Here’s a mini Next Gen reunion for ya. Gates McFadden is directing a new play, in Los Angeles, called “House of Gold” whose cast includes fellow Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Denise Crosby. Let’s hope that Denise’s current character doesn’t go on any away missions this time.

Gates talks about her impetus for this particular subject matter and its relevance to today’s society.

"House of Gold is a hilarious, yet scathing critique of our culture, revealing dark truths about our values, and, ultimately, about ourselves," explains EST/LA artistic director Gates McFadden, who also directs. "Reading this play returned me to my own childhood. Like the character in the play, I was the ‘pleaser' child-performer. As an adult, my role on Star Trek was my parents' dream come true, but for me, it brought back a lot of childhood ambivalence."

She continues, "In American culture, reality TV is more real than real life. Parents think it's normal to exploit and humiliate their children on camera, if only to give their own dreary lives more meaning-‘my video got over a million hits on You Tube!' Children either receive too much parental attention or not enough. Something horrible in the news? Goodie! Let's get the details."

In House of Gold, Jacqueline Wright (recently seen in EST/LA productions of Mlle. God and Tree) heads the ensemble as a young beauty pageant contestant who must constantly remain the perfect living doll for her obsessive "live-the-American-Dream" parents, and Alex Davis (Alex Davis: Man of the Year, his interdisciplinary one-man show about life as the child of iconic actor Brad Davis and as a trans man) portrays teen misfit Jasper, neglected by his parents and living in the margins. Denise Crosby (reuniting with McFadden for the first time since they co-starred on Star Trek: TNG) plays the pageant mom, known only as "Woman" in the script, while Tony Pasqualini (playwright and actor: Loyalties at Pacific Resident Theatre) is "Man." Graham Sibley (Crack Whore Galore) is "Joseph M. Lonely"; Keith Arthur Bolden (Mlle. God at EST/LA, Neighbors at the Matrix) is the detective who wants to play the hero; and Chris Arvan, Josh Heine, Matt Little and Eric Schulman are the "Apollonian Boys," entitlEd White males who function as a chorus of Ambercrombie and Fitch furies.

“House of Gold” runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm and 7pm October 22 through December 4. Four preview performances take place on October 15, 16 and 21 on the same schedule.

Read the full article here.

General admission is $25
Sunday matinees at 2 pm are pay-what-you-can
Previews are $15

Ensemble Studio Theatre/LA is located in the Atwater Village Theatre complex at 3269 Casitas Ave in Los Angeles, CA 90039. On-site parking is free. For reservations and information, call 323-644-1929 or go to www.ensemblestudiotheatrela.org.

(Source; broadwayworld.com Los Angeles)