OPENING: Blues for an Alabama Sky at Court Theatre

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar

Court Theatre presents

Blues for an Alabama Sky

By Pearl Cleage

Directed by Ron OJ Parson

Blues for an Alabama Sky part of Harlem Renaissance Celebration in Hyde Park

Now Playing Through February 12, 2017

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're looking forward to Court Theatre's latest production and we'll be out to review mid week. 

In the midst of the Great Depression, the creative spirit of New York’s Harlem Renaissance struggles with harsher realities. Angel and Guy, emerging artists with grand dreams, live next door to the more serious and political Delia, a social worker with the goal to open a community family planning clinic. Each must face their own hardships head on, but always with hope for a better life close at hand. They search for a way to keep their dreams of love, career, and service alive in times of economic despair, and they learn that the Great Depression can't destroy the source of their creative spirit.

Regular Run: January 22 – February 12, 2017

Schedule: 

Wed & Thurs: 7:30 p.m.

Fridays: 8:00 p.m.

Saturdays:  3:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.

Sundays: 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.

Location: Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis Ave.

Tickets: $38-$48 previews

     $48-$68 regular run

Box Office:  Located at 5535 S. Ellis Avenue, Chicago; (773) 753-            4472 or www.CourtTheatre.org.

Playwright Pearl Cleage’s striking story encounters very modern problems in a fantastically lively 1920s Harlem. Court Resident Artist and Director Ron OJ Parson will dive into this world to illuminate the characters’ intersecting lives and experiences on stage. Blues for an Alabama Sky will serve as the centerpiece for a Chicago celebration of the music, art, language, and impact of the Harlem Renaissance.

"Pearl Cleage’s play Blues for an Alabama Sky captures a sense of the Harlem Renaissance, and era between the end of World War I and the Great Depression when Harlem became a center for the cultural, social, and artistic explosion. The Harlem Renaissance generated an amazing group of artists, political forces, and its impact is still felt today. This robust time has inspired a celebration, and Court Theatre will partner with community cultural organizations and colleagues at the University of Chicago to examine the influences of that period," notes Marilyn F. Vitale Artistic Director Charles Newell. 

The cast of Blues for an Alabama Sky includes Celeste M. Cooper (Delia), James Vincent Meredith (Sam), Sean Parris (Guy), Toya Turner (Angel) and Geno Walker (Leland).

The creative team includes Linda Buchanan (Scenic Designer), Rachel Healy (Costume Designer), Keith Parham (Lighting Designer) and Joshua Horvath (Sound Designer). Amanda Weener-Frederick is the Production Stage Manager. 

Blues for an Alabama Sky is part of the Harlem Renaissance Celebration in Hyde Park, a celebration bringing together performing arts, music, film, and scholarship to immerse audiences into the artistic explosion in America that changed the course of black identity and expression. Court is partnering with University of Chicago scholars, musical performers, local schools, arts organizations, and film centers to rediscover the legacy of the Harlem Renaissance and the ways in which it redefined how America, and the world, witnessed the spirit and talent of African Americans. Other participating organizations include Beverly Arts Center, Black Cinema House, the Center for Race, Politics and Culture at the University of Chicago, DuSable Museum of African American History, Logan Center for the Arts, the Promontory and South Side Projections. For more information on this celebration, including a schedule of events, visit http://harleminhydepark.com/. 

About the Artists

RON OJ PARSON (Director/Resident Artist) hails from Buffalo, New York and is a graduate of the University of Michigan’s professional theatre program. He is a resident artist at Court Theatre, former co-founder and artistic director of The Onyx Theatre Ensemble, and co-founder of the Beyond The Stage Theatre Project. Ron is a company member of TimeLine theatre, and associate artist at Writers Theatre, and Teatro Vista, Recent directing credits include, Sunset Baby, by Dominique Morriseau, at TimeLine Theatre, East Texas Hot Links, Writers Theatre, Apt 3A, Windy City Playhouse,  The Who & The What (Victory Gardens Theater); Gem of The Ocean, Seven Guitars, by August Wilson, The Mountaintop, by Katori Hall,  and Waiting For Godot by Samuel Beckett,  (Court Theatre); Detroit 67 (Northlight Theatre); A Raisin in the Sun (TimeLine Theatre) Other Chicagoland theatres Ron has worked with include Black Ensemble Theatre, ETA, Congo Square Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Writers Theatre, Victory Gardens, Teatro Vista (associate artist), Chicago Dramatists, Urban Theatre Company, Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago Theatre Company, and City Lit Theatre. Regional theatres Ron OJ has worked with include Virginia Stage Company, Portland Stage, Studio Theatre, Studio Arena Theatre, Roundabout Theatre, Mechanic Theatre, Center Stage Baltimore, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Milwaukee Rep, St. Louis Black Rep, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre, Geva Theatre, Signature Theatre (New York), Alliance Theatre, South Coast Rep, and Pasadena Playhouse. In Canada, Ron directed the world premiere of Palmer Park by Joanna McClelland Glass at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. Ron is a member of AEA, SAG-AFTRA, and SDC.

