Pages

Showing posts with label Theater Wit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Theater Wit. Show all posts

Thursday, March 13, 2025

New Adaptation of Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities Via Shattered Globe Theatre at Theater WIT Apr 18–May 31, 2025

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Director Mikael Burke makes his Shattered Globe debut with 

Brendan Pelsue’s new adaptation of 

Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities

April 18–May 31, 2025

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're huge fans of Charles Dickens and we've been following the directing career of uber talented Mikael Burke for years. This cast and crew are incredible and we can't wait to catch this one. I'll be out for opening night, so check back soon for my full review. 

Shattered Globe Theatre’s 34th season finale is the Midwest premiere of a bold new adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities by Brendan Pelsue (top, center)  directed by Mikael Burke (top, right) in his SGT debut, featuring (bottom, from left) Shattered Globe ensemble members Demetra Dee, Daria Harper and Jazzma Pryor, and Diego Vazquez Gomez, Glenn Obrero, Jeff Rodriguez, William Anthony Sebastian Rose II and Penelope Walker.

It’s the best of times, and it’s the worst of times.

Still today.

So what better time to take a new look at Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities? It may be 165 years old, but Shattered Globe’s Midwest premiere of Brendan Pelsue’s bold new adaptation of Dickens’ classic story feels a tad too relevant. As the gap between rich and poor widens and cries for change grow louder, Dickens’ tale of power, privilege and political adaptation reminds us that some things never change.

Or can they? 

“This is not your mama’s Dickens,” declares director Mikael Burke, who is making his Shattered Globe debut staging Pelsue’s new riff on Dickens’ chillingly timely novel. “This is Dickens’ powerful story of life, liberty and the pursuit of love, told as only live theater can. In turns both hilarious and heart-rending, A Tale of Two Cities holds a striking mirror up to our world and makes us take a long look at the best and worst of ourselves. What Brendan has crafted here is something you must experience to believe, and I can’t wait to share this incredible and thrilling play with Chicago.”

A Tale of Two Cities runs April 18-May 31 at Theater Wit. The first preview, Friday, April 18 at 7:30 p.m., is Pay-What-You-Can. Previews continue Saturday, April 19 at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, April 20 at 3 p.m, and Wednesday, April 23 at 7:30 p.m. Previews are $10-$25. Press opening is Thursday, April 24 at 7:30 p.m. Performances run through May 31: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m. No show Friday, April 25. There’s an added 3 p.m. matinee on closing day, Saturday, May 31. Performances are $15-$52.

Theater Wit is located at 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Purchase tickets online at SGTheatre.org, call the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150, or purchase in person at Theater Wit. For group discounts, email groupsales@shatteredglobe.org or call (773) 770-0333. Visit SGTheatre.org for more information, including content warnings and exclusive news. Follow the company on social media @shatteredglobe on Facebook and Instagram. 

A Tale of Two Cities features the best of casts: Shattered Globe ensemble members Demetra Dee, Daria Harper and Jazzma Pryor, along with Diego Vazquez Gomez, Glenn Obrero, Jeff Rodriguez, William Anthony Sebastian Rose II and Penelope Walker.

There is also prodigious strength in the production team: Mikael Burke (director), Brendan Pelsue (adaptor), Milo Bue and Eleanor Kahn (co-set designers), Kotryna Hilko (costume designer), Eric Watkins (lighting designer), Christopher Kriz (original music and sound designer), Ab Rieve (props designer), Maya Vinice Prentiss (intimacy and fight director), Joel Willison (assistant director), Erik Tylkowski (production manager), Jean E. Compton (stage manager) and Emily Nicholas (assistant stage manager).

Access Services:

Audio Description and a Touch Tour for patrons who are blind or have low vision will be offered on Friday, May 23. The Touch Tour begins at 6:15 p.m., show at 7:30 p.m. 

Shattered Globe will offer a captioned performance on Sunday, May 25 at 3 p.m. for patrons with hearing loss. Assisted Listening Devices are available for all performances.

Theater Wit is wheelchair accessible, and all patrons with disability needs are invited to purchase $20 access tickets with the code “ACCESS20” at Theater Wit’s checkout page. Please email boxoffice@theaterwit.org to ensure the theater can reserve the right seat for your access needs. 

Company biographies

Brendan Pelsue (playwright, he/him) is thrilled to be making his Shattered Globe debut. Past Chicago area credits include productions of his play Wellesley Girl at Compass Theatre and North Central College. Other credits include Hagoromo at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, A Tale of Two Cities at The Alliance, Don Juan at Westport Country Playhouse, and Read to Me at Portland Stage. He has been a MacDowell Fellow, a Château de la Napoule artist in residence, and the John C. Grace Memorial Playwright in Residence at Green College, University of British Columbia. Originally from Newburyport, MA, he received his BA from Brown University and his MFA from Yale School of Drama. He teaches at Rutgers University. brendanpelsue.com

Mikael Burke (director, he/him/anything respectful) is a Black, queer director, deviser, and educator based in Chicago. A Princess Grace Award-winner in Theatre (2017) and Jeff Award-winning director (2024), his recent credits include Milo Imagines the World by Christian Magby, Christian Albright and Terry Guest (rolling world premiere: Chicago Children’s Theatre and Children’s Theatre Company, Minneapolis), King James by Rajiv Joseph (Forward Theatre, Madison), Oak by Terry Guest (Urbanite Theatre, World Premiere), Othello by William Shakespeare (Theatreworks Colorado Springs), Short Shakes! Romeo & Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Notes from the Field by Anna Deveare Smith (TimeLine Theatre, Chicago Premiere), The Salvagers by Harrison David Rivers (Yale Repertory Theatre, World Premiere), Tambo & Bones by Dave Harris (Refracted Theatre Company, Chicago Premiere, winner of eight Jeff Awards), Blues for an Alabama Sky by Pearl Cleage (Remy Bumppo Theatre Company), Clyde’s by Lynn Nottage (Theaterworks Hartford), and The Magnolia Ballet by Terry Guest (About Face Theatre, Chicago Premiere, winner of two Jeff Awards). Burke has also been recognized with a Black Theatre Alliance Award for Directing (2022), and as one of Newcity Magazine’s 50 Players of Chicago in 2023 and 2025. Burke is an artistic associate at Remy Bumppo Theatre Company, as well as at About Face Theatre, where he previously served as associate artistic director. He’s also an adjunct faculty member at DePaul University and Roosevelt University, and a member of SDC. Burke earned his MFA in Directing from The Theatre School at DePaul University. mklburke.com

