Hard Rock Hotel Lollapalooza Afterparties #21+

ChiIL Live Shows has been ChiILin' out in Chi, IL at Hard Rock Hotel every summer when Lollapalooza rolls around. It's always a party! In past years I've gotten a complimentary tattoo there (the permanent kind), sweet fest friendly hair styles, and opportunities to see celebs and rock stars perform in a much more intimate setting than the fest stages.

Hard Rock Hotels & Casinos teams up with Culture Collide to present the "Chicago After Parties" – a series of music-infused post-event celebrations – at Hard Rock Hotel Chicago in conjunction with the city's famed festival weekend. Sure to be the weekend's hottest entertainment and lifestyle venue, the Culture Collide Chicago After Parties Series will roll out the red carpet on the nights of July 31, 2015 and August 1, 2015 at Hard Rock Hotel Chicago – the city's most coveted music-inspired destination adjacently located to the festival grounds.

"The after parties at Hard Rock Hotel Chicago have always been the place to see and be seen during the festival weekend, and this year is certainly no exception," says Matt Watts, director of music and marketing at Hard Rock Hotels & Casinos. "With our 10th and most exciting year yet, we're looking forward to continue to build upon this annual party and provide music fans with a truly unique and intimate setting to see performances from an icon like Slick Rick; as well as one of the most exciting new bands this year, Bleachers."

For the tenth year in a row, Hard Rock Hotel Chicago will play home to the most sought-after post-festival event over the weekend long celebration. Keeping music at the forefront, the two-day extravaganza will feature both throwback legends and indie powerhouses. The first night welcomes one of hip-hop's earliest pioneers, the Grammy-nominated Slick Rick, recognized for brilliant lyricism, and hip-hop story telling, as seen in his 1989 smash hit single, "Children's Story." The weekend will close out with an ode to indie culture, with Saturday night featuring emotional melodies by Bleachers, the emerging indie favorite founded by Jack Antonoff of Grammy award-winning band fun.

"Much like Hard Rock, Culture Collide was founded on the belief that music connects us all and we look forward to curating an experience during Lollapalooza weekend that further showcases both our brand's biggest passion – music," says Alan Miller, founder of Culture Collide."

Guests in attendance will enjoy delectable food and wine pairings, as well as creative creations by a fully sponsored open bar. Sponsors of the Culture Collide Chicago After Parties Series include media partners The A.V. Club, as well as Bandsintown, Fender, Shellback Caribbean Rum, E&J and Busy Beaver Button Co., which will be gifting partygoers with custom festival buttons.

Leading up the much anticipated night parties, Hard Rock Hotel Chicago will serve as a retreat where guests enjoy a Vinyl DJ Bar at the main lobby from 5-10 p.m. Presented by Blue Microphones, the Vinyl DJ Bar will provide fans with the ultimate listening experience as a DJ spinning vinyl takes requests and fills the hotel with music. Guests will also have the opportunity to sift through classic vinyl records and experience firsthand what their favorite tracks sound like through premium Blue Mo-Fi headphones, all the while diving into music's treasured vinyl culture.

• Attendees are encouraged to RSVP at culturecollide.com/Chicago (Tell 'em ChiIL Live Shows sent you)
• Interact via Twitter @hardrock and @hrhchicago using #thisishardrock

Culture Collide Chicago After Parties Series:
Dates:	Friday, July 31 and Saturday, August 1
Hours:	10 p.m. – 2 a.m.
Address:	230 N. Michigan Ave
Friday, July 31 Lineup:
10 p.m. – 2 a.m.	Slick Rick Performance Plus Special Guests
Saturday, August 1 Lineup:
10 p.m. – 2 a.m.	Bleachers Performance Plus Special Guests

For more information on Hard Rock Hotels & Casinos, please visit hardrockhotels.com, and for more information on Hard Rock Hotel Chicago, please visit hardrockhotelchicago.com.

