Los Angeles, CA – With the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina taking center stage in one of its four one-act plays, the John Lion New Plays Festival at Cal State L.A. will offer audience members an opportunity to the support restoration of New Orleans and take home some Blue Dogs.

Written by English graduate student Obed Silva, What a Wonderful World examines the hurricane’s impact on New Orleans’ 9th Ward, legendary home to many jazz and blues musicians.  

To raise money for the Habitat for Humanity Musicians’ Village in New Orleans, The Nest student organization at Cal State L.A. will hold a drawing and silent auction of Blue Dog silkscreen prints donated and signed by Louisiana artist George Rodrigue during the festival’s run, May 1-10.

The idea to connect the Blue Dogs with the New Plays Festival came from CSULA theatre graduate Shannon Shea, who hails from Shreveport, La. She contacted Rodrigue, who then donated six Blue Dog prints. Five will be auctioned on different nights of the festival: Throw Me Something FEMA (auctioned May 1), We Will Rise Again (May 2), You Can’t Drown the Blues (May 3), We Are Marching Again (May 8), and Cut Through the Red Tape (May 9). To be eligible, bidders must have a festival admission ticket. A drawing will be held through the show’s run for the other print, To Stay Alive We Need Levee 5; the winner of which will be announced after the May 10 matinee.  Tickets for the drawing are $5, or $20 for five.     

The prints originally ranged from $500 to $850 unframed, but this collection is no longer available for purchase.  Each print represents an aspect of New Orleans as seen through the eyes of Rodrigue’s Blue Dogs.  For those unfamiliar with the Blue Dog, visit Rodrigue’s website at http://www.bluedogrelief.com/  

General admission for the New Plays Festival is $15, and $8 for CSULA students and senior citizens. For admission tickets and information to the John Lion New Plays Festival, call (323) 343-4118.  For more information on the Blue Dog prints, contact Shannon Shea of The Nest at Cal State L.A., shannieshea@yahoo.com

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