Casting Announced: Midwest Premiere of SOMETHING CLEAN Via Sideshow Theatre Company & Rivendell Theatre Ensemble

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar
Sideshow Theatre Company & Rivendell Theatre Ensemble

Announce Casting for the Midwest Premiere of

SOMETHING CLEAN

By Selina Fillinger

Directed by Lauren Shouse

June 16 – July 21, 2019 at Victory Gardens Theater

Sideshow Theatre Company and Rivendell Theatre Ensemble are pleased to announce casting for the Midwest premiere of Selina Fillinger’s breathtaking new drama SOMETHING CLEAN, directed by Lauren Shouse.

The cast includes Patrick Agada, Mary Cross** and Guy Massey.

(left to right) Guy Massey and Mary Cross. Photo by Michael Tutino.

SOMETHING CLEAN will play June 16 – July 21, 2019 at Victory Gardens Richard Christiansen Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.victorygardens.org, by calling (773) 871-3000 or in person at the Victory Gardens Box Office. 

Charlotte has been a mother for nineteen years, a wife for three decades and a respectable community member her entire life. But when her son is incarcerated for sexual assault, Charlotte is forced to reckon with a brand new identity, both public and private. Desperate to find a way back to who she was, she seeks out work at a sexual assault crisis center and meets Joey, a volunteer coordinator and a survivor of assault himself, who allows her a glimpse of who she might be able to become. Can she find a new understanding of who she is? Or has someone else’s crime defined her forever? Inspired by today’s headlines, Selina Fillinger’s breathtaking new drama follows one woman’s struggle to make sense of her own grief, intimacy, culpability and consent.

Comments Sideshow artistic director Jonathan L. Green, "Selina's exquisite play is the fifth premiere to come out of our commissioning program, The Freshness Initiative, and we're so happy to be collaborating with our friends at Rivendell, whose mission aligns with our own so well in this case, to bring it to life in Chicago."

Rivendell Artistic Director Tara Mallen adds, “This new play unflinchingly exposes the complexities of a mother struggling to reconcile her guilt and rebuild her family after her son’s horrific act. Selina’s profoundly resonant voice offers our audiences a new perspective on what it is to bear your children’s sins and Rivendell is excited to be a part of sharing this provocative new work with Chicago audiences.”

Something Clean is supported in-part by The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Melinda McMullen and Duncan Kime.

The production team to date includes: Arnel Sancianco (scenic design), Noël Huntzinger* (costume design), Diane Fairchild** (lighting design), Eric Backus (sound design), Jonathan Berg-Einhorn (props design), Gina M. Di Salvo* (dramaturg), Jennifer Aparicio (production manager) and Casie Morell (stage manager).

*Denotes Sideshow company member   **Denotes Rivendell company member

Mary Cross in a publicity image for Sideshow Theatre Company and Rivendell Theatre Ensemble’s Midwest premiere of SOMETHING CLEAN. Photo by Michael Tutino.

Location: Victory Gardens Richard Christiansen Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago

Dates: Previews: Sunday, June 16 at 2:30 pm and Wednesday, June 19 at 8 pm
Press Performance: Thursday, June 20 at 8 pm
Gala Opening: Fri June 21 at 8 pm
Regular run: Friday, June 21 – Sunday, July 21, 2019
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Thursday, July 4; there will be added performances on Wednesday, July 3 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, July 13 at 2:30 pm.
Tickets: Previews: Pay-what-you-can (online or at the door). Regular run: $20 – $30.  Students/seniors/industry: $15 for all performances (excluding opening). Tickets are currently available at www.victorygardens.org, by calling (773) 871-3000 or in person at the Victory Gardens Box Office.

About the Creative Team:

Selina Fillinger (Playwright) is an LA-based actress and writer. She is a recent graduate of Northwestern University, where she studied playwriting under the instruction of Laura Schellhardt. Something Clean was commissioned for Sideshow Theatre’s Freshness Initiative and workshopped in Roundabout’s Underground Reading Series. Other work includes Faceless (Northlight Theatre premiere, Joseph Jeff Award-nominated, regional productions at Zeitgeist Theatre, St. Louis Repertory Theatre and Park Theatre in London) and The Armor Plays: Cinched/Strapped (Available Light’s Next Stage Initiative, Alley All New, upcoming production at Theatre Three.) Selina is a 2018 recipient of South Coast Repertory’s Elizabeth George Commission and Manhattan Theatre Club’s Sloan Commission.

Lauren Shouse (Director) is thrilled to return to Rivendell after directing The Cake and Sideshow after the Freshness Initiative reading of Something Clean. Lauren is the Associate Artistic director at Northlight Theatre and a Jeff nominated director. Her recent directing credits include: What We're Up Against with Compass Theatre, The Legend of Georgia McBride at Northlight Theatre, Nice Girl and Betrayal at Raven Theatre; Avenue Q,  Rapture, Blister, Burn, Superior Donuts, and A Christmas Story at Nashville Repertory Theatre, Long Way Down with 3Ps productions;  Religion and Rubber Ducks with Ovvio Arte; Parallel Lives, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, The Last Five Years and Chess in Concert with Street Theatre Company; Rear Widow at Chaffin's Barn Theatre, and Sylvia Plath’s 3 Women. She received her MFA in theatre directing at Northwestern University where she directed Stop Kiss, Eurydice and In the Next Room or the Vibrator Play. In Chicago, Lauren has also worked with Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Lookingglass Theatre, Route 66, The Gift, Chicago Dramatists, and Stage Left Theatre. www.laurenshousedirects.com

2019 Year of Chicago Theatre

Sideshow Theatre Company and Rivendell Theatre Ensemble are proud to be part of the 2019 Year of Chicago Theatre, presented by the City of Chicago and the League of Chicago Theatres. To truly fall in love with Chicago, you must go to our theatres. This is where the city bares its fearless soul. Home to a community of creators, risk-takers, and big hearts, Chicago theatre is a hotbed for exciting new work and hundreds of world premieres every year. From Broadway musicals to storefront plays and improv, there’s always a seat waiting for you at one of our 200+ theatres. Book your next show today at www.ChicagoPlays.com. 


About Sideshow Theatre Company:

Sideshow Theatre Company: Theatre for the Curious. It is the mission of Sideshow Theatre Company to mine the collective unconscious of the world we live in with limitless curiosity, drawing inspiration from the familiar stories, memories and images we all share to spark new conversation and bring our audiences together as adventurers in a communal experience of exploration.