CELESTE M. COOPER (Delia) is making her Court Theatre debut. Celeste most recently appeared in Eclipse Theatre’s production of Our Lady of 121st Street. Some theatre credits include: Measure for Measure (Goodman); Stick Fly (Windy City Playhouse/nominated for Best Featured Actress from BTAA), Never the Sinner (Victory Gardens Theater), Ruined (Eclipse), understudying Animal Farm (Steppenwolf), The Hammer Trinity (House/Adrienne Arsht in Miami), The Mecca Tales (Chicago Dramatists), How We Got On (Citadel), AND her original one woman shows Fight 4 Your Life, and later The Incredible Cece (MPAACT & Stage 773). Celeste won The Most Promising Actress Award from the Black Theater Alliance for her portrayal of Josephine in Ruined, which led her to becoming an ensemble member and casting associate with Eclipse Theatre Company. Her TV/Film credits include a recurring role on Chicago PD (NBC), Spike Lee’s Chiraq,and Sense8 (Netflix). Ms. Cooper has a B.A. in Speech Communications & Theatre from Tennessee State University and an M.F.A. in Acting from DePaul University The Theatre School. 

JAMES VINCENT MEREDITH (Sam) makes his Court Theatre debut. Broadway: Superior Donuts. National Tour: 3 years as Mafala Hatimbi with Book of Mormon. Chicago credits: The Crucible, Carter's Way, The Tempest, Clybourne Park, The Pain and The Itch, Superior Donuts, The Hot L Baltimore, The March, Between Riverside and Crazy (Steppenwolf, ensemble member); Othello, Much Ado About Nothing, King John, Julius Caesar, The Merchant of Venice (Chicago Shakespeare); Othello, The Duchess of Malfi (Writers'); Roz and Ray (Victory Gardens). TV credits: Prison Break, Chicago Code, Detroit 187, ER, BOSS, The Beast, Betrayal, Mob Doctor, Law and Order: SVU, The Exorcist, and Chicago Justice.

SEAN PARRIS (Guy) was born in L.A., raised in Miami and Georgia, with parents from Barbados and a stepfather from Ohio. He currently lives in Pilsen with boyfriend Ricardo Gamboa. Sean received his MFA from DePaul University’s Theatre School. He is a graduate of Black Box Acting Academy and staff writer for the podcast PleasureTown in Chicago. He is excited to be making his Court Theatre debut. Chicago credits include: Space Age, a two man show, created with real life intimate partner Ricardo Gamboa; The Magic Play, The Solid Sand Below (Goodman Theatre); Compass, The Drunken City, Animal Farm (Steppenwolf); The Whipping Man (Northlight Theatre); Seascape (Remy Bumppo); Pornography (Steep Theatre); Shakespeare's Greatest Hits (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre); A Girl With Sun in Her Eyes (Pinebox Theatre). Television Credits: Sickos (Gun Collective). He will next be seen in the OpenTV’s original web series BRUJOS. He is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency. 

TOYA TURNER (Angel) Toya Turner is making her Court Theatre debut. Toya is a Jamaican-American from Houston, Texas. She's a graduate of the British American Drama Academy at Oxford University. Stage credits include: Christina, The Girl King (Cor Theatre); For Her As A Piano (Pegasus Theatre); and Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (Other Theatre Co.). TV/Film credits include: Easy (Netflix), Chicago Med (NBC), and Empire (FOX). Up Next: Tracy in The Chi (Showtime) and Mayme in Intimate Apparel (TheatreSquared, Arkansas).

GENO WALKER (Leland) makes his Court Theatre debut. A graduate of Oberlin College and a Bob Curry Fellow with Second City Chicago, Geno is represented by Grossman and Jack Talent.

Now in its 62^nd season, Court Theatre is guided by its mission to discover the power of classic theatre. Court endeavors to make a lasting contribution to American theatre by expanding the canon of translations, adaptations, and classic texts. Court revives lost masterpieces, illuminates familiar texts, and distinguishes fresh, modern classics. Court engages and inspires its audience by providing artistically distinguished productions, audience enrichment activities, and student educational experiences.

Court Theatre's 2016/17 Season is sponsored by Barbara and Richard Franke. 

Hamilton Spoof "Shamilton" Playing Apollo Theater In Chicago Through 3/31

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

“SHAMILTON,” THE NEWEST IMPROVISED MUSICAL VIA "BABY WANTS CANDY", IS PLAYING CHICAGO'S APOLLO THEATER THROUGH 3/31

The Latest Production from the Producers of “Baby Wants Candy” Runs January 20, 2017 – March 31, 2017

The producers of the Chicago-based “Baby Wants Candy” announce the debut of their newest improvised musical, “Shamilton,” inspired by hit musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda, at Apollo Theater Chicago (2540 N. Lincoln Ave). Directed by one of the founding members of “Baby Wants Candy” and Emmy Award-winner Peter Gwinn, the improvised musical features a 75-minute live-performance musical written on-the-spot about a historic figure of the audiences’ choosing. With a cast made up of ensemble members from “Baby Wants Candy” and some of Chicago’s top musical improvisors, “Shamilton” begins at the Apollo Theater January 20, 2017 (opening night is set for January 27) and runs every Friday at 10:30 p.m. through March 31. 

Tickets ($15-$20) are on sale now, and can be purchased at the Apollo Theater Box Office by calling 773.935.6100 or visiting ApolloChicago.com.

“Baby Wants Candy’ has long been known for our ensemble’s incredible talent and world-class improvisation, and we can’t wait to explore a new genre-busting show at the Apollo,” said Producer Al Samuels. “We’re so excited to bring some of the spectacle of a production like ‘Hamilton’ into an improv show, including improvised hip-hop, historical costumes and overwhelming historic significance, no matter who the hero. Now we can finally see the ‘Hamilton’ treatment of Sarah Palin or Steve Bartman we’ve all been waiting for.”

