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Wednesday, February 5, 2014

NEW RELEASES: Simone Felice Molly-O MP3

ARTISTS ON OUR RADAR:

Simone Felice
"Molly-O" from Strangers (Out March 25th on Dualtone)

Simone Felice is a founding member (lyricist, vocalist, drummer and guitarist) of internationally acclaimed, Catskill Mountain-based artists The Felice Brothers and The Duke & The King. He has toured and worked with the likes as The Band’s Levon Helm, Conor Oberst & Bright Eyes, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, The Lumineers, Mumford & Sons, Rick Rubin, The Avett Brothers, and Old Crow Medicine Show.


In 2010 Simone underwent emergency open-heart surgery to correct the slow, degenerative effects of a childhood fever. It was this close brush with death, coupled with the need to tell his own story, which prompted him to walk the solo artist’s path.

His new full-length album, Strangers, is a ten song collection recorded in the Catskills with guest artists The Felice Brothers, Leah Siegel, and Wesley Schultz & Jeremiah Fraites of The Lumineers. Here is an effort that truly captures Simone’s rare gift as a poet, song-crafter and unique visionary.


Strangers is March 25th, 2014 on Dualtone Records

“Each song somehow sounds like a classic, each live performance suggesting we are in the presence of a rare, fiery brilliance.” The Guardian

“Often times the word ‘poet’ is casually assigned to a songwriter, and all too often it is not true. Simone Felice is a poet to the core.” Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers

“Dylan and Leonard Cohen are brought to mind, such is the depth of emotion wrought by Felice’s careful approach… Shows the power of music to lift your spirits and make your heart full – absolutely fantastic.” BBC

“The most unique person I know in the world, incredible charisma. He sees things in a way that nobody else sees them, which is why his music is beautiful.” Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons

“Nothing shackles Felice.” Mojo

“There is a boldness to Simone’s writing, the fierceness and fearlessness of complete honesty that pushes into places that simply take the breath away…some of his songs are so perfectly formed they sound like they might have been around forever… the best I have heard in a while, touching the hem of Dylan by way of Gordon Lightfoot…These songs are good enough to be sung by the whole world” The Telegraph

“Brilliant.” The Boston Globe

“Spellbinding.” UNCUT


* BIO *
Simone Felice is a celebrated songwriter, author, and poet. He was born on 4 October 1976 in Palenville, New York, a small working-class hamlet in the Catskill Mountains.

At the age of twelve Simone suffered a brain aneurysm and was pronounced clinically dead for several minutes. Recovering from emergency brain surgery in a local hospital, he spent two months in intensive care, relearning basic motor skills, including reading and writing.
When he was fifteen he formed a punk band with friends, making weird noise-rock in his grandpa’s barn. Their emphasis was on head-banging and freaky storytelling. By eighteen, he had quit school to panhandle and play bars and low down clubs, including New York City’s fabled CBGB.

It was around this time that Felice began writing poetry and vignettes, eventually leading to the publication of his first collection, The Picture Show, when he was twenty-two years old. He began performing these bizarre monologues regularly at the historic Nuyorican Poets Café in New York’s lower east side, garnering the young poet invitations to read in London, Harvard University, San Francisco and Berlin.

In 2004 and then 2005 Simone’s first works of short fiction were published: Goodbye Amelia, a coming of age story about a small-town girl with secrets to keep and a hunger to see the world, and Hail Mary Full of Holes, a fable noir about a runaway prostitute lost in the dawn of the Reagan era.

In the Fall of 2001, just after the attacks on New York City, Simone began writing songs with his brother Ian. Together they retreated to the woods they grew up in where, jobless with a cheap guitar, they wrote and made recordings (two collections know as The Big Empty and Mexico) with their friend Doc Brown. In this manner the two brothers clocked five years in complete obscurity, sewing the seeds of what would become (with the edition of their younger brother James in the Winter of 2006) The Felice Brothers, whose subsequent albums Through These Reigns And GoneTonight at the ArizonaThe Felice Brothers, and Yonder is the Clock have garnered international praise, earning these Upstate New York natives an inarguable place in the Great American Songbook. Over the group’s early history, from starting out playing New York’s subways and streets, to Radio City Music Hall and beyond, brother Simone has been one of it’s key lyricists and arrangers, co-writing some of the boys’ most beloved songs, including Don’t Wake The Scarecrow, Frankie’s Gun, Run Chicken Run, Ruby Mae, Whiskey in My Whiskey, Love Me Tenderly, Hey Hey Revolver, Mercy, Wonderful Life, Your Belly In My Arms, The Devil Is Real, and Radio Song to name a few.