About Hard Rock International
With a total of 200 venues in 64 countries, including 154 cafes, 21 hotels and 10 casinos, Hard Rock International (HRI) is one of the most globally recognized companies. Beginning with an Eric Clapton guitar, Hard Rock owns the world's greatest collection of music memorabilia, which is displayed at its locations around the globe. Hard Rock is also known for its collectible fashion and music-related merchandise, Hard Rock Live performance venues and an award-winning website. HRI owns the global trademark for all Hard Rock brands. The company owns, operates and franchises Cafes in iconic cities including London, New York, San Francisco, Sydney andDubai. HRI also owns, licenses and/or manages hotel/casino properties worldwide. Destinations include the company's two most successful Hotel and Casino properties in Tampa and Hollywood, Fl., both owned and operated by HRI parent company The Seminole Tribe of Florida, as well as other exciting locations including Bali, Chicago, Cancun, Ibiza, Las Vegas, Macau and San Diego. Upcoming new Hard Rock Cafe locations include San Juan, Lagos and Busan, South Korea. New Hard Rock Hotel projects include Daytona Beach, Dubai, Los Cabos, Tenerife, Abu Dhabi, and Shenzhen and Haikou in China. For more information on Hard Rock International, visit www.hardrock.com

About Hard Rock Hotel Chicago
Stretching 40 stories tall on Chicago's famous Michigan Avenue, Hard Rock Hotel Chicago gives guests a hotel experience unlike any other with a combination of rich architectural legacy and contemporary amenities. Owned and operated by Becker Ventures, Hard Rock Hotel Chicago resides in the Carbide and Carbon Building, a historic Burnham masterpiece fashioned from green terra cotta and black polished granite. As Art Deco meets the art of hospitality, the luxury lifestyle hotel holds 381 modernized guest rooms, including 20 suites, designed to immerse the senses with soothing tones, modern furnishings and atmospheric lighting. Guests enjoy access to some of Chicago's largest meeting space, in addition to the hotel's two onsite restaurants: Mr. Brown's Lounge and Chuck's: A Kerry Simon Kitchen. For more information on Hard Rock Hotel Chicago, visit www.hardrockhotelchicago.com or call 312-345-1000.

Come Celebrate at Neo Nightclub One Last Weekend In Their Iconic Space

Neo Nightclub Loses their Lease  after 37 Years in Lincoln Park Yes, I admit it. I was a weekly regular at Neo in the early 90's. It's sad to see them lose their iconic, alternative space to a preschool! Neo, one of Chicago’s oldest alternative nightclubs, has lost their lease at their current Lincoln Park location and are searching for a new space to move the 37-year old nightclub. The only upside is, maybe they'll move where parking is more plentiful. May we highly suggest Avondale?! photos by Ashok Selvam The current lease was lost due to the landlord not re-signing with the owners of the club, after months of negotiating a new lease. The preschool located in the store front of the building on the 2300 block of North Clark will take over the space where Neo currently resides. You can join Neo for one last hoorah! in their current space this weekend.  The nightclub will kick off their reunion this week on Thursday, July 23rd. Each night will be themed as the nightclub from decades ago. Thursday is ‘Neo in the 80’s,’ featuring DJs Gil Burns, Bud Sweet and Jeff Pazen. Friday, July 24th will be “Neo in the 90’s” and will feature DJ’s RazerX, DJ Abe!, Ryan Bedlem and Carrie Monster. Saturday, July 25th Neo will feature original Neo DJs Glenn Russell, Suzanne Shelton and Bill Saveley. Neo will move their Thursday programming to Debonair Social Club in Wicker Park while they search for a new building for the nightclub. They will also be taking over the basement of Debonair Social Club on Friday’s. Please stay tuned for more information regarding the Debonair Social Club events. Neo has a wide range of fame associated with it, as the name of the main character in the MATRIX trilogy is rumored to be named after the dance club. The establishment has also been favorited by the likes of musician, David Bowie and actor, John Cusack. The definition of a Chicago music club, Neo has been a staple of the alternative scene for over 30 years. Come in and experience a place where the drinks are strong, the music is a way of life, the dancing is unlike anywhere else, and only sin is not being yourself. Serving Chicago’s underground since 1979.

