REVIEW: Chicago Premiere of Hurricane Diane is A Dionysian Feast!!! Now Playing at Theater WIT Through July 31, 2022

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

HURRICANE DIANE 

TO HIT CHICAGO 

PREDICTED TO WREAK TRAGI-COMIC CLIMATE CHANGE HAVOC LIVE ON STAGE 

AT THEATER WIT THROUGH JULY 31 

Madeleine George’s 2019 Obie Award-winning Best Play is a hilarious evisceration of the blind eye we all turn to climate change, even (or especially) in our own backyards

(From left) Theater Wit's Chicago premiere of Hurricane Diane features Lori Myers as Pam, Carolyn Kruse as Carol, Kelli Simpkins as Diane, Jazmín Corona as Renee and Aneisa Hicks as Beth. Photo credit for all: Charles Osgood.

Hurricane Diane is a Chicago premiere by Madeleine George, writer of Theater Wit's past hits Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England and The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence and, now, for Hulu's Only Murders in the Building starring Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez.

Guest Review 

by Flo Manolis

Ahhh!!!! A Dionysian Feast!!!

"Hurricane Diane" by Madeline George, is a modern, witty, satirical comedy with a tragic ending! Diane (Kelli Simpkins-powerful-playful!!) is a landscaper seeking an earthly incarnation from a world doomed, to it's future demise/Inexistence by climate change.

Kelli Simpkins (left) plays Diane and Lori Myers is Pam

Carolyn Kruse (left) plays Carol and Kelli Simpkins is Diane

Diane is hired by Carol (Carolyn Kruse-stern) to design her "dream-HGTV- garden" in the cookie cutter homes in a cul-de-sac, she shares with her three neighbor friends. Diane tells her of the importance of "permaculture"-that Carol ABHORS.

(from left) Lori Myers, Aneisa Hicks and Jazmín Corona

Inherent to her "Mystery cult" of souls. Diane engages the three friends, (Lori Myers-hilarious!! Jazmin Corona-understated, Anesia Hicks-demure-strong vocal voice!!) and scandalizes in a sexual frenzied initiation- possessed in ecstasy by "The God that comes" to be her Maends. It brings joy and divine madness, as they are freed from their self consciousness, fears and oppressive restrains. She is their "Liberator", dancing, draped in ivy garlands. Still, she has to dominate Carol who is a holdout. With a looming hurricane, chaos ensues in a power struggle of wills!!! Destructon!!!

(from left) Lori Myers, Aneisa Hicks and Jazmín Corona

In a nod to traditional Greek theatre, The Maends in Crimson clothing and masks, chant hymns like a Greek chorus lamenting.

Jeremy Wechsler directed an entertaining, gut laughter inducing, applause after each scene and in between, production!! Stellar cast! Versatile stage design! Must see. Don't miss this! ★★★★ (out of 4).

Florence Manolis is a Greek American CPS elementary teacher/librarian, hairdresser, and theater/film fanatic who catches hundreds of Chicago shows annually. She volunteers at numerous film venues and theaters and has called Chicago home since she immigrated here from Greece in early elementary school. 

Kelli Simpkins plays Diane in Hurricane Diane, Theater Wit's new play about a butch lesbian gardener who just might be the Greek god Dionysus.

Hurricane Diane is a hilarious whirlwind of a play about a butch lesbian gardener who just might be the Greek god Dionysus, returned to stick a hot poker in contemporary society’s blind eye to climate change, starting with four housewives on a quiet New Jersey cul-de-sac.

Lori Myers (left) plays Pam and Kelli Simpkins is Diane 

The doomsday clock is already at 11 f**king 45. The flood waters are swelling on Jersey Shore. The Greek goddess Dionysus—in the guise of Diane, a lesbian permaculture landscape gardener—is staging a comeback to save the world from the ravages of climate change.

And where better to ignite a Bacchanalian frenzy than with four housewives living on a quiet cul-de-sac in Monmouth County, New Jersey?

Still, making maenads out of her lady neighbors proves more challenging than Diane could anticipate, as the forces of HGTV square off against the coming apocalypse.

Theater Wit Artistic Director Jeremy Wechsler directs this roof-raising evening about passion, lawns, pawpaw forests, Italian delis, curb appeal, hurricanes, and what happens when we are asked to go outside.

"You all want to believe me when I tell you that Madeleine George's Obie-award winning comedy is going to be the most fun you can have in a theater this summer. It's going to blow Theater Wit apart—and that's not actually hyperbole. Seriously, you want to see this one."

-Director Jeremy Wechsler

Artistic Director, Theater Wit

Tickets and information:

TheaterWit.org or (773) 975-8150

(from left) Hurricane Diane playwright Madeleine George and director Jeremy Wechsler. Kelli Simpkins plays Diane with Jazmín Corona (Renee) Aneisa Hicks (Beth), Carolyn Kruse (Carol) and Lori Myers (Pam).

Hurricane Diane is surging toward its Chicago debut, June 17-July 31, 2022 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. Tickets, $25-$48, are on sale now at TheaterWit.org or by calling the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150. 

Batten down the hatches for Theater Wit’s Hurricane Diane, because a category 4 hurricane has hit a quiet cul-de-sac in New Jersey, where the Greek god Dionysus has returned as a butch lesbian gardener to stick a hot poker in society’s blind eye to climate change. Carolyn Kruse (pictured) plays Carol. 

Hurricane Diane is a hilarious whirlwind of a play about a butch lesbian gardener who just might be the Greek god Dionysus, returned to stick a hot poker in contemporary society’s collective blind eye to climate change.

Hurricane Diane marks acclaimed playwright Madeleine George’s third collaboration with Theater Wit, where Chicago audiences and critics first enjoyed her plays Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England and The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence. Now George is writing for the hit Hulu series Only Murders in the Building starring Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez.

Theater Wit Artistic Director Jeremy Wechsler directs this roof-raising evening about passion, lawns, pawpaw forests, Italian delis, curb appeal, hurricanes, and what happens when we are asked to go outside.

