Rockin' Farewell to Hypocrite's Idiot and Mark Your Calendars For The Rest of Their Season

It's your last chance to catch The Hypocrites' acclaimed production of American Idiot. If you haven't seen it, what are you waiting for?! If you have seen it, go again. They've managed to create something incredible here. They've made a more legitimately punk performance than Green Day ever was. 

This scrappy store front troupe gives a stripped down, gritty realism to the musical that works far better for the story line than the big budget Broadway versions. The set is a graffiti strewn hole in the wall where the pre show is a band. During the show, characters grab and chug beers from the audience and toss dime bags (of Smarties) to the lucky. 


In this "Hair" for the new millennium, the teens experience love, loss, addiction, military deployment, and teen pregnancy. Although the kids begin the show desperate for freedom and jonesing to leave town for adventures, ultimately they all discover there's no place like home.  The vocals are powerful stuff, and the cast connects with each other and the audience in a compelling way. We loved it and highly recommend it.

Now Playing:

American Idiot

The smash musical by Grammy Award-winning punk rock band Green Day

"A visceral and impassioned theatrical experience"
- Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune

"Succeeding where Broadway failed"
- Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times

"An impressive, immersive underground-style gig"
- Kris Vire, Time Out Chicago

Book by Billie Joe Armstrong and Michael Mayer
Music by Green Day, Lyrics by Billie Joe Armstrong
Directed by Steven Wilson
Musical Direction by Andra Velis Simon
Choreography by Katie Spelman

Running August 28 – October 25, 2015

August 28 – October 25, 2015

Directed by Steven Wilson, Musical Direction by Andra Velis Simon

3pm 

The critics agree, "American Idiot feels precisely as raw, real, reckless and angry as it should." - Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times; "A visceral and impassioned theatrical experience... Director, Steven Wilson, integrates the amazing flexibility of his hugely talented young cast with the material in a strikingly rich fashion." - Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune; "A rousing reinvention." - Time Out Chicago; "Utterly entertaining." - Chicago Readers; "Go see it before it's over." - Gapers Block; "This particular version ofAmerican Idiot is a work of endurance, timing, commitment, passion and insuppressible talent... The Hypocrites continue to rise not just to the rank of one of our city’s best storefronts but one of Chicago’s best theaters period." - Newcity Stage

American Idiot at The Den Theatre's Heath Main Stage, 1329 N Milwaukee Ave. Purchase American Idiot Tickets Today

It's your final chance to catch season opener, American Idiot (and pick up a Hypocrites tee & American Idiot drink ware!), but mark your calendars for 

THE REST OF THE HYPOCRITES' AMAZING 2015/16 SEASON!

They are some of our favorite locals with talent to spare and one of our consistent top picks here at ChiIL Live Shows. They have the dramatic chops to take on everything from French absurdist classics and ancient myths, to modern musicals, and everything in between! 

Congrats to Sean Graney and the cast of All Our Tragic for winning Best New Work and Best Ensemble respectively.

Up Next:

Sean Graney's The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love-Suicide. Oct 30 - Nov 8. Co-directed by Joel Ewing and Mechelle Moe. Featuring Brian Baren, Justin Burns, Hunter Dunn, Heather Lauritzen, Jauhara Saunders, Cleo Shine and Olivia Shine. Presented in a special artistic collaboration with Senn Arts Magnet High School's The Yard.

More info, cast bios and tickets at www.the-yard.org.