Charles Dickens (author, A Tale of Two Cities, 1812-1870) was born in Landport, Hampshire, during the new industrial age. His father was a clerk in the Navy pay office, who was well paid but often ended in financial troubles. In 1814 Dickens moved to London, and then to Chatham, where he received some education. He worked in a London blacking factory, while his family was in Marsgalea debtor's prison. In 1824 - 27 he studied at Wellington House Academy, London and at Mr. Dawson's school. From 1827 to 1828 he was a law office clerk and then worked as a shorthand reporter at Doctor's Commons. He later wrote for True Son, Mirror of Parliament, Morning Chronicle, Monthly Magazine, The Evening Chronicle and Bentley's Miscellany. By the 1840's Dickens was editor of the London Daily News. His career as a fiction writer started in 1833 when his short stories and essays appeared in periodicals. His novels first appeared in monthly installments and included Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickelby, and Old Curiosity Shop, David Copperfield, Bleak House, A Tale of Two Cities (1859), Great Expectations, and his unfinished mystery novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood. In the 1840's Dickens spent much time travelling and campaigning against many of the social injustices of his time and he gave talks and readings, wrote pamphlets, plays and letters. In the 1850's Dickens was founding editor of Household World and its successor All the Year Round (1859-70). 

Demetra Dee (Actor 3, she/her) is a Shattered Globe ensemble member, where her credits include Be Here Now and Stew. Other Chicago credits include Little Women (Northlight Theatre), Corduroy (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Relentless (TimeLine Theatre), The Penelopiad, The Nacirema Society and Relentless (Goodman Theatre), Chlorine Sky (Steppenwolf), Cullud Wattah (Victory Gardens), The Last Pair of Earlies and Crumbs from the Table of Joy (U/S performed, Raven Theatre), Middle Passage (Lifeline Theatre), Comfort Stew and Migration (ETA Creative Arts Foundation), The Colored Museum (Pegasus Theatre Chicago) and The Greenbook (Chicago Dramatists). TV credits include Power Book IV: Force (Starz) and The Bear (FX). Dee earned her BFA in Theater at East Carolina University.

Daria Harper (Actor 1, she/her), born and raised in Los Angeles, is a Shattered Globe ensemble member. Her SGT credits include Mill Fire, Crime and Punishment, Rose Tattoo, Hannah and Martin and Rasheeda Speaking, for which she received a Jeff Nomination for supporting actor in 2022. Other credits include Spoon River Anthology (Provisions Theatre), The Hat Maker’s Wife (Evolve Theatre), Devil in the Dirt (Red Twist Theatre), Tartuffe (Bo Ho Theatre), The Golden Dragon (Sideshow Theatre), The Cyclist (Genesis Theatrical Productions), Never a Bridesmaid (Polarity Ensemble Theater) and Fuddy Meers (Ka-Tet Theatre). Film credits include El Salvador (director Oliver Stone).  Harper holds a BFA in acting from Carnegie Mellon University, an MFA in Acting from the University of Virginia, and has been a London-trained Alexander Technique Teacher since 1982.

Jazzma Pryor (Actor 6, she/her) is an ensemble member with Shattered Globe Theatre where her credits include Jump, STEW, Hannah and Martin and Crime and Punishment. Other Chicago credits include Until The Flood, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf, The Light, Twilight: Los Angeles,1992, Sunset Baby and From The Mississippi Delta (Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre), Doubt: A Parable (Irish Theatre of Chicago), Phillis: The American Revolutionary (Redd Opera), Insurrection: Holding History (Stage Left Theatre), Marisol (Promethean Theatre) and Prelude to a Kiss (The Comrades). Pryor has a M.S. in Leadership for Creative Enterprises from Northwestern University and B.A. in Production Studies in Theatre from Clemson University. 

Diego Vazquez Gomez (Actor 2, he/they) is a proud Mexican and Argentinian theater artist from Miami and recent Chicago transfer making his Shattered Globe debut. Other Chicago credits include The Full Monty (Paramount Theatre), A Year with Frog and Toad and The Beatrix Potter Holiday Tea Party (Chicago Children’s Theater) and A Christmas Carol (Drury Lane Theater). Other credits include Romeo y Julieta Limeño (National Black Theatre Festival) and Heathers and The Motherf*cker with the Hat (UNCSA). TV credits include Chicago Stories (WTTW). Gomez graduated with a BFA in Acting from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2023.

Glenn Obrero (Actor 4, he/him) is also making his Shattered Globe debut. He was last seen in Ironbound at Raven Theatre. Other credits include The Great Leap (Steppenwolf Theatre), The Chinese Lady (Timeline Theatre), 20,000 Leagues under the Seas (Lookingglass) and Wipeout (Rivendell). Film credits include When Cats Fly. TV credits include Chicago Fire (NBC) and nExt (FOX). Obrero is an ensemble member of Rivendell Theatre. He graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design with a BFA in Acting.

Jeff Rodriguez (Actor 7, she/her, he/him) previously appeared at Shattered Globe Theatre in last season’s production of Jump. Other Chicago credits include All's Well That Ends Well, As You Like It, Shakespeare in Love, Richard III and The Comedy of Errors (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Support Group for Men and Revolutions (Goodman Theatre), 33 to Nothing (A Red Orchid Theatre), The Legend of Georgia McBride (Northlight Theatre), Verboten (The House Theatre of Chicago), Zurich (Steep Theatre), One Came Home (Lifeline Theatre), Romeo and Juliet (Teatro Vista), All My Sons (Eclectic Theatre Co.) and Amadeus (Boho Theatre). Regional credits include As You Like It (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre) and Richard III, Twelfth Night and The Tempest (Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre). TV credits include Mayor of Kingstown (Paramount), Chicago Fire, Chicago Med and Crisis (NBC), and Proven Innocent (FOX). Rodriguez is a graduate of The School at Steppenwolf and Illinois State University.

