
La Jolla Playhouse opens its 2010 season with the world premiere of a play by one of its own, Annie Weisman, who was raised in Del Mar and attended Torrey Pines High School. Weisman showed early promise, having her youthful play “We’re Talking Today Here” produced in the Playwright’s Project’s Plays by Young Writers in 1992. Full of that promise, Weisman attended Williams College and her more mature work began to show up in theaters around the nation, including “Be Aggressive,” which had its world premiere at the Playhouse in 2001, and “Hold Please,” which was premiered by South Coast Repertory Theatre and was subsequently produced at the Old Globe in 2007. Set in La Jolla, Weisman’s comic drama “Surf Report” plays June 15 to July 11 in the Mandell Weiss Forum. According to Playhouse artistic director Christopher Ashley, it is Weisman’s artistic voice at its very best. Weisman’s works always approach serious life and family issues through a comic lens. For instance, “Be Aggressive” deals with a high school cheerleader whose mother has died and whose father expects her to run the household. Now a resident of Los Angeles, Weisman was on a train when La Jolla Village News tracked her down. She was asked to describe “Surf Report.” “It centers around a man (Bruce, played by Gregory Harrison) who is a venture capitalist and surfer in La Jolla,” she said. “He’s a brilliant guy with a charmed life. He invests in high tech, complicated, scientific advancements and has a woman (Judith, played by Linda Gehringer) who has worked for him many, many years, a kind of gal Friday.” Judith has become very, very good at what she does. When the play opens, Judith makes a bid to become more like Bruce’s colleague. This sets into motion a series of incidents and confrontations that cause Judith to question the cost of devoting all her energy to Bruce for 17 years. “It’s very much a comedy,” Weisman said. “But comedy is a vehicle for communicating a lot of dark and serious subject matter.” Liv Rooth portrays Judith’s New York daughter, Jena, an artist. Matthew Arkin plays Judith’s husband, Hal. Lisa Peterson directs. A splendid actor whose Playhouse credits include “Be Aggressive” and “Light Up the Sky,” Gehringer is familiar to television viewers for credits that include “Law and Order: Criminal Intent,” four seasons on “Evening Shade” and currently a recurring role in the new FX series “Justified.” She was seen most recently on local stages in the Old Globe’s “The Women” and “Since Africa.” Gehringer said, “My life has been in the theater, even here in California. It is my life. I’m happy as long as I have a dressing room. I love the ‘presentness’ of the audience and myself. There is an energy, almost an athleticism, that theater requires which just suits me.” More information may be found at www.lajollaplayhouse.org or by phoning (858) 550-1010.