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Hypocrites Tixs:

Get  Tickets for The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love-Suicide	The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love-Suicide October 30 – November 8, 2015 By Sean Graney, Co-Directed by Joel Ewing and Mechelle Moe
Get  Tickets for H.M.S. Pinafore at Actors Theatre	H.M.S. Pinafore at Actors Theatre November 17 – December 13, 2015 Co-adapted by Sean Graney, Andra Velis Simon, and Matt Kahler; Directed by Sean Graney
Get  Tickets for Burning Bluebeard	Burning Bluebeard November 19, 2015 – January 10, 2016 By Jay Torrence, Directed by Halena Kays
Get  Tickets for The Glass Menagerie	The Glass Menagerie January 22 – March 6, 2016 By Tennessee Williams, Re-imagined and Directed by Hans Fleischmann
Get  Tickets for H.M.S. Pinafore at A.R.T.	H.M.S. Pinafore at A.R.T. March 8 – 20, 2016 Adapted and Directed by Sean Graney
Get  Tickets for Adding Machine: A Musical	Adding Machine: A Musical March 18 – May 15, 2016 Directed by Geoff Button
Get  Tickets for Johanna Faustus	Johanna Faustus May 20 – 29, 2016 Co-Adapted by Emily Casey and Sean Graney; Directed by Sean Graney
Get  Tickets for Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado at Olney Theatre Center	Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado at Olney Theatre Center July 14 – August 21, 2016 Adapted and Directed by Sean Graney; Pirates co-adapted by Kevin O'Donnell

Heads Up San Fran:

ChiIL Live Shows adored The Hypocrites' Pirates of Penzance and highly recommend it. Now Chi, IL theatre is taking California by storm, bringing The Hypocrites' delightfully immersive, lovingly loopy, and fantastically eccentric 80-minute take on Gilbert and Sullivan’s preposterous, topsy-turvy world to Berkeley Repertory Theatre.

If you are in the Bay Area, come join the party!

Get  Tickets for Pirates of Penzance at Berkeley Rep	Pirates of Penzance at Berkeley Rep October 16 – December 20, 2015 Co-adapted by Sean Graney and Kevin O'Donnell, Directed by Sean Graney

OPENING: Burning Bluebeard is Back at Theater Wit For 2014 #ChiILPicksList

Act Out:  Chicago Theatre openings, closings, reviews, giveaways, ticket sale dates and more. 

Chi, IL Live Shows on stage and on our radar.

Ode to Burning Bluebeard: How do we love thee... let me count the ways. How can a show about the most deadly single building fire in HISTORY be a family friendly holiday show?! How can we return year after year, like a moth to the flame, strangely drawn to this crispy cast of castaways, to look into their soot smudged faces and hear their stories? 

**Click here & scroll down to check out 5+ of our past Burning Bluebeard features.** 

There are many of our all time favs returning for the 2014 holiday season. Burning Bluebeard tops our list of must see remounts. It's too good to just see once, or even once a season. Highly recommended! ChiIL Live Shows/ChiILMama's ChiIL Picks List for best holiday theatre.

Burning Bluebeard won't break the bank and is an amazing dark comedy, with thought provoking dialogue and amusing physical play. We thoroughly enjoyed it the past two years, I took both kids the first year, at The Futurarium, because Anthony Courser (Bluebeard) had been their circus instructor for a while and they love to see their instructors in creative projects. But there's one intense scene (blackout/audio only recap of the fire) sensitive kids may have a tough time with. 

We'd give it a PG13/mature tweens and up rating, because of the macabre subject matter (600 people-primarily women & children trampled, burned & dying in a theatre fire!), though handled tastefully. Of course, every kid is different, and since mine are fairly theatre savvy and unflappable, they were 9 & 11 when we first saw it. If in doubt, do your research. 

Burning Bluebeard is based on a true slice of history that should be seen and remembered, especially if you frequently see shows at The Oriental Theatre. 110+ years after this tragedy, Burning Bluebeard depicts this horrific event many are completely unaware even happened, in a poignant and creative way. It's a moving tribute.  

 

With Chi-town favs Jay Torrence, as writer, and Halena Kays directing, this is an absolute must see. Much of the original cast is back again as well, and a true joy to watch in action. They all do a stellar job with the grim subject matter, evoking not only empathy and emotion but laughs as well. They had to drop the fire escape rap (one of our fav parts of the first show-though specific to the TMLMTBGB space they began in). Please please put it on YouTube for me or let us run it here on the blogs for posterity! Otherwise, we imagine the remount this year will be quite similar and every bit as effective for the 2nd time around at Theater Wit.

