J*COMPANY TAKES ON BULLYING WITH

13 – A New Rock Musical About the One Thing We Never Stop Doing –

Growing Up!

Green Day meets youth theatre -- with a live rock band

LA JOLLA, CA – The award-winning J*Company Youth Theatre, a program of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS, is pleased to announce its production of the hilarious high-energy musical 13 with music and lyrics by Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown and book by Dan English and Robert Horn.  The production will run December 3-12, 2010, at the David & Dorothea Garfield Theatre.    

12  year old Evan Goldman lives in the greatest city in the world, New York .  He is popular and cool and getting ready for the biggest day of his life, but when his parents get divorced his world turns upside down and he’s forced to have his Bar Mitzvah in “the lamest place in the world,” a small town in Indiana.  All Evan wants is to make friends and survive the school year; easier said than done!  The star quarterback is threatening to ruin his life; his only friend, Patrice, won’t talk to him; plus quite possibly the least popular kid in school sees an opportunity for blackmail – what else could go wrong? 

“Get ready to rock!” said Joey Landwehr, J* Company’s Artistic Director.  “We are presenting 13 – A New Musical, ‘The way it was meant to be… at the JCC.’ This is going to be an all-dancing, all-singing, full-out ROCK CONCERT! Think Green Day meets youth theatre; with a live rock band and some of the best dancing La Jolla has ever seen.”

“And 13 has a beautiful plot about the trials and tribulations of growing up,” said Landwehr.  “It’s filled with beautiful ballads and heart-touching lyrics. This is definitely a show for anyone ages 9 – 99. I hope everyone will come to see this show, destined to be a new classic!”

Landwehr is directing 13.  Landwehr has worked extensively as an actor and director in New York City , both on and off Broadway, as well as in national tours and regional theatre.   He has studied under such instructors as Betty Buckley, Patti LuPone, Marcel Marceau, Francis Sternhagen, F. Murray Abraham, Twyla Tharpe, and has had the privilege of working with great performers such as Phyllis Diller, Sam Harris, Joel Grey, Kaye Ballard, Michael Feinstein, Kristen Chenowith, and Howard Keel.  Landwehr is a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) and Actors’ Equity Association (AEA). He was honored in 2006 by San Diego Metropolitan Magazine as one of the 40 San Diego residents under the age of 40 who are making significant contributions to the community.  Landwehr most recently directed Fireflies, South Pacific, The King and I, The Sound of Music, Cinderella and Fiddler on the Roof for J*Company. 

For our educational component the cast (and audiences) of 13 – A New Musical will be learning about the current hot-topic of bullying. 13 is the first musical to deal with the problem of bullying head-on and without reservation, teaching young people the importance of compassion and acceptance. The school audiences and the cast will be visited by a professional child educator and psychiatrist to speak about all aspects of bullying and the long lasting effects it has on all people but especially young kids during the middle and high school years.

Heading the cast of 13 are:

Name                                                   Role                      Age       School

Celia Tedde                                      Patrice 13            San Diego Cooperative Charter School

Ethan Rappaport                          Evan                     13            R. Roger Rowe Rancho Santa Fe School

Michelle Guefen                            Kendra                15           San Diego Jewish Academy

Scott Peterson                                Brett                     15          San Diego High - School of the Arts

Marissa Wolfsheimer  Cassie                  12           Francis Parker Middle School

Talia Israel                                          Charlotte            11            La Costa Heights

Emily Hoolilan                                Lucy                     15           San Marcos High School

Joshua Shtein                                  Malcolm             14           High Tech High International

Mara Jacobs                                     Molly                   15           High Tech High International

Julian Coker                                    Archie                 13            Carmel Valley Middle School

Cameron Chang                            Simon                  12           Earl Warren Middle School

David Ahmadian                            Eddie                   13            Carmel Valley Middle School

Jonas McMullen                            Richie                  10           Skyline Global Ed 

Show Dates and Times: 

Friday, December 3, 10:00 a.m. (School Show)

Saturday, December 4, 8:00 p.m.

Sunday, December 5, 1:00 & 4:30 p.m.                                                           

Thursday, December 9, 7:00 p.m.

Friday, December 10, 10:00 a.m. (School Show)

Saturday, December 11, 8:00 p.m.

Sunday, December 12, 1:00 & 4:30 p.m.

General Information 

Tickets for 13 are $14.00 for children and $16.00 for adults and are available online at www.sdcjc.org/jcompany or by calling the JCC Box Office at 858-362-1348.  The David & Dorothea Garfield Theatre is located at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS at 4126 Executive Drive , La Jolla .