Kelli Simpkins leads the cast as charming butch permaculture gardener Diane, returned to the modern world to avert the coming apocalypse. Jazmín Corona (Renee), Aneisa Hicks (Beth), Carolyn Kruse (Carol) and Lori Myers (Pam) portray Diane’s New Jersey neighbors. 

The production team includes Joseph Schermoly (set designer), Mara Blumenfeld and Maddy Low (co-costume designers), Joyce Ciesil (sound designer), Piper Kirchhofer (lighting designer), AnnaMae Durham (properties designer), Courtney Abbott (intimacy director), Andre Pluess (original music) and Ashley Alexander (stage manager). 

Hurricane Diane: The eye of the storm

Kelli Simpkins (left) as Diane and Lori Myers as Pam.

Kelli Simpkins (left) plays Diane and Jazmín Corona is Renee

The doomsday clock is already at 11 f**king 45. The flood waters are swelling on Jersey Shore. The Greek goddess Dionysus—in the guise of Diane, a lesbian permaculture landscape gardener—is staging a comeback to save the world from the ravages of climate change. And where better to ignite a Bacchanalian frenzy than with four housewives living on a quiet cul-de-sac in Monmouth County, New Jersey? Still, making maenads out of her lady neighbors proves more challenging than Diane could anticipate, as the forces of HGTV square off against the coming apocalypse.

Winner of the 2019 Best Play Obie Award, Hurricane Diane is a funny, sobering plea to save the world.The New York Times called it “an astonishing new play that whirls ancient myth, lesbian pulp, ecological thriller, and The Real Housewives of Monmouth County into a perfect storm of timely tragicomedy.” The Vulture wrote “Madeleine George’s fantastic, heartbreaking Hurricane Diane is a comedy in the most ancient, expansive sense...Hilarious, shattering, and full of keen observation and profound human affection, the play both lifts us up and wrings us out.” 

Aneisa Hicks (left) plays Beth and Kelli Simpkins is Diane in Hurricane Diane.

**Footnote: The term “permaculture," a contraction of “permanent” and “agriculture," is an increasingly popular gardening trend at the heart of Diane’s earth-bound business—designing agricultural landscapes, especially home landscapes, in a way that improves and supports the local ecosystem, to make them life-giving for generations.

Tracking Hurricane Diane: Times, dates and ticket information

Tickets to Hurricane Diane are $25-$36, and are on sale now at TheaterWit.org or by calling the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150.

Previews are June 17-26: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m., Sunday at

2 p.m. Press opening is Monday, June 27 at 7 p.m. Performances run through July 31: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m. Run time is 90 minutes, no intermission.

Theater Wit is located at 1229 W. Belmont Ave., in the Belmont Theatre District in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Parking is available in a lot across the street from Theater Wit, behind Kubo, for $8 (pay at the Theater Wit box office.) Neighborhood street parking is also available. Theater Wit is accessible via the CTA 77 Belmont bus, and just three blocks west of the CTA Belmont Red/Brown/Purple line stop. 

Note: Everyone (including audience members) at Theater Wit is required to be vaccinated to enter the building. Each audience member must show proof of vaccination and state ID at the door for admittance. Electronic photos and copies are acceptable. Patrons with medical or religious exemptions may be admitted but must contact the box office a minimum of 48 hours before the performance for additional review and guidance. While Cook County is at Medium risk level or above, all audience members must be masked for the duration of their visit. Masks are required for medical and religious exemptions as well. Visit TheaterWit.org for more details.

About Theater Wit

Theater Wit, Chicago’s “smart art” theater, is a major hub of Chicago’s neighborhood theater scene, where audiences enjoy a smorgasbord of excellent productions in its three, 99-seat spaces, see a parade of talented artists and mingle with audiences from all over Chicago. 

In addition to Theater Wit’s production of Hurricane Diane, other summer productions at Theater Wit include Shattered Globe’s Rasheeda Speaking (now through June 4); Remy Bumppo’s The Year of Magical Thinking (now through June 5); TimeLine Theatre’s Chicago premiere of The Chinese Lady (now through June 18); American Blues Theatre’s Fences (July 1-August 6); Steep Theatre Company’s Light Falls (July 2-August 14); and Grippo Theatre Company’s Chagall in School (August 26-October 9).

Theater Wit is located at 1229 N. Belmont Ave., in the Belmont Theatre District in Chicago’s Lakeview community. To purchase tickets to Hurricane Diane, visiting productions, or to inquire about a Theater Wit Membership or Flex Pass options, visit TheaterWit.org, send email to info@theaterwit.org, or call the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150. 

Carolyn Kruse as Carol and Kelli Simpkins as Diane

All Production Photos by Charles Osgood

August Wilson’s Fences Via American Blues Theater at Theater Wit July 1 Through August 6

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

  American Blues Theater announces casting for

August Wilson’s Fences 

directed by Monty Cole

Cast includes Kamal Bolden, Manny Buckley, Shanésia Davis, Ajax Dontavius,

Martel Manning, William Anthony Sebastian Rose II, and Riley Wells

 July 1-August 6, 2022

 

American Blues Theater, under the continued leadership of Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside, announces the cast of August Wilson’s Fences, directed by Monty Cole. The intimate and up-close production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama will play to a capacity of 60 people per performance

from July 1-August 6, 2022, at Theater Wit,1229 W. Belmont Ave. Tickets will be available beginning May 31 at (773) 975-8150 and www.americanbluestheater.com. I'll be out for opening night Thursday, July 7th, so check back shortly for my full review. 

This is the sensational drama about Troy Maxson, a former star of the Negro Baseball League, who now works as a garbage man in 1957 Pittsburgh. Excluded as a black man from major leagues during his prime, Troy’s bitterness takes its toll on his relationships with his wife and family.

The cast is: Kamal Bolden (Troy Maxson), Manny Buckley* (Gabriel), Shanésia Davis (Rose), Ajax Dontavius, (Cory), Martel Manning (Jim Bono), William Anthony Sebastian Rose (Lyons), and Riley Wells (Raynell).

