O Réjane

In Belle Époque Paris, rising star Réjane struggles to balance the realities of working motherhood and her on- and off-stage lives & lovers, even as she must ultimately fight a groundbreaking legal battle with her husband for control of her own career. Based on a true story, this movement and music-filled spectacle delves into what it means to create in work and life. Original music by Réjane's great-great granddaughter Adrien Reju. Created in collaboration with Christopher Sivertsen, Artistic Director of Sweden's Awake Projects.

The Réjane Project-Bootleg Theater World Premiere Production
Winner, L.A. Stage Raw Award, Leading Female Performance: Cara Pifko
Nominee, L.A. Stage Raw Award for Playwriting: Ilana Turner
Nominee, L.A.  Stage Raw Award for Costume Design: Alex Berry

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Photos by Alex Berry

Slur

In pre-World War One England, Maud Allan rises to world fame as one of the first ‘modern’ dancers, only to sue for criminal libel an ultra-conservative member of Parliament who accuses her of promoting sexual deviancy via her performances. Slur delves into the hypocrisy of moral mandates for women, how the legal system can be wielded as a weapon to suppress artists, and the effects of guilt by association.

Poster by Andie Botttrell, Designing Indie

Ollie & D

Pic courtesy of Inkwell Theater

Driving an endless loop of New England country road, two long-time friends-with-benefits discover they are stuck in a Maserati prison — and that only dealing with their relationshit will break them out. Ollie & D takes a darkly comedic look at the intersection of love and the long-term relationship.

Developed through Max K. Lerner Fellowship, Inkwell Theater.

Sugar Coat It

Three-time Tony nominee Kevin Chamberlin reads monologue Sugar Coat It from the launch event for LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny (Applause Books), as covered by The Advocate. The event, co-produced by and hosted at Zak Barnett Studios, also featured readings by Wilson Cruz, Danielle MacDonald, and Darryl Stephens. Read an interview with Ilana Turner, Book Editor and Contributor Alisha Gaddis, and more at Freak Sugar.

Selected Essays

Remembering Réjane
How Belle Époque actress Réjane, a dead woman, breathed new life into me, a living one. Published on the centennial of her passing.

Even Cow Shit is Inspirational When David Lynch Directs It 
With eyes looking toward both the 2017 Twin Peaks season premiere and Lynch’s past works, playwright, writer, and actor Ilana Turner shares what the creator means to her, as well as a chance encounter with the director during a critical point in her career.

The Horror Just Out of Frame 
With another Halloween upon us, playwright and actress Ilana Turner shares how one of her own personal stories from her past intersects with The Blair Witch Project and made her reconsider how she looks at Halloween and horror.
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About Ilana Turner

Ilana Turner is an L.A. Stage Raw Playwriting award nominee for her award-winning debut O Réjane (2014). Recipient of Max K. Lerner Fellowship for workshop, staged readings of Ollie & D at Inkwell Theater (2019). Member The Vagrancy writers’ program (2018-19); workshop and staged reading for resulting play Slur in Blossoming Festival (2019). Zoom reading of Slur by Circle X Theatre (2020). Monologue Sugar Coat It published in LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny (Applause Books). Coordinating Producer for "Designing Hedwig" on the Criterion Collection Special Edition of Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2019). Three features and one television series in development. Dramaturge for Circle X Theatre’s production of punkplay (2019). As an actress, currently streaming on Netflix, HBO. Previously, Ilana was a professional figure skater & coach at the Lake Placid Olympic Center and Oakland Ice Center. The last pro show she skated was alongside Kristi Yamaguchi, and she volunteered for Brian Boitano’s Youth Skate Program. B.A. in theater and dance from Hampshire College. Member SAG, AEA, Dramatists Guild, and the Playwrights Center. A trained ‘cellist, Ilana also loves punk rock.