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Showing posts with label ATC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ATC. Show all posts

Sunday, June 5, 2016

OPENING: XANADU, AT AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY

AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY OPENS
XANADU
A TRIBUTE TO LATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR PJ PAPARELLI
DIRECTED BY LILI-ANNE BROWN

NOW PLAYING THROUGH JULY 17, 2016

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:


Livin' in the 80's?! Come on out and get your neon and quad rollers fix. Tonight ChiIL Mama will be ChiILin' at ATC, for their live, stage version of XANADU. I prepped for the occasion with a family movie night with my husband who vaguely remembered it and my teens who had never seen it. XANADU came out when I was 13 and my husband was 15 -- exactly the ages our kids are now. It was a fun trip through the waaaaay back machine, especially since the movie recreates both the 40's and 80's. I can't wait to see American Theater Company's take on it, in memory of one of their inspirations, PJ Paparelli. Maybe he's hangin' on the other side with Zeus and the muses today?! I wouldn't be surprised.

Xanadu takes place in VeniceCalifornia in 1980. Struggling artist Sonny Malone seeks to create his own version of the American dream by renovating an abandoned warehouse into a venue for world-class entertainment – a roller disco! A hilarious and modern update of the1980’s camp classic, Xanadu celebrates the artist’s muse, even when it comes from the most unlikely of places.

Xanadu Performance Schedule:
Regular Run: June 7–July 17: Tuesday–Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. with matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m.


American Theater Company (ATC) opens musical comedy Xanadu, the final production of its Legacy Season, this Sunday, June 5. Presented as a tribute to ATC’s late Artistic Director PJ Paparelli—a not-so-secret fan of this camp classic—Xanadu is directed by Lili-Anne Brown and runs at ATC now through July 17, 2016. The production has music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar and a book by Douglas Carter Beane, based on the 1980 Universal Pictures film of the same title.

Single tickets for Xanadu range from $48-$58. Student tickets are available for $15 with valid student ID in-person at the Box Office. More information and tickets are available by visiting the ATC Box Office at 1909 W. Byron Street, by calling 773-409-4125 or visiting www.atcweb.org

The cast for ATC’s tribute production of Xanadu includes Missy Aguilar (Calliope), Kasey Alfonso (Erato) Karla L. Beard (Melpomene), Jim DeSelm (Sonny), Landree Fleming (Kira), Aaron Holland (Danny Maguire, Zeus), Michelle Lauto (Kira U/S & Swing), Hanah Rose Nardone (Euterpe), James Nedrud (Terpsichore/Sonny cover), Daniel Spagnuolo (Thalia/Danny cover), and Cameron Turner (Swing).

As the final event of its season-long Legacy Campaign, ATC will host a special performance of Xanadu on Wednesday, June 8 at 8 p.m. The event features a post-show reception and talk-back with actress Katie Hanley who, among other theater and film credits, appeared in the 1980 Universal Pictures film Xanadu, and on Broadway as “Marty” in the original 1972 production of Grease. Hanley will be joined by native Chicagoan Jim Jacobs, co-creator of the musical Grease and ATC’s Legacy Campaign chairman. Tickets are $75 for a single ticket and $125 for a pair. Proceeds from the campaign are dedicated to developing and producing new work and providing free education programming to Chicago Public High School students. To purchase tickets for this special Xanadu evening, visit www.atcweb.org or call 773-409-4125.


ARTIST BIOS
Missy Aguilar (Calliope) most recently appeared as Baby Rose in Babes in Arms, Oolie/Donna in City of Angels with Porchlight Music Theatre and U/S Ivy (performed) in The Man Who Murdered Sherlock Holmes with Mercury Theatre. Last spring and summer she was happy to spend on the pier at Chicago Shakespeare Theater with Disney’s The Little Mermaid (Atina/Ensemble, U/S Ursula), and Sense and Sensibility: A New Musical (U/S Fanny/Mrs. Jennings, performed). Ms. Aguilar’s other recent Chicago area credits include: Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Ivan’s Concierge, U/S Lucia) and The Beverly Hillbillies (Cousin Pearl/Gloria) with Theatre at the Center; Les Miserables (Ensemble & U/S Mdme. Thenadier) with Drury Lane; Nunsense (Sister Hubert) with Fox Valley Repertory; and In The Heights (Ensemble & U/S Abuela Claudia) with Paramount Theatre.

Kasey Alfonso (Erato) makes her ATC debut. Chicago credits include: West Side Story, Rent and In The Heights (Paramount Theatre); Seussical (Chicago Shakespeare); Iphegenia in Aulis (Court Theatre); Wonderland (Chicago Children’s Theatre); Carrie: The Musical (Bailiwick Chicago); and Smokey Joe’s Café (Theo Ubique). She also stars as Kid Zhuyin in the web series The Adventures of Jacketmen. Ms. Alfonso is a proud graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts.

