PlayhouseSquare 14th Street Theatre
2037 East 14th Street
You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up!
February 5-17 ONLY!
Written by Annabelle Gurwitch and Jeff Kahn with Kevin Bartini and Gabrielle Mirabella in the lead roles
Come experience marriage as a contact sport as Annabelle Gurwitch and Jeff Kahn’s hilarious and moving memoir “You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up!” takes to the stage. Kevin Bartini and Gabrielle Mirabella star as two polar opposite spouses who by any stretch of the imagination should not have met in the first place, let alone gotten married and even worse had children.
After 17 years of marital combat they have somehow learned how to stay together in spite of romance, children, money and themselves. Throwing away the book on conventional married wisdom they have re-written the rules to suite their lifestyle of raising children as a competitive sport, dropping out of “couple’s therapy” and pretty much ignoring every bit of advice from friends, relatives and clergy.
What appears as first to be a borderline crazy lifestyle, is in fact a balance of “controlled mayhem” that puts the “fun” in dysfunctional. While it is not exactly the “happily ever after” that the fairy tales promise, it is enough to get them through today long enough to see if anything better will be coming along tomorrow.
For any couple who had relatives ‘making book’ at their wedding on how many years their marriage would last, this production is a must see. For couples contemplating wedded bliss this play should be mandatory. For whatever reason, you just might find that you’re not so far removed from this couple as you think.
You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up! will play the 14th Street Theatre February 5 – 17. Tickets are on sale now at the PlayhouseSquare Ticket Office, via phone at 216-241-6000 or online at www.playhousesquare.org. Ticket prices range from $20.00 to $35.00. Group orders may be placed by calling 216-640-8600. For more information about You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up! visit www.tomatoplay.com.
About the Actors
GABRIELLE MIRABELLA (Annabelle) is a Florida native with a degree from the Manhattan School of Music. After studying in NYC for both theater and opera, Mirabella is busy cramming as many new and wonderful opportunities into her career as possible. Favorite regional theater credits include Velma in Hairspray and Laura in Swing.
KEVIN BARTINI (Jeff) Comedy fans the world over have taken notice of Kevin Bartini’s cutting edge, quick witted biting sense of humor. After ten years honing his skills in New York City, Kevin has become one of the brightest new stars on the comedy landscape. Currently Kevin can be seen warming up the audience at The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as well as Bunk on IFC. He has also worked for two seasons as an audience warm-up comic for Who Wants To Be a Millionaire. Movie fans and comedy fans may best know Kevin as the creator and star of The Movie Preview Review Podcast .
The Creative Team
ANNABELLE GURWITCH (Writer) first gained a wide comedic following during her years co-hosting “Dinner & a Movie” on TBS. Annabelle turned her experience of being canned by Woody Allen into the Off-Broadway play, touring show, book and documentary film Fired. Her film premiered on Showtime and has been screened everywhere from The South by Southwest Film Festival to The Department of Labor.
She’s been a regular commentator on NPR and a humor columnist for TheNationMagazine.com.Annabelle has appeared on Oprah, The Today Show, Fox and Friends, CNN, MSNBC, The CBS Early Show and Talk of The Nation on NPR. She’s been profiled in major print outlets including The Washington Post, Psychology Today, More, Chicago Tribune, Denver Post, InStyle, The New York Times, The JTA, USA Today and People.
Time magazine cited Annabelle in their cover story “10 Ideas that are Changing the World” for Fired! She has hosted television shows on ABC, VHI, Style and HBO. Acting credits include “Medium,” “Boston Legal,” “Seinfeld” and films Shaggy Dog, Melvin Goes to Dinner and Daddy Day Care. Her work Off-Broadway garnered her a place in The New York Times Top Ten Performances in Theatre, 2002.
Her essays have appeared in The L.A. Times, Child, The Jewish Journal, Glamour and two anthologies: Note to Self and Rejected! She hosts “WA$TED”! On The Planet Green Network. This is her second book and second marriage.
JEFF KAHN (Writer) is a writer/performer who began his career on MTV’s “The Ben Stiller Show.” A few years later, he won an Emmy award for writing on FOX’s “The Ben Stiller Show,” it was a moment so unexpected and shocking that he literally cried. Jeff has written on several other shows including, “Later with Greg Kinnear” “Austin Stories” and “Dilbert.”
His essays can be read online at FreshYarn.com and in his wife’s terrific and very funny book, Fired! He also has written and produced numerous television pilots, in particular, a spin-off of “All American Girl” starring Margaret Cho. He can be seen on HBO reruns of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Entourage” and “The Larry Sanders Show,” and has been seen in films including , Tropic Thunder, 40-Year-Old Virgin, and The Cable Guy. Online, Jeff is featured on the show, “The Writer’s Room.” This is his first book and first marriage.
The book was developed through sold-out performances at The Comedy Central Theatre and at Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles, and made its New York premiere at The New York Comedy Festival 2009.
Annabelle an Jeff live in Los Angeles with their 13 year old son, Ezra, and their eighteen-year old cat, Stinky.
You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up! is a part of the U.S. Bank Star Performance Series
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