Pittsburgh - Yo’ Mama! a provocative new comedy about modern motherhood, opened to sold out crowds at last summer’s Three Rivers Arts Festival. Because of the strong audience response to this debut production by local playwright, Heather Arnet, the Center for Creative Play will present a return engagement of Yo’Mama! from April 28th through May 16th in their performance space located at 1400 S. Braddock Avenue in Regent Square.

As a community partner for this production, Whole Foods Market will host two outreach events connected to the show at their East Liberty store location on Center Avenue. On Saturday April 17th at 2pm the cast and the writer/director of Yo’ Mama! will perform excerpts from the play in the Whole Foods Market Café. Then, on Wednesday May 5th at 9am, (just in time for Mother’s Day) Arnet and two other local mom/artists Delanie Jenkins (sculptor) and Melissa Martin (Screenwriter/Director of the feature film The Bread My Sweet and Yo’ Mama! cast member), will host a discussion about how to retain your creativity (and sanity) during the early months and years of motherhood. This will take place in a conference room at Whole Foods Market.

“Whole Foods Market is grateful to the many local moms who frequent our store on a regular basis. It is wonderful to have this opportunity to give them a little something extra to enjoy during their visit to our store.” Said Whole Foods Market Marketing Director Kim Wynnyckyj.

“The purpose of Yo’ Mama! is to entertain but also to empower new moms. We are thrilled to be able to partner with Whole Foods Market to bring the message of the play to an even broader audience.” Said Yo’ Mama! writer/director Heather Arnet.

Both events are free and open to the public. Reservations are encouraged for the morning discussion on May 5th as seating is limited. For more info or reservations to these free community events please call 412.441.7960.

Yo’ Mama! runs April 28 – May 16, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm. Tickets are $15. For reservations call ProArts ticketing at 412-394-3353 or visit www.proartstickets.org. For more info on the play visit www.yomamatheplay.com

Yo’ Mama! is funded in part through a Seed Award from the Sprout Fund and through a grant from the Pennsylvania Partners in the Arts program of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA), a state agency.
About Yo’ Mama!

Yo’ Mama!, written by Heather Arnet, premiered at Three Rivers Arts Festival in Pittsburgh, PA in June 2003. Because of its sell out success at the festival it received two grants, one from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the other from the Sprout Fund, to launch another production in Pittsburgh. With choreography by Mary Miller, the play features: Vanessa German, Mary Harvey, Melissa Martin, Colleen Quinn, Tonia Steed, and Adrienne Wehr as six women in a post-natal yoga class who take you on a one-hour roller coaster ride through sleepless nights, first words, and orgasms that no mother, son, or daughter should miss. The play runs April 29 - May 15 at the Center for Creative Play,1400 Braddock Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15218. After this production Yo’ Mama! will be going national. It is our goal to have a reading or production in every state of the union for Mother’s Day 2005. Each local producer will be asked to select a local (or national) non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance the lives of women or girls, to receive a percentage of proceeds from box office sales. The goal of Yo’ Mama! is to entertain but also to pay tribute to the diverse women who call themselves mothers. The play presents women who are funny, career driven, sexy, witty, strong, and they also all happen to be moms too. It is our goal to bring this message to women (and men) all over the country so as to broaden our definition of who mothers are and what they can dream about and desire and become. For more info visit: www.yomamatheplay.com

About Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods Market is a community partner of Yo' Mama! in Pittsburgh. Whole Foods Market is proud to present two in-store events to promote the play to its customers. For more info or reservations to these free community events please call 412.441.7960. Founded in 1980 as one small store in Austin, Texas, Whole Foods Market® is now the world's largest retailer of natural and organic foods, with 156 stores in North America and the United Kingdom. To date Whole Foods Market remains uniquely mission driven: We're highly selective about what we sell, dedicated to stringent Quality Standards, and committed to sustainable agriculture. We believe in a virtuous circle entwining the food chain, human beings and Mother Earth: each is reliant upon the others through a beautiful and delicate symbiosis. For more info see www.wholefoodsmarket.com

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