Karla L. Beard (Melpomene) returns to ATC after appearing in Rent. She has appeared in Second City productions of What the Tour Guide Didn’t Tell You in the Up theatre, Soul Brother, Where Art Thou, Rush Limbaugh! The Musical, The Absolute Best Frigging Time of Your Life on the ETC stage, an assortment of Second City BizCo productions, several episodes of Chicago Live! and briefly in The Second City Guide to the Opera and Let Them Eat Chaos. TV/Film credits: Chicago PD, Empire, Mind Games and a variety of commercials. Other credits include: Mamma Mia! (National Tour); Doubt and Little Shop of Horrors (Peninsula Players); Sunday in the Park with George, Anyone Can Whistle and Princess and the Black-eyed Pea (Ravinia); The Amen Corner (Goodman Theatre and Huntington Theatre); The Piano Lesson (Madison Repertory Theatre; artist and music director); Miss Saigon and Hot Mikado (Marriott Lincolnshire); Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Arkansas Repertory); and Ragtime (Porchlight Theater). Ms. Beard received Jeff Nominations for her portrayals of the title character in the Midwest premiere of Dessa Rose, TiMoune in Once on This Island and Young Barbara Jordan in Voice of Good Hope at Victory Gardens.

Jim DeSelm (Sonny) makes his ATC debut. Chicago area credits: West Side Story and Beaches (Drury Lane Oakbrook); Road Show (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); James Joyce’s The Dead (Court Theatre); Fiddler on the Roof (Paramount Theatre); South Pacific (Marriott Theatre); Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar (Theatre at the Center); Juno (TimeLine Theatre Company); A Catered Affair (Porchlight Music Theatre); Parade and Floyd Collins (Boho Theatre; Jeff Award Nomination - Actor/Musical); The Mikado (The Hypocrites); The Last Five Years (Kokandy Productions, Jeff Award Nomination - Actor/Musical); and Pump Boys & Dinettes (Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre, Jeff Nomination - Music Direction). Regional Credits include: Snapshots (Village Theatre/Arizona Theatre Company); Oklahoma!, Once Upon A Mattress and Plain & Fancy (Round Barn Theatre). Television credits include Chicago P.D. (NBC) and Double Cross (Investigation Discovery).

Landree Fleming (Kira) makes her ATC debut. She was most recently seen as Penny in Hairspray (Paramount Theatre). Other Chicago credits include: Seussical (Marriott Theatre); Spelling Bee (Drury Lane Theatre, Griffin Theatre, Theatre at the Center); Gypsy (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); Godspell (Theatre at the Center); She Kills Monsters (u/s, Buzz22); Reefer Madness (Circle Theatre, Jeff Nomination - Best Actress); and The Giver (Adventure Stage Chicago). Ms. Fleming is a member of musical sketch comedy group Off Off Broadzway. She is represented by Gray Talent.

Aaron Holland (Danny Maguire, Zeus) returns to ATC. Recent Chicago credits include: SISTER ACT! (Marriott); Seussical! (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); Hair (American Theater Company); The Color Purple (Mercury Theatre); A Christmas Carol (Goodman Theatre); Goodnight Moon and Dot & Ziggy (Chicago Children’s Theatre); and Passing Strange (Bailiwick Chicago). TV credits: Chicago Med. Mr. Holland received a BFA in Theatre Performance from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Michelle Lauto (Kira U/S & Swing) makes her ATC debut. Favorite credits include the Chicago premieres of Murder Ballad (Bailiwick Chicago), 35mm (Circle Theatre) and The Boy From Oz (Pride Films & Plays). Ms. Lauto is a proud graduate of The Second City Training Center Conservatory.

Hanah Rose Nardone (Euterpe) makes her ATC debut. Chicago credits include: Bye Bye Birdie and White Christmas (Drury Lane Oakbrook); The Little Mermaid (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); and The Wild Party, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Ripper and Spring Awakening (CCPA at Roosevelt University). Regional credits include: 42nd Street, Big River, Legally Blonde and The Sound of Music (The Little Theatre on the Square); Guys and Dolls, Boeing Boeing, Footloose and Cabaret (Timber Lake Playhouse). Ms. Nardone recently received her BFA in Musical Theatre from The Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University.

James Nedrud (Terpsichore/Sonny cover) makes his ATC debut. Recent credits include: Angry Fags (Pride Films and Plays at the Steppenwolf Garage); Mary Poppins (Paramount Theatre, Aurora); Les Miserables (Drury Lane Theatre, Oak Brook); Applause (Porchlight Revisits); WOZ: A Rock Cabaret (Kim Lawson at Victory Gardens); Three Little Pigs (Emerald City); and Under a Rainbow Flag (Pride Films and Plays; Jeff nomination for best supporting actor in a musical). He has also worked with Chicago Shakespeare Theater, About Face Theatre and Bohemian Theatre Ensemble, among others. Mr. Nedrud is a proud graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts and member of Pride Films and Plays.

Daniel Spagnuolo (Thalia/Danny cover) has worked at The Paramount Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, ProfilesTheatre, Boho Theatre Ensemble, The Little Theatre on the Square, and Light Opera Works. Danny’s choreography credits: Rent (Theo Ubique Cabaret); The Full Monty (Kokandy Productions; Non-Equity Jeff Award Nomination); Godspell and A New Brain (Brown Paper Box Co.; Broadway World Nominations); The Little Mermaid (Drury Lane Oakbrook); and Ruthless (Big Noise). Mr. Spagnuolo has served as assistant choreographer on such productions as A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Porchlight Music Theatre) and American Idiot (The Hypocrites).

Cameron Turner (Swing) makes his ATC debut. He is a Chicago-based actor/director/choreographer and proud graduate of The Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Previous performance credits include: Jesus Christ Superstar (Theo Ubique Cabaret); DamnYankees and Annie Get Your Gun (Light Opera Works); and Les Miserables and A Chorus Line (Timber Lake Playhouse). Other Chicago credits include: 35MM: A Musical Exhibition (Director/Choreographer - Circle Theatre); The Boy From Oz (Choreographer - Pride Film & Plays); Jesus Christ Superstar (Asst. Choreographer - Theo Ubique Cabaret); and The Wild Party (Asst. Choreographer - Bailiwick Chicago).