William Anthony Sebastian Rose II (Actor 8, he/him) is also making his Shattered Globe debut. Chicago credits include Inanimate (Theater Wit), The Love Object (The Story Theater), Tambo & Bones (Refracted Theater Co., Jeff Award Winner Performance in a Principal Role in a play), Fences (American Blues Theater, Jeff Award Best Production of a Play) and The Tragedy of King Christophe (The House Theater Chicago, Black Theater Alliance Award Winner Best Leading Actor in a Play). Regional credits include Oak (Urbanite Theater) and A Christmas Carol (Farmers Alley Theater).

Penelope Walker’s (Actor 5, she/her) many credits include A Christmas Carol, Inherit The Wind, The Story, Crowns and Wit (Goodman Theatre), Purpose and Don DeLillo’s Love Lies Bleeding (Steppenwolf and The Kennedy Center), Mother Of The Maid, Into The Breeches, Curve Of Departure, Eclipsed, Gee’s Bend and Bee-luther-Hatchee (Northlight Theatre), The House That Will Not Stand and No One As Nasty (Victory Gardens), Life Sucks and J. Nicole Brooks’ Black Diamond: The Years the Locusts Have Eaten (Lookingglass), Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England (Theater Wit), Love & Information (Remy Bumppo), We’re Gonna Be Okay, The Project(s), Agnes of God, Doubt and The People’s Temple (American Theater Company), Will You Stand Up? (Erasing the Distance), Laura Jacqmin’s 10 Virgins and Lydia R. Diamond’s Voyeurs de Venus (Chicago Dramatists), Omnium Gatherum (Next Theatre), Chris-T (MPAACT), The Clink (Rivendell Theatre) and Shakin’ the Mess Outta Misery (Chicago Theatre Company). Walker created and starred in her own solo pieces, Daddy’s Girl and How I Jack Master Funked the Sugar in My Knee Caps! She has appeared regionally with the Alliance Theatre, Arena Stage, Hartford Stage and the Alley Theatre. Films include Olympia, Dubious Ruffians and Flowers. TV credits include The Bear, Chicago Med, Chicago Justice and Chicago Fire (NBC), South Side (Comedy Central), and Work In Progress and Boss (Showtime). 

About Shattered Globe Theatre

Shattered Globe Theatre seeks to redefine what it means to be an ensemble theatre, discover new connections between story, artist and audience, and explore drama from bold, challenging perspectives. 

Shattered Globe Theatre 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 44 Jeff Awards and 118 Jeff Award nominations, as well as the acclaim of critics and audiences alike. 

Guided by Producing Artistic Director Sandy Shinner, Shattered Globe’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 its 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’s Ensemble has 29 members: Judy Anderson, Louis Contey, David Dastmalchian, Demetra Dee, Joe Forbrich, Christina Gorman, Daria Harper, Tina M. Jach, Rebecca Jordan, Steve Kleinedler, Vivian Knouse, AmBer Montgomery, Tina Muñoz Pandya, Eileen Niccolai, Jazzma Pryor, Hailey Rakowiecki, Deanna Reed-Foster, Linda Reiter, Nate Santana, Drew Schad, Adam Schulmerich, Leslie Ann Sheppard, Sandy Shinner, Joe Sikora, Shelley Strasser, Devonte E. Washington, Sarah Jo White, Joseph Wiens and Brad Woodard.

SGT’s Artistic Associates now number 20 including Daniela Colucci, Mikey Gray, Lawrence Grimm, Darren Jones, Christopher Kriz, Jason Lynch, Elizabeth Margolius, Kelsey Melvin, Tim Newell, Jane Nix, Aila Peck, Steve Peebles, David Antonio Reed, Jasmine Cheri Rush, Angie Shriner, Abbey Smith, Becca Smith, Michael Trudeau, Ayanna Wimberley and Austin Winter.

Brenda and James Grusecki are the Lead Season Sponsors of Shattered Globe Theatre. SGT is also supported by generous grants from The Bayless Family Foundation, The Shulman-Rochambeau Charitable Foundation, Brenda and James Grusecki, Carol P. Eastin, The Shubert Foundation, a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation and the Illinois Arts Council.

Visit SGTheatre.org for subscriptions, tickets and information, and follow the company @shatteredglobe on Facebook and Instagram. 



Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Shattered Globe Theatre Presents Lobby Hero at Theater Wit January 24-March 1, 2025

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Shattered Globe Theatre’s 34th season continues with

Lobby Hero

January 24-March 1 

at Theater Wit

A cop and a night watchman get tangled in the blurred lines between right and wrong in Shattered Globe's revival of Kenneth Lonergan’s dark comedy 


Expect fireworks when Shattered Globe Artistic Producer Nate Santana directs Lonergan’s “masterpiece…the best drama, the best comedy and the best romance of the year, all rolled into one” (TimeOut New York). 

Shattered Globe Theatre’s 34th season continues with the comic masterpiece Lobby Hero by (top, from left) Kenneth Lonergan, directed by Nate Santana, January 24-March 1, 2025 at Theater Wit. The cast features (bottom, from left) Shattered Globe Ensemble Member Adam Schulmerich as Bill, Emma Jo Boyden as Dawn, Elliot Esquivel as Jeff and Terence Sims as William.

Charm, romance and humor abound in the 2001 comedic masterpiece Lobby Hero by Kenneth Lonergan, the Academy Award-winning screenwriter of Manchester by the Sea. 

Shattered Globe Theatre’s first production of 2025, Lobby Hero runs January 24-March 1 at Theater Wit. Shattered Globe Artistic Producer Nate Santana directs Lonergan’s “masterpiece…the best drama, the best comedy and the best romance of the year, all rolled into one” (TimeOut New York). 

