Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series April/May Latinx Lineup Announced

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

LOOKOUT SERIES LINEUP TO SPOTLIGHT LATINX ARTISTS

SANDRA DELGADO AND STEPPENWOLF ENSEMBLE MEMBER SANDRA MARQUEZ CO-CURATE APRIL AND MAY LOOKOUT PROGRAMMING IN THE 1700 THEATRE

ALSO ANNOUNCED - AUDRA MCDONALD PERFORMANCE ADDED, MAY 22 AT 9PM

Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series is pleased to announce a slate of programming for spring curated by two of Chicago’s most talented and prolific theater artists: Actor/Playwright/Musician Sandra Delgado and Actor/Director Sandra Marquez, who is also a Steppenwolf ensemble member. Sandra Delgado is the playwright and star of Teatro Vista’s upcoming production of La Havana Madrid, also running this spring in Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre (April 14-May 21) as part of the theater’s Visiting Company Initiative.

Sandra Delgado and Sandra Marquez have curated an electrifying mix of shows for LookOut this spring featuring only Chicago-based, Latinx artists. Between LookOut and Teatro Vista’s production of La Havana Madrid, all programming in the 1700 Theatre from April 14 through May 21 will spotlight Latinx art and artists.

Tickets to April and May LookOut programming in the 1700 Theatre go on sale Friday, March 17 at 11am at 312-335-1650 and steppenwolf.org. Steppenwolf Red and Black Card Members may use credits towards shows in the 1700 Theatre. Lineup below; prices vary. 

For information, visit steppenwolf.org/lookout.

Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre is an 80-seat cabaret-style space connected to Steppenwolf’s own Front Bar: Coffee and Drinks at 1700 N Halsted St. Guests can take drinks into the theater and every Friday a different DJ spins in Front Bar before the performance.

Also announced—due to popular demand, an additional performance of Audra McDonald In Concert has been added on Monday, May 22 at 9pm in Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theatre, 1650 N Halsted. Presented by the LookOut Series and Mark Cortale, the concert features six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald with host and pianist Seth Rudetsky and special guest Will Swenson. Tickets to the 9pm performance of Audra McDonald In Concert go on sale today, March 14 at 11am at 312-335-1650 and steppenwolf.org.

LookOut April/May Lineup
Listed in date order. All artists, dates and prices subject to change.
*Doors open 30 minutes before performance time

Sound + Fury: A Night of Electronic Storytelling
Monday, April 24

7pm

$15

1700 Theatre

Silent Marvin (Marvin Quijada) and MCJK (Gabriel Ruiz) explore the artistic power most of us carry in our pockets and backpacks every day. Sound + Fury is a night of lyrics and vocals weaved through electronically driven Latin, house and hip-hop music featuring special guests.

Saints and Sinners

Hosted by Sandra Delgado
Featuring Musical Guests: Son Monarcas (April 30) & MICHA (May 8)
Sunday, April 30 at 7:30pm

Monday, May 8 at 7pm

$15

1700 Theatre

We live in a binary obsessed culture: black or white, man or woman, gay or straight, winner or loser, citizen or foreigner, saint or sinner. But what lies in between? Saints and Sinners is a storytelling night that explores that grey area through personal stories that defy being put neatly into a box. For this edition, a collection of Latinx Chicagoans will riff off of what Saints and Sinners mean to them through stories that deal with breaking open the boxes that have tried to confine them, bringing us all closer to understanding what Latinidad means. We are not just one thing. We are everything.

An Evening with Carlos Flores and Julio Bishop
Sunday, May 7

7:30pm

Free, but space is limited. RSVP by calling the box office at 312-335-1650

1700 Theatre

Join historian, acclaimed photographer and community/cultural activist Carlos Flores and DJ Julio Bishop for this one-night only event exploring the rich history Puerto Rican culture in Chicago. Mr. Flores will present PUERTORICANCHICAGO MUSIC SCENE & ITS NEIGHBORHOODS, an overview of Puerto Rican history in the city from 1950 through 1990 with a special focus on the Lincoln Park neighborhood, while DJ Julio Bishop spins records from the period drawn from his storied, one-of-a-kind collection.

An Evening of Sizzling Mambo with Saladeen Alamin
Sunday, May 21

7:30pm

Free

1700 Theatre

Join Chicago native Saladeen Alamin for this free evening of Latin dance in Steppenwolf's 1700 Theatre. The evening will begin with a brief instructional session led by Alamin, a legendary dancer and teacher who has been a prominent figure in the Latin dance scene in Chicago since the 1950s. Following the brief lesson, DJ's will spin a variety of styles of music throughout the night, and guests are invited to enjoy the music, dancing and Steppenwolf's bar & cafe, Front Bar. 

Steppenwolf’s Visiting Company Initiative presents
Teatro Vista’s world premiere production of
La Havana Madrid

Conceived and written by Sandra Delgado, directed by Cheryl Lynn Bruce

April 14 – May 21

$15-45

1700 Theatre

Step back in time to 1960s Chicago and right into La Havana Madrid, the long-gone Caribbean night club that drew throngs of newly-arrived Latinos to the city’s north side. La Havana Madrid, a vibrant, musical venue, became a cultural hub for these new Chicagoans. Inspired by real life stories of those who flocked to the club to celebrate and remember, this intimate recreation of the lively 1960s music club, conceived and written by Sandra Delgado and directed by Cheryl Lynn Bruce, this world premiere play features live music and will immerse you in the pulsing sounds of that decade from the mambo to the new sound of salsa.

Legendary Colombian-American musician Roberto "Carpacho" Marin, and his band of 30 years, Carpacho y Su Super Combo, will play live every show. Together, the play’s band and cast will chronicle the history of Caribbean Latino music and Chicagoans throughout the decade.

Previews of La Havana Madrid are April 14-21: Wednesday through Saturday at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 4 p.m. Press opening is Saturday, April 22 at 8 p.m. Performances run through May 21: Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 4 p.m. More info at steppenwolf.org or teatrovista.org.

Audra McDonald In Concert
With special guests Seth Rudetsky and Will Swenson
Monday, May 22

6:30pm & 9pm

$79-$150

Downstairs Theatre

Record-breaking six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald will perform at Steppenwolf with special guests Seth Rudetsky and Will Swenson for a spontaneous evening of hilarity and show-stopping songs. The format of the evening will be a seamless mix of intimate behind-the-scenes stories from one of Broadway’s biggest stars—prompted by Seth Rudetsky’s probing, funny, revealing questions—and Audra McDonald singing some of the biggest hits from her musical theatre repertoire.

*Standby tickets available starting at 4:30pm for the 6:30pm performance. Tickets for 9pm performance on sale today at 11am at 312-335-1650 and steppenwolf.org.

