RESCHEDULED! THE MUSHROOM CURE at Greenhouse Theater Center Now Playing May 9 – June 9, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

RESCHEDULED!

New Dates Announced for the

THE MUSHROOM CURE

at Greenhouse Theater Center

Adam Strauss. Photo by David Allen

Now Playing May 9 – June 9, 2019

The Greenhouse Theater Center today announced Adam Strauss has postponed his hit one-man show THE MUSHROOM CURE, originally scheduled for April 4 – May 5, 2019. The engagement has been rescheduled for May 9 – June 9, 2019. For ticket exchanges and refunds, please contact the Greenhouse Theater Center box office at (773) 404-7336 or boxoffice@greenhousetheater.org. The new press opening is Saturday, May 11 at 8 pm.

Written and performed by Adam Strauss and developed with and directed by Jonathan Libman. THE MUSHROOM CURE is the true story of one Strauss’s attempt to treat his severe OCD with psychedelics. The Chicago premiere of the off-Broadway hit, presented in association with The Marsh, will play in The Greenhouse Theater Center’s Downstairs Main Stage, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. Tickets for the new engagement are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336.

Inspired by a scientific study showing that hallucinogenic mushrooms may cure obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), Adam Strauss embarked on a program of vigilante psychopharmacology. The true tale of Strauss’ hilarious, harrowing and heartrending attempts to treat his debilitating OCD with psychedelics, THE MUSHROOM CURE was named a Critics’ Pick by Time Out New York, which praised it as “riveting… true-life tour de force” and hailed by The New York Times as “mining a great deal of laughter from disabling pain.”

THE MUSHROOM CURE first ran in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe garnering widespread acclaim. Critics called the show “hugely intelligent and incredibly engaging,” (The Scotsman) “outstanding,” (Edinburgh Festivals Magazine), and “a revelation” (Broadway Baby). Strauss’ riotous tale appeared next in the New York International Fringe Festival, winning the Fringe’s Overall Excellence Award for Solo Performance. It then was given its Off-Broadway premiere at New York’s Cherry Lane Theatre, where it had a sold-out, extended run, before transferring to The Marsh in San Francisco for its West Coast premiere with a sold-out, extended run. The show then moved to Theatre 80 St. Marks in New York, where it ran for over a year before closing in January.

THE MUSHROOM CURE is produced by the Greenhouse Theater Center, in association with The Marsh, a breeding ground for new performance. 

Location: The Greenhouse Theater Center’s Downstairs Main Stage, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago

Dates: Previews: Thursday, May 9 at 8 pm and Friday, May 10 at 8 pm

Press Performance: Saturday, May 11 at 8 pm

Regular run: Sunday, May 12 – Sunday, June 9, 2019

Curtain times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Thursday, May 16; there will be an added performances on Saturday, May 18 at 2:30 pm.

Tickets: Previews: $25 Regular run: $29 - $35. Discounts: $19 students, seniors, teachers, military and industry. Group discounts are available. Tickets are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336.

About the Artists
Adam Strauss is a writer and performer based in New York City. He won the Leffe Craft Your Character Storytelling Competition and the New York Fringe Festival’s Overall Excellence Award for Solo Performance. He is also a stand-up comedian who performs throughout the US and the UK. Strauss received his BA in psychology from Brown University. His upcoming solo show The Uncertainty Principle will receive its world premiere at The Marsh in May 2019.

Jonathan Libman is currently directing and writing for Amy Schumer's ensemble company The Collective. As a member of the Actors Studio Playwrights/Directors Unit, Jonathan is directing Chazz Palminteri (A Bronx Tale) in Palminteri's new play The Bench, and National Endowment for the Arts recipient David Libman’s play The Townhouse, featuring Joey Collins. He recently worked with Christina Masciotti (2016 Guggenheim Fellow) on her play Raw Bacon From Poland, featuring Sean Carvajal (2018 Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards for Best Actor). Jonathan won a scholarship to write and direct at Tony Spiridakis' Manhattan Film Institute, and has just finished writing two original television pilots, The Little People and Accidents Waiting to Happen. In 2019-20 he will be directing new work by Nicole Pandolfo (2017 Dramatist Guild Fellow), Sam Kahn (Chatter), Eli Walker (Drunk Yoga) and Daniel Mitura (The Picture of Dorian Gray).

About the Greenhouse Theater Center
The Greenhouse Theater Center (GTC) is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

GTC began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, followed by 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an eight month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. In 2017-18, the Greenhouse presented its first full subscription season, including Machinal (4 stars from Chicago Tribune's Chris Jones) and the Chicago premiere of Birds of a Feather. 

As a performance venue, the Greenhouse complex offers two newly-remodeled 198-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, a newly-built 44-seat cabaret space, two high-capacity lobbies and an in-house rehearsal room. GTC also houses Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor the complex. 

The Greenhouse Theater Center’s mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre. GTC seeks local theatre companies and artists to partner on co-productions, offering partners a multitude of resources including an equitable split of production costs, production manager, full-service box office and front-of-house staff, artistic consultation, marketing and public relations support and a full-service bar with concessions. For additional information, contact Nicholas Reinhart at (773) 404-7336, ext. 13.

