OPENING: BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL VIA PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE AT THE RUTH PAGE CENTER FOR THE ARTS

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE ANNOUNCES THE CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM FOR

BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL, 

OCTOBER 6 – NOVEMBER 19 AT THE RUTH PAGE CENTER FOR THE ARTS

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're long time admirers of the fantastic productions Chicago's Porchlight Music Theatre mounts each season. Years ago we reviewed the Broadway touring production of BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL, and we can't wait to see Porchlight's take on this terrific tale of nonconformity, following your dreams, and a town in economic crisis backing an unlikely hero. With a score by Elton John this is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Porchlight’s 23rd Season at its New Home Launches with Elton John’s
and Lee Hall’s Inspirational Story of a Boy Who Trades Boxing Gloves for Ballet Shoes, Directed and Choreographed by Brenda Didier with Associate Choreographer Craig V. Miller and Music Direction by Linda Madonia

Porchlight Music Theatre and Artistic Director Michael Weber are proud to announce the first mainstage production it its 2017 – 2018 season Billy Elliot the Musical, music by Elton John and book and lyrics by Lee Hall, with direction and choreography by Porchilght Artistic Associate Brenda Didier, with Associate Choreographer Craig V. Miller and music direction by Porchlight Artistic Associate Linda Madonia at Porchlght’s new home, the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn Street. 

Previews are Friday, Oct. 6 and Oct. 13 at 8 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7 and Oct. 14 at 8 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 8 at 2 p.m., Monday, Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m. Opening night is Sunday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. 

The regular run performance schedule is Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sundays at 6 p.m. (October 22, October 29 and November 5) and at 2 p.m. (November 12 and 19) with an open captioned performance, Saturday, Oct. 28 at 4 p.m. and a weekday matinee Thursday, Nov. 16 at 1:30 p.m. Please note: there is no 7:30 p.m. performance Thursday, Nov. 16. 

Tickets are $33 - $60 and available at PorchlightMusicTheatre.org or by calling the Porchlight Music Theatre  box office, 773.777.9884.

Billy Elliot the Musical is based on the 2000 film “Billy Elliot” and features music by Elton John with book and lyrics by the film’s screenplay writer Lee Hall. Winner of both the Tony Award and Olivier Award for Best Musical, Billy Elliot the Musical is an inspirational story set in an English mining town during the miners’ strike of 1984-85. Billy Elliot takes a journey from the boxing ring to a ballet class to make his dreams come true while challenging the long held beliefs of his hometown. Along the way, he discovers a passion for dance that unites his family, inspires his community and changes his life forever. 

The cast of Billy Elliot the Musical will be the largest in Porchlight’s history and includes Jacob Kaiser and Lincoln Seymour sharing the title role of “Billy Elliot;” Shanésia Davis*, “Mrs. Wilkinson;” Sean Fortunato*, “Dad;” Iris Lieberman*, “Grandma;” Adam Fane, “Tony Elliot;” Peyton Owen, “Michael Caffrey;” Nicole Cready, “Mum;” ”Princess Isis Z. Lang, “Debbie Wilkinson;” with Jordan DeBose, “George/Ensemble;” Gabriel Robert, “Small Boy;” John Gurdian, “Big Davey/Ensemble;” Michelle McKenzie-Voigt, “Lesley/Ensemble;” Jeff Bouthiette, “Scab/Posh Dad/Ensemble;” Tommy Novak, “Mr. Braithwaite/Ensemble;” Ivan Bruns-Trukhin,“Older Billy/Ensemble;” Bernell Lassai III, “Pit Supervisor/Ensemble;” Logan Baffico, “Posh Boy;” Alejandro Medina, “Tall Boy;” Jessica Vann, “Clipboard Woman/Ensemble;” Graham Hawley, “Accordion Player/Grandma Dancer/Ensemble;” Jacob Voigt, “Ensemble;” Roy Brown, “Ensemble;” Jenny McPherson, “Ensemble/Grandma Dancer;” Kayla Boye, “Ensemble;” and Darby Leetch, “Alison Summers;” Moriah Mitchell, “Keeley Gibson; Paula Hlava, “Angela Robson;” Anna L. Bramlett, “Julie Hope;” McKenna Rogers, “Karen Davidson;” Emerson Tait, “Sharon Percy;” Katelyn Montgomery, “Margaret Gormley;” Kendall Sorkin, “Tina Harmer;” Ayla Gray, “Tracy Atkinson” and Bernadette Olivia Schwegel, “Susan Parks.”

Additional members of the creative/production team of Billy Elliot the Musical include Porchlight Artistic Associate Bill Morey, costume designer; Denise Karczewski, lighting designer; Christopher Rhoton, scenic designer, Robert Hornbostel, sound designer; Mealah Heidenreich, props designer; Adrian Abel Azevedo, assistant director; Kayla Boye, assistant choreographer/dance captain; Sara Haverty, assistant to the choreographers/associate child supervisor; Sammi Grant, dialect coach; Jaq Seifert, fight choreography; Sean McStravick, stage manager*; Corey Boughton, assistant stage manager*; Matt Nadler, assistant stage manager; Shannon Desmond, assistant stage manager; Joaquin Gomez, child supervisor/ASM swing and Samantha Treible, wardrobe supervisor.

Musical Director Madonia conducts and is the pianist with musicans Justin Kono, drums/percussion; Cara Hartz, reeds; Sarah Younker, french horn; Greg Strauss, trumpet; Justin LaForte, guitar and Dan Kristan, electric bass.
*Denotes member of Actors’ Equity Association

ABOUT BRENDA DIDIER, DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER
Brenda Didier, a Porchlight Music Theatre artistic associate, returns to Porchlight where she last directed and choreograhed In The Heights and the award-winning Dreamgirls. Didier is a multiple Jeff Award recipient in both direction and choreography, and the recipient of After Dark Awards, BroadwayWorld awards and the National Youth Theatre award. She is the proud owner and artistic director of the Lincolnshire Academy of Dance, celebrating its 20th season. Other credits include work at the Goodman, Chicago Shakespeare, Second City, Theatre at the Center, BoHo, Mercury Theatre Chicago, Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre, Stage Left, Six Flags Great America, Busch Gardens Virginia, Cirque Shanghai at Navy Pier, T-Mobile’s national commercial “Home for the Holidays,” The Kenny Rogers Christmas Tour and the University of Illinois, University of Wisconsin and Carthage College. 

