Summary

   Ed Wood the Musical pulls back the tinsel town curtain of Ed Wood’s life and pays tribute to his legacy. Ed was a charismatic figure who created an ensemble of zany, lovable monsters, from    Bela Lugosi to Tor Johnson, Vampira and the amazing Criswell. His life exemplified irony: a marine, a husband, writer, director and transvestite in a time when that was fraught with danger. Rick Tell’s score evokes the popular musical styles, surf, rock and roll, jazz, Latin, all from the 50’s and 60’s, Ed’s golden era of filmmaking.  Through song, we discover the roots of his cross-dressing in “Glen or Glenda" and “Angora.” His frustration in “Hollywood Rat Race” and his girlfriend’s agony in “Bride of the Monster.” “Walk Like a Zombie” will have everyone on their feet and send you out humming. You could be sitting next to an alien or a zombie or even have flying saucers fly over your head. Ed Wood the Musical, is a fun journey through the ups and downs he endured with incredible perseverance. You’ll leave the theater believing “If Ed Wood could follow his dream, so can I.”

Michael Arabian (Director) has directed and produced numerous world, West Coast, Los Angeles and New York premieres, and his productions have garnered over 50 awards. Most recently, he directed dance icon Leslie Caron in Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks at the Laguna Playhouse; Staging the Unstageable (centennial of the Armenian Genocide) at the Kirk Douglas; Red, starring John Vickery, at San Diego Rep; and God of Carnage at La Mirada. His production of Waiting for Godot at the Mark Taper Forum was honored with five Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards including outstanding production and direction; was nominated for 10 Ovation Awards, (the West Coast Tony) winning five, including best production; and was cited as one of the ten most memorable productions of 2012 seen in either New York or L.A. by Los Angeles Times theater critic Charles McNulty. Other Taper productions directed by Michael include Beckett’s Krapps Last Tape, Albee’s The Sandbox, Pinter’s A Slight Ace and workshops of new works. His site-specific company, Theatre InSite, formed a partnership with CBS (Radford) Studios, a first for L.A. theater, to produce live TV pilots (with Third Rock from the Sun picked up) and inventive, large-scale productions such as an updated Romeo and Juliet where audiences followed scenes and car chases through the backlot’s suburban streets, and The Trojan Women, set during the Gulf War and staged in 400,000 gallons of water at the old Gilligan’s Island Lagoon. His film King of the Ants is distributed by Vanguard Cinema.

RICK TELL ( Music,Lyrics, Book)  
In the 1970’s Rick Tell studied music composition with Giampaolo Bracali (Manhattan School of Music) and with Lehman Engel at the B.M.I. Theatre Workshop.  In the 1980’s he was producer/arranger for RCA, MCA and Atlantic Records with “Love Insurance” RCA 1981 reaching Billboard # 5. He was music producer/ composer for over fifty television and radio commercials as well as music producer/ composer/sound designer of international corporate live shows and video for Chrysler, Apple, General Motors, Jeep, Kodak, A.T.& T., Hewlett Packard, etc.  He also composed music for Mice in the Theater (Off Broadway). In the 1990’s he was the recipient of the “Children’s Video Award” and a regional Emmy award for The Reppies children’s television show on P.B.S. Since 2000 he has composed and produced numerous tracks for Cablevision Sterling Productions and won first place for his track “Zombies are Cool” in the AudioNews international competition 2011.

  BILL CHOTT (Book)

Bill is best known as "Mr. Laritate" on Disney's Wizards of Waverly Place. He played "Thomas" in the Johnny Knoxvile film The Ringer.  At the INNY Awards, he was awarded "Best Improv Coach", and won "Best Featured Actor in a Musical" at the Broadway World Awards for his work as "Fred Mertz" in I Love Lucy Live on Stage. Bill studied with Stephen Colbert at The Second City, and later performed in that theater's touring company with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Then he later worked with Colbert, Steve Carell and Louis C.K. on The Dana Carvey Show. His sci-fi big screen debut was as a Questarian with Alan Rickman in Galaxy Quest. He voiced characters on SNL's “Ambiguously Gay Duo” and “X-Presidents” cartoons.  Look for him soon opposite Lauren Holly in the film Marshall the Miracle Dog.

JOE GIORDANO (Book)  is a Nashville resident, an author and playwright. He was playwright-in-residence for the Tennessee Repertory Theater during their 2010 season, writing under the mentorship of John Patrick Shanley.  His play Religion and Rubber Ducks was named Best Original Play for 2008 by The Nashville Scene. His play She's Dead was produced by MadLab Theater during their 2013-14 season. His other produced plays include The Bad Trip,  Love, Sex, and All That Other Crap, Ticket, and others. 

