REVIEW: Don Your Gay Apparel and Catch Other Theatre's Hilarious Barney the Elf at Greenhouse Theater Through December 30th

The Smash Hit Returns!

Other Theatre Presents the Adult Holiday Musical

BARNEY THE ELF

By Bryan Renaud

Lyrics by Bryan Renaud and Emily Schmidt

Directed and Choreographed by Tommy Rivera-Vega

Music Direction by Nik Kmiecik

Music Arrangements by Jermaine Hill

Through December 30, 2017 at Greenhouse Theater Center

Review:

I was expecting parodies of show tunes and holiday classics, a bit of naughty adult humor and an LGBTQ twist on Elf the Musical, but Barney the Elf goes above and beyond. Sure it's creatively campy, but there's a sweet undercurrent of depth here that celebrates the gay community, embraces those who have been kicked out of their homes just for being themselves, and condemns bullies, even while acknowledging that sometimes the bullies win.  

Santa is dead, but Christmas doesn't have to be, with a bit more cheer and holiday enthusiasm from Barney the Elf, the epitome of misfit elves, banished by a decidedly Trump-like Santa Junior on suspicion of being gay. Like the movie and musical this parodies most closely, this elf is given a snow globe and sets off for the big city (Chicago this time) on a quest to find himself (not his dad). He gets robbed, finds a job mopping floors at a drag bar, and ultimately saves Christmas when Junior's sleigh crashes from a lack of Christmas spirit (from it's driver this time).

The Chicago touches are too much fun, like Mrs. Claus' gifting Barney with mace and a warning to watch out for the Wrigleyville Bros, and giving him a wad of cash to buy her HAMILTON tickets. Public transportation construction and gun violence jokes hit the mark with this home town audience too.

This parody is political without being heavy handed, (note the Trump bumper sticker on Junior's sleigh) and the "Make Christmas Great Again" and "War on Christmas" references. It's cathartic and spot on about the culture wars and the current climate toward LGBTQ people, and anyone not mainstream, rich, and capitalistic enough. 

(left to right) Dixie Lynn Cartwright and Roy Samra

All Photos by Carin Silkaitis

Particular standouts are the adorable, Roy Samra (also amazing in The CiviliTy of Albert Cashier) as Barney, Chicago drag sensation Dixie Lynn Cartwright (perfect mix of diva and true friend) returning as Zooey, Maggie Cain as (fierce, foulmouthed, badass mom & advocate) Mrs. Claus, and finally (the blonde Trumpster in training you love to hate) Jaron Bellar as Junior. I was especially impressed Dixie Lynn doesn't just lip synch, but actually sings, and her banter was fabulous.

In the end, love trumps hate. The bullies don't win for long. Barney gets the sleigh and the top spot in the north pole, his soul mate, and the love and respect of legions of elves, all while being true to himself. 

Obviously, leave the kids at home for this one. It's definitely "R" for content and language, but make for a great adult night out, with an enduring message of hope for the weird, quirky and different. And isn't acceptance and love what the Christmas spirit is truly about? 

(center) Maggie Cain with (left to right) Courtney Dane Mize, Cody Talkie, Colleen DeRosa, Lance Spencer, LiSean McElrath and Emilie Rose Danno

(left to right) Lance Spencer, Dixie Lynn Cartwright and Cody Talkie

Other Theatre is pleased to continue its 4th season with the third revival of its holiday hit BARNEY THE ELF, a campy and irreverent musical comedy, written by Bryan Renaud with lyrics by Renaud and Emily Schmidt. After helming the 2016 production, Tommy Rivera-Vega returns to direct and choreograph, with music direction by Nik Kmiecik and arrangements by Jermaine Hill. BARNEY THE ELF will play November 17 – December 30, 2017 at Other Theatre’s resident home, The Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.  

Tickets are available at www.theothertheatrecompany.com, in person at the Greenhouse Theater box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. Season subscriptions are currently available. 

BARNEY THE ELF will feature Roy Samra as Barney, Chicago drag sensation Dixie Lynn Cartwright returning as Zooey, Maggie Cain as Mrs. Claus, Jaron Bellar as Junior and Courtney Dane Mize as Cookie/Ensemble with Emilie Rose Danno, Colleen DeRosa, LiSean McElrath, Lance Spencer and Cody Talkie.


(pictured) Dixie Lynn Cartwright in Other Theatre’s production of BARNEY THE ELF

After Santa Claus retires, his wicked son begins a not-so-jolly reign as the new head of Christmas. The North Pole begins to crumble under his bigoted rule, and Barney the Elf is forced to leave his home for being different from the others. Soon he embarks on a fabulous journey of self-discovery (or is it elf-discovery?) that lands him in one of Chicago's hottest drag bars. But can he truly leave Christmas behind for a new life in the big city? BARNEY THE ELF brings pop-infused musical numbers galore and plenty of queer holiday cheer to Lincoln Park for the third year in a row! 

"Rather endearing [with] surprising emotional payoffs... Renaud and his collaborators may well have a fringe holiday repeat hit to call home for the holidays."  –The Chicago Tribune

The production team for BARNEY THE ELF includes Michael Johannsen (scenic design), Olivia Crary (costume design), Matthew Carney (lighting design), Ashley Pettit (sound design, production manager), Bobby Taves (asst. music director) and Meghan Erxleben (asst. lighting designer).

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Location: The Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago
Dates: Preview: Friday, November 17 at 8 pm, Saturday, November 18 at 7 pm, Sunday, November 19 at 3 pm and Sunday, November 26 at 3 pm.
Press opening: Tuesday, November 28 at 8 pm
Regular run: Thursday, November 30 – Sunday, December 30, 2017
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Sunday, December 24 (Christmas Eve).

Tickets: Previews: $20 with code “PREVIEW.” Regular run: $25. Students $15 with code “STUDENT.” Industry $15 with code “INDUSTRY.” Tickets are available at www.theothertheatrecompany.com, in person at the Greenhouse Theater Center box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. Season subscription are currently available.


(center) Roy Samra with (l to r) Lance Spencer, Colleen DeRosa, Cody Talkie, LiSean McElrath, Emilie Rose Danno and Courtney Dane Mize

Creative Team Bios
Bryan Renaud (Book and Lyrics) is the Associate Artistic Director of Other Theatre, where he has premiered his plays Barney the Elf and Other Letters, the latter co-written with Carin Silkaitis. He is also a founding member of Random Acts, where he premiered Strangest Things! The Musical, All Our Twilight and Ladies Night of the Living Dead. As a performer, Bryan has worked with American Theater Co., Pride Films & Plays, Provision Theater, Music Theatre Co., GreatWorks, Prologue Theatre, Shakespeare at the Centre, Oak Park Festival Theatre, NWaC and Two Pigs Productions. www.BryanRenaud.com

Emily Schmidt (Lyrics) is a freelance playwright and grant writer based in Chicago. She earned her Masters in English from Loyola University. Other works include writing for Acid Reflux Comedy as well as the plays All Our Twilight, Awkward Family Gatherings and Strangest Things! The Musical. 