About The Marsh
The Marsh, known as a "breeding ground for new performance," was launched in1989 by Founder and Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman, and now annually hosts more than 600 performances of 175 shows across the company's two venues in San Francisco and Berkeley. A leading developer and outlet for solo performers, The Marsh's specialty has been hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as “solo performances that celebrate the power of storytelling at its simplest and purest.” The East Bay Times named The Marsh one of Bay Area's best intimate theaters, calling it “one of the most thriving solo theaters in the nation. The live theatrical energy is simply irresistible.”  For more info about The Marsh, visit www.themarsh.org or email artisticdirector@themarsh.org.

Chicago Premiere of THE MUSHROOM CURE at Greenhouse Theater Center April 4 – May 5, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

Chicago Premiere!

Greenhouse Theater Center,

in association with The Marsh, Presents

THE MUSHROOM CURE

Written and Performed by Adam Strauss

Developed with and Directed by Jonathan Libman

April 4 – May 5, 2019

I'll be out for the press opening April 6th, so check back soon for my full review. 

The Greenhouse Theater Center, in association with The Marsh, is pleased to present the Chicago premiere of the off-Broadway hit THE MUSHROOM CURE, the true story of one man's attempt to treat his severe OCD with psychedelics. Written and performed by Adam Strauss and developed with and directed by Jonathan Libman, THE MUSHROOM CURE will play April 4 – May 5, 2019 in The Greenhouse Theater Center’s Downstairs Main Stage, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. 

Inspired by a scientific study showing that hallucinogenic mushrooms may cure obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), Adam Strauss embarked on a program of vigilante psychopharmacology. The true tale of Strauss’ hilarious, harrowing and heartrending attempts to treat his debilitating OCD with psychedelics, THE MUSHROOM CURE was named a Critics’ Pick by Time Out New York, which praised it as “riveting… true-life tour de force” and hailed by The New York Times as “mining a great deal of laughter from disabling pain.”

THE MUSHROOM CURE first ran in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe garnering widespread acclaim. Critics called the show “hugely intelligent and incredibly engaging,” (The Scotsman) “outstanding,” (Edinburgh Festivals Magazine), and “a revelation” (Broadway Baby). Strauss’ riotous tale appeared next in the New York International Fringe Festival, winning the Fringe’s Overall Excellence Award for Solo Performance. It then was given its Off-Broadway premiere at New York’s Cherry Lane Theatre, where it had a sold-out, extended run, before transferring to The Marsh in San Francisco for its West Coast premiere with a sold-out, extended run. The show then moved to Theatre 80 St. Marks in New York, where it ran for over a year before closing in January.

THE MUSHROOM CURE is produced by the Greenhouse Theater Center, in association with The Marsh, a breeding ground for new performance. 

Dates: Previews: Thursday, April 4 at 8 pm and Friday, April 5 at 8 pm
Press Performance: Saturday, April 6 at 8 pm
Regular run: Saturday, April 6 – Sunday, May 5, 2019
Curtain times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Tickets: Previews: $25 Regular run: $29 - $35. Discounts: $19 students, seniors, teachers, military and industry. Group discounts are available. Tickets are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336.

About the Artists
Adam Strauss is a writer and performer based in New York City. He won the Leffe Craft Your Character Storytelling Competition and the New York Fringe Festival’s Overall Excellence Award for Solo Performance. He is also a stand-up comedian who performs throughout the US and the UK. Strauss received his BA in psychology from Brown University. His upcoming solo show The Uncertainty Principle will receive its world premiere at The Marsh in May 2019.

Jonathan Libman is currently directing and writing for Amy Schumer's ensemble company The Collective. As a member of the Actors Studio Playwrights/Directors Unit, Jonathan is directing Chazz Palminteri (A Bronx Tale) in Palminteri's new play The Bench, and National Endowment for the Arts recipient David Libman’s play The Townhouse, featuring Joey Collins. He recently worked with Christina Masciotti (2016 Guggenheim Fellow) on her play Raw Bacon From Poland, featuring Sean Carvajal (2018 Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards for Best Actor). Jonathan won a scholarship to write and direct at Tony Spiridakis' Manhattan Film Institute, and has just finished writing two original television pilots, The Little People and Accidents Waiting to Happen. In 2019-20 he will be directing new work by Nicole Pandolfo (2017 Dramatist Guild Fellow), Sam Kahn (Chatter), Eli Walker (Drunk Yoga) and Daniel Mitura (The Picture of Dorian Gray).



About the Greenhouse Theater Center

The Greenhouse Theater Center (GTC) is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

GTC began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, followed by 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an eight month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. In 2017-18, the Greenhouse presented its first full subscription season, including Machinal (4 stars from Chicago Tribune's Chris Jones) and the Chicago premiere of Birds of a Feather. 
As a performance venue, the Greenhouse complex offers two newly-remodeled 198-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, a newly-built 44-seat cabaret space, two high-capacity lobbies and an in-house rehearsal room. GTC also houses Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor the complex. 