BURNING BLUEBEARD 2014 will also add Pam Chermansky to the cast, another of our friends and favorites here at ChiIL Mama/ ChiIL Live Shows. My kids studied circus arts with both Pam and Anthony for several years. We also adore Molly Plunk, Jay Torrence, Leah Urzendowski Courser and Ryan Walters and have enjoyed their work in many places around town including 500 Clown, The Hypocrites, Actors Gym, Barrel of Monkeys and more.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

"Burning Bluebeard"

Written by Jay Torrence

and Directed by Halena Kays 

Returns for Three Weeks Only

Tickets on sale NOW!

December 13, 2014 through January 04, 2015

Burning Bluebeard

Theater Wit/Theater Three

The Ruffians

Visiting Company

The critically acclaimed holiday hit BURNING BLUEBEARD returns for its third Chicago production. Don't miss your chance to see this limited engagement three week run of this audience favorite show that has the entire city reliving a piece of Chicago history. 

Inspired by the true story of Chicago's 1903 Iroquois Theatre Fire, BURNING BLUEBEARD is the story of six singed clown performers who emerge from the burnt remains of history attempting to perform their spectacular 1903 Christmas Pantomime once and for all. But this time they hope to finally reach the true happy ending of their second act and avoid the fateful fire that killed 600 of its audience members. Don't miss your chance to see the whimsical delight, the poignant drama and stunning visual beauty that is BURNING BLUEBEARD.

"The entire show is gripping in its originality, intensity and boundary-crossing audacity."

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune.

"Outstanding."

4 STARS - Kris Vire, Time Out Chicago

"Whip smart and feverishly emotional."

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED -Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun Times

"Hilarious, Horrific and Holy."

-Chicago Reader

Running Time: 1 hour 30 minutes with no intermission

There is no late seating available for this production.

The Ruffians are an artistic collective of theater makers (clowns, daredevils, acrobats, dancers, writers, performers, designers, directors). The Ruffians have all honed their craft working over a decade in Chicago’s various and thriving experimental, clown and storefront theater communities. A Ruffians objective is to make beautiful things with rough edges. A Ruffians motto: Breathe. Dare. Live.

ACT OUT HOLIDAY: BURNING BLUEBEARD, returning November 21, 2013 – January 5, 2014 at Theater Wit.

There are a few of our all time favs returning for the 2013 holiday season. Burning Bluebeard tops our must see list along with Hellcab and A Christmas Carol at The Goodman.   Highly recommended!   ChiIL Live Shows ChiIL Picks List for best holiday theatre.


BURNING BLUEBEARD Returning November 21, 2013 – January 5, 2014 at Theater Wit 

BurningBluebeard-1 (left to right) Anthony Courser , Jay Torrence, Dean Evans, Leah Urzendowski Courser, Ryan Walters and Molly Plunk in BURNING BLUEBEARD by Jay Torrence, directed by Halena Kays.  Photo by Evan Hanover.

Burning Bluebeard won't break the bank and is an amazing dark comedy, with thought provoking dialogue and amusing physical play.  We thoroughly enjoyed it last year, and my 12 year old is clamoring to see it again, though my 10 year old daughter said it was a bit too scary for her after seeing it last year.   I took them both, because Anthony (Bluebeard) had been their circus instructor for a while and they love to see their instructors in creative projects.   But there's one intense scene (blackout/audio only recap of the fire) sensitive kids may have a tough time with.

We'd give it a PG13/mature tweens and up rating, because of the macabre subject matter (children trampled, burned & dying in a theatre fire!), though handled tastefully.  Burning Bluebeard is based on a true slice of history that should be seen and remembered, especially if you frequently see shows at The Oriental Theatre.  110 years after this tragedy, Burning Bluebeard depicts this horrific event many are completely unaware even happened, in a poignant and creative way.   It's a moving tribute.   