From the minds behind “Baby Wants Candy,” “Thrones! The Musical Parody” and “Fifty Shades! The Musical Parody,” “Shamilton” invites audiences to call out any famous historic figure—from Leonardo da Vinci to Genghis Khan to Paris Hilton—and watch an improvised musical unfold in real time before their eyes and ears, complete with gorgeous solos, sweeping chorus numbers and hilarious on-the-fly choreography. The production features a Chicago-based ensemble and a full band, including electronic musical enhancements with looping and percussion. 

To learn more about “Shamilton,” follow along on Facebook and Twitter.

Under Gwinn’s direction, the cast for “Shamilton” includes: Jen Connor, Erica Elam, Colette Gregory, Nathan Jansen, Chanse McCrary, Saliha Muttalib, Angela Oliver, Maria Randazzo, Bobby Richards, Patrick Rowland, Sophie Scanlon, Sean Sullivan, Ross Taylor, Nelson Velazquez, Rob Wilson and Shira Wilson.

After beginning in Chicago at Improv Olympic and moving to the Apollo Theater in 2005, “Baby Wants Candy” has expanded with performing companies in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, as well as an international touring company. Since its inception, “Baby Wants Candy” has performed more than 3,000 completely improvised musicals to sold-out crowds all over the world. In addition to the run at the Apollo Theater, they also perform weekly at Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) in LA and are debuting a weekly run Second City’s Judy’s Beat Lounge Theater. Their show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival enjoys a perennially fully sold-out run, and in February 2017 the group will travel to Australia to perform a month long run at the Adelaide Fringe Festival. The producing team behind “Baby Wants Candy” debuted “50 Shades! The Musical Parody” in 2012, playing to sold-out crowds off-Broadway, nationally and internationally. “50 Shades” still runs in Las Vegas and Japan, and has been translated into over 12 languages. In 2015, Baby Wants Candy also produced “Thrones! The Musical Parody,” opening to sold-out performances at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, followed by a twice-extended run at the Apollo Theater in Chicago as well as the Hudson Theater in Los Angeles.

About the Creative Team
Jesse Case (Musical Director) serves as musical director for “Baby Wants Candy,” and recently finished musical directing, composing and starring as Richard Wagner in Second City and Lyric Opera Chicago’s "Longer! Louder! Wagner! The Second City Wagner Companion". At Second City, he’s served as musical director for five original revues on both e.t.c. and Mainstage.

Emily Dorezas (Co-Producer) is co-producer of “Thrones! The Musical Parody” as well as co-producer/writer for “50 Shades! The Musical Parody.” She is executive producer of “Baby Wants Candy” and Spark Creative and served as producer/writer for Second City’s Business Theater. Dorezas has performed stand-up comedy across the U.S. and appeared on Comedy Central’s Tosh.0 and Stand Up Live, and NBC’s Sports Action Team.

Peter Gwinn (Director) is a founding member of “Baby Wants Candy.” Regional productions include “Twist Your Dickens” (Goodman Theatre; Centre Theater Group, Los Angeles; Portland Center Stage, Portland) and “Moulin Scrooge” (WreckingBall Theater Lab, Denver). He also performs in multiple improv shows at iO and the UCB Theater in New York. He has won two Emmy Awards as a writer for “The Colbert Report” on Comedy Central, and also wrote for the Amazon original series “Alpha House,” starring John Goodman.

Albert Samuels (Co-Producer) is a founding member of “Baby Wants Candy” (with whom he currently performs at Upright Citizens Brigade (LA)), toured with Second City’s National Touring Company, and co-wrote and performed in two critically acclaimed reviews on Second City’s Mainstage. He also serves as the co-producer/writer for both “50 Shades! The Musical Parody” and “Thrones! The Musical Parody.” He co-created and starred in NBC’s Sports Action Team and The Venue, which won best pilot in the Comedy Central Pilot Competition. Samuels starred in the LA preview run of “Shamilton” last spring.  

About Baby Wants Candy

“Baby Wants Candy” has performed more than 3,000 completely improvised musicals to thousands of fans from Chicago to New York to Singapore to Scotland. Currently, “Baby Wants Candy” runs in Chicago at the Apollo Theater, in Los Angeles at UCB Sunset and tours internationally.  A cutting edge theatrical experience, the performance features a revolving cast of A-list comedic performers and a full band.

“Baby Wants Candy” begins with the cast asking the audience for a suggestion of a musical that has never been performed before. Accompanied by a full band, the first title that the group hears becomes the title and theme for that evening’s 60-minute show, featuring a roller coaster ride of spontaneously choreographed dance numbers, rhyming verses and witty, jaw-dropping comedy.  Each performance is its own opening and closing night, and by design every show is completely unique and a once–in a lifetime premiere.

“Baby Wants Candy” has received rave reviews in The New York Times, The Huffington Post, The Onion, Chicago Sun-Times, TimeOut New York and more, and has received numerous awards including the winner of FringeNYC’s Outstanding Unique Theatrical Experience, Best Improv Ensemble by Chicago Magazine, the Best Visiting Comedy Ensemble by TimeOut New York, the recipient of the Ensemble of the Year Award at the Chicago Improv Festival, and a rare Sixth Star Award Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

“Baby Wants Candy” has included several notable performers including Peter Gwinn of “Colbert Report;” Rachel Dratch and Aidy Bryant of “Saturday Night Live;” Stephnie Weir of “MadTV;” Nicole Parker of “MadTV” and Elphaba in “Wicked” on Broadway; Jack McBrayer of “30 Rock;” Al Samuels and Kevin Fleming of “Sports Action Team;” Thomas Middleditch of “Silicon Valley;” Garry W. Tallent of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band; Mark Pender of The Max Weinberg 7 and Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Sessions Band; and Johnny Pisano of the Jesse Malin Band and The Marky Ramone Band. Members of “Baby Wants Candy” have recently written the hit off-Broadway show “50 Shades! The Musical Parody”