Douglas Carter Beane’s (Playwright) plays include: The NanceThe Little Dog Laughed (Tony, Olivier nominations; GLAAD Media Award), Mr. & Mrs. FitchAs Bees in Honey Drown (Outer Critics Circle, Gassner Playwriting awards), Advice From a CaterpillarThe Country ClubMusic From a Sparkling PlanetThe Cartells.  Musicals: Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella(Tony nom.), Sister Act (Tony nom.), Lysistrata Jones (Tony nom.), Xanadu (Tony nom.; Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle awards). Revues: White LiesMondo DramaThe Late, Late Show. Opera: Die Fledermaus (Met). Screenplays: To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie NewmarAdvice From a Caterpillar (Best Feature, Aspen Comedy Festival).  Producer: 21 plays as founder and artistic director of New York’s Drama Dept. Member of the Dramatists Guild and is on the Playwrights Walk of Fame at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.

Jeff Lynne (Music and Lyrics) is a founding member of the Electric Light Orchestra, or ELO, whose discography includes five platinum-selling albums: Face the MusicA New World RecordOut of the BlueDiscovery, and Xanadu. In addition to his recording work with the ELO, Lynne co-produced studio albums by George Harrison (Cloud Nine), Roy Orbison (Mystery Girl), Tom Petty (Full Moon Fever), Ringo Starr (Time Takes Time), and Paul McCartney (Flaming Pie). He co-founded the "supergroup," the Traveling Wilburys, with Tom Petty, Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, and George Harrison. Lynn co-wrote and produced the track "Let It Shine" for Beach Boy Brian Wilson's debut solo album in 1988.

John Farrar (Music and Lyrics) is a music producer, guitarist, singer, and former member of the British rock group, The Shadows. He worked extensively with Olivia Newton-John, producing fourteen of her albums and writing many of her hit singles, including "You're the One That I Want" (Golden Globe nom.), "Hopelessly Devoted to You" (Academy Award nom.), and "Have You Never Been Mellow." He co-wrote with Tim Rice songs for the 1995 musical, Heathcliff, and collaborated with Francis Ford Coppola to create songs for a new musical, Gidget.

Lili-Anne Brown (Director) is the Artistic Director of Bailiwick Chicago. She received the Joseph Jefferson Award in 2014 (Direction of a Musical) for her direction of Ahrens & Flaherty's Dessa Rose. Other directing credits include: Michael John LaChiusa's See What I Wanna See (Steppenwolf Theatre Garage Rep), the critically acclaimed Chicago premiere of Passing Strange (BTA Award for Best Director of a Musical, Jeff Award nomination for Best Director of a Musical), and the world premiere of Princess Mary Demands Your Attention by Aaron Holland, for Bailiwick Chicago; On the Boards and Hearts of Darkness at Roosevelt University; and HairsprayUnnecessary Farce, Cabaret, Sweet Charity, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story, all at Timber Lake Playhouse, where she is an Artistic Associate. Upcoming next season: American Idiot at Northwestern University and Jabari Dreams of Freedom by Nambi Kelley at Chicago Children's Theatre. She works as an actor, director and educator, both locally and regionally, and is a member of Actors’ Equity Association and SAG-AFTRA, and an associate of SDC. Lili-Anne is a Northwestern University graduate (Performance Studies), and a proud native Chicagoan.

About American Theater Company
American Theater Company (ATC) challenges and inspires its community by exploring stories that ask the question, "What does it mean to be an American?" ATC’s Ensemble includes Patrick Andrews, Kareem Bandealy, Jaime Castañeda, Kelly O’Sullivan, Tyler Ravelson, and Sadieh Rifai.



American Theater Company is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and CityArts grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, the MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, and the Shubert Foundation.

Monday, March 21, 2016

OPENING: MIDWEST PREMIERE OF KILL FLOOR at ATC 3/25-5/1

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY PRESENTS THE 
MIDWEST PREMIERE OF KILL FLOOR
MARCH 25 – MAY 1, 2016
Written by Abe Koogler; Directed by Jonathan Berry

Opening soon, American Theater Company's Midwest Premiere of Kill Floor, a contemporary drama written by Abe Koogler and directed by Jonathan Berry, being presented March 25 - May 1, 2016  



The cast, all making their ATC debuts, includes: Audrey Francis (as Andy), Sol Patches (B), Eric Slater (Rick), Darci Nalepa (Sarah), and Louie Rinaldo (Simon).

Kill Floor takes place in a small town in 2003. Following a long incarceration, a mother returns to her hometown to restart her life. After securing a job at the local slaughterhouse, the challenges of re-entry unfold as she reunites with her teenage son, a staunch vegetarian. Koogler’s thought provoking, surprising and moving search for connection in modern America had its World Premiere at New York’s LCT3/Lincoln Center Theater in October 2015.

Said newly named ATC Artistic Director Will Davis: “I'm thrilled to be joining ATC as the company begins work on Abe Koogler's Kill Floor. I had the pleasure of listening to this play develop in Austin where Abe and I were both in grad school.  Even then it was clear to me that Abe was in the midst of writing a deeply moving and difficult new play that beautifully illustrates what it feels like to never have enough. Kill Floor takes a close up look at what it means to be the working poor in our country and this lens puts the piece in deep conversation with ATC’s mission question: What does it mean to be an American?” 