ABOUT CRAIG V. MILLER, ASSOCIATE CHOREOGRAPHER
Craig V. Miller returns to Porchlight Music Theatre where he choreographed the Porchlight Revisits production Little Me and was the assistant choreographer for the Jeff Award-winning Ain’t Misbehavin’. As a guest artist, he has performed with the Civic Ballet of Chicago’s production of The Nutcracker, Esoteric Dance Project, Dance in the Parks, and Chicago Dance Crash. Additional choreography credits include: The Color Purple at Mercury Theater Chicago where he was the associate choreographer and won the Broadway World Award-Best Choreography in a Musical and Carl Neilsen’s Maskarade (Vox3 Collective, choreographer). His work has also been presented at Dance Chicago, Dance Chance and Chicago Freelance Dance. 

ABOUT LINDA MADONIA, MUSIC DIRECTOR/CONDUCTOR/PIANIST
Linda Madonia is a Porchlight Music Theatre artistic associate and has previously worked with Porchlight on Porchlight Revisits Little Me, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and Double Trouble. As a music director and conductor in the Chicago area for more than 30 years, Linda Madonia’s recent credits include Mary Poppins and I Left My Heart: A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett at The Mercury Theatre. Other credits include Grand Hotel and Nunsensations at Drury Lane Water Tower Place, and A Chorus Line, She Loves Me and Me and My Girl at Theatre at the Center and The Man Who Murdered Sherlock Holmes at Mercury Theatre Chicago. For the past nine years, Linda has been the music director for Chicago’s Equity Joseph Jefferson Awards. Madonia also owns American Eagle Productions, a touring theater company that takes shows and workshops directly into schools. American Eagle has been doing shows for twenty-four years and presents 250 shows a year to Chicago area schools.

ABOUT SHANÉSIA DAVIS, “MRS. WILKINSON”
Shanésia Davis makes her Porchlight Music Theatre debut with this production. Recent credits include Baltimore Center Stage: Jazz and Intimate Apparel, Mark Taper Forum/ Goodman Theatre: Immediate Family (NAACP award nomination) and Congo Square’s What I Learned in Paris, Brothers of the Dust. Other credits include South Coast Rep’s Intimate Apparel; The Gift/Steppenwolf’s Richard III; Court Theatre/American Blues Theater’s Native Son; Steppenwolf’s Our Lady of 121st St, One Arm, and The Glass Menagerie; The Goodman’s Watermelon Rinds (Jeff nomination), Black Starline, Spunk, The Visit, Drowning Crow (Jeff/BTAA nominations). Davis’ Film and TV credits include Early Edition, Cleveland Abduction, Empire, Chicago Fire, Crisis, Detroit 187, Chicago Hope, Missing Persons, Making a Case for Murder: The Howard Beach Story, Internal Rivals, Consumed, Damaged Goods, The Weatherman, Uncle Nino and Life Sentence.

ABOUT SEAN FORTUNATO, “DAD”
Sean Fortunato makes his Porchlight Music Theatre debut with this production. His recent credits include Cabaret at Theatre at the Center and Death of a Streetcar Named Virginia Woolf: A Parody at Writers Theatre. Other credits includeThe Diary of Anne Frank, Hedda Gabler, The Real Thing, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Travels with My Aunt, The Chosen, Incident at Vichy, A Phoenix Too Frequent, Richard II, Rough Crossing, Spite for Spite (Writers Theatre), 2666, Measure for Measure (Goodman Theatre), Spamalot, The Producers (Theatre at the Center), Pericles, Cyrano De Bergerac, School for Lies, Sunday in the Park with George and Timon of Athens (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), “Rene Gallimard” in M. Butterfly (Court Theatre), “Detective Cioffi” in Curtains (Drury Lane Theatre) and work at Northlight Theatre, TimeLine Theatre Company, Remy Bumppo Theatre Company, About Face Theatre, Marriott Theatre, Next Theatre and First Folio Theatre. Regional credits include Intiman Theatre (WA), The Old Globe (CA), The Duke on 42nd (NY) and twelve seasons with Peninsula Players (WI), where he played “George” in Sunday in the Park with George. His film amd TV credits include The Merry Gentleman directed by Michael Keaton and Chicago PD. Fortunato has received four Joseph Jefferson Award nominations and an After Dark Award.

ABOUT PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE
Porchlight Music Theatre, now in its 23rd season, is nationally recognized for developing innovative new works, reimagining classic productions and showcasing musical theatre’s noted veterans and rising stars. Porchlight elevates the genre in Chicago by providing intimate and powerful theatrical experiences for its growing and diverse audiences. With the vision of Artistic Director Michael Weber, Porchlight builds on its role as Chicago’s only Equity not-for-profit company exclusively specializing in music theatre. Porchlight’s rich history includes the staging of more than 60 productions with 15 Chicago premieres and five world premieres. Through Porchlight’s “Off the Porch” new works program, the musicals of the next generation are developed and given a first audience. The School at Porchlight is Chicago’s center for music theatre training in the areas of performance, writing and appreciation including the launch of a youth Summer Camp in 2017. The company’s many accolades include 17 Black Theatre Alliance nominations and three awards, as well as a total of 126 Joseph Jefferson Award nominations resulting in 39 Jeff Awards including four consecutive Best Production awards for Dreamgirls (2016), Sondheim on Sondheim (2015), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (2014) and A Class Act (2013).

Porchlight Music Theatre and Artistic Director Michael Weber are proud to announce the first mainstage production it its 2017 – 2018 season Billy Elliot the Musical, music by Elton John and book and lyrics by Lee Hall, with direction and choreography by Porchilght Artistic Associate Brenda Didier, with Associate Choreographer Craig V. Miller and music direction by Porchlight Artistic Associate Linda Madonia at Porchlght’s new home, the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn Street. Previews are Friday, Oct. 6 and Oct. 13 at 8 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7 and Oct. 14 at 8 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 8 at 2 p.m., Monday, Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m. Opening night is Sunday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. The regular run performance schedule is Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sundays at 6 p.m. (October 22, October 29 and November 5) and at 2 p.m. (November 12 and 19) with an open captioned performance, Saturday, Oct. 28 at 4 p.m. and a weekday matinee Thursday, Nov. 16 at 1:30 p.m. Please note: there is no 7:30 p.m. performance Thursday, Nov. 16. Tickets are $33 - $60 and available at PorchlightMusicTheatre.org or by calling the Porchlight Music Theatre  box office, 773.777.9884.