The Greenhouse Theater Center’s mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre. GTC seeks local theatre companies and artists to partner on co-productions, offering partners a multitude of resources including an equitable split of production costs, production manager, full-service box office and front-of-house staff, artistic consultation, marketing and public relations support and a full-service bar with concessions. For additional information, contact Nicholas Reinhart at (773) 404-7336, ext. 13.
About The Marsh

The Marsh, known as a "breeding ground for new performance," was launched in1989 by Founder and Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman, and now annually hosts more than 600 performances of 175 shows across the company's two venues in San Francisco and Berkeley. A leading developer and outlet for solo performers, The Marsh's specialty has been hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as “solo performances that celebrate the power of storytelling at its simplest and purest.” The East Bay Times named The Marsh one of Bay Area's best intimate theaters, calling it “one of the most thriving solo theaters in the nation. The live theatrical energy is simply irresistible.”  For more info about The Marsh, visit www.themarsh.org or email artisticdirector@themarsh.org.

Shows On Our Radar: BoHo Theatre Launches 15th Season with Steve Martin and Edie Brickell’s “Bright Star”

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

BRIGHT STAR

Music, lyrics, and book by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell

Directed and choreographed by Ericka Mac

Music Direction by Julie Nichols

March 16 – May 5, 2019

Performing at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago

BoHo Theatre begins its 2019 season with BRIGHT STAR, a new musical by playwright Steve Martin and musician Edie Brickell, directed by Ericka Mac. This production marks the company’s first as a resident company at Lincoln Park’s Greenhouse Theater Center and also the first under new artistic director Stephen Schellhardt. BRIGHT STAR was nominated for five Tony Awards and called “a shining achievement” by The New York Times. It received a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music and Outer Critics Circles Awards for Outstanding New Broadway Musical and Outstanding Score.

THE PLAY
BoHo is proud to bring to Chicago this new work from Grammy, Emmy, and Academy Award-winner Steve Martin and Grammy Award-winner Edie Brickell. Inspired by a real event, BRIGHT STAR tells a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and ‘40s. The story follows young writer Billy Cane, recently returned from World War II, and Alice Murphy, the editor who takes a chance on him. As Billy mines his childhood home for engaging stories, Alice sets out to explore the pain and mystery of her own small-town past. The overlapping secrets they uncover lead them a startling and heart-warming connection.

“For me, BRIGHT STAR is about how unconditional love and hope can overcome obstacles,” says director Ericka Mac. “How forgiveness can redeem a person/situation and create miracles.” Similar to many recent BoHo productions, the music  in BRIGHT STAR will be fully integrated into the storytelling by having actors play their own instruments to create a seamless, up-close musical experience.

Left-right: Josiah Robinson, Missy Wise, Jeff Pierpoint, Scott Danielson, Kiersten Frumkin

PERFORMANCE TIMES
Previews: Saturday, March 16 @ 8:00pm, Sunday, March 17 @ 2:00pm, Thursday, March 21 @ 8:00pm, and Friday, March 22 @ 8:00pm
Press Opening / Opening Night: Saturday, March 23, at 8:00 pm 
Performance run: March 24 – May 5
Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00 pm and Sundays at 2:00 pm.

TICKETS
General Tickets on sale February 19 at www.BoHoTheatre.com, (773) 975-8150, or the Greenhouse Theater Center box office. Tickets are $25 for previews and $35 for regular performances.

Steve Martin has been a prolific comedian, musician, and writer dating back to the 1960s, when he first came to public notice as a writer for THE SMOTHERS BROTHERS COMEDY HOUR. He began his playwriting career in 1993 with PICASSO AT LAPIN AGILE, and has also written THE UNDERPANTS, and METEOR SHOWER. A life-long banjo-player, he is a frequent collaborator with the bluegrass band Steep Canyon Rangers.

Edie Brickell is a singer-songwriter who first achieved fame with her band The New Bohemians in the 1980s with the single “What I Am.” She began a successful solo career beginning the in the 1990s and later founded the band The Gaddabouts in 2010. Martin and Brickell collaborated on the bluegrass/folk albums LOVE HAS COME FOR YOU and SO FAMILIAR prior to writing BRIGHT STAR. Their song “Love Has Come For You” won a Grammy Award for Best American Roots Song in 2013.

Ericka Mac is a Chicago-based director and choreographer. Her Chicagoland credits as choreographer/associate director include  MAMMA MIA! (Jeff Award nomination for Best Choreography), SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK LIVE! (Marriott Theatre), SHREW’D (First Folio Theatre), RIDE THE CYCLONE (Chicago Shakespeare, MCC Theatre (Off Broadway), & ACT Theatre (Seattle)), DIARY OF A WIMPY KID (World Premiere at The Children’s Theatre of Minneapolis), PARADE and COMPANY (Writer’s Theatre), WTTW’s NIGHT ON BROADWAY Gala featuring Heather Headley (WTTW/WFMT studios), SEUSSICAL (Drury Lane Oakbrook), MADAGASCAR and THE LITTLE MERMAID (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), ALICE’S ROCK & ROLL ADVENTURE (Chicago Children’s Theatre), and THE POLAR EXPRESS (Warner Bro’s./Rail Events). 