At the request of iconic record producer Rick Rubin (Johnny Cash, Tom Petty, Beastie Boys, Adele, et al), Simone flew to California in the late summer of 2008 to play drums on the Columbia Records release I and Love and You by The Avett Brothers. Lending his signature Catskill Mountain dirtbag swing to the Avett’s riveting songwriting and Rubin’s thoughtful production, Felice appears on some of the albums stand-out songs, including the title-track and lead single I and Love and You, which helped send the album to #1 in the Billboard folk charts

In the winter of 2009 personal tragedy reared its head when Simone and his long-time love lost their first child in a late-term miscarriage. It was then that he retreated to a cabin in the Catskill’s with old friend Bird and began writing and recording the songs that would (unknown to them at the time) become The Duke & The King’s album debut. Taking their name from the itinerant Shakespeare theatre grifters in Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn the project released its gripping Nothing Gold Can Stay in the Summer of 2009 to critical acclaim, being hailed as one of the most haunting and honest albums of the year. 2010′s followup Long Live The Duke & The King has been similarly praised.

Felice’s first novel, Black Jesus, was released by award-wining publisher Allen & Unwin (Atlantic Books/Faber&Faber) and Random House Germany. It tells the story of a young Marine shipped home to his nowhere town after being blinded in action by a homemade bomb, and the unexpected friendship he finds with a mysterious dancer who arrives one day fleeing darkness and violence of a different kind. Part love story, part protest of the broken promises lying at the heart of the American dream, Black Jesus is a passionate, twisted hymn to the marginalized and forgotten.

On 2 June 2010, after a series of fainting spells, Simone underwent emergency open-heart surgery at Albany Medical Center when doctors discovered that a childhood congenital disorder had left the thirty-three year old with an irreversible calcification of the aortic valve, leaving only 8% blood-flow to the body and brain. Just two weeks after the surgery he joined his brothers on stage at Pete Seeger’s annual Clearwater Festival to help rid their beloved Hudson River of industrial waste. The following month his daughter, Pearl Simone Felice was born, a healthy blue-eyed girl who came in a summer thunderstorm.

In the subsequent years following his operation and Pearl’s birth, with a new mechanical heart-valve ticking away the time, Felice did what it seems he’s always done: He wrote songs. With a renewed clarity and sense of purpose, Simone bent to his new work, leaving behind any past monikers, in search of something pure, something truly his own.

April 2012 saw the release of his self-titled debut solo album, featuring songs such as New York Times, You & I Belong,and Charade which have become staple highlights in his live appearances. Among other accolades, Nick Hasted of The Independent called the record: ‘A taut masterpiece of terrifying, exhilarating American tales.’

Simone’s new full-length album, Strangers, (due out March 2014) is a ten song collection recorded in the Catskills with guest artists The Felice Brothers, Leah Siegel, and Wesley Schultz & Jeremiah Fraites of The Lumineers. Here is an effort that truly captures Simone’s rare gift as a poet, his high song-craft and unique vision; an album certain to cement Felice’s place as one of the great songwriter-poets of his generation.

Recently Britain’s esteemed Guardian newspaper commissioned Felice to write a personal memoir on the subject of his near-death experiences, first as a young boy, then as a grown artist, and how these two odd brushes with ‘the other side’ have influenced his work. The piece begins with a lyric from The Wizard Of Oz:

I would not be just a nuthin’, My head all full of stuffin’, 
My heart all full of pain. 
I would dance and be merry, 
Life would be a ding-a-derry, 
If I only had a brain…

Simone lives less than a mile from the creek-house he was born in, and travels his own country and abroad sharing his songs and stories


Monday, February 3, 2014

INCOMING: The Black Angels LIVE at Park West THIS Wednesday & at Moogfest in April


Park West
8pm
18+

The Black Angels
with Roky Erickson and Golden Animals
February 5, 2014 8:00 PM
Door Open: 7:00 PM

TICKET PRICES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
INDIVIDUAL: 
Ticket Price: $26.00
Fees: $7.61
Order fees: $3.00


RollingStone Premiere:
The Moog Sound Lab ft. The Black Angels

WATCH : THE BLACK ANGELS PERFORMING "DON'T PLAY WITH GUNS"
(CLICK BELOW)