Porchlight Music Theatre is partially supported by generous contributions from the Actors’ Equity Foundation,  the Bloomberg Philanthropies, Chapman | Spingola, Attorneys at Law, the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Cooper’s: A Neighborhood Eatery, the Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, James P. and Brenda S. Grusecki Family Foundation, the MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Prince Foundation, The Saints, the Service Club of Chicago, and the Topfer Family Foundation. The season program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, a state agency and by a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events.

REVIEW: Hilarious Honeymoon in Vegas Flamboyant Fun at Marriott Theatre

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Review:
Searching out shows with young love, a rich villain, ghosts from the past, and a load of laughs? You have your choice of a plethora of productions. Add in a hoard of flying Elvis Impersonators, a trio of plumed showgirls, a rigged card game, a tristate trek ranging from New York to Nevada to Hawaii, and some of the wittiest wordplay and stellar new songs out there, and you're down to the one and only Honeymoon in Vegas, now playing at the acclaimed Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire. 





We adored this new musical, a regional premiere with the original Broadway director, Gary Griffin, on board as well as the original choreographer, Denis Jones, and costume designer, Brian Hemesath. This adaptation of the 1992 movie begins with common cold feet and gets infinitely wackier from there. Honeymoon in Vegas is a hoot and a half. Highly recommended.





When it comes to powerhouse players, this theatre isn't messing around. They've assembled a multi award winning production team and hired major talent off stage and on, for this fabulously funny foray into the kitchy world of Las Vegas. There's not a weak performance in the bunch, but leads Jack (Michael Mahler), Betsy (Samantha Pauly), and Tommy (Sean Allan Krill) are particular standouts.

Click here for artists' bios, show details and ticket purchasing links.

The performance schedule for HONEYMOON IN VEGAS is Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., Thursdays and Fridays at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 4:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., Sundays at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., with select Thursday 1:00 p.m. shows. 

Ticket prices range from $50 to $60, including tax and handling fees. Call for student, senior and military discounts. On Wednesday and Thursday evenings there are a limited number of FREE dinners available with the purchase of a full-priced theatre ticket, which can only be purchased through the Marriott Theatre Box Office. 





**Free parking is available at all performances.** 

To reserve tickets, please call The Marriott Theatre Box Office at 847.634.0200 or go to www.ticketmaster.com. Visit www.MarriottTheatre.com for more information.

“A real-live, old-fashioned, deeply satisfying Broadway musical in a way few new shows are anymore.” –The New York Times

 Terry James, Executive Producer

Aaron Thielen, Lead Artistic Director

Andy Hite, Artistic Director

Led by the original Broadway powerhouse team, including ten-time Jeff Award-winning director Gary Griffin, Tony Award-nominated choreographer Denis Jones, and Emmy Award-winning costume designer Brian Hemesath (PBS’s “Sesame Street”, NBC’s “SNL”), HONEYMOON IN VEGAS, a loving throwback to the classic American musical, makes its Regional Premiere at Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive in Lincolnshire with previews August 23, opening August 30 at 8 pm, and running through October 15. 

With music and lyrics by three-time Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown and book by highly-acclaimed American screenwriter Andrew Bergman, HONEYMOON IN VEGAS is a hysterical romantic comedy, based off the hit 1992 film. The veteran team also includes Jeff Award-winning musical director Ryan T. Nelson and Jeff Award-winning associate choreographer William Carlos Angulo.



“HONEYMOON IN VEGAS brings a modern twist to the beloved classic American musical, written by a contemporary writer for today’s audiences,” says Director Gary Griffin. “And there’s just something about Chicago. I am excited to give The Marriott Theatre audiences unprecedented access to this particular show, with so many touch points coming straight from the Broadway stage.”

A delightful and bouncy mix of old-time Vegas and contemporary musical theatre, HONEYMOON IN VEGAS tells the story of Brooklyn couple Jack Singer and Betsy Nolan, who have escaped to Las Vegas to tie the knot. Everything changes when the couple encounters Tommy Korman, a dashing Vegas gambler who believes Betsy is a spitting image of his deceased wife. With Tommy’s determination and Jack’s hopeful heart, HONEYMOON IN VEGAS throws the audience on a hilarious rollercoaster ride of love, humor, and competition for true romance.



HONEYMOON IN VEGAS stars Jeff Award Winner Michael Mahler as “Jack Singer” (Broadway: Miss Saigon; Marriott Theatre: October Sky, Hero, City of Angels); Samantha Pauly as “Betsy Nolan” (Marriott Theatre: Evita, Elf the Musical); Jeff Award Winner Sean Allan Krill as “Tommy Korman” (Broadway: Mamma Mia!, Honeymoon in Vegas, and On a Clear Day; National Tour: Thoroughly Modern Millie; Marriott Theatre: Brigadoon, 1776, and Pirates of Penzance); Cole Burden as “Buddy Rocky/Roy Bacon” (National Tours: Les Misérables, The Bridges of Madison County; Marriott Theatre: Legally Blonde); Marya Grandy as “Bea Singer” (Broadway: Les Misérables; Marriott Theatre: How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, Sister Act, and On the Town); and Steven Strafford as “Johnny Sandwich” (National Tours: Spamalot, Peter Pan, Cinderella, and Grease; Marriott Theatre: She Loves Me and Madagascar). Also starring in HONEYMOON IN VEGAS are DeShawn Bowens, Christine Bunuan, Aaron Choi, Shana Dagny, Devin DeSantis, Alejandro Fonseca, Alex Goodrich, Anne Gunn, Kristina Larson, Tyler John Logan, Richard Manera, James Rank, Jessica Wolfrum Raun, Drew Redington, Laura Savage, Allison Sill, and Ambria Sylvain.



The production will feature set design by Kevin Depinet, lighting design by Jesse Klug, sound design by Robert E. Gilmartin, properties design by Sally Weiss, projections design by Anthony Churchill, and musical supervision and orchestra conducted by Patti Garwood.

Hit Up HotTix For A Hot Time In The Old Town Tonight And All Fall

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

FALL 2017 THEATER HIGHLIGHTS

Fall 2017 will see Chicago continue to produce some of the most exciting theater in the country. Offerings from the city’s more than 250 producing theaters include a range of special fall programming, featuring everything from the latest musicals to highly anticipated world premieres. 

For a comprehensive list of Chicago productions, visit the League of Chicago Theatres website, ChicagoPlays.com. The League’s Fall Theatre Guide will be shared in September. Half-price tickets to the current week’s performances as well as future performances are available at HotTix.org and at the two Hot Tix half-price ticket locations: across from the Chicago Cultural Center at Expo72 (72 E. Randolph) and Block Thirty Seven (108 N. State).