Over its 10+ year history, Sideshow is proud to have distinguished itself as a vital member of the Chicago theatre community. Sideshow was awarded the 2016 Broadway In Chicago Emerging Theatre Award by the League of Chicago Theatres. Sideshow is a multiple Jeff Award-winning theatre and has been listed on the “Best of” lists in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2018 by the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Reader, Time Out Chicago and the Chicago Sun-Times. Sideshow continues its multi-year residency at Victory Gardens in the historic Biograph Theater in the 2018/19 season.

Sideshow is also the producer of Chicago League of Lady Arm Wrestlers (CLLAW), a wildly popular fundraiser held in benefit of Sideshow Theatre Company and other local community organizations. CLLAW has been featured in local and national press, including The Washington Post, Reuters and the Chicago Sun-Times and on WGN Morning News, ABC 7’s Windy City Live and CBS 2. The next CLLAW match will be held Saturday, July 27, 2019. For more information about CLLAW, visit cllaw.org.

For additional information on Sideshow Theatre Company, visit sideshowtheatre.org.


About Rivendell Theatre Ensemble

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble is a professional company dedicated to advancing the lives of women through theatre.

Rivendell was born out of a specific need: women theatre artists are vastly underrepresented in American theatre, a situation which limits the range of stories produced for audiences. This situation skews our perception of the American experience toward a predominantly male perspective presented by men and it limits career opportunities for women artists - which helps perpetuate the disparity. Rivendell’s mission counteracts these circumstances by providing women theatre artists a creative home where they can nurture, develop, and produce their craft and by producing plays where audience see new voices and stories, including, in many cases, their own.

Since our first production in 1994, Rivendell has staged 48 plays and been honored with 30 Joseph Jefferson nominations and 8 awards. We are a national force in new play development and a home for women theatre artists.

In 2011 Rivendell took up residence in its first permanent home, in Chicago's north side Edgewater neighborhood. This development has enabled significant expansion of the company's programming, from itinerate productions created one at a time to the full three-show seasons, arts education programs, ongoing new play development, and numerous opportunities to provide the audience with more access to the art and artists.

For additional information on Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, visit rivendelltheatre.org.

REVIEW: Midwest Premiere of LANGUAGE ROOMS Via Broken Nose Theatre

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

All Performances Pay-What-You-Can!

Midwest Premiere!

Broken Nose Theatre Presents

LANGUAGE ROOMS

(left to right) Salar Ardebili and Bilal Dardai 

All Photos by Austin D. Oie.

By Yussef El Guindi

Directed by Kaiser Zaki Ahmed

April 19 – May 18, 2019 at The Den Theatre

Review
by bonnie kenaz-mara

I spent last night in a cinder block institution, where disorientation, deprivation, intimidation, bullying, embarrassment and lactose intolerance were used as weapons against suspected terrorist sympathizers. Under the guise of national security, a host of normally benign objects took on sinister overtones, as sanctioned US translators turned torturers, unpacked everything from baseball bats, pliers and tubing, to clown noses, honey, and deprivation suits.

(left to right) Bradford Stevens and Salar Ardebili

When loyalties are questioned, lines blur between the detainers and detainees, and thing get even more interesting. Language Rooms is fanciful and frightening; a delightfully dark comedy, as disturbing as it is absurd. It's easy to believe the world of this dystopian detention center could truly exist in our present political climate. It's hapless inhabitants are suspect for a lack of love of sports, a shyness for group showers, and guilt by association. 

(left to right) Bilal Dardai and Salar Ardebili

Throw in a dose of immigrant struggles, parental sacrifice and screw ups, hidden infidelity, and infidel associates, and you have one masterful mashup. In this catacomb of coerced confessions, an Egyptian translator works who barely knows his native language or culture, a black boss suspects everyone, coverups and leaks abound, and big brother is always watching. Meanwhile, higher powers are gunning for dissolving the entire division. So the pressure's on for the facility to justify their own existence and success rates, to stay in the interrogation business. The entire cast is compelling with Salar Ardebili (Ahmed) and Bilal Dardai (Samir) as particular standouts, 

Yussef El Guindi’s thought provoking piece is recommended. Best of all, tickets for all performances are Pay-What-You-Can! Book now for best availability. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com.

Bonnie Kenaz-Mara is a Chicago based writer-theater critic-photographer-videographer-actress-artist-general creatrix and Mama to two terrific teens. She owns two websites where she has published frequently since 2008: ChiILLiveShows.com (adult) & ChiILMama.com (family friendly). 

(left to right) Bradford Stevens, Bilal Dardai and Salar Ardebili

Broken Nose Theatre is pleased to continue its seventh season with the Midwest premiere of Yussef El Guindi’s dark comedy LANGUAGE ROOMS, directed by Kaiser Zaki Ahmed, playing April 19 – May 18, 2019 at BNT’s resident home, The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com. Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre productions are available on a “pay-what-you-can” basis, allowing patrons to set their own price and ensuring theatre remains economically accessible for all audiences. The press opening is Monday, April 22 at 7:30 pm.

(left to right) Salar Ardebili and Bassam Abdelfattah

LANGUAGE ROOMS features Bassam Abdelfattah, Salar Ardebili, Bilal Dardai and Bradford Stevens.

Ahmed loves America, and he’s proud to prove his patriotism whenever possible. He pays his taxes, he dresses for success at the office, and he’s made a point to be the best interrogator at this particular government detainment facility. So when a rumor swirls around the water cooler calling his loyalty into question, he works to do whatever’s necessary to maintain his reputation as one of “the good ones.” But when you’re an immigrant, can you ever truly be at home in a country always ready to view you as an enemy? Part The Office, part 1984, LANGUAGE ROOMS examines the paranoia polluting our political climate.

Comments Artistic Director Elise Marie Davis, “We at Broken Nose are consistently looking for plays that center around characters, or are set in worlds, that rarely have the opportunity to make it onstage, and Yussef's play is no different. Language Rooms is a dark comedy about state-sanctioned torture, a hilarious and horrifying balancing act in which the belly laughs are immediately followed by gut punches. After admiring the work he's done at his home company of Jackalope Theatre for years, we're thrilled to be working with director Kaiser Zaki Ahmed for the first time. We cannot wait for Chicago audiences to see what this cast and production team have in store.”