The creative team includes Yeaji Kim (scenic design), Jared Gooding* (lighting design), Stephanie Cluggish (costume design), Rick Sims* (sound design), Verity Neely (properties design), Rachel Flesher (fight & intimacy design), Cara Parrish* (stage manager) and Shandee Vaughan* (production manager).

 *Denotes Ensemble Member or Artistic Affiliate of American Blues Theater

 

About the Artists

MONTY COLE he/him (director) is an award-winning theater and film writer-director from Oak Park, IL. He has directed for the Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf, Center Theatre Group, The Playwrights Center, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Victory Gardens Theater, the Center for New Performance, Cape Cod Theatre Project, Alley Theatre, and others. Recent projects include directing the workshop of world premiere Adrienne Kennedy play, Etta and Ella on the Upper West Side for the Center for New Performance in California. His re-interpretations of classics from Eugene O'Neill's The Hairy Ape to Hamlet have received awards and critical praise in Chicago. As a writer, his plays include American Teenager (a commission from the Goodman Theatre) and Black Like Me, an adaptation of the 1961 novel currently in development with The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. Cole was one of four writers in the Goodman Theatre's Playwrights Unit and is currently an Artist in Residence at the Center for New Performance, a fellow at Hermitage Artist Retreat, and a Research Scholar of the Bridge to Faculty at UIC. In 2021, Cole directed three short films: SIX FEET APART by Isaac Gomez, SONS OF TOLEDO, written by Cole and Matt Foss, and his own short, WHOLE. SONS OF TOLEDO has appeared in film festivals around the world including winning Best African American Short at the Phoenix Film Festival, while the other two shorts are in post-production. Monty has a BA in Theatre Studies from Emerson College and an MFA Directing degree from the California Institute of the Arts. 

KAMAL BOLDEN he/him (Troy Maxson) A native of Peoria, IL, Kamal graduated from Bradley University with a degree in Business Administration-Entrepreneurship. Theatre: the lead role of Hero in Father Comes Home From The Wars Parts 1,2, & 3 (Goodman Theatre), Immediate Family directed by Phylicia Rashad (Mark Taper Forum), the title role of Chad Deity in the world premiere of The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity (Victory Gardens Theater), Jitney, The Misanthrope, and Home (Court Theatre), Coriolanus (Nashville Shakespeare), SS: Romeo & Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare). Off-Broadway: AUDELCO Award for Best Actor in Reparations at the historic Billie Holiday Theatre and a nomination for The Opponent at 59E59St Theatre. Film: Vacation Friends, The Night Before, Ravers, Keys to the City, Elvis & Nixon. Television: Series Regular on The Endgame (NBC), 61st Street, Chicago Fire, Insecure, The Resident, Law & Order SVU, Rosewood, NCIS, Major Crimes, Betrayal, Low Winter Sun, Boss, Lights Out.

MANNY BUCKLEY he/him (Gabriel) is a proud Ensemble member of American Blues Theater. He is a Chicago-based director, actor, playwright and teaching artist. Blues credits include It’s a Wonderful Life: Live in Chicago!, Six Corners, Looking Over the President’s Shoulder (Jeff Award Nomination-Best Solo Performance), and Dutchman/TRANSit (Black Theatre Alliance Award Nomination). Manny toured nationally as “Satchel Paige” in the original production of The Satchel Paige Story, and appeared in The Father (Helen Hayes Award Nomination) at Studio Theatre in Washington, D.C. He originated the role of “Carson” in Hit the Wall, which sold out extensions in Steppenwolf’s Garage Rep. Select Chicago credits include The Brothers Size, 1984, and Of Mice and Men (Steppenwolf); Dorian (House Theater); and Love’s Labor’s Lost (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre). Mr. Buckley is the recipient of a Black Theatre Alliance, and Black Excellence Award. He most recently directed Kingdom, an audio drama, with Broken Nose Theatre.

SHANÉSIA DAVIS she/her (Rose) returns to American Blues Theater where she was last seen in their co-production of Native Son with Court Theatre. As an actress, some of her credits include works at Steppenwolf, Northlight, Porchlight Music Theatre, Goodman, Congo Square, Mark Taper Forum, Cleveland Playhouse, CenterStage Baltimore, The Gift Theatre, Kansas City Rep, and Court Theatre, to name a few. She has been Jeff Award nominated several times and is a Black Theatre Alliance Award recipient, as well as Excellence in the Arts recipient. Film credits include Chicago Stories: Ida B. Wells, The Thing about Harry, Working Man, BLUEPRINT, External Rivals, Consumed, Damaged Goods, Cleveland Abduction, Morning Due, The Weatherman, Uncle Nino, Life Sentence, and Chicago Cab, among others. Television credits includes Emmy nominated Lovecraft Country (HBO), Proven Innocent (FOX), Empire (FOX), Chicago Fire (NBC), CRISIS (ABC), Detroit 187 (ABC), and series regular on Early Edition (CBS). She is a proud member of Equity and SAG/AFTRA unions as well as Artistic Associate of Congo Square Theater and Assistant Teaching Professor at Roosevelt University, CCPA. 

AJAX DONTAVIUS he/him (Cory) is a Chicago-based actor who is so excited to join this amazing production of Fences. Previously, Ajax has co-starred on NBC’s Chicago P.D. and will appear on the second season of AMC’s 61st Street. He was last seen on stage in Lifeline Theatre’s stage adaptation of Middle Passage as Rutherford Calhoun.

MARTEL MANNING he/him (Jim Bono) has appeared in Chicago in: Photograph 51 (Court Theatre), Her Majesty's Will (Lifeline Theatre), as well as Pillowman, Kentucky, and Hamlet (The Gift Theatre). Regional credits include: Romeo & Juliet - Juliet's Journey (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Still Dance the Stars (New Light Theatre), Two Gentlemen of Verona (Michigan Shakespeare Festival). Martel received an MFA in Acting from the University of Houston Professional Actor Training Program and is represented by Shirley Hamilton Talent.