And don't forget to check in with ChiILLiveShows.com (adult) and ChiILMama.com (family friendly) for original reviews, interviews, ticket giveaways, photo filled recaps, and entertainment news for Chi, IL and beyond.

“One of the things that sets Chicago apart as one of the great theatre cities in the world is the incredibly diverse programming our community has to offer. Whether drama, comedy, musicals or family-friendly shows, Chicago theatre companies are always pushing boundaries and finding bold new ways to tell stories,” notes Deb Clapp, Executive Director of the League of Chicago Theatres. “With the beginning of the 2017-2018 Chicago theatre season upon us, we are so excited to explore all the new works and classic productions that will inspire, engage and delight theatergoers of all ages.”

The following is a selection of notable work playing in Chicago throughout the fall:

New works and adaptations include:
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tracy Letts’ scathing new comedy The Minutes, exploring small-town American politics, premieres at Steppenwolf Theatre before heading to Broadway. Directed by Artistic Director Anna D. Shapiro. Runs November 9 – December 31, 2017.

Playwright Janine Nabers will receive two world premiere productions this fall with Welcome to Jesus at American Theater Company (Runs October 26 – December 3, 2017) and A Swell in the Ground at The Gift Theatre. (Runs October 13 – December 12, 2017).

A world premiere adaptation of Margaret Atwood's acclaimed novel, Alias Grace looks at one of Canada's most notorious murderers. Rivendell Theatre premieres the adaptation by Jennifer Blackmer at their theatre in Edgewater. Runs September 1 – October 14, 2017.

Musicals include:
Court Theatre launches their new season with Five Guys Named Moe, featuring hit songs by saxophonist and songwriter Louis Jordan, and directed by Ron OJ Parson. Runs September 7 – October 8, 2017.

Writers Theatre premieres TREVOR the musical, based on the story that inspired the Academy Award-winning film, the charity and the national movement. This world premiere musical is directed by Marc Bruni, who helmed the Tony Award-winning production of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on Broadway. Runs through September 17, 2017.

Gary Griffin directs the insanely funny new musical based on the 1992 film comedy Honeymoon in Vegas at Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire. Runs August 23 – October 15, 2017.

The Chicago premiere of Bonnie and Clyde opens at Theater Wit in a new production by Kokandy Productions, capturing the real-life exploits of outlaws and ill-fated lovers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. Runs  Runs August 27 – October 15, 2017.

Dramatic works include:
The Young Vic’s award-winning production of A View from the Bridge comes to Chicago’s Goodman Theatre. Visionary Belgian director Ivo van Hove injects a raw, pulsating energy into Arthur Miller’s 1955 classic—recipient of 2016 Tony Awards for Best Revival of a Play and Best Director. Runs September 9 – October 15, 2017.

Silk Road Rising brings the US premiere of Wild Boar to Chicago in an adaptation by playwright David Henry Hwang and directed by Helen Young. Runs November 9 – December 17, 2017.

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Ayad Akhtar’s acclaimed play The Invisible Hand opens at Steep Theatre in Edgewater. Runs October 5 – November 11, 2017.

Comedies include:
Route 66 Theatre presents Halley Feiffer’s dark comedy A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center of New York City. Keira Fromm directs. Runs August 24 – September 23, 2017.

Playwright Wallace Shawn’s ultra-dark comedy Evening at the Talk House opens A Red Orchid Theatre’s 25th anniversary season. Directed by Shade Murray. Runs October 5 – November 19, 2017.

Northlight Theatre premieres Matthew Lopez’s heart-warming, music filled comedy The Legend of Georgia McBride. Runs September 14 – October 22, 2017.

Other Notable Works include:
Chicago Shakespeare Theater launches their innovative new venue The Yard with the cirque nouveau superstar James Thierrée’s The Toad Knew. Intertwining dreams with childhood terrors, burlesque, and realism to explore the wild, wondrous love shared among sibling, a collective of dancers, high-wire artists, and musicians create an intoxicating world evocative of Salvador Dalí and Tim Burton. Runs September 19 – 23, 2017.

The inaugural Chicago International Latino Theater Festival brings an unprecedented roster of international and local Latino works including the U.S. premiere of The Mirror performed by Ludi Teatro (Cuba), Medea performed by Arte Boricua (Puerto Rico) and I, the Worst of All performed by Chicago’s Water People Theater. Additional offerings include Victory Gardens Theater and Teatro Vista (in partnership with CLATA) present Tanya Saracho’s Fade and CLATA and Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s co-presentation of the Chicago premiere of Teatro Línea de Sombra’s Amarillo as part of the Theater’s World’s Stage series. Runs September 29 – October 29.

About Chicago theater
Chicago theater is the leader in the U.S. with more than 250 theaters throughout Chicagoland, comprising a rich and varied community ranging from storefront, non-union theaters to the most renowned resident theaters in the country, including 5 which have been honored with Regional Tony Awards, and the largest touring Broadway organization in the nation. Chicago’s theaters serve 5 million audience members annually and have a combined budget of more than $250 million. Chicago produces and/or presents more world premieres annually than any other city in the nation. Last year alone Chicago theater companies produced more than 100 world premiere productions and adaptations. Each year Chicago theaters send new work to resident theaters across the country, to Broadway, and around the world. 

The League of Chicago Theatres’ Mission Statement
The League of Chicago Theatres is an alliance of theatres which leverages its collective strength to promote, support and advocate for Chicago's theatre industry locally, nationally and internationally. The League of Chicago Theatres Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the art of theatre in the Chicago area through audience development and support services for theatres and theatre professionals.



For a comprehensive list of Chicago productions, visit the League of Chicago Theatres website, ChicagoPlays.com.  Half-price tickets are available year-round at HotTix.org.

REVIEW: The Zombiesque Acquiescence of Machinal

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Greenhouse Theater Center Presents 

MACHINAL

By Sophie Treadwell

Directed by Artistic Director Jacob Harvey

Movement by Elizabeth Margolius 

Review:
Cogs in the machine... Get in gear... We're all familiar with the idioms describing humanity working repetitive day jobs, and people are often expected to behave and conform with machinelike precision. Yet, mechanical behavior in the emotional realm is considered a defect to be overcome, a mental illness. Machinal is an intriguing exploration into the intersection where infamous murderess, Ruth Snyder's longing for the freedom of choice, anxiety, and highly sensory tendencies cause the breakdown of the machine and send her hurtling toward the electric chair. 