* Denotes BNT company member   ^ Denotes BNT artistic associate      

Location: The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, April 19 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, April 20 at 7:30 pm
Opening: Sunday, April 21 at 3 pm
Press performance: Monday, April 22 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Thursday, April 25 – Saturday, May 18, 2019
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm

Industry night: Monday, May 6 at 7:30 pm

Understudy night: Wednesday, May 15 at 7:30 pm

Tickets: Pay-what-you-can. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com.

(left to right) Bilal Dardai and Salar Ardebili

(left to right) Bradford Stevens and Salar Ardebili 

About the Artists
Yussef El Guindi’s (Playwright) productions include The Talented Ones at Artists Repertory Theatre in Portland; Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat at Golden Thread Productions; An Evening with Activists at Cutting Ball Theater; Collaborator at Macha Monkey Productions; Threesome at Portland Center Stage, ACT and at 59E59 (winner of a Portland Drammy for Best Original Script); Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World (winner of the Steinberg/ American Theater Critics Association’s New Play Award in 2012; and the 2011 Gregory Award) also at ACT and at Center Repertory Company (Walnut Creek, CA) 2013; and Language Rooms (Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award), co-produced by Golden Thread Productions and the Asian American Theater Company in San Francisco; at the Wilma Theater in Philadelphia (premiere), and at the Los Angeles Theater Center. Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat was also produced by Silk Road Theater Project and won the M. Elizabeth Osborn award. His plays Back of the Throat, Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World, Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes, Such a Beautiful Voice is Sayeda’s and Karima’s City have been published by Dramatists Play Service. His play Ten Acrobats in an Amazing Leap of Faith is included in Salaam/Peace: An Anthology of Middle Eastern-American Playwrights, published by TCG, 2009. Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat is included in the anthology Four Arab American Plays published by McFarland Books. And Threesome is published by Broadway Play Publishing Inc. Yussef is the recipient of the 2010 Middle East America Distinguished Playwright Award, and Seattle’s 2015 Stranger’s Genius Award.

 (pictured) Bilal Dardai 

Kaiser Zaki Ahmed (Director) is a Chicago-based theatre director, actor and teacher. An alum of Columbia College Chicago’s Theatre Directing program, Kaiser specializes in actor-driven new American plays. Most recently, he assistant directed Guards at the Taj (Steppenwolf) and Hand to God (Victory Gardens). Kaiser was the Founding Artistic Director of Jackalope, from its inception in May of 2008 through the end of 2011, and continues to serve as the Associate Artistic Director. At Jackalope, Kaiser has directed the Jeff-Nominated 1980 (or Why I'm Voting for John Anderson), The Raid, The Killing of Michael X, Long Way Go Down, Slaughter City, The Last Exodus of American Men, and countless readings and short plays. Kaiser is also an Artistic Associate at The Artistic Home Theatre Company. A member there since 2005, he directed the Jeff-Nominated Midwest Premiere of The Late Henry Moss, House of Yes and assistant directed several others. Kaiser also directed Vanya (or That’s Life!) and Washer/Dryer at Rasaka Theatre. Kaiser is a 2015-16 Eugene O’Neill National Directors Fellowship Finalist, a 2016-17 Victory Gardens Directors Inclusion Initiative recipient and an Associate Member of SDC. Favorite acting work includes Ideation and Lunacy! (Jackalope Theatre), A Nice Indian Boy (Rasaka Theatre) and The Seagull (Artistic Home Theatre), The Awake (First Floor Theatre) and several film and commercial spots. He is represented by Gray Talent.


(left to right) Bassam Abdelfattah, Bradford Stevens and Salar Ardebili in Broken Nose Theatre’s Midwest premiere of LANGUAGE ROOMS. Photo by Austin D. Oie.


About Broken Nose Theatre:
Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT was this year's recipient of the Emerging Theater Award, presented by the League of Chicago Theatres and Broadway in Chicago. The company has produced and developed 15 full-length plays (including 8 Chicago or World Premieres) and over 40 new womencentric short plays through their annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit www.brokennosetheatre.com.

Pay-What-You-Can At The Midwest Premiere of LANGUAGE ROOMS Via Broken Nose Theatre April 19 – May 18, 2019 at The Den Theatre

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

Midwest Premiere!

Broken Nose Theatre Presents

LANGUAGE ROOMS

By Yussef El Guindi

Directed by Kaiser Zaki Ahmed

April 19 – May 18, 2019 at The Den Theatre

All Performances Pay-What-You-Can!

(left to right) Bradford Stevens, Bassam Abdelfattah, Salar Ardebili and Bilal Dardai in a publicity image for Broken Nose Theatre’s Midwest premiere of LANGUAGE ROOMS. Photo by Spenser Davis.

I'll be ChiILin' at The Den with Chi, IL's Broken Nose Theatre for the press opening April 22nd, so check back soon for my full review. Broken Nose Theatre is pleased to continue its seventh season with the Midwest premiere of Yussef El Guindi’s dark comedy LANGUAGE ROOMS, directed by Kaiser Zaki Ahmed, playing April 19 – May 18, 2019 at BNT’s resident home, The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com. Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre productions are available on a “pay-what-you-can” basis, allowing patrons to set their own price and ensuring theatre remains economically accessible for all audiences. 

LANGUAGE ROOMS features Bassam Abdelfattah, Salar Ardebili, Bilal Dardai and Bradford Stevens.

Ahmed loves America, and he’s proud to prove his patriotism whenever possible. He pays his taxes, he dresses for success at the office, and he’s made a point to be the best interrogator at this particular government detainment facility. So when a rumor swirls around the water cooler calling his loyalty into question, he works to do whatever’s necessary to maintain his reputation as one of “the good ones.” But when you’re an immigrant, can you ever truly be at home in a country always ready to view you as an enemy? Part The Office, part 1984, LANGUAGE ROOMS examines the paranoia polluting our political climate.

Comments Artistic Director Elise Marie Davis, “We at Broken Nose are consistently looking for plays that center around characters, or are set in worlds, that rarely have the opportunity to make it onstage, and Yussef's play is no different. Language Rooms is a dark comedy about state-sanctioned torture, a hilarious and horrifying balancing act in which the belly laughs are immediately followed by gut punches. After admiring the work he's done at his home company of Jackalope Theatre for years, we're thrilled to be working with director Kaiser Zaki Ahmed for the first time. We cannot wait for Chicago audiences to see what this cast and production team have in store.”

* Denotes BNT company member   ^ Denotes BNT artistic associate      

Cast (in alphabetical order): Bassam Abdelfattah (Nassar), Salar Ardebili (Ahmed), Bilal Dardai (Samir) and Bradford Stevens (Kevin).

