THE AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE PRESENTS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF
I’M FALLING IN LOVE ALL THE TIME,
WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY JACK SCHULTZ AND DIRECTED BY CORDIE NELSON,
MARCH 2 – MARCH 31
AT THE PENDULUM SPACE
The running time is 60 minutes, without intermission.
The Agency Theater Collective is pleased to announce its spring production of the world premiere of I’m Falling In Love All The Time, written and performed by Jack Schultz and directed by Cordie Nelson, March 2 – March 31, at the The Pendulum Space, 1803 W Byron St #216. Opening night is Friday, March 2 at 10:00 p.m. The performance schedule is every Friday and Saturday in March at 10:00 p.m. Ticket prices are pay what you can with a $5 minimum $15 suggested donation. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit WeAreTheAgency.org or call 773.680.4596. 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. The artistic and production staff of I’m Falling In Love All The Time includes: Jack Schultz*, performer and playwright; Cordie Nelson, director; Sara Faye stage manager; Daimon Hampton, projection designer; Andrew Gallant, artistic director of The Agency; Sommer Austin, managing director of the Agency; and Tim Touhy, company manager of The Agency; Cody Lucas, marketing director and graphic designer of the Agency. *indicates The Agency Theatre Collective Company member In the wake of an unexpected tragedy, Jack started to rely on coffee for a daily dose of dopamine. This new caffeine addiction inspired Jack to reevaluate his relationship with the pleasure chemical and write a show exploring his drug of choice. First kisses, long walks, and inevitable goodbyes, I’m Falling In Love All the Time asks, "What do we do with the love for the people we’ve lost?"
ABOUT JACK SCHULTZ,performer and playwright Jack Schultz is a proud company member of The Agency Theatre Collective wherehe produces the Basement Series. Performance credits with The Agency include Hellcab, The Spirit of ’76, and I Wish to Apologize to the People of Illinois. His storytelling has been seen throughout Chicago at events like Story Club Northside, The Moth StorySLAM, and The Best of No Shame Theater. Jack is an instructor at Green Shirt Studio and on staff with Sideshow Theatre Company. ABOUT CORDIE NELSON, director Cordie Nelson is excited to be working once more with The Agency Theatre Collective on such a personal and important piece of art. She’s directed several pieces for their Basement Series and Assistant Directed Chagrin Falls with them in fall 2016. She is a Meisner Instructor for Green Shirt Studio.
ABOUT THE AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE Founded in 2010, The Agency Theater Collective creates relevant, authentic work with a focus on new or rarely produced plays. Past productions include a new take on Will Kern’s Hellcab, Mia McCullough’s Chagrin Falls, Copi’s Four Twins, Clifford Odets’ Paradise Lost, Out of Tune Confessional, I Wish to Apologize to the People of Illinois, At the Center, Truth in Context (Non-Equity Jeff Award nominee for Best New Work in 2015/2016) and The Spirit of ’76. The Agency also hosts “No Shame Theatre,” a weekly theatrical open mic, every Saturday night at The Lincoln Loft. The Agency Theater Collective hold the follow principles sacred: revelation, paradox, humor, mischief and collaboration.
Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar: BACK FOR THE HOLIDAYS!
AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE PRESENTS THE RETURN OF THE CHICAGO CLASSIC WILL KERN’S HELLCAB STARRING
RUSTY SCHWIMMER AND PLAYING AT THE DEN THEATRE,
NOVEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 17
Sommer Austin directs the Storied Chicago Production Inspired by Playwright Kern’s Experiences as a Cab Driver During Chicago’s Holiday Season
**Run Time: 90min/no intermission**
Here at ChiIL Live Shows we've seen many iterations of Hellcab from the initial production to frequent recent holiday remounts. We'll be out for the press opening November 16th to check out Agency Theater Collective's take on this hilarious, edgy, Chicago holiday classic. Check back soon for our full review.