The stylized cadence of the production is as key as what's said. It catapults the audience into the chaotic yet controlled rhythms of the work place, and the repetitive inevitability of family relationships and responsibilities. Even though this is a period piece it's absolutely applicable today, and possibly even more so, as our society has become even more mechanized, and frenetic. 

Women are still marrying out of economic desperation and fear, people still suffer panic attacks when crushed on an over capacity "L" train, or are overwhelmed by smells or claustrophobic spaces, many women still have postpartum depression and difficulty bonding with their newborns, but at least it has a name, and a course of treatment. 

In Machinal, following the status quo of marrying rich and becoming a mother, brought misery and an almost inevitability of a feeling of imprisonment and an irrepressible longing to be free. This play was stunning for it's alternate bouts of flatline, almost zombiesque acquiescence, and fits of passion and rage. The husband's enjoyment of his wife flinching and mistaking her revulsion at his touch for chastity and demureness was particularly striking. 

The heroine's body reflected her true self and her emotions amid crushing compromises, recoiling from her mother's repetitive nagging, gagging at her husband's presence, rejecting a baby she never wanted, questioning religion, and ultimately resorting to adultery and murder. All this was done without premeditation, greed, or cunning, and on the stand she was unable to lie even to save her own life. In a stunning paradox, as she faces the electric chair, instead of repenting, she reflects on the absurdity that she was punished severely for the only moments in her life she felt free and fully alive. As she rages against the machine, events in Machinal seem to unfold with a flowing inevitability. This is an excellent, thought provoking production, and well worth seeing. Highly recommended.

Click HERE for further cast bios, show information, and ticket purchasing.

Now Playing Through September 24, 2017

Presented Through an Educational Partnership with 

North Central College 

Greenhouse Theater Center is pleased to launch its 2017-18 season with Artistic Director Jacob Harvey and Elizabeth Margolius’ bold reimagining of Sophie Treadwell's most celebrated play, MACHINAL. Inspired by the surreal life and trial of famed murderess Ruth Snyder, MACHINAL will play now – September 24, 2017 at The Greenhouse Theater Center (Upstairs Main Stage), 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. 

Regular run: through Sunday, September 24, 2017
Curtain times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm.

Tickets: $35. Students: $15. 

Single tickets and season subscription packages are currently available at greenhousetheater.org, in person at the box office or by calling (773) 404-7336. 




About the Greenhouse Theater Center
The Greenhouse Theater Center is a producing theater company, performance venue and theatre bookstore located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. Our mission is first and foremost to grow local theatre.

The Greenhouse Theater began its producing life in 2014 with the smash hit Churchill, after which came 2016’s much-lauded Solo Celebration!, an 8 month, 16 event series highlighting the breadth and depth of the solo play form. This year, the Greenhouse announced a full subscription season, with a mix of multi-character and solo plays. With a focus on our community, the Greenhouse is also launching the Trellis playwriting residency, an initiative designed to cultivate the next generation of Chicago theatre creators and a two-tiered education program for college and high school students.

As a performance venue, our complex offers two newly remodeled 190-seat main stage spaces, two 60-seat studio theaters, two high-capacity lobbies, and an in-house rehearsal room. We strive to cultivate a fertile environment for local artists, from individual renters to our bevy of resident companies, and to develop and produce their work. In 2016, the Greenhouse announced a new residency program, which offers a reduced rate to local storefront companies while giving the Greenhouse a stake in the resident’s success. We house Chicago’s only dedicated used theatre bookstore, located on the second floor of our complex. 


With new ideas always incubating, the Greenhouse is flourishing. Come grow with us!

Route 66 Theatre Company Presents A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE GYNECOLOGIC ONCOLOGY UNIT AT MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER OF NEW YORK CITY

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Chicago Premiere!

Route 66 Theatre Company Presents

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE 

GYNECOLOGIC ONCOLOGY UNIT AT MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER OF NEW YORK CITY

By Halley Feiffer

Directed by Keira Fromm 

August 24 – September 23, 2017 at The Den Theatre

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we're looking forward to catching what's arguably the longest titled show currently running in the entire city of Chicago. This Sunday we'll be ChiILin' at Chi, IL's Den Theatre for Route 66 Theatre's Chicago premiere of the dark comedy we'll nickname "A Funny Thing". In case you're not familiar, The Den is a multilevel, multi theatre, multi bar marvel in Wicker Park that we adore. In case you DO know The Den and you're thinking of hiring a Sherpa for the narrow, steep, stair climb to the upper theatres, The Den's Bookspan space is only up a few steps and is more or less on the first floor. Check back soon for our full review. 

Route 66 Theatre Company is pleased to conclude its ninth season with the Chicago premiere of Halley Feiffer’s dark comedy A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE GYNECOLOGIC ONCOLOGY UNIT AT MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER OF NEW YORK CITY, directed by Keira Fromm, playing August 24 – September 23, 2017 at The Den Theatre’s new Bookspan Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago. 

A FUNNY THING… features Judy Lea Steele, Meg Thalken, Stef Tovar and 

Mary Williamson.

A foul-mouthed twenty-something comedienne and a middle-aged man embroiled in a nasty divorce are brought together unexpectedly when their cancer-stricken mothers become roommates in the hospital. Together, this unlikely duo must negotiate some of life’s biggest challenges... while making some of the world’s most inappropriate jokes. Can these two very lost people learn to laugh through their pain and lean on each other when all they really want to do is run away?

The Den Theatre’s Bookspan Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Regular run: Thursday, August 31 – Saturday, September 23, 2017
Curtain Times: Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm

Tickets: $35 adults; $20 students. Discounts available for groups of 10 or more. Tickets are currently available at route66theatre.org.

Director Keira Fromm comments, "A Funny Thing… is a play about the ways we use humor as both a balm and a barrier to protect us from the litany of life's discomforts. I'm drawn to plays about the ways in which we cope with life. When those plays involve surviving spiky family relationships, I'm all in. Halley Feiffer is no-holds-barred when it comes to showing extremely flawed individuals at their messiest. She's also completely fearless when it comes to exposing the raw spots that result from the friction of our most fragile family relationships. This play is unbelievably funny one moment and moving in the most throat-grabbing of ways the next. I can't wait to dig in."