Performance schedule
Previews: Friday and Saturday, March 25 and 26 at 8 p.m., and Sunday, March 27 at
2 p.m.

Regular Run: March 31- May 1: Thursdays and Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 and 8 p.m.; Sundays at 2 p.m.

Single tickets for Kill Floor at American Theater Company, 1909 W. Byron Street, range from $38-$48 and are available by calling the ATC box office at 773-409-4125, or visiting www.atcweb.org.


About American Theater Company
American Theater Company (ATC) challenges and inspires its community by exploring stories that ask the question, "What does it mean to be an American?" ATC’s Ensemble includes Patrick Andrews, Kareem Bandealy, Jaime Castañeda, Kelly O’Sullivan, Tyler Ravelson, and Sadieh Rifai.

American Theater Company is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and CityArts grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, the MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, and the Shubert Foundation.



Saturday, April 11, 2015

OPENING: The Project(s) by ATC #Theatre #Chicago

American Theater Company announces
the world premiere of
The Project(s)
A documentary play on Chicago’s public housing
from the writer of columbinus

April 24–May 24, 2015

American Theater Company (ATC) announced today casting for the third world premiere in its 30th Anniversary season: The Project(s), a documentary play about the history of public housing in Chicago, April 24-May 24, 2015. Conceived, co-written and directed by ATC Artistic Director PJ Paparelli and co-written by Joshua Jaeger, The Project(s) ensemble cast includes Linda Bright Clay, Stephen Conrad Moore, Omar Evans, Kenn E. Head, Joslyn Jones, Penelope Walker, Anji White and Eunice Woods. Single tickets for The Project(s) range from $38-$48 and are now on sale at the ATC box office at 773-409-4125 or www.atcweb.org.



The Project(s) innovatively combines documentary theater with a cappella music, body percussion and stepping to create a provocative examination of the successes and failures of public housing that poses the question, “What is America’s responsibility to its poor?” From 2010 until 2014, Paparelli conducted over 100 interviews with scholars, historians, and former and current residents of Chicago’s public housing, including Cabrini-Green, Robert Taylor Homes, Wentworth Gardens and Ida B. Wells Homes. The Project(s) interweaves verbatim material with a cappella music, body percussion, and stepping with choreography by Jakari Sherman, artistic director of Washington, DC-based Step Afrika!, the nation’s only professional dance company devoted to stepping. Paparelli previously conceived, co-wrote and directed the critically-acclaimed documentary play columbinus that premiered its third act at ATC, toured to ArtsEmerson in Boston in 2013, and has been produced around the country and internationally.


The Project(s) received two development opportunities at the Orchard Project, a national new play development retreat in New York; a Jentel Artist Residency in Wyoming, and a MacArthur International Connections Fund grant, through which Paparelli travelled to the United Kingdom to workshop the play at Citizens Theatre in Glasgow and the Lyric Hammersmith in London, in addition to interviewing public housing residents and city officials in Scotland. ATC also partnered with Howard University in Washington, DC, for a five-week workshop integrating stepping and body percussion.

Performance schedule for The Project(s):
Previews: Friday, April 24 at 8 p.m.; Saturday, April 25 at 8 p.m.; Sunday, April 26 at 2 p.m.
Press opening: Tuesday, April 28 at 7 p.m.
Regular run: April 30 through May 24: Thursdays and Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sundays at 2 p.m.

The Project(s) was commissioned and developed by a generous grant from The Chicago Community Trust.

Additional grant support for The Project(s) was provided by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The Project(s) was developed through residencies with The Orchard Project; Jentel Artist Residency Program; Citizens Theatre Company, Glasgow, Scotland; Sheridan College & the Wyoming Theater Festival; and the Howard University Department of Theatre Arts.

Bios

PJ Paparelli (Director/Co-Writer/Artistic Director) is in his eighth season as Artistic Director of American Theater Company. He last directed ATC’s critically acclaimed world premiere of The Humans. Additional ATC directing credits include Hair, Sons of the Prophet, columbinus (Five Jeff Nominations), The Catholic Rep: Doubt & Agnes of God, The Original Grease (Jeff Award for Best Musical), Escape, The Amish Project, Distracted, Yeast Nation (the new musical from the writers of Urinetown), Hedwig and the Angry Inch, The Black & White Rep: True West (Caucasian & African American casts), and the regional premiere of Speech & Debate (Jeff Nomination). His ATC writing credits include columbinus and Every Year is This Year, which was co-written by Maria Irene Fornes for ATC’s The Silver Project.

Joshua Jaeger (Co-Writer) served as the 2012 Artistic Projects Fellow at American Theater Company. During that time, he co-produced the 10X10 and Big Shoulders festivals of new short plays, and sat on ATC's Literary Circle. He assisted in producing Steppenwolf Theatre Company's inaugural After Party, a multi-disciplinary late-night series presented in tandem with the annual Garage Rep. Joshua has dramaturged and assistant directed for TimeLine Theatre Company, Victory Gardens and Chicago Dramatists. Alongside his work in theatre, Joshua performs as a percussionist with the international touring artist Angel Olsen. His drumming may be heard on her current release, "Burn Your Fire for No Witness."

