ARTSPEAK RADIO + Bruce Young, Kevin King & Miki P

Wednesday April 17, 2019 noon to 1pm CST 90.1FM KKFI Kansas City Community Radio www.kkfi.org

Producer/host Maria Vasquez Boyd welcomes theater owner/musician Bruce Young, producer/director Kevin King, and singer/songwriter Miki P.

KEVIN KING-Fourth Annual Short Play Festival Features Area LGBTQ Writers, Alphabet Soup: Stories from Queer Voices will take the stage at SqueezeBox Theatre on April 12th-15th and 19th-21st. Alphabet Soup, produced by Whim Productions, is an evening of 7 short plays written by Kansas City-area LGBTQ writers that explore various aspects of the queer experience in the past, present, and future.
Alphabet Soup debuted in 2015 as part of the Kansas City Fringe Festival and now returns for its fourth iteration. Kevin King, Whim’s Producing Artistic Director, notes that “Whim Productions is proud to once again feature works by LGBTQ writers. We believe it’s vital to provide a platform for onstage representation of diverse voices and experiences. This year’s plays are hilarious and heartbreaking, challenging and inventive. We can’t wait to share them with the Kansas City community.”
This edition of Alphabet Soup presents new plays from first-time and veteran writers.

Due to adult subject matter and nudity, they are recommended for audiences 17 and older.

Plays include:
Lesbians Definitely Not Lost in Space, by Diane Hightower, is a free-wheeling, lusty sci-fi spoof. Diane’s previous works include The Last Michigan, which appeared in the 2016 Kansas City Fringe Festival. This is her third appearance in Alphabet Soup – past works were Lesbian Potluck (2016) and Habitat (2018).

The Great Defagging, by B. Michael McFarland, features two men who descend on the apartment of a recently deceased friend to “de-fag” the place before his mother arrives. B. Michael is an actor who has appeared with Confluence Theatre Company, Maryland’s Olney Theatre Center and Kentucky Shakespeare Festival. Alphabet Soup is his debut as a playwright.

Stretch, by Mark Mattison. Hamstrings aren’t the only things being stretched as Fannie’s decision sparks big changes for her and her son. Stretch evolved during Mark’s time in a playwriting course at The Living Room Theatre. Alphabet Soup is his debut as a playwright. Mark is the development director for the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance.

Nah, man. Totally., by Kevin King, features two college dudes whose Mortal Kombat session unleashes surprises. Kevin is a playwright-in-residence with the Midwest Dramatists Center. His work is regularly seen in the Kansas City Fringe Festival and has been featured in The Barn Players’ 6×10 short play festival, the Kansas City Horror Play Fest, and Fishtank Theater’s 12 Plays of Christmas. His play The Swallows was selected for the 2019 William Inge Festival New Play Lab.

Bite Marks, by Emily Swenson. Audiences will spend the night in bed with Maggie and her lovers as they play and navigate polyamory. Emily is resident designer and production manager at Unicorn Theatre, and a playwright-in-residence with the Midwest Dramatists Center. Her play Cam Girl was recently produced by Philadelphia’s Theatre Oblivion, and Walls Suck was an audience favorite in the Kansas City Fringe Festival.

Nothing Without Me, by Isabella Tate, features a young couple who struggle to understand who they are as a pair because they haven’t accepted who they are as individuals. This is Isabella’s third play to appear in Alphabet Soup. Isabella is a director, playwright, and actress at Emporia State University who gained early experience as a member of The Coterie Theatre’s Project Pride.

In Confidence, by Adam Yarbrough, tells the story of a doctoral dissertation focused on gay men in the 1990’s that has unintended consequences. Adam’s previous writing efforts have been focused on corporate, healthcare, and non-profit marketing and communications. Alphabet Soup is his debut as a playwright.

SqueezeBox Theatre. 1519 Oak Street, Kansas City, MO.
Friday, and Saturday, April 12,13, and 14: 8:00 pm.
Sunday, April 14: 2:00 pm.
Monday, April 15: 8:00pm.
Friday and Saturday, April 19 and 20: 8:00 pm.