CAST
Missy Wise as Alice, 
Josiah Robinson as Jimmy Ray, 
Jeff Pierpoint as Billy,
Scott Danielson as Mayor Dobbs,
Kiersten Fumkin as Margo,
Rachel Whyte as Lucy,
Dwayne Everett as Daryl,
Peter Robel as Daddy Cane
John B. Boss as Daddy Murphy
Jenny Rudnick as Mama Murphy 
with Brittany Sue Hines, Max Kramer, Jennifer Ledesma, Kelan Smith, and Mike Weaver as the ensemble.

PRODUCTION TEAM
Produced by Meg Love
Scenic Design by Lauren M. Nichols, Lighting Design by G. Max Maxin, Costume Design by Bob Kuhn, Sound Design by Joe Palermo, Properties Design by Lacie Hexom, Assistant Music Director by Andrea Swanson, Production Managed by Lindsay Brown, Stage Managed by Dalton Long.




BoHo Theatre tells stories examining and celebrating human relationships — focusing on the Bohemian pillars of Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and Love — using bold, intimate theatrical stagings. Our vision is to create a shared community of artists and patrons in which all members are moved through art to make thoughtful, well-examined, caring relationships the highest priority in their lives.

BoHo’s 2019 mainstage season features BRIGHT STAR by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell, directed by Ericka Mac; THE RIVER by Jez Butterworth, directed by Jerrell L. Henderson; and BIG FISH by Andrew Lippa and John August, directed by Stephen Schellhardt. BoHo is a resident company at the Greenhouse Theater Center in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

OPENING: DEAD MAN'S CELL PHONE Via The Comrades at Greenhouse Theater Center February 7 – March 10, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

DEAD MAN'S CELL PHONE

by Sarah Ruhl

Directed by Arianna Soloway

I'm a big fan of playwright, Sarah Ruhl's work, and eager to see this "film noir' comedy with my teenage son. This will be our first time to check out The Comrades. We'll be out for the press opening February 9th, so circle back shortly for my full review.

An incessantly ringing cell phone in a quiet café. A stranger at the next table who has had enough. And a dead man – with a lot of loose ends. So begins DEAD MAN’S CELL PHONE, a wildly imaginative new comedy by MacArthur “Genius” Grant recipient and Pulitzer Prize finalist Sarah Ruhl. A work about how we memorialize the dead – and how that remembering changes us – it is the odyssey of a woman forced to confront her own assumptions about morality, redemption, and the need to connect in a technologically obsessed world.  The SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE said, “It's a joyride through the absurdity of trying to make simple connections in a world overwhelmed with interconnectivity.”

Arianna Soloway, who recently directed a site-specific production of PINE by Jacqui Honess-Martin and CARRIE & FRANCINE with Haven Theatre Company, will direct. Playing Jean, the young woman who retrieves the phone and makes a new, albeit deceased, friend will be Cydney Moody, whose 2018 credits include THE WOLVES at Goodman and DOWNSTATE at Steppenwolf.  Chicago veteran actress and theatre professor Caroline Latta, recently seen in 2017’s BY THE BOG OF CATS with The Artistic Home, will play the dead man’s domineering mother, Mrs. Gottlieb. Also in the cast are Bryan Breau (Gordon, the dead man), Lynnette Li  (Hermia, Gordon’s widow), Mike Newquist (Dwight, Gordon’s brother) and Valeria Rosero (Other Woman/Stranger). Cydney Moody as Jean.



Previews Thursday, February 7 and Friday, February 8
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, Sundays at 3 pm.,
Tickets range from $15-$20 with discount for industry and students
Tickets available at : https://www.greenhousetheater.org/ or by phone at 773-404-7336.

Performances at Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago
For more information, www.the-comrades.com/




ABOUT THE COMRADES
 The Comrades were founded in January 2016. They are an ensemble-based theater company who create fun, vibrant, and engaging theater with a focus on revitalizing classics and producing area premieres that are relevant in today’s world.  They are a resident company at the Greenhouse Theater Center.

FEST ALERT: Greenhouse Theater Center Celebrates Chicago Theatre Week with BREAKING GROUND FEST Through February 17, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

Greenhouse Theater Center

Celebrates Chicago Theatre Week with

BREAKING GROUND FEST

February 7 – 17, 2019

PS Burlesque.  Photo by Adam Blaszkiewicz.

The Greenhouse Theater Center celebrates Chicago Theatre Week with its BREAKING GROUND FEST, an eclectic line-up of performances including live music, plays, staged readings, improv, comedy, burlesque and more, playing February 7 – 17, 2019 on multiple stages at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. All performances are priced at $10. Tickets are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the Greenhouse box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. Spots are still available for the Festival. For information, e-mail gm@greenhousetheater.org.