The Agency Theater Collective announces Hellcab, starring Rusty Schwimmer, written by Will Kern and directed by The Agency’s Managing Director Sommer Austin playing at the Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., November 11 – December 17. Previews are Saturday, Nov. 11 at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 12 at 3 p.m., Monday, Nov. 13 and Thursday, Nov. 16 at 7:30 p.m. Opening night is Friday, Nov. 17 at 7:30 p.m. The performance schedule is Thursdays – Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Tickets are pay-what-you-can for all performances. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.wearetheagency.org or call the Den Theatre Box Office at 773.697.3830. A Chicago classic returning to the stage, Hellcab is the story of a day in the life of a Chicago cab driver who experiences a drawn out, nightmarish night of fares from some of the city’s oddest collection of customers on a cold, snowy day just days before Christmas. Drawn from real experiences from playwright Will Kern’s days as a cab driver, the list of characters the cabbie encounters include: a dangerous trio of druggies, a piggish mini-capitalist, a benumbed rape victim, an argumentative pair of fellow cabbies, a drunken woman on welfare, a smug lawyer, a randy couple on the way to a motel, and two boisterous New Yorkers out on the town. With every encounter, we see through the cab driver’s eyes humor, terror, longing and more as she navigates all areas of the Windy City. In addition to Rusty Schwimmer* as “Cab Driver,” Molly Lyons will perform the role at select performances**, the Hellcab cast includes George Ellzey Jr., Harsh Gagoomal, Gabrielle Gulledge, Sean Higgins, Kate Jacobsen*, Diana Lee, Manuela Rentea, Delysa Richards, Sara Richmond*, Reginald Robinson, Jack Schultz*, Tim Touhy*, Ethan Walles* and Marie Weigle. Understudy cast: Teresa Champion, Mark Mocarski, PJ Walker, Hannah Tarr, Anna Yee and Joseph Zaki. *The Actor appears through the courtesy of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. **Molly Lyons' performances as “Cab Driver:” Friday, Nov. 25 and Saturday, Nov. 26 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 27 at 3 p.m. The production team for Hellcab includes: Will Kern, playwright; Sommer Austin+, director; Cait Manning, production manager, Colleen Schuldeis, stage manager; Alex Meyer, assistant stage manager; Alex Molnar and Cordie Nelson, assistant directors; Jamie Macpherson, fight and intimacy director; Elyse Balogh, scenic designer; Ellie Humphrys+, lighting designer; Hailey Rakowiecki, costume designer; Shea Messinger, properties designer; Brian Foster+, technical director; Cody Lucas+, Indiegogo campaign manager and graphic designer, Andrew Gallant+, artistic director and Tim Touhy+, company manager. +Denotes company member of The Agency
ABOUT WILL KERN, playwright
Will Kern’s writing credits, in addition to Hellcab, include Kid Sister and Mothers and Tigers: True Stories of Korean Women. As a screenwriter, Kern wrote the film adaptation of “Hellcab,” the award-winning short films “Pain Chain,” and “Lost in Rome.” His travel writing and essays have been published in numerous magazines and newspapers around the world. His first novel “Ballet for Guys” is built around Billy Jim Hauck, a political conservative and self-described “fat ass with brown teeth and a scraggly Yosemite Sam mustache.”
ABOUT SOMMER AUSTIN, director
Co-founder and Managing Director of The Agency Theater Collective, Sommer Austin also directs and acts with them. She is a certified instructor of the Meisner Approach to Acting and co-founder/owner of Green Shirt Studio. Austin has made her mark in the improv/comedy, theatre and production worlds and has worked with theatre superstars including Mary Overlie, Ping Chong and Dr. Jonathan Miller. She was assistant director to Michael Patrick Thornton on the world premiere of David Rabe’s Good for Otto at The Gift Theatre and to Dexter Bullard on Annie Baker’s The Flick at Steppenwolf Theatre. For The Agency she has directed Chagrin Falls, co-directed Nautilina and acted in Paradise Lost, Out of Tune Confessional (which she also co-wrote) and At The Center. She received her Bachelor’s in Theatre Arts from the University of Iowa and has a Master’s of Fine Arts degree in Acting from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
ABOUT RUSTY SCHWIMMER, “Cab Driver”
Rusty Schwimmer is thrilled to be back in her hometown of Chicago where the weather is perfect, the sausages are plentiful and the Cubs win. Schwimmer is best known for her roles in the feature films A Little Princess, Twister, EdTV, The Perfect Storm, Runaway Jury and North Country. She has also enjoyed working on the television series, “Louie,” “The Guardian,” “Gilmore Girls,” “Picket Fences” and “Six Feet Under.” On stage, Schwimmer was last seen in Los Angeles at the Mark Taper Forum in their production of House of Blue Leaves and in Chicago in Race at Lookingglass Theatre. Upcoming Film projects include Blood Stripe and Wild Honey.