It’s the graveyard shift at a mid-rise apartment lobby in Manhattan. A rudderless security guard, his demanding supervisor, a rookie cop, and her self-centered partner are forced to navigate the question of whether doing the wrong thing for the right reason can ever be justified. Confronting complex moral dilemmas, their choices reveal the blurred lines between right and wrong.

"Motives come in every shade but black and white," wrote Ben Brantley of the New York Times, calling Lobby Hero a "combustible brew of impulses.”  

“These characters all live in a world of light and shadow as they chase their dreams,” said director Nate Santana. “Filled with irreverence and sincerity, charm and ugliness, heart and animosity, two opposing ideas often show up at the same time, in the same place, with the same person, asking each to wrestle with the idea that both could possibly be true. When they look in the mirror what will they see? And what will they accept about themselves as they figure out what kind of person they want to be?”


The cast features (from left) Emma Jo Boyden as Dawn, Elliot Esquivel as Jeff, Shattered Globe Ensemble Member Adam Schulmerich as Bill, and Terence Sims as William. Credit: Jeff Kuryscz


Lobby Hero features (from left) Shattered Globe Ensemble Member Adam Schulmerich as Bill, Terence Sims as William, Elliot Esquivel as Jeff and Emma Jo Boyden as Dawn. Credit: Jeff Kuryscz

Shattered Globe’s new take on Lonergan’s dark comedy features SGT Ensemble Member Adam Schulmerich as Bill, and three Chicago actors all making their Shattered Globe debuts: Emma Jo Boyden as Dawn, Elliot Esquivel as Jeff and Terence Sims as William. The production team includes José Manuel Díaz-Soto (set designer), Uriel Gomez (costume designer), Ellie Fey (lighting designer) Mariah Bennett (props designer) Chris Kriz (sound designer) Sammi Grant (dialect coach) Julia Farrell Diefenbach (dramaturgy) Isabelle Valet (assistant stage manager) Lucy Whipp (production manager) Ronald Hale (technical director) and Tina Jach (production stage manager). 

The first preview of Lobby Hero, Friday, January 24 at 7:30 p.m., is Pay-What-You-Can. Previews continue Saturday, January 25 at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, January 26 at 3 p.m, and Wednesday, January 29 at 7:30 p.m. Previews are $10-$25. No show Friday, January 31. Performances run through March 1: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m. There’s an added 3 p.m. matinee on closing day, Saturday, March 1. Performances are $15-$52. For group discounts, email groupsales@shatteredglobe.org or call (773) 770-0333.

Theater Wit is located at 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Tickets are $10-$52. Purchase tickets online at SGTheatre.org, call the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150, or purchase in person at Theater Wit.

Access: 

Theater Wit is wheelchair accessible, and all patrons with disability needs are invited to purchase $20 access tickets with the code “ACCESS20” at Theater Wit’s checkout page. Please email boxoffice@theaterwit.org to ensure we can reserve the right seat for your access needs. Please do not use this code if you do not require these services. Go to SGTheatre.org and see the Accessible Ticketing info to find out about our Waived Ticket Program.

Assisted Listening Devices are available for all performances.

Audio Description and a Touch Tour will be offered on Friday, February 21. The Touch Tour begins at 6:15 p.m., show at 7:30 p.m.

Open Captions will be provided at the 3 p.m. matinee on Sunday, January 23.

Visit SGTheatre.org for more information, including content warnings, news of special events, accessible and waived ticket programs. Find and follow the company on social media @shatteredglobe on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Shattered Globe’s Lobby Hero features (from left) Elliot Esquivel as Jeff and Terence Sims as William. Credit Jeff Kuryscz

Shattered Globe’s Lobby Hero features (top, from left) Shattered Globe Ensemble Member Adam Schulmerich as Bill, Emma Jo Boyden as Dawn, (bottom) Elliot Esquivel as Jeff and Terence Sims as William.

Company biographies

Kenneth Lonergan (playwright, Lobby Hero) is an acclaimed American playwright, screenwriter and director known for his character-driven dramas that capture the intricacies of everyday life. Born and raised in Manhattan, Lonergan was encouraged to write from a young age, eventually pursuing dramatic writing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. His breakthrough play, This Is Our Youth (1996), explores the disillusionment of young people in the 1980s and marked the start of his successful theater career. Other notable plays include The Waverly Gallery (2000) and Lobby Hero (2001), both of which later had successful Broadway revivals. Lonergan's film career includes the Oscar-nominated You Can Count on Me (2000) and Manchester by the Sea (2016), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. His work, whether on stage or screen, is celebrated for its deep empathy and nuanced portrayal of complex human experiences.

Nate Santana (director, Lobby Hero, Artistic Producer, Shattered Globe Theatre, he/him) joined the company as an Ensemble Member in 2018. For three years, he taught and directed the Protege Program at SGT as well as produced and oversaw the inaugural Global Playwriting Series (GPS), which received over 150 submissions in its first year. Theatre credits include Marvin’s Room (Shattered Globe); Ironbound (Raven Theatre); The Thanksgiving Play (Steppenwolf); Legend of Georgia McBride, Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley (Northlight); Frankenstein, Sense and Sensibility (Indiana Repertory Theatre); SS! Romeo and Juliet, SS! Twelfth Night (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); Balm in Gilead, Golden Boy (Griffin Theatre); The Abuelas, White Tie Ball, Momma’s Boyz (Teatro Vista); The Rainmaker (BoHo Theatre); References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot (Phoenix Theatre Indianapolis) and What Happened When, Slipping (the side project). Television credits include Chicago Med, Chicago PD, Suits and The Exorcist. Santana is also an Ensemble Member with Teatro Vista. He studied at the School at Steppenwolf, The Moscow Art Theatre, and received his BA from Valparaiso University.