OPENING: Pre-Broadway production of Beaches, A New Musical at Drury Lane 6/24

Cast Announced For Beaches, A New Musical Pre-Broadway Musical Plays Drury Lane Theatre  June 24 – August 16 Drury Lane Productions and Jennifer Maloney-Prezioso (Broadway: Spring Awakening, Rock of Ages) are thrilled to announce the cast for the pre-Broadway production of Beaches, A New Musical, based on the beloved novel by Iris Rainer Dart. Previewing June 24, opening on July 2 and running through August 16, 2015, the original musical is written by Iris Rainer Dart and Thom Thomas, with music by David Austin and lyrics by Iris Rainer Dart. The production is directed by Eric Schaeffer (Broadway: Follies, Million Dollar Quartet). The all-star cast is led by Shoshana Bean as “Cee Cee Bloom,” and Whitney Bashor as “Bertie White.” Bean, a veteran of the Broadway stage debuted in the original cast of Hairspray and starred as the very first replacement for Elphaba, the green-skinned witch, in Wicked. Her independent solo releases have topped the iTunes R&B and Blues charts in the US and UK in peak positions 5, 3 and now #1 with the release of her latest EP Shadows to Light. She also sang back up for Michael Jackson at his 30th anniversary concert at Madison Square Garden and her music has also been featured in TV shows on NBC, MTV, Oxygen and Showtime.   Whitney Bashor (left) and Shoshana Bean (right) Bashor appeared in Broadway’s Tony award-winning Bridges of Madison County and went from the stage to the small screen, appearing on HBO’s critically acclaimed Boardwalk Empire.  The young versions of the characters are played by Presley Ryan as “Little Cee Cee” (How The Grinch Stole Christmas at Madison Square Garden, NBC’s Sound of Music Live) and Brooklyn Shuck as “Little Bertie / Nina” (Broadway: Matilda in Matilda, Annie) Also starring is Travis Taylor as “John Perry” (Lancelot in Camelot at Drury Lane Theatre, Sunday in the Park with George at Goodman Theatre), Nancy Voigts as “Leona Bloom” (Follies at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, A Christmas Carol at Goodman Theatre), Kelly Anne Clark as “Rose White” (I Love You You're Perfect Now Change - Off Broadway, Victor/Victoria at the Marriott for which she won a Jeff Award), Jim DeSelm as “Michael Barron” (Tony in West Side Story at Drury Lane Theatre, TV: Chicago P.D.), Michael Accardo as “Nathan Bloom” (Full Monty at Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower, TV: Chicago P.D.), Andrew Varela as “Arthur” (Broadway: Les Misérables and Little Women), Samantha Pauly as “Teen Cee Cee” (Godspell at Marriott, TV: Chicago P.D. and Shameless) and Olivia Renteria (Brigadoon at Goodman Theatre, Oliver at Drury Lane Theatre) as “Teen Bertie.” Rounding out the cast are William Carlos Angulo, Heather Brorsen, Josh Kohane, Christine Mild and Holly Stauder. Beaches will be choreographed by Lorin Latarro (Broadway: Waiting for Godot, Scandalous), with musical direction by Brian Nash (Silence!, Kathy Najimy: Lift Up Your Skirt). The production will also feature scenic design by Tony and Emmy Award®-winning Derek McLane (86th Academy Awards, Broadway: Anything Goes, Ragtime), lighting design by Tony Award®-winning Howell Binkley (Broadway: Jersey Boys, West Side Story, Memphis), costume design by Alejo Vietti (Broadway: Beautiful, The Carole King Musical, Jersey Boys), and sound design by Tony Award®-nominated Kai Harada (Broadway: Fun Home, Follies, Million Dollar Quartet). Previews for Beaches begin June 24, opening night is scheduled for July 2, and the production will run through August 16. Tickets are on sale now and available by calling the Drury Lane Theatre box office at 630.530.0111, TicketMaster at 800.745.3000 or visiting www.drurylane.com. The performance schedule is as follows: Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m. ($45), Thursdays at 1:30 p.m. ($45) and 8 p.m. ($55), Fridays at 8 p.m. ($60), Saturdays at 5 p.m. ($60), and 8:30 p.m. ($60), and Sundays at 2 p.m. ($60), and 6 p.m. ($55). Student group tickets start as low as $30 and Senior Citizens start at $40 for matinees. Dinner and show packages are also available. For more information on Beaches and the rest of the 2015-2016 theatrical season at Drury Lane, please visit www.drurylane.com.

