OPENING: RASHEEDA SPEAKING Via Shattered Globe Theatre April 22 – June 4, 2022 at Theater Wit

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar 

Shattered Globe Theatre Presents

RASHEEDA SPEAKING

By Joel Drake Johnson

Directed by Associate Artistic Director AmBer D. Montgomery

April 22 – June 4, 2022 at Theater Wit

 

PHOTO CREDIT: The cast of Shattered Globe Theatre’s revival of Rasheeda Speaking includes (top, l to r) Daria Harper and Deanna Reed-Foster (bottom, l to r), Barbara Roeder Harris and Drew Schad.

Shattered Globe Theatre is pleased to present a revival of Chicago writer Joel Drake Johnson’s Rasheeda Speaking, directed by SGT Associate Artistic Director AmBer D. Montgomery. This comedy-turned-social thriller about workplace racism will play April 22 – June 4, 2022 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at www.sgtheatre.org, by calling (773) 975-8150 or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office. I'll be out for the press opening April 25th so check back then for my full review. 

Rasheeda Speaking will feature Ensemble Members Daria Harper*, Deanna Reed-Foster* and Drew Schad* with Barbara Roeder Harris.

Whether it’s the doctor’s inability to remember her name, or the toxic fumes radiating from the Xerox machine and lab next door, Dr. Williams’ office is not made for Jaclyn. As the only Black woman in the office, Jaclyn is determined to keep her job. But when Dr. Williams promotes her White co-worker, Ileen, and asks her to spy on their only Black co-worker, Jaclyn has her work cut out for her. Fueled by a fear of difference and looming racial uprising, how far will Jaclyn, Ileen and Dr. Williams go? 

Comments SGT Producing Artistic Producer Sandy Shinner, “Shattered Globe is celebrating playwright Joel Drake Johnson with this revival of his workplace thriller Rasheeda Speaking. In the fall of 2019, shortly before Joel’s death in early 2020, I told him we would commit to producing this revival with Deanna Reed-Foster as Jaclyn, and he was thrilled. In the world premiere production at Rivendell Theater in 2013, Deanna was cast as the understudy and Joel could always hear her voice as Jaclyn. Now, almost 10 years later, the play will resonate differently, and I am thrilled that SGT’s Associate Artistic Director AmBer Montgomery is directing this new production with a powerhouse design team. Rasheeda Speaking is sure to entertain and challenge our audiences.”

The production team includes Scott Penner (scenic design), Rea Brown (costume design), Jackie Fox (lighting design), Christopher Kriz+ (sound designer), Persephone Lawrence-Wescott (props design), Judy Anderson* (executive production manager), Richie Vavrina (production manager), Alan Weusthoff (technical director), Tina M. Jach (production stage manager) and Becca Smith (assistant stage manager).

COVID-19 protocol: Shattered Globe currently requires proof of vaccination and masks for all patrons. Please visit sgtheatre.org/rasheedaspeaking for updates.

 

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Cast (in alphabetical order): Daria Harper* (Ileen Van Meter), Deanna Reed-Foster* (Jaclyn Spaulding), Barbara Roeder Harris (Rose Saunders) and Drew Schad* (Dr. David Williams).

*Denotes SGT Ensemble Member  +Denotes SGT Artistic Associate

Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago

Dates: Previews: Friday, April 22 at 8 pm, Saturday, April 23 at 8 pm and Sunday, April 24 at 3 pm

Press Performance: Monday, April 25 at 7:30 pm

Regular Run: Friday, April 29 – Saturday, June 4, 2022

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will be added performances on Monday, May 16 at 8 pm (industry night) and Saturday, June 4 at 2:30 pm; there will not be a performance on Thursday, May 19 at 8 pm.

Touch Tour/Audio Description Performance: Friday, May 6 – 6:45 pm touch tour, 8 pm performance with audio description. $20 tickets available with code “ACCESS20.”

Industry Night: Monday, May 16 at 8 pm.