Artistic Director Stef Tovar adds, “This play was a hit in New York last summer at MCC and the Geffen Playhouse in LA is producing it right after we open with Halley Feiffer playing the role of Karla... so for a theater company our size to secure the Chicago premiere is huge for us. We're so grateful to Halley for trusting us with her incredible script and this dynamite group of ladies are going to kill it. I can't wait to get started."

The production team team for FUNNY THING… includes: Courtney O’Neill (scenic design), Mieka Van der Ploeg (costume design), Claire Margaret Chrzan (lighting design), Christopher Kriz (sound design), Amanda Hermann (properties design), Sasha Smith (intimacy choreographer), Catherine Allen (production manager), Helen Lattyak (stage manager) and Matthew Bonaccorso (asst. stage manager)

Creative Team Bios
Halley Feiffer (Playwright) is a writer and actress. Full-length plays include I’m Gonna Pray For You So Hard (Atlantic Theater Company, dir. Trip Cullman; OCC Nom. John Gassner Playwriting Award) A Funny Thing Happened On The Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of New York City (MCC Theater, dir. Trip Cullman) and How To Make Friends And Then Kill Them (Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, dir. Kip Fagan). Her plays have been developed by Second Stage, New York Theatre Workshop, the O’Neill and elsewhere; they are published by Dramatists Play Service and Overlook Press. Her work has been commissioned by Playwrights Horizons, Williamstown Theater Festival and three times by Manhattan Theater Club. She teaches Playwriting at NYU. 

Ms. Feiffer’s acting credits include the Broadway revival of The Front Page (dir. Jack O’Brien) and 
The House of Blue Leaves (dir. David Cromer; Theater World Award), Tigers Be Still (Roundabout, dir. Sam Gold; Drama League Nom.), HBO’s Bored to Death and the films The Squid and the Whale, Margot at the Wedding (dir. Noah Baumbach) and He’s Way More Famous than You (dir. Michael Urie), which she also co-wrote. She currently writes for the upcoming Starz series The One Percent (co-created by Alejandro Iñárritu), the upcoming Showtime series Purity (based on the novel by Jonathan Franzen) and is developing two original television projects with Scott Rudin Productions. 

Keira Fromm (Director) is a Jeff Award-nominated director, a casting director and a teacher based out of Chicago. Favorite recent directing credits include: the Chicago premiere of Bright Half Life (About Face) Theatre), the Chicago premiere of The Columnist (with American Blues Theatre); How the World Began (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble,) A Kid Like Jake (About Face Theatre,) Luce (Next Theatre,) Charles Ives Take Me Home (Strawdog,) The How and the Why (TimeLine Theatre,) Broadsword (Gift Theatre) and Fallow (Steep Theatre). Keira is an Artistic Associate with About Face Theatre. She received her MFA in Directing from The Theatre School at DePaul University and is a proud member of SDC. She is a frequent guest director at DePaul as well as the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University.

Route 66 Theatre Company
Route 66 Theatre Company develops, produces and exports plays, musicals and concerts for the stage that embrace the American spirit of exploration and risk.

The Road Begins when our Chicago Premieres head west and are given an advocate for further regional productions along the road less traveled from Chicago to Los Angeles. Since the company’s founding, Route 66 has produced eight Equity full productions in both Chicago and LA, including an Off-Broadway premiere, has been nominated for five Jeff Awards and won two. The company is also the recipient of the 2017 Broadway In Chicago Emerging Theatre Award. Route 66 is a resident company at The Den Theatre. For additional information, visit route66theatre.org.

Route 66 is Stef Tovar, Founder and Artistic Director; Rachel Wendte, Managing Director; Matthew Bonaccorso, Company Manager and Kelly Parker, Casting Director

Route 66 Theatre Company Artistic Associates: Brian Sidney-Bembridge, Audrey Billings, Johnny Clark, Brandon Dahlquist, Raymond Fox, Damon Kiely, Ron Klier, Jenni Lamb, Tyler Meredith, John Mohrlein, Kelly Parker, Geoff Rice, Emily Rohm, Tricia Small, Jeremy Sonkin, Alex Stage, Nancy Staiger, Erica Stephan, Bethany Thomas, Rita Vreeland, Steven Wilson, Rachel Wendte and Emily Woods.

Route 66 Theatre Company Board of Directors: Jennifer Baumann, President; Deborah Haimes, Vice-President of Communications; Nicholas Stone, Treasurer; Molly Crabtree, Secretary; Elizabeth Derrico, David and Monica Byrd, Lee Dickson, Laurie Hamilton, Tammy Rosenzweig, Pat Turnbull and Robert Veasey.

Route 66 Theatre Company’s 9th Season is presented by generous grants from MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, Illinois Arts Council Agency and DCASE CityArts. 

OPENING: Chicago Premiere of Musical Story BONNIE & CLYDE Via Kokandy Productions at Theater Wit

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Kokandy Productions Presents the Chicago Premiere of

BONNIE & CLYDE

Book by Ivan Menchel 

Music by Frank Wildhorn, Lyrics by Don Black

Directed by Spencer Neiman 

Music Direction by John Cockerill

Choreography by Aubrey Adams

August 27 – October 15, 2017 at Theater Wit

Tonight ChiIL Live Shows will be ChiILin' on Chicago's north west side in the Belmont Theatre Corridor at one of our favorite multi stage venues, Theater Wit. Check back soon for our full review. As a child named Bonnie, "Where's Clyde" jokes were the bane of my existence, but I'm eager to catch acclaimed Kokandy Productions' Chicago premiere musical about the infamous mass murdering duo.

 Kokandy Productions is pleased to continue its 5th anniversary season with the Chicago premiere of BONNIE & CLYDE, the musical story of two small-town nobodies searching for meaning at the height of the Great Depression from the creative team of Frank Wildhorn, Ivan Menchell and Don Black. Directed by Spencer Neiman, with music direction by John Cockerill and choreography by Aubrey Adams, BONNIE & CLYDE will play August 27 – October 15, 2017 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. 

 Tickets: Regular run $33 - $38. 

Sunday, September 3 – Sunday, October 15, 2017

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will be added matinee performances on Saturday, September 30 at 3 pm, Saturday, October 7 at 3 pm and Saturday, October 14 at 3 pm.

 Tickets are currently available at www.kokandyproductions.com, by calling (773) 975-8150 or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office. 