The LookOut Series is Steppenwolf’s multi-genre performance series presented year-round and announced on an ongoing basis. John Zinn, Greta Honold and Patrick Zakem are the producers for LookOut. For more information, visit steppenwolf.org/lookout.

Located in front of the 1700 Theatre is Steppenwolf’s café & bar, Front Bar: Coffee and Drinks. Open daily from 8am to midnight, Front Bar is a creative space to grab a drink, have a bite, or meet up with friends and collaborators, day or night. A morning and evening menu is curated by Chef Chris Pandel, and artisanal coffee and expresso is provided by La Colombe. Functioning as a stand-alone entity, the café & bar also connects to Steppenwolf’s existing main building creating an expanded lobby space. More info at front-bar.com.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is the nation’s premier ensemble theater—redefining the landscape of acting and performance. Formed by a collective of actors in 1976, the ensemble has grown to 48 members who represent a remarkable cross-section of actors, directors and playwrights. Thrilling and powerful productions from Balm in Gilead to August: Osage County—and accolades that include the National Medal of Arts and 12 Tony Awards—have made the theater legendary. Steppenwolf produces hundreds of performances and events annually in its three spaces: the 515-seat Downstairs Theatre, the 299-seat Upstairs Theatre and the 80-seat 1700 Theatre. Artistic programing includes a seven-play season; a two-play Steppenwolf for Young Adults season; Visiting Company engagements; and LookOut, a multi-genre performances series. Education initiatives include the nationally recognized work of Steppenwolf for Young Adults, which engages 15,000 participants annually from Chicago’s diverse communities; the esteemed School at Steppenwolf; and Professional Leadership Programs for arts administration training. Steppenwolf’s own Front Bar: Coffee and Drinks serves coffee, cocktails and a menu curated in partnership with the Boka Restaurant Group day and night. While firmly grounded in the Chicago community, nearly 40 original Steppenwolf productions have enjoyed success both nationally and internationally, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, London, Sydney, Galway and Dublin. Anna D. Shapiro is the Artistic Director and David Schmitz is the Executive Director. Eric Lefkofsky is Chair of Steppenwolf’s Board of Trustees. 

For additional information, visit steppenwolf.org, facebook.com/steppenwolftheatre, twitter.com/steppenwolfthtr and instagram.com/steppenwolfthtr.

SAVE THE DATES: TIMELINE THEATRE COMPANY ANNOUNCES 21ST SEASON FOR 2017-18

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar

TimeLine Theatre Company, recipient of the 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions and acclaimed for presenting plays inspired by history that connect to today’s social and political issues, announces its 2017-18 season. 

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we're elated to see that Timeline’s 21st season will feature an even gender balance, with two female and two male playwrights. We're also excited to see works by two Chicago natives and long time favorites of ours, Brett Neveu and Sarah Ruhl. 

This strong season includes the Chicago premiere of an acclaimed play by FROST/NIXON playwright Peter Morgan that has been a hit in both London and New York; a new TimeLine production of a Tony Award-nominated hit by Chicago native Sarah Ruhl; the Chicago premiere of a Kilroys List play by Anna Ziegler that first premiered last year off-Broadway; and the first world premiere developed through TimeLine’s Playwrights Collective, written by Brett Neveu.

TimeLine Theatre’s upcoming 2017-18 season includes:

— The Chicago premiere of THE AUDIENCE by Peter Morgan, the imagined story of Queen Elizabeth II’s weekly meetings with England’s Prime Ministers through decades of history and political strife, directed by TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling and starring TimeLine Company Member Janet Ulrich Brooks as Queen Elizabeth II;

— IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY, Sarah Ruhl’s Victorian-era tale of a woman’s journey to understand herself and find greater equality in her marriage and the world, directed by TimeLine Company Member Mechelle Moe at Stage 773;

— The Chicago premiere of BOY by Anna Ziegler, inspired by the real-life story of a boy who claims his true identity after being raised as a girl, and finds love, directed by Damon Kiely;

—  And the world premiere of TO CATCH A FISH by Chicagoan Brett Neveu, the first play to be produced that was written and developed through TimeLine’s inaugural Playwrights Collective, about a family and a community torn apart by a flawed search for justice, directed by TimeLine Company Member Ron OJ Parson.

Further casting will be announced at a later date. For a seventh year, one production of TimeLine’s upcoming 2017-18 season will be presented at an alternate location to accommodate the company’s subscriber base and expanding audience. IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY will be presented at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago. All other productions will be staged at TimeLine Theatre’s home at 615 W. Wellington Ave.

Save up to 20% on tickets to TimeLine’s 2017-18 with a 4-Admission FlexPass Subscription. Four different tiers, priced from $88 to $204, are now on sale. For more information and to purchase, call (773) 281-8463 x6 or visit timelinetheatre.com.

“Our 21st season features four plays inspired by history that ignite discussion around several issues that are increasingly critical to confront today,” said TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers. “TimeLine’s Company Members are eager to explore these stories about styles of political leadership, women’s equality, gender identity and law enforcement tactics—all through intimate, provocative productions that immerse audiences, letting them walk in others’ shoes and discuss our role in history.”    

THE 2017-18 TIMELINE THEATRE SEASON IS:

Chicago Premiere

THE AUDIENCE

by Peter Morgan

directed by TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling

August 24 – November 12, 2017 (previews 8/16 – 8/23)

Presented at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave.      

A portrait of a dynamic and provocative woman—the symbol of a nation—as she weathers decades of history and political strife. Every Tuesday afternoon for more than 60 years, Queen Elizabeth II has met with each of her 12 Prime Ministers in a private audience, a gesture of unity between government and Crown. Through moments of tension, negotiation, war, and unrest, these conversations with political leaders from Winston Churchill to Harold Wilson to Margaret Thatcher have remained a constant across the years. Playwright Peter Morgan re-imagines each of these meetings, giving us a glimpse at the queen’s role in guiding the circumstances that have shaped Great Britain, and a window into the mystery, compassion and humor of the woman behind the iconic crown.

TimeLine’s production will star Company Member Janet Ulrich Brooks, a six-time Jeff Award nominee for roles at TimeLine, including 33 VARIATIONS, A WALK IN THE WOODS and ALL MY SONS, and where she mostly recently appeared opposite Mike Nussbaum in BAKERSFIELD MIST. Her other recent credits include VANYA & SONIA & MASHA & SPIKE (Jeff Award nomination) at the Goodman Theatre, WOMEN LAUGHING ALONE WITH SALAD (Helen Hayes Award nomination) at Woolly Mammonth Theatre in Washington, D.C., and the short film FOR A GOOD TIME.

THE AUDIENCE, previously seen on Broadway and in the West End and acclaimed as “funny and truthful” (The Times) and “hugely enjoyable and cumulatively very affecting” (The Independent), makes its Chicago debut at TimeLine.