About Apollo Theater

The Apollo Theater, located in the heart of Chicago’s Lincoln Park since 1978, has been home to many of the city’s biggest hits including the recent Million Dollar Quartet, which holds the record for the longest-running Broadway musical in Chicago history. Resident companies of the Apollo Theater include Emerald City Theatre Company and Baby Wants Candy, and many up-and-coming companies can be seen nightly in the theater’s 50-seat downstairs studio. Recently renovated and fully accessible, the Apollo Theater’s intimate 435-seat mainstage continues to deliver world-class theater as one of the city’s premiere off-Loop houses.

OPENING: A Disappearing Number at Timeline

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

“A mathematician, like a painter, or a poet, is a maker of patterns 

… and beauty is the first test.”

Tonight we'll be ChiILin' with a long time favorite of ours, Chicago's acclaimed Timeline Theatre, for the press opening of A Disappearing Number. Check back soon for our full review. The long-awaited Chicago premiere of this exquisite, internationally acclaimed play about love, math, and how the past and future connect. In 1913, a clerk in rural India named Srinivasa Ramanujan sends a letter to famed mathematician G.H. Hardy, filled with astonishing mathematical theorems. In the present, a math professor and a businessman fall in love. Told in a whirlwind of vignettes spanning history and time, A Disappearing Number is a love letter to numbers, blending the beauty of everyday relationships with the mysticism of the cosmos.

Winner of the 2007 Critics’ Circle Theatre, Evening Standard, and Laurence Olivier awards for Best New Play, TimeLine’s production is a new and rare staging of this mesmerizing play.