The BREAKING GROUND FEST line-up to date includes (additional acts to be announced):



Friday, February 8 at 10:30 pm
GODDESS, hosted by Kat Sass and Lucky Stiff 

Acclaimed drag performers Kat Sass and Lucky Stiff bring their visionary GODDESS out of Boystown and into the Greenhouse Theater Center for a unique performance art experience unlike anything you have ever seen.

She’s Folks. Photo by Jill Fager.

Saturday, February 9 at 8 pm
SHE’S FOLKS!

Elizabeth Morgan’s She’s Folks! is a little bit country, a little bit rock ‘n’ roll, and a lot of laughs. Journey from the city to farm country and back again through folk and country music, hilarious stories, soaring harmonies and a wry view of the folks back home.  



Saturday, February 9 at 10:30 pm
PLAN 9 BURLESQUE

Plan 9 Burlesque was founded in 2012 by a rag tag group of nerds with an affinity for nudity. They wanted to create a space where burlesque and fandom come together to produce innovative, creative and bonkers performance art. Since then they have perverted comic book heroes, sci-fi super stars, beloved children's cartoons and fantastical fairy tales.  



Sunday, February 10 at 7 pm

AUNTIE MAME
A semi-staged reading of the play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee
Directed by Nicholas Reinhart 


Based on the bestselling memoir, Auntie Mame tells the story of Patrick Dennis, newly orphaned and sent to live with his eccentric Auntie Mame in New York City. This madcap play about family, growing up, and making the most out of life has been entertaining audiences around the world for years and returns to the Greenhouse Theater Center for one night only!



Monday, February 11 at 7:30 pm
MONA Q: AGE 38
A staged reading written by Steven Strafford
Directed by Kristina Valada-Viars
Featuring Sadieh Rifai, J. Nicole Brooks, Shea Coffman and Eric Slater 


Mobs finds that life has left her sad and stuck. When she can’t seem to get off a Holocaust Trivia Distribution list, she takes a road trip to take some action. Along the way, she shapes her story and learns a bit about what she might want next. 



Tuesday, February 12 at 8 pm
SIX PACK AND A SHOT
A play written and directed by Bill Goff
Featuring Dante Charlton and Evan Henderson


Two best friends share one last six pack as one looks to resolve their friendship and the other wants to preserve it before time runs out.



Tuesday, February 12 at 8 pm
OEDIPUS IN JERUSALEM
A staged reading by Kalman Kaplan
Directed by Michael Reinstein


Oedipus in Jerusalem begins with the fictional and unexpected meeting outside of Thebes between the blinded Greek Oedipus and the biblical prophet Nathan. Although Oedipus insists on his guilt with regard to patricide and incest with his mother, Nathan is convinced that he has been entrapped by the purposely obscure responses of the Pythia to Oedipus's sincere attempts to avoid these acts and brings him to be tried in the great Sanhedrin in Jerusalem. Oedipus is acquitted because he is judged to be doing all in his power to try to avoid performing these acts, but thinking like a Greek, Oedipus refuses to emotionally accept his acquittal.

 

Falling in Love (pictured) Jack Schultz in I’m Falling in Love All The Time. Photo by Sommer Austin.

Thursday, February 14 at 8 pm
I’M FALLING IN LOVE ALL THE TIME
A solo show written and performed by Jack Schultz

Coffee. Romance. Heroin. There’s a first time for everything and a last. In his heartfelt solo show, Jack Schultz weaves together personal stories of the highs and lows of love.



Friday, February 15 at 7:30 pm
BROMANTICAL HEALING Hosted by Stoopie

Stoopie (aka improv duo Cooper Bohn and Steven Dionne) holds the title for strongest bromance in Chicago’s improv scene. Enjoy the day after Valentine’s Day with them and their funny friends! 



Friday, February 15 at 10:20 pm
PS… BURLESQUE


Ah, the day after Valentine’s Day. The heart shaped candy is 50% off, the roses are wilting, and the love-themed plush toys have been thrown into the clearance bin. But, the Unpopular Hotties have something even more enjoyable for you Valentine’s Day haters on February 15th! During the “Love Hangover” burlesque revue, we’ll be serving up all those post V-Day feels the best way we know how – by taking off our clothes!



Saturday, February 16 at 7:30 pm
FANCY MUSTARD Improv

There are times in your life where everything came before and after a single moment. Inspired by your suggestions Fancy Mustard will improvise what led up to that moment and the aftermath in The Event! Also featuring opening acts of friends and enemies (just kidding, we don’t have friends). 


For additional information, visit greenhousetheater.org/breakingground.


Following the BREAKING GROUND FEST, Greenhouse Theater Center will regularly host new performances on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights when space is available. For information on booking an act, please gm@greenhousetheater.org.

About the Greenhouse Theater Center
The Greenhouse Theater Center (GTC) is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

GTC began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, followed by 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an eight month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. In 2017-18, the Greenhouse presented its first full subscription season, including Machinal (4 stars from Chicago Tribune's Chris Jones) and the Chicago premiere of Birds of a Feather. 