BurningBluebeard-2 (left to right) Dean Evans, Jay Torrence, Leah Urzendowski Courser, Ryan Walters and Anthony Courser in BURNING BLUEBEARD by Jay Torrence, directed by Halena Kays.  Photo by Evan Hanover.

With Chi-town favs Jay Torrence, as writer, and Halena Kays directing, this is an absolute must see.   The original cast is back again as well, and a true joy to watch in action.   Anthony Courser , Jay Torrence, Dean Evans, Leah Urzendowski Courser, Ryan Walters and Molly Plunk do a stellar job with grim subject matter.   They'll have to rewrite the fire escape rap (one of our fav parts of the last show-though specific to the TMLMTBGB space they were in last year).   Please please put last year's on YouTube for me or let us run it here on the blogs for posterity!   Otherwise, we imagine the remount will be quite similar and every bit as effective this time around at Theater Wit.

Click here for our past coverage.

The Ruffians Present the Return of the Hit Play

BURNING BLUEBEARD

By Jay Torrence

Directed by Halena Kays

November 21, 2013 – January 5, 2014

Featuring Full Original Cast & Creative Team

For an avant-garde alternative to the holidays, The Ruffians are pleased to announce the return of the hit historical romp BURNING BLUEBEARD by Jay Torrence, directed by Halena Kays and featuring the full original cast and creative team. This fantastical tale inspired by Chicago’s 1903 Iroquois Theatre fire will play November 21, 2013 – January 5, 2014 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago.  Tickets for BURNING BLUEBEARD are currently on sale at www.theaterwit.org, in person at the Theater Wit Box Office or by calling (773) 975-8150 ($18 advance tickets will be available a limited time only). 

Originally mounted at The Neo-Futurarium in 2011, the remount coincides with the 110^th anniversary of the Iroquois Theatre fire.  On Monday, December 30, the actual anniversary of the legendary fire, The Ruffians will present special performances at 3 pm matinee (the actual time of the fire) and 7:30 pm.

BURNING BLUEBEARD will feature the full original cast including Anthony Courser, Dean Evans, Molly Plunk, Jay Torrence, Leah Urzendowski Courser and Ryan Walters.

Inspired by the true story of Chicago’s 1903 Iroquois Theatre Fire, BURNING BLUEBEARD is the story of six singed clown performers who emerge from the burnt remains of history attempting to perform their spectacular Christmas Pantomime once and for all. But this time they hope to finally reach the true happy ending of their second act and avoid the fateful fire that killed 600 of its audience members. BURNING BLUEBEARD is a whimsical romp with a sensitive heart, a joyful eulogy with a sharp irreverent wit including slapstick, vignettes, tumbling and dance. Each night is a vaudevillian delight with a story that excavates the poetic and poignant remains of a piece of Chicago’s rich history.

During its original run BURNING BLUEBEARD received critical praise and was named one of the “2011 Best of Fringe” by the Chicago Tribune, one of the “Top Five Funniest Shows of 2011” by WBEZ Radio and one of the “Twelve Outstanding Ensembles of 2011” by Time Out Chicago’s Kris Vire.

 “The whole thing smacks of a wonderful sort of weirdness – abrasive, funny and accessibly avant-garde.”

– Nina Metz, The Chicago Tribune

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

“An altogether haunting, thrillingly imagined production.”

– Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times

The production team for BURNING BLUEBEARD includes: Dan Broberg (scenic design), Lizzie Bracken (costume design), Mike Tutaj (sound design), Maggie Fullilove-Nugent (lighting design & production manager), Justine Palmisano (stage manager) and Krista Mickelson (assistant stage manager.)