A NEW AND RARE STAGING OF THE MESMERIZING PLAY 

A DISAPPEARING NUMBER BY COMPLICITÉ, IN A TIMELINE THEATRE CHICAGO PREMIERE, JANUARY 11 – APRIL 9, 2017

TimeLine Theatre Company continues its 20th Anniversary season with a daring new production of A DISAPPEARING NUMBER, the exquisite 2007 play by Complicité about love, math and how the past and future connect. Winner of the 2007 Critics' Circle Theatre, Evening Standard, and Laurence Olivier awards for Best New Play, it was originally conceived and directed by Simon McBurney and devised by the original company. TimeLine’s new production of A DISAPPEARING NUMBER will be directed by Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling. Performances run January 19 – April 9, 2017 at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. Tickets are $22 - $51. For tickets and information, Click HERE or call (773) 281-TIME (8463).  Told in a whirlwind of vignettes spanning history and time, A DISAPPEARING NUMBER is a love letter to numbers, blending the beauty of everyday relationships with the mysticism of the cosmos. The play is based on the true story of Srinivasa Ramanujan, a self-taught mathematician in rural India who, in 1913, sent a letter to famed mathematician G.H. Hardy filled with astonishing mathematical theorems. Meanwhile, in the present, a math professor and a businessman fall in love. As these two pairs wind their way through the course of their lives in different eras, they grapple with the beautiful mysteries of mathematics and the patterns found within the universe and themselves.  TimeLine’s production of A DISAPPEARING NUMBER marks only the fourth time the play has been seen in the United States. The Chicago Tribune raved that the play “explodes with so much intellectual stimulus it makes you giddy, thrilled, intoxicated, ready to talk.” Live music, choreographed movement and dazzling multimedia will all be part of TimeLine’s equation for exploring the mystery of love, mathematics, and the connections between the biggest and smallest elements of our universe. “We have been utterly entranced by this play since first reading it in 2010,” said TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers. “While it wasn’t available for a new Chicago production at that time, our strong desire to do it at TimeLine has kept us persistently committed for more than six years. We couldn’t be more excited to finally bring this play to Chicago as part of TimeLine’ 20th Anniversary Season.” TimeLine’s cast for A DISAPPEARING NUMBER includes Kareem Bandealy (Al Cooper), Anish Jethmalani (Aninda), Anu Bhatt (Surita), Arya Daire (Ramanujan’s mother), TimeLine Associate Artist Dennis William Grimes (Hardy), TimeLine Company Juliet Hart (Ruth) and Siddhartha Rajan (Ramanujan), with musicians Ronnie Malley and Bob Garrett. Winner of seven Jeff Awards for Outstanding Direction, TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling is the creative force behind many of TimeLine’s most popular shows, including THE LAST WIFE, THE HISTORY BOYS, THE FARNSWORTH INVENTION, FIORELLO! and more. Elsewhere, he also staged recent hit productions MAN OF LA MANCHA, THE KING AND I and CITY OF ANGELS at the Marriott Lincolnshire, SONDHEIM ON SONDHEIM at Porchlight Music Theatre and A CHRISTMAS STORY at Paramount Theatre. The production team for A DISAPPEARING NUMBER includes Alka Nayyar (Associate Director), William Carlos Angulo (Choreography), William Boles (Scenic Design), Rachel Levy (Lighting Design), Sally Dolembo (Costume Design), Mikhail Fiksel (Sound Design), Davonte Johnson (Projections Design), Vivian Knouse (Properties Design), Maren Robinson (Dramaturgy) and Alex Dearmin (Stage Management). PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE / EVENTS OPENING NIGHT: Thursday 1/19 at 7:30 p.m. REGULAR RUN, through April 9: Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. EXCEPTIONS: Additional performances Tuesday 3/7 and 3/28 at 7:30 p.m. Show time on Wednesday 3/1 is 8:30 p.m. No 4 p.m. show on Saturday 1/21. No show on Friday 3/10. No 8 p.m. show on Saturday 4/1.  DISCUSSION & ACCESSIBILITY EVENTS: Post-Show Discussions: A brief, informal post-show discussion hosted by a TimeLine Company Member and featuring the production dramaturg and members of the cast on Wednesday 1/25, Sunday 1/29, Thursday 2/2, Thursday 2/16, Thursday 3/23 and Sunday 3/26. Pre-Show Discussions: Starting one hour before these performances, a 30-minute introductory conversation hosted by a TimeLine Company Member and the production dramaturg with members of the production team on Wednesday 2/8 and Sunday 2/19. Captioned Performance: An open-captioned performance with a text display of words and sounds heard during the performance on Saturday 2/11 at 4 p.m. Partial support of open captioning is provided by Theatre Development Fund. Sunday Scholars Panel Discussion: A one-hour post-show discussion featuring experts on the themes and issues of the play on Sunday 2/12. Company Member Discussion: A post-show discussion with the collaborative team of artists who choose TimeLine’s programming and guide the company’s mission on Sunday 3/19. All discussions are free and open to the public. Click HERE for further details about all planned discussions and events. BUYING TICKETS Only TimeLine FlexPass Subscribers enjoy priority access to tickets to A DISAPPEARING NUMBER. 4-Admission, 3-Admission and 2-Admission FlexPass Subscriptions for TimeLine’s 2016-17 season are now on sale, priced from $40 to $204. For more information and to purchase FlexPass Subscriptions, call (773) 281-TIME (8463) or visit timelinetheatre.com. Single ticket prices are $38 (Wednesday through Friday), $46 (Saturday evenings) and $51 (Saturday and Sunday matinees). Preview tickets are $22. Student discount is $10 off regular price with valid ID. Military Service Discount is $5 off regular price with valid military/veteran ID. Discounted rates for groups of 10 or more are available. Ticket buyers age 18-35 may join TimeLine’s free MyLine program to obtain access to discounted tickets, special events and more.  Advance purchase is recommended as performances may sell out. For tickets and information, Click HERE or call the Box Office at (773) 281-8463. LOCATION / TRANSPORTATION / PARKING A DISAPPEARING NUMBER will take place at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. TimeLine Theatre is located near the corner of Wellington and Broadway, inside the Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ building, in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood. The location is served by multiple CTA trains and buses. TimeLine offers discounted parking at the Standard Parking garages at Broadway Center ($8 with validation; 2846 N. Broadway, at Surf) or the Century Mall ($9 with validation; 2836 N. Clark), with other paid parking options nearby, plus limited free and metered street parking. ACCESSIBILITY TimeLine Theatre is accessible to people with disabilities. Two wheelchair lifts provide access from street level to the theatre space and to lower-level restrooms. Audience members using wheelchairs or who need to avoid stairs, and others with special seating or accessibility needs should contact the TimeLine Box Office in advance to confirm arrangements. See DISCUSSION & ACCESSIBILITY EVENTS above for information about the open-captioned performance for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing. BIOGRAPHIES Nick Bowling (Director) was the founding Artistic Director and is now Associate Artistic Director and a Company Member of TimeLine Theatre. He is the recipient of seven Jeff Awards for Outstanding Direction (THE HISTORY BOYS, THE NORMAL HEART, FIORELLO!, THIS HAPPY BREED and THE CRUCIBLE at TimeLine, SONDHEIM ON SONDHEIM at Porchlight Music Theatre, and ANOTHER PART OF THE FOREST at Eclipse Theatre) and also received Jeff Award nominations for BLOOD AND GIFTS, THE FARNSWORTH INVENTION, HAUPTMANN and THE LION IN WINTER at TimeLine; CLOSER THAN EVER at Porchlight Music Theatre; CITY OF ANGELS, THE KING AND I and MAN OF LA MANCHA at Marriott Theatre. Other recent credits at TimeLine include THE LAST WIFE, DANNY CASOLARO DIED FOR YOU, JUNO, 33 VARIATIONS and MY KIND OF TOWN. Other Chicago credits include Paramount's A CHRISTMAS STORY, Northwestern University’s CABARET, Porchlight’s A CATERED AFFAIR, Writers Theatre's BACH AT LEIPZIG and Shattered Globe Theatre's TIME OF THE CUCKOO and FROZEN ASSETS.  Founded in 1983, Complicité is one of the most respected theatre companies in the world and has been called “the most influential and consistently interesting theatre company working in Britain” by The Times. Led by Artistic Director Simon McBurney, OBE, and Producer Judith Dimant, MBE, the company is based in London, touring internationally and across the United Kingdom. Now in its 33rd year, Complicite has not only won many awards, but has broadened the concept of theatre in ways that have touched thousands of people around the globe. For more information, visit complicite.org. ABOUT TIMELINE THEATRE COMPANY TimeLine Theatre Company, recipient of the prestigious 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, was founded in April 1997 with a mission to present stories inspired by history that connect with today's social and political issues. To date over 19 seasons, TimeLine has presented 67 productions, including nine world premieres and 27 Chicago premieres, and launched the Living History Education Program, now in its 10th year of bringing the company's mission to life for students in Chicago Public Schools. Recipient of the Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence and the Richard Goodman Strategic Planning Award from the Association for Strategic Planning, TimeLine has received 53 Jeff Awards, including an award for Outstanding Production 11 times. TimeLine is led by Artistic Director PJ Powers, Managing Director Elizabeth K. Auman and Board President John M. Sirek. Company members are Nick Bowling, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Behzad Dabu, Lara Goetsch, Juliet Hart, Mildred Marie Langford, Mechelle Moe, David Parkes, Ron OJ Parson, PJ Powers, Maren Robinson and Benjamin Thiem. Major corporate, government and foundation supporters of TimeLine Theatre include Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Crown Family, Forum Fund, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Illinois Arts Council Agency, Laughing Acres Family Foundation, MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, The Pauls Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation and The Shubert Foundation. TimeLine is a member of the League of Chicago Theatres, Theatre Communications Group, Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce and Chicago’s Belmont Theater District.