As a performance venue, the Greenhouse 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. GTC also houses Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor the complex. 

The Greenhouse Theater Center’s mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre. GTC seeks local theatre companies and artists to partner on co-productions, offering partners a multitude of resources including an equitable split of production costs, production manager, full-service box office and front-of-house staff, artistic consultation, marketing and public relations support and a full-service bar with concessions. For additional information, contact Bill Spatz at (312) 637-5323 or wmspatz@gmail.com.

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

REVIEW: Tiresias Was a Weatherman by the Organic Theater Company at the Greenhouse Theater Through July 8, 2018

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Tiresias Was a Weatherman 

by the Organic Theater Company 

at the Greenhouse Theater 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue 

Review
By Catherine Hellmann, Guest Critic

According to the press release, “Jaime Mire’s new comedy
Tiresias Was a Weatherman deals with timely issues of today such as mental health, pharmaceuticals, predatory media, and extreme weather, in a world where a minimal scientific alteration to your brain could potentially save both you and the world.  Or at least that’s what they say…” 

John Arthur Lewis (Troy), Adam Zaininger (Sun), Laura Sturm (Joyce), Will Burdin (Wind), Colin Jackson (Thunder), and Joel Moses (Rain) in Organic Theater’s production of Tiresias Was A Weatherman, directed by Josh Anderson, associate director Anna Gelman, May 31 – July 6, 2018. 

All Production Photos by Anna Gelman.

The storyline reminded me of my favorite beach on the East side of Lake Michigan, Pier Cove. There is a pile of rocks along the beach that have inspirational quotes on them. The usual expressions of thanks, blessings, and encouragement are penned on the rocks...but one rock reads: “Take your meds,” which I think is awesome. Then all will be well, right? The emphasis on taking one’s meds is at the forefront of Mire’s play. 


Taylor Raye (Cindy) and John Arthur Lewis (Troy)

The taking of meds from “Crazy Pants Pharmaceuticals” (love that name!) can cause catastrophic meteorological effects, even deadly hurricanes. One of the main characters, a doctor named Troy, lost his only son, Paul, in the last huge storm. Troy, who seems to have no emotions, is later accused of using his dead son for publicity; he even refers to Paul’s autopsy as a “research cadaver.” Ouch. Troy needs a feelings chip...

Annie, Troy’s stepdaughter, is portrayed by Shaina Schrooten, who does a great job as the frustrated, emotionally distraught daughter of Laura Sturm’s Joyce. She misses her brother Paul terribly, and describes to her psychiatrist how losing a sibling is its own category of being orphaned. Like the character of Antigone, she just wishes for her deceased brother to be buried so he can rest in peace. “He deserves a burial,” she insists. Annie has some wonderful lines, like how she doesn’t consider pot to be a med on her health history paperwork---”it’s like toothpaste,” she explains.


John Arthur Lewis (Troy), Nyssa Lowenstein (Charlie), and Laura Sturm (Joyce)

Four actors personify the Sun, Wind, Rain, and Thunder. Some of their dialogue is expressed in rhymes like a Dr. Seuss book which makes their intentions less sinister. “We are the weather. We work well together!” But the plot is confusing. 

Was it just me being un-hip again? So I asked my date what I was missing. His response: “The Weather freaked out when meds weren't taken or taken on time, I think. I interpreted the weather as thought, like side effects ??? Does that make sense?  I say this because the weather was also encouraging Annie, a.k.a. Annabelle, to pop a pill. I wish I could be of more help but that's how I interpreted the weather.” This is one of those shows that you don’t want to take your parents to because if we were lost, mom and dad are really going to be clueless. 


Sara Copeland (Izzy) and Shaina Schrooten (Annabelle)

All of the actors are well-intentioned and do a commendable job. I was especially impressed with three actresses who are also in The Revolutionists,
which I reviewed last week. The two plays are showing in repertory at Greenhouse until July 8. Sara Copland, Laura Sturm, and Taylor Raye appear in both productions, which is admirable. As my amusing companion noted: ”How do they do that? I would be fucking up and saying my lines from the wrong play.” Taylor Raye is funny, offering some of the only humor in the show as a talk-show host who is a bit too admiring of her guest, the doctor.

John Arthur Lewis plays the doctor who has developed an experimental chip that can be implanted in a person’s brain to suppress and control emotions. Referred to as a “remote controlled brain inhibitor,” the talk show host is thrilled with the possibilities, but the doctor wants its uses to be kept in check. Troy must be his own test subject---he is so deadpan about everything.

I loved the costumes, which are all black and grey for the human characters, but bright colors for the Weathermen. The Weathermen are a talented group who also sing, sometimes in harmony. They had a clever list of medications: “fuck it all, Adderall,” and “closure is overrated, just get medicated.” 


Shaina Schrooten (Annabelle) and Adam Zaininger (Sun)

The play ends with Annie’s birthday. As she observes, birthdays “make us look at ourselves---or we are just furniture.”