Adam Schulmerich (Bill, he/him) has been a Shattered Globe ensemble member since 2023. His SGT credits include Becky Nurse of Salem, A View From the Bridge, Rasheeda Speaking and Five Mile Lake. Other Chicago credits include The Spirit of ’76 (The Agency); Scissortail (Adapt Theatre); Inventing Van Gogh (Strange Bedfollows Theatre); Wild (Kid Brooklyn); and Ponypool (Strawdog Theatre).




Emma Jo Boyden (Dawn, she/her) is making her Shattered Globe Theatre debut. Chicago credits include Arsenic and Old Lace (Court Theatre); Henry V and Hamlet (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre); Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Drury Lane Theatre); Georgiana & Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley (Northlight Theatre); A Recipe for Disaster (Windy City Playhouse); Sex Tips for Straight Women from a Gay Man (Greenhouse Theater Center); La Boheme and Don Giovanni (Lyric Opera of Chicago).






Elliot Esquivel (Jeff, he/him), born and raised in Austin, Texas, is making his SGT debut. Chicago credits include Manic Monologues (WaterTower Theatre) and Alice by Heart (Chicago's Kokandy Productions).








Terence Sims (William, he/him) is also working with Shattered Globe for the first time. Chicago credits include Toni Stone (Goodman Theatre); Paris (Steep Theatre); Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Writers Theatre); Crumbs From the Table of Joy (Raven Theatre); Damascus (Strawdog Theatre); Barbecue (Strawdog Theatre); and Monster (Steppenwolf Theatre). Regional credits include Broke-o-logy (B Street Theatre) and To Kill A Mockingbird (Children’s Theatre Madison).






Up next: A bold new adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities directed by Mikael Burke

It’s the best of times, and it’s the worst of times. Still today. So what better time to take a new look at A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens? Shattered Globe will present the Midwest premiere of Brendan Pelsue’s bold new adaptation of Dickens’ classic tale of revolution. Acclaimed Chicago director Mikael Burke will make his Shattered Globe debut staging this new riff on Dickens’ classic, chillingly timely novel about privilege, poverty and political adaptation.

A Tale of Two Cities may be 165 years old, but with Burke at the helm, Shattered Globe’s new production will remind us that some things never change. Or, can they? In a society where the gap between the rich and poor widens, and the cries for revolution grow louder, one can hope. Performances of A Tale of Two Cities are April 18 – May 31, 2025. 


About Shattered Globe Theatre

Shattered Globe Theatre seeks to redefine what it means to be an ensemble theatre, discover new connections between story, artist and audience, and explore drama from bold, challenging perspectives. 

Shattered Globe Theatre 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 44 Jeff Awards and 118 Jeff Award nominations, as well as the acclaim of critics and audiences alike. 

Guided by Producing Artistic Director Sandy Shinner, Shattered Globe’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 its 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’s Ensemble has 29 members: Judy Anderson, Louis Contey, David Dastmalchian, Demetra Dee, Joe Forbrich, Christina Gorman, Daria Harper, Tina M. Jach, Rebecca Jordan, Steve Kleinedler, Vivian Knouse, AmBer Montgomery, Tina Muñoz Pandya, Eileen Niccolai, Jazzma Pryor, Hailey Rakowiecki, Deanna Reed-Foster, Linda Reiter, Nate Santana, Drew Schad, Adam Schulmerich, Leslie Ann Sheppard, Sandy Shinner, Joe Sikora, Shelley Strasser, Devonte E. Washington, Sarah Jo White, Joseph Wiens and Brad Woodard.

SGT’s Artistic Associates now number 20 including Daniela Colucci, Mikey Gray, Lawrence Grimm, Darren Jones, Christopher Kriz, Jason Lynch, Elizabeth Margolius, Kelsey Melvin, Tim Newell, Jane Nix, Aila Peck, Steve Peebles, David Antonio Reed, Jasmine Cheri Rush, Angie Shriner, Abbey Smith, Becca Smith, Michael Trudeau, Ayanna Wimberley and Austin Winter.

Shattered Globe Theatre is partially supported and funded by generous grants from The Bayless Family Foundation, The Shulman-Rochambeau Charitable Foundation, Brenda and James Grusecki, Carol P. Eastin, The Shubert Foundation, a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation and the Illinois Arts Council.

Visit SGTheatre.org for subscriptions, tickets and information, and follow the company @shatteredglobe on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 


Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Adults-only holiday fun: Who's Holiday! brings R-rated Cindy-Lou Who back to Chicago’s Theater Wit, Nov. 29-Dec. 29, 2024

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar 

Adults-only holiday fun:

Who's Holiday! 

brings R-rated Cindy-Lou Who back to Chicago’s Theater Wit

Nov. 29-Dec. 29

Run time is 65 minutes, no intermission. For mature audiences only!

Veronica Garza returns for her Jeff-nominated role as Cindy-Lou Who, now 40, flirty, and ready to spill the tea about the Grinch.

Veronica Garza, Jeff-nominated as Cindy-Lou Who in Theater Wit’s Who’s Holiday!, back for her fourth season, November 29-December 29. 

Credit for all Photos: Charles Osgood, unless otherwise noted.


Remember little Cindy-Lou Who, who was not more than two? 

What became of that tot, after that Grinch and what-not?

Find out when Cindy-Lou Who, now 40, returns to Chicago’s Theater Wit for her fourth season in Who’s Holiday!, a comedy with a twist of rhyme, November 29-December 29, 2024.

Chicago theater star Veronica Garza returns to reprise her title role, holding court from Cindy-Lou Who’s holiday bedazzled mobile home at the base of Mount Crumpit.

First Cindy-Lou welcomes audiences inside. Next she plies them with snacks and shots. Only then does she reveal the true story of the twisted turns Cindy-Lou's life took after her Christmas Eve encounter with the Grinch.

It’s all told in R-rated Seussian rhyme, so…

Come join us for this grown-up Who's holiday fete!

Leave your kids at home (that's the safest bet.)

And try to catch up with Cindy-Lou Who's life,

She's seen some things due to her own grinch-y strife.

But nothing can dampen the holiday cheer:

Not vodka, not Rudolph, not even flat beer.