Tommy Rivera-Vega (Director) returns after directing the 2016 remount of Barney the Elf. He also directed the smash-hit world premiere Strangest Things! The Musical. Chicago Acting credits: Parachute Men, Between You Me and the Lampshade, A View From the Bridge, Momma’s Boyz – Teatro Vista; La Havana Madrid – Steppenwolf and Teatro Vista; Mother Road – Goodman Theatre; West Side Story – Drury Lane; In the Heights – Skylight Music Theatre; In the Heights, My Fair Lady – Paramount Theatre; Three Sisters – Steppenwolf Theatre; Kiss of the Spiderwoman – BoHo Theatre; Augusta & Noble – Adventure Stage; Pippin – Music Theatre Company; CATS – Theo Ubique; Puerto Rico credits: Spring Awakening, Footloose – Black Box Theatre. Episodic: Chicago PD (Ep 411). He is a proud Teatro Vista, Other Theatre Ensemble member and an Artistic Associate of Random Acts. Tommy is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency.

Nik Kmiecik (Music Director) is thrilled to be back with Barney the Elf in his new role of music director. He has music directed youth productions with SELF theatre and musical productions at his alma mater, North Central College in Naperville. Nik was an elf/ensemble member for Barney last year and has performed with numerous theatres in Chicago including Chicago Shakespeare, Chicago Children's Theatre, Filament Theatre, Haven Theatre, Silk Road Rising and Porchlight Theatre. Nik is an artistic associate of Other Theatre and is proudly represented by Stewart Talent.



About Other Theatre:

Other Theatre is dedicated to telling the stories of persons or groups who are othered by systems of oppression. Othering individuals or groups sustains power and privilege. Othering inherently implies hierarchy. Othering keeps the power in the hands of those who already have it.  Othering is an "us" vs. "them" mentality often centered around race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, identity, class, religion and ability. Other Theatre is committed to telling these stories in the hope that we can lessen the amount of discrimination and oppression in our world. 

We are a collective of artist-activists who believe in the power of theatre to enact social change. We believe in equality for all human beings and we will fight for it. We believe theatre is an excellent conversation starter, and we hope you will come talk with us after the show. We believe radical social change is possible and we will continue to stand up, fight, and resist until it happens.

Other Theatre Artistic Staff: 

Carin Silkaitis, Founder and Artistic Director; Maddie DePorter, Managing Director; Bryan Renaud, Associate Artistic Director; Ashley Pettit, Production Manager; Savanna Rae, Company Manager; Stephen Kossak, Casting Director; Becca Sheehan, Audience Development/Intern Coordinator; Tommy Varela, Social Media Coordinator; Kelly Howe, Resident Dramaturg; Tommy Rivera-Vega, Artistic Associate; Hannah Toriumi, Artistic Associate; Gay Glenn, Artistic Associate; Nik Kmiecik , Artitic Associate.

Other Theatre Board of Directors:

Michele Thornton, President; Kelly Soprych, Vice President; Jermaine Hill, Secretary; Stephen Silkaitis, Treasurer; Lisa Wolfe, Diane Sheehan and Michael Johannsen.

Other Theatre’s 4th Season is presented by generous grants from MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, and The Saints.

ONE NIGHT ONLY: Greenhouse Theater Center Hosts CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LATE NIGHT WRITERS ROOM Benefit for Howard Brown Health

CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LATE NIGHT WRITERS ROOM

Returns To Greenhouse Theater Center

Friday, December 1, 2017

Hosted by Chicago Drag Sensation Dixie Lynn Cartwright

**Recommended for ages 18+**

Following four sell-out performances, CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LATE NIGHT WRITERS ROOM returns for one-night-only on Friday, December 1, 2017 at 10 pm at The Greenhouse Theater Center (Downstairs Mainstage), 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago.  

The irreverent night of improv comedy is inspired by the popular and politically incorrect party game “Cards Against Humanity.” After audience members pitch their ideas, the best suggestions are acted out by the Cards Against Humanity writers and a team of improvisers. The worst suggestions will be mercilessly ridiculed. 

The evening will be hosted by Chicago drag sensation Dixie Lynn Cartwright, currently appearing in Other Theatre’s annual hit holiday musical BARNEY THE ELF at Greenhouse Theater Center. Tickets, priced at $10, are currently at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. All proceeds from CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LATE NIGHT WRITERS ROOM will benefit Howard Brown Health. For additional information, visit howardbrown.org. 


About the Greenhouse Theater Center

The Greenhouse Theater Center is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Our mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre.

The Greenhouse Theater began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, after which came 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an eight month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. This year, the Greenhouse announced a full subscription season, with a mix of multi-character and solo plays. With a focus on our community, the Greenhouse has also launched the Trellis Residency Initiative, an initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of Chicago theatre creators, as well as the MC-10, an ensemble of mid-career playwrights whose works will be included in future Greenhouse programming.

As a performance venue, our complex offers two newly remodeled 190-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, two high-capacity lobbies and an in-house rehearsal room. We strive to cultivate a fertile environment for local artists, from individual renters to our bevy of resident companies, and to develop and produce their work. In 2016, the Greenhouse announced a new residency program, which offers a reduced rate to local storefront companies while giving the Greenhouse a stake in the resident’s success. We house Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor of our complex. 

With new ideas always incubating, the Greenhouse is flourishing. Come grow with us!

OPENING: Irreverent Adult Comedy Barney the Elf at Greenhouse Through 12/30/17

The Smash Hit Returns!

Other Theatre Presents the Holiday Musical

BARNEY THE ELF

By Bryan Renaud

Lyrics by Bryan Renaud and Emily Schmidt

Directed and Choreographed by Tommy Rivera-Vega

Music Direction by Nik Kmiecik

Music Arrangements by Jermaine Hill

November 17 – December 30, 2017 at Greenhouse Theater Center

ChiIL Live Shows will be out for the press opening November 28th and we can't wait to catch another snarky adult holiday revival, and an antidote to the over saccharine sweetness of the season. Check back soon for our full review.

Other Theatre is pleased to continue its 4th season with the third revival of its holiday hit BARNEY THE ELF, a campy and irreverent musical comedy, written by Bryan Renaud with lyrics by Renaud and Emily Schmidt. After helming the 2016 production, Tommy Rivera-Vega returns to direct and choreograph, with music direction by Nik Kmiecik and arrangements by Jermaine Hill. BARNEY THE ELF will play November 17 – December 30, 2017 at Other Theatre’s resident home, The Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.  

Tickets are available at www.theothertheatrecompany.com, in person at the Greenhouse Theater box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. Season subscriptions are currently available. 

