OPENING: “UNDER THE STREETLAMP” RETURNS TO THE ECC ARTS CENTER MAY 9 AND 10 #MothersDay #ChicagoTheatre

Elgin Community College (ECC) Arts Center presents a Mother’s Day weekend engagement of the smash hit “Under The Streetlamp.”  Exuding the rapport of a modern-day Rat Pack, the Streetlamp quartet delivers an electrifying evening of doo-wop, Motown, and rock ‘n’ roll, including favorites from The Drifters, The Beach Boys, The Beatles and a show-stopping salute to the Four Seasons. “Under The Streetlamp” will perform on Saturday, May 9 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, May 10 at 3 p.m. at the ECC Arts Center, located at ECC’s Spartan Drive Campus, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin.

“Under the Streetlamp” harmoniously blends the diverse talents of Michael Cunio, Michael Ingersoll, Christopher Kale Jones and Shonn Wiley—all recent leading cast members of the Tony Award-winning musical “Jersey Boys.” Together the group has filmed two PBS Specials, recorded three albums, performed to packed houses throughout the U.S., and appeared as musical guests on TV’s “Access Hollywood” and “Extra.” The four first met while performing in “Jersey Boys,” during which time they also performed on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “The Primetime Emmys,” and “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.”

“We’re so excited to have the guys back,“ says Steve Duchrow, ECC Arts Center director of performing arts. “We were one of the first venues to book ‘Streetlamp’ and it’s been a joy to see the hard-earned, well-deserved success that has come their way. Our audiences feel like this is a homecoming—we’re welcoming back old friends.”

Tickets for the performances are $55. On Saturday, May 9, a three-course, pre-show dinner prepared by ECC’s award-winning Culinary Arts and Hospitality program can be purchased for an additional $29. Dinners must be ordered on or before Monday, May 4. For performance and dinner tickets or more information, visit tickets.elgin.edu or call 847-622-0300.

ECC Arts Center box office hours are noon to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, noon to 5 p.m. Friday, and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday.

The ECC Arts Center, located in Building H on the Elgin Community College Campus, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin, presents amazing artists in intimate theater settings. Delicious dinners prepared through a partnership with the ECC's award-winning culinary arts program often accompany events. Parking is plentiful and free.


For more information about the ECC Arts Center, visit tickets.elgin.edu or call 847-622-0300. The arts center also can be followed on Twitter at twitter.com/ECCArtsCenter. Become a fan of the arts center on Facebook at facebook.com/ECCArtsCenter.
  

ACT OUT HOLIDAY: “A KLINGON CHRISTMAS CAROL” at The Raven 11/30-12/29 & ECC 12/7 Only

COMMEDIA BEAUREGARD’S

“A KLINGON CHRISTMAS CAROL”

COMES TO THE ECC ARTS CENTER

FOR ONE PERFORMANCE ONLY,

DEC. 7 AT 7:30 P.M.

Want a truly unique holiday treat?   How about dinner and a Klingon Christmas Carol?!

Commedia Beauegard brings their new production of “A Klingon Christmas Carol” written by Christopher Kidder-Mostrom and Sasha Walloch and translated into Klingon by Laura Thurston, Bill Hedrick, Chris Lipscombe, and Christopher Kidder-Mostrom, to the ECC Arts Center, on the Elgin Community College Campus, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin, for one performance only, Saturday, Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. For more information visit tickets.elgin.edu.  In addition to this special performance at the ECC Arts Center, “A Klingon Christmas Carol” runs Nov. 30-Dec.29 at The Raven Theatre. For more information visit cbtheatre.org.

 “A Klingon Christmas Carol,” directed by Kidder-Mostrom, adapts Dickens’ classic tale of ghosts and redemption into a story of Klingon SQuja' (pronounced SKHOO-jah) overcoming cowardice to reclaim his honor. Performed in Klingon with English supertitles and a Vulcan narrator, Trekkies and non-Trekkies alike will love this inspired take on a holiday classic. “Those of you who can’t wait for ComiCon to break out that red shirt costume or your forehead ridges will undoubtedly find this a most honorable way to get into the holiday spirit…3 Stars,” says Chicago Theater Beat.

Kidder-Mostrom and Walloch’s “A Klingon Christmas Carol” was first performed in  St. Paul, Minn. in 2007.  2013 marks the 8th time that Commedia Beauregard has produced the play (four times in St. Paul, Minn.; four times in Chicago; 2010 had shows in both cities).  The exciting new 2013 production features a new multi-level set, new costumes that blend Victorian England with Klingon aesthetics and a 15-person cast with Elizabeth Richards as Narrator, Clark Bender as SQuja’ (Scrooge), Colin Fewell as QachIt (Bob Cratchit). For a complete list of the cast and design team, visit cbtheatre.org.

The mission of Commedia Beauregard is “to translate the universal human experience to the stage: to expand our horizons and share knowledge of all cultures, translating between languages and between arts to create theater that is beautiful in expression.” Commedia Beauregard was founded 1999 in St. Paul, Minn., by Christopher Kidder-Mostrom (then, Christopher O. Kidder).Commedia Beauregard has been headquartered in Chicago since 2011 and recently became a resident company of the West Stage of the Raven Theatre Complex in Chicago.