WILLIAM ANTHONY SEBASTIAN ROSE II he/him (Lyons) is a Chicago based actor most recently featured as King Henri Christophe in The House Theatre’s The Tragedy of King Christophe. He was last seen in an on-stage, in-person production with Broken Nose Theatre’s Labyrinth as a still wet behind the ears loan officer. He has also had the privilege of working with Kunoichi Productions virtual presentation of The True Tale of Princess Kaguya as the psychotic Emperor and power hungry but moronically pathetic Prince; a man searching for his truth in Victory Gardens Theater’s The First Deep Breath; a dilettante English lord fancying himself an amateur sleuth in Whose Body, Lifeline Theatre; a forgotten political prisoner fighting for change in We Are Pussy Riot, Red Tape Theatre. You can also see him on display now in the Chicago Maritime Museum exhibit as the founder of Chicago, Jean Baptiste Point du Sable. TV credits include Lovecraft County. Represented by Big Mouth Talent Agency.

RILEY WELLS she/her (Raynell) recently worked on a short film They Say Time Heals as Anisah as well as the CW’s television show 4400. Riley studies dance and acting at FieldCrest School of Performing Arts. She also studies voice and piano at the MuzicNet. For fun, Riley enjoys engineering, space, gymnastics.

Dates: Previews July 1-July 6, 2022

Opens July 7, 2022

Runs through August 6, 2022

Schedule:       

Thursdays: 7:30pm

Fridays: 7:30pm

Saturdays: 2:30pm (except, no 2:30pm show on July 9)

and 7:30pm (except, no 7:30pm show on August 6)

Sundays: 2:30pm

 

Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W Belmont Ave in Chicago

Ticket prices:  $25-$45, plus $2.75 Theater Wit venue fees

Box Office: Buy online at www.americanbluestheater.com or (773) 975-8150

Group Sales discounts and Blue Card Memberships available now by calling (773) 654-3103 or visiting www.americanbluestheater.com

 

About American Blues

Winner of the American Theatre Wing’s prestigious National Theatre Company Award, American Blues Theater is a premier arts organization with an intimate environment that patrons, artists, and all Chicagoans call home. American Blues Theater explores the American identity through the plays it produces and communities it serves.

The diverse and multi-generational artists have established the second-oldest professional Equity Ensemble theater in Chicago. As of 2022, the theater and artists received 221 Joseph Jefferson Awards and nominations that celebrate excellence in Chicago theater and 40 Black Theatre Alliance Awards. The artists are honored with Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize nominations, Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Emmy Awards and numerous other accolades.

FREE STAGED READINGS OF THE FLOWER AND THE FURY VIA ARTEMISIA THEATRE, JULY 14-17 AT FILAMENT THEATRE

 ARTEMISIA THEATRE SWITCHES TO THE FLOWER AND THE FURY FOR FREE STAGED READINGS, JULY 14-17 AT FILAMENT THEATRE

The fight for women’s rights is ON, and Chicago’s Artemisia Theatre is going on offense. 



The Flower and The Fury by Alexa Juanita Jordan, directed by Artemisia founder and artistic director Julie Proudfoot, has been substituted for the previously announced Roe v US.

Jordan is an award-winning New York playwright making her Artemisia debut with The Flower and The Fury. She is a fiercely feminist writer with a provocative new work that follows three pregnant women as they contemplate abortion.

While Jessica swiftly and resolutely comes to the decision to terminate her pregnancy alone, Kennedy and Rachel both wrestle with their choices in individual yet similar circumstances. Throughout the play, the women’s interactions with each other, their partners, and the nurse at the abortion clinic, greatly impact their decisions and futures. The main action takes place during a brief stretch of time, at most a few weeks, before jumping 10 years ahead in the last three scenes, showing where the women end up. 

Reading times are 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 14-16, and 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 17. Each reading will be followed by a dedicated talkback to inspire compassion and social justice for women. Jordan, the playwright, will be in Chicago to lead the talkbacks on Thursday, July 14, and Sunday, July 17. Admission is free (excluding a $1.50 processing fee.) Reserve now at artemisiatheatre.org. 

Filament Theatre is located at 4041 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Portage Park neighborhood, on the first floor of the Portage Arts Lofts building.

Filament is accessible via the Irving Park exit on 90/94. Turn west on Irving Park Ave. and at the six corners turn slight right onto Milwaukee Ave. Filament is on the right across from the Portage Theatre.

Metered street parking is available in front of the theater. Street parking is free on Sundays. Additional parking is available at the Laporte Ave. Public Parking Lot one block west of the theater via West Cuyler Ave.

Public transit: Take the Blue Line to Irving Park and transfer to the Irving Park Bus (#80) headed west. Get off at Cicero and Milwaukee. A Divvy station is also located across the street from Filament on West Cuyler Ave. For more information, including local dining options, go to filamenttheatre.org/plan-your-visit.

For more information, visit artemisiatheatre.org or follow the company on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

The Flower and The Fury: Meet the playwright

Alexa Juanita Jordan is a playwright and actor based in New York City. She received her B.A. in Drama at Vassar College, and a Classical Acting Diploma at the London Academy of Performing Arts (LAMDA.) Her newest work, The Flower and The Fury, was recently named a semifinalist (35 out of 655 submissions) in the Premiere Stages Play Festival this past spring. A monologue from the play will also appear in Smith and Kraus’ “Best Women’s Monologues 2022” later this year.

Jordan has written multiple full length and one-act plays about mental health, the grey area of the #metoo movement, reproductive justice, and the COVID-19 pandemic. She was awarded the Marilyn Swartz Six Playwriting Award in 2017 for her first play, Fine, at Vassar College. She then went on to receive her first New York Times review in 2018 for her performance in There’s Blood at the Wedding at La MaMa Experimental Theater Club.