BARNEY THE ELF will feature Roy Samra as Barney, Chicago drag sensation Dixie Lynn Cartwright returning as Zooey, Maggie Cain as Mrs. Claus, Jaron Bellar as Junior and Courtney Dane Mize as Cookie/Ensemble with Emilie Rose Danno, Colleen DeRosa, LiSean McElrath, Lance Spencer and Cody Talkie.

After Santa Claus retires, his wicked son begins a not-so-jolly reign as the new head of Christmas. The North Pole begins to crumble under his bigoted rule, and Barney the Elf is forced to leave his home for being different from the others. Soon he embarks on a fabulous journey of self-discovery (or is it elf-discovery?) that lands him in one of Chicago's hottest drag bars. But can he truly leave Christmas behind for a new life in the big city? BARNEY THE ELF brings pop-infused musical numbers galore and plenty of queer holiday cheer to Lincoln Park for the third year in a row! 

"Rather endearing [with] surprising emotional payoffs... Renaud and his collaborators may well have a fringe holiday repeat hit to call home for the holidays."  –The Chicago Tribune

The production team for BARNEY THE ELF includes Michael Johannsen (scenic design), Olivia Crary (costume design), Matthew Carney (lighting design), Ashley Pettit (sound design, production manager), Bobby Taves (asst. music director) and Meghan Erxleben (asst. lighting designer).

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Location: The Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago
Dates: Preview: Friday, November 17 at 8 pm, Saturday, November 18 at 7 pm, Sunday, November 19 at 3 pm and Sunday, November 26 at 3 pm.
Press opening: Tuesday, November 28 at 8 pm
Regular run: Thursday, November 30 – Sunday, December 30, 2017
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Sunday, December 24 (Christmas Eve).

Tickets: Previews: $20 with code “PREVIEW.” Regular run: $25. Students $15 with code “STUDENT.” Industry $15 with code “INDUSTRY.” Tickets are available at www.theothertheatrecompany.com, in person at the Greenhouse Theater Center box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. Season subscription are currently available.

Creative Team Bios

Bryan Renaud (Book and Lyrics) is the Associate Artistic Director of Other Theatre, where he has premiered his plays Barney the Elf and Other Letters, the latter co-written with Carin Silkaitis. He is also a founding member of Random Acts, where he premiered Strangest Things! The Musical, All Our Twilight and Ladies Night of the Living Dead. As a performer, Bryan has worked with American Theater Co., Pride Films & Plays, Provision Theater, Music Theatre Co., GreatWorks, Prologue Theatre, Shakespeare at the Centre, Oak Park Festival Theatre, NWaC and Two Pigs Productions. www.BryanRenaud.com

Emily Schmidt (Lyrics) is a freelance playwright and grant writer based in Chicago. She earned her Masters in English from Loyola University. Other works include writing for Acid Reflux Comedy as well as the plays All Our Twilight, Awkward Family Gatherings and Strangest Things! The Musical. 

Tommy Rivera-Vega (Director) returns after directing the 2016 remount of Barney the Elf. He also directed the smash-hit world premiere Strangest Things! The Musical. Chicago Acting credits: Parachute Men, Between You Me and the Lampshade, A View From the Bridge, Momma’s Boyz – Teatro Vista; La Havana Madrid – Steppenwolf and Teatro Vista; Mother Road – Goodman Theatre; West Side Story – Drury Lane; In the Heights – Skylight Music Theatre; In the Heights, My Fair Lady – Paramount Theatre; Three Sisters – Steppenwolf Theatre; Kiss of the Spiderwoman – BoHo Theatre; Augusta & Noble – Adventure Stage; Pippin – Music Theatre Company; CATS – Theo Ubique; Puerto Rico credits: Spring Awakening, Footloose – Black Box Theatre. Episodic: Chicago PD (Ep 411). He is a proud Teatro Vista, Other Theatre Ensemble member and an Artistic Associate of Random Acts. Tommy is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency.

Nik Kmiecik (Music Director) is thrilled to be back with Barney the Elf in his new role of music director. He has music directed youth productions with SELF theatre and musical productions at his alma mater, North Central College in Naperville. Nik was an elf/ensemble member for Barney last year and has performed with numerous theatres in Chicago including Chicago Shakespeare, Chicago Children's Theatre, Filament Theatre, Haven Theatre, Silk Road Rising and Porchlight Theatre. Nik is an artistic associate of Other Theatre and is proudly represented by Stewart Talent.



About Other Theatre:

Other Theatre is dedicated to telling the stories of persons or groups who are othered by systems of oppression. Othering individuals or groups sustains power and privilege. Othering inherently implies hierarchy. Othering keeps the power in the hands of those who already have it.  Othering is an "us" vs. "them" mentality often centered around race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, identity, class, religion and ability. Other Theatre is committed to telling these stories in the hope that we can lessen the amount of discrimination and oppression in our world. 

We are a collective of artist-activists who believe in the power of theatre to enact social change. We believe in equality for all human beings and we will fight for it. We believe theatre is an excellent conversation starter, and we hope you will come talk with us after the show. We believe radical social change is possible and we will continue to stand up, fight, and resist until it happens.

Other Theatre Artistic Staff: 

Carin Silkaitis, Founder and Artistic Director; Maddie DePorter, Managing Director; Bryan Renaud, Associate Artistic Director; Ashley Pettit, Production Manager; Savanna Rae, Company Manager; Stephen Kossak, Casting Director; Becca Sheehan, Audience Development/Intern Coordinator; Tommy Varela, Social Media Coordinator; Kelly Howe, Resident Dramaturg; Tommy Rivera-Vega, Artistic Associate; Hannah Toriumi, Artistic Associate; Gay Glenn, Artistic Associate; Nik Kmiecik , Artitic Associate.

Other Theatre Board of Directors:

Michele Thornton, President; Kelly Soprych, Vice President; Jermaine Hill, Secretary; Stephen Silkaitis, Treasurer; Lisa Wolfe, Diane Sheehan and Michael Johannsen.

Other Theatre’s 4th Season is presented by generous grants from MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, and The Saints.

HELP OUT: CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LIVE To Benefit Hope Not Hate at Greenhouse Theater Center 9/29/17

One Night Only!

CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LIVE

Returns To Greenhouse Theater Center

Friday, September 29 at 10 pm

CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LIVE at Greenhouse Theater Center. Photos by Stephen Voss.

Following three sell-out performances this year, CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY LIVE returns once again for one night only on Friday, September 29, 2017 at 10 pm at The Greenhouse Theater Center (Downstairs Mainstage), 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago.  


The irreverent night of improv comedy is inspired by the popular and politically incorrect party game “Cards Against Humanity.” After audience members pitch their ideas, the best suggestions are acted out by the Cards Against Humanity writers and a team of improvisers. The worst suggestions will be mercilessly ridiculed. Recommended for ages 18+.