Playwright Peter Morgan also penned FROST/NIXON (another TimeLine hit, in 2010) and recently created the Netflix series THE CROWN, inspired by THE AUDIENCE and streaming now.

IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY

by Sarah Ruhl

directed by TimeLine Company Member Mechelle Moe

October 26 – December 17, 2017 (previews 10/20 – 10/25)

Presented at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave.

A story of awakening, equality, and the need for connection that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It is the 1880s and Thomas Edison’s invention of the electric light has begun to change the fabric of daily life. Inspired by Edison’s discovery, scientist and inventor Dr. Givings creates a piece of machinery to treat the increasingly common affliction of female hysteria. When he starts to see a new patient regularly, his wife’s curiosity with the invention and what occurs “in the next room” grows, leading to discoveries of her own. This intimate and humorous story of self-discovery debunks the expectation of sexuality as a dirty word and shows that human connection is not simply a means to an end, but a vital part of life itself.

Inspired by the book The Technology of Orgasm by Rachel P. Maines, this fascinating, funny, and evocative Tony Award-nominated play is insightful, relatable, and an “enticing blend of irreverent humor and skewed realism” (San Francisco Chronicle). Previously featured at TimeLine in 2016 in a staged reading in collaboration with The Chicago Inclusion Project, the company is thrilled to re-examine this play that illuminates “how much control men had over women’s lives, bodies and thoughts, even their most intimate sensations” (The New York Times).

Playwright Sarah Ruhl is the Pulitzer Prize Finalist and Tony Award-nominated writer of STAGE KISS, THE CLEAN HOUSE, and DEAD MAN’S CELL PHONE, among many others, and a 2006 recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship.

Chicago Premiere

BOY

by Anna Ziegler

directed by Damon Kiely 

January 18 – March 18, 2018 (previews 1/10 – 1/17)

Presented at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave.

A moving and poignant story, inspired by true events, about a search for personal identity and acceptance. In the 1960s, a surgical accident causes a well-intentioned doctor to convince the parents of twin boys to raise one as a girl. Two decades later, the repercussions of that choice continue to unfold, as those involved struggle to connect with each other and themselves, stuck between their hope for the future and their uncertainty about the past. BOY explores the beauty of finding love, the complexity of gender identity, and the consequences of the choices we make for those we love.  

Previously featured in 2014 as part of the company’s TimePieces play reading series, TimeLine is proud to stage the Chicago premiere of BOY, an “insightful, gut-wrenching, and beautiful play” that is “dazzlingly, deliciously alive from start to finish” (Talkin’ Broadway).

Playwright Anna Ziegler is an award-winning playwright whose credits include PHOTOGRAPH 51 (produced in the West End starring Nicole Kidman), ACTUALLY and THE LAST MATCH. The Outer Critics Circle nominated her play BOY for the 2016 John Gassner Award.

World Premiere

TO CATCH A FISH

by Brett Neveu

directed by TimeLine Company Member Ron OJ Parson

May 3 – July 1, 2018 (previews 4/25 – 5/2)

Presented at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave.

Inspired by true events, this compelling new play examines how the pursuit of justice—however well intentioned—can devastate a family and a community. In a low-income, residential neighborhood of Milwaukee, Terry Kilbourn has just begun a new job passing out flyers for a discount warehouse. When his bosses start asking more of him, his loved ones begin to question what is really going on. As higher stakes are revealed and relationships tested, the clarity of who to trust and what to believe grows increasingly murky. Both hilarious and heart wrenching, TO CATCH A FISH walks the line between good intentions and deceit, testing the bonds we have to family and community.

This world premiere play was developed through TimeLine’s Playwrights Collective, launched in 2013 to support Chicago-based playwrights in residence and create new work centered on TimeLine’s mission. TO CATCH A FISH—the first play developed through the Collective to receive a full production—is sure to spark dialogue about the dangers of intention versus implementation in law enforcement, and when one may in fact overshadow the other.

Chicago-based playwright Brett Neveu’s play HARMLESS also received its world premiere at TimeLine (in 2007). His other recent plays include HER AMERICA, PILGRIM’S PROGRESS, DETECTIVE PARTNER HERO VILLAIN and THE OPPONENT.

BIOGRAPHIES (in alphabetical order)    

Nick Bowling (Director, THE AUDIENCE) 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 A DISAPPEARING NUMBER, 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.

Damon Kiely (Director, BOY) is the Chair of Performance at DePaul’s Theatre School and the author of How to Read a Play: Text Analysis for Directors (Routledge 2016). His production of HANK WILLIAMS: LOST HIGHWAY won the Jeff Award for Musical Production Midsized. He previously directed WEEKEND by Gore Vidal for TimeLine Theatre. Kiely served as Artistic Director for American Theatre Company and has directed for American Blues, American Theatre Company, Route 66, A Red Orchid, Next and many others. His original plays THIEVES LIKE US and THE REVEL were produced by The House Theatre of Chicago. Prior to moving back to Chicago, he taught, produced, and directed in New York City. He is a winner of the 2000-02 NEA/TCG Career Directing Program, the 2000 Drama League Fall Directing Program, and the 1997 Princess Grace Award.

Peter Morgan (Playwright, THE AUDIENCE) is an award-winning British film and television screenwriter and playwright. Morgan is best known for writing historical films and plays, including THE QUEEN, FROST/NIXON, THE DAMNED UNITED and RUSH, and is the creator of Netflix's currently running drama series THE CROWN. Other film work includes THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL, HEREAFTER, 360, MARTHA, MEET FRANK, DANIEL and LAURENCE, and THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND.

Mechelle Moe (Director, IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY) Mechelle Moe is a Company Member at TimeLine, where her credits include directing readings of IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY in collaboration with The Chicago Inclusion Project, CARDBOARD PIANO in artistic alliance with The Yard, and EXPERIMENT WITH AN AIR PUMP, and appearing in THE APPLE FAMILY PLAYS, MY KIND OF TOWN, THE FRONT PAGE, THE CHILDREN’S HOUR, NOT ENOUGH AIR, and PARADISE LOST. She is co-artistic director of The Yard, a youth-based theater company that produces theater relevant to young people; performed by young people. She is also a founding member of The Hypocrites, and currently is a part of its ensemble. Moe is a Jeff Award recipient for Actress in Principal Role for her performance in MACHINAL (The Hypocrites) and received a Jeff Award nomination for Actress in Principal Role for STAGE DOOR (Griffin). She has directed and devised numerous works at Senn Arts and with The Yard, including MILK LIKE SUGAR, THE 4TH GRADER’S PRESENT AN UNNAMED LOVE SUICIDE, ECLIPSED, OUR AMERICA: GHETTO LIFE 101: REMORSE (which she also adapted) and METAMORPHOSES, both of which were selected for the 2014 and 2015 Illinois High School Theatre Festivals, as well as the docudrama BROKEN TEXT, an original work by Moe based on her interviews with men recently released from incarceration and living in a transitional facility. Moe graduated with honors from the University of Illinois Chicago with both a bachelor’s degree in Theater as well as Anthropology.    