Photo by Evan Hanover

BONNIE & CLYDE will feature Desiree Gonzalez as Bonnie, Max DeTogne as Clyde, Missy Wise as Blanche and Cisco Lopez as Buck. The cast also includes Patrick Tierney as Ted, Nathan Carroll as Preacher, Tia L. Pinson as Young Bonnie, Jeff Pierpoint as Young Clyde and Sarah Hayes as Emma, with an ensemble including Brittney Brown, Erin Creighton, Ann Delaney, Jacob Fjare, Jon Patrick Penick, Maisie Rose and Jonathan Schwart.

BONNIE & CLYDE centers on real-life Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, the ill-fated lovers and outlaws whose story has been infamous since they achieved folk hero status at the height of the Great Depression. Fearless, shameless and alluring, the Tony Award-nominated musical from the legendary Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, Civil War, Dracula) is the electrifying story of love, adventure and crime that captured the attention of an entire country, with a non-traditional score featuring blues, gospel and rockabilly music.

The world premiere of BONNIE & CLYDE was presented at La Jolla Playhouse in 2009, and transferred to Broadway in 2011. There, it was nominated for three Outer Critics Circle Awards and five Drama Desk Awards (both including Best New Musical), as well as two 2012 Tony Awards nominations.

The production team for BONNIE & CLYDE includes: Ashley Ann Woods (scenic design), Robert S. Kuhn (costume design), Alexander Ridgers (lighting design), Michael J. Patrick (sound design), Jaq Seifert (violence/intimacy design), Allison Hendrix (asst. music director), Lindsay Brown (production manager) and Kait Samuels (stage manager).

About The Creative Team

Spencer Neiman (Director) returns to Kokandy Productions, previously working as a director with the company's New Works Initiative. Credits include work with The Hypocrites, Griffin Theatre Company, Windy City Playhouse, co-founder/director of site-specific, new work event series party/theater/party and associate director for Million Dollar Quartet on Norwegian Cruise Lines. Spencer has recently gotten involved in local politics and serves as the Volunteer Outreach Coordinator for Ameya Pawar's gubernatorial campaign. Proud Northwestern graduate. 

John Cockerill (Music Director) is a collaborative pianist, vocal coach and music director, and he’s delighted to be working on his first show with Kokandy Productions! Recent credits include: María de Buenos Aires (Des Moines Metro Opera), Xanadu (American Theatre Company), and High Fidelity (Refuge Theatre Project). He was a featured pianist on the premiere recording of Ross Crean’s opera, The Great God Pan (Navona Records, 2017), and he’ll be joining Chicago Fringe Opera for their upcoming season of As One and The Great God Pan. 

Aubrey Adams (Choreographer) is a Chicago performer and choreographer, whose choreography was recently Jeff nominated for BoHo Theatre’s production of Urinetown. Other recent credits include associate choreographer for Trevor at Writers Theatre, assistant choreographer for Mamma Mia and A Christmas Story at The Paramount Theatre.

About Kokandy Productions

Kokandy Productions seeks to leverage the heightened reality of musical theater to tell complex and challenging stories with a focus on contributing to the development of Chicago-based musical theater works while raising the profile of Chicago’s storefront musical theater community. Kokandy Productions is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, charitable organization.

The company's artistic staff is comprised of John D. Glover (Artistic Producer), Allison Hendrix (Producing Artistic Director) and Scot T. Kokandy (Executive Producer).

For additional information, visit www.kokandyproductions.com.

OPENING: World Premiere of Margaret Atwood's Alias Grace at Rivendell Theatre

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble in association with Brian Nitzkin 

announces cast for the World Premiere of

Alias Grace

By Margaret Atwood

Adapted for the Stage by Jennifer Blackmer 

Directed by RTE Co-Founder Karen Kessler

Cast features RTE members Ashley Neal and Jane Baxter Miller 

with Steve Haggard, Maura Kidwell, Ayssette Muñoz, 

David Raymond, Amro Salama and Drew Vidal 

September 1 – October 14, 2017

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble (RTE), Chicago’s only Equity theatre dedicated to producing new work with women at the core, in association with Brian Nitzkin, announces casting for the world premiere of Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood, adapted for the stage by Jennifer Blackmer, and directed by RTE Co-Founder Karen Kessler. Alias Grace runs September 1 – October 14, 2017, at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Avenue in Chicago. 

*This production of Alias Grace replaces the previously announced Cal in Camo, which will now be presented in January 2018.

The cast includes RTE members Ashley Neal (Grace Marks) and Jane Baxter Miller (Mrs. Humphrey), with Steve Haggard (Simon Jordan), Maura Kidwell (Nancy Montgomery), Ayssette Muñoz  (Mary Whitney), David Raymond (James McDermott), Amro Salama (Jerimiah /Jerome Dupont) and Drew Vidal (Thomas Kinnear).

The designers include RTE member Elvia Moreno (scenic), RTE member Janice Pytel (costumes) and Michael Mahlum (lighting).

A world premiere adaptation of Margaret Atwood's acclaimed novel Alias Grace takes a look at one of Canada's most notorious murderers. In 1843, 16-year-old Grace Marks was accused of brutally murdering her employer and his housekeeper. Imprisoned for years, Grace swears she has no memory of the killings. A doctor in the emerging field of mental health arrives to try to find out the truth of the matter. Alias Grace is a fascinating study of memory, culpability, and the shadowy spaces within the human mind.    

This play was originally developed in collaboration with the Department of Theatre and Dance at Ball State University (http://cms.bsu.edu). 

Following the success of Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale on hulu, Alias Grace has been adapted into a six-part miniseries to debut this fall on Netflix. The miniseries was adapted and produced by Sarah Polley (Away From Her), directed by Mary Harron (American Psycho), and features Anna Paquin.



About the Artists
Karen Kessler (Director) is returning to Rivendell Theatre, a company she was helped found. She is a member of the ensemble at A Red Orchid Theatre where she most recently directed a production of Jennifer Healy’s The Nether. Among Karen’s directing credits are: Wrens (1996 and 2012), The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek, Hamlet, and Ten Tiny Fingers, Nine Tiny Toes at Rivendell; Solstice, Blasted, Gagarin Way, and Mr. Kolpert at Red Orchid; A Number, God of Hell, Into the Woods, and War at other theatres around Chicago; Glengarry Glen Ross at the Northern Stage Ensemble in Newcastle, UK; Macbeth, Scapin, The Three Musketeers, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Taming of the Shrew and All’s Well That Ends Well at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival. Karen is a professor of Directing and Shakespeare at Ball State University.