This show runs in repertory with The Revolutionists (check out my review here) through July 8. 

Full ticket info and show details for both current Organic Theater Company Productions HERE

REVIEW: "The Revolutionists" by Organic Theater at Greenhouse Theater Center, running May 29-July 8, 2018

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

THE REVOLUTIONISTS & 

TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN 

Via Organic Theater Company of Chicago at the Greenhouse Theater Center

Sara Copeland (Charlotte Corday) in Organic Theater’s production of The Revolutionists, directed by Bryan Wakefield, assistant director Julia Rufo, May 29 – July 8, 2018. All Production Photos by Anna Gelman.

Review By Catherine Hellmann, guest critic

A play about a woman playwright, a woman Haitian rebel spy, dethroned Queen Marie Antoinette, and a tough-girl would-be rebel assassin? In the same play set in 18th Century France with female characters dropping f-bombs? Sign me up!

Playwright Lauren Gunderson uses modern language in her clever, thought-provoking play that is tough to classify. It begins in a somber mood, images of serious discord, pending beheadings...until the delightful Stephanie Sullivan as playwright Olympe de Gouges breaks the tension by asking how could a light-hearted comedy begin with a scene at a guillotine? (Or something like that...I forgot a pen and was mad at myself for not capturing more lines of dialogue verbatim. There are so many wonderful lines in this script.)

Stephanie Sullivan (Olympe de Gouges) and Laura Sturm (Marie Antoinette)

The Revolutionists explores feminism, friendships, rebelliousness, the French Revolution, and makes us feel sympathy for ousted Queen Marie Antoinette---all while making us laugh!

One of the best lines in the witty script is when the characters are debating topics for Olympe de Gouges’ next play, and musicals are discussed. “Who would want to see a musical about the French Revolution?” There is an inside-joke line about a barricade, which elicited laughs from the appreciative audience, and such banter makes The Revolutionists extra fun for theater fans. Gunderson takes advantage of having a playwright character as the others in the story discuss the impact of theater and how a play can affect society or cause change.

All four actresses are so perfect; if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the Narcissistic Queen Marie Antoinette played by Laura Sturm. She was so funny in her “It’s all about ME” mode, like how she knows it is her cue to stand up when she hears the blare of trumpets to announce her entrance! But there is a vulnerable side to her as well, when she describes her life, and how she was married off to a stranger she met on her wedding day.

Taylor Raye (Marianne Angelle) in Organic Theater’s production of The Revolutionists, directed by Bryan Wakefield, assistant director Julia Rufo, May 29 – July 8, 2018. Photo by Anna Gelman.

My companion said his favorite was Taylor Raye as rebel spy Marianne Angelle. Her character is undercover in France fighting for freedom in Haiti, where she has left her husband and two young children behind. I loved her description of her family as she recalls what she is risking for them.

Stephanie Sullivan (Olympe de Gouges)

                                                      Sara Copeland (Charlotte Corday)

Energetic and intense Sara Copeland as assassin Charlotte Corday is also excellent. I had to look up the backstory on her tale, which is fascinating. Indeed, twenty-four-year old Corday did fatally stab a very sickly Jean-Paul Marat in his own bathtub. She was persistent--it took three tries to receive admittance to his home. For her efforts, she was beheaded a mere four days after her crime. In contrast, Marat was hailed as a martyr to his cause, which is mentioned in Gunderson’s play.

As Corday is killed, Copeland ties a red ribbon around her neck to signify the beheading. She later, as an interrogator, gets to wear the coolest stage mask ever. It is unusual to see an all-female cast get to debate art, politics, andtheir destinies in a funny, entertaining way. The Revolutionists are some thought-provoking, kick-ass women. Go support them.

The Revolutionists runs from now until July 8 and is being performed in rotating repertory with Tiresias Was a Weatherman by Jaime Mire, which also sounds intriguing. Greenhouse Theater Center is located at 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue near Oz Park.

ORGANIC THEATER COMPANY – 2018 SUMMER REPERTORY SEASON:

AWE-INSPIRING WOMEN STAND UP AND FIGHT BACK; OR, 

 WHICH IS WORSE, THE REIGN OF TERROR OR THE REIGN OF BIG PHARMA?

Check out full show details here.

OPENING: THE REVOLUTIONISTS & TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN Via Organic Theater Company of Chicago at the Greenhouse Theater Center

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

ORGANIC THEATER COMPANY – 2018 SUMMER REPERTORY SEASON:

AWE-INSPIRING WOMEN STAND UP AND FIGHT BACK; OR, 

 WHICH IS WORSE, THE REIGN OF TERROR OR THE REIGN OF BIG PHARMA?

Organic Theater Company of Chicago returns to the Greenhouse Theater Center for its 2018 summer repertory season, May 29 - July 8. The Organic is committed to staging bold, relevant productions of classic, contemporary, and adapted works with a permanent group of artists over a sustained period of time.