OPENING: Don't Go Gentle at Theater Wit #TheatreChicago

HAVEN THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS THE CHICAGO PREMIERE OF 

DON’T GO GENTLE 

BY STEPHEN BELBER

DIRECTED BY CODY ESTLE AT THEATER WIT, JUNE 2 – JULY 12

Tonight, ChiIL Live Shows will be ChiILin' with Haven Theatre Company at one of our favorite storefront spaces, Theater Wit, for opening night of Don't Go Gentle.  Check back with us like we vote in Chi, IL... early and often for loads of original content including theatre and music news, review and interviews, foodie fun, urban lifestyle features, travel, and photo filled event recaps. 

Haven Theatre closes their 2014 – 2015 Season with the Chicago premiere of Stephen Belber’s Don’t Go Gentle, directed by Haven Theatre Company Artistic Associate Cody Estle, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., May 31 – July 12. The regular schedule is Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at

3 p.m. Regular tickets are $28, and senior/industry/student tickets are $15. You may purchase tickets and get more information at www.haventheatrechicago.com or call the Theater Wit box office at 773.975.8150.

Judge Lawrence Driver is a conservative powerhouse on the bench, but a failure at home. Now retired and widowed, and seeking redemption, Judge Driver volunteers to do pro bono legal work with Tanya, a vulnerable ex-con with a troubled teenage son, while working to repair the increasingly complicated relationships with his own adult children.  When his newfound generosity is perceived as condescension, Judge Driver runs the risk of losing everything.

Cast for Don’t Go Gentle includes: Norm Woodel (Judge Lawrence Driver), Echaka Agba (Tanya), Benjamin Sprunger (Ben), Robyn Coffin (Amelia) and Andrew Muwonge (Rasheed).

The production team for Don’t Go Gentle includes: Carol Cohen (producer, costume designer), Ron Whitaker (producer, assistant director), Eli Newell (assistant director), Tara Malpass (stage manager), Allison Grischow (assistant stage manager), Jeff Kmiec (set designer), Jamie Karas (props designer), Chris LaPorte (sound designer), Sarah Hughey (lighting designer) and Sam Hubbard (fight choreographer).

ABOUT DIRECTOR CODY ESTLE

Cody Estle is a Chicago-based freelance director. Select credits include Dividing the Estate, Vieux Carré, Good Boys and True, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Boy Gets Girl and the world premiere of Dating Walter Dante at Raven Theatre; Watch on the Rhine at The Artistic Home; Uncle Bob at Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company and Hospitality Suite at Citadel Theatre Company. He’s had the pleasure of assistant directing at Northlight Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Court Theatre, Writers Theatre, Next Theatre and Strawdog Theatre. Estle is the associate artistic director at Raven Theatre, artistic assistant at Northlight Theatre and an artistic associate at Haven Theatre. He serves on the faculty of Cherubs at Northwestern University and is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago. 

ABOUT HAVEN THEATRE COMPANY

Haven Theatre Company, led by Artistic Director Josh Sobel and Executive Director and Founder Carol Cohen, presents quality theater to Chicago audiences utilizing some of the most experienced and talented directors, designers and actors.