OPENING: Cor Theater and Stage Left Theatre Present What of the Night? at Theater Wit

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Sex, power, institutional failure, human frailty, betrayal, dreams and madness are at the core of celebrated Cuban-American writer María Irene Fornés's Pulitzer-Prize nominated play What of the Night?

*Note: For mature audiences only. Contains sexual content and partial nudity.*

Tonight we'll be out to review What of the Night?. Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we're elated when some of our favorite companies collaborate and we're looking forward to this one. We've been impressed with the edgy, past productions chosen by both Cor Theater and Stage Left Theatre and we're eager to see their take on this Pulitzer-Prize nominated gem. Check back soon for our full review.

Chicago's Cor Theater and Stage Left Theatre are teaming after the New Year to co-present a fearless revival of What of the Night?, directed by internationally acclaimed Chicago director and playwright Carlos Murillo. Performances are  January 8-February 12, 2017 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. 

Murillo's new production of Fornés's epic, deeply intimate and never-more-timely mediation about poverty in America stars Dionne Addai (Birdie), Kathryn Acosta (Rainbow), Kate Black-Spence (Helena/Leah), Tosha Fowler (Nadine/Reba), Stephen Loch (Joseph), Casey Morris (Charlie), Miguel Nunez (Pete), Nelson Rodriguez (Ray) and Allyce Torres (Greta). Designers include Eleanor Kahn (set and props), Brenda Winstead (costumes), Eric Vigo (lights), Jeffrey Levin (sound) and Nick Sandys (violence). Zoe Benditt is stage manager.

Performances run through February 12: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets, $18-$30, are on sale now at cortheatre.org, stagelefttheatre.com, or by calling (773) 975-8150.

Behind the scenes of  

What of the Night?

A finalist for the 1990 Pulitzer Prize, What of the Night? interweaves four one-acts that follow an extended family whose lives are intricately intertwined even as they try to escape the ties that bind them. When Birdie, a just-married 14-year-old leaves her impoverished home to seek a better life, she unwittingly sets in motion a sprawling epic spanning time and geography. Her daughter Rainbow finds love. Her son Charlie finds solace in loyalty. Her son Ray finds the trappings of success. For each, survival and the preservation of loved ones is the name of the game. Though their yearnings are briefly rewarded, Fornés's lyrical play lays bare the difference between the hunger of the soul and the hunger of the ego.

Fornés is a Cuban-American avant-garde playwright and director who was a leading figure of the Off-Off-Broadway movement in the 1960s. Fornés's themes frequently focused on poverty and feminism. Moreover, on personal and artistic levels, her lesbian identity has been central to her art. Fornés's family moved to the United States in 1945. She became a painter before beginning to write plays in the early 1960s. The Widow, her first professionally produced play, was staged in 1961. Fornés acted as the director for many of her subsequent works, including There! You Died (1963; later retitled Tango Palace, 1964), The Successful Life Of 3: Skit In Vaudeville (1965), and Molly's Dream (1968), among others. In 1973 she founded the New York Theatre Strategy, which was devoted to the production of stylistically innovative theatrical works. She has received eight Obie awards - in such categories as distinguished playwriting and direction and best new play - for Promenade (1965), The Successful Life Of 3, Fefu And Her Friends, The Danube (1982), Mud, Sarita (1984), The Conduct Of Life and Abingdon Square (1987). Fornés has also received numerous other awards and grants, including Rockefeller Foundation Grants in 1971 and 1984, a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1972, National Endowments for the Arts grants in 1974, 1984, and 1985, an American Academy and Institute of Letters and Arts Award in Literature in 1986 and a Playwrights U.S.A. Award in 1986.

"What of the Night? is among the most important plays in María Irene Fornés's oeuvre, and I am thrilled by the prospect of giving it the theatrical life it deserves,"said Murillo. "I first met Irene in the early 1990s when we were both in residence at New York Theatre Workshop's summer retreat at the Hotchkiss School. Her warmth and encouragement, especially important to me at the time as I was a baby playwright, went a long way to build my confidence. I later studied with her at Theatre for the New City, where her life-changing workshops helped shape both my writing and teaching of playwriting to this very day. I count her as one of my greatest influences and mentors." 