Tickets, priced at $10 are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. All proceeds will benefit the anti-racist watchdog group Hope Not Hate. The group recently made national headlines after revealing one of its members went undercover in the alt-right movement for over a year. For additional information, visit hopenothate.com.




About the Greenhouse Theater Center
The Greenhouse Theater Center is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Our mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre.

The Greenhouse Theater began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, after which came 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an 8 month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. This year, the Greenhouse announced a full subscription season, with a mix of multi-character and solo plays. With a focus on our community, the Greenhouse is also launching the Trellis playwriting residency, an initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of Chicago theatre creators and a two-tiered education program for college and high school students.

As a performance venue, our complex offers two newly remodeled 190-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, two high-capacity lobbies, and an in-house rehearsal room. We strive to cultivate a fertile environment for local artists, from individual renters to our bevy of resident companies, and to develop and produce their work. In 2016, the Greenhouse announced a new residency program, which offers a reduced rate to local storefront companies while giving the Greenhouse a stake in the resident’s success. We house Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor of our complex. 

With new ideas always incubating, the Greenhouse is flourishing. Come grow with us!

TONIGHT: One Night Only at Greenhouse Theater, USE IT OR LOSE IT: An Evening of Short Plays About Your Rights

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Greenhouse Theater Center Presents

USE IT OR LOSE IT: 

An Evening of Short Plays About Your Rights

Saturday, September 23, 2017

A Benefit for the ACLU

PHOTO CREDIT: Greenhouse Theater Center's MC-10 Playwrights Ensemble includes (left to right) Zayd Dohrn, Rebecca Gilman, Lydia Diamond, Julie Marie Myatt, Laura Schellhardt, Sandra Delgado, Brett Neveu, Thomas Bradshaw, Philip Dawkins and Tanya Palmer.

Come on out to Greenhouse Theater Center tonight for some of our favorite playwrights and actors supporting a great cause. Tickets are pay-what-you-want.  All proceeds will benefit the ACLU. We're jazzed about the newly-created MC-10 Playwrights Ensemble, and can't wait to see what they have in store tonight and down the road!

Greenhouse Theater Center is pleased to present USE IT OR LOSE IT: An Evening of Short Plays About Your Rights, original works inspired by contemporary and historic legal battles the ACLU has fought on behalf of Americans' rights and freedoms. Written by members of the Greenhouse's newly-created MC-10 Playwrights Ensemble and directed by Devon de Mayo, Jacob Harvey and Chuck Smith, the short pieces tackle everything from the recent travel ban to the attack on reproductive rights to encounters with the TSA, offering audiences a glimpse into the vast impact and critical importance of the ACLU. 

USE IT OR LOSE IT will play one night only on Saturday, September 23 at 7 pm at the Greenhouse Theater's Downstairs Mainstage, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago.  Tickets are pay-what-you-want and are currently available at www.greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. All proceeds will benefit the ACLU. 

USE IT OR LOSE IT features short plays by: Thomas Bradshaw, Philip Dawkins, Sandra Delgado, Zayd Dohrn, Rebecca Gilman, Brett Neveu, Julie Marie Myatt, Tanya Palmer and Laura Schellhardt. 

The cast of USE IT LOSE IT includes: Japhet Balaban, Dana Black, Pat Kane, Jennifer Latimore, Mary Ann Thebus, Dan Waller and Wandachristine. 

The full USE IT OR LOSE IT line-up includes: 

EVERYDAY SUPER HERO
By Laura Schellhardt, directed by Devon de Mayo

January 27th, 2017 – In a backroom office of this mayhem called America, two super heroes strategize their next mission.

THIS IS A MESSAGE FROM PROTECTUS
By Sandra Delgado, directed by Devon de Mayo

Brenda just wants to hear her daughter’s voice and help her with her homework. But Brenda is one of the two-thirds of female inmates who is the parent of a minor child, and no conversation is free, easy or uninterrupted. 

HOLD ON
By Julie Marie Myatt, directed by Devon de Mayo

What do your rights feel like? One woman tries to get inside the emotion of this so-called inalienable thing. 

WONDER NEVER CEASES
By Philip Dawkins, directed by Jacob Harvey

Get inside the mind of a service dog who just wants to be there for his seven-year-old BFF after her school decides he’s a “distraction” and not, you know, an ADHA required necessity. 

GANG MEMBERS UNITE
By Thomas Bradshaw, directed by Jacob Harvey

A veteran Chicago gang member tries to unite fellow gang leaders from across the country for a common cause.

ON THE CLOCK
By Tanya Palmer, directed by Jacob Harvey

When you’re a single working mom it can be hard to find time for yourself. With abortion clinics closing and restrictions on abortions increasing, one woman fights against the clock to end an unwanted pregnancy. 

SPOTers
By Brett Neveu, directed by Chuck Smith

While undergoing additional passenger check training, two TSA employees discover their jobs may require more of them than they previously understood.

BILLIE BOGGS
By Zayd Dohrn, directed by Chuck Smith

Meet Billie Boggs, the most famous homeless black lady in all of history! She and the ACLU fought for her right to live on the streets and won.
  
DEATH FOR GILMORE 
By Rebecca Gilman, directed by Chuck Smith

In 1977, the ACLU fought to save Gary Gilmore from the firing squad. But their biggest obstacle was Gilmore himself.


About the MC-10 Playwrights Ensemble
The Greenhouse Theater's newly-created MC-10 Playwrights Ensemble is a collection of ten of the country’s most sought-after established and mid-career Chicago playwrights and theatre-makers. The ensemble, in residence at the Greenhouse Theater Center, will create new works for its stages. Beginning with the 2018-19 season, the Greenhouse will present one play per season by MC-10 member playwrights, eventually expanding to two MC-10 productions per season. These world and regional premieres aim to expand the scope, diversity and visibility of work happening at the Greenhouse and underscore the institution's commitment to creating new vital works for the American theatrical canon.

In addition to the one to two annual productions at the Greenhouse, MC-10 will curate a series of special events, pop-up performances and provocative conversations aimed at responding directly to issues and needs as they arise in our community. 

The MC-10 Playwrights Ensemble includes: Thomas Bradshaw, Philip Dawkins, Sandra Delgado, Lydia Diamond, Zayd Dohrn, Rebecca Gilman, Brett Neveu, Julie Marie Myatt, Tanya Palmer and Laura Schellhardt.