Doors open 30 minutes before the show. A full bar is available to patrons. Tickets are $15 (plus a small ticketing fee). Tickets will be available online at www.whimproductions.com and at the door.

Whim Productions, founded by Producing Artistic Director Kevin King in 2011, creates challenging, and evocative queer theater. We focus on providing opportunities for LGBTQ theater artists to tell their own stories and share the diversity of queer experience with Kansas City audiences.

BRUCE YOUNG-Aztec Theater…built in 1927 ( then named The Mission at Shawnee, for it’s Spanish mission architecture) opened as a silent movie house, then as a talking picture theater…re-named The Aztec in 1947 , along with new marquee…it became my movie experience in the 1950’s into early 1960’s…closed in 1975 and the marquee was removed, used as storage for over 40 years…always on my mind to own something like this, and opportunity came when 2 of my friends asked me if I would like to be involved and be 1/3rd owner…but only if the City of Shawnee helped…after approaching the City, and negotiating a plan , it happened…we have a General Contractor working with city codes and plans, it is taking shape but with the addition of the new marquee.. it now say’s AZTEC again..!..and lights up the downtown area with neon glow…full interior restoration is underway , meeting new standards of requirements…we will be showing classic films and offering a live concert venue, like this area has never seen…a downtown revival is currently happening in our town, a new micro-brewery has just opened right next to our ticket window!!

Aztec Theater
11119 Johnson Drive
Shawnee, KS 66203
www.aztecshawnee.com

Miki P was born and raised in Kansas City, Mikala Petillo is an artist, multi-instrumentalist, musician and songwriter performing under Miki P. She compose’s lyrics reflective of her own life experiences as well as melodies that hit the heart.
Miki has always been a creative, from a young age she picked up guitar and drums, teaching herself how to play & write songs conveying a spectrum of emotions well beyond her years. As a teen into her early adult years she played drums for a band called American Slim, and found success playing festivals like Middle of the Map Fest, SXSW Music Festival in Austin TX as well as performing at venues like the Royal’s Kaufman Stadium and the Nelson Atkins Museum. She also found success in releasing music for their first full-length album Irreplaceable in the Spring of 2017 gaining experience writing original music for the group with songs like Stevie Knicks, In My Room, and Irreplaceable, followed by a single Queen of Hearts April 11 of 2018.
Branching off from the rock-heavy style of American Slim, Miki has learned an assortment of skills in other genre’s and has come-into-her-own, teaching herself ukulele & piano, including them on songs like Kansas City + Music Box and many more off her debut album Dome of Swallows. Along with staying true to her unique art and pursuing her music career she teaches youth in the Kansas City metro area to play, sing, and write their own music.
Miki P released her first full-length album September 1st, 2018 including 10 original songs. The album is a journey from start to finish describing life in all aspects of heartbreak and love. “Unapologetic from the very beginning, Mikala Petillo – Miki P – let’s you know exactly what you’re getting yourself into. Dome Of Swallows is a nugget of excellent music. From bass line to Petillo’s unmistakably explosive voice, every part of this album exudes talent.” – Stevie Ervay (PlaylistPlay)
UPCOMING GIGS / NEW SINGLE:
March 29 Miki P released a new single called titled “Secrets”, looking inward Miki P tackles the battle of what she shares with the outside world and what she keeps hidden within herself. With only an acoustic guitar and her voice, she pours her heart out in this new single Secrets.
Miki P is was on the road April 4-12 routing through NOLA, Nashville and more on her first solo tour. This spring she will play Porchfest (May 18) and Boulivardia (June 15) with her band Miki P and the Swallowtails. The band includes musicians Adee Dancy of cello, Rachel Lovelace on bassoon, Robert Castillo on bass, Fritz Hutchinson on drums, with Miki P leading on guitar and vocals.

www.mikipmusic.com

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