In December, Moog Music partnered with Rolling Stone to premiere the next video in their Moog Sound Lab series with Austin-based quintet The Black Angels (Alex Maas - vocals, bass, organ, drone machine; Robert "Bob" Mustachio of The Warlocks standing in for band member Stephanie Bailey - drums, percussion; Kyle Hunt - keyboards, percussion, bass, guitar; Christian Bland - guitar, drone machine/organ; Jake Garcia - guitar, bass). Following 2010's acclaimed Phosphene Dream, the band stopped by the Moog Sound Lab to perform their new single "Don't Play with Guns" off their new album, Indigo Meadow. This LP marks The Black Angels' fourth full-length studio album, and their most revelatory song collection to date. 

Kyle Hunt of the Black Angels says of the Moog Sound Lab experience, "So glad we had time to swing by the Moog Sound Lab to record with nothing but Moog synthesizers!  We doubled some bass lines in the studio with a vintage Moog Prodigy (while recording Indigo Meadow). After playing through the Sub Phatty (in the Moog Sound Lab session) that day I realized that I could pull off some of the doubled bass lines with my left hand while playing the organ parts on my right hand. It was fun to strip away our "go to" guitars, organs and fuzz pedals and see what can happen when you explore analog synthesis with modern stability and patching!" 

The Moog Sound Lab is an original content media channel produced by Moog Music that invites artists and bands to perform in the Moog Music factory in Asheville, North Carolina. Armed with an unlimited supply of electronic instruments from Moog, musicians create a unique analog interpretation of their original material. The first half of the 2013 Moog Sound Lab series included Toro y Moi, Washed Out and Zola Jesus.  For behind the scenes photos of Moog Sound Lab session, visit www.facebook.com/moogsoundlab.

Moog Music is currently gearing up for Moogfest 2014, the annual festival created by Moog that celebrates the innovative spirit of its founder, Dr. Bob Moog. The iconic synthesizer manufacturer recently announced that the festival is returning as a 5-day event with a variety of activities, including daytime conferences and nighttime music showcases. Taking place April 23 - 27, 2014 in Asheville, North Carolina, the daytime presenters will include Laurie Anderson, Giorgio Moroder, film scorer/musician Cliff Martinez (Drive Soundtrack)  and other futurist thinkers.

Today Moogfest announced headliners including Electronic Music Pioneers KRAFTWERK 3-D to present 3 Concerts at Moogfest 2014 and a dance party featuring music super producer Nile Rodgers and his band CHIC plus more HERE. 70+ more artists to be announced - Sign up for the mailing list at Moogfest.com to keep up with breaking news, announcements and ticket information.

About Moog:
Moog Music is the leading producer of analog synthesizers in the world. The company and its customers carry on the legacy of its founder, electronic musical instrument pioneer, Dr. Bob Moog.  All of Moog’s instruments are hand built in its factory on the edge of downtown Asheville, NC.


Moog Sound Lab:  Website  |  Facebook 

Moogfest:  Website  |  Facebook  | Twitter



Tuesday, January 28, 2014

FOODIE TUESDAY: HOFBRÄUHAUS CHICAGO Celebrates One Year Anniversary

HOFBRÄUHAUS CHICAGO 
IN MB FINANCIAL PARK 
AT ROSEMONT 
CELEBRATES ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY




Hofbräuhaus Chicago, the first and only German micro-brewery, beer hall and restaurant in the Chicago area, celebrated its one-year anniversary Friday, January 24 in MB Financial Park at Rosemont.   We had a press opening already, so sadly we couldn't make it out in person for the festivities, but plan to visit soon.   I'm half German, and although my relatives have been born in America for 4 generations, I still have a soft spot for German beer, food and culture.

Located at 5500 Park Place, the custom- built 20,000-square-foot restaurant and brewery began its anniversary celebration at 5 p.m. last Friday. A traditional keg tapping ceremony, led by Hofbräuhaus Chicago owners Mike Matuschka, Joe Matuschka and Ted Wynn, took place at 7 p.m. 

In its first year of business, Hofbräuhaus Chicago guests enjoyed a plethora of celebrity keg tappings, with guests including professional football player Patrick Mannelly and comedian Gilbert Gottfried, live entertainment and deliciously authentic brews and fare. 