Brett Neveu (Playwright, TO CATCH A FISH) is an alumnus of TimeLine’s Playwright’s Collective (2013-2016), and his play HARMLESS received its world premiere at TimeLine in 2007. He has since been commissioned twice by the company to write new plays. Recent theatre productions include HER AMERICA (The Greenhouse Theatre), PILGRIM’S PROGRESS (A Red Orchid Theatre), RED BUD (Signal Ensemble) and THE OPPONENT (Red Orchid; Bisno Productions; and 59e59, New York). A Sundance Institute Ucross Fellow, Neveu is also a recipient of the Marquee Award from Chicago Dramatists, the Ofner Prize for New Work, the Emerging Artist Award from The League of Chicago Theatres, an After Dark Award for Outstanding Musical (OLD TOWN) and has worked with companies including The Atlantic Theatre Company and The New Group in New York, The Royal Shakespeare Company and The Royal Court in London and The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company and Writers Theatre in Chicago. He is a resident-alum of Chicago Dramatists, a proud ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theatre and an alumni member of the Center Theatre Group’s Playwrights’ Workshop in Los Angeles. Neveu has taught writing at DePaul University and The Second City Training Center and currently teaches at Northwestern University. A native of Newton, Iowa, Neveu has a BA degree in Acting and Playwriting from University of Iowa and has an MFA degree in Playwriting from Spalding University.

Ron OJ Parson (Director, THE WORLD AND ME) is a Company Member of TimeLine, where he previously directed A RAISIN IN THE SUN, SUNSET BABY, and the upcoming PARADISE BLUE. He is a native of Buffalo, New York, and a graduate of the University of Michigan’s professional theatre program. He is the co-founder and former Artistic Director of Onyx Theatre Ensemble of Chicago and a co-founder and co-director of Ripe Mango Productions, as well as a Resident Artist at Court Theatre and an Associate Artist with Teatro Vista. Since moving to Chicago from New York in 1994, he has worked as both an actor and director. His Chicago credits include work with The Chicago Theatre Company, Victory Gardens, Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Dramatists, Northlight, Court, Black Ensemble Theatre, Congo Square, Windy City Playhouse, Urban Theatre Company, City Lit Theater, ETA Creative Arts, and Writers Theatre. Regionally, Parson has directed shows at Studio Arena Theatre, Alliance Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Milwaukee Repertory, South Coast Repertory, Pasadena Playhouse, Geva Theatre, Virginia Stage, Roundabout Theatre, Wilshire Theatre, The Mechanic Theatre, CenterStage, St. Louis Black Repertory, Pittsburgh Public Theater, Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre, Signature Theatre, and Portland Stage, among others. In Canada, he directed the world premiere of PALMER PARK by Joanna McClelland Glass at the Stratford Festival. Acting credits on television and film include ER, EARLY EDITION, TURKS, AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE, VAMPING, BARBERSHOP 2, PRIMAL FEAR, DROP SQUAD and most recently Starz Network’s BOSS. He is a member of AEA, SAG-AFTRA, and SDC. For more information, visit ronojparson.com.

Sarah Ruhl (Playwright, IN THE NEXT ROOM, OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY) is a Pulitzer Prize Finalist and Tony Award-nominated playwright and has had her work produced across the country. Her plays include STAGE KISS, 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 (Pen American award, The Fourth Freedom Forum Playwriting Award from The Kennedy Center); DEAD MAN’S CELL PHONE (Helen Hayes Award); MELANCHOLY PLAY (a musical with Todd Almond); EURYDICE; ORLANDO; DEMETER IN THE CITY (NAACP nomination); LATE: A COWBOY SONG; THREE SISTERS; DEAR ELIZABETH; and most recently, THE OLDEST BOY and FOR PETER PAN ON HER 70TH BIRTHDAY. Her plays have been produced on Broadway at the Lyceum by Lincoln Center Theater, off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons, Second Stage and Lincoln Center’s Mitzi Newhouse Theater, as well as at Yale Repertory Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theater, and in Chicago at the Goodman Theatre and the Piven Theatre Workshop. Her plays have also been produced internationally and have been translated into more than 12 languages. Originally from Chicago, Ruhl received her MFA degree from Brown University, where she studied with Paula Vogel. An alumna of 13P and of New Dramatists, she received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2006. She was the recipient of the PEN Center Award for a mid-career playwright, the Whiting Writers award, the Feminist Press’ Forty under Forty Award, and a Lilly Award. She served on the executive council of the Dramatist’s Guild for three years, and she is currently on the faculty at Yale School of Drama. Her book of essays on the theater and motherhood, 100 Essays I Don’t Have Time to Write, was a Times Notable book of the year.

Anna Ziegler (Playwright, BOY) is an award-winning playwright whose play PHOTOGRAPH 51 won London’s 2016 WhatsOnStage award for Best New Play. It has also been selected as a “Best of the Year” play by The Washington Post (twice) and The Telegraph. Her play BOY was nominated for the 2016 John Gassner Award by the Outer Critics Circle. In 2017, the Williamstown Theatre Festival and The Geffen Playhouse will co-world-premiere her latest play, ACTUALLY, and The Roundabout Theatre Company will produce the New York premiere of THE LAST MATCH. Her work has been produced on the West End (PHOTOGRAPH 51, starring Nicole Kidman) and at The Old Globe, Seattle Repertory Theatre, The Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Magic Theatre, Playwrights Realm, City Theatre, and many more, and developed at the Sundance Theatre Lab, The O’Neill Playwrights Conference, Soho Rep and the Cape Cod Theatre Project, among others. She is currently writing a television pilot for AMC/Sundance and a screenplay for Scott Free Productions. Oberon Books has published a collection of her work entitled Anna Ziegler: Plays One.

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 20 seasons, TimeLine has presented 70 productions, including nine world premieres and 30 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 Chicago Community Trust, The Crown Family, Forum Fund, The Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation, 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, The Seabury 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: Chicago Premiere of 3C at A Red Orchid 4/20-6/4

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

A RED ORCHID THEATRE PRESENTS

THE CHICAGO PREMIERE OF 3C

BY DAVID ADJMI

DIRECTED BY ENSEMBLE MEMBER SHADE MURRAY

APRIL 20 – JUNE 4, 2017

Pictured (top): Steve Haggard, Shade Murray (Bottom): Jennifer Engstrom, Larry Grimm

A Red Orchid Theatre concludes its 2016-2017 Season with the Chicago premiere of 3C, written by David Adjmi and directed by Ensemble Member Shade Murray. The production runs April 20 – June 4, 2017, at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N. Wells. 