With a song in her heart, and a pipe full of weed

She'll celebrate trailer park living at need

Her wisdom dispensed with a shot and a leer.

For this is a holiday tale of such vision...

With smoking and drinking and gossip ...

...and prison.



Veronica Garza, Jeff nominated for her role as Cindy-Lou Who, returns for Theater Wit's fourth annual adults only holiday show, Who's Holiday! Credit: Charles Osgood

“A hell of a lot of fun,” raved the Chicago Reader. “Garza is a comic genius,” wrote Chicago Theater Review, hailing Who’s Holiday! “a very funny, often poignant production guided with panache by an excellent director.” 

That director is Christopher Pazdernik, who returns to direct Wit’s fourth outing of this hilarious, heartfelt holiday comedy by Matthew Lombardo. Also back is Angela Weber Miller’s Jeff Award-winning, Seuss-inspired recreation of Cindy-Lou Who’s holiday-bedazzled mobile home. Designers include Shelley Strasser, lights; Uriel Gomez, costumes; Lonnae Hickman, props, and Matthew R. Chase, sound and production manager.

The first performance and press opening night is Friday, November 29 at 7 p.m. Shows continue Saturday, November 30 at 7 p.m..; Sunday, December 1 at 3 p.m.; Monday, December 2 at 7 p.m.; Thursday, December 5 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 6 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, December 7 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Sunday, December 8 at 3 p.m.; Thursday, December 12 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 13 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, December 14 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Sunday, December 15 at 3 p.m.; Thursday, December 19 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 20 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Saturday, December 21 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Sunday, December 22 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Monday, December 23 at 7 p.m.; Thursday, December 26 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 27 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Saturday, December 28 at 7 p.m.; and Sunday, December 29 at 3 p.m. 

Tickets are $15-$45. Tickets for children 12 and under are $180. Purchase tickets at theaterwit.org or call the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150.

Theater Wit is located at 1229 W. Belmont Ave., in the Belmont Theatre District in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Convenient parking is available for $8 across the street from the theater in the lot behind Kubo restaurant (pay at the Theater Wit box office.) Neighborhood street parking is available, as are private paid lots (tip: book ahead and at a discount with Spothero). Theater Wit is also accessible via the CTA 77 Belmont bus, and is three blocks west of the CTA Belmont Red/Brown/Purple line stop. 

To learn more, visit theaterwit.org or follow the company on Facebook and Instagram. 

Veronica Garza returns as an adult Cindy-Lou Who in Theater Wit's 2024 remount of Who's Holiday! Credit: Charles Osgood


Who’s Holiday! Who’s Who:

(from left) Veronica Garza plays Cindy-Lou Who in Theater Wit’s return engagement of

Who’s Holiday!  by Matthew Lombardo, directed by Christopher Pazdernik.

Veronica Garza (Cindy-Lou Who, she/her/hers) returns for her fourth year as Cindy-Lou Who, a role that earned her a Jeff Nomination, Best Actor in 2021. She also performed at Theatre Wit in Underscore Theatre’s Tonya and Nancy: A Rock Opera, for which she received a Jeff Award for her role as both Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan's mothers. Other roles include Georgie in The Full Monty, Rosalie Mullins, School of Rock (Jeff nomination, Best Supporting Actor) and the Deputy in Groundhog Day (Paramount), Roz in 9 to 5 (Firebrand), Sister Amnesia in Nunsense (Milwaukee Rep), Babs in Miracle (Royal George), Prudie in Pump Boys and Dinettes (Theatre at the Center and Timberlake Playhouse), The Homeless Lady in A New Brain (Theo Ubique), Lucy in A Charlie Brown Christmas (Broadway Playhouse) and the Fortune Teller in Sideshow (Porchlight).  

Christopher Pazdernik (director, any pronouns) made his Wit debut with Who’s Holiday! He is Producing Director for Theo, where his credits include Assassins, Godspell and 8-TRACK: The Sounds of the 70s. Previously, Pazdernik was artistic director for three seasons of Refuge Theatre Project (Jeff Awards, Best Director and Best Production of a Musical, High Fidelity), and he has had a long association with Porchlight Music Theatre, including directing eight Porchlight Revisits productions and three years working in producing, casting and company management. He recently staged The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and Avenue Q for Music Theatre Works. Also an openly HIV+ artist, Pazdernik is the founder and producer of Belting for Life, an annual benefit concert for Howard Brown Health, and co-captain of Team Option Up! for AIDS Run/Walk Chicago. 

Matthew Lombardo (playwright, he/him/his) Broadway: High with Kathleen Turner at the Booth Theatre and Looped starring Valerie Harper in a Tony-nominated performance at The Lyceum Theatre. Off-Broadway: Who’s Holiday! (with Lesli Margherita) at the Westside Theatre; Tea at Five (with Kate Mulgrew) at the Promenade Theatre; Mother and Child (with Ann Wedgeworth) at Second Stage; End of the World Party at the 47th Street Theatre (director) and Guilty Innocence at The Actors’ Playhouse. His work has been produced at such prestigious theaters as Hartford Stage, Cleveland Playhouse, American Repertory Theatre, Seattle Rep, Arena Stage, Pasadena Playhouse, Cincinnati Playhouse, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and others. Television credits include Another World (WGA Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Writing). As a producer, he has presented concerts throughout the country for Broadway legends such as Carol Channing, Patti LuPone, Tommy Tune, Bernadette Peters, Barbara Cook, Billy Porter, Betty Buckley, Andrea McArdle and Faith Prince.

Who’s Holiday! returns to Theater Wit not without controversy. In 2017, Lombardo was locked in a legal battle with Dr. Seuss Enterprises over accusations of copyright infringement, delaying the play’s New York premiere for nearly a year. A U.S. District Court eventually ruled in Lombardo’s favor, citing his depiction of an adult Cindy-Lou Who living in a trailer on Mount Crumpit as “fair use.” Freed of red tape, Who’s Holiday! went on to be hailed “a raunchy riff on Dr. Seuss’s yuletide tale” (New York Times) that “dares to be as tasteless as possible while replicating Seuss’s trademark rhythms” (Time Out New York).

