LAFPI

Ruskin Group Theatre at 2800 Airport Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90405

In a sunny, progressive beach community where the lawns are manicured, the politics are enlightened, and the neighbors are very good people, something has gone terribly wrong.

Spiderman—an award-winning, free-range rabbit—is missing. The prime suspect? Nacho, the shaggy rescue dog next door who has recently developed a troubling interest in what lies beyond the fence. What begins as a neighborly conversation about pets, boundaries and one suspiciously large hole quickly spirals into accusations, shifting alliances, whiskey, cashew cheese, and the uncomfortable realization that being a good neighbor is a lot easier when nobody is testing the fence. This wickedly funny new West Coast premiere about good intentions, bad behavior, and what happens when civilized people stop being quite so civilized stars Sharon Lawrence, Dann Florek, Matthew Scott Montgomery, and Jamie Pierce. Performances are schedule opens on Saturday, November 7^th at the new Ruskin Group Theatre Arts Center in Santa Monice, CA.

“This story grew from a funny – not so funny incident in my neighborhood,” says Brooks, and the incident itself grew out of something as old as neighborhoods: the challenge of living in close proximity to people who don’t necessarily see the world the way we do. We share sidewalks, fences, and property lines, all while viewing them through wildly different lenses. But no matter how we look at it, if we zoom out far enough, we arrive at the same burning question: How the hell do we live with each other? As a dark comedy – in all seriousness – it sinks its teeth into questions of boundaries, fences, gentrification, and tolerance. The limits of good intentions. There’s even a little debate about free-range parenting.”

Michelle Kholos Brooks (Playwright) is a multi-award-winning playwright with productions staged internationally and garnering a Susan Glaspell Award, Stage Raw awards, and Best of Edinburgh Fringe for H*tler’s Tasters, currently being developed as a streaming series by Producer Brad Saunders and Peter Dinklage’s company, Estuary. Kalamazoo won the Riva Shiner Comedy Award. Room 1214 was a finalist for The Ashland New Plays Festival. Hostage was a finalist for the Woodward/Newman Drama Award, the Fratti-Newman Political Play Contest, and a Showcase Finalist for the National New Play Network. Chair received second place in the Firehouse Theatre Festival of New American Plays. War Words was recently inducted into the United States Library of Congress as a collection of the Veterans History Project. Brooks is a Resident Artist at New Light Theater Project, a former Artist in Residence at New York Rep, and a current board member of ShPIel-Performing Identity Theatre Project. She is a member of The Dramatists Guild of America, The Playwrights Center, Pacific Resident Theatre, and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security.

Casey Stangl (Director) works at numerous theaters across the country including South Coast Repertory, Geffen Playhouse, American Conservatory Theater, Guthrie Theater, Everyman Theater, Arizona Theater Company, La Jolla Playhouse, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Denver Center, Portland Stage and Cleveland Playhouse. Recent projects include Bobby Robotowitz at IAMA Theatre (NNPN Rolling World Premiere), The Girl on the Train at the Alley Theater, SJ Hodges’ Already Here at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (world premiere), Audrey Cefaly’s Alabaster at the Fountain Theatre (West Coast premiere) and John Ross Bowie’s Brushstroke at the Odyssey Theater (2024 Scenie Award for Best World Premiere). Casey has developed work with numerous playwrights and directed at the O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Humana Festival, Pacific Playwrights Festival, In the Works-In the Woods Festival, and served as associate artistic director for Ojai Playwrights Conference. Upcoming: Jennifer Maisel’s Provenance in a world premiere co-production with Asolo Repertory Theatre and Palm Beach Dramaworks.