Inspired by 70’s sitcoms and the political incorrectness of "jiggle television," 3C is a hilarious and horrifying look at identity and what lies beneath the homogeneous perky veneer. Brad lands in L.A. to start a new life. A wild night of partying finds him passed out in Connie and Linda’s kitchen and the three strike a deal that raises the suspicions of the landlords. Complications spiral out of control, taking the show from farce to something... unexpected. 

Regular Run: April 29 – June 4, 2017 

Schedule: 

Thursdays: 8:00 p.m.

Fridays: 8:00 p.m.

Saturdays: 8:00 p.m.          

Sundays: 3:00 p.m. (except April 23).

Location: A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N. Wells Ave.

Tickets: $15-$25 previews, $30-$35 regular run.  ($30 Thurs, $35 Fri, Sat, Sun)

Box Office: Located at 1531 N. Wells Ave, Chicago, (312) 943-8722; or online www.aredorchidtheatre.org

 “We could use a good laugh, an out-loud, roll-on-the floor, cringe-worthy, ugly-cry laugh,” notes Artistic Director Kirsten Fitzgerald.  “3C certainly brings that to the room along with much, much more. I am beyond thrilled to get to know David and for our artists and audiences alike to mine the deepest and darkest of identity questions both personal and public. Director Shade Murray has a knack for finding the hilarity in the darkest of interactions. I cannot wait to have them in the same room exploring and sharing the world and words with all.” 

The cast of 3C includes Ensemble Members Jennifer Engstrom (Mrs. Wicker), Lawrence Grimm (Mr. Wicker) and Steve Haggard (Terry), with Christina Gorman (Linda), Nick Mikula (Brad) and Sigrid Sutter(Connie). 

The creative team includes Sarah Fabian (Set Designer), Myron Elliott (Costume Designer), Rachel Levy (Lighting Designer), Brando Triantafillou (Sound Designer), Lydia Hanchett (Props Designer) and Jon Martinez (Choreography). The Production Stage Manager is Christa van Baale.

About the Artists

David Adjmi (Playwright) was called "virtuosic" by the New York Times, one of the "best and most original theatre artists of a generation" by Vogue, and one of the Top Ten in Culture by The New Yorker magazine.3C received its world premiere at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater (with Rising Phoenix and Piece by Piece Productions) in June 2012, and was dubbed "revelatory" by the Times and “the most divisive and controversial play of the season” by the New York Post. 3C was selected as one of the top ten plays of 2012 by the Post, Time Out New York and the Advocate.  His other plays include Marie Antoinette (A.R.T. & Yale Rep, Soho Rep, Steppenwolf, Woolly Mammoth and more), Elective Affinities (Royal Shakespeare Company, Soho Rep with Rising Phoenix & Piece by Piece Productions), Stunning (LCT3/Lincoln Center Theater, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company), The Evildoers (Sundance, Yale Repertory Theatre), Caligula (Soho Rep Studio Series), and Strange Attractors (Empty Space).  David was awarded a Mellon Foundation Playwrights Residency, the Guggenheim Fellowship, the Whiting Writers’ Award, the Kesselring Prize for Drama, the Steinberg Playwright Award (the “Mimi”), McKnight and Jerome fellowships, the Helen Merrill Award, the Marian Seldes-Garson Kanin Fellowship, the Fadiman Prize and the Bush Artists Fellowship, among others.  A collection of David’s work, Stunning and Other Plays, is published by TCG, and his work is included in The Methuen Drama Book of New American Plays. His memoir SAVE US, SUPERMAN! is forthcoming from HarperCollins as is a second collection of plays entitled 1789 / 1978.

Shade Murray (Director) is an ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theater, where he has directed the world premieres of Brett Neveu’s Pilgrim’s Progress and Ike Holter’s Sender, as well as productions of Marisa Wegrzyn’s Mud Blue Sky and The Butcher of Baraboo, Annie Baker’s The Aliens, Nick Jones’ Trevor, Mike Leigh’s Abigail’s Party and Kimberly Akimbo by David Lindsay-Abaire.  He also performed in the A Red Orchid production of The Mutilated.  Other directing credits include Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The House Theater, Steep Theater, Second City, Writers’ Theater and elsewhere.  Shade is a lecturer at University of Chicago and teaches at DePaul University and Actors’ Studio Chicago.

Jennifer Engstrom (Mrs. Wicker) returns to A Red Orchid Theatre in 3C. An ensemble member since 2003, Jennifer was most recently seen in AROT's The Mutilated, garnering a Jeff nomination for Outstanding Actress. Other Orchid productions include: Eric LaRue, The Fastest Clock In The Universe, The Hothouse, Weapons of Mass Impact, Fatboy, and Simpatico. Other credits include A Streetcar Named Desire, Death Of A Streetcar named Virginia Woolf (Writers Theatre); Sweet Bird Of Youth (The Goodman Theatre); One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, The North Plan (Steppenwolf Theatre); Skygirls (Northlight); The Incident, Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been...(Next Theatre); MacBeth (Notre Dame Shakespeare); Angels In America (Kansas City Rep).  This summer Jennifer will fill in for the mighty Amy Morton in Steppenwolf's Hir. Jennifer will be seen in the upcoming film Slice starring Chance The Rapper.

Christina Gorman (Linda) is an actor and fight choreographer, originally from the Hudson Valley region of upstate New York. Chicago acting credits include: Men Should Weep (Jeff Award for Best Production-Play) and Stage Door for Griffin Theatre; The Bottle Tree (Stage Left Theatre); Making God Laugh (Fox Valley Rep); Leading Ladies (Buffalo Theatre Ensemble); The Thin Man (City Lit); and The Tall Girls, In the Heat of the Night, The Grown Up, The Rose Tattoo, Our Country's Good, Happy Now, and Romeo and Juliet for Shattered Globe Theatre, where she is an ensemble member.

Lawrence Grimm (Mr. Wicker) is back at A Red Orchid where some of his favorite and more recent shows include Trevor (Jeff Nomination), Solstice, In a Garden, Pumpgirl, Abigail’s Party, The Meek, The Physicists, Mr. Kolpert, Caine-Mutiny Court Martial, In the Solitude of Cotton Fields, and Born Guilty. Other recent Chicago credits: King Charles III and The Tempest (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), 2666(Goodman Theatre), My Name is Asher Lev (Timeline Theatre), In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play (Victory Gardens), Maple and Vine, Welcome Home Jenny Sutter (Next Theatre), Orlando (Court Theatre),  King Lear, Two by Pinter (Piven Theater Workshop), The Balcony (New Crime), Apocalyptic Butterflies, Sketchbook, (Collaboraction), The Glass Menagerie (Raven Theatre – Jeff Award), The Brothers Karamazov, 1984, The Naked King (Lookingglass), I Never Sang for My Father, Wolf Lullaby (Steppenwolf). Film: Welcome to Me, Perfect Manhattan, Cicero in Winter and the upcoming Captive State. Television: Chicago PD, Chicago Med.