Murillo (director) directed the Chicago premiere of Julia Cho's Durango at Silk Road, as well as productions and workshops of his own work in New York, Chicago and Minneapolis. He has also staged plays at The Walker Arts Center/Intermedia Arts in Minneapolis, The Public Theatre New Work Now! Festival, the Mazer Theatre and Makor in NY. For DePaul University, he directed the world premiere of Ike Holter's Good Worker for the New Playwrights Series, for which he has staged two previous productions (Andie Arthur's In Common Hours and Alex Perry's eikon). As a playwright, Murillo's body of work has been widely produced throughout the United States and Europe. His best known play Dark Play or Stories for Boys premiered at the Humana Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville, and has been performed throughout the US, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Lithuania. His plays have been commissioned by The Goodman, the Public Theater, Playwrights Horizons, Berkeley Rep, South Coast Rep, Steppenwolf, and Adventure Stage and developed by The Sundance Theatre Lab, The Playwrights' Center in Minneapolis, the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, New Dramatists and others. He is the recipient of a 2015 Doris Duke Impact Award and a Mellon Foundation National Resident Playwright Program grant funding a three-year residency at Adventure Stage. From 1993 to 1995, Murillo served as the Associate Literary Manager at The Public Theater in New York. He heads the BFA Playwriting Program at The Theatre School of DePaul University, and is a proud alumnus of New Dramatists. Murillo is of Colombian and Puerto Rican descent. He lives in the south side of Chicago with his wife, the director, Lisa Portes, and their two children Eva and Carlitos.

About Cor Theatre

"By combining Carlos's passionate vision, Fornés' poetically primal voice, Cor's fearless aesthetic and Stage Left's strong commitment to artists, What of the Night? promises to be our biggest leap yet," added Cor Theatre Artistic Director and cast member Tosha Fowler.

Cor Theatre (cortheater.org) debuted in September 2012 with a vision to create theatrical experiences that are rarely presented in Chicago by artists who seek to defy expectation. Cor is one of Chicago's youngest and most ambitious Chicago professional theatre companies with a growing board and strong experience behind it. 

Cor's inaugural production, Skin Tight by Gary Henderson, was met with enthusiastic audiences, critical acclaim and made just enough money to establish a not-for-profit corporation. The company named itself Cor Theatre, deriving its name from the Latin root of courage - meaning heart.

Cor returned in 2015 with Erin Courtney's A Map of Virtue, named a top show to see in the Chicago Tribune and Most Promising Debut by Time Out Chicago, and nominated for several Time Out Chicago Theatre Awards. Cor triumphed again in 2015 with the first professional Chicago staging of Brad Frasier's controversial play Love and Human Remains in 20 years. Cor's production played to numerous sold-out houses and was named one of the top plays to see by Windy City Times and New City.

In March 2016, Cor presented the U.S. premiere of Christina, The Girl King by Michel Marc Bouchard, translated by Linda Gaboriau, telling the true story of the enigmatic, gender bending 17^th century Queen of Sweden. Cor concluded its 2016 season in October with an epic production of Bertolt Brecht's The Good Person of Szechwan, translated by Tony Kushner, directed by ensemble member Ernie Nolan.

Company members are Tony Bozzuto, Chris Brickhouse, Elyse Cowles, Tosha Fowler, Adam Gutkin, Alarie Hammock, Topher Kielbasa, Jeffrey Levin, Claire Meyers, Ernie Nolan, Stefin Steberl and Eric Vigo.

Get Social:

For more information, visit CorTheatre.org, like Cor Theatre on Facebook, follow the company on Twitter, @CorTheatre, or call (866) 811-4111.

About Stage Left Theatre 

"We are so excited to partner with Cor Theatre and with Carlos Murillo for this multigenerational epic," said Stage Left Theater Co-Artistic Directors Jason A. Fleece and Amy Szerlong. "The story of a family fighting the cycle of poverty fits neatly into our mission of inciting debate about political and social issues, and continues to resonate almost 30 years after its premiere. We believe Stage Left's issue-driven work combined with Cor's daring will make this an outstanding, impactful production."

Founded in 1982, Stage Left Theatre is committed to developing and producing plays that raise debate and challenge perspectives on political and social issues. Through a full subscription season and our new play development program Downstage Left, Stage Left strives to ask provocative social and political questions by producing a mix of new works, regional premieres and timeless classics.

A charitable corporation founded in 1982 to provide a venue for Chicago theatre artists and to develop and produce new work, Stage Left redefined its mission in 1988 to produce and develop plays that raise debate on political and social issues. For its first 11 years, Stage Left produced continuously at 3244 North Clark Street. In February of 1995, Stage Left moved to a 49-seat theatre at 3408 North Sheffield Avenue. That location provided an intimate, well-equipped performance space for the artists of Stage Left, as well as other arts organizations.

In the fall of 2010, Stage Left became one of the resident companies at Theater Wit - a multi-theatre complex that provides expanded seating capacity and audience amenities, greater design opportunities, and a chance to establish relationships with the other resident companies: Theater Wit and Boho Ensemble.

Over the past thirty years, Stage Left has produced over 120 mainstage, late-night, off-night, children's and touring productions that have garnered critical accolades, as well as 46 nominations and 17 awards for excellence from the Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee.

REVIEW AND FLASH GIVEAWAY: Win A Pair Of Tickets to The Rosenkranz Mysteries at Royal George (Up to $150 value per pair/2 winners)

We're giving away 2 Pairs Of Tickets (Up to $150 value per pair/2 winners) to The Rosenkranz Mysteries, which is highly recommended and extended through January 22nd. Check back early and often. We'll announce our winner tomorrow morning as well as 2 additional theatre ticket giveaways.

ChiIL Mama and ChiIL Live Shows are pleased to partner up with The Royal George Theatre. 

ENTER HERE through midnight tonight 1/11 for your chance to WIN 

 A Pair of tickets to The Rosenkranz Mysteries valid for this Thursday 1/12 at 8pm or Sunday 1/15 at 2pm. (2 winners chosen to win a pair of tickets each) 

REVIEW: 

The Rosenkranz Mysteries brings a merging of the arts of medicine and magic that makes for a spellbinding night out. It's recommended for adults and kids ages 10+, and my 15 year old son and I enjoyed it immensely. 