In addition to writing and acting, Jordan serves as the executive director of the Juanita James Memorial Scholarship Foundation (JJMSF), in memory of her late grandmother. JJMSF provides mentoring and financial support to college-bound students from the Bronx housing projects. She is also on the board at CultureHub, a global art and technology community born out of decades of collaborating between La MaMa and The Seoul Institute of the Arts. For more, visit alexajuanitajordan.com.

The fight for women’s rights continues this fall with Julie Proudfoot’s Title X

 

In the fall, Artemisia follows up The Flower and The Fury with the world premiere docudrama Title X by Artemisia’s founder, Julie Proudfoot.

Title X documents the fight for abortion rights in America from 1978 to now. The play is told through the lens of eight radically different female characters: A 17-year-old wrestles with her choices under Title X. The director of a women’s clinic defends her patient’s right to reproductive justice. A member of Operation Rescue protests in front of an abortion clinic. An asylum officer interviews detainees, victims of the refugee crisis, at the Texas-Mexico border. A woman in her twenties confronts haunting memories of sexual harassment by her professor during a visit to her former college campus. A conservative congresswoman urges her pro-life supporters to fight the battle for the unborn with Christian love. A survivor of sexual assault reclaims her life after taking her boss to trial for rape. A lesbian exposes her complicated but loving relationship with her partner, who died of AIDS. In the end, the 17-year-old, now a mature woman, discovers the empowering life lessons she has learned.

“I wrote Title X over the course of a year while sheltering at home, while Trump was succeeding in reverse funding under Title 10 via coercion tactics," said Proudfoot, who will also direct. "It exposes the way the system works against women and keeps women from having autonomy and agency.”

Title X debuts November 25-December 18, 2022 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. First preview and press opening is Friday, November 25 at 7:30 p.m. Performances continue through December 18: Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Tickets go on sale September 9 via Theater Wit’s box office, TheaterWit.org or (773) 975-8150. 

About Artemisia Theatre

Artemisia Gentileschi was a great feminist painter, forgotten by history. Now, she’s celebrated as the greatest female artist prior to the modern period. It shows why women’s stories are important. They change our perspective, on the past, the present and the future.

That’s why Chicago’s Artemisia Theatre was founded, to share women’s untold stories. Since 2011, Artemisia has enriched Chicago’s culture by taking creative risks, achieving artistic excellence, and engaging the audience directly to inspire compassion and social justice for women. Through its celebrated productions of classic and all-new feminist plays, its past Fall Fest of staged readings, and its current virtual works, and upcoming world premieres, Artemisia creates career-altering opportunities for African American, Latinx, Asian, Arab and Native American (ALAANA), Caucasian and LGBTQ theater artists.

Artemisia’s leadership team is 100 percent women, because “women still struggle to find a place where they can share their stories and be their true selves as artists,” said board president E. Faye Butler. “That’s what I love about Artemisia. It’s a sisterhood of leaders, who empower women as writers, directors, performers. A place where women can bring their fire, passion and lived experience and share true stories from their perspective.”



 Artemisia Board President E. Faye Butler



Artemisia Theatre is a recent recipient of a Chi Biz Strong Grant and is also supported by the Arts for Illinois Relief Fund, Arts Work Fund, DDT Law Group, Echo Limousine, Fox Pest Control, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, HKM Employment Attorneys LLP, Illinois Arts Council Agency, Illinois Humanities, The MacArthur Fund for Culture, Equity and the Arts at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Rebellious Magazine for Women and Salvi Schostok & Pritchard Trial Lawyers.

For more, visit artemisiatheatre.org.

SAVE THE DATES: Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s 2022 – 2023 Season of Shows

Celebrating the resilience of the human spirit, our need for creative self expression, and the never-ending desire for emotional connection

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company returns to the stage for its 2022-2023 season with three plays that celebrate the resilience of the human spirit, our need for creative self-expression, and the never-ending desire for emotional connection. Examining the unexpected relationships that are born in life-altering circumstances, these bold, provocative works will capture your imagination with electrifying, language-driven, funny, unique, heart-wrenching stories. All three plays will be performed at Theater Wit, 1229 West Belmont Avenue in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. 

“In my second season as Artistic Director of Remy Bumppo Theatre Company, I am thrilled to bring to the stage three plays that are all about people whose journeys are about to take unexpected turns; ROUTES by Rachel De-lahay, ANNA IN THE TROPICS by Nilo Cruz, and GOD’S SPIES by Bill Cain,” says Marti Lyons. "Driven both by forces outside of their control, and their own needs and desires, each person in these works find themselves in a moment where their whole future hangs on their next decision.”

“Remy Bumppo has always produced plays that speak to the current moment--this season is no different. Each one of these plays seizes on themes and feelings we are all grappling with,” says Executive Director Margaret McCloskey. “I am especially proud to feature plays that showcase the breadth of talented artists working in Chicago right now, and introduce our audience to thrilling voices in playwriting.”

SEASON AT A GLANCE:

 

ROUTES

by Rachel De-lahay

Directed by Mikael Burke, featuring Core Ensemble Member Terry Bell

An American Premiere 

October 12, 2022 - November 20, 2022

Olufemi hopes to return home to his family. Bashir wants to remain in the only home he knows. Kola yearns to find home in a place that's never felt like one. Rachel De-lahay's shattering, urgent new play looks through the eyes of immigrants, refugees, and children in conflict with the law as they fight to get home through an impossibly complex system designed to keep them out. 

 

ANNA IN THE TROPICS

by Nilo Cruz

Directed by Laura Alcalá Baker, featuring Core Ensemble Member Charín Alvarez

The first major revival in Chicago in 20 years

February 8 - March 19, 2022

In a Cuban American cigar factory just outside Ybor City in 1929, a charismatic lector reads Anna Karenina aloud to pass the hours. As Anna’s passions are enunciated, the workers’ hidden desires bubble to the surface, becoming a powder keg that must eventually explode in the Florida heat. Nilo Cruz’s passionate classic shines an unrelenting light on the search for identity in the American landscape.

