Stephen Sachs

Stephen Sachs

Stephen Sachs is an award-winning playwright and director and the co-Artistic Director of the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles. He is the author of fifteen produced plays, including Arrival & Departure (Best Play, Broadway World Award), Dream Catcher, Citizen: An American Lyric (adaptation, Stage Raw Award), Heart Song, Cyrano (LA Drama Critics Circle Award, Best New Play) and Bakersfield Mist (2012 Elliot...
Stephen Sachs is an award-winning playwright and director and the co-Artistic Director of the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles. He is the author of fifteen produced plays, including Arrival & Departure (Best Play, Broadway World Award), Dream Catcher, Citizen: An American Lyric (adaptation, Stage Raw Award), Heart Song, Cyrano (LA Drama Critics Circle Award, Best New Play) and Bakersfield Mist (2012 Elliot Norton Award, Best New Play) which just completed a run on London’s West End starring Kathleen Turner and McDiarmid and is now being translated into other languages and being performed worldwide. His other plays are Miss Julie: Freedom Summer, Gilgamesh, Open Window (Media Access Award), Central Avenue (PEN USA Literary Award Finalist), Sweet Nothing in my Ear (PEN USA Literary Award Finalist, Media Access Award), Mother's Day, The Golden Gate (Best Play Award, Dramalogue), and The Baron in the Trees. He wrote the teleplay for Sweet Nothing in my Ear for Hallmark Hall of Fame which aired on CBS starring Marlee Matlin and Jeff Daniels. He was recently honored by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Councilman Mitch O'Farrell with a Commendation from the Los Angeles City Council for “his visionary contributions to the cultural life of Los Angeles.”

Plays

  • Human Interest Story by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    7
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    Genre: drama, political
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    Keyword: women's rights, female equality + 5 more
    Genre: drama, political
    Keyword: women's rights, female equality, journalism, homelessness, Politics, racism, female
    Newspaper columnist Andy Kramer is laid off when a corporate takeover downsizes the City Chronicle. In retaliation, Andy fabricates a letter to his column from an imaginary homeless woman named “Jane Doe” who announces she will kill herself on the 4th of July because of the heartless state of the world. When the letter goes viral, Andy is forced to hire a Black homeless woman to stand-in as the fictitious Jane...
    Newspaper columnist Andy Kramer is laid off when a corporate takeover downsizes the City Chronicle. In retaliation, Andy fabricates a letter to his column from an imaginary homeless woman named “Jane Doe” who announces she will kill herself on the 4th of July because of the heartless state of the world. When the letter goes viral, Andy is forced to hire a Black homeless woman to stand-in as the fictitious Jane Doe. A national women's movement is ignited. A funny, riveting and fast-moving tale on the ethics of American journalism, homelessness, racism, female equality, the worship of celebrity and the need to tell your own story.
  • Arrival & Departure by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    8
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    Genre: adaptation, comedy + 2 more
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    Keyword: forbidden love, love + 3 more
    Genre: adaptation, comedy, drama, romantic comedy
    Keyword: forbidden love, love, Deaf, ASL, Movies
    A re-imagined modern-day stage adaptation of the classic 1945 film, Brief Encounter. A Deaf man and a hard-of-hearing woman, married to different people, meet accidentally in a New York City subway station. Their casual friendship soon develops into deeper feelings they never expected, forcing both to confront how their simmering relationship will change their lives and damage the lives of those they love...
    A re-imagined modern-day stage adaptation of the classic 1945 film, Brief Encounter. A Deaf man and a hard-of-hearing woman, married to different people, meet accidentally in a New York City subway station. Their casual friendship soon develops into deeper feelings they never expected, forcing both to confront how their simmering relationship will change their lives and damage the lives of those they love forever. An unforgettable love story inspired by one of the most beloved romantic movies of all time.