About the MC-10 Playwrights
Thomas Bradsaw’s play Carlyle premiered at The Goodman Theatre as part of their 2015-16 season. His play Fulfillment co-premiered at American Theater Company (Chicago) and The Flea Theater (New York) in fall 2015. His other plays include Intimacy and Burning (New Group); Mary (Goodman Theatre) Job and Dawn (Flea Theater); The Bereaved (Crowded Fire, Partial Comfort and the State Theater of Bielefeld in Germany); Southern Promises (PS122) and many more. He was the recipient of a 2009 Guggenheim Fellowship, the 2010 Prince Prize, a Foundation for Contemporary Arts award in 2012 and a Doris Duke Implementation Grant in 2016. Mr. Bradshaw has been featured as one of Time Out New York’s “10 Playwrights to Watch” and was named “Best Provocative Playwright” by the Village Voice. A compilation of his work Intimacy and Other Plays was recently published by TCG. Mr. Bradshaw is an Associate Professor at Northwestern University. He is currently under commission from The Royal National Theater in London, Marin Theater Company in San Francisco and The Foundry Theater in New York.

Philip Dawkins is a Chicago playwright whose plays have been produced all over the country and the world. His critically acclaimed works include: The Happiest Place on Earth (Greenhouse Theater Center & Sideshow Theatre Company – Joseph Jefferson Awards for Best Solo Work), Charm (Northlight Theatre – Jeff Award for Best New Work), Le Switch (About Face Theater, The Jungle – Jeff nomination Best New Work and Best Production); Miss Marx: Or The Involuntary Side Effect of Living (Strawdog Theatre – Jeff Award for Best New Work), The Homosexuals (About Face Theater – Jeff nomination for Best New Work) and Failure: A Love Story (Victory Gardens Theatre – Jeff nomination for Best New Work). His musical adaptation of Dr. Seuss’s The Sneetches (with composer David Mallamud) premiered at Children’s Theater Company in Minneapolis this past winter. His play Charm will receive its New York premiere in September at MCC. Philip teaches playwriting at Northwestern University, Loyola University Chicago, his alma mater, and through the Victory Gardens ACCESS Program for writers with disabilities. Most of his plays, including his plays for young performers, are available through Playscripts, Inc. and Dramatic Publishing.

Sandra Delgado is a Colombian-American actor, writer, singer and producer born and raised in Chicago. She received the Theater Communications Group (TCG) Fox Foundation Resident Actor Fellowship in residence at the Goodman Theater in Chicago where she developed her solo show para Graciela, subsequently performed at the Yo Solo Festival. As an actor, her vivid portrayals of strong, smart women such as the iconic Medea in Luis Alfaro's Mojada at Victory Gardens Theatre (named one of the Top Ten performances of 2013 by the Chicago Tribune) to the tough as nails, foul mouthed Veronica in Stephen Adly Guirgis' Motherf**ker with the Hat at the Steppenwolf Theatre, have made her a favorite among critics and audiences alike. Delgado's stage credits include work at Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Victory Gardens, Lookingglass, Actors Theater of Louisville and INTAR. She produced Teatro Vista's and Collaboraction's Yo Solo Festival of Latino Solo Shows and Collaboraction's popular Sketchbook Festival from 2005-2008. She is a founding ensemble member of Collaboraction and an ensemble member of Teatro Vista (Associate Artistic Director from 2006-2008). She has trained in interview-based, collaboratively- generated and physical theater with Tectonic Theater Project, Ping Chong + Company, SITI Company and Cuba's Teatro Buendia. Ms. Delgado was part of the Goodman's Playwright's Unit for the 2015-16 season and is a TCG Young Leader of Color Alum, a two-time Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events grantee, a 3Arts 3AP Project Grantee and served on the National Steering Committee of the Latina/o Theatre Commons, an advocacy group for Latino Theatre artists. In 2015, she received the Joyce Award to develop her documentary play with music, La Havana Madrid, with Teatro Vista. La Havana Madrid made its premiere at Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre in April 2017 and is playing at The Goodman Theatre this summer. www.sandradelgado.net

Lydia Diamond’s plays include: Voyeurs de Venus (2006 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Work, 2006 Black Theater Alliance Award for Best Writing), The Bluest Eye (2006 Black Arts Alliance Image Award for Best New Play and 2008 AATE Distinguished Play Award), The Gift Horse (Theodore Ward Prize, Kesselring Prize 2nd Place), Stick Fly (2008 Susan Smith Blackburn Finalist, 2006 Black Theatre Alliance Award for best play), Lizzie Stranton and Harriet Jacobs. Producing theatres include: Arena Stage, The Huntington, New Vic, Goodman, Steppenwolf, Long Wharf, Hartford Stage, McCarter, Playmakers Rep, Providence Black Rep, Chicago Dramatists, Congo Square, TrueColors, The Matrix and Company One. Commissions include: Steppenwolf, Actors Theatre of Louisville/Victory Gardens, McCarter, Huntington and The Roundabout. Stick Fly is published by Northwestern University Press. Ms. Diamond is a 2009 NEA/Arena Stage New Play Development Grant Finalist, and 2006-2007 Huntington Playwright Fellow.

Zayd Dohrn’s plays include The Profane, Want, Outside People, Long Way Go Down, Sick and Reborning. His work is published by Samuel French, and has been produced across the country and internationally, including at Playwrights Horizons, The Vineyard Theatre, Naked Angels, Steppenwolf First Look and The Public Theater / Summer Play Festival. He is the recipient of the 2016 Horton Foote New American Play Prize, the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award, the Kennedy Center’s Jean Kennedy Smith Award, the Sky Cooper American Playwriting Prize, Theatre Master’s Visionary Playwrights Award and Lincoln Center’s Lecomte du Nouy Prize. Zayd attended Brown University, received his MFA from NYU and was a Lila Acheson Wallace Fellow at Juilliard. He currently teaches in the MFA program in Writing for the Stage + Screen at Northwestern. www.zayddohrn.com.

Rebecca Gilman’s plays include Luna Gale, Boy Gets Girl, Spinning Into Butter, Dollhouse, Blue Surge, A True History of the Johnstown Flood, Soups, Stews, and Casseroles: 1976, The Glory of Living, The Sweetest Swing in Baseball, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and The Crowd You’re in With. Her plays have received numerous productions in the U.S. and abroad, including productions at the Goodman Theatre (where she is a member of the Goodman Theatre Artistic Collective), Steppenwolf Theatre, The Acting Company, Royal Court Theatre, Hampstead Theatre, Lincoln Center Theatre, Public Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, New York Theatre Workshop, Seattle Rep, Cleveland Playhouse, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Alliance Theatre, Center Theatre Group’s Kirk Douglas Theatre and Manhattan Class Company. Gilman is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, The Harold and Mimi Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award, The Harper Lee Award, The Scott McPherson Award, The Prince Prize for Commissioning New Work, The Roger L. Stevens Award from the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays, The Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright, The George Devine Award, The Theatre Masters Visionary Award, The Great Plains Playwright Award, The Roe Green Award, an Ingram Playwriting Fellowship and an Illinois Arts Council fellowship. Boy Gets Girl received an Olivier Nomination for Best New Play and was included in Time Magazine’s list of “Top Ten Plays of the Decade.” Gilman was named a finalist for the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for The Glory of Living. She is a member of the Council of the Dramatists Guild of America. Gilman is a professor at Northwestern University and teaches in its MFA in Writing for the Screen and Stage Program.