Linda Bright Clay (Ensemble) is a native Chicagoan with credits at Victory Gardens (Dame Lorraine), Goodman Theatre (Joe Turner's Come and Gone) and Chicago Theatre Company (Home), winning a Black Theatre Alliance award for best performance. She has also worked at the Madison Repertory Theatre (Having Our Say and Permanent Collection), and in a program piece with Writers Theatre (For My Brothers...). Film credits include Seven Psychopaths, Halfway, Just Married, The Night Before the Morning After and Original Gangstas. TV series work includes the local Emmy-nominated television special "Martin Luther King Suite." Local and national TV and voice-over commercials include Sears, U.S. Bank, United Healthcare, Crest and McDonald's. Linda obtained both her B.A. and M.A. in Theatre at Northern Illinois University, and co-directed the Black Theatre Workshop there for three years. She has also directed and assisted at various theaters, educational and social service institutions in the Chicagoland area.

Stephen Conrad Moore (Ensemble) is a native of Kansas City, MO, currently living and working in New York City. Recent NY premieres include ANTHEM: An Original Musical at the NY International Fringe Festival, Ni**er/Fa**ot at the HERE Arts Center, and Ajax in Ajax in Iraq with the Flux Theatre Ensemble. Other NY credits include: Bone Orchard Theatre Company, The Civilians, Classical Theatre of Harlem, Columbia Stages, Company Cypher, Full Stop Collective, The Lark Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Works, The Playwright’s Theatre, Red Fern Theatre and Working Man's Clothes. Regional credits: Arizona Theatre Company, The Ensemble Company for the Performing Arts, Hope Repertory Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, O'Neill Theatre Center, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Shakespeare Theatre in D.C., Virginia Stage Company, Yale Repertory Theatre. Internationally, he appeared in a festival of The Lion King in Hong Kong. Film and TV credits: Margaret (dir. Kenneth Lonergan), Wedding Daze (dir. Michael Ian Black), The Painting, Yield and Sesame Street. Mr. Moore is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama.

Omar Evans (Ensemble) was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA. He studied acting and received his BFA from Marymount Manhattan College, and is a member of Theater for a New Generation. Omar’s theater credits include Freefall, Bombity of Errors, Pvt. Wars, Corner Wars; television credits include Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Law and Order: SVU, Third Watch; film credits include Carlito’s Way: Rise to Power, Explicit Ills, Blackout and Light and the Sufferer.

Kenn E. Head (Ensemble) returns to American Theater Company. He is a veteran of the Chicago theater scene and was last seen as Sissy NaNa in Airline Highway at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, where he has appeared in numerous other productions. Additional Chicago credits include: Fish Men and The Convert (Goodman Theatre); Spunk and the critically acclaimed Invisible Man (Court Theatre); Romeo and Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); The Lost Boys of Sudan (Victory Gardens Theater); The Overwhelming (Next Theater); and Seven Guitars (Congo Square Theatre) where they garnered the coveted Jeff Award for Ensemble as well as Best Play. He has also worked at Yale Repertory Theatre. Television credits include ER and Early Edition as well as various commercials.

Joslyn Jones (Ensemble) has previously appeared in: The Delany Sisters: The First Hundred Years (Fleetwood Jourdain Theatre); Once On This Island (Marriott Lincolnshire); 12 Ophelias (Trap Door); Weekend (TimeLine Theatre); Bourbon At The Border (Eclipse Theatre); Escape (Live Bait); Flyin’ West and Raisin (Court Theatre); Spunk (Court Theatre’s Artist in School Program); Bee-Luther-Hatchee (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign); Fabulation: Or, the Re-Education of Undine (Next Theatre); Relevant Hearsay (MPACCT: Theater on the Lake); Bee-Luther-Hatchee and Smokey Joe's Café (Open Door Repertory); Meshuggah Nuns! (Chicago Jewish Theatre); The Kurt Weil Revue: Songs of Darkness and Light (Theo Ubique); To Kill A Mockingbird (Metropolis Performing Arts Centre). She is a graduate of the 2002 Class of The School at Steppenwolf. Understudy credits: Head of Passes and Carter’s Way (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); The Snow Queen (Victory Gardens Biograph); and Crumbs from the Table of Joy (Goodman Theatre).

Penelope Walker (Ensemble) most recently worked with Erasing the Distance theater company in Will You Stand Up? She has appeared in the last 10 seasons of A Christmas Carol at Goodman Theatre. Other Goodman credits include The StoryCrowns and Wit. She has also worked at Chicago Dramatists, Northlight Theatre, Lookingglass Theatre Company, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Next Theatre Company, Ma'at Production Association of Afrikan Centered Theatre, Rivendell Theatre Ensemble and Chicago Theatre Company. She created and has performed her solo piece How I Jack Master Funked the Sugar in My Knee Caps! across Chicago. Regional credits include Alliance Theatre, Arena Stage, Hartford Stage and the Alley Theatre. Film and television credits include Severed TiesSomething Better Somewhere Else and Boss.

AnJi White (Ensemble) returns to American Theater Company, where she last appeared in RENT. Recently she was seen in Collaboraction's remount of Forgotten Future as Felicia Tate. Other Chicago credits include Mud, River, Stone (Eclipse Theatre), ITHAKA (Infusion Theatre) and Soul Samurai (Infusion Theatre). She’s understudied for Timeline's production of A Raisin in the Sun, Clybourne Park (Steppenwolf Theatre); and Regina Taylor's Trinity River Plays (Goodman Theatre).