In 2013, guests enjoyed 217,637 liters of Hofbräuhaus Chicago’s freshly-brewed beers, 34,614 jumbo German pretzels, 41,520 schnitzel dishes and 13,697 apfelstrudel desserts.

“We are so grateful that the Chicago community has embraced Hofbräuhaus Chicago with such enthusiasm,” says Mike Matuschka. “Hofbräuhaus Chicago brings an authentic experience to Chicagoland and we look forward to celebrating many more years of live music, delicious fresh beer, traditional cuisine and German fun.”

Anniversary celebration festivities also featured live music from an authentic “Oompah” band all the way from the Alps, a parade led by a lively German bugle corp., delicious Bavarian fare and, of course, Hofbräuhaus Chicago beer, brewed onsite using 400-year-old-techniques.

Hofbräuhaus Chicago is located at 5500 Park Place in Rosemont, in the MB Financial Park at Rosemont. Valet parking is available for a minimal charge, and parking is also available in the nearby parking garage (free with validation). An on-site gift store is filled with unique gift items, apparel and traditional beer steins. Reservations are available. For more information, call (847) 671-BREW (2739) or visit hofbrauhauschicago.com.

Hours of Operation
Sunday – Wednesday: 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. Thursday: 11 a.m. – midnight Friday & Saturday: 11 a.m. – 2 a.m.

Live Entertainment Schedule
Sunday: Noon – 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. – 10 p.m. Monday – Wednesday: 5 p.m. – 10 p.m. Thursday: 5 p.m. – 11 p.m. Friday: 6 p.m. - 1 a.m.
Saturday: Noon – 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. – 1 a.m.

A Brief History of the Hofbräuhaus
In 1589, Wilhelm V, Duke of Bavaria, dissatisfied with the beer that was being brewed locally, retained brew master Heimeran Pongratz to create a rich brown ale that both suited his palate and followed the rigorous “Bavarian Beer Purity Law” of 1516 that stated that only natural ingredients could be used in the brewing process. Beer (like bread) was considered a basic foodstuff at the time, as well as a beauty treatment for the ladies of the court, who typically consumed seven liters daily. Beer from the Hofbräuhaus (which means official brewery for the Duke’s court), quickly grew in popularity and in 1602 a wheat beer was developed at the request of Wilhelm’s son and successor Duke Maximilian I.

By 1607, the need for 38,000 gallons each year necessitated a move to larger brewing quarters, so Munich’s Hofbräuhaus was erected in its current location. In 1828, responding to complaints from Munich's ordinary citizens that they were not permitted to enjoy the Hofbräuhaus beer from the royal brewery like the public employees, Ludwig I issued a decree granting a license for the beer and cuisine to be served publicly in the Hofbräuhaus am Platzl, giving commoners the opportunity to lift steins at the same table as the gentry. Thus, the Hofbräuhaus Inn that attracts millions each year was opened.
Hofbräuhaus Chicago Brings Classic Bavarian Specialties to the Park in Rosemont.

Today, Hofbräuhaus is an iconic symbol of Bavaria with indelible ties to the Munich’s history. During the Thirty Years War when the Swedes occupied Munich, they struck a deal with city leaders: in exchange for not pillaging and plundering the city, they would leave peacefully if given 362 buckets of Hofbräuhaus beer. In 1780, Mozart credited the Hofbräuhaus with providing him the strength to write his opera “Idomeneo.”


On October 12, 1810, the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig to Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen involved all the citizens of Munich; the celebration grew into the Oktoberfest, an annual festival now so closely associated in the minds of many with the Hofbräuhaus. In January 1823, Hofbräuhaus beer was used to extinguish a fire at the Munich Opera House when firefighters discovered their water supply frozen. In 1935, composer Wiga Gabriel and lyricist Klaus Siegfried Richter wrote the famous Hofbräuhaus song - "In München steht ein Hofbräuhaus - oans, zwoa, g'suffa!" (“In Munich there's a Hofbräuhaus - one, two, and down the hatch!”).

Monday, January 27, 2014

Best Buy and yurbuds Get You Motivated With A 20% Discount, And A Gift Card Too

Disclosure:  The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.


As a music blogger & music fanatic, I'm highly motivated by the bands whose music I love.   So I jumped at the opportunity to work with Best Buy and the WOLF Bloggers again, on a new campaign.  I've always worked out to music, and I write to music, do housework to music, and drive the kids all over town to music.  Best Buy and yurbuds want to motivate our readers with a 20% discount, so there's an extra incentive for YOU to get motivated by music too!