Julie Marie Myatt’s play The Happy Ones premiered at South Coast Repertory, and won the LA Drama Critic Circle’s Ted Schmitt Award for Outstanding New Play. Her play Welcome Home, Jenny Sutter premiered at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the Kennedy Center as part of the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays. Her play Someday, premiered as part of Cornerstone Theater’s Justice Cycle. Her play, My Wandering Boy, premiered at South Coast Repertory in the 2007, was part of Pacific Playwrights Festival, and was also produced in New York as part of the 2007 Summer Play Festival. Boats On A River premiered at the Guthrie Theater, was a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, and was recorded for the LA Theatre works radio play series, “The Play’s The Thing.” Her ten-minute play, Mr. and Mrs. premiered at the 2007 Humana Festival. Her play The Sex Habits of American Women was produced by the Guthrie Theater, among others, and premiered at the Magic Theatre. Her work has been developed or seen at Actors Theatre of Louisville, Seattle Rep, Cherry Lane, A.S.K. Theatre Projects, LAByrinth Theater Company, Denver Center Theatre Company, ACT Seattle, among others. She received a Walt Disney Studios Screenwriting Fellowship, a Jerome Fellowship at the Playwrights’ Center, a McKnight Advancement Grant, Mark Taper Forum Fadiman Award and a Master Playwright Residency – Michener Center for Writers and Department of Theatre and Dance, UT/Austin. She is currently working on commissions for Yale Repertory and Cornerstone Theatre Company. She is an Alumni of New Dramatists, was the Mellon Playwright in Residence at South Coast Repertory 2013-2016 and teaches playwriting at Northwestern University.

Brett Neveu’s upcoming and recent theatre productions include Miss America with Greenhouse Theater Center (Chicago) and Pilgrim’s Progress with A Red Orchid Theatre (Chicago). Film/TV productions include the short Convo with Breakwall Pictures, the feature The Earl with Intermission Productions and the upcoming The Humbler new content series. Past work includes productions with 59e59 Theatre in New York, The Royal Court Theatre and The Royal Shakespeare Company in London, The Goodman Theatre, Writers Theatre, The House Theatre, The Inconvenience, TimeLine Theatre Company, A Red Orchid Theatre and American Theatre Company in Chicago. A Sundance Institute Ucross Fellow, Brett is also a recipient of the Marquee Award from Chicago Dramatists, the Ofner Prize for New Work, the Emerging Artist Award from The League of Chicago Theatres, an After Dark Award for Outstanding Musical (Old Town) and has developed plays with companies including The Atlantic Theatre Company and The New Group in New York and The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre and Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago. He is a resident-alum of Chicago Dramatists, a proud ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theatre, an alumni member of TimeLine Theatre Company’s Writers Collective and Center Theatre Group’s Playwrights’ Workshop in Los Angeles. Brett has been commissioned by The Royal Court Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Club, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The Goodman Theatre, House Theatre, TimeLine Theatre Company, Writers Theatre, Strawdog Theatre, Northlight Theatre and has several of his plays published through Broadway Play Publishing, Dramatic Publishing and Nick Hern Publishing. Brett has taught writing at DePaul University, Second City Training Center and currently teaches writing for the screen and stage at Northwestern University.

Tanya Palmer is a dramaturg and playwright. Her plays include Body Talk, Fatherland, Barbra Live at Canyon Ranch, Spring and Trash and The Memory Tour, and have been developed or produced at Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Hangar Theatre, Solar Stage, the Montreal Fringe Festival, The Harbourfront Centre, HERE and Pivot Arts, and published by Smith & Kraus, Samuel French and Playscripts, Inc. She is the Director of New Play Development at Goodman Theatre, where she coordinates New Stages, the theater’s new play program, and has served as the production dramaturg on a number of plays including the world premieres of 2666 by Roberto Bolaño, adapted and directed by Seth Bockley and Robert Falls; Smokefall by Noah Haidle, The Happiest Song Plays Last by Quiara Hudes and the Pulitzer Prize–winning Ruined by Lynn Nottage. Prior to her arrival in Chicago, she served as the director of new play development at Actors Theatre of Louisville, where she led the reading and selection process for the Humana Festival of New American Plays. She is the co-editor, with Amy Wegener and Adrien-Alice Hansel, of four collections of Humana Festival plays, published by Smith & Kraus, as well as two collections of 10-minute plays published by Samuel French. Originally from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, she holds an MFA in playwriting from York University in Toronto.

Laura Schellhardt’s original works include Ever in the Glades, The Comparables, Upright Grand, Air Guitar High, Auctioning the Ainsleys, The K of D, Courting Vampires and Shapeshifter. Adaptations include The Phantom Tollbooth and The Outfit. She is also the author of Screenwriting for Dummmies. Her work has been produced at The Kennedy Center, TheatreWorks Palo Alto, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Trinity Repertory Company, People’s Light Theatre, The Magic Theatre, Wooly Mammoth Theatre, Boston Court Theatre, ACT and Northlight Theatre, among others. Laura is a recipient of the TCG National Playwriting Residency, the Jerome Fellowship, ACT’s New Play Award, the Best New Play Award NYC Fringe, The AATE Distinguished Play Award and a Dramatist Guild Fellowship. Her work has been developed at the SoHo Rep. Writer/Director Lab, The Ojai Playwright’s Conference, The Denver New Play Summit, The Bay Area Theatre Festival, The Women Playwrights Festival, The Kennedy Center New Voices/New Visions Festival, The Bonderman Symposium, The Goodman Theatre Playwrights Unit and the O’Neill National Playwright’s Festival. Laura received her MFA in Playwriting from Brown University under the direction of Paula Vogel. She currently heads the undergraduate playwriting program at Northwestern University and is a Victory Gardens ensemble playwright. 

About the Greenhouse Theater Center
The Greenhouse Theater Center is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Our mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre.

The Greenhouse Theater began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, after which came 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an 8 month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. This year, the Greenhouse announced a full subscription season, with a mix of multi-character and solo plays. With a focus on our community, the Greenhouse is also launching the Trellis playwriting residency, an initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of Chicago theatre creators and a two-tiered education program for college and high school students.

As a performance venue, our complex offers two newly remodeled 190-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, two high-capacity lobbies, and an in-house rehearsal room. We strive to cultivate a fertile environment for local artists, from individual renters to our bevy of resident companies, and to develop and produce their work. In 2016, the Greenhouse announced a new residency program, which offers a reduced rate to local storefront companies while giving the Greenhouse a stake in the resident’s success. We house Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor of our complex. 

With new ideas always incubating, the Greenhouse is flourishing. Come grow with us!

LAST CALL: MERCY KILLERS and SIDE EFFECTS at Greenhouse Theater Center Through 10/8

Check out Two Timely "Pay What You Want" one-act plays steeped in America’s controversial relationship with healthcare. Written and performed by Michael Milligan.