                                                           

Shawn Maxwell’s Alliance at Jazz Showcase 6/11-6/14/15 #Jazz

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar

Chicago’s Shawn Maxwell’s Alliance will be doing a weekend residency at Jazz Showcase, Thursday, June 11-Sunday, June 14 (four nights of shows at 8pm & 10pm, along with a special 4pm matinee on Sunday). Shows are all ages. 

SAXOPHONIST SHAWN MAXWELL ‘ALLIANCE’

All Ages

$20 - $35

Jazz Showcase

806 S. Plymouth Ct. 

Chicago, IL

Click here for more information.

OPENING: Good People by Pulitzer Prizewinning Playwright, David Lindsay-Abaire 6/24/15

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar

Redtwist Theatre presents

The first Chicago storefront production 

of the 2011 Broadway smash hit

GOOD PEOPLE

By Pulitzer Prizewinning playwright, 

David Lindsay-Abaire

Directed by five-time Jeff Award-winner Matt Hawkins from The House Theatre of Chicago

Featuring a cast of Jeff Award-winning Redtwist actors and guest artists

Opens Saturday, June 27, 2015, at 3pm (Press opening)

Thu, Fri, Sat, 7:30pm; Sun, 3pm thru Sun, August 2

A funny, poignant, subversive look at what it means to be down on your luck.

THE PLAY  

With Good People, Redtwist is doing what Redtwist does best: staging the first Chicago storefront production of a Broadway hit and a Chicago smash. As with former productions like Man From Nebraska and The Pillowman, Redtwist takes an iconic play and adapts it to the unique signature intimacy of its Bryn Mawr storefront space, creating an entirely new and thoroughly explosive theatrical experience.

    

Good People had its world-premiere on Broadway in March, 2011, with Frances McDormand in the lead role of Margie, for which she received a Tony Award for Best Actress. The play had its Chicago premiere at Steppenwolf in September, 2012. It has since been produced around the world to great acclaim, and is decorated with many accolades and awards, including a Tony nomination for Best Play.

THE STORY 

Margie (pronounced with a hard "g") is a good soul from "Southie" with a string of bad luck. While at ease in her own world of rough-and-tumble south Boston, she seeks an opportunity in the upper crust world of "lace-curtain" Chestnut Hill, in which her old Southie boyfriend has forged his way as a successful doctor with a beautiful wife and new baby. Little does he know that his old gal pal has not come merely to say hello. No no, Margie has a plan, and both their lives are now at a crossroads.

CAST (in alphabetical order)

Jacqueline Grandt (Margie), KC Karen Hill (Jean), Aaron Kirby (Stevie), Kiki Layne (Kate), Mark Pracht (Mike), Kathleen Ruhl (Dottie) 

Understudies: Kona N. Burks (Kate), David Raymond (Stevie) 

STAFF

Matt Hawkins (Director), Scott Wolf (Assistant Director), Allison Queen (Stage Manager), Melissa Nelson (Assistant Stage Manager), Eric Luchen (Set Designer), Kathryn A. Lesko (Lighting Designer), Karli Blalock (Sound Designer), Allison M. Smith (Costume Designer), Jan Ellen Graves (Prop Designer, Graphic Designer, Marketing), Elise Kauzlaric (Dialect Coach), Catherine Miller (Dramaturg, Casting Director), Charles Bonilla (Box Office Manager), E. Malcolm Martinez (Box Office Associate), Johnny Garcia (Box Office Associate, Associate Producer), Jan Ellen Graves & Michael Colucci (Producers)

SCHEDULE 

Opens: Sat, June 27, 3pm (Note: there is no 7:30pm show on June 27, opening day)

Runs: Thu, Fri, Sat, 7:30pm; Sun, 3pm (Note: there is no show on July 4)

Closes: Sun, August 2, 3pm

Running Time: Approximately 2:20 total, which includes one intermission

Previews: $15; Wed, Thu, Fri, June 24, 25, 26, at 7:30pm

Tickets: Thursdays, $30; Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, $35 (seniors & students $5 off)

RESERVATIONS  

Call: 773-728-7529 

Website/Tickets: www.redtwist.org

Please reserve 48 hours in advance. Credit cards accepted by phone and online to guarantee seating.