ABOUT AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE
Founded in 2010, The Agency Theater Collective creates relevant, authentic work with a focus on new or rarely produced plays. Past productions include Copi’s Four Twins, Clifford Odets’ Paradise Lost, Out of Tune Confessional, I Wish to Apologize to the People of Illinois, At the Center, Truth in Context (Non-Equity Jeff Award nominee for Best New Work in 2015/2016), The Spirit of ’76, and Chagrin Falls (Non-Equity Jeff Award nominee for Best Supporting Actor in 2016/2017). The Agency also hosts “No Shame Theatre,” a weekly theatrical open mic, every Saturday night at The Lincoln Loft. The Agency Theater Collective holds these principles sacred: revelation, paradox, humor, mischief and collaboration. The Agency Theater Collective announces the Chicago holiday classic Hellcab, starring Rusty Schwimmer, written by Will Kern and directed by The Agency’s Managing Director Sommer Austin playing at the Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., November 11 – December 17. Previews are Saturday, Nov. 11 at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 12 at 3 p.m., Monday, Nov. 13 and Thursday, Nov. 16 at 7:30 p.m. Opening night is Friday, Nov. 17 at 7:30 p.m. The performance schedule is Thursdays – Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Tickets are pay-what-you-can for all performances. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.wearetheagency.org or call the Den Theatre Box Office at 773.697.3830.
(L to R) Armando Reyes, Manny Ortiz. Photo by Robert Littwin
Grab a drink at one of the Den's several well stocked bars and saunter on in to Finnegans, a dark and edgy alternate reality Cheersesque bar, where nobody knows your name. Pull up a bar stool or pick a booth, or table. It's impossible to tell the actors from the audience at first, and you just may find yourself sharing space with someone with more than a few lines... pick up or otherwise. There's even a live piano man with a storied past, ready to reminisce through a medley of memorable music. The plethora of candles are illuminating, and the characters' back stories even more so. From PTSD and search for meaning in dead end jobs through crazy rants full of wisdom and loves found and lost, Nautilina will keep you captivated. Recommended. The Agency Theater Collective is pleased to announce its summer production the world premiere of Nautilina, written by Brian Foster and co-directed by Sommer Austin and Anna Lucero, June 16 – July 16, at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. Opening night is Friday, June 16 at 7:30 p.m. The performance schedule is Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Closing is Sunday, July 16 at 3 p.m. Ticket prices for previews are $15 and for the regular run $24. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit http://thedentheatre.com or call The Den Theatre Box Office at 773-697-3830. Nautilina is series of scenes and monologues that lock into each other like puzzle pieces to create a larger narrative of a fracturing psyche. Nautilina is an examination of what makes people tick, what makes them behave the way they do and the power that history has over us all. Meg Elliot Photo by Andrew Gallant
The Agency Theater Collective Nautilina acting company includes: The artistic and production staff of includes: Sommer Austin*, co-director; Anna Lucero, co-director; Niki Dreistadt, asst. director and sound designer; Kathryn McNall; production stage manager; Shannon Lauzier, asst. stage manager; Hope Rehak, dramaturg; Kate Jacobsen*, costume designer; Ellie Humphrys*, lighting designer; Alec Long, scenic designer; Manny Ortiz, technical director; Taylor Tolleson, properties designer; Zachary Sigelko and Huck Poe, video designers; Michael Chancellor, scenic painter. Andrew Gallant, artistic director of The Agency; Sommer Austin, managing director of the Agency and Tim Touhy, company manager of The Agency. The acting ensemble includes: Matthew Collins, (The Couple/Rod); Meg Elliott (Ray); Zach Hebert (Owen); Logan Hulick (Eric); Alex Kliner (Piano Player/Walter); DeChantel Kosmatka (Cassandra); Manuela Rentea (Simone/Mary); Bob Norman (Bar Patron/John); Manny Ortiz (Bar Patron/Robert); Armando Reyes (Bartender/Paul/SSG Cooper); Sara Faye Richmond* (The Couple/Ashley); Kate Gilbert (Understudy); Kate Jacobsen* (Understudy); Carter Petray (Understudy); and David Trudeau (Understudy). *indicates The Agency Theater Collective Company member ABOUT THE AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE Founded in 2010, The Agency Theater Collective creates relevant, authentic work with a focus on new or rarely produced plays. Past productions include Paul Pasulka’s Skin for Skin, Mia McCullough’s Chagrin Falls, Copi’s Four Twins, Clifford Odets’ Paradise Lost, Out of Tune Confessional, I Wish to Apologize to the People of Illinois, At the Center, Truth in Context (Non-Equity Jeff Award nominee for Best New Work in 2015/2016), and The Spirit of ’76. The Agency also hosts “No Shame Theatre,” a weekly theatrical open mic, every Saturday night at The Lincoln Loft. The Agency Theater Collective hold these principles sacred: revelation, paradox, humor, mischief and collaboration.