 

GOD’S SPIES

by Bill Cain

Directed by Artistic Director Marti Lyons, featuring Core Ensemble Member Linda Gillum

A World Premiere 

April 5 - May 14, 2023

London, 1603. A famous playwright is beset by self-doubt after writing the world’s greatest play, Hamlet. The plague grips the city, and the playwright is forced into quarantine with an idealistic young lawyer and a shrewd sex-worker. As the city burns just outside their door, they turn to creativity in order to survive, and a new masterpiece is born from the ashes. Bill Cain’s God’s Spies is a funny and heart-wrenching love-letter to Shakespeare and the value of art during times of struggle.  

All productions in Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s season will be performed at Theater Wit, 1229 West Belmont Avenue in Chicago. Visit RemyBumppo.org for more information on subscriptions and single ticket sales.

Underwriting support for ANNA IN THE TROPICS and the 2022-2023 Season is generously provided by Brenda and James Grusecki. Additional support of the 2022-2023 Season is generously provided by Geoffrey A. Anderson, Lynne and George Simon, and Charlotte Toerber. Remy Bumppo’s programs and operations are partially funded by the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the Illinois Arts Council, the MacArthur Foundation for Arts and Culture at Prince Charitable Trusts, and the Shubert Foundation.

ABOUT REMY BUMPPO THEATRE COMPANY

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company expands and enriches their community’s view of the world, and their own, by producing both the great plays of the past and the important plays of today. As an ensemble-driven theater company, Remy Bumppo authors a more humane culture that listens to, and seeks to understand, the voices, the ideas and the stories of one another.

Since its inception in 1996, Remy Bumppo has produced a blend of modern classics, new adaptations and complex contemporary works, all presented in an intimate setting with clarity, wit and passion. We invite audiences to engage directly with the art through conversation with the artists.

REVIEW: Remy Bumppo Theatre Company's Passage at Theater Wit Through April 10, 2022

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar  

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company Presents

PASSAGE 

by Christopher Chen Directed by Kaiser Ahmed

March 2 - April 10, 2022 at Theater Wit

REVIEW:

By Bonnie Kenaz-Mara

Passage breaks through the 4th wall and straight into the souls of the audience. Remy Bumppo's latest is a thought provoking journey that illuminates the chasm between different ethnicities, the complicated topography of colonialism, and the humanity that connects us all. I loved the use of letters to designate names and places, as it left a bit of mystery, but also made the content more universal. 

Patrick Agada, Carolyn Hu Bradbury, Adam Poss, Leyla Beydoun, Tiffany Renee Johnson, Charin Alvarez and Peter Sipla.  All photos by Nomee Photography

At the top of the show, with house lights still blazing, it was enjoyable to get to see the whole cast introduce themselves and share a bit of family background on where they've come from in life and how they got here, as in literally HOW they made the trek in to the performance space today. As the lights dimmed and the actors morphed into their characters, they did an amazing job of bringing the entire audience of newfound friends along for the ride.

This timely and timeless production is a must see as long as humans are still invading each other's countries, judging worth on the basis of ethnicity or physical characteristics, and reacting to others based on fears, stereotypes, and prejudices.

Peter Sipla and Carolyn Hu Bradbury

Kudos to Scenic Designer: Yeaji Kim for the unique set, that provides a powerful visual metaphor.

Carolyn Hu Bradbury

The entire cast was strong, whether connecting with one another or addressing and engaging the audience directly with rhetorical questions and visualization journeys. Charin Alvarez and Patrick Agada were particularly excellent in their respective roles.

Charin Alvarez and Patrick Agada 

Charin Alvarez, Peter Sipla, Tiffany Renee Johnson and Adam Poss

Cheers to Remy Bumppo Theatre Company for celebrating ageless, nearly universal traditions of spilling the tea, adding a flask for a bit of a spike, and both listening and engaging in meaningful dialogue with those different from ourselves even when we may end up with more questions than answers. This production is a lovely exploration of the subtle layers and nuances to the human condition, sacred spaces, and the ways we help and harm others intentionally or accidentally. 

Adam Poss

If clever tangents, multicultural friendships, anthropomorphic critters, mystical caves, and forging new ways to repair systemic racism are your jam, don't miss this. After seeing Passage, I'm eager to read  E. M. Forster's  1924 novel, A Passage to India, though it's certainly not a prerequisite to enjoy this production. Good theatre entertains while great theatre enlightens, encourages thought, and challenges ingrained thoughts and behaviors. Passage does just that. Highly recommended.

Bonnie is a Chicago based writer, theater critic, photographer, videographer, actress, artist and Mama. She owns two websites where she publishes frequently: ChiILLiveShows.com (adult) & ChiILMama.com (family friendly). 

Leyla Beydoun and Adam Poss

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company is pleased to announce the casting and design team for the first show in its 2022 Season, 

PASSAGE by Christopher Chen and directed by Kaiser Ahmed. 

The show will run from March 2 through April 10, 2022 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago.

Q is building a new life in Country X, having immigrated from Country Y. But it’s hard to make friends in Country X — the history between the two countries is fraught, and political tensions are running high. As Q tries to navigate interpersonal dynamics, the past and present collide in a complex geopolitical landscape. And no one is off the hook. Christopher Chen’s deeply humane, exquisitely theatrical play inspired by E.M. Forster’s A Passage to India is tense, fascinating, delicate, and dangerous.

PASSAGE will feature Patrick Agada, Charin Alvarez (Remy Bumppo Core Ensemble Member), Leyla Beydoun, Carolyn Hu Bradbury, Tiffany Renee Johnson, Adam Poss, Peter Sipla. Designs for this production will feature work by Himabindu Poroori (Dramaturg), Yeaji Kim (Scenic Design), Izumi Inaba (Costume Design), Liz Gomez and Mac Vaughey (Co-Lighting Design), Michael Huey (Sound Design and Original Music) and Rowan Doe (Properties Design).