Tickets: Previews: Friday: pay-what-you-can; Saturday & Sunday: $25 general admission, $10 students. Regular Run: $45 general admission. $15 students. $35 seniors. $25 under 30 years old. $15 industry tickets on Thursdays and Fridays with code “INDUSTRY.” Tickets are currently available at www.sgtheatre.org, by calling (773) 975-8150 or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office. Group discounts are available by contacting groupsales@shatteredglobe.org or by calling (773) 770-0333.

Shattered Globe understands that ticket prices can pose a financial burden and, at times, an obstacle for theatregoers. A number of waived tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis for students and community members experiencing access barriers to theatre. If you would like to be added to SGT’s Waived Ticket Waitlist, please e-mail lswanson@shatteredglobe.org. Please note: all requests must be completed by 12 pm the Friday before the performance you would like to attend. The e-mail will not be monitored at all on weekends or after 5 pm on weekdays.

 

About the Artists:

Joel Drake Johnson (Playwright) is an award winning, internationally-produced playwright and teacher best known for his work at Chicago’s Victory Garden's Theater, where he was a member of the company’s Playwrights Ensemble for many years. His plays include Rasheeda Speaking, Four Places, A Blue Moon, As The Beaver, The End of the Tour, The Fall To Earth, A Blameless Life and Tranquillity Woods. His work has also been produced in Chicago at Steppenwolf Theatre and globally in New York City, Los Angeles, London, and many other cities.

AmBer D. Montgomery (Director, she/her) is an emerging director, educator and multi-disciplinary artist from Detroit, Michigan. She has created a career centered around amplifying the voices of Chicago youth and creating work that stands on the legacy of black theater makers before her. Originally trained as an actor, her transition to directing in Chicago has included her associate and assistant directing credits for many major productions including School Girls or the African Mean Girls Play (Goodman Theatre), Sheepdog (Shattered Globe Theatre), LINDIWE (Steppenwolf Theatre), Too Heavy for Your Pocket (TimeLine Theatre), Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Writers Theatre), Measure for Measure (American Players Theater) and First Love is the Revolution (Steep Theatre). Her other director’s credits include: Snow Queen (The House Theater), Countess Dracula (Otherworld Theater) and hippolytos (Story Theater New Play Festival). She was awarded a 2020 FAIR Assistantship at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, 2018 Fellowship at Steppenwolf Theatre in their Department of Education/SYA and an internship at Penumbra Theater’s Summer Institute: Pedagogies for Social Change. She has attended training programs at the Globe Theater in London and LISPA (Now Arthaus Berlin). Amber holds a BFA in Acting from the University of Minnesota Guthrie

 

About Shattered Globe Theatre 

Shattered Globe Theatre (Sandy Shinner, Producing Artistic Director) was born in a storefront space on Halsted Street in 1991. Since then, SGT has produced more than 80 plays, including nine American and world premieres, and garnered an impressive 42 Jeff Awards and 107 Jeff Award nominations, as well as the acclaim of critics and audiences alike. 

Shattered Globe Theatre seeks to discover new connections between story, artist and audience by exploring drama from bold, challenging perspectives, and continuously redefining what it means to be an ensemble theater.

SGT’s values are rooted in a commitment to racial equity, respect for all artists and support for the ensemble, while creating new opportunities to amplify traditionally marginalized voices and collaborate in all aspects of our work. Through initiatives such as the Protégé Program, Shattered Globe creates a space which allows emerging artists to grow and share in the ensemble experience.

Shattered Globe Theatre is partially supported and funded by generous grants from The Shulman-Rochambeau Charitable Foundation, The James P. and Brenda S. Grusecki Family Foundation, Bayless Family Foundation, The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Kovler Family Foundation, the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Illinois Arts Council, The Shubert Foundation, the Chicago Community Foundation, and The Saints.

For more information on Shattered Globe Theatre, please visit www.sgtheatre.org.

 

 

OPENING: FOUR PLACES Via The Den Theatre May 24 – June 30, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

The Den Theatre Presents

FOUR PLACES

By Joel Drake Johnson

Directed Ensemble Member Lia Mortensen

May 24 – June 30, 2019

The cast of The Den Theatre’s revival of FOUR PLACES includes (left to right) Amy Montgomery, Bruch Reed, Meg Thalken and Rebekah Ward. 