Greenhouse Theater Center and Poor Box Theater, in association

with Taffety Punk Theatre Company, present

THE AMERICAN MERCY TOUR:

MERCY KILLERS & SIDE EFFECTS

Written and Performed by Michael Milligan

Directed by Tom Oppenheim

Through October 8, 2017 

MercyKillers (pictured) Actor and playwright Michael Milligan in MERCY KILLERS. Photo by Daylon Walton.


Side Effects-1 (pictured) Actor and playwright Michael Milligan in SIDE EFFECTS. Photo by Teresa Castracane.

Greenhouse Theater Center and Poor Box Theater, in association with D.C’s award winning Taffety Punk Theatre Company, are pleased to present THE AMERICAN MERCY TOUR: MERCY KILLERS and SIDE EFFECTS, two one-act plays steeped in America’s controversial relationship with healthcare. Written and performed by Michael Milligan and directed by Tom Oppenheim, these moving and unapologetic pieces will be presented as a single theatrical event, immersing the audience in the stories of patients and physicians, coming out of the waiting room and into the fray. 

MERCY KILLERS and SIDE EFFECTS will play September 7 – October 8, 2017 at The Greenhouse Theater Center (Upstairs Studio), 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. Tickets (pay-what-you-want) are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336.  

In MERCY KILLERS, Joe, a blue-collar red state auto mechanic faced with his wife’s failing health, must grapple with the stark divide between his values and his reality. Pushed to the breaking point by debt, disease and a busted system, Joe must decide what compromises he will make to keep his wife alive. MERCY KILLERS is all at once a tender love story and an unblinking look at those the system leaves behind.

Flipping to the other side of the stethoscope, SIDE EFFECTS follows William, a family practice physician on the brink of burnout. Caught between his ambition to become the healer his father once exemplified and the corporatization of his chosen profession, William must reconcile the art and business of medicine, or be forced to lose his practice. In this Chicago premiere, we see the human side of those who heal us, throwing light onto the turmoil that remain out of sight from the examination table.

“Michael Milligan is one of those rare theatre artists who can combine his craft, intellect and activism in a perfect storm of unapologetically political performance,” comments Greenhouse Theater Center Artistic Director Jacob Harvey. “These pieces and the issues they explore are increasingly important in our political moment, but what truly sets them apart is their unwillingness to simplify. Milligan’s pieces are bi-partisan and in their splendid, terrifying honesty put faces to the statistics and figures we so easily grow numb to.”

History of “The American Mercy Tour”
“I wrote Mercy Killers in response to a number of personal encounters with the healthcare system,” comments Michael Milligan. “A good friend of mine showed up at the Folger Theatre stage door after a show, carrying a small duffle bag, in which he had all of his belongings. He’d been living on the streets for a couple years. I invited him back to my place, where I discovered he also had a number of medical problems, a slipped disk in his neck from a fall and a golf ball size lump on his arm. I took it on myself to try to get him in to see someone. The difficulty of that blew my mind. It was overwhelming. If I lived in any number of other nations, I could have made an appointment and walked my friend to a doctor’s office, and the first question would not have been ‘what insurance do you have.’” 

“The situation for many healthcare workers is also desperate.” Milligan says, “there’s even diagnostic terminology now for it, it’s called ‘moral distress.’ It’s crippling doctors and nurses; many of them are burning out and leaving the profession. The medical literature says that ‘moral distress occurs when one knows the ethically correct action to take but feels powerless to take that action.’ The healthcare system becomes more bureaucratized and corporatized every year, medical decisions are increasingly influenced by claims analysts, hospital administrators, and entitlement bureaucrats, Side Effects is a meditation on the conflicts of interest that arise as a result.” 

The impulse to create Side Effects was similarly visceral. When Milligan was on the road performing Mercy Killers, he started interviewing doctors and nurses in each community. Side Effects has already been well received by the medical community, including a special presentation by the Mayo Clinic. 

"Michael Milligan has captured the sum total of pressures that confront today's physicians in Side Effects. A realistic, engaging and very dramatic portrayal of the life of an average doctor trying to meet the demands of a busy practice as he nearly succumbs to a breakdown and considers leaving the profession he loves so much. Anyone involved in medicine, from the caregivers to the patients we serve, would benefit from seeing this performance." –Robert E McAfee MD, Former President, American Medical Association.

About the Artists
Michael Milligan (Playwright/Actor) Broadway: August: Osage County, La Bete, Jerusalem. Off Broadway: Thom Pain, Mercy Killers. The Golem. Chicago: Iago in Othello and Tug of War: Civil Strife at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Mercy Killers at American Theater Company. Michael will appear in the Goodman’s upcoming world premiere, Blind Date. Michael has performed Shakespeare hither and yon with groups like the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Shakespeare Theater in DC. Alabama, Utah, Colorado, New Jersey, Milwaukee, and Illinois Shakespeare festivals, Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and Shakespeare and Company. Regionally, Michael has played at the Guthrie, Westport Playhouse, The McCarter Theater, St. Louis Rep, Cincinatti Playhouse and more. Michael received the 2013 Fringe First award in Edinburgh for Mercy Killers which he has performed 100s of times around the country. Michael’s other plays include Phaeton, Heroin, Urgent: Aliens, The Sea Wolf, and a musical adaptation of Aesop’s Fables commissioned by Circle in the Square in NYC. Television credits include: Law and Order, Person of Interest, The Knick, Chicago Justice, and APB.  Michael is a graduate of the Juilliard Drama Division where he received the John Houseman Prize. When not acting and writing, Michael is director of PR and Marketing for his brother’s knife company, New West Knifeworks and is also the founding artistic person of the Poor Box Theater. Michael lives in Chicago.

Tom Oppenheim (Director) Directorial credits include Michael Milligan’s Mercy Killers, which won the prestigious Fringe First Award at the 2013 Edinburgh Festival Fringe; A Bright Room Called Day off-Broadway, As You Like It by William Shakespeare (with Steve Cook), Songs and Statues by Peter Nickowitz (world premiere), Our Town by Thornton Wilder, What Shall I Give My Children? by Don K. Williams (world premiere), Imagining Heschel by Colin Greer (all for the Harold Clurman Laboratory Theater Company). As artistic director and president of the Stella Adler Studio of Acting for over 15 years, Tom has articulated a mission, engaged top faculty, structured a world-class training program and created a cultural center. He originated the Harold Clurman Laboratory Theater Company in 2002 which has since presented over twenty production including 11 world premieres. He created MAD (the Harold Clurman Center for New works in Movement and Dance Theater) a dance theater company that has resented over 30 new works, the majority of which were commissioned world premieres, and which includes Marie Gillis, Bill T. Jones and Mikhail Baryshnikov on the advisory board. He spearheaded the creation of the Harold Clurman Art Series which has presented artists including Harold Bloom, Edward Albee, John Ashbery, Julianne More and Harold Mabern in events that are free and open to the public.  Under Oppenheim’s leadership, the Stella Adler Outreach Division, a program originally designed to educate urban youth, was created.  Since 2004, the division has provided free theater training to over 5,000 low income New York City citizens.  In addition, the Stella Adler Studio of Acting trains over 500 actors per year. Oppenheim studied acting at the National Shakespeare Conservatory and with his grandmother, Stella Adler. Acting credits include the title role in Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” as well as Michael in Buzz McLaughlin’s “Sister Calling My Name”, both with the Harold Clurman Theater Company. Tom co-edited The Muses Go To School (New Press 2012) and his writing is featured in Arthur Bartow’s Training of the American Actor (TCG, 2006).

