On October 22, 2016, Center Stage Theater in Santa Barbara, CA presents the World Premiere of Two Original Works by Two Comediennes:
Carol Metcalf wrote and stars in Catastrophic Thinking – The Musical
Maija DiGiorgio wrote and stars in Unmistakably Maija
Carol and Maija present their unique viewpoints of life growing up in America. Their experiences have helped them deal with pain and anxiety through laughter.
In Catastrophic Thinking – The Musical, Carol showcases her heritage as an Air Force brat and Texan, always preparing for the next catastrophic event with catastrophic humor. Carol brings to the stage a cross-section of outrageous characters who, for better or worse, shaped her development. Seen through the eyes of Carol Ann, Brother Bill, Viet Nam “Johnson”, Playboy model Betty, Nelda the Cosmetic Lady, Karma the traveling psychic, Benson the Agoraphobic psychiatrist, and others explain her view of life.
The play “Unmistakably Maija” is the work of comedienne Maija DiGiorgio, who shares her story of growing up biracial, raised in New York by her fascist, post WWII immigrant Sicilian grandparents who struggle to conceal her own mother’s racial identity. And they do… until her African-American relatives crash her mother’s funeral. At that point Maija finally understands why she never really fit in at her Greenwich CT boarding school.
Growing Up Crazy in America will touch everyone who has survived dysfunctional family and work relationships. You don’t have to accept what they do or who they are, but you can still respect them and maybe even love them! “Laughter is Healing” is the message we want to impart to the audience.
Center Stage Theater is located at 751 Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. The show has one performance only on Saturday, October 22, 2016. Showtime is at 8 PM. Tickets are $20.00 and may be purchased in advance on the Center Stage Theater website http://www.centerstagetheater.org/ or by calling the box office at (805) 963-0408.
The Show’s writers/performers are:
Carol Metcalf has been a professional comic for almost 20 years, appearing at The Comedy Store, Evening at the Improv, and Girls Behaving Badly with Chelsea Handler. Carol toured her one woman show, “My Life is Too Vivid” in California and Texas, where she performed at SXSW. She has performed at Center Stage in Hair, Assassins, Ives Lives, and Vagina Monologues. She is thrilled to premier her original work, “Catastrophic Thinking”, at Center Stage.
Maija DiGiorgio is the daughter of an award winning mambo dancing father from Sicily and an accomplished African American chanteuse / concert performer mother. Growing up, Maija was always saying, “I want to be me, but who am I?” As Maija experienced bigotry and racism, she realized that the solution to these problems might be found through “educational comedy” as a way to handle the sensitive questions of racial differences.