PARKING

Redtwist is located at 1044 W Bryn Mawr, 2 blks W of LSD, 2 blks E of the Red Line EL station.

Valet parking for Redtwist is available across the street in front of Francesca's Bryn Mawr for most performances-hours vary. Dining is not required. 

Limited FREE street parking is available on side streets. There is metered street parking via ParkChicago.com app or 2-hour paybox (days) 3-hour paybox (eves) on Bryn Mawr. 2-hour meters on Broadway and on some side streets. Free on Sundays and after 10pm on weekdays. 

EXTENDED: Piven Theatre Workshop's Melancholy Play: a chamber musical through 6/21 #Review #GuestPost

Piven Theatre Workshop extends Melancholy Play: a chamber musical through June 21, 2015

Playwright Sarah Ruhl to conduct post-show talk-backs June 18 and 21; Ruhl and composer Todd Almond return for Poetry Foundation conversation, June 24   

In this lighthearted farce, bank teller Tilly’s (Stephanie Stockstill) melancholy is of an exquisite quality. She turns her melancholy into a sexy thing, and every stranger she meets falls in love with her. One day, inexplicably, Tilly becomes happy, and wreaks havoc on the lives of her paramours, while Frances, Tilly’s hairdresser, becomes so melancholy that she turns into an almond. It is up to Tilly to get her back. Other members of the Equity production include Chris Ballou (Frank, a tailor who deeply loves Tilly’s melancholia); Lauren Paris (Frances, her hairdresser); Emily Grayson (Joan, the helpless nurse who watches her girlfriend Frances devolve into a nut), and Ryan Lanning (Lorenzo, Tilly’s eccentric therapist from an undetermined European country).  

Review

Guest Post by Flo Mano- Exclusive to ChiIL Live Shows

"Melancholy  play" is an opera worthy musical. Four strings and a piano, come alive as Tilly, is "melancholy" and sees her European "happy" therapist, who has a "transference" on her.

And that starts the "Amelie" like happenstance of happy go lucky with a twist of "almonds". When her path crosses the tailor, who makes daily visits to the bank where she works, they fall in love. Then a hairstylist falls for Tilly, as does her lesbian nurse lover. To the dismay of the psychotherapist, she informs him that she no longer needs his services, because she's happy and leaves him a few hair strands he'd asked her for. So, this strange, outlandish farce takes us through a journey of Tilly becoming "not melancholy", but the now happy Tilly brings despair on those who love her, want her, and fight over her. 

In this utterly unique show, Tilly’s hairdresser gets so distraught, taking a downward emotional plunge, she literally turns into an "almond", A REAL ALMOND! Now her morphing brings sadness to her friends, for her altered state, and the "tears" that brought on the transformation. Yet her friends are not hopelessness or helpless as they band together in their quest to retrieve and reverse, discovering hidden secrets of the past that bond them even more.

So this surrealistic story swerves and spirals, twists and turns, and audiences following the course are anything but melancholy. Recommended.

Piven Theatre Workshop will extend performances of the critically-acclaimed Melancholy Play: a chamber musical by Tony™-nominated playwright Sarah Ruhl, with music by prolific New York composer Todd Almond and direction by Polly Noonan. The production will continue through Sunday, June 21, at Piven Theatre Workshop, 927 Noyes Street in Evanston.  The new musical was originally scheduled to close June 7.

The Piven Theatre Workshop is also pleased to announce that Melancholy Play playwright (and Piven alumna and longtime supporter) Sarah Ruhl returns to the Piven stage for post-show “talk- backs” on both Thursday evening, June 18, and Sunday afternoon, June 21.  She will be joined by the cast, plus members of the creative team on the 18th, and Piven Theatre Workshop Founder Joyce Piven on the 21st. 