**ChiIL Out with ChiIL Live Shows and get 2 cool offers from yurbuds & Best Buy:

1.  20% off all yurbuds products at Best Buy both online and in-store. Online yurbuds coupon code is yurbuds20off:**     

2. Also enjoy a $5 Best Buy Gift Card when you purchase a qualifying Health and Fitness product at a Best Buy Mobile Specialty Store: Both offers are valid 1/19/14 - 2/22/14.


  
Every year a zillion people vow to get fit, and flood the gyms in January, then fall off to "pizza on the couch land" by February 1st.  That's why I've begun to start my fitness resolutions then!   If you slacked off or cynically don't make resolutions, or if you did and things are flagging... this one's for you.

Music is a major part of my 2014 fitness plan.  I have a cool treadmill desk and an Android app, "Walking Mate".   I've been known to keep on exercising and go beyond my original goals when the music's great, sometimes without even noticing.  



No Strings Attached:

While blogging and jogging, I have been known to entangle my treadmill tether, my laptop and external drive power cords & firewire, and my head phones into a gordian knot as I shuffle things around my work space.   So, I'm particularly stoked to try out yurbuds NEW Wireless Earphone!

Studies have shown that music can increase the intensity and duration of a workout by as much as 15%.  Unfortunately, most people miss out on those benefits because their earphones hurt and fall out during active use.  *Anyone else notice the multiple ear monitors that fell out during rigorous dance numbers at the Grammys last night?!

yurbuds was founded in 2008 by an Ironman Triathlete and a 24-time marathoner in response to that problem. Our products are ergonomically designed for comfort and exceptional fit, while providing best-in-class audio quality and durability.  yurbuds is passionate about serving our customers and our community.  We listen to and learn from our athletes to produce solutions to their needs.  We are dedicated to innovating and creatively changing the industry of sport audio.  Our goal is to empower athletes through exceptional products and services to help them to push past their barriers, reach new personal bests, and #neverstop.

I'll be tweeting about my progress to @BestBuyWOLF #GetMotivated so feel free to jump in and add your own inspiring fitness/music story to the mix.

“Get Motivated through Music” 

Best Buy is your best bet for Health and Fitness gadgets.   Find Best Buy’s large selection of yurbuds on Bestbuy.com and Check out their sweet selection of Health & Fitness at Best Buy right here

yurbuds headphones are the headphone of choice for adding music to your workouts. 

I can't wait to "Get Motivated" while incorporating music into my routine through the #1 selling sport earphone company – yurbuds! 


yurbuds launch their new Wireless Earphone--you benefit


Cut the cords and unleash your inner athlete with the Inspire Limited Edition Wireless Sport Earphones. These Stereo-Bluetooth® earphones lock in place comfortably so they never hurt and never fall out. The 15mm drivers provide the biggest sound available, providing the motivation you need to #neverstop. These sweat and water resistant earphones feature full track & call control with a wind-blocking microphone designed for call clarity. The athlete tested battery lasts up to 6 hours and provides visual and audible indicators when running low. This is sound with no strings attached.

#1 Selling Sport Earphone Company, yurbuds®, Introduces Wireless Product for a Seamless Workout Experience

Key Features:
·         With yurbuds TwistLock™ Technology and FlexSoft Comfort Fit, these Stereo-Bluetooth® earphones lock in place comfortably and are guaranteed never to hurt or fall out.

·         Bigger Sound for music and calls provided by 15mm drivers
·         Smart Battery powers a week's worth of workouts and provides visual             and audible indicators when running low.
·         Dedicated Pairing Button for simple 1-touch pairing.

·         Compatible with all Bluetooth® devices.

·         Earphones that never hurt and never fall out.

yurbuds®, the #1 selling sport earphone company in the United States, is transforming the athlete experience with its new Inspire Limited Edition Wireless earphones to get you motivated through music. 

Launching at CES 2014 in Las Vegas this January, athletes and tech enthusiasts will be able to enjoy the first-ever Stereo-Bluetooth® wireless earphones guaranteed to never hurt and never fall out.


 “We’ve cut the cords so fitness enthusiasts have less in the way of achieving the perfect workout,” said Daniel DeVille, Director of Marketing for yurbuds. “Designed based on user feedback, we are excited to deliver best-in-class wireless earphones that solve the needs not currently met by other wireless earphones and meet the rigorous standards of even the top professional athletes.”