Eunice Woods (Ensemble) makes her American Theater Company debut. She is a proud Acting Ensemble member of Barrel of Monkeys. Other Chicago acting credits include: Dessa Rose (Bailiwick Chicago); Hey! Dancin'! Hey! Musical (The Factory Theater); The True History...of Julia Pastrana (Tympanic Theatre Company); Raskol (Vintage Theater Collective); Miami Nice (Gorilla Tango Theatre); and The Rose Parade (Body Project Ensemble & VOTC). She holds a BFA in Theatre Arts from Boston University.

About American Theater Company

American Theater Company (ATC) challenges and inspires its community by exploring stories that ask the question, "What does it mean to be an American?" ATC’s Ensemble includes Patrick Andrews, Kareem Bandealy, Jaime Castañeda, Kelly O’Sullivan, Tyler Ravelson, and Sadieh Rifai.


American Theater Company is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and CityArts grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, the MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, and the Shubert Foundation.

Monday, May 13, 2013

ACT OUT OPENING: SPEECH & DEBATE AT ATC




AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY CONCLUDES 2012-2013 SEASON 
WITH THE REPRISE OF
SPEECH & DEBATE
Written by Stephen Karam
Directed by Artistic Director PJ Paparelli

Oregon. 2007. In the midst of controversy and scandal three misfit teens form their high school's first debate club. This hilarious and touching comedy walks the fine line between adolescence and adulthood. ATC Artistic Director PJ Paparelli remounts his 2008 critically-acclaimed production, written by columbinus co-author and 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist Stephen Karam.

American Theater Company concludes 2012-2013 Season with a revised remount of Speech & Debate, written by Stephen Karam, and directed by Artistic Director PJ Paparelli.  Speech & Debate will run May 10 – June 23, 2013, at American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron St, Chicago, IL.  

Speech & Debate is a quick-witted and timely comedy that tells the story of three misfits who team up to expose their teacher's online secrets while forming their high school's first Speech and Debate club.  With a searing script by columbinus co-writer Stephen Karam, Artistic Director PJ Paparelli remounts this hysterical yet touching tale of three teens' quest for fame and free speech.  Under newly-appointed Artistic Director PJ Paparelli’s direction, Speech & Debate made its Chicago Premiere at ATC in 2008 to critical and popular success, garnering 3 Jeff Award nominations for Best Mid-Size Play, Best Director, and Best Actress for Sadieh Rifai’s portrayal of Diwata. 

This production replaces the previously announced restored & revised Hair, which has been moved to Spring 2014.

"Stephen Karam’s Speech & Debate was my first show in Chicago and the first time I worked with Ensemble member Sadieh Rifai – and there are not two funnier artists to collaborate with then Stephen & Sadieh,” Says Paparelli.  “It is a unique theatrical experiment to produce this play right after our work together on columbinus.  Both of Karam’s plays are searches for identity-- one extreme tragedy, one extreme comedy-- but both speak directly to American adolescent experience."

The production will feature original cast member Sadieh Rifai reprising her original role (Diwata), as well as Patrick Riley (Howie), Janet Ulrich Brooks (teacher/reporter), and Will Allan (Solomon) in their ATC debuts.  

The creative team of Speech & Debate includes William Boles (Set Designer), Sally Dolembo (Costume Designer), Jesse Klug (Lighting Designer), Scotty Iseri & Lindsay Jones (Original Sound Design)
Andrew Wheatley (Sound Designer), Rasean Davonte Johnson (Projection Design).  Deborah Chesterman is Stage Manager. 

Sadieh Rifai (Diwata) is an ensemble member at American Theater Company where she has performed in columbinus, The Catholic Rep: Doubt and Agnes of God, The Amish Project, The Original Grease, Welcome to Arroyo’s, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Distracted, and Speech and Debate for which she won an After Dark Award for Outstanding Performance. 
Other credits include The Piano Teacher (Next Theater), Merchant of Venice (Silk Road Theatre), Ski Dubai (Steppenwolf Theatre First Look) and understanding the role of Johanna Monevata in August: Osage County (Steppenwolf Theatre). Sadieh is a graduate of The School at Steppenwolf.  Film credits include: the award winning The Wise Kids (New Fest, Out Fest and NYC LGBT Film Festival) and the feature film Nate and Margaret. She’s also a recurring character in the mockumentary Bad Sides, which was recently a finalist in the Chicago Comedy TV Pilot Competition. Sadieh was most recently awarded the Princess Grace Theater Award. 

Will Allan (Solomon) is making his American Theater Company debut with Speech & Debate. His recent Chicago credits include The Whale (Victory Gardens); Good People, The March, and A Separate Peace (Steppenwolf); The Seagull and Dartmoor Prison (Goodman); The History Boys (TimeLine Theatre - Jeff Award for Ensemble and Production); The Goat Or, Who Is Sylvia? (Remy Bumppo - Jeff Award for Production); and Romeo and Juliet and Much Ado About Nothing (First Folio). Will is an Associate Artist with TimeLine Theatre Company, a graduate of North Central College in Naperville, Illinois, and this fall, he will begin working toward his M.F.A. in Acting at the Yale School of Drama. 