Marti Lyons enthusiastically speaks to kicking off her first season as Artistic Director with PASSAGE: “I am thrilled to launch our 2022 season with this production. PASSAGE, written by one of my favorite playwrights, Christopher Chen, is a kaleidoscopic examination of power that could be anywhere and anytime, but feels intensely now. The Core Ensemble and I cannot wait to be back onstage and start our season with this show.”

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s production of PASSAGE will run from March 2 through April 10, 2022 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago. Subscriptions and single tickets are on sale at www.RemyBumppo.org or by calling the Theater Wit Box Office at 773.975.8150.

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s 2022 Presenting Sponsor is Geoffrey A. Anderson. Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s 2022 Season Sponsors are Brenda and James Grusecki and Charlotte Toerber.

Cast (in alphabetical order): Patrick Agada (F); Charin Alvarez (B); Leyla Beydoun (Q); Carolyn Hu Bradbury (J/S/MOSQUITO); Tiffany Renee Johnson (D/M); Adam Poss (H/R/GECKO); Peter Sipla (G); Flavia Pallozzi (u/s D / M); Natalie Santoro (u/s J / S / MOSQUITO). Tina El Gamal (u/s B); Nathaniel Elfant (u/s H /R / GECKO); Aissa Guerra (u/s Q); Tulsi McDaniels (u/s F); Michael Mejia (u/s G);

Artistic Director: Marti Lyons 

Producer: Alexis Taylor

Intimacy and Culture Consultant: Greg Geffrard

Associate Intimacy and Culture Consultant: Courtney Abbott

Casting Director: Rachael Jimenez, CSA

Casting Associate: Emily Gruhl

Stage Manager: Jean E. Compton

Assistant Stage Manager: Cori Lang

 Technical Director: Harrison Ornelas

 Production Manager: Ellen Willett

Dramaturg: Himabindu Poroori 

Scenic Designer: Yeaji Kim 

Costume Designer: Izumi Inaba

 Assistant Costume Designer: Aija Moreno

 Co-Lighting Designer: Liz Gomez

 Co-Lighting Designer: Mac Vaughey

 Sound Designer and Original Music: Michael Huey

 Properties Designer: Rowan Doe

 Scenic Charge Artist: Emily Altman

 Wardrobe Supervisor: Stefani Azores-Gococo

 Head Electrician: Nick Chamernik

Leyla Beydoun, Adam Poss, Peter Sipla, Carolyn Hu Bradbury, Patrick Agada, and Tiffany Renee Johnson

Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, IL 60657

Dates: Previews: Wednesday, March 2 - Saturday, March 5, 2022 at 7:30pm; Sunday, March 6, 2022 at 2:30pm

Press Performance: Monday, March 7, 2022 at 7:30pm

Regular Run: Thursday, March 10 through Sunday, April 20, 2022

Curtain Times: Wednesdays – Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays at 2:30pm

Matinee Performances (other than Sundays): Saturday, March 19 at 2:30pm; Saturday, March 26 at 2:30pm; Saturday, April 2 at 2:30pm; Thursday April 7 at 2:30pm Audio Description/Touch Tour Performance: Saturday, March 19, 2022; Touch Tour starts at 1:00pm, and the performance starts at 2:30pm

Open Caption Performance: Saturday, April 2, 2022 at 2:30pm

Tickets: Previews: $30.00 - $40.00

Regular Run: $35.00 - $55.00

Industry Tickets: $20.00, available Wednesdays – Fridays

Student Tickets: $15.00, available day of

Group Discounts: Available for parties of 10 or more, call 773.244.8119

ABOUT REMY BUMPPO THEATRE COMPANY:

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company expands and enriches their community’s view of the world, and their own, by producing both the great plays of the past and the important plays of today. As an ensemble-driven theater company, Remy Bumppo authors a more humane culture that listens to, and seeks to understand, the voices, the ideas and the stories of one another. Since its inception in 1996, Remy Bumppo has produced a blend of modern classics and complex contemporary works, presented in an intimate setting with clarity, wit and passion. We invite audiences to engage directly with the art through conversation with the artists.

Chicago premiere of Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight Via American Blues Theater at Theater Wit March 18 – April 9, 2022

 

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar 

American Blues Theater announces

Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight

written and directed by John Kolvenbach

featuring American Blues Artistic Affiliate Jim Ortlieb

March 18-April 9, 2022

**American Blues Theater honors healthcare workers, first responders, educators & support staff, and military personnel with complimentary and deeply discounted tickets. American Blues proudly supports NAMI Chicago and SAMHSA.**

American Blues Theater, under the continued leadership of Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside, announces the Chicago premiere of Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight, written and directed by John Kolvenbach, featuring American Blues Theater Artistic Affiliate Jim Ortlieb. Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight runs March 18-April 9, 2022 at Theater Wit,1229 W. Belmont Ave. Tickets are available at (773) 975-8150 and www.americanbluestheater.com. I'll be out for the press performance March 19th. In the meantime check back early and often.

“You’ve tried everything. Yoga. Acupuncture. Therapy. You floated in salt water in the pitch black dark. You juiced, you cleansed, you journaled, you cut, you volunteered. You got a mattress that fitted itself to your fetal form. You ate only RINDS for three days and nights. You reached out, you looked within. You have tried. And yet here you are.”

So begins a new play by Olivier-nominated playwright John Kolvenbach in its Chicago premiere. American Blues Theater Artistic Affiliate Jim Ortlieb delivers a tour-de-force performance as a man desperate for connection, bent by isolation, and deeply in love with the audience itself.

Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside comments, “We’re thrilled to present the Chicago premiere of John Kolvenbach’s latest work. He brilliantly captured our shared pandemic experience and given an injection of hope. We couldn’t be happier by the return of Artistic Affiliate Jim Ortlieb to our stage.”

 The creative team includes Michael Trudeau* (scenic / lighting design / TD), Rachel West* (master electrician), and Shandee Vaughan* (SM & Production Manager).