Disclosure:  The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.

ACT OUT OPENING: Luna Gale at Goodman Theatre Kicks Off Great Women At Play Series


REBECCA GILMAN EXPLORES FAITH, FAMILY AND ONE CHILD’S UNCERTAIN FUTURE IN LUNA GALE, DIRECTED BY ROBERT FALLS, 
JANUARY 18 – FEBRUARY 23, 2014 

***GILMAN’S WORLD-PREMIERE PRODUCTION KICKS OFF 
“GREAT WOMEN AT PLAY” SERIES, GOODMAN THEATRE’S NEW
FIVE-PLAY SUBSCRIPTION PACKAGE***




Who best determines an infant’s fate among differing values concerning drugs, religion and child rearing? Pulitzer Prize finalist Rebecca Gilman asks this question and more in her latest play, Luna Gale, directed by Goodman Theatre Artistic Director Robert Falls in their fourth collaboration. Gilman’s seven Goodman productions—six of which were world premieres, including five commissions—make her one of the most-produced contemporary playwrights in the theater’s history. 

Appearing in her 16th Goodman production, Chicago stage favorite Mary Beth Fisher—who also originated roles in Gilman’s Spinning Into Butter and Boy Gets Girl—stars as veteran social worker Caroline, who is charged with making tough decisions about the future of Luna Gale, a vulnerable child. The recipient of an Edgerton Foundation New American Plays Award, Luna Gale is part of the Goodman’s “Great Women at Play” subscription package, featuring works written and/or directed by Rachel Rockwell (Brigadoon), Joanie Schultz (Venus in Fur), Jessica Thebus, Tracey Scott Wilson (Buzzer) and Mary Zimmerman (The White Snake). 

Luna Gale runs January 18 – February 23 in the Albert Theatre (opening night is Monday, January 27). Tickets ($25 - $81; subject to change) are available at GoodmanTheatre.org/Luna, by phone at 312.443.3800 or at the box office (170 North Dearborn). 

The Goodman Women’s Board is a Major Production Sponsor and Mayer Brown is a Corporate Sponsor Partner. Ogletree Deakins and U.S. Bank are the Opening Night Sponsors. 

“I have worked with a variety of playwrights, but none whose work I admire more than Rebecca Gilman’s. From her first major work, Rebecca has proven to be one of the most eloquent and most accomplished contemporary voices, and has tackled some of the most elusive and problematic social issues with honesty, courage and profound humanity,” said Falls. “She has created an enormously complex world in Luna Gale, and we have enlisted the remarkable Mary Beth Fisher as Caroline, whose previous collaborations with Rebecca have established her expertise at capturing the ambiguities, uncertainties, and overwhelming humanity of Gilman’s central characters.”

Over the past two decades, Gilman has become known for her unflinching works about contentious social issues—such as race in Spinning Into Butter; violence against women in Boy Gets Girl; class in Blue Surge; and whether to have a child or remain child-free in The Crowd You’re in With, to name a few. 

“Part of the feeling behind Luna Gale is an observation that when we fail people because we haven’t taken care of them, we turn our anger on them, and it’s because we know we’re at fault. That dynamic drove the emotional heart of the play,” said Gilman. “It’s thrilling that Bob, Mary Beth and I can collaborate together for the first time.”

Veteran social worker Caroline (Fisher), thinks she has a typical case on her hands when her boss Cliff (Erik Hellman) assigns her to Peter and Karlie (Colin Sphar and Reyna de Courcy), two drug-addicted teenagers accused of neglecting their infant daughter. But when she places their baby in the care of Karlie’s mother (Jordan Baker), who is strongly influenced by her pastor (Richard Thieriot), Caroline sparks a family conflict that exposes a secretive past and—after the outcome of a previous case (Melissa DuPrey)—forces her to make a risky decision with potentially life-altering consequences.

“Rebecca has a dark sense of humor with a serious edge; she is very serious about addressing social ills,” said Fisher. “There is a lot to consider with Luna Gale, and I think my character is really exploring what it means to have faith—spiritual faith, faith in yourself, faith in your intuition, faith in other people and faith in an unpredictable future. I find that really beautiful.”