Steve Haggard (Terry) was last seen at A Red Orchid in Sender and The Mutilated. He has been an ensemble member since 2007. Other Orchid shows include Accidentally Like A Martyr, The Aliens, Kimberly Akimbo and The Mandrake. Chicago credits: Tribes (Steppenwolf); Funnyman and Season’s Greetings (Northlight); Doubt, Old Glory, The Subject Was Roses and Our Town (Writers); Wasteland (Timeline); King Lear, As You Like It and Romeo and Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare). Regional Credits: R+ G are Dead, Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Tempest, Hay Fever, Comedy of Errors and Ah Wilderness (American Players Theatre), Almost Maine (Milwaukee Repertory) and Fallen Angels (Indiana Repertory). Steve is a graduate of The Theatre School at DePaul University. 

Nick Mikula (Brad) makes his A Red Orchid Theatre debut. Other credits include Warped, Joe Egg, All's Well that Ends Well,  LeapFest's And Eat it Too (Stage Left Theatre) Luther (U/S Steep Theatre), The Brig, Cherrywood (Mary-Arrchie), The Improv Play (Infusion), Map of Virtue (Cor) The Dining Room, The Man Who Was Thursday (New Leaf), 44 Ways (Redtwist)  SS! A Midsummer Nights Dream (U/S Chicago Shakespeare), Six Degrees of Separation (Signal), Macbeth (Greasy Joan), W;T (Gift), ROAD (Ka-Tet), Pretty Penny, Half Shut (Right Brain),  Paper City Phoenix (Tympanic Theatre), Radio Silence, Ping-Pong, The Gas Heart (The Nine), and 20%. Improv Credits include Octavarius and Sam Hill. Film credits include the web series Under Covers.

Sigrid Sutter (Connie) makes her debut at A Red Orchid Theatre. In Chicago she’s worked with Northlight Theatre, Steep Theatre, Jackalope Theatre, Teatro Vista, Sideshow Theatre, Back Room Shakespeare Project, and others. Her film credits include Colma: The Musical and Strange Culture; her television credits include Chicago Justice and Ellen. She is represented by Actors Talent Group. 

About A Red Orchid

A Red Orchid Theatre has served as an artistic focal point in the heart of the Old Town community of Chicago since 1993 and was honored this year with a 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Over the past 23 years, its Resident Ensemble has welcomed into its fold an impressive array of award winning actors, playwrights and theatre artists with the firm belief that live theatre is the greatest sustenance for the human spirit. A Red Orchid is well known and highly acclaimed for its fearless approach to performance and design in the service of unflinchingly intimate stories. In addition to its professional season, the company also produces an annual OrKids (youth) project and hosts The Incubator (providing artists with space and time to explore new work, new forms and new artistic collaborations).

A Red Orchid Theatre is: Lance Baker, Kamal Angelo Bolden, Dado, Mike Durst, Jennifer Engstrom, Kirsten Fitzgerald, Joseph Fosco, Steve Haggard, Mierka Girten, Larry Grimm, Karen Kawa, Karen Kessler, Danny McCarthy, Shade Murray, Brett Neveu, Michael Shannon, Guy Van Swearingen, Doug Vickers and Natalie West.

SAVE THE DATES: 42ND STEPPENWOLF THEATRE SEASON ANNOUNCED FOR 2017/18

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Steppenwolf Theatre Company Artistic Director Anna D. Shapiro and Executive Director David Schmitz have announced 2017/18 Season. The nation’s premier ensemble theater, Steppenwolf celebrates its 42nd season with seven captivating shows—three world premieres and four Chicago premieres—that embrace diversity, compassion and imagination.

“The plays we programmed this season embrace conversations about what American culture is, the stories we tell ourselves and the truths we all share,” 

shares Artistic Director Anna D. Shapiro.

Highlights include Aziza Barnes’s ingenious portrait of a day in the life of four young women of color in New York City; the return of ensemble members Francis Guinan and John Mahoney in a beautifully moving play by fast-rising star Jessica Dickey; a dangerous and timely international farce from Matthew-Lee Erlbach, directed by ensemble member Tina Landau; the Chicago premiere of Rajiv Joseph’s Guards at the Taj with the original cast—Omar Metwally and Arian Moayed—and director, ensemble member Amy Morton; an offbeat and touching Chicago premiere of an Obie award-winning play from Clare Barron, directed by Jonathan Berry; and Jen Silverman’s bold, wickedly funny play The Roommate featuring ensemble members Ora Jones and Sandra Marquez. As previously announced, ensemble member Tracy Letts’s new political play, The Minutes, directed by Anna D. Shapiro, will receive its world premiere production at Steppenwolf before transferring directly to Broadway in spring 2018.

“With plays filled with humor and joy, introspection and irreverence, Steppenwolf Theatre is poised and ready to join the art we make with the moment we are in, and we plan on being a vital, uplifting and humane cultural leader for our city and our country, both of which need us now more than ever,” adds Shapiro.

Next season features ensemble members Alana Arenas, Ian Barford, Gary Cole, Audrey Francis, Francis Guinan, Tim Hopper, Ora Jones, Tina Landau, Sandra Marquez, John Mahoney, James Vincent Meredith, Amy Morton, Caroline Neff and newest ensemble member Namir Smallwood.

2017/18 Subscription Memberships are now on sale. Pricing starts at $100; and there are several options available. Subscription Memberships are for audiences who prefer to lock in their seats and dates in advance, while enjoying perks such as easy and free exchanges, ticket discounts and access to seats before the public. For audiences looking for more flexibility with all the perks, Steppenwolf Flex Card Memberships provide six ticket credits for use anytime, to any show. Student, educator and access discounts offered. To purchase, visit Audience Services at 1650 N Halsted St, call 312-335-1650 or visit steppenwolf.org/memberships.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s 

2017/18 Season
(All plays, artists and dates are subject to change)

Chicago Premiere
The Rembrandt

By Jessica Dickey
Directed by Hallie Gordon
Featuring ensemble members Francis Guinan and John Mahoney
September 7 – October 22, 2017

In the Upstairs Theatre

When a museum guard decides to touch a famous Rembrandt painting, a remarkable journey across the ages ensues. Spanning centuries of human experience, Jessica Dickey’s The Rembrandt movingly explores the power of creative expression and the sacrifices we make in the pursuit of love and beauty, reminding us that though our beliefs may die with the sound of our voice, it’s the love we share—and the art that love inspires—that finds eternity.

Hailed as a “talent to watch” by the New York Times, Jessica Dickey is an award-winning actor and playwright most known for her play The Amish Project, which opened Off Broadway at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater (Helen Hayes Award, Barrymore Award, among others). The Rembrandt was commissioned and produced (then titled The Guard) by the Ford’s Theatre as part of the Women’s Voices Festival and was awarded the Stavis Award for Playwriting. 