William Patrick Riley (Howie) is very excited to be making his Chicago theatre debut at American Theater Company. Regional credits: The Tempest (Hartford Stage); Ah, Wilderness! (Arena Stage); Hoover Comes Alive! (La Jolla Playhouse); Measure for Measure (A Noise Within). Other credits include: The Tempest, Twelfth Night, As You Like It (Shakespeare Santa Cruz); The Seagull, Camino Real, The Misanthrope, As You Like It (UCSD). Recent TV credits include appearances on Chicago Fire, Torchwood, 90210 and the HULU series Pretty/Tough. He is the co-founder and former Artistic Director of Lonesome No More! Theatre in Los Angeles, where he most recently directed a highly acclaimed production of Spring Awakening. Education: MFA, University of California, San Diego. 

Janet Ulrich Brooks (reporter/teacher) was recently seen at Victory Gardens in Failure: A Love Story and Jacob & Jack. She is a TimeLine Company Member and has appeared there in more than 10 productions, most recently A Walk in the Woods and All My Sons. Other credits include South of Settling (Steppenwolf Theatre), Ten Chimneys (Northlight Theatre), The Original Grease (American Theater Co.), Pony (About Face Theatre), The Seagull and A True History of the Johnstown Flood (Goodman Theatre). Other Chicago credits include Golda’s Balcony (Pegasus Players, Non-Equity Jeff Award – Outstanding Solo Performance) and work with Strawdog Theatre, Steppenwolf for Young Adults, Writers' Theatre and Collaboraction. Janet's film credits include Fools, Conviction, Polish Bar, I Heart Shakey, and One Small Hitch, and her television credits include Boss, Underemployed, The Chicago Code and The Playboy Club.

Synopsis:
Speech & Debate is a quick-witted and timely comedy that tells the story of three misfits who team up to expose their teacher's online secrets while forming their high school's first Speech and Debate club.  With a searing script by columbinus co-writer Stephen Karam, Artistic Director PJ Paparelli remounts this hysterical yet touching tale of three teens' quest for fame and free speech.  Under newly-appointed Artistic Director PJ Paparelli’s direction, Speech & Debate made its Chicago Premiere at ATC in 2008 to critical and popular success, garnering 3 Jeff Award nominations for Best Mid-Size Play, Best Director, and Best Actress for Sadieh Rifai’s portrayal of Diwata. 


Title: Speech & Debate
Written by: Stephen Karam
Directed by: Artistic Director PJ Paparelli
Featuring: Sadieh Rifai, Will Allan, Patrick Riley, and Janet Ulrich Brooks  
Dates: May 10 – June 23, 2013 
Press Performance: Monday, May 13, 2013 at 7pm
Schedule:      Thursdays & Fridays: 8:00pm  
Saturdays: 2:00pm & 8:00pm
Sundays: 2:00pm
Location: American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron St., Chicago
Tickets: Previews: $33 
Regular run: Thurs, Sat matinees, Sun matinees $38
Fri & Sat evenings $43
Opening night including post-show reception $50
Box Office: The Box Office is located at 1909 W Byron St., Chicago; 
773.409.4125; www.atcweb.org

AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY
American Theater Company is an ensemble of artists committed to producing new and classic American stories that ask the question, “What does it mean to be an American?”  
American Theater Company is supported by a CityArts Program 2 Grant and a Cultural Outreach Program Grant from the City of Chicago Office of Tourism & Culture, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Illinois Arts Council, Pauls Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and the generous support of Prince Charitable Trusts and Barbara Kipper.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

ACT OUT EXTENDED: Columbinus at ATC #review




Columbinus aims a lens at teen behavior, from normal angst and achievement to the murderous, real life rampage of a budding psychopath and his accomplice.



DUE TO TICKET DEMAND,
ATC EXTENDS ITS HIT PRODUCTION OF COLUMBINUS
THROUGH APRIL 7

LIMITED-ENGAGEMENT REMOUNT OF STEPHEN KARAM’S SPEECH & DEBATE
TO REPLACE HAIR IN SPRING ’13 SLOT


ChiIL Live shows caught opening night of Columbinus and highly recommend it.  This timely and timeless production is thought provoking and opens necessary dialogue about gun violence in our schools and our society.  Actual families of survivors of the Columbine massacre were there for the opening, insuring the actors made a tactful and truthful portrayal.   

We've seen a number of productions in this genre, regarding the twin towers tragedy and the beating death of a gay college student among others.  Unlike ad nauseum news reports and exposes, documentary tragedy theatre acts as a memorial, and art.   Mostly it makes people think instead of tuning out, because they've made a conscious choice to be there.

Columbinus is a tasteful and compelling must see.   The staging and acting combine into a powerful piece that will stay with you long after the  light come on.   Book your tickets now, before the final weeks of Columbinus sell out.

 

American Theater Company (ATC) announces new performance dates for its world premiere production of the revised version of columbinus, written by Stephen Karam and PJ Paparelli, with dramaturgy by Patricia Hersch, and conceived and directed by Artistic Director PJ Paparelli. The production is now extended through Sunday, April 7, 2013 at American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron St, Chicago, IL. columbinus has garnered rave critical reviews of its new third act, which premieres material devised from recent interviews with survivors of the Columbine High School Shootings, families of victims and residents of Littleton, Colorado. The new material includes never-before-released information on the shooters and their families and first-hand accounts of both the Columbine and Aurora shootings. 


Production photo credit:   Michael Brosilow 


columbinus 
 
Written by Stephen Karam and PJ Paparelli 
Directed by PJ Paparelli 
American Theater Company, 1909 W. Byron (map) 
thru March 10  |  tickets: $33-$43   |  more info 
        
Check for half-price tickets  

Tickets for the extension are now on sale through the box office, www.atcweb.org and 773.409.4125.