Location: The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, April 19 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, April 20 at 7:30 pm
Opening: Sunday, April 21 at 3 pm
Press performance: Monday, April 22 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Thursday, April 25 – Saturday, May 18, 2019
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Industry night: Monday, May 6 at 7:30 pm
Understudy night: Wednesday, May 15 at 7:30 pm
Tickets: Pay-what-you-can. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com.

About the Artists

Yussef El Guindi’s (Playwright) productions include The Talented Ones at Artists Repertory Theatre in Portland; Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat at Golden Thread Productions; An Evening with Activists at Cutting Ball Theater; Collaborator at Macha Monkey Productions; Threesome at Portland Center Stage, ACT and at 59E59 (winner of a Portland Drammy for Best Original Script); Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World (winner of the Steinberg/ American Theater Critics Association’s New Play Award in 2012; and the 2011 Gregory Award) also at ACT and at Center Repertory Company (Walnut Creek, CA) 2013; and Language Rooms (Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award), co-produced by Golden Thread Productions and the Asian American Theater Company in San Francisco; at the Wilma Theater in Philadelphia (premiere), and at the Los Angeles Theater Center. Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat was also produced by Silk Road Theater Project and won the M. Elizabeth Osborn award. His plays Back of the Throat, Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World, Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes, Such a Beautiful Voice is Sayeda’s and Karima’s City have been published by Dramatists Play Service. His play Ten Acrobats in an Amazing Leap of Faith is included in Salaam/Peace: An Anthology of Middle Eastern-American Playwrights, published by TCG, 2009. Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat is included in the anthology Four Arab American Plays published by McFarland Books. And Threesome is published by Broadway Play Publishing Inc. Yussef is the recipient of the 2010 Middle East America Distinguished Playwright Award, and Seattle’s 2015 Stranger’s Genius Award.

Kaiser Zaki Ahmed (Director) is a Chicago-based theatre director, actor and teacher. An alum of Columbia College Chicago’s Theatre Directing program, Kaiser specializes in actor-driven new American plays. Most recently, he assistant directed Guards at the Taj (Steppenwolf) and Hand to God (Victory Gardens). Kaiser was the Founding Artistic Director of Jackalope, from its inception in May of 2008 through the end of 2011, and continues to serve as the Associate Artistic Director. At Jackalope, Kaiser has directed the Jeff-Nominated 1980 (or Why I'm Voting for John Anderson), The Raid, The Killing of Michael X, Long Way Go Down, Slaughter City, The Last Exodus of American Men, and countless readings and short plays. Kaiser is also an Artistic Associate at The Artistic Home Theatre Company. A member there since 2005, he directed the Jeff-Nominated Midwest Premiere of The Late Henry Moss, House of Yes and assistant directed several others. Kaiser also directed Vanya (or That’s Life!) and Washer/Dryer at Rasaka Theatre. Kaiser is a 2015-16 Eugene O’Neill National Directors Fellowship Finalist, a 2016-17 Victory Gardens Directors Inclusion Initiative recipient and an Associate Member of SDC. Favorite acting work includes Ideation and Lunacy! (Jackalope Theatre), A Nice Indian Boy (Rasaka Theatre) and The Seagull (Artistic Home Theatre), The Awake (First Floor Theatre) and several film and commercial spots. He is represented by Gray Talent.

About Broken Nose Theatre:

Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT was this year's recipient of the Emerging Theater Award, presented by the League of Chicago Theatres and Broadway in Chicago. The company has produced and developed 15 full-length plays (including 8 Chicago or World Premieres) and over 40 new womencentric short plays through their annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit www.brokennosetheatre.com.

OPENING: Midwest Premiere of THE RIDICULOUS DARKNESS Via Sideshow Theatre Company at Victory Gardens Theater March 24 – April 28, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

Midwest Premiere!

Sideshow Theatre Company Presents

THE RIDICULOUS DARKNESS

Adapted from a radio text by Wolfram Lotz

Translated by Daniel Brunet

Directed by artistic associate Ian Damont Martin

March 24 – April 28, 2019 at 

Victory Gardens Theater

As Chicago's days are getting longer and lighter, there's a wave a dark drama hitting the stage. Catch some serious spring shows before summer's lighter fare. I'll be out to review the Midwest premiere of Wolfram Lotz’ shocking and surreal satire, THE RIDICULOUS DARKNESS at the press opening March 28th, so check back soon for my full review. 

Sideshow Theatre Company is pleased to continue its 2018-19 season with THE RIDICULOUS DARKNESS, translated byDaniel Brunet and directed by artistic associate Ian Damont Martin*, playing March 24 – April 28, 2019 at Victory Gardens Richard Christiansen Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.victorygardens.org, by calling (773) 871-3000 or in person at the Victory Gardens Box Office.

The cast includes Meagan Dilworth, Nichole Green, Kenya Ann Hall, RjW Mays, Jasmine Traylor, Lisa Troi Thomas and Brittani Yawn.

The horror! The horror! Sergeant Oliver Pellner has clear orders: to travel into the savage wilderness, to find a colonel who has gone rogue, and to kill him. The man’s gone native, as they say: has killed his comrades and disappeared into darkness. Pellner and his pilot embark with confidence, but soon nothing makes sense anymore, as the river turns to mountains turns to jungle turns to black. Civilization dissolves in Wolfram Lotz’ stunning and disturbing comedy: a fractured spin on Heart of Darkness, Apocalypse Now and our shared history of barbaric colonialism. 

Comments artistic director Jonathan L. Green, “Ian's stylish production will introduce one of the most-produced contemporary German plays in years to Chicago: a hilarious, take-no-prisoners indictment of world history, of cruelty, of ourselves.”

The production team to date includes: Lauren Nigri (scenic design), Noël Huntzinger* (costume design), Sim Carpenter (lighting design), Michael Huey* (sound design), Jonathan Berg-Einhorn (props design), Dani Wieder (dramaturg), Ellen Willett* (production manager), Chad Hain (technical director) and Liz Larsen (stage manager).


Location: 
Victory Gardens Richard Christiansen Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago

Dates: 
Previews: Sunday, March 24 at 2:30 pm and Wednesday, March 27 at 8 pm
Gala Opening: Friday, March 28 at 8 pm
Regular run: Saturday, March 30 – Sunday, April 28, 2019
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm

Tickets: 
Previews: Pay-what-you-can (online or at the door). Regular run: $20 – $30.  Students/seniors/industry: $15 for all performances (excluding opening). Tickets are currently available at www.victorygardens.org, by calling (773) 871-3000 or in person at the Victory Gardens Box Office.