Zach Hebert, DeChantel Kosmatka Photo by Andrew Gallant
The AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE of chicago Announces cast and creatives for the
WORLD PREMIERE OF nautilina,
written by brian Foster
CO-DIRECTED BY
sommer austin and Anna Lucero,
june 16 – july 16 At the den THEATRE
The Agency Theater Collective is pleased to announce the cast and creatives for its summer production – the world premiere of Nautilina, written by Brian Foster and co-directed by Sommer Austin and Anna Lucero, June 16 – July 16, at the Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. Previews are Saturday, June 10, and Sunday, June 11. Opening night is Friday, June 16 at 7:30 p.m. The performance schedule is Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Ticket prices for previews are $15 and for the regular run $22. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit http://www.wearetheagency.org or call 773.680.4596. Nautilina is series of small scenes and monologues which lock into each other like puzzle pieces and create a larger narrative. Nautilina is an examination of what makes people tick, what makes them behave the way they do.
The cast and creatives for Nautilina includes: Sommer Austin*, co-director; Anna Lucero, co-director; Niki Dreistadt, asst. director and sound designer; Michael Saarela, asst. director; Kat McNall; production stage manager; Shannon Lauzier, asst. stage manager; Margret Baughman, assistant stage Manager; Hope Rehak, dramaturg; Kate Jacobsen*, costume designer; Ellie Humphrys, lighting designer; Alec Long, scenic designer, Manny Ortiz, technical director; Taylor Tolleson, properties designer. Andrew Gallant, artistic director of The Agency; Sommer Austin, managing director of the Agency and Tim Touhy, company manager of The Agency. The acting ensemble includes: Matthew Collins, (The Couple/Rod); Meg Elliott (Ray); Zach Hebert (Owen); Logan Hulick (Eric); Alex Kliner (Piano Player/Walter); DeChantel Kosmatka (Cassandra); Manuela Rentea (Gerald); Bob Norman (Simon/John); Manny Ortiz (Bar Patron/Robert); Armando Reyes (Bartender/Paul/SSG Cooper); Sara Faye Richmond* (The Couple/Thomas); Kate Gilbert (Understudy); Kate Jacobsen* (Understudy); Carter Petray (Understudy); and David Trudeau (Understudy). *indicates The Agency Theatre Collective Company member ABOUT THE AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE Founded in 2010, The Agency Theater Collective creates relevant, authentic work with a focus on new or rarely produced plays. Past productions include Paul Pasulka’s Skin for Skin, Mia McCullough’s Chagrin Falls, Copi’s Four Twins, Clifford Odets’ Paradise Lost, Out of Tune Confessional, I Wish to Apologize to the People of Illinois, At the Center, Truth in Context (Non-Equity Jeff Award nominee for Best New Work in 2015/2016), and The Spirit of ’76. The Agency also hosts “No Shame Theatre,” a weekly theatrical open mic, every Saturday night at The Lincoln Loft. The Agency Theater Collective hold these principles sacred: revelation, paradox, humor, mischief and collaboration.