This summer we continue our focus on women and present the works of two female playwrights. With THE REVOLUTIONISTS, we carry on telling more amazing stories of women from history that we started last summer with Lauren Gunderson’s EMILIE. This time the show features an all-female cast, and brings together four inspirational and (mostly) historical women in a modern, girl-powered perspective on the French Revolution. Jaime Mire’s new comedy TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN deals with timely issues of today such as mental health, pharmaceuticals, predatory media, and extreme weather, in a world where a minimal scientific alteration to your brain could potentially save both you and the world. Or at least that’s what they say …

THE REVOLUTIONISTS, a fast-paced, comedic quartet by 2017’s most produced playwright, follows four very real women who lived boldly in France during the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror. Former queen Marie Antoinette, playwright Olympe de Gouges, Jean-Paul Marat’s assassin Charlotte Corday, and Haitian rebel spy Marianne Angelle collide in this true story, total fiction, and play about a play. Join us for this passionate, poignant and decisive call to action through the true (and sometimes not) stories of these four extraordinary women.

Company member Bryan Wakefield, who directed Gunderson’s EMILIE last year, directs the Chicago premiere of Lauren Gunderson’s thrilling and moving new play.  Familiar faces in the cast include Organic company members and former EMILIE cast members Sara Copeland as Charlotte Corday, and Laura Sturm as Marie Antoinette. Stephanie Sullivan, as playwright Olympe de Gouges, returns after making her Organic debut in last year’s PHANTOM PAIN. We are excited to welcome Taylor Raye as Marianne Angelle to the Organic team this summer.

TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN is a world premiere comedy about serious stuff. In this kinda-sorta adaptation of Sophocles’ classic ANTIGONE, playwright Jaime Mire imagines a world, parallel to our own, where human emotions have a direct connection to the weather. These events occasionally result in immediate and disastrous meteorological events. In a time when not taking your medication can lead to weather disaster (or can it?), would you consider implanting a microchip into your brain to help control these threatening emotions for public safety purposes?  How far are we willing to go to stay dry? Grab your umbrellas for this off-beat and touching comedy about family, mental health, and the weather.

Directed by company member Josh Anderson, TIRESIAS features company members Sara Copeland, Colin Jackson, Joel Moses, Laura Sturm, and artistic associate Adam Zaininger, all of whom appeared in last summer’s KING UBU, plus company member Will Burdin rejoins us after a summer off, having been seen with Organic most recently in the 2016 summer season in THE GOOD DOCTOR and OUT OF THE BLUE.  We welcome back Nyssa Loewenstein from our most recent production, WHY DO YOU ALWAYS WEAR BLACK? and John Arthur Lewis from last summer’s EMILIE.  Newcomers to the Organic stage are Shaina Schrooten and Taylor Raye (also appearing in THE REVOLUTIONISTS).


THE REVOLUTIONISTS

By Lauren Gunderson
Directed by Bryan Wakefield

OPENS: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 at 7:30 PM
DATES: May 29 – July 8, 2018
TIMES: Wednesdays – Saturdays at 7:30 PM & Saturdays/Sundays at 2:30 PM
VENUE: The Greenhouse Theater Center – 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue
NOTE: Plays in repertory with TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN, see list of specific dates below
WEBSITE: www.organictheater.org

The Cast:
Olympe de Gouges – Stephanie Sullivan
Marianne Angelle – Taylor Raye
Charlotte Corday – Sara Copeland
Marie Antoinette – Laura Sturm

The Production Team:
Playwright – Lauren Gunderson; Director – Bryan Wakefield; Assistant Director – Julia Rufo; Stage Manager – Angela Kring; Costume Co-Designer – Jeremy W. Floyd; Costume Co-Designer – Morgan Saaf-White; Sound Designer – Tony Reimer; Scenic Designer – Terrance McClellan; Lighting Designer – Theresa Kelly; Properties Designer – Brandyn Nordlof

 
TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN

By Jaime Mire
Directed by Josh Anderson

OPENS: Thursday, May 31, 2018 at 7:30 PM
DATES: May 31 – July 6, 2018
TIMES: Wednesdays – Saturdays at 7:30 PM & Saturdays/Sundays at 2:30 PM
VENUE: The Greenhouse Theater Center – 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue
NOTE: Plays in repertory with THE REVOLUTIONISTS, see list of specific dates below
WEBSITE: www.organictheater.org

The Cast:
Sara Copeland, Jack Lewis, Shaina Schrooten, Taylor Raye, Laura Sturm, Nyssa Lowenstein, Will Burdin, Colin Jackson, Joel Moses, Adam Zaininger

The Production Team:
Playwright – Jaime Mire; Director – Josh Anderson; Associate Director – Anna Gelman;
Stage Manager – Angela Kring; Costume Designer – Jeremy W. Floyd; Sound Designer – Tony Reimer; Scenic Designer – Terrance McClellan; Lighting Designer – Theresa Kelly; Properties Designer – Brandyn Nordlof

 Purchase tickets online at www.organictheater.org or by calling the Greenhouse at
773-404-7336. Admission is $25 (Adults).