Robert Falls first encountered Rebecca Gilman—“one of Chicago’s hottest playwrights” (Chicago Tribune)—when he read her 1998 play The Glory of Living (a 2002 Pulitzer Prize finalist that was first produced at Circle Theatre). Soon after, Falls commissioned Gilman to write a new play for the Goodman; she responded with Spinning Into Butter (premiered in the Goodman Studio in 1999, directed by Les Waters, subsequently produced at Lincoln Center Theater in 2000, and most recently made into a feature film starring Sarah Jessica Parker). The show’s run was extended three times and led to Gilman’s next Goodman commission, Boy Gets Girl (premiered at the Goodman in 2000, directed by the late Michael Maggio), which transferred to New York’s Manhattan Theatre Club and was named by Time magazine as one of the “Best Theatre Productions of the Decade.” Falls later directed both Blue Surge (2001) and Dollhouse (2005)—a modern interpretation of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. The Crowd You’re In With, directed by Wendy C. Goldberg, made its Chicago debut in 2009 at the Goodman, followed by A True History of the Johnstown Flood, a Goodman commission that had its world premiere at the Goodman in 2010 under Falls’ direction.

EVENTS AROUND LUNA GALE

COLLEGE NIGHT
Enjoy pizza, pop and the opportunity to mingle with other students and Goodman artists before a performance of Luna Gale
Wednesday, January 22, 6pm | Goodman Theatre | $10 with promo code COLLEGE (must redeem with valid student ID)


ARTIST ENCOUNTER
A discussion with playwright Rebecca Gilman and director Robert Falls.
Sunday, January 26, 5pm | Goodman Theatre | FREE for Subscribers, Donors and students with ID; $5 general public 
Reservations are required. Call 312.443.3800 to reserve your seats.


PROFESSIONALS NIGHT
A pre-show reception for social work and family law professionals, with remarks from a Luna Gale artist before that evening’s performance. 
Wednesday, January 29, 6pm | Goodman Theatre | $40 with promo code PROFESSIONAL


PRE- AND POST-SHOW DISCUSSIONS
Arrive early or stay late for discussions about the play with members of the artistic team  
Goodman Theatre | FREE Pre-show (7pm): Jan 31, Feb 7, 14 and 21 | Post-show: Wednesdays and Thursdays


THE INTERVIEW SHOW at MCA CHICAGO’S “FIRST FRIDAYS”
Host Mark Bazer welcomes director Robert Falls to this monthly variety talk show.
Friday, February 7, 6:30-7:30pm | MCA Chicago | $14 advance/$18 general admission at MCAChicago.org


CONTEXT: WEDNESDAY’S CHILDREN
A discussion about the system designed to support our most vulnerable children.
Monday, February 3, 6:30pm | Goodman Theatre | FREE, visit GoodmanTheatre.org to reserve tickets



Good Women Getting Seen and Heard at The Goodman

At Goodman Theatre this season, girls rule!   Of course talent knows no gender bounds, but sometimes even in this century, talented women have to prove themselves and break those good ol' boy networks to gain access and have their voices heard at the top of their fields.   Well, women are being seen and heard loud and clear in 2013/14 at the inimitable Goodman.



It’s a DREAM lineup at Goodman Theatre: four works authored and five directed by women, three world premieres (two direct from the New Stages new play development series), two Goodman commissions and a major large-scale musical event comprise Goodman Theatre’s 2013/2014 eight-play line-up. 

It was our great pleasure here at ChiIL Live Shows, to catch Cheryl L. West’s Pullman Porter Blues —a Chicago premiere featuring original and classic blues songs and our annual favorite A Christmas Carol which somehow managed to be simultaneously funnier and scarier than in years' past.   As always, the set design was pure genius and the acting was a joy to behold.   The door knocker collaboration with Redmoon was a character in and of itself, with an intense, scene stealing little cameo, that will be remembered for years to come. 

Next is the world premiere of Luna Gale by Rebecca Gilman, directed by Robert Falls; Joanie Schultz directs the Chicago premiere of David Ives’ Broadway smash Venus in Fur; and Mary Zimmerman directs her latest work, The White Snake, based on the classic Chinese fable. Finally, Rachel Rockwell directs a major revival of Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe’s 1947 musical Brigadoon, with permission from the Lerner and Loewe estates to revise the book. 

We also caught The Owen Theatre season opener in October, Smokefall by Noah Haidle, a Goodman commission directed by Anne Kauffman in a world-premiere co-production with South Coast Repertory.