*Denotes Sideshow Company Member.

About the Creative Team:
Wolfram Lotz (Author), born 1981 in Hamburg, grew up in the Black Forest region. He studied literature, art and media science in Konstanz and creative writing at the Deutsches Literaturinstitut in Leipzig. He writes plays, audio plays, lyric and prose and received several awards, including the Kleist Award for his play The Big March. His radio play The Ridiculous Darkness has been adapted and produced around the world and received the Nestroy Theatre Prize from the Association for Viennese Theatre.

Ian Damont Martin (Director) is a theatre/filmmaker who is pleased to represent Sideshow as an artistic associate. Ian is the associate artistic director of Haven Theatre and also the program manager of Enrich Chicago, an organization that works to realize anti-racism and racial equity in the Chicago arts community. Ian has worked with Goodman Theatre, Middle Coast Film Festival, The Gift Theatre, Jackalope Theatre, the DuSable Museum, the National Society of Arts and Letters, Indiana University, Ivy Tech Community College, Midsommer Flight, Bloomington Playwrights Project, Youth Theatre Journal, and the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Cincinnati. He received his BA in theatre and drama from Indiana University and his diploma in drama from the School for Creative and Performing Arts in Cincinnati, OH.

2019 Year of Chicago Theatre 
Sideshow Theatre Company is proud to be part of the 2019 Year of Chicago Theatre, presented by the City of Chicago and the League of Chicago Theatres. To truly fall in love with Chicago, you must go to our theatres. This is where the city bares its fearless soul. Home to a community of creators, risk-takers, and big hearts, Chicago theatre is a hotbed for exciting new work and hundreds of world premieres every year. From Broadway musicals to storefront plays and improv, there’s always a seat waiting for you at one of our 200+ theatres. Book your next show today at www.ChicagoPlays.com. 

  

About Sideshow Theatre Company:
Sideshow Theatre Company: Theatre for the Curious. It is the mission of Sideshow Theatre Company to mine the collective unconscious of the world we live in with limitless curiosity, drawing inspiration from the familiar stories, memories and images we all share to spark new conversation and bring our audiences together as adventurers in a communal experience of exploration.

Over its 10+ year history, Sideshow is proud to have distinguished itself as a vital member of the Chicago theatre community. Sideshow was awarded the 2016 Broadway In Chicago Emerging Theatre Award by the League of Chicago Theatres. Sideshow is a multiple Jeff Award-winning theatre and has been listed on the “Best of” lists in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2018 by the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Reader, Time Out Chicago and the Chicago Sun-Times. Sideshow continues its multi-year residency at Victory Gardens in the historic Biograph Theater in the 2018/19 season.

Sideshow is also the producer of Chicago League of Lady Arm Wrestlers (CLLAW), a wildly popular fundraiser held in benefit of Sideshow Theatre Company and other local community organizations. CLLAW has been featured in local and national press, including The Washington Post, Reuters and the Chicago Sun-Times and on WGN Morning News, ABC 7’s Windy City Live and CBS 2. The next CLLAW match will be held Saturday, July 27, 2019. For more information about CLLAW, visit cllaw.org.

For additional information on Sideshow Theatre Company, visit sideshowtheatre.org.

OPENING: Midwest Premiere of I Wanna F#!&ing Tear You Apart at Rivendell Theatre February 15 - March 23, 2019

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

 Rivendell Theatre Ensemble presents the Midwest Premiere of 

I Wanna F#!&ing Tear You Apart 

by Morgan Gould

featuring Teressa LaGamba, Robert Quintanillo and RTE Member Jessica Ervin 

February 15 - March 23, 2019

I'll be out for the press opening, February 27th, so check back soon for my full review. I adore Rivendell Theatre Ensemble (RTE), Chicago's only Equity theatre dedicated to producing artistically challenging and original plays created by and about women. Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we can't wait to see Rivendell's take on this Midwest premiere. 

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble (RTE), Chicago’s only Equity theatre dedicated to producing new work with women at the core, presents the Midwest premiere of I Wanna F#!&ing Tear You Apart by Morgan Gould and directed by Jessica Fisch. I Wanna F#!&ing Tear You Apart runs February 15 – March 23, 2019 at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Avenue in Chicago.  

Samantha and Leo are a team—best friends and roommates, fat girl and gay guy against the world—until a new friend upends their cozy co-dependent diet of mutual self-loathing and Grey’s Anatomy marathons. An ode to the complications of friendship in its many fucked-up forms, with a special nod to a kind of love that sometimes looks a lot like rage.

Produced first at D.C.’s Studio Theatre, I Wanna F#!&ing Tear You Apart challenges assumptions around niceness, beauty, and mainstream acceptance as it upends traditional narratives about fat women—Gould herself identifies openly as such—by putting a fat woman at its center. “I’m not chubby or big-boned,” says Gould. “I’m fat. That’s who I am.”

Directed by Jessica Fisch, director of Rivendell’s highly-successful world premiere production of The Firebirds Take the Field, Gould’s play is a wild ride with unforgettable characters that asks probing questions about friendships, fatness, bigotry, ambition, and the cost of living in a world that finds you unacceptable in some way.

The cast of I Wanna F#!&ing Tear You Apart includes Teressa LaGamba (Sam), Robert Quintanilla (Leo), and RTE Member Jessica Ervin (Chloe).

The creative team includes RTE Member Regina García (Scenic Design), Anthony Churchill (Projections Design), Heather Gilbert (Lighting Design), Jeffrey Levin (Original Music and Sound Design), Alison Siple (Costume Design), and Jonathan Berg-Einhorn (Properties Design). The Stage Manager is Miranda Anderson.

Rivendell’s Town Hall Series:  

During the run of each production, Rivendell hosts Town Hall Discussions after select Saturday matinees. These are an essential touchstone for our organization to extend the conversation from the stage to the community. Panelists help field questions, present observations, and participate in supporting a thoughtful, in-depth dialogue for all involved. Audience participants need not be present for the Saturday matinee and are welcome to join the conversation following the performance. 