    Performed by Hearing and Deaf actors in a fully integrated, unique blend of Open Captioning, American Sign Language and Spoken English. Accessible to all audiences.
  • Dream Catcher by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    2
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    Genre: drama
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    Keyword: climate change, global warming + 4 more
    Genre: drama
    Keyword: climate change, global warming, Native American, solar power, true story, love
    Inspired by a true event. Solar power confronts spirit power in this new drama about climate change, cultural change and the moral consequences of personal choice. Roy is the youngest member on a team of high-level engineers brought in to launch the most important project of his young career: the construction of a $1-billion dollar solar energy plant in the middle of the Mojave desert. But Roy suddenly finds...
    Inspired by a true event. Solar power confronts spirit power in this new drama about climate change, cultural change and the moral consequences of personal choice. Roy is the youngest member on a team of high-level engineers brought in to launch the most important project of his young career: the construction of a $1-billion dollar solar energy plant in the middle of the Mojave desert. But Roy suddenly finds himself thrust into the center of a crisis when the discovery of long-buried Native American artifacts threaten to bring the entire billion dollar operation to a halt. The disaster gets deeply personal when the whistle-blower turns out to be Opal, the fiery and unpredictable young Mojave Indian woman with whom Roy has been having an affair.
    World Premiere at Fountain Theatre, Los Angeles, January 2016.
    Video trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOgwG_mg-aw
  • CYRANO by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    13
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    Genre: adaptation, comedy + 2 more
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    Keyword: Deaf, ASL + 1 more
    Genre: adaptation, comedy, drama, romantic comedy
    Keyword: Deaf, ASL, love
    A modern day reimagined deaf/hearing version of the classic “Cyrano de Bergerac”. The setting is present day. Cyrano is a brilliant deaf poet in a modern day city. He is hopelessly in love with a beautiful hearing woman, Roxy. But she doesn’t understand sign language and instead loves his hearing brother, Chris. Can Cyrano express his love for Roxy with his hands? Or must he teach Chris to “speak his words” for...
    A modern day reimagined deaf/hearing version of the classic “Cyrano de Bergerac”. The setting is present day. Cyrano is a brilliant deaf poet in a modern day city. He is hopelessly in love with a beautiful hearing woman, Roxy. But she doesn’t understand sign language and instead loves his hearing brother, Chris. Can Cyrano express his love for Roxy with his hands? Or must he teach Chris to “speak his words” for him, to woo her? ASL becomes the language of love in this modern sign language spin on a classic love story.
  • Miss Julie: Freedom Summer by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    3
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    Genre: adaptation, drama
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    Keyword: inter-racial, american race relations + 4 more
    Genre: adaptation, drama
    Keyword: inter-racial, american race relations, Race, American South, civil rights, sexual tension
    A re-imagined adaptation of August Strindberg's masterpiece, set in Mississippi on the night of July 4, 1964, during the explosive "Freedom Summer" of the Civil Rights Era. The white Miss Julie and her black chauffeur, John, struggle for independence and freedom from the personal and social demons that bind them. This sexually-charged social drama explores racial and sexual tensions in a riveting...
    A re-imagined adaptation of August Strindberg's masterpiece, set in Mississippi on the night of July 4, 1964, during the explosive "Freedom Summer" of the Civil Rights Era. The white Miss Julie and her black chauffeur, John, struggle for independence and freedom from the personal and social demons that bind them. This sexually-charged social drama explores racial and sexual tensions in a riveting struggle for power, freedom and social change.
  • Heart Song by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    8
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    Genre: comedy, drama
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    Keyword: flamenco
    Genre: comedy, drama
    Keyword: flamenco
    In this funny and touching comedy/drama, Rochelle is a middle-aged Jewish woman in New York City in the middle of a life crisis. Lost and alone, her life is suddenly changed when she is convinced to take a Flamenco class with other middle-aged women. The Flamenco class and its unforgettable circle of women — all shapes, sizes and colors — lead Rochelle on a journey of sisterhood, faith and discovery of her own deep inner voice.
  • Citizen: An American Lyric by Stephen Sachs
    Cast: 
    6
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    Genre: adaptation, drama + 2 more
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    Keyword: Race, black + 4 more
    Genre: adaptation, drama, experimental, political
    Keyword: Race, black, racism, stage adaptation, African American, poetry
    The world premiere stage adaptation of the internationally acclaimed and award-winning book of poetry/prose by Claudia Rankine about race in America. This powerful and thought-provoking fast-moving stage adaptation fuses theatre, music, movement, and video imagery. Snapshots, vignettes, a meditation on the acts of everyday racism. Remarks, glances, seeming slips of the tongue. Those did-that-really-just-...
    The world premiere stage adaptation of the internationally acclaimed and award-winning book of poetry/prose by Claudia Rankine about race in America. This powerful and thought-provoking fast-moving stage adaptation fuses theatre, music, movement, and video imagery. Snapshots, vignettes, a meditation on the acts of everyday racism. Remarks, glances, seeming slips of the tongue. Those did-that-really-just-happen-did-they-really-just say-that slurs that happen every day. And the larger incidents that become national firestorms. As Rankine writes, “This is how you are a citizen.” Winner of the 2015 National Book Award, the 2015 Los Angeles Book Award, and the PEN Award.
  • Bakersfield Mist by Stephen Sachs
    Recommendations: 6
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    Cast: 
    2
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    Genre: comedy, drama
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    Keyword: Art and Artists, Painting + 4 more
    Genre: comedy, drama
    Keyword: Art and Artists, Painting, class, authenticity, art expert, trailer trash
    Maude, a fifty-something unemployed bartender, has bought a painting for a few bucks from the thrift store. Despite almost trashing it, she now thinks it’s a Jackson Pollock worth millions. But when world-class art expert, Lionel Percy, flies over from New York and arrives at her trailer park home in Bakersfield to authenticate the painting, he has no idea what he is about to discover. Inspired by true events,...
    Maude, a fifty-something unemployed bartender, has bought a painting for a few bucks from the thrift store. Despite almost trashing it, she now thinks it’s a Jackson Pollock worth millions. But when world-class art expert, Lionel Percy, flies over from New York and arrives at her trailer park home in Bakersfield to authenticate the painting, he has no idea what he is about to discover. Inspired by true events, this sparkling and colorful new comedy-drama asks vital questions about what makes art and people truly authentic.

    WINNER! Elliot Norton Award, Best New Play! "Not to be missed! [BAKERSFIELD MIST] tackles large creative questions with well-timed zingers.” —Vanity Fair. “Thoroughly entertaining…Put a smile on my face and kept my brain buzzing for a good while afterward." —The Times (London). “Wonderfully funny! Entertaining…one of the best plays on now in London. Terrific! Definitely the genuine article.” —The Telegraph (London). “Sachs’ short, clever play is a battle of wits.” —The New York Times. “It’s exhilarating in the extreme when a play strikes rich on every conceivable level. A wry two-hander that handles highbrow artistic issues while zinging in plenty of uproarious one-liners. A perfect marriage of emotion and ideas that is rare indeed.” —Los Angeles Times. “A triumph! Hugely gratifying! An absorbing, hilarious two-hander about the nature of art and the vagaries of human perception.” —Backstage.
    Go to www.bakersfieldmist.com