Ian McRae’s PAINTED PONIES to Premiere at Ruskin Group Theatre

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Ian McRae's new play, directed by Elina de Santos, runs on the Audre Stage in Santa Monica.

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Ruskin Group Theatre Arts Center will present the World Premiere of “Painted Ponies," written by Ian McRae and directed by Elina de Santos. The event will run at 5pm Saturdays; 4pm Sundays through July 19 (no performances 4th of July weekend).

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Honoring human resilience, Painted Ponies spotlights the story of a parent who is haunted by past mistakes. While making peace with regret, a fiercely determined mother becomes an affecting portrait of a woman who tried her best to be human in an inhumane world - refusing to let loss have the final word.

“I grew up in a beach town that has A VERY OLD merry-go-round as part of its boardwalk. My grandmother, my mother, and my sisters and I rode it. My children have ridden it, and recently I went for a spin on it with my granddaughter. I was thinking about that when telling Pam's story in Painted Ponies - the ups and downs of life as we circle through it,” says writer Ian McRae.

Ian McRae (Playwright) is a Los Angeles playwright who began his career in New York with productions of several of his plays, including Pearls Before Swine at the Cucaracha Theater. At Urban Stages, his Nasty, Brutish, and Short won for 2024 Dynamic Duos Playwriting and received a staged reading from the company. The Ruskin Group Theatre has produced two world premieres of Ian's plays: The Alamo, which ran for eight months and The Joy Wheel, directed by Jason Alexander . Ian studied at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, and separately with Sanford Meisner for two years. He taught at The Neighborhood Playhouse for eight years.

Elina de Santos (Director) most recently helmed The Price, currently running at Pacific Resident Theatre, and The Fantasticksat at the Ruskin Group Theatre. World Premieres include Hostage by Michelle Kohlos Brooks, In the Valley of the Shadow by Katherine Cortez , Dirty Filthy Love Story by Rob Mersola, Razorback by John Pollono , and Church & State by Jason Odell Williams . She directed the American Premiere Daytona by Oliver Cotton and the LA Premieres of Smart Love by Brian Letscher, Bhutan by Daisy Foote , Stop Kiss by Diana Son , Falling by Deanna Jent , New Jerusalem by David Ives , Albee's A Delicate Balance and Mamet's Speed the Plow. PRT, Odyssey, WCJT include Miller's All My Sons, Death of a Salesman, & Broken Glass, Odets' Rocket to the Moon, Awake & Sing!, and Williams' Orpheus Descending - LADCC Award for Direction. Elina is the first female recipient of the LADCC Career Achievement in Directing Award and is the Founding Co-Artistic Director of Rogue Machine (2008-2024).

CAST: Rachel Sorsa as Pam: (Rogue Machine Theatre: In the Valley of the Shadow as Bette, 100 Aprils as Arlene, A Great Wilderness as Abby – Broadway World Nomination/Best Actress; at Playwrights Arena in the title role as Helen, THREE as Masha, Billy Boy as Emma/Mother – Ovation Nomination/Best Lead Actress, Apartment Living as White Lady, Cinnamon Girl as Empress. LGBT Center: The Search for Signs Intelligent Life in the Universe as Brandi – Broadway World Nomination/Featured Actress); The Zephyr ( Del Shores Beard, This Side of Crazy as Bethany Blaylock – Ovation Nominations/Best Featured Actress and Best Ensemble. Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical as Rosemary Clooney – Broadway World Nomination/Lead Actress in a Musical), North Coast Rep and Georgia Ensemble Theatres. TV: roles in productions on Netflix, HBO, Disney+ and Amazon Prime.

CREATIVE TEAM: Michael Redfield (Lighting Design), Jeff Gardner (Sound Design), Keith Stevenson (Videographer), Bruce Burns (Properties/Graphic Design). John Ruskin (Artistic Director/Producer), Michael Myers (Producing Artistic Director).

Ruskin Group Theatre recently concluded their two-decade tenure at the Original Theatre next door with a sold-out production of The Fantasticks, known for being the world's longest running musical. Previously, Arthur Miller 's A View from the Bridge starring Ray Abruzzo garnered a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle nomination for BEST REVIVAL and two additional nominations for BEST ACTOR; winning 3 Stage Raw Awards). The company launched the Los Angeles premiere of Todd Kreidler 's adaptation based on the screenplay of William Rose 's Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (extended for three months), and the world premieres of Rex Pickett 's Sideways the Play, picked up by La Jolla Playhouse (directed by Des McAnuff ), subsequently moving to London's West End; Paradise: A Divine Bluegrass Musical Comedy which was later produced by the Austin Playhouse in 2019 with the Ruskin cast, and The Alamo, now scheduled for regional productions. The CAFE PLAYS, created by RGT, are celebrating their 14th anniversary.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/PAINTED-PONIES-to-Make-World-Premiere-at-Ruskin-Group-Theatre-Arts-Center-20260617)._