Rosenkranz is a man of many hats: Northwestern professor, MD, collector of vintage magic tricks, and mystifying magician. Over the years we've reviewed many magic shows and Rosenkranz brings a bag of tricks that includes quite a few I've never seen before, which is refreshing. Amazingly, his show only features one card act. There are many audience volunteers called and all are treated with care and set up to succeed. I was pleased to see that he pulls audience members from all areas of the theatre, not just the front row seats.

I was also impressed with this medicine man's wit and wisdom. I couldn't help thinking how lucky his students and patients are to have a doctor who understands the importance of empathy and humor and who can covey to others the art of medicine and healing and not just the science. 

I'm still recovering from major knee surgery, in late November, so this hybrid of medicine and magic hit home to me. From the heavy burden of patient pain portrayed through a box trick, to an expressively clairvoyant skull, and a scarf full of holes made whole, Rosenkranz has a gift of expressing the depth and calling of the medical profession in unforgettable visuals. Therein lies the true brilliance of this show. 

The Royal George Cabaret is an intimate space, so there's not a bad seat in the house, and great sight lines even from the back row. There's a bar on the way in, with show themed drinks, soft drinks, and snacks and all are permitted in the theatre. My son and I had the great pleasure of sitting at one of the 4 top cabaret tables at the front, and it was a stellar way to see the show. I won't give too many spoilers on the illusions, but I did get called up to assist on a chalk board trick involving a pocket watch, soup, and channeling the magician's dearly departed Oma. It was quite fun.

If there's any weak link it's the timing. Rosenkranz has the pacing of a professor rather than a professional prestidigitator and some of the acts have long lead ins and are repeated a bit more than necessary. Short of that, the show is fabulously fun and well worth seeing. Highly recommended. 

The Rosenkranz Mysteries

An Evening of Magic to Lift the Spirits

Extends at The Royal George Cabaret

(great for ages 10+)

Due to popular demand, performances have been added through January 22

"An immensely likeable, intelligent and very intimate show. Well worth seeing!" 3.5 Stars - Chicago Tribune

“Highly Recommended. Mind boggling and exceptional.” – Around the Town Chicago

Here at ChiIL Mama and ChiIL Live Shows, we're huge fans of magic and illusion. I've been out recovering from major knee surgery since late November, then out of town for the holidays with the family, but I'll finally be able to review The Rosenkranz Mysteries tomorrow, with my 15 year old son. This show's high on our must see list so we're elated that they extended through January 22nd. We'll be running a ticket giveaway with our review as well, so check back soon!

Classic as well as never been seen before illusions have amazed audiences at the Royal George Cabaret space in what Chicago Critic calls a “must see,” as the nationally regarded illusionist Ricardo Rosenkranz stars in The Rosenkranz Mysteries, an evening of magic to lift the spirits. “Full of fascinating bits! Impressive,” according to the Chicago Reader, the astounding numbers have captivated audiences in its cabaret style setting with tables featured in the space. This one man, ninety-minute production Buzz News proclaims is filled with “astonishing illusions and jaw-dropping acts of mentalism,” runs through January 22 at the Royal George Theatre’s Cabaret space, 1641 North Halsted Street.

Every illusion has been researched, evaluated, and workshopped with the nation’s most elite and respected magicians including Eugene Burger (Chief Architect of Magic for the production) whose credits include The Art of Magic on PBS and Mysteries of Magic on The Learning Channel; Jeff McBridge (Chief Magic Consultant) whose credits include being designated as Grand Prix of Magic winner in Monte Carlo; Ross Johnson and Johnny Thompson (Magic Consultants), and Jan Rose and Jordan Wright (Magic Team).

Dr. Ricardo Rosenkranz is a respected professor at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He has been fascinated by magic since a young age and has long been incorporating his illusions into his teaching as a way to help engage students and encourage participation. After winning several teaching awards and traveling the country to deliver seminars, Rosenkranz decided to bring his act to the stage.

“There is something beautiful and wonderful about the unknown, and I think in that sense, magic and medicine share a DNA,” said Rosenkranz. “I am committed to creating a unique experience that energizes and uplifts every audience.”

The Rosenkranz Mysteries stars Ricardo Rosenkranz as “The Doctor Magician”, Jan Rose as “The Hostess” and Balsamo as himself. The show is directed by Northwestern graduate Jessica Fisch (Fefu and Her Friends at the Goodman Theatre/Rivendell Latina/o Celebration), and is produced by Opus Magica Music, LLC and Ricardo Rosenkranz. The artistic team includes script by Eugene Burger, Jessica Fisch and Ricardo Rosenkranz, Set Design by Chip Von Weise, Sets by Ravenswood Studio, Lighting Design by Jennifer Kules, Prop Design and Construction by John Gaughan, and Musical Direction by Craig Terry (Lyric Opera of Chicago).

The Rosenkranz Mysteries runs through January 22, 2017. The show is intended for ages 10 and older. Tables in the cabaret space seat 4 guests ($75 per person). Regular tickets are $50 (with a seniors and students discount available). Performances will be held Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. To purchase tickets or for additional information, visit www.ticketmaster.com or call the box office at 312.988.9000.


Disclosure: ChiIL Mama and ChiIL Live Shows are pleased to partner up with The Royal George Theatre which has provided 2 pairs of complimentary tickets for our giveaway. As always, all opinions are my own.