About Theater Wit, Chicago’s “Smart Art” theater

As a production company, Theater Wit is the premier smart art theater in Chicago, producing humorous, challenging, and intelligent plays that speak with a vibrant and contemporary theatrical voice.

As an institution, Theater Wit seeks to be the hub of the Chicago neighborhood theater scene. Led by Artistic Director Jeremy Wechsler, Wit brings together Chicago’s best storefront theater companies in its three, 99-seat spaces, where audiences find a smorgasbord of excellent productions, see the work of a parade of talented artists, and mingle with audiences from all over Chicago.

A great way to show support for Chicago storefront theater is to purchase a Theater Wit Membership. For a low monthly fee of $35 – often less than the price of a single ticket – or $25 for students, and $62 for a dual membership - Theater Wit members see as many shows as they want on the company’s three stages, year round. Sign up at theaterwit.org/boxoffice/membership.


Tuesday, October 31, 2023

Hilarious Who's Holiday! back Nov. 24-Dec 30 at Theater Wit

 

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Ever wondered what happened after 
The Grinch met Cindy Lou Who?

For mature audiences only!

Now 40, Cindy Lou Who is back at Theater Wit to tell how her life took a sordid turn after her Christmas Eve encounter with everyone's favorite mean, green furry outcast. I caught this hilarious solo show the first year it opened and highly recommend it. 

Veronica Garza returns to her Jeff-nominated role as Cindy Lou Who, who, in R-rated Seussian rhyme, welcomes audiences inside her mobile home, plies them with snacks and shots, and shares the wild turn her life took after she met The Grinch.

Directed by Christopher Pazdernik


“A hell of a lot of fun" 
Chicago Reader 

Hilarious Who's Holiday! back by popular demand! 

40-year-old Cindy Lou Who returns to recall the sordid events after she met the Grinch, Nov. 24-Dec 30 at Theater Wit

Veronica Garza, Jeff nominated as Cindy Lou Who in Theater Wit’s Who’s Holiday! by Matthew Lombardo, directed by Christopher Pazdernik, is back for her third season, 
Nov 24-Dec 30, 2023. Credit: Charles Osgood


Cindy Lou Who, now 40, holds court from her trailer home, retelling the story of the sordid events after she met the Grinch in Who’s Holiday!, Theater Wit’s smash hit holiday show, back for the season, November 24-December 30. Opening is Friday, November 24 at 7 p.m.

Chicago theater star Veronica Garza returns to her Jeff-nominated role as Cindy Lou Who, who, in R-rated Seussian rhyme, welcomes audiences inside her trailer home, plies them with snacks and shots, and ultimately shares the untold story of the twisted turns her life took following her Christmas Eve encounter with a green furry outcast. 

“A hell of a lot of fun,” wrote the Chicago Reader

“Garza is a comic genius,” raved Chicago Theater Review, hailing Who’s Holiday! “a very funny, often poignant production guided with panache by an excellent director.” 

That director is Christopher Pazdernik, who returns to direct Wit’s third outing of this hilarious, heartfelt holiday comedy by Matthew Lombardo. Also back is Angela Weber Miller’s Jeff Award-winning, Seuss-inspired recreation of Cindy Lou Who’s holiday-bedazzled mobile home. Designers include Shelley Strasser, lights; Uriel Gomez, costumes; Lonnae Hickman, props, and Matthew R. Chase, sound and production manager.

Veronica Garza, Jeff nominated for her portrayal last holiday season as an adult 
Cindy Lou Who, returns for Theater Wit's 2023 remount of Who's Holiday! 
Credit: Charles Osgood


Shows run Saturday, November 25 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Sunday, November 26 at 3 p.m.; Thursday, November 30 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 1 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, December 2 at 7 p.m.; Sunday, December 3 at 3 p.m.; Monday, December 4 at 7 p.m.; Thursday, December 7 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 8 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, December 9 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Sunday, December 10 at 3 p.m.; Thursday, December 14 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 15 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Saturday, December 16 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Sunday, December 17 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Wednesday, December 20 at 7 p.m.; Thursday, December 21 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 22 at 7 p.m. and 
9 p.m.; Saturday, December 23 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Tuesday, December 26 at 7 p.m.; Wednesday, December 27 at 7 p.m.; Thursday, December 28 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 29 at 7 p.m.; and Saturday, December 30 at 7 p.m. Run time is 65 minutes, no intermission. For mature audiences only.

Tickets are $39-$48. Purchase tickets at theaterwit.org or call the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150

Theater Wit is located at 1229 W. Belmont Ave., in the Belmont Theatre District in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Convenient parking is available for $8 across the street from the theater in the lot behind Kubo restaurant (pay at the Theater Wit box office.) Neighborhood street parking is available, as are private paid lots (tip: book ahead and at a discount with Spothero). Theater Wit is also accessible via the CTA 77 Belmont bus, and is three blocks west of the CTA Belmont Red/Brown/Purple line stop. 

To learn more, visit theaterwit.org or follow the company on FacebookInstagram and Twitter

Press play to watch and download video of 
Cindy Lou Who asking the audience, "remember me?"

Press play to screen and download video of Cindy Lou Who rapping in Who's Holiday!
More video clips here.

Veronica Garza returns as an adult Cindy Lou Who in Theater Wit's 
2023 remount of Who's Holiday! Credit: Charles Osgood


Christmas Day is in our grasp. Where’s the vodka? Glad you asked!
Veronica Garza returns as an adult Cindy Lou Who in Theater Wit's 
2023 remount of Who's Holiday! Credit: Charles Osgood


Be sure to stop by Theater Wit’s lobby bar for snacks, chocolates, a curated selection of beer, wine and soda, plus your pick of this year’s Who’s Holiday!-themed seasonal speciality drinks:

Cindy’s Little Helper (a dessert shot! $6) 
Fast and Delicious: Luxardo Cherry liqueur, Mozart Chocolate liqueur, whipped cream and a cherry

Who’sy Boozy Hot Chocolate ($12)
Hot & Sweet: Hot Cocoa, Peppermint Rumchata, Amaretto Liqueur, Whiskey Acres Bourbon, whipped cream, candy cane crumbles. 