Tickets for the ECC Arts Center Saturday, Dec. 7, 7:30 p.m. performance of “A Klingon Christmas Carol” are $32. A three-course, pre-show dinner prepared by ECC’s award-winning Culinary Arts and Hospitality program can be purchased online for an additional $29. The menu includes a Mixed Green Salad with Pickled Red Beets (inspired by the Klingon dish Gagh), Sliced Beef with Horseradish Sauce accompanied by Roasted Shallot and Garlic Shipped Potatoes (inspired by the Klingon dish Heart of Targ), and Cranberry Panna Cotta (inspired by a favorite Klingon beverage, Bloodwine).  Dinners are served at 5:30 p.m. in the Spartan Terrace Restaurant, located in the lobby of the ECC Arts Center. Dinners must be ordered on or before Monday, Dec. 2.

Tickets for the ECC Arts Center performance and pre-show dinner can be purchased online at tickets.elgin.edu or at the ECC box office located in the Arts Center. Box office hours are noon to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, noon to 5 p.m. Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday. To purchase tickets by phone, call 847-622-0300. All major credit cards are accepted.

In addition to this special performance at the ECC Arts Center, “A Klingon Christmas Carol” also runs Nov. 30-Dec.29 at The Raven Theatre, 6157 N Clark St. For tickets and more information, visit cbtheatre.org or call 773-338-2177.

The ECC Arts Center, located in Building H on the Elgin Community College Campus, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin, presents amazing artists in intimate theater settings. Delicious dinners prepared through a partnership with the ECC's award-winning culinary arts program often accompany events. Parking is plentiful and free.

For more information about the ECC Arts Center, visit tickets.elgin.edu or call 847-622-0300. The arts center also can be followed on Twitter at twitter.com/ECCArtsCenter. Become a fan of the arts center on Facebook at facebook.com/ECCArtsCenter.

ACT OUT: Gravity Defying LEO Two Days Only

THE GRAVITY DEFYING ONE-MAN SHOW "LEO" MAKES ITS CHICAGO AREA PREMIERE AT THE ECC ARTS CENTER OCT. 26-27

Tickets for This Internationally Acclaimed, Best of the Edinburgh Festival Winner Are Now On Sale to the General Public

Elgin Community College (ECC) Arts Center, 1700 Spartan Dr, Elgin, Ill. presents the Chicago area premiere of the internationally renowned Circle of Eleven's critically-acclaimed one-man gravity defying show "LEO," Friday, Oct. 26 and Saturday, Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

"LEO," starring the multi-talented performer Tobias Wegner is a surprising, hilarious, and moving show sure to be a hit with audiences age 8 to 80. Based on an original idea by and performed by Wegner and directed by Daniel Brière, "LEO" uses an ingenious combination of stage design and video projections to create an unexpected environment for extraordinary feats of acrobatic theater in which "our hero" literally loses his sense of gravity and departs on a logic-defying adventure. .

"LEO" is the newest creation of the Berlin-based production company Circle of Eleven. Directed by the Montréal-based actor and director Daniel Brière, it won several major awards at the 2011 Edinburgh Fringe festival including the Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award, the Three Weeks Editors Award and The Scotsman Fringe First Award. When "LEO" made its U.S. debut in New York City this past January Time Out New York called it “an eye-teasing, grin-inducing, deeply impressive work of sustained absurdist magic”

and The New York Post raved, "Alternately funny and poetic... 'LEO' soars."

The ECC Arts Center engagement is the only Chicago area site currently scheduled for the "LEO" fall 2012 North American Tour.

Tobias Wegner (performer/creator) completed his acrobatic training at the Belgium University of Contemporary Circus Arts (E.S.A.C.) in Brussels. His professional career has taken him to, among other places, Brazil, Spain, and India. He has also performed at the Southbank Centre (London), the Théâtre de la Cité Internationale (Paris), the Schauspiel Frankfurt, and the Staatsoper unter den Linden (Berlin). In 2008, Tobias won the European competition "Jeunes Talents Cirque Europe" with the project AIUAIO and his own company of the same name.

Daniel Brière (director) is co-artistic director of the Nouveau Théâtre Expérimental in Montreal, where he has created new work since 2003. He has directed more than 20 theater productions, including "LÉO," which was created in Berlin, won three awards at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and has since toured to New York, New Zealand, Singapore, Brazil, and elsewhere. As an actor, Brière has appeared in film and played a variety of roles in Quebec and overseas. His television include the popular TV comedy "The Parent Family," for which he was awarded the 2011 Artis Prize for a male lead.

The design team includes Flavia Hevia (set and lighting design), Heiko Kalmbach (video design); Ingo Panke (animation); and Heather McCrimmon (costume design). Creative Producer is Gregg Parks.

Tickets may be purchased online by clicking here or at the ECC box office located in the arts center. Box office hours are noon to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, noon to 5 p.m. Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday. To purchase tickets by phone, call 847-622-0300. All major credit cards are accepted.

For more information about the ECC Arts Center, visit elgin.edu/arts. Video clips of upcoming artists and events can be found at youtube.com/ECCArtsCenter. Connect and talk to the arts center on Standing Room Only, a blog at eccartscenter.com. The arts center also can be followed on Twitter at twitter.com/ECCArtsCenter. Become a fan of the arts center on Facebook at facebook.com/ECCArtsCenter.

"LEO" makes its Chicago area premiere at the ECC Arts Center 

1700 Spartan Dr,

Elgin, Ill. 

Friday, Oct. 26 and Saturday, Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m. 

"LEO" is appropriate for theatre goers of all ages and recommended for those 8 and up. 

Tickets are $33 for adults / $20 for children 12 and under and on sale now to the general public.