Hallie Gordon is the Artistic Director of Steppenwolf for Young Adults (SYA) and an artistic producer at Steppenwolf. Gordon will direct Taylor Mac’s Hir this summer, and has directed several shows for SYA including Monster (currently playing through March 9), George Orwell’s 1984 and Animal Farm, The Book Thief, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, The House on Mango Street and Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, which transferred Off-Broadway, among others.

World Premiere
The Minutes
By ensemble member Tracy Letts 

Directed by artistic director Anna D. Shapiro 

Featuring ensemble members Ian Barford, Francis Guinan and Tim Hopper 

November 9 – December 31, 2017

In the Downstairs Theatre

Steppenwolf’s production of The Minutes will premiere at Steppenwolf and then move directly to Broadway in Spring 2018. Remaining casting TBA. The Minutes will mark the fifth collaboration between Shapiro and Letts; and the seventh play by Letts that will premiere at Steppenwolf.

The Minutes, Tracy Letts’s scathing new comedy about small-town politics and real-world power, the writer who brought you August: Osage County exposes the ugliness behind some of our most closely-held American narratives while asking each of us what we would do to keep from becoming history’s losers.

Tracy Letts is a Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright, actor and Steppenwolf ensemble member. He is the author of the plays Linda Vista (running March 30 – May 21, 2017), Mary Page Marlowe, The Scavenger’s Daughter, Superior Donuts, August: Osage County (Pulitzer Prize, Tony Award), Man from Nebraska (Pulitzer Prize finalist), Bug and Killer Joe. Also an actor, he received the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actor in Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?. TV and film credits include Lady Bird, The Lovers, Christine, Elvis and Nixon, The Big Short, HBO’s “Divorce" and two seasons as Sen. Lockhart on Showtime’s “Homeland.”

Anna D. Shapiro is a Tony Award-winning director and Artistic Director of Steppenwolf. She has directed several notable productions at Steppenwolf, including Visiting Edna, Mary Page Marlowe, August: Osage County (2008 Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards), Man from Nebraska and The Motherf**ker with the Hat (also on Broadway, 2011 Tony nomination for Best Director). Broadway credits include Larry David’s Fish in the Dark, Of Mice and Men and the Steppenwolf revival of This Is Our Youth.

World Premiere
BLKS

By Aziza Barnes
Directed by Nataki Garrett
Featuring ensemble member Namir Smallwood
December 7, 2017 – January 21, 2018

In the Upstairs Theatre

Some days feel like they will never end. After a morning that includes a cancer scare and kicking her girlfriend out of the house, Octavia decides to have a last turn up with her best friends. In poet Aziza Barnes’s ingenious portrait of a day in the life of four young women of color in New York City, BLKS explores the joy and anguish of growing up and out. Riotously funny and magically rendered, Barnes’s playwriting debut marks the arrival of a truly original contemporary American voice.

Winner of the 2015 Pamet River Prize, Aziza Barnes’s first full length collection, i be but i ain’t is from YesYes Books, 2016. They are a Cave Canem Fellow, co-founder of The Conversation Literary Festival and co-host of the podcast, The Poetry Gods. Barnes is a graduate of New York University and participant in the 2016 Ojai Playwrights Conference.

Named in American Theatre Magazine’s “One to Watch”, Nataki Garrett is the Associate Artistic Director of Denver Center for the Performing Arts, a Company Member at Woolly Mammoth, and co-Artistic Director of BLANK THE DOG PRODUCTIONS (BTD). Most recently for BTD she directed Carolyn Bryant, which focuses on the decades-long silence of the woman for whom Emmett Till was brutally murdered in Mississippi in 1955. Garrett directed An Octaroon by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Woolly Mammoth, which will be remounted this July.

Chicago Premiere
You Got Older

By Clare Barron
Directed by Jonathan Berry
Featuring ensemble members Audrey Francis and Caroline Neff
January 25 – March 11, 2018

In the Downstairs Theatre

There’s a haunted place between where we started and where we need to be that finds the most tender among us—and breaks them open. In You Got Older, Clare Barron’s bawdy, irreverent and touching play, Mae, brokenhearted and unemployed, returns home to care for her ailing father and escape the loneliness of a life that just can’t seem to get off the ground.

Clare Barron’s plays have been produced by Page 73, Woolly Mammoth, Clubbed Thumb and The Bushwick Starr, and will be presented by Playwright Horizons in 2018. She is the recipient of an Obie Award, the Paula Vogel Playwriting Award and the Page 73 Playwriting Fellowship. Barron was also the co-winner of the inaugural 2015 Relentless Award established in honor of Philip Seymour Hoffman for her play Dance Nation.

Jonathan Berry is an artistic producer at Steppenwolf and prolific Chicago director. His Steppenwolf directing credits include Constellations, Melinda Lopez's Gary for the First Look new play series and A Separate Peace for Steppenwolf for Young Adults. A company member of both Steep and Griffin Theatres, Berry has also directed for many Chicago companies, including Goodman Theatre, Steep, Griffin, Remy Bumppo, Lifeline and The Gift.

The Doppelgänger (an international farce) 

By Matthew-Lee Erlbach
Directed by ensemble member Tina Landau 

Featuring ensemble members Alana Arenas, Gary Cole, Ora Jones, Sandra Marquez and James Vincent Meredith 

April 5 – May 20, 2018

In the Downstairs Theatre 

In the dangerous back channels of international resource politics, a wealthy British businessman suffers an untimely accident just before a critical African copper deal is signed. So when his unwitting (and witless) American doppelgänger is thrust into negotiations to avert intercontinental disaster, chaos erupts, leaving us wondering: whose side are we supposed to be on... and who will save Africa? This new American farce is a hilarious, irreverent and timely look at the back-room deals that shape our world and the unlikely cast of characters who make them.

Matthew-Lee Erlbach is an actor and playwright from Chicago and NYC whose plays include the acclaimed solo play, Handbook for an American Revolutionary and Eager to Lose, a Burlesque Farce in Rhyming Verse (Ars Nova). His plays have been developed with The New Group, Vineyard, Ars Nova, MCC and Williamstown, among others. A recipient of the 2017 Humanitas Prize New Voices Award and member of Ars Nova’s 2014/15 Play Group, he has written for Showtime's Masters of Sex as well as for Nickelodeon, MTV, WWE and The Huffington Post.

Acclaimed writer, director and teacher, Tina Landau has been a Steppenwolf ensemble member since 1998. Recent work includes directing/conceiving The SpongeBob Musical and ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Head of Passes (The Public, upcoming at Mark Taper Forum), among others. On Broadway, Landau has directed Tracy Letts’s Superior Donuts and the revival of Bells are Ringing. For Steppenwolf, she has directed The Wheel, Hot L Baltimore, The Brother/Sister Plays, The Tempest and more.  