ARTIST BIOS

Morgan Gould (Playwright) is a fat-fat, not TV-fat, New York based writer/director who is a Resident Playwright at New Dramatists and current Lila Acheson Wallace Playwriting Fellow at Juilliard. Morgan’s play I Wanna F**king Tear You Apart, is a Beatrice Terry/Drama League Award Winner, and had its world premiere at Studio Theatre in Washington, DC in February 2017 (with Morgan directing). It was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding New Play, and DC Metro Arts said that Morgan’s work “shows every bit as much promise as Edward Albee’s early work, arguably more.” Morgan has directed productions at the Humana Festival, Marin Theatre Company, Ensemble Studio Theatre, P73, and more. Morgan is also the Artistic Director of Morgan Gould & Friends—her theater company with 9 actors, 3 designers, and a filmmaker, and their work has been seen at many NYC venues including HERE Arts Center, Ars Nova, The Ice Factory and more. Morgan is developing a half hour original series with Amazon Studios and Will Graham/Field Trip Productions. 

Jessica Fisch (Director) returns to Rivendell where she previously directed The Firebirds Take the Field and Fefu and Her Friends (Goodman Theatre/Rivendell Latinx Celebration). Recent credits include Cry It Out (Northlight Theatre), You Across From Me (Actors Theatre of Louisville, Humana Festival), Late Company (Cor Theatre), Straight White Men (Associate Director, Steppenwolf), Trudy, Carolyn, Martha and Regina Travel to Outer Space (Actors Theatre of Louisville, Humana Festival),  The Rosenkranz Mysteries: An Evening of Magic (The Royal George), Opulent Complex and That Thing That Time (Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Tens), Psychodramatic (A Red Orchid, Incubator Series), Traces (Feast Productions/ Jackalope Theatre). Selected New York credits: The Realm (The Wild  Project), strive/seek/find (Abingdon Theatre), the 2009 Playwrights Horizons Stories on 5 Stories Benefit, Personal History (Ensemble Studio Theatre), The Redheaded Man (Barrow Street Theatre/FringeNYC/FringeEncores), Dressed In Your Dreams (Public Theater/Emerging Writers Group), and an adaptation of the cult 1960’s gothic vampire soap opera Dark Shadows (Williamstown Theatre Festival). Jessica was a resident director at Ensemble Studio Theater, the Playwrights Horizons Directing Resident, and a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab.

Teressa LaGamba (Sam) is a Chicago based actor/musician from Pittsburgh, PA. She has performed feature roles in productions with Porchlight Music Theatre, Paramount Theatre, Boho Theatre, Marriott Theatre, Kokandy Productions, Emerald City Theatre, Broadway In Chicago, Griffin Theatre, Haven Theatre and more. Teressa received her BA in Acting and American Sign Language from Columbia College Chicago.

Robert Quintanilla (Leo) is making his Rivendell debut. He was most recently seen as Thomas Jefferson in Porchlight Music Theatre’s production of 1776 as part of their Revisits series and in Evil Dead with Black Button Eyes. This past season he was seen in The View Upstairs with Circle Theatre, Yank! A WWII Love Story with Pride Films and Plays, and Woman of the Year with Porchlight Music Theatre. Other select credits include On a Clear Day You Can See Forever with Porchlight Music Theatre, United Flight 232 with The House Theatre, The Fantasticks with Quest Theatre Ensemble, Jesus Christ Superstar with The Public Theatre San Antonio, The Merry Widow and HMS Pinafore with Music Theatre Works.

Jessica Ervin (Chloe) is an ensemble member at Rivendell. She received an Equity Jeff nomination for her portrayal of Ester in Dry Land and has also worked with Rivendell on Scientific Method (understudy), Alias Grace, The Firebirds Take the Field, WOMEN AT WAR, and the staged reading 381 Bleecker. Additionally, Jessica has worked with The Sound, Walkabout Theatre, Route 66, Erasing the Distance, The Public House, and Blue Goose Theatre Ensemble. Most recently, Jessica returned to Ball State University, her alma mater, to devise and perform an adaptation of Frankenstein as part of Indiana Humanities’ One State One Story initiative. She can be seen on film in Princess Cyd and the upcoming projects Teacher, Injustice, and Stalled.

Previews:  February 15-23, 2019

Friday, February 15 at 8:00pm

Saturday, February 16 at 8:00pm

Sunday, February 17 at 3:00pm

Thursday, February 21 at 8:00pm

Friday, February 22 at 8:00pm

Saturday, February 23 at 8:00pm 

Gala Opening: Sunday, February 24 at 6:00pm

Press Opening: Wednesday, February 27 at 7:00pm

Regular Run: February 28 – March 23, 2019

Schedule:      Thursdays-Saturdays at 8:00pm; Saturdays at 4:00pm

Additional performances on Sunday, February 17 at 3:00pm (preview); Sunday, March 10 at 3:00pm; Monday, March 11 at 8:00pm ; and Wednesday, March 20 at 8:00pm

Town Hall Discussions will follow Saturday 4:00pm matinees on March 9 and 16

Friday, March 1: Mama’s Night / Ladies’ Night: Following the performance, please join us in our rehearsal studio for wine, cheese and great conversation! 

Friday, March 8 : Performance to Benefit Planned Parenthood: $10 of every ticket sold will be donated to Planned Parenthood of Illinois. 

Friday, March 15: Open Captioned Performance; $15 tickets with the code ACCESS 

Location:  Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Avenue in Chicago

Tickets: General Admission, Previews: $28, Regular Run: $38

Student, Senior, Active Military, Veteran, Preview: $18. Regular Run: $28

Pay What You Can: Five seats (10% of the house) are available for each performance. Reservations are made on a first come, first served basis.

Three-show pass: $59-$80 for 3-plays 

Box Office: (773) 334-7728 or www.RivendellTheatre.org

Parking and Transportation: Free parking is available in the Senn High School parking lot (located a block and a half from the theatre behind the school off Thorndale Avenue). There is limited paid and free street parking in the area. The theatre is easily accessible via the Clark (#22) or Broadway (#36) bus, and is a short walk from the Bryn Mawr Red Line El station.

About Rivendell Theatre Ensemble
Founded in 1994, Rivendell Theatre Ensemble advances the lives of women through theatre. Rivendell cultivates the talents of women artists—writers, actors, directors, designers and technicians—by seeking out innovative plays that explore unique female experiences and producing them in an intimate, salon environment.

Rivendell fills an important role in the Chicago region as the only Equity theatre dedicated to producing artistically challenging and original plays created by and about women. After years of being an itinerant company, Rivendell moved into its own theater space in 2011 in Edgewater. The company is focused on becoming an integral community partner and serving as a catalyst to engage audiences in a discussion of local social issues.