LINDA TOLIVER AND GARY GUIDINGER (Producers)

As Producing Directors of Los Angeles' Zephyr Theater for 25 years, until moving on as Independent Producers in 2010, Linda and Gary produced many award-winning shows including the world premieres of Justin Tanner's Voice Lessons, starring Laurie Metcalf, French Stewart and Maile Flanagan in Los Angeles and New York, and the subsequent productions at LA's Circle X, Sacred Fools, Whitefire, NYC's Theater Row, most recently at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theater.  Other Zephyr theatre productions include Del Shores’ Sordid Lives, Southern Baptist Sissies, The Trials and Tribulations of a Trailer Trash Housewife (Associate Producers). At the Odyssey Theatre, they produced Tanner's Day Drinkers, Procreation, and Elliot Shoenman’s Aftermath starring Annie Potts, as well as the world premiere of Assisted Living, written and performed by the author of Wicked, Winnie Holzman and her husband, actor Paul Dooley. Their most recent production at the Odyssey was Tennessee Williams’ Kingdom of Earth directed by Michael Arabian. Their original workshop productions of Jim Brochu's The Last Session and Steve Schalchlin's The Big Voice: God or Merman? were optioned and moved to Off-Broadway for extended award-winning runs.  Other productions in NYC include La Ronde (Associate Producers), and Ethel Sings (Soho Rep's Walkerspace). They are currently working on Daybreak, by Joyce Van Dyke, slated for production in 2017.

Reparata Mazzola (Campaign Manager/Social Media) is a seasoned professional in a range of capacities in television, music and film. She is a member of the Writers Guild of America and was a member of Barry Manilow’s backup trio, Lady Flash. Reparata is a certified Social Media Strategist. She has conceived and produced marketing campaigns, promotional material, vlogs, video presentations and posts on all social media outlets.

Richard Marshall (Video) is an L.A. based filmmaker who has worked behind the scenes on large studio films, directed commercials and music videos, created video games, shot and edited documentaries and short films, written scripts and played in a R&R cover band. Richard made a mockumentary feature with a bunch of famous comedian. He is currently prepping a couple of indie features and TV/web series for his company, Intelligent Pictures.

Our Impact

Ed Wood the Musical will help raise the visibility of transgender and gender non-conforming people, and the issues these communities face. Ed Wood produced and directed the first film with a cross-dressing character. Beyond that, he was a pioneer when he starred in Glen or Glenda and the Angora-clad “Shirley” emerged shining a spotlight on transvestism. The producers plan to donate a portion of the full theatrical production net proceeds to LGBT community causes.  Rick Tell’s personal goal is to honor Ed Wood by awarding him a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. And just for a few hours, Ed Wood the Musical is a welcome respite from the stress of your fast-paced, social media crammed day as you journey into Ed’s magical world.

    What We Need…

The funding from the campaign will be used to produce the musical in an independent theater in Los Angeles. You’ve gone to see a play, but It takes more than a village to produce it! Here are some basic line items.

CREATIVES:  Composer, Writer, Producers, Director, Casting, Actors, Musicians 

DESIGNERS:  Set, Costume, Sound, Lighting, Choreography, Makeup, Graphic

CREW: Prop Master, Construction, Rigging, Electricians, Lighting, Stage Managers, Production Manager, Carpenters, Stage Hands, Wardrobe, Technical Directors, Production Assistants

RELATED  PRODUCTION COSTS: Set building materials, paint, lumber, Equipment, Furniture rental, Props, Alien/creature fabrication, Rehearsal Space, Theater Rental. House Manager, Photographer, Publicity/Marketing, Printing, Programs, Posters, Advertising, Social Media, Insurance, Administrative, Contingency.

  WHAT YOU GET

   RISKS AND CHALLENGES

Every theatrical project begins with the challenge of assembling an experienced team to produce a high quality, successful show.  We have already met that challenge. Our director, writers and producers are seasoned professionals with over 100 years of combined experience in theater. Collectively, they have surmounted the hurdles that a production can encounter. We also have included a contingency in the budget for any unforeseen costs. However, all our experts know that the biggest challenge is being underfunded. That’s why we are creating this Indiegogo campaign. You can be a part of making a musical history by helping fund a show that could run for years to come.  Again, think Rocky Horror Picture Show!

·  Contribute to the next steps of this journey.

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·  Come to the show!  You helped make it happen!