*Denotes Artistic Affiliate of American Blues Theater

About the Artists 

John Kolvenbach and Jim Ortlieb previously worked together Boston on Half ’n Half ’n Half (now titled The Marriage Play), for which Jim was awarded a 2012 IRNE Award for best lead actor. Most recently, they worked together on Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight, which opened in the summer of 2021 at The Harbor Stage and, simultaneously, in Los Angeles with VS. and Circle X.

John Kolvenbach he/him (playwright / director) On the West End: Love Song (Olivier nomination, Best New Comedy, directed by John Crowley) and On an Average Day (with Woody Harrelson and Kyle MacLachlan, also directed by Mr. Crowley.) Love Song premiered at Steppenwolf in 2006, directed by Austin Pendelton. It has been produced in New York, Zurich, Melbourne, Sydney, Wellington, Seoul and Rome. There have been over fifty productions in the U.S. Average Day was produced in Los Angeles by VS. (with Johnny Clark and Stef Tovar) and in Chicago by VS. and Route 66. Average Day has been produced in Tel Aviv, Buenos Aires, and Lisbon. Goldfish premiered at South Coast Repertory, then at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco, directed by Loretta Greco. The play was done in repertory with Mrs. Whitney, which was directed by the author. Most recently, Reel to Reel received its premiere at the Magic. Sister Play received its premiere at The Harbor Stage Company and at the Magic, both productions directed by the author. Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight opened in the summer of 2021 at The Harbor Stage and, simultaneously, in Los Angeles with VS. and Circle X. Other plays include: Fabuloso (premiered at WHAT, subsequent productions in San Juan and Zurich, in Spanish and Swiss German), Bank Job (Amphibian Stages) and Marriage Play or Half ‘n Half ‘n Half (Merrimack Rep.) Film: Clear Winter Noon, an original screenplay, was selected for the Blacklist in 2008.

 Artistic Affiliate Jim Ortlieb returns to American Blues Theater where he previously appeared in the title role in Scapin.

Jim Ortlieb he/him (Man) is a proud Artistic Affiliate of American Blues Theater and a member of the rare breed of middle-class actors. After studying with William Esper and Kathryn Gately at Rutgers University, Jim was invited by Lois Hall to teach in Chicago at Lois Hall Studio, a mainstay of professional studios in the 1980s. It was because of Lois that Jim Ortlieb was welcomed into the Chicago theater community.

When she retired, Jim renamed the school, Chicago Actors Project, which remained vibrant until 1989. During the ‘80s and onward, Jim acted with many Chicago theaters, including The Goodman (Candide), Pheasant Run (Sorrows of Stephen), Organic (M the Murderer), Wisdom Bridge (Only Kidding), Northlight (All in the Timing), and Steppenwolf (Picasso at the Lapine Agile, The Man Who Came to Dinner), Touchstone (Racing Demon, Indiscretions), Gare St. Lazare Players (Hughie), Bailiwick (An Uncertain Hour by Nick Patricca) and as a member of American Blues Theater he played the title role in Scapin. Ortlieb’s new found family of Chicago artists lead him all over the world. When Bob Meyer of the Gare St. Lazare Players moved to Europe to spend more time with his son, Charlie, Jim traveled there to collaborate on numerous productions with Bob and the extensive group of expatriated English speaking artists in Paris, Ireland, and England such as Hughie, The Homecoming, Faith Healer, and Requiem for a Heavyweight. Malcolm Ewen brought Jim to the Weston Playhouse in Vermont where he did Guys and Dolls, The Mikado, Candide, and Tartuffe. In the midst of the IATSE strike in 1999, Jim, his wife and two children moved to Los Angeles where they have lived ever since. Other acting credits include on Broadway in Aaron Sorkin’s The Farnsworth Invention, Of Mice and Men with James Franco and Chris O’Dowd directed by Anna Shapiro, and Guys and Dolls with Lauren Graham and Oliver Platt, the first National Tour of Billy Elliot the musical for two years in Chicago and in Toronto. In 2012 Ortlieb was nominated for an IRNE award for his lead performance in Half ’n Half ’n Half (now titled The Marriage Play) by John Kolvenbach. That relationship continues through today with Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight! His film and TV credits include: Drunkboat with John Malkovich and John Goodman and directed by Bob Meyer, Flatliners, Home Alone, A Mighty Wind, Contagion, Chain Reaction, The Onion Movie, Latter Days, Bug, and Magnolia. His television credits include Station 19, American Horror Story, 911: Lone Star, How to Get Away With Murder, Grey’s Anatomy, West Wing, The Closer, Roswell, Six Feet Under, Gabriel’s Fire, and The Shield. Jim has done more than 75 commercials and voiceovers in his 45 years as an actor all of which has helped pay the bills. Both of Jim’s daughter returned to Chicago where they both graduated from DePaul University. Grainne (grahn-yah) Ortlieb, a Theatre School grad, remains in Chicago with the community the whole family calls home.

Schedule:   

Dates: March 18 – April 9, 2022                 

Thursdays: 7:30pm

Fridays: 7:30pm

Saturdays: 4:30pm (except, no show March 19) and 7:30pm

Sundays: 2:30pm

Additional performance on Wednesday, April 6 at 7:30pm.

 Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W Belmont Ave in Chicago

 Ticket prices: $25-$45, plus $2.75 Theater Wit venue fees

Box Office: Buy online at www.americanbluestheater.com or (773) 975-8150

Group Sales discounts and Blue Card Memberships available now by calling (773) 654-3103 or visiting  www.americanbluestheater.com.

 

About American Blues

Winner of the American Theatre Wing’s prestigious National Theatre Company Award, American Blues Theater is a premier arts organization with an intimate environment that patrons, artists, and all Chicagoans call home. American Blues Theater explores the American identity through the plays it produces and communities it serves.

 

The diverse and multi-generational artists have established the second-oldest professional Equity Ensemble theater in Chicago. As of 2022, the theater and artists received 221 Joseph Jefferson Awards and nominations that celebrate excellence in Chicago theater and 40 Black Theatre Alliance Awards. The artists are honored with Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize nominations, Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Emmy Awards and numerous other accolades.