Who-skey Sour ($12)
Sweet and Sour: Jameson, Plymouth Sloe Gin, House-infused Citrus Vodka, Rose’s Lime

The Snowplow ($12)
Creamy and Nutty Spices: Peppermint Rumchata, Shipwreck Coconut Rum

Krampusberry ($12)
Refreshingly Tart: Koval Cranberry Gin, North Shore Gin, Seltzer, Cinnamon stick

Spiced Apple Cider ($5)
Hot & Freshly Spiced: And could be freshly Spiked as well! For additional warmth: add any Liqueur +$4 (we like Koval Ginger) or Liquor +$6 (try the Four Roses small batch bourbon)
Cindy's Little Helper

Veronica Garza returns as an adult Cindy Lou Who in Theater Wit's 
2023 remount of Who's Holiday! Credit: Charles Osgood
Angela Weber Miller’s Jeff Award-winning mobile home set for 
Theater Wit's Who's Holiday! Photo: Charles Osgood

Who’s Holiday! Who’s Who:
(from left) Veronica Garza plays Cindy Lou Who in Theater Wit’s return engagement of 
Who’s Holiday!  by Matthew Lombardo, directed by Christopher Pazdernik.


Veronica Garza (Cindy Lou Who, she/her/hers) returns for her third year as Cindy Lou Who, a role that earned her a Jeff Nomination, Best Actor in 2021. She also performed at Theatre Wit in Underscore Theatre’s Tonya and Nancy: A Rock Opera, for which she received a Jeff Award for her role as both Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan's mothers. Other roles include Rosalie Mullins, School of Rock (Jeff nomination, Best Supporting Actor) and the Deputy in Groundhog Day (Paramount), Roz in 9 to 5 (Firebrand), Sister Amnesia in Nunsense (Milwaukee Rep), Babs in Miracle (Royal George), Prudie in Pump Boys and Dinettes (Theatre at the Center and Timberlake Playhouse), The Homeless Lady in A New Brain (Theo Ubique), Lucy in A Charlie Brown Christmas (Broadway Playhouse) and the Fortune Teller in Sideshow(Porchlight).  

Christopher Pazdernik (director, any pronouns) made his Wit debut with Who’s Holiday! He is Producing Director for Theo, where his credits include AssassinsGodspell and 8-TRACK: The Sounds of the 70s.Previously, Pazdernik was artistic director for three seasons of Refuge Theatre Project (Jeff Awards, Best Director and Best Production of a Musical, High Fidelity), and he has had a long association with Porchlight Music Theatre, including directing eight Porchlight Revisits productions and three years working in producing, casting and company management. He recently staged Avenue Q for Music Theatre Works. Also an openly HIV+ artist, Pazdernik is the founder and producer of Belting for Life, an annual benefit concert for Howard Brown Health, and co-captain of Team Option Up! for AIDS Run/Walk Chicago. 
Matthew Lombardo (playwright, he/him/his) Broadway: High with Kathleen Turner at the Booth Theatre and Looped starring Valerie Harper in a Tony-nominated performance at The Lyceum Theatre. Off-Broadway: Who’s Holiday! (with Lesli Margherita) at the Westside Theatre; Tea at Five (with Kate Mulgrew) at the Promenade Theatre; Mother and Child (with Ann Wedgeworth) at Second Stage; End of the World Party at the 47th Street Theatre (director) and Guilty Innocence at The Actors’ Playhouse. His work has been produced at such prestigious theaters as Hartford Stage, Cleveland Playhouse, American Repertory Theatre, Seattle Rep, Arena Stage, Pasadena Playhouse, Cincinnati Playhouse, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and others. Television credits include Another World (WGA Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Writing). As a producer, he has presented concerts throughout the country for Broadway legends such as Carol Channing, Patti LuPone, Tommy Tune, Bernadette Peters, Barbara Cook, Billy Porter, Betty Buckley, Andrea McArdle and Faith Prince.

Who’s Holiday! returns to Theater Wit not without controversy. In 2017, Lombardo was locked in a legal battle with Dr. Seuss Enterprises over accusations of copyright infringement, delaying the play’s New York premiere for nearly a year. A U.S. District Court eventually ruled in Lombardo’s favor, citing his depiction of an adult Cindy Lou Who living in a trailer on Mount Crumpit as “fair use.” 

Freed of red tape, Who’s Holiday! went on to be hailed “a raunchy riff on Dr. Seuss’s yuletide tale” (New York Times) that “dares to be as tasteless as possible while replicating Seuss’s trademark rhythms” (Time Out New York).


About Theater Wit, Chicago’s “Smart Art” theater 

As a production company, Theater Wit is the premier smart art theater in Chicago, producing humorous, challenging, and intelligent plays that speak with a vibrant and contemporary theatrical voice.

As an institution, Theater Wit seeks to be the hub of the Chicago neighborhood theater scene. Led by Artistic Director Jeremy Wechsler, Wit brings together Chicago’s best storefront theater companies in its three, 99-seat spaces, where audiences find a smorgasbord of excellent productions, see the work of a parade of talented artists, and mingle with audiences from all over Chicago.

Next spring, Theater Wit takes on a comic exploration of objectum sexuality with its Chicago premiere of Inanimate, Nick Robideau’s New York Times Critics Pick about a woman in love with a Dairy Queen sign, March 22-May 4, 2024. Press opening is Monday, April 1 at 7 p.m. 

A great way to show support for Chicago storefront theater is to purchase a Theater Wit Membership. For a low monthly fee of $35 – often less than the price of a single ticket – Theater Wit members see as many shows as they want on the company’s three stages, year round. Sign up at theaterwit.org/boxoffice/membership.

Note: Theater Wit follows the community masking guidelines recommended by the Chicago Department of Public Health and CDC. At press time, the community risk level is low, and mask use is optional. For updates, visit theaterwit.org/about/covid.

Google Analytics