Cast: Dann Florek* as Xander (Broadway: The Front Page – revival, other roles have included productions at the Ruskin – Ian McRae’s The Joy Wheel, at La Jolla Playhouse and the Globe Theatre. Best known for his portrayal of Captain Donald Cragen on Law & Order and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. TV: L.A. Law, Hill Street Blues, The Equalizer, and The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer. Film appearances include Angel Heart, The Flintstones, Flight of the Intruder, and Hard Rain. Trained at Juilliard, and received a 2010 PRISM Award nomination for Performance in a Drama Episode); Sharon Lawrence* as Devorah (Broadway: Cabaret, Fiddler on the Roof, Velma in Chicago. Off Bway: Pen Pals, Tongue of a Bird, Love, Loss and What I Wore, regionally in Steel Magnolias, Parents In Chains, and roles at the all the major LA theaters with 2 nominations for Ovation Awards and win from LA Drama Critics Circle. Next April, at The Wallis, Sharon stars as famed Washington Post publisher, Katharine Graham in the multi-award-winning solo play The Shot. TV work includes the multiple EMMY nominated and SAG AWARD winning run as Sylvia on NYPD Blue, as well as featured roles on Shameless, Dynasty, Desperate Housewives, Rizzoli & Isles, Grey’s Anatomy – 4th EMMY nominations – and currently in Joe Pickett on Paramount + and several of Hallmarks top rated holiday programs); Matthew Scott Montgomery* as Brad 2 (Foursome at IAMA Theatre/Celebration Theatre), Stage Kiss (The Geffen Playhouse), Del Shores’ Yellow – Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award recipient for Best Actor, Ovation Award nominee for Best Actor. Film/TV/Web: Sonny With a Chance, Austin & Ally – Disney, Del Shores’ Southern Baptist Sissies opposite Leslie Jordan, Jane the Virgin – CW, and most recently starred in a sold out presentation of his play Ghost Play at the Renberg Theatre – Los Angeles LGBT Center. His new feature, the dark comedy horror Howdy, Neighbor!, is in post-production, directed by Disney co-star Allisyn Snyder and stars himself, Debby Ryan, and Alyson Stoner); Jamie Pierce* as Brad 1 (most recently seen as twin brothers John and James Jeckyll in Terrence McNally’s Love! Valour! Compassion! at the Dezart Playhouse, for which he received a Desert Theatre League Award nomination. Selected credits include, Los Angeles: Priscilla, Queen of the Desert at Celebration Theatre; Ovation Award nomination, New York: The Music Man at the Helen Hayes Theatre, Broadway Dances with Karen Ziemba. TV/film: The Family Business – BET/Netflix, The Con – ABC, the 79th Annual Golden Globe Awards, and the title role in the award-winning independent film Bill).

Creative Team: Stephanie Kerley Schwartz (Scenic and Costume Design), Brandon Baruch (Lighting Design), Hannah Owens-Bender (Costume Design), Keith Stevenson (Sound Design), Megan Trapani (Props), Victoria Hoffman (Casting), Nicole Millar (Production Stage Manager).

John Ruskin (Artistic Director/Producer) founded the professional company in 2001. Recently, he produced Joanna Murray-Smith’s Honour, starring Marcia Cross and Matthew Letscher, for the new arts center’s inaugural show on the Kaplan Stage. Other productions include Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge (Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle nomination for BEST REVIVAL and two additional nominations for BEST ACTOR; winning 3 Stage Raw Awards). He produced Steve Martin’s Picasso at the Lapin Agile (extended for four months), the Los Angeles premiere of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (extended for three months), and Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman which starred Rob Morrow. John helmed the critically acclaimed production of Strange Snow, and teaches a Master’s Class in acting at the RGT school. John’s years of experience include studies at the Yale School of Drama, British American Drama Academy in Oxford, England, and the University of Colorado in Boulder. In New York, Ruskin joined the acting faculty of the Neighborhood Playhouse at the request of Sanford Meisner (who he then apprenticed with) before moving to Los Angeles where he founded the RGT school of acting in addition to the professional theatre company. 

Michael Myers (Producing Artistic Director) has served as Ruskin’s Managing director since 2002. In that time, he has produced over 100 projects, along with John Ruskin, including the long running recent West Coast premiere of Samuel D. Hunter’s Grangeville and the hit musical which he directed, Paradise: A Bluegrass Musical, later revived at the Austin Playhouse for a sold-out run. Other notable projects include developing and producing the world premiere production of Rex Pickett’s Sideways the Play. Since its world premiere at the Ruskin, Sideways the Play has been produced at the La Jolla Playhouse under Des McAnuff and recently had its West End Premiere at the St. James Theatre. Mike developed and directed the world premieres of Sneaky Ole Time with music by multi-Grammy Award winner Paul Overstreet, Rainbow Bridge, and Digging up Dad. Mike is a co-creator of the Ruskin Group Theatre’s “L.A. Cafe Plays,” the monthly offering of one-acts done in 10 1/2 hours from conception to staging. The “L.A. Café Plays” have been produced over 200 times since 2004. Mike served 12 years on Santa Monica Arts Commission, ten years as chair. During his time on the commission, Mike was integral in the city’s decision to prioritize maintaining artist affordability in Santa Monica.

Ruskin Group Theatre recently concluded their over two-decade tenure, at the original building next door, with a sold-out production of The Fantasticks, known for being the world’s longest running musical. Their CAFÉ PLAYS, created at RGT, celebrates their15th anniversary.

Nacho Ate Spiderman opens at 8pm on Saturday, November 7^th and runs at 8pm Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays; 2pm Sundays through December 20, 2026 (check website for exceptions – no performance on December 12). Ruskin Group Theatre is located at 2800 Airport Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90405. Tickets $45, with discounts for students and seniors, can be purchased in advance at www.ruskingrouptheatre.com or for more information: (310) 397-3244. Free parking available on site.

Instagram: @ruskingroupthtr