For more information about Rivendell Theater Ensemble, visit http://rivendelltheatre.org. Follow Rivendell on Facebook at Facebook.com/rivendelltheatre, on Twitter @RivendellThtr, and on Instagram at rivendelltheatre.

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble is supported by generous grants from: The Alphawood Foundation;

Paul M. Angell Family Foundation; The Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development; The Chicago Community Trust; The Chicago Foundation for Women; The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation;

The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; The MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation; The League of Chicago Theatres and ComEd; The Reva and David Logan Foundation; The Luria Family Foundation; The Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust; The Alfred Pick Jr. Fund; Shubert Foundation; SIF Fund at The Chicago Community Trust; Cultural Outreach Program Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events; and the Illinois Arts Council Agency.

OPENING: Midwest Premiere! of GIRL IN THE RED CORNER Via Broken Nose Theatre February 1 – March 2, 2019 at The Den Theatre

Midwest Premiere!

Broken Nose Theatre Presents

GIRL IN THE RED CORNER

By Stephen Spotswood

Directed by Elizabeth Laidlaw 

February 1 – March 2, 2019 at The Den Theatre

All Performances Pay-What-You-Can!

Broken Nose Theatre is pleased to continue its seventh season with the Midwest premiere of Stephen Spotswood’s drama GIRL IN THE RED CORNER, directed by Elizabeth Laidlaw, playing February 1 – March 2, 2019 at BNT’s resident home, The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com. Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre productions are available on a “pay-what-you-can” basis, allowing patrons to set their own price and ensuring theatre remains economically accessible for all audiences. 

I'll be out for the press opening February 4th so check back soon for my full review.

GIRL IN THE RED CORNER will feature BNT company member Elise Marie Davis* and artistic associate Kim Boler^ with Michelle Courvais, August N. Forman and Mark West.

Unemployed and fresh from an abusive marriage, Halo steps into a gym one day and signs up for mixed martial arts lessons. Her family thinks it’s ridiculous. Her trainer thinks she’s soft. But none of them know the anger that fuels her ambition. When it’s rage that brought you into the cage, are you really ready to see what winning looks like? GIRL IN THE RED CORNER is a visceral, fast-moving tale of self-discovery, one that allows women to take centerstage in a world so often dominated by men.

Comments Artistic Director Elise Marie Davis, “Girl in the Red Corner is a show that allows women and other marginalized voices to step into a story (and an arena) so often dominated by men, all while being unapologetically messy and complicated and real. There's something extremely empowering about allowing women to be the anti-hero, about giving us a platform to tell stories of characters who often muddle the best of intentions with poor execution. We are thrilled to have director Elizabeth Laidlaw, fight choreographer John Tovar, and a host of other guest artists joining us for this production. Broken Nose is proud to bring this play and these characters to Chicago audiences, with their scrapes, scars and bruises on display for all to see.”

The production team for GIRL IN THE RED CORNER includes Therese Ritchie (scenic design), Lizzie Cook (costume design), Cat Davis (lighting design), Isaac Mandel (sound design), Devon Green^ (props design), John Tovar (fight choreography), Alison Dornheggen (associate director), Madisen Dempsey (assistant director), Rose Hamill* (production manager), Dominique Zaragoza (technical director), Liz Gomez (master electrician) and Jenna Thiel (stage manager).

* Denotes BNT company member   ^ Denotes BNT artistic associate      
    

Cast (in alphabetical order): Kim Boler^ (Brinn), Michelle Courvais (Terry), Elise Marie Davis* (Halo), August N. Forman (Gina) and Mark West (Warren).

Location: The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, February 1 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, February 2 at 7:30 pm

Opening: Sunday, February 3 at 3 pm
Press performance: Monday, February 4 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Thursday, February 7 – Saturday, March 2, 2019
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Industry night: Monday, February 18 at 7:30 pm
Understudy night: Wednesday, February 27 at 7:30 pm
Tickets: Pay-what-you-can. Tickets are currently available at www.brokennosetheatre.com.

About the Artists
Stephen Spotswood (Playwright) is a DC-based playwright, educator and journalist, who received his MFA in playwriting from the Catholic University of America in 2009. At the 2017 Helen Hayes Awards, he received the Charles MacArthur Award For Outstanding New Play for Girl In The Red Corner. Produced works include: Doublewide (NNPN Rolling World Premiere); Girl In The Red Corner (The Welders); The Last Burlesque (Pinky Swear Productions); Walking The City Of Silence And Stone (Forum Theatre); In The Forest, She Grew Fangs (defunkt Theatre, Washington Rogues); We Tiresias (Best Drama, Capital Fringe Festival 2012); When the Stars Go Out (Bright Alchemy Theatre); Sisters of Ellery Hollow; The Resurrectionist King (Active Cultures Theatre); Off A Broken Road (Imagination Stage); and A Cre@tion Story for Naomi (Bright Alchemy). He is a current member of The Welders playwrights collective and a member of Forum Theatre’s artist ensemble.

Elizabeth Laidlaw (Director) has worked in Chicago and regional theatre professionally for 25 years. She is the founder and artistic director of Lakeside Shakespeare Theatre, begun in 2003. At LST, she has directed Romeo and Juliet and The Taming of the Shrew, and co-directed A Midsummer Night’s Dream (with Jeff Christian) and most recently Henry VIII, (with Christy Arington). She is also the co-producer (with Mia McCullough) of The Haven web series, co-directing episode 2. She assisted director Terry Kinney with East of Eden at Steppenwolf Theatre. This past season, she served as the intimacy consultant on The Doppelgänger, also at Steppenwolf, and as the violence and intimacy designer for A Moon for the Misbegotten at Writers Theatre. As an actor, Elizabeth has appeared onstage at Chicago Shakespeare, Steppenwolf, Writers Theatre, Court Theatre, The Goodman and many, many others. Film credits include the features, Henry Gamble’s Birthday Party, Into the Wake, Eastern College, Dimension and Three Days. Television includes Chicago PD and Crisis (NBC), Betrayal (ABC) and Boss (Starz), The Chicago Code (FOX). Ms. Laidlaw spent the autumn of 2018 filming The Red Line, a new drama series for Warner Bros and CBS television, written and produced by fellow Chicagoans Caitlin Parrish and Erica Weiss, Her voice can be heard narrating Hard Earned, a documentary produced by Kartemquin Films for Al-Jazeera America, and in numerous television commercials, audiobooks and video games. She received her BFA from Illinois Wesleyan University and completed post-graduate Shakespeare studies at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art of London, UK.