The Den Theatre is pleased to present a revival of Joel Drake Johnson’s true-to-life drama FOUR PLACES, directed by ensemble member Lia Mortensen, playing May 24 – June 30, 2019 at 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. (2B) in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.thedentheatre.com, in person at the The Den box office or by calling (773) 697-3830. I'll be out for the press opening May 30th, so check back soon for my full review.

FOUR PLACES features Amy Montgomery, Bruch Reed, Meg Thalken and Rebekah Ward. 

Deceptively simple in its structure and unfolding in real time, this emotionally precise play deploys its spare components to devastating and darkly comic effect. A brother and sister have gotten word from their elderly parents' caretaker that they may be a danger to each other. The brother joins his sister and mother on their weekly lunch date, hoping that he and his sister can get a clearer picture of the situation. As the mother confronts the indignities of age and the children stare down a mounting list of losses and disappointments, a harrowing and true-to-life image of the family emerges. Ultimately, with unwavering clarity and sensitivity, Joel Drake Johnson explores the ways that familial love and knowledge create both hurt and comfort.

Comments Director Lia Mortensen, “I was drawn to this play because it examines the universality of family: love, secrets, trust, lies – while also navigating how alcoholism threads through the tapestry of this family. It is at once hysterical, tragic, and ultimately moving. We recognize ourselves in these imperfect humans.”

The production team includes Jeffrey D. Kmiec (scenic design), Josh Prisching (technical director) and Tina M. Jach (production stage manager).

Location: The Den Theatre (2B), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago

Dates: Previews: Friday, May 24 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, May 25 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, May 26 at 3 pm and Wednesday, May 29 at 7:30 pm

Press performance: Thursday, May 30 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Friday, May 31 – Sunday, June 30, 2019

Curtain Times: Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm

Tickets: Previews $28. Regular run $45. Students/seniors: $33. Tickets are currently available at www.thedentheatre.com, in person at the The Den box office or by calling (773) 697-3830.

About The Artists
Joel Drake Johnson (Playwright) is an award winning, internationally-produced playwright and teacher best known for his work at Chicago’s Victory Garden's Theater, where he was a member of the company’s Playwrights Ensemble for many years. His plays include Rasheeda Speaking, Four Places, A Blue Moon, As The Beaver, The End of the Tour, The Fall To Earth, A Blameless Life and Tranquillity Woods. His work has also been produced in Chicago at Steppenwolf Theatre and globally in New York City, Los Angeles, London, and many others cities.

Lia Mortensen (Director) is thrilled to be back at The Den where she co-directed Bus Stop by William Inge alongside her pal, Ryan Martin and directed The Quality of Life by Jane Anderson. As an actor, Lia has appeared in many productions in her hometown of Chicago at Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare, Northlight and Writers Theatre to name a few. Some productions include The Mystery of Love and Sex, Company, City of Conversation, Pericles, Annapurna, An Inspector Calls, Cymbeline, Ten Chimneys, The Big Meal, Rabbit Hole, Closer, Faith Healer, All’s Well, Measure for Measure, Lady Windermere’s Fan, Talley’s Folley, Ghosts and Twelfth Night. Her film and TV credits include the 2010 remake of Nightmare on Elm Street, View from Tall, Consumed, Blink, Empire, Shameless, Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD and Crisis.

About The Den Theatre
Artistic Director Ryan Martin opened The Den in 2010 with a single theatre space. Seven years later, The Den boasts five intimate and unique theaters on two floors ranging from 50 – 200 seats, as well as two additional spaces primarily used for classes and rehearsals. The Den is also equipped with two bars enveloped by a never-ending field of lounge space for audiences and like-minded culture hounds to drink, talk, read, watch, think, listen and live. The Den is home to seven resident theatre companies including First Floor Theater, Haven Theatre Company, Griffin Theatre, The New Colony, Broken Nose Theatre, WildClaw Theatre and Firebrand Theatre. Hundreds of other companies from Chicago and beyond have also called The Den home, utilizing its theaters, studio space and easily convertible cabaret space to accommodate a stream of programming, including plays, musicals, film screenings, classical and jazz performances, dance, improv and stand-up, seminars and speaking engagements. For additional information, visit www.thedentheatre.com.