OPENING: Chicago Premiere of CHOIR BOY Via Raven Theatre

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Raven Theatre Presents the Chicago Premiere of

CHOIR BOY

By Tarell Alvin McCraney

Directed by Artistic Director Michael Menendian

September 27 – November 12, 2017

Raven Theatre Company is pleased to launch its 35th anniversary season with the Chicago premiere of CHOIR BOY, by recent Academy Award winner Tarell Alvin McCraney who, together with writer-director Barry Jenkins, won the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for the Academy’s Best Picture winner, Moonlight.  Directed by Artistic Director Michael Menendian, CHOIR BOY will play September 27 – November 12, 2017 in Raven’s 120-seat East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville) in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177. 

CHOIR BOY features Patrick Agada, Robert D. Hardaway, Tamarus Harvell, Christopher W. Jones, Julian Terrell Otis, Darren Patin and Don Tieri.

CHOIR BOY, which was first produced by the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York during the summer of 2013, concerns a gay teenage boy in an all African-American prep school. The Charles R. Drew Prep School for Boys is dedicated to the development of strong, ethical black men. Pharus wants nothing more than to take his rightful place as leader of the school's legendary choir. Can he find his way inside the hallowed halls of this institution if he sings in his own key?

The production team for CHOIR BOY includes: Ray Toler (scenic design) JoAnn Montemurro (costume design), Diane D. Fairchild (lighting design), Sebby Woldt (sound design), Mary O’Dowd (properties design and set dressing), Kathryn McNall (stage manager), Destiney Higgins (assistant director), Frederick Harris (music director), Breon Arzell (choreographer) and Dan Laushman (technical director).

PRODUCTION DETAILS:
Location: Raven Theatre East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville), Chicago

Dates: Previews: Wednesday, September 27 at 7:30 pm, Thursday, September 28 at 7:30 pm, Friday, September 29 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, September 30 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, October 1 at 3 pm and Monday, October 2 at 7:30 pm.

Regular run: Friday, October 6 – Sunday, November 12, 2017
Curtain Times: Thursday, Fridays and Saturday at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Thursday, October 5.

Tickets: $46 ($43 if purchased online). Seniors/teachers $41 ($38 if purchased online). Students/active military and veterans $15. Every Thursday is “Under 30 Thursday,” when patrons under age 30 can purchase tickets for $15. Single tickets and season subscriptions for the 2017-18 Season are currently available at www.raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177.

Group tickets: Groups of 10 or more are $30 per person for Thursday and Friday performances and $35 per person for Saturday and Sunday performances. Student groups are $15 per person.

Plan Your Visit: 

Free parking is provided in a lot adjacent to the theatre – additional street parking is available. Nearest El station: Granville Red Line, Buses: #22 (Clark), #36 (Broadway), #151 (Sheridan), #155 (Devon), #84 (Peterson).

About the Artists

Tarell Alvin McCraney (Playwright) is well-known to Chicago audiences for his acclaimed trilogy, The Brother/Sister Plays: The Brothers Size, In the Red and Brown Water, and Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet, which were performed at Steppenwolf Theatre in 2010. He was named a Steppenwolf ensemble member that year, and his play Head of Passes received its world premiere there in 2013, the year he received a MacArthur Fellowship “Genius Grant.” On February 26 of this year, he shared an Academy Award with Barry Jenkins for “Best Adapted Screenplay” of Moonlight, which was also named “Best Picture” of 2016 by the Academy.

Michael Menendian (Director) is co-founder and co-artistic director of Raven Theatre through the current season, where he has directed over 50 productions in the past 35 years.  Some favorites include The Last Meeting of the Knights of the White Magnolia, Cobb, A View from the Bridge, You Can’t Take It With You, Glengarry Glen Ross, Marvin’s Room, Golden Boy, A Streetcar Named Desire, Death of a Salesman, Beast on the Moon, and Direct from Death Row The Scottsboro Boys.  He is the recipient of nine Joseph Jefferson, and multiple After Dark awards.  Mr. Menendian has also directed for such companies as The Meetinghouse Theatre (Boston), Victory Gardens Theatre, The New Haven Playhouse, Oak Park Village Players, Chicago Dramatists, and The Agency Theatre Collective.

About Raven Theatre Company

Raven Theatre tells stories of today and the past that connect us to our cultural landscape. Through its plays as well as its educational programming, Raven is committed to serving our communities’ needs through the arts.

Raven Theatre Company is funded in part by the Alphawood Foundation, Dramatists Guild Fund, Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, Polk Bros. Foundation, The Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development, Yates Feldman Foundation, S&C Electric, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.