About Broken Nose Theatre:
Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT was this year's recipient of the Emerging Theater Award, presented by the League of Chicago Theatres and Broadway in Chicago. The company has produced and developed 11 full-length plays (including 8 Chicago or World Premieres) and over 40 new womencentric short plays through their annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit www.brokennosetheatre.com.

OPENING: The Midwest Premiere of COSMOLOGIES Via The Gift Theatre Through December 9, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar:

The Gift Theatre Presents the Midwest Premiere of 

COSMOLOGIES

By Ensemble Member David Rabe

Directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton

October 19 – December 9, 2018

(front, l to r) Ensemble members Martel Manning, Gregory Fenner, Kenny Mihlfried and Hannah Toriumi with (back, l to r) Darci Nalepa, John Kelly Connolly and James D. Farruggio in a publicity image for The Gift Theatre’s Midwest premiere of David Rabe’s COSMOLOGIES. Photo by Claire Demos.

                                   
The Gift Theatre is pleased to conclude its 17th season with the Midwest premiere of Tony Award-winning playwright and ensemble member David Rabe’s* COSMOLOGIES, directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton*, playing October 19 – December 9, 2018 at 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Jefferson Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available by calling the Gift’s box office at (773) 283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org. 

COSMOLOGIES will eature an all-ensemble cast including John Kelly Connolly*, James D. Farruggio*, Gregory Fenner*, Martel Manning*, Kenny Mihlfried*, Darci Nalepa* and Hannah Toriumi*.

Put the whimsical humor of the Keystone Cops and Bugs Bunny into a particle collider with the philosophy of Soren Kierkegaard and George Berkeley and you’re getting close to the style of this existential absurdist comedy from David Rabe. When a young man’s negotiation for a date goes very wrong, we are transported through kaleidoscopic worlds of possibilities, identities and loves. 

Comments playwright and Gift ensemble member David Rabe, “Here's the thing: working on Good for Otto with The Gift was among the very best experiences I've ever had in the theater. Cosmologies and I are eager to get there and go at it again with Mike Thornton, some of the same actors, along with new ones drawn from the Gift ensemble.”

The production team for COSMOLOGIES includes Angela McIlvain and Courtney O'Neill (scenic design), Izumi Inaba (costume design), Charlie Cooper (lighting design), Christopher Kriz (sound design), Grace Bolander (assistant director) and Sarah Luse (stage manager).


Location: The Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, October 19 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, October 20 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, October 21 at 2:30 pm, Wednesday, October 24 at 7:30 pm, Thursday, October 25 at 7:30 pm, Friday, October 26 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, October 27 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Thursday, November 1 – Sunday, December 9, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm. Please note: there will not be a 3 pm performance on Saturday, October 20.

Tickets: Previews $25. Regular run $35 – $50. Tickets are currently available by calling the Gift’s box office at (773) 283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org. 

*Denotes Gift Theatre ensemble member

About the Artists

David Rabe (Playwright) was born in Dubuque, Iowa, where he lived though his college years, studying creative writing under Reverend Ray Roseliep, a renowned poet. After the army and a gloriously productive period at Villanova University where a number of his early plays were written and performed, his first professional productions were in New York, a Vietnam Quartet starting in 1971: The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel, Sticks and Bones, The Orphan and Streamers. All were produced by Joseph Papp to whom he owes a complex and absolute debt. In the Boom Boom Room followed, as did Goose and Tom Tom, Hurlyburly, Those the River Keeps, A Question of Mercy, The Dog Problem, The Black Monk adapted from Chekov, An Early History of Fire and Good For Otto, which in 2015 gave him his first experience of Chicago theater with The Gift, followed by Visiting Edna at Steppenwolf. Four of his plays have received Tony nominations, and Sticks and Bones, for which the actors requested combat pay, won in 1972. He has received the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award, and an Obie award; the Drama Desk, John Gassner Outer Critics, the New York Drama Critics Circle awards, and three times won the Elizabeth Hull-Kate Warriner Drama Guild Award. Screenplays are I’m Dancing as Fast as I Can, Casualties of War and Hurlyburly. His fiction includes the book of stories A Primitive Heart, and the novels Recital of the Dog, Dinosaurs on the Roof and Girl by the Road at Night.  He has three children, Jason, Lily and Michael.

Michael Patrick Thornton (Director) is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of The Gift, where previous directing credits include: world premiere of Gift ensemble member David Rabe’s Good For Otto; world premiere of Claire Kiechel’s Pilgrims (co-directed with Jessica Thebus), War of the Worlds (75th Anniversary Production), the Chicago Premiere of ensemble member Will Eno’s Oh, The Humanity (and other exclamations), Prairie View, Night & Her Stars, Stop/Kiss, Santa’s Great American Depression Holiday Show! America, White People, Three Sisters, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, Hurlyburly (Joseph Jefferson Award: Actor In Leading Role), A Young Man In Pieces, Language Of Angels, County Fair and Orestes 2.0. Elsewhere: Of Mice and Men (Steppenwolf), the world premieres of Sean Graney’s IS N UR B1UDS7REEM… and Mark Harvey Levine’s LA 8AM (Collaboraction) and Picasso At The Lapin Agile (Noble Fool). Michael was a very grateful assistant director on Steppenwolf’s Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning August: Osage County. 

A Joseph Jefferson Award-winning actor for Solo Performance in Conor McPherson’s The Good Thief (The Gift) Michael was nominated for a Best Actor Jeff Award (Suicide, Incorporated) and Best Director Jeff Award (Good For Otto). 

About The Gift Theatre

The Gift’s 17th season: Stacy Osei-Kuffour’s world premiere of Hang Man, directed by Jess McLeod (March 2 – April 29, 2018); Shakespeare’s Hamlet, directed by Monty Cole (June 1 – July 29, 2018); and the Midwest premiere of Tony Award-winning playwright and ensemble member David Rabe’s Cosmologies, directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton (October 12 –December 9, 2018). The Gift subscribers ("Gifters") receive admission to three shows, free parking at Gale Street Inn, free admission to all Wednesday night “Natural Gas” improv shows and invitations to special subscriber-only special events. Subscribe at thegifttheatre.org or by calling (773) 283-7071.