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Title:  BURNING BLUEBEARD

Playwright:  Jay Torrence

Director:  Halena Kays

Featuring: Anthony Courser (Henry Gilfoil), Dean Evans (Fancy Clown), Molly Plunk (Faerie Queen), Jay Torrence (Robert Murray), Leah Urzendowski Courser (Nellie Reed) and Ryan Walters (Eddie Foy).

Location:  Theater Wit, 1229 W Belmont, in Chicago

Dates:  Previews: Thursday, November 21 at 7:30 pm, Friday, November 22 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, November 23 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Friday, November 29 – Sunday, January 5, 2014

Curtain Times:  Thursdays at 7:30 pm; Friday at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. 

Note: there will be no performance on Thursday, November 28 (Thanksgiving).  There will be added performances on Sunday, December 15, Sunday, December 22 and Sunday, December 29 at 7:30 pm

Iroquois Fire 110^th Anniversary Performances: Monday, December 30 at 3 pm (the time of the actual fire) and 7:30 pm.

Tickets: $18 - $36 ($18 advance tickets will be available a limited time only). Student rush tickets available for every performance (subject to availability). 

Tickets for BURNING BLEARBEARD are now on sale at www.theaterwit.org, in person at the Theater Wit Box Office or by calling (773) 975-8150.

About the Playwright:

Jay Torrence has been writing/performing/directing in Chicago since 2002. His playwriting credits include Ivywild, Burning Bluebeard and Roustabout: The Great Circus Train Wreck (Awarded the John W. Schmid After Dark Award for Outstanding New Work and the After Dark Award for Outstanding Production). Torrence has had the privilege to perform with 500 Clown, The Hypocrites, Redmoon, The Actor's Gymnasium, Chi-Town Clown Review and The Neo-Futurists where he was an ensemble member for twelve years and the former Artistic Director. Torrence earned his MFA in Creative Writing from The University of British Columbia and has studied under master clown Philippe Gaulier. He is a published essayist and the proud recipient of the Prairie Fire Award for Creative Non Fiction and The Annie Dillard Award for Creative Non Fiction. 

About the Director:

Halena Kays is the artistic director of The Hypocrites where she both performs and directs – most recently The Fall of the House of Usher (actor), Ivywild and Six Character in Search of an Author (director).  She is the co-founder and former artistic director of Barrel of Monkeys where she created and directed the majority of their public performances, including their critically acclaimed long-running show: That’s Weird, Grandma, called “the best reason to live in Chicago on a Monday night” by Time Out Chicago. Kays is also an Artistic Associate with the Neo-Futurists were she directed 44 Plays for 44 Presidents, Burning Bluebeard, co-created and directed Daredevils and Daredevils Hamlet and the sight specific extravaganza, Fake Lake. 

She has worked with many other Chicago theatre companies over the years including: The Kid Thing (About Face/Chicago Dramatists), Oedipus, Mud and 4.48 Psychosis (The Hypocrites), The Children’s Hour (Timeline), The Golden Truffle (Redmoon) and Fair Use and Theatrical Essays (Steppenwolf).  Kays has been nominated for a Jefferson Citation for Best Supporting Actress and Best Direction, named one of the top 50 “players” in Chicago theater by Newcity.  She is a UT-Austin and Northwestern grad, former member of the Big Apple Circus Clown Care unit and the Co-artistic Curator for Theater on the Lake. 

The Ruffians are an artistic collective of theater makers (clowns, daredevils, acrobats, dancers, writers, performers, designers, directors). The Ruffians have all honed their craft working over a decade in Chicago’s various and thriving experimental, clown and storefront theater communities. A Ruffians objective is to make beautiful things with rough edges. A Ruffians motto: Breathe. Dare. Live.

BurningBluebeard-3 (left to right) Jay Torrence, Dean Evans, Leah Urzendowski Courser, Ryan Walters, Anthony Courser and Molly Plunk in BURNING BLUEBEARD by Jay Torrence, directed by Halena Kays.  Photo by Evan Hanover.