Chicago Premiere

Guards at the Taj
By Rajiv Joseph
Directed by ensemble member Amy Morton 

Featuring original cast members Omar Metwally and Arian Moayed
May 31 – July 15, 2018

In the Upstairs Theatre

India 1648. The dawn will reveal for the first time the extraordinary beauty of the Taj Mahal, built as a tribute to the ruler who demanded its construction. But for two hapless imperial guards, the morning light brings with it an unspeakable task that will shake their faith in God, the empire and their lifelong friendship. This boldly funny and deeply moving play examines the true meaning of beauty and the cost of transcendence in a world that confuses the value of both.

Rajiv Joseph’s Broadway play Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo was a 2010 Pulitzer Prize finalist for drama, and also awarded a grant for Outstanding New American Play by the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition to Guards at the Taj, New York credits include The North Pool (Vineyard Theater), Gruesome Playground Injuries (Second Stage Theatre) and Animals Out of Paper (Second Stage Theatre), among others. He wrote for the Showtime series “Nurse Jackie” and was the co-screenwriter of the film Draft Day, starring Kevin Costner and Jennifer Garner.

Amy Morton directed the world premiere of Guards at the Taj at the Atlantic Theater Company in 2015, and returns with the original cast for the Chicago debut. Morton has been an ensemble member since 1997 and directed several Steppenwolf productions including Clybourne Park, American Buffalo, Dublin Carol, The Pillowman, among others. She has performed in more than 30 Steppenwolf productions, including Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (also on Broadway, Tony nomination) and August: Osage County (also at the National Theatre and Broadway, Tony nomination). Currently she stars as Trudy Platt in the NBC drama series Chicago P.D.

Chicago Premiere
The Roommate
By Jen Silverman
Director TBD 

Featuring ensemble members Ora Jones and Sandra Marquez 

June 21 – August 5, 2018 

In the Downstairs Theatre 

Sharon is Midwestern nice. But to Robyn, her new roommate from the Bronx, that just means nosy and very, very talkative. A comical mismatch leads to a surprising and touching friendship in this new comedy about how early-life choices lead to mid-life challenges and the unexpected rewards of bridging the divide.

Jen Silverman’s The Roommate premiered at the Actor’s Theatre of Louisville in 2015, and has received subsequent productions at South Coast Rep, Williamstown and SF Playhouse. Additional work includes The Moors, Phoebe in Winter, The Dangerous House of Pretty Mbane (Barrymore Award) and Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Boops (Woolly Mammoth). She is a member of New Dramatists, and has developed work with the O’Neill, New York Theatre Workshop, Portland Center Stage, Berkeley Rep and the Royal Court in London. A recipient of the Helen Merrill and Yale Drama Series Awards, she’s also a two-time MacDowell Fellow and 16/17 Playwrights of New York (PoNY) Fellow at the Lark.

Memberships & Ticket Information

Last season Steppenwolf expanded from a 5-play to 7-play season and with that has expanded the ways in which audiences can experience all the offerings. Steppenwolf Flex Card Memberships include the Steppenwolf Black Card and the Red Card. The Black Card provides six ticket credits that can be used at any time for any production; credits are valid for one year with the option to add on credits as needed. Membership perks include easy and free exchanges, access to seats before the general public, savings on single ticket prices and bar and restaurant discounts for pre- and post-show socializing. The Red Card offers audiences under the age of 30 the option to purchase six ticket credits at a discounted price to use towards any play, anytime.

Steppenwolf’s Subscription Memberships allow audiences to lock in dates and confirm seats in advance and receive all the membership perks. Options include 7-Play, 6-Play and 5-Play Subscription Memberships, in addition to discounted Student/Educator Series and Accessible Series.

To purchase a 2017/18 Subscription Membership, visit Audience Services at 1650 N Halsted St, call 312-335-1650 or visit steppenwolf.org/memberships. Single tickets to the 2017/18 will go on sale at a later date.

Front Bar: Coffee and Drinks

Located in front of the 1700 Theatre is Steppenwolf’s café & bar, Front Bar: Coffee and Drinks. Open daily from 8am to midnight, Front Bar is a creative space to grab a drink, have a bite, or meet up with friends and collaborators, day or night. A morning and evening menu is curated by Chef Chris Pandel, and artisanal coffee and expresso is provided by La Colombe. Functioning as a stand-alone entity, the café & bar also connects to Steppenwolf’s existing main building creating an expanded lobby space. Front Bar was developed with consultation from Steppenwolf’s friends and neighbors, Boka Restaurant Group (BRG), along with interior designers Karen Herold and Kayce Carter of Studio K and the marketing and design firm Grip. More info at front-bar.com.

Visitor Information & Accessibility

Steppenwolf is located at 1650 N Halsted St near all forms of public transportation and is wheelchair accessible. Our parking facility consists of both a covered garage and an open-air lot, located just south of our theater at 1624 N Halsted. Valet parking service ($14 cash) is available directly in front of the main entrance and street and lot parking are also available. For last minute questions and concerns, patrons can call the Steppenwolf Parking Hotline at 312-335-1774.

Committed to making the Steppenwolf experience accessible to everyone, performances featuring American Sign Language interpretation, open captioning and audio description are offered during the run of each play. Assistive listening devices and large-print programs are available for every performance. Steppenwolf has an induction loop on both the main and balcony levels of our Downstairs Theatre and in the 1700 Theatre.More info at steppenwolf.org/access.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is the nation’s premier ensemble theater. Formed by a collective of actors in 1976, the ensemble has grown to 48 members who represent a remarkable cross-section of actors, directors and playwrights who continue to redefine the landscape of acting and performance. Thrilling and powerful productions from Balm in Gilead to August: Osage County—and accolades that include the National Medal of Arts and 12 Tony Awards—have made the theater legendary. Steppenwolf produces hundreds of performances and events annually in its three spaces: the 515-seat Downstairs Theatre, the 299-seat Upstairs Theatre and the 80-seat 1700 Theatre. Artistic programing includes a seven-play season; a two-play Steppenwolf for Young Adults season; Visiting Company engagements; and LookOut, a multi-genre performances series. Education initiatives include Steppenwolf for Young Adults, which engages 15,000 participants annually from Chicago’s diverse communities; the School at Steppenwolf for actors; and Professional Leadership Programs for arts administration training. While firmly grounded in the Chicago community, nearly 40 original Steppenwolf productions have enjoyed success both nationally and internationally. Anna D. Shapiro is the Artistic Director and David Schmitz is the Executive Director. Eric Lefkofsky is Chair of Steppenwolf’s Board of Trustees. 

For additional information, visit steppenwolf.org, facebook.com/steppenwolftheatre, twitter.com/steppenwolfthtr and instagram.com/steppenwolfthtr.