We're eagerly anticipating the opening this month off Tracey Scott Wilson’s Buzzer directed by Jessica Thebus, and concludes with Ask Aunt Susan, Seth Bockley’s Goodman commission directed by Henry Wishcamper.


INCOMING: Nick Waterhouse at Lincoln Hall 2/21 #FreeStreaming #NewRelease

Nick Waterhouse is one of our current top favorites here at ChiIL Live Shows.   So we're eagerly awaiting the March release of his new album, Holly.   He'll be playing Lincoln Hall on February 21st in celebration of his latest release, as part of a nationwide tour.




We had the great pleasure of catching him twice last year, and shooting stills at Lincoln Hall.   Click here to check out our prior coverage and more live Nick Waterhouse show shots.



NICK WATERHOUSE’S “THIS IS A GAME” VIDEO PREMIERES AT ESQUIRE

SOPHOMORE ALBUM HOLLY SET FOR MARCH 4 RELEASE ON INNOVATIVE LEISURE

NATIONWIDE TOUR DATES CONFIRMED




“A timeless talent…”—NPR’s “World Café”

“The real deal…”—GQ

“…he’s a tightly wound, meticulous rock & roll scholar who commands up to a dozen musicians onstage beside him with the authority of a seasoned bandleader.”—LA Weekly

The video for “This Is A Game,” the lead single off Nick Waterhouse’s latest album Holly (due March 4 on Innovative Leisure), is now streaming at Esquire http://bit.ly/1e2AdQQ. The new record, which follows Waterhouse’s 2012 debut Time’s All Gone, has received early critical acclaim—Rolling Stone explains “Nick Waterhouse is a soul man, through and through,” while Paste Magazine praises the music as a “…cohesive selection of work that, presented together, tells a story.” To celebrate the release, Waterhouse will embark on a nationwide tour. See below for details.

Holly was produced by Waterhouse and Kevin Augunas (Cold War Kids, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros) and includes song writing collaborations with friend Ty Segall, as well as covers of tracks by Young Holt Trio and Mose Allison among others. Of the new music, Waterhouse notes, “Thematically this record feels more like a novella, or poem with sections, or even a film, than a collection of songs. It is a work of fiction, with a protagonist, but also a floating omniscient narrator, and fragments of conversation from other characters. I was heavily influenced by my surroundings in young Los Angeles, as well as the concept of fate.”



Waterhouse grew up in Huntington Beach, CA. He established his musical sensibilities in the middle of the burgeoning Southern California psych-garage scene, while retaining his unique perspective on the spirit of American rhythm & blues and rock & roll. Waterhouse started performing as a teenager. “I found it had the same feeling I got racing motorcycles as a kid, which is a fight-or-flight feeling of things happening in ‘real time’…I felt like that was the most focusing thing about playing music versus other forms of art. You have to live with what you do in an immediate moment,” he explains.

NICK WATERHOUSE TOUR DATES
February 19                                     Pittsburgh, PA                                                             Club Cafe
February 20                                        Detroit, MI                                                           Lager House
February 21                                       Chicago, IL                                                           Lincoln Hall
February 22                                      Toronto, ON                                                 Horseshoe Tavern
February 23                                      Montreal, QC          Montreal Highlights Festival @ Club Soda
February 25                                       Boston, MA                                              Brighton Music Hall
February 27                                     New York, NY                                                 Bowery Ballroom
February 28                                   Washington, DC           Bulldog Alley @ Georgetown University
March 1                                         Philadelphia, PA                                        First Unitarian Church
March 7                                         Los Angeles, CA                                             Hollywood Legion
March 8                                        San Francisco, CA                              Great American Music Hall
March 10                                         Vancouver, BC                                                               Biltmore
March 11                                           Seattle, WA                                                                  Neumos
March 12                                          Portland, OR                                                               Doug Fir
March 13                                             Reno, NV                                                      Knitting Factory
March 14                                    San Luis Obispo, CA                                             Downtown Brew
March 15                                       Pioneertown, CA                                               Pappy & Harriets

Holly Tracklist
1. High Tiding
2. This Is A Game
3. It no. 3
4. Let It Come Down
5. Sleeping Pills
6. Holly
7. Dead Room
8. Well It’s Fine
9. Ain’t There Something That Money Can’t Buy

10. Hands On The Clock


Photo Credit: Naj Jamai

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