting.  Since then he has worked on different plays, films, and TV shows--those of which include NBC's hit TV series, “Life,” and CBS's thrilling drama series “The Unit.”  Oren's strong drive for exploring other creative mediums is prevalent in his complex paintings and writings – he is currently writing his first book of surreal poetry. While constantly learning and reading to acquire as much spiritual, artistic, and creative growth that he can, has also  earned the title of Certified Practitioner of Neuro Linguistic Programming and is working towards his Ph.D in Metaphysics.

MIRIAM ISA (Layla) was born and raised in Miami and received her B.A. in Theater from Florida State University. She further enhanced her theatrical studies in New York City before finally moving to Los Angeles in 2006.  Most recently, Miriam was featured in Mambo
Repossession starring Jude Law and Forrest Whitaker and is currently hosting a Latin music show called "Es Musica.” At the moment, Miriam is writing her own one-woman.

DOMINIC RAINS  (Ismail). Prior to moving to the United States, Dominic and his family lived in Europe and the Middle East, his place of birth.  His journey took an interesting turn when Dominic left Dallas in July 2004, where he was studying Criminology at The University of Texas at Dallas, to join the cast of NBC’s fall pickup pilot, “LAX,” working alongside Blair Underwood and Heather Locklear as well as brother writer/directors Joe and Anthony Russo. Thanks to TV/Film director Peter Markle, Dominic received notoriety for his first supporting role as a villain on NBC’s “Saving Jessica Lynch” (Movie of the Week).  Dominic’s breakout performance came in January of 2006 for his role as Ziad Jarrah on A&E’s “Flight 93” (Movie of the Week) also directed by Peter Markle. He has Guest appeared on a number of shows from “24,” “E-Ring,” “NCIS,” “Related” and “Courting Alex,” as well as a recurring guest role on “Cane.” Dominic was well known for his series role as Dr. Leo Julian on Season 1 of “GH: Nightshift,” which continued as a full-time part on “General Hospital.”  Dominic recently ended his term as Dave Moss in David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross.

MISHA SHULMAN (Playwright) is an award-winning New York based playwright/director. His play, Desert Sunrise, was produced Off Broadway at Theater for the New City in 2005 (directed by Shulman), and was reprised twice due to critical success and popular demand.  Desert Sunrise was subsequently produced in Chicago, and will be touring internationally this year.  Misha is the founding director of the Boundless Theater, a company dedicated to creating socially conscientious plays through collaboration, which challenge theatrical and political conventions, and make use of a unique contemporary shadow theatre technique. For Boundless Theater, Misha directed The Vermillionaire (NYC, 2007), Stop! Border Ahead (Tel Aviv, 2007), ANIMALS! (Theater for a New City, then moved to the Prism Theatre, 2005), and Jonah – An Interactive Theatrical Dream (Hunter College, 2004).  Misha is a member of the famed Living Theatre, headed by Theatre Hall of Fame member Judith Malina.  With the Living Theatre, Misha has toured with Mysteries and Smaller Pieces, created and performed Enigmas, produced in Naples, Italy in 2003, as well as Code Orange Cantata and No Sir!, both performed in New York City. He is also a member of DADA New York, with whom he has performed Off Broadway and in Washington D.C.  Misha has worked with Bread and Puppet Theatre, Indonesian director Putu Wijaya, and others.  Shulman’s earlier drama, The Fist, produced in New York in 2004, was chosen as “Pick of the Week” by NYTheatre.com, and has been presented at several venues around the United States, as well as in Melbourne, Australia. Through his work for the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York, Misha has written and directed several plays, including A Sephardic Masquerade, In the Stomach of a Whale, and others, which are performed regularly in Synagogues and Jewish institutions in and around New York City.  Misha is currently studying under renowned playwright Mac Wellman for his MFA in Playwrighting at the City University of New York. 

ELLEN SHIPLEY (Director), renowned Grammy-nominated recording artist and songwriter, is best known as one of pop’s most recorded songwriters. Ms. Shipley penned a string of domestic and international hits for artists as diverse as Belinda Carlisle (“Heaven Is A Place on Earth”), Faith Hill, Kim Wilde, Hanson and N’ Sync.  Her lyrical music and emotionally truthful words enraptured audiences around the world, finding their way into film, television and radio. “Body and Soul,” her Grammy-nominated ballad for Anita Baker, moved Billboard to rave: “It is so rare that we are given music of this high caliber.” Ellen’s innate theatricality bloomed early.   The Brooklyn-born performer heard the call at age 3, singing in a New York storied Catskill Mountain resort.  By the time she was a teenager, Ms. Shipley was a performance veteran of both musical and dramatic theater.  She studied acting and directing with New York luminaries such as Bill Hickey, Michael Rutenberg, Joseph Anthony and Lloyd Richards among others. Her talents propelled her into productions at La Mama, The Public Theater, The Actors Studio, Manhattan Theater Club and Lincoln Center. Her unique and skillful direction of such pieces as The Stronger, The Serpent, Romeo and Juliet, Birdbath and The Sandbox won her the prestigious Tyrone Guthrie Award For Excellence in Directing.  (Full bio available upon request.)