About the Companies 
The Greenhouse Theater Center is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Our mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre.

The Greenhouse Theater began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchhill, after which came 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an 8 month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. This year, the Greenhouse announced a full subscription season, with a mix of multi-character and solo plays. With a focus on our community, the Greenhouse is also launching the Trellis playwriting residency, an initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of Chicago theatre creators and a two-tiered education program for college and high school students.

As a performance venue, our complex offers two newly remodeled 190-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, two high-capacity lobbies, and an in-house rehearsal room. We strive to cultivate a fertile environment for local artists, from individual renters to our bevy of resident companies, and to develop and produce their work. In 2016, the Greenhouse announced a new residency program, which offers a reduced rate to local storefront companies while giving the Greenhouse a stake in the resident’s success. We house Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor of our complex. 

With new ideas always incubating, the Greenhouse is flourishing. Come grow with us!

Taffety Punk Theatre Company’s mission is to establish a dynamic ensemble of actors, dancers and musicians who ignite a public passion for theatre by making the classical and the contemporary exciting, meaningful, and affordable. The company was recently nominated for Helen Hayes Awards in choreography for 2016’s productions of Phaeton and An Iliad. Past awards include the John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company at the 2008 Helen Hayes Awards. The company was also a 2010 finalist for the D.C. Mayor's Arts Award for Innovation in the Arts. 

      The Poor Box Theater
      An actor, an audience, and an empty space.
      Keeping overhead low, we reach high.
      Through simplicity, we delve into complexities.
      Limiting spectacle, we expand imagination.
      A light in dark corners reveals hidden treasures.
      One vulnerable heart redeems the whole world.
      The greatest revolution is empathy.

The Poor Box Theater brings “pop up” performances to theaters, arts centers, church basements, libraries, union halls, medical schools, conferences and living rooms around the country. The Poor Box Theater is committed to bringing challenging, quality theater to out of the way parts of America — Mercy Killers has toured West Virginia, Oregon, Texas, Maryland, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota, California and more. From the Mayo Clinic, to bilingual performances with the Living Hope Wheelchair Association in Texas, from the floor of the House of Representatives in St. Paul, to a 16-city tour with the California Nurses Association, the Poor Box Theater sparks needed dialogue about the issues of the day.

REVIEW: The Zombiesque Acquiescence of Machinal

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Greenhouse Theater Center Presents 

MACHINAL

By Sophie Treadwell

Directed by Artistic Director Jacob Harvey

Movement by Elizabeth Margolius 

Review:
Cogs in the machine... Get in gear... We're all familiar with the idioms describing humanity working repetitive day jobs, and people are often expected to behave and conform with machinelike precision. Yet, mechanical behavior in the emotional realm is considered a defect to be overcome, a mental illness. Machinal is an intriguing exploration into the intersection where infamous murderess, Ruth Snyder's longing for the freedom of choice, anxiety, and highly sensory tendencies cause the breakdown of the machine and send her hurtling toward the electric chair. 



The stylized cadence of the production is as key as what's said. It catapults the audience into the chaotic yet controlled rhythms of the work place, and the repetitive inevitability of family relationships and responsibilities. Even though this is a period piece it's absolutely applicable today, and possibly even more so, as our society has become even more mechanized, and frenetic. 

Women are still marrying out of economic desperation and fear, people still suffer panic attacks when crushed on an over capacity "L" train, or are overwhelmed by smells or claustrophobic spaces, many women still have postpartum depression and difficulty bonding with their newborns, but at least it has a name, and a course of treatment. 

In Machinal, following the status quo of marrying rich and becoming a mother, brought misery and an almost inevitability of a feeling of imprisonment and an irrepressible longing to be free. This play was stunning for it's alternate bouts of flatline, almost zombiesque acquiescence, and fits of passion and rage. The husband's enjoyment of his wife flinching and mistaking her revulsion at his touch for chastity and demureness was particularly striking. 

The heroine's body reflected her true self and her emotions amid crushing compromises, recoiling from her mother's repetitive nagging, gagging at her husband's presence, rejecting a baby she never wanted, questioning religion, and ultimately resorting to adultery and murder. All this was done without premeditation, greed, or cunning, and on the stand she was unable to lie even to save her own life. In a stunning paradox, as she faces the electric chair, instead of repenting, she reflects on the absurdity that she was punished severely for the only moments in her life she felt free and fully alive. As she rages against the machine, events in Machinal seem to unfold with a flowing inevitability. This is an excellent, thought provoking production, and well worth seeing. Highly recommended.

Click HERE for further cast bios, show information, and ticket purchasing.

Now Playing Through September 24, 2017

Presented Through an Educational Partnership with 

North Central College 

Greenhouse Theater Center is pleased to launch its 2017-18 season with Artistic Director Jacob Harvey and Elizabeth Margolius’ bold reimagining of Sophie Treadwell's most celebrated play, MACHINAL. Inspired by the surreal life and trial of famed murderess Ruth Snyder, MACHINAL will play now – September 24, 2017 at The Greenhouse Theater Center (Upstairs Main Stage), 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. 

Regular run: through Sunday, September 24, 2017
Curtain times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm.

Tickets: $35. Students: $15. 

Single tickets and season subscription packages are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. 




About the Greenhouse Theater Center
The Greenhouse Theater Center is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Our mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre.

The Greenhouse Theater began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, after which came 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an 8 month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. This year, the Greenhouse announced a full subscription season, with a mix of multi-character and solo plays. With a focus on our community, the Greenhouse is also launching the Trellis playwriting residency, an initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of Chicago theatre creators and a two-tiered education program for college and high school students.

As a performance venue, our complex offers two newly remodeled 190-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, two high-capacity lobbies, and an in-house rehearsal room. We strive to cultivate a fertile environment for local artists, from individual renters to our bevy of resident companies, and to develop and produce their work. In 2016, the Greenhouse announced a new residency program, which offers a reduced rate to local storefront companies while giving the Greenhouse a stake in the resident’s success. We house Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor of our complex. 


With new ideas always incubating, the Greenhouse is flourishing. Come grow with us!