Please join us on September 13th for a night at the La Brea Tar Pits Museum, announcing the 2026 Season and bestowing the Open Fist Theatre’s 2025 Excellence in Arts Award
The evening will feature dinner, dancing, a silent auction, and mastodons,as we celebrate our 34th Season and raise money for the Season ahead.
INDIVIDUAL TICKETS
$300 — Early Entry with Fossil Activation Lab
$200 — Gala Ticket
SPONSORSHIPS & CONTRIBUTIONS
Can’t make it but would still like to support the Open Fist Theatre Company’s 35th Season?
Please consider a fully tax-deductible sponsorship or contribution.
For more information email Beth Robbins at bethroftc@gmail.com
TABLES
For more information on Table purchases email Beth Robbins at bethroftc@gmail.com
Schedule
6 pm – 7 pm Early Entrance
- Free parking in the Museum Parking lot behind the museum
- Enjoy our Signature Cocktail, hors d’oeuvres and live music as you connect with friends in the Atrium or wander through the exhibits.
- Experience the La Brea Tar Pits Museum. Guests will have access to all exhibits. Take advantage of our Early Entrance to enjoy everything the nation’s only active, urban paleontological museum has to offer.
7 pm – 11 pm Gala Event w/ Cocktails, Dinner, Dancing & More
- Free parking in the museum parking lot.
- Experience a private activation of the museum’s Fossil Lab! Watch and ask questions of museum paleontologists as they ready recent discoveries for display.
- Sip our Signature Cocktail and sample passed hors d’oeuvres as you explore the museum and browse our Silent Auction.
- Enjoy dinner from our food stations with table side wine service.
- 2025 Season announcement and Paddle Raise
- Presentation of 2025 Excellence in Arts Award
- Dessert & Dancing
What to know before you go:
The La Brea Tar Pits Museum is located at 5801 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036 in the Miracle Mile.
Park in the free lot, behind the Museum; entrance is off S Curson Ave, north of Wilshire.
Event check in will be just inside the Museum, on the left-hand side.
Attire: Museum Chic.
TABLES (all tables seat 10)
PRODUCER’S TABLE
@ $10,000
(Max. 2 – Seats 10)
All benefits of Playwright’s Table plus
• Dine w/ Open Fist Artistic Director Martha Demson or Guest of Honor
• Season Tickets for ten guests to the 2025 Season
• Recognition at the Event and in the Season program
DIRECTOR’S TABLE
@ $5,000
(Max 3)
All benefits of Playwright’s Table plus
• Dine with a member of Open Fist’s Artistic Staff
• Season Tickets for two to the 2025 Season
• Recognition at the Event and in the Season Program
PLAYWRIGHT’S TABLE
@ $3000
All benefits of Artist’s Table plus
• Early Admission for 10 guests; includes early access to all Exhibits and Fossil Lab Activation
• Tickets for 10 guests to BOTH: A Hard Day’s Silent Night
ARTIST’S TABLE
@ $2000
(Seats 10)
• Event tickets for 10 guests
• Tickets for 10 guests to AMERIKA or, THE MAN WHO DISAPPEARED (our final production of the 2025 Season)
INDIVIDUAL EARLY ADMISSION TICKET
@ $300
• Early Admission @ 6 pm. Advance access to all museum exhibits and Fossil Lab Activation.
• Cocktails, Dinner & Dancing @ 7 pm
INDIVIDUAL GALA TICKET
@ $200
Honoree – Anna Khaja
Anna Khaja is a nationally acclaimed, award-winning actress, playwright, and director whose work across stage, screen, and television has been heralded for its artistry, depth, and political relevance.Anna has appeared Off-Broadway, regionally, and on both coasts; most recently she performed at the Fountain Theatre (LA) and Manhattan Theatre Club (NYC) in Stephen Sachs’ politically charged play Fatherland. An award-winning playwright and solo performer, Khaja wrote and starred in Shaheed: The Dream and Death of Benazir Bhutto, which enjoyed an extended and acclaimed Off-Broadway run. Her performance was hailed as “a wonder,” “heart-stopping, engrossing, funny, and profound theatre” and “a one-woman triumph.” Her stage work, often politically and socially charged, reflects a commitment to stories that provoke dialogue and illuminate urgent global issues. She has collaborated with leading theatres including the Mark Taper Forum, South Coast Repertory, La Jolla Playhouse, the Kirk Douglas Theatre, and the Open Fist Theatre Company where she was a member from 2003-2010. Anna is co-founder of the Vesper Theatre Collective in Ojai, and in Los Angeles, she is the winner of the Ovation Award for Lead Actress in a Play, a five-time Ovation nominee, an LA Weekly Award winner, and a GLAAD Award recipient.
On screen, Khaja first gained recognition in her breakout role as Sita Parrish on ABC’s Quantico. She is now perhaps best known as Indira in The Walking Dead franchise, and has amassed more than eighty-five film and television credits, including memorable arcs on The Good Place (NBC), Silicon Valley (HBO), Madam Secretary (CBS), and most recently, The Lincoln Lawyer (Netflix).
As a writer, Khaja is the recipient of the Google x Black List Storytelling Fellowship, a Sundance alum, and was selected for the Diverse Voices TV Writers Program. In 2023, she won the Screencraft Pilot Competition out of 3,500 submissions with her pilot What Doesn’t Kill Me. She is currently developing a television series based on her life story with major studios.
As a filmmaker, Khaja recently wrote and directed her debut film HEADBANG, which was just selected to headline the prestigious Flux Screening Series at the Hammer Museum.