Littleton, Colorado. 1999.  Two teenagers devastate a community and shock the country when they walk into their suburban high school and kill twelve students and one teacher.  Based on interviews with teenagers across the country and survivors and community members in Littleton, this haunting drama takes a hard look at modern teenagers through the lens of the most infamous high school shooting in American history. 


ATC further announces that its musical production, a restored & revised Hair, will be moved from its current position to the spring 2014 spot.  The ambitious revival, to be directed by Paparelli, will now close out the Company’s 29th season. In its place, a revised remount of Stephen Karam’sSpeech & Debate will run from May 13 – June 10, 2013, also directed by PJ Paparelli.  Speech & Debate made its Chicago Premiere at ATC in 2008 to critical and popular success; the limited-engagement production will feature original cast member Sadieh Rifai reprising her original role, as well asWill Allen in his ATC debut. 

“We are so pleased to offer Chicagoans a longer run of columbinus.  When looking at a shorter extension and a compromised production of Hair, we decided it was so important to run columbinus as long as possible and allow audience to experience this revised version of Hair as author Jim Rado and I envision it,” says Artistic Director PJ Paparelli. “Audience members have asked me so many times if we were ever going to remount Speech & Debate, and I always have said no.  However, this unique situation allows us to bring this show back to Chicago with some script revisions and a new production design.  I’m thrilled that Stephen and I will be working together again on this wickedly funny play.”

Speech & Debate is a quick-witted and timely comedy that tells the story of three misfits who team up to expose their teacher's online secrets while forming their high school's first Speech and Debate club.  With a searing script by columbinus co-writer Stephen Karam, Artistic Director PJ Paparelli remounts this hysterical yet touching tale of three teens' quest for fame and free speech.

AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY
American Theater Company is an ensemble of artists committed to producing new and classic American stories that ask the question, “What does it mean to be an American?” We provide a truly intimate home for the community to experience meaningful stories.  We foster a nurturing environment for artists to take risks and create essential work. 

American Theater Company is supported by a CityArts Program 2 Grant and a Cultural Outreach Program Grant from the City of Chicago Office of Tourism & Culture, the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Illinois Arts Council, Illinois Humanities Council, Polk Bros. Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and Prince Charitable Trusts.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

ACT OUT OPENING: Columbinus at ATC




ATC's world premier of the revised columbinus opens tonight, and we're very much looking forward to this timely piece.   We'll have a full review for our readers shortly.   

AMERICAN THEATER COMPANY PRESENTS
THE WORLD PREMIERE OF THE REVISED VERSION OF
columbinus
Written by Stephen Karam and PJ Paparelli
Dramaturgy by Patricia Hersch
Conceived and Directed by Artistic Director PJ Paparelli





Schedule:                  Thursdays & Fridays: 8:00 p.m .
Saturdays2:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.
Sundays: 2:00 p.m.

There will be an additional performance on Tuesday, February 5 at 7 p.m.

Location: American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron St., Chicago
Tickets: Previews: $33
Regular run: Thurs, Sat matinees, Sun matinees $38
Fri & Sat evenings $43
Opening night including post-show reception $50
As part of Chicago Theater Week, a limited number of $15 tickets will be available for all performances February 14 – 17, 2013.

Box Office: The Box Office is located at 1909 W Byron St., Chicago;
773.409.4125; www.atcweb.org



American Theater Company announces the world premiere of the revised version of columbinus, written by Stephen Karam and PJ Paparelli, with dramaturgy by Patricia Hersch, and conceived and directed by Artistic Director PJ Paparelli. The 2013 production will premiere material devised from recent interviews with survivors of the Columbine High School Shootings, families of victims and residents of Littleton, Colorado. The new material includes never-before-released information on the shooters and their families and first-hand accounts of both the Columbine and Aurora shootings.

columbinus will run through March 10, 2013, at American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron St, Chicago, IL. 

Littleton, Colorado. 1999. Two teenagers devastate a community and shock the country when they walk into their suburban high school and kill twelve students and one teacher. Based on interviews with teenagers across the country and survivors and community members in Littleton, this haunting drama takes a hard look at modern teenagers through the lens of the most infamous high school shooting in American history.

“Folks who didn’t want to talk before because of lawsuits or their healing process, have now all opened up,” said Paparelli about the recent interviews. “I was shocked at what I heard and I am glad that theater will be the vehicle to get this information out to the world.”

Several survivors who are featured in the documentary play will travel to Chicago to work with the cast and attend Opening Night.

Paparelli continues, “The events in Newtown have saddened and, frankly, angered our entire company as well as those survivors from Columbine with whom we have been working with so closely on this project. While the nation mourns, a passionate dialogue has begun about the larger issues of gun control, mental health treatment, and ultimately, the unanswerable question of, “why?”. Our interviewees in Colorado and our artistic team hope that columbinus will be forum for Chicagoans to further that dialogue, which is exactly why teenagers from Chicago Public School are at the center of that dialogue, as they work on the play in classrooms around the city.”

Over 1000 ninth grade students in Chicago Public Schools English classes will have a first-hand experience with columbinus. Through ATC’s American Mosaic program and in conjunction with the city-wide initiative to address violence in the schools, Now Is The Time, ATC teaching artists will collaborate with classroom teachers to lead students in a performance-based study of the play. Through American Mosaic, ATC hopes to strengthen reading competency and comprehension, spark interest in reading and lead and inspire meaningful conversation about solutions to violence.


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