LOS ANGELES, CA – April 1, 2014

 – Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK), the performance space at Le Lycée Français de Los Angeles, is pleased to present the Los Angeles premiere of Inconnu à cette adresse (Address Unknown) starring French film and theatre legends Thierry Lhermitte and Patrick Timsit on Saturday, April 26, and Sunday, April 27, 2014. Inconnu à cette adresse is based on the book Address Unknown, written by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor. The novel was published just before the outbreak of World War 2, written as a series of letters between a Jewish art dealer living in San Francisco and his business partner, who had returned to Germany in 1932. It is credited with exposing, early on, the dangers of Nazism to the American public. The work was adapted for the stage by Michèle Levy-Bram. Inconnu à cette adresse, directed by Delphine de Malherbe, will be in French with projected English subtitles. Performances start at 7:30pm and will take place at Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz, 10361 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90064 (310-286-0553). Ticket prices range from $40 to $60 and can be purchased here. A no host bar will be available. See more on TRK’s event page here. For information about Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz, please visit www.theatreraymondkabbaz.com.

“Inconnu à cette adresse explores the bonds of friendship in a world that is falling apart,” says Pierre Leloup, Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz Director, “Even though the original book was published right before World War 2, the work remains a remarkably timely warning on how humanity can be tested, and fail, in an environment of extreme ideology.”

Inconnu à cette adresse brings Kathrine Kressmann Taylor’s classic pre-war text, Address Unknown, back to life. In her book, an international literary sensation and social phenomenon, a successful art dealer returns to his native Germany, maintaining a correspondence with his close Jewish friend back in America. The captivating text is masterfully composed of nineteen tragic letters. Against a backdrop of rising nationalism, allegiances become distorted beyond recognition. This production of Inconnu à cette adresse premiered in Paris at the Theatre Antoine in 2012 and was produced by Laurent Ruquier and Jean-Marc Dumontet, running with tremendous success for two years. The US tour is produced by Jean-Marc Dumontet and JMD Production, in association with Soho Theatre (London), Christian Clavier, Jean-Paul de Vidas, and Rick Senat. The stage adaptation, Inconnu à cette adresse, was awarded the 2013 Globes de Cristal Best Theatre Play of the Year.

In 1995, when Kressmann Taylor was 91, Story Press reissued Address Unknown to mark the 50th anniversary of the liberation of the concentration camps. The novel was subsequently translated into 20 languages, and the French version sold 600,000 copies. It was also reissued in Britain in 2002. The book, an anti-fascist call to arms, was banned in 1930s Germany for exposing the threat of Nazism. It finally appeared in Germany in 2001.

Thierry Lhermitte –
Thierry Lhermitte, born in Boulogne-Billancourt, is a popular French actor well known for his comedic roles. He was one of the founders of the comedy troupe Le Splendid in the 1970s, along with, among others, his high school friends Christian Clavier, Gérard Jugnot, and Michel Blanc. That group adapted a number of its stage hits for the cinema, and scored major successes with films such as Les Bronzés (1978), Les Bronzés Font du Ski (1979), and Le Père Noël est Une Ordure (1982). He also had a successful career away from Le Splendid, particularly with the films Les Ripoux (1984), La Totale! (1990; remade as True Lies with Arnold Schwarzenegger in Lhermitte’s role), and Le Dîner de Cons (1998), among many others. In 2012, with his accomplice Patrick Timsit, he first performed a stage reading of Kressmann Taylor’s book, Inconnu à cette adresse, at the Theater Antoine, at the Festival of Avignon, and on tour, where they were met with tremendous success. He was made Chevalier (Knight) of the Légion d’Honneur in 2001 and Officier (Officer) of the Ordre National du Mérite in 2005. He also received Best Actor nominations at both the 2014 Lumiere and César awards for his performance in the highly acclaimed Quai d’Orsay (2013).

Patrick Timsit –
French comedian, screenwriter, and director Patrick Timsit has been nominated for four César Awards, France’s national film honor, three times as an actor and once as a writer. Born in Algeria, he fled to Paris with his family in 1961, a year before Algeria gained independence after nearly a decade of war. By the mid-1980s, Timsit was acting in movies. He is perhaps best known for the French comedy Un Indien Dans la Ville (1994). Other notable films in his career include Pédale Douce (1996), Dragon Hunters (2008), and Le Cousin (1997). He received Best Actor and Best Screenplay César nominations for Pédale Douce. He also received a Best Supporting Actor César nomination for La Crise (1992) and a Best Actor César nomination for Le Cousin. Timsit’s directing credits include Quasimodo d’El Paris (1999), Quelqu’un de Bien (2002), and L’Américain (2004). He has also starred onstage in L’Emmerdeur, which led to a 2008 film adaptation, as well as in his One Man Show. In 2012, with Thierry Lhermitte, he first performed a stage reading of Kressmann Taylor’s book, Inconnu à cette adresse, at the Theater Antoine, at the Festival of Avignon, and on tour, where they met with tremendous success.

Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz –
Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK) is a non-profit institution dedicated to the promotion of art and culture in the West Los Angeles area. This 220-seat theater welcomes multidisciplinary and multicultural shows. TRK’s mission is to be an open window on French and international cultures and to inspire and sustain a lifelong appreciation for the arts.

Links –
• Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz – http://www.theatreraymondkabbaz.com
• Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz Event Page – http://www.theatreraymondkabbaz.com/2013/04/15/inconnu-a-cette-adresse
• Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Theatre-Raymond- Kabbaz/43864706321
• Facebook Event Page – https://www.facebook.com/events/1431256250447569

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For more information, photos, to schedule an interview, or to request complimentary tickets, please contact Green Galactic’s Lynn Tejada at 213-840-1201 or lynn@greengalactic.com.