This guy is brilliant - Backstage West. Actor/Writer/Poet/Comic. Steven Connell. contact info:

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1 This guy is brilliant - Backstage West Actor/Writer/Poet/Comic Steven Connell contact info: steve@stevenconnell.com

2 Breakneck, mind-boggling theatre - LA Weekly BIO Steven Connell (actor/writer/poet/comic) As an actor he has appeared in numerous independent films including Another Day in Paradise, The Beat (*Sundance), Blues, and ShangHai Kiss. TV work includes DirtySexyMoney and The List (both on ABC). Stage work includes: Danny (Danny and The Deep Blue Sea), Joe (Robots VS Fake Robots), Macbeth (Macbeth), and Benedict (Much Ado About Nothing). As playwright/performer, he is garnering much acclaim for his solo work along with the work he has created and co-written with Sekou Andrews. They were invited by HBO to perform their play, no easy choice, at the 12th Annual U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, CO. His smash one-man show, 40 Days, was hailed as breakneck, mind-boggling theatre, earning multiple critics picks, and being named the Best Solo Performance of 2005 from Entertainment Today. His newest solo work, Against Oblivion, just ran at South Coast Repertory as part of their new Studio Series. In addition, by fusing poetry, comedy, and acting into a transformative and original experience, he has evolved into a powerful and compelling messenger for companies, organizations and non-profit groups looking to engage and elevate their audiences with a customized presentation. Featured on ABC World News, Good Morning America, HBO Def Poetry and others, he has created work for such prestigious organizations as Global Green, TEDMED, Xprize Foundation, NIKE, Sony/Universal, American Cancer Society, NCAA, PAVE, Declare Yourself, and Amnesty International, to name a few. Private highlights include performing at Oprah Winfrey s celebration of Maya Angelou, the Quincy Jones Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Marion Anderson Gala (honoring Maya Angelou/Norman Lear); as well as special events for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, (special request: Quincy Jones), and President Barack Obama, (special request: Oprah Winfrey). He is currently collaborating with visionary choreographer Jacques Heim on a new piece to be performed with the world famous Diavolo Dance Company later this year. Together with Sekou Andrews, he has re-imagined the text for three beloved symphonies, including Peter and the Wolf, and performed them alongside Rachel Worby and the Angeli Orchestra. His first book of poems Better Bound was just released to great acclaim while his highly regarded spoken word album, Intimate Nature of Knife Fights, remains in high demand.

3 Steve Connell is sure-fire - Norman Lear Resume Film: The Beat * Sundance Lead dir: Brandon Sonier Blues Lead dir: Brandon Sonier Mission Accomplished Lead dir: Robert Greenwald Shanghai Kiss Supporting dir: Konwiser Bros. Belly(dvd special features) Lead Artisan Another Day in Paradise Supporting dir: Larry Clark Here It Comes Lead MTV Television: DirtySexyMoney Guest Star ABC The List (w/wayne Brady) Supporting ABC Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam Guest Star HBO Lyric Café Guest Star BET Game Pro Minutes Recurring/Host AENTV(internet) Commercials: List Available Upon Request Theatre: Norman Lear Presents 2 man show (wrote and starred) HBO Comedy Arts (Aspen) The Word Begins Lead dir: Robert Egan *Ojai Playwright's Conf.,*9 week Equity run at the Signature Theater in DC 40 Days 1 man show The Elephant *LA Weekly & Backstage West Critics Pick, Voted Best Solo Performance of 2005 Declare Yourself Lead/Ensemble Norman Lear/Natn'l Tour Robots Vs. Fake Robots Lead Powerhouse Theatre My Thing of Love Lead Unspoken Theatre Merchant of Venice Shylock ARK Theatre Co Spilt Milk Lead/Ensemble Elephant Theatre The Glass Menagerie Tom Forum Theatre Macbeth Macbeth The Black Box Much Ado About Nothing Benedict UCLA Danny and the Deep... Danny UCLA Territory Ensemble dir. Jacques Heim Training/Awards: UCLA BA in Theatre Scene Study Mel Shapiro Dance/Movement Jacques Heim Voice Paul Wagar Advanced Acting Joe Olivieri Long/Short form Improv Tangent Improv Co. *2002 Hollywood Grand Poetry Slam Champion *2003 LA Grand Poetry Slam Champion & 2003 National Slam Champion (Team LA) *BEST ACTOR- 48 hour film festival *100 Faces to Watch- URB Magazine

Amazing! I m blown away by your talent - Peter Glatzer (producer) Reviews Film: from the movie Blues Steve Connell is excellent as Head, Chile s partner and the self appointed leader of the team.

4 Amazing! I m blown away by your talent - Peter Glatzer (producer) Reviews Film: from the movie Blues Steve Connell is excellent as Head, Chile s partner and the self appointed leader of the team. He handles the character s gradual unravelling perfectly, creating a memorable performance. - Kinkycyborg.com Steve Connell has the challenge of maintaining audience interest in a character who is the most unpredictable figure in this potentially lethal equation and whose near constant hypervigilance becomes exhausting and tiresome both due to Connell's strong performance and Sonnier's relentless script. The two actors together are combustible, but in such a way that makes their partnership both believable and understandable. - Theindependentcritic.com Steve Connell from Sonnier s The Beat plays a one heck of a reckless and very nerve wrecking role and plays it well. All and all great acting. - Moviemikes.com

Hilarious! and I do mean hilarious! - Norman Lear Reviews Stage: from the play The Word Begins (writer/performer) Connell has a clownish side and a direct fearlessness.

5 Hilarious! and I do mean hilarious! - Norman Lear Reviews Stage: from the play The Word Begins (writer/performer) Connell has a clownish side and a direct fearlessness. Natural chemistry - LA Times Connell and Andrews have exceptional timing and stage chemistry such that the pair seems to be two halves of the same theatrical breath - LAist.com Connell and Andrews take up the stage, grab your attention and will not let go. You will be swallowed up in the energy. - Splash magazine Awards: Nominated 3 Helen Hayes Awards (Best Acting, Best Writing, Best Production) Critics Pick- LA Weekly

6 Powerful Theater - Reviewplays.com Stage: from the play 40 Days... (writer/performer) Reviews Breakneck, mind boggling theater - LA Weekly This guy is brilliant This work is like watching a significant new American storyteller and poet spin straw into gold. And thankfully, we all get to bathe in its incredible dazzle. - Backstage West He starts with about 200% of himself. I have rarely seen a theatre artist have such mastery over his own energy and physicality. Connell s UCLA training stands him in good stead to change gears on a dime, to modulate his voice and pitch for exactly the right affect and to endure the brutality of the ritual he puts himself through onstage. In a theatre and poetry scene often dominated by the search-and-destroy formula which celebrates victim status, Connell is a refreshing antidote. - Poetix Magazine very funny... He is a clown as well as a messenger, and he lets the audience laugh. - David Avery Curtain Up Awards: Solo Performance of the Year (Entertainment Today) Critics Pick -- LA Weekly and Backstage West

7 In a world of talented performers, Steve Connell stands out as unique. - Thomas Block, producer Actor/Writer/Poet/Comic Steven Connell contact info: steve@stevenconnell.com

SHOW GUIDE VIRGINIA REPERTORY THEATRE

BASED ON THE FILM BY JOHN CARNEY MUSIC AND LYRICS BY GLEN HANSARD AND MARKÉTA IRGLOVÁ BOOK BY ENDA WALSH DIRECTED BY NATHANIEL SHAW SHOW GUIDE VIRGINIA REPERTORY THEATRE CONTENTS Plot Summary... 3 Once