Also of note, immediately following the run of Melancholy Play, Ruhl and Almond will discuss their collaboration and the transformation of Ruhl's original text with Almond’s music at the Poetry Foundation, 61 West Superior Street, Chicago, Wednesday evening, June 24, at 7 p.m.  This program is free and open to the public. For more information about this free public program at the Poetry Foundation, please visit: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/programs/event/4453

Sarah Ruhl’s Melancholy Play had its world premiere in 2002 at Piven Theatre Workshop and starred Noonan in the lead role as Tilly.  A decade later, Ruhl teamed up with Almond and developed Melancholy Play as a new chamber musical.  It was workshopped in 2012 via 13p in Brooklyn, and returned to Piven Theatre Workshop for its Midwest Premiere. It will have its official World Premiere at Trinity Rep Theater in Providence, RI, on May 28, 2015.

Noonan, director of the highly acclaimed production of The Language Archive last year at Piven, returns to helm the show she once starred in over a decade ago. 

The designers of Melancholy Play: a chamber musical are Jacob Watson (set), Rachel Levy (lighting), Alex Palma (sound), Stephanie Cluggish (costumes), and Austin Kopsa (properties). Musical Direction is by Aaron Benham.

About the Playwright:

Sarah Ruhl’s plays include In the Next Room, or the vibrator play (Pulitzer Prize finalist, Tony Award nominee for best new play), The Clean House (Pulitzer Prize Finalist, 2005; The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, 2004); Passion Play, a cycle (Pen American award, The Fourth Freedom Forum Playwriting Award from The Kennedy Center); Dead Man’s Cell Phone (Helen Hayes award); Melancholy Play; Eurydice; Orlando, Demeter in the City (NAACP nomination), Late: a cowboy song, Three Sisters, and most recently, Stage Kiss, The Oldest Boy, and Dear Elizabeth.  Melancholy Play, Eurydice, Orlando, Three Sisters, and Late: a cowboy song have all been produced at Piven Theatre Workshop.

About the Composer:

Writer/performer Todd Almond’s work includes the World Premiere of IOWA, an original musical play with playwright Jenny Schwartz and director Ken Rus Schmoll, officially opening at Playwrights Horizons, April 13, 2015.  Other theatrical credits include original music for Ruhl’s Stage Kiss, also at Playwrights Horizons; original music and lyrics for the Public Theater/Public Works’ The Tempest at the Delacorte, in which Almond also starred as Ariel; original book for Girlfriend (music and lyrics by Matthew Sweet) at Actors Theater and Berkeley Rep; original music and lyrics for On the Levee at LCT3; original music and lyrics for Yale Rep’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle; original music and lyrics for The Odyssey at the Old Globe in San Diego; and original music and lyrics for Kansas City Choir Boy, performed by Almond with rock icon Courtney Love as part of the Prototype Festival.

About Piven Theatre Workshop:

With Melancholy Play: a chamber musical, Piven Theatre Workshop continues its ongoing mission of premiering original works, and its history of celebrating the emerging voices of women. Piven Theatre Workshop has excelled as a leader in the arts community for 44 years, maintaining a distinguished legacy in the training of children and adults in the theatre arts. Annually, between onsite and off-site programming, the theatre trains over 1,000 students, provides approximately $30,000 in need-based scholarships, and maintains a professional theatre and numerous outreach programs throughout the Chicago area.

Performance schedule & tickets:

Melancholy Play: a chamber musical will be performed at the Piven Theatre Workshop, 927 Noyes Street, Evanston, through June 21, 2015. The performance schedule is: Thursday, Friday & Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoons at 2:30 p.m.  Tickets are priced from $20-$35, and are available at the box office, by calling 847-866-8049, or online at www.piventheatre.org.