Jennifer Blackmer (Playwright) is the 2015 PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theatre Award winner for Emerging American Playwright. Her plays have been seen in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Berkeley and St. Louis, and include Human Terrain, Unraveled, Alias Grace, Delicate Particle Logic, and Borrowed Babies. In 2016, Jennifer’s screenplay for Human Terrain won the prestigious Alfred P. Sloan Foundation prize through the Tribeca Film Institute, and the film is currently in pre-production. Jennifer has also been a finalist for the Sundance Film Institute Sloan Prize, the David Charles Horn Prize for Emerging Playwrights, the Fratti-Newman Political Play Contest, the Firehouse Festival of New American Theatre, and The O’Neill National Playwrights’ Conference, and her writing has been short-listed for both the Princess Grace Award and the Shakespeare’s Sister Fellowship. Her work has been developed by Seven Devils, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, The Playwrights’ Center, The Lark and Activate Midwest. Jennifer is a Professor of Theatre and Associate Provost for Entrepreneurial Learning at Ball State University.

Steve Haggard (Simon Jordan) most recently appeared at Rivendell as Evan in Winter. Chicago credits: 3C, Sender, The Mutilated, Accidentally Like A Martyr, The Aliens, Kimberly Akimbo and The Mandrake (A Red Orchid Theatre) Tribes (Steppenwolf); Doubt, Old Glory, The Subject Was Roses, and Our Town (Writers’); Funnyman, Season’s Greetings, and She Stoops to Conquer (Northlight); Wasteland (Timeline); King Lear, As You Like It and Romeo and Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare). Regional Credits: Arcadia, 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 has appeared in Chicago Fire, Prison Break and several national commercials. He is an ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theatre and a graduate of The Theatre School at DePaul University.

Maura Kidwell (Nancy Montgomery) is making her Rivendell debut in Alias Grace. In her eleven years acting in Chicago, Maura has enjoyed working on stage at Theatre Wit, The Gift, Erasing the Distance (ensemble member), and Court Theatre, on television in the series' Sirens, Chicago Fire, Chicago Justice, Mind Games and Boss, in various films including Canal Street ET and Tim Kasher's debut feature No Resolution, and as an on-camera instructor at Vagabond School of the Arts. 

Jane Baxter Miller (Mrs. Humphrey) is a member of Rivendell Theatre Ensemble. RTE credits include American Wee-Pie; Falling; A Wake; Self-Defense, or the death of some salesmen; Silence; Faulkner's Bicycle; The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾; and WRENS. Additional Chicago credits include Dandelion Wine with Chicago Children’s Theatre; The Love Song of J. Robert Oppenheimer with Next Theatre; Mr. Kolpert with A Red Orchid Theatre; The Irish and How They Got That Way at the Mercury Theatre, Cowgirls with Northlight Theatre and Pump Boys and Dinettes at Theatre at the Centre. Her film credits include NBC's Chicago Justice and an upcoming Captive State feature film. Jane is a singer and songwriter appearing on numerous recordings through Bloodshot Records. She composed the children’s musical Dirty Cowboy (with follow RTE ensemble member Victoria DeIorio) for Lifeline Theatre. Her critically acclaimed solo recording, Harm Among the Willows, is available through Bloodshot Records and iTunes.

Ayssette Muñoz (Mary Whitney) is an ensemble member with Teatro Vista, where her credits include Wolf at The End of the Block; In the Time of the Butterflies; Between You, Me, and the Lampshade; Romeo & Juliet; and A View from the Bridge. Additional Chicago credits include Ah, Wilderness; Marisol (Goodman Theatre) and understudying in Short Shakes! Romeo & Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre). Regional credits include The Comedy of Errors; Richard III (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival). Television credits include Chicago P.D. and she was featured as one of the Chicago Tribune’s “Top 10 Hot New Faces of Chicago Theatre” in 2015.

Ashley Neal (Grace Marks) is an RTE ensemble member and has appeared in many productions including: WRENS, 26 Miles, The Walls, Be Aggressive, and others. Ashley most recently appeared in A Red Orchid Theatre’s The Nether where she also appeared in A Red Handed Otter. Other shows you may have seen her in include: London Wall, Men Should Weep and Stage Door with Griffin Theatre, The Life and Sort of Death of Eric Argyle with Steep Theatre, as well as work with Chicago Dramatists, Pine Box, Irish Theatre Company, Step Up, Jackalope Theatre, Victory Gardens, Strawdog, The Greenhouse Theatre, and others. Ashley is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago and The School at Steppenwolf.

David Raymond (James McDermott) has appeared in Chicago in Good People (Redtwist Theatre), It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (Brightside Theatre), and Posh (u/s Steep Theatre, Jeff Award Winner–Best Ensemble). Bay Area credits include work with San Francisco Playhouse, Stanford Repertory Theater, and Custom Made Theatre Company’s 2015 production of This Is Our Youth for which David won an SF Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award (Best Principal Actor). He has also appeared in commercials and online content. David is a graduate of the School at Steppenwolf (2016).

Amro Salama (Jerimiah / Jerome Dupont) is making his Rivendell Theatre debut. His theatre credits include Yasmina's Necklace, the 2016 Jeff Award nominee for Best New Work at 16th Street theatre. Additional Chicago theater credits include the Goodman Theatre where he will be reprising his role in Yasmina's Necklace this fall at the Goodman Theatre. He has performed in numerous play readings at Silk Road Rising and Dramatists. Regional credits: St. Louis: Mustard Seed Theatre; Los Angeles: Cornerstone Theatre, Pacific Resident Theatre, The Hudson Theatre and ACME; NYC: (Off Broadway) Theatricum Botanicum with the premiere of the 2004 Pulitzer Nominated Omnium Gatherum. TV Credits include: Recurring role on the upcoming TV show The Chi for Showtime. Past TV and Film includes: Chicago PD, Shameless, Modern Family, Law and Order, Children's Hospital and Suite Life on Deck.

Drew Vidal (Thomas Kinnear) is returning to Rivendell, having started there as a Fight Director on Silence. Coming up in Chicago, Drew appeared on stage with Famous Door, The Hypocrites, Defiant, Boxer Rebellion, Red Hen, Collaboraction and Tin Fish, among others. More recently, acting credits include The Glass Menagerie (Jim) at Human Race, The Book Club Play (Rob) at KU Rep, Angels in America (Joe) at Ball State, and The Three Musketeers (D’Artagnan) at Illinois Shakespeare Festival; and as a Fight Director, Solstice at A Red Orchid, Water by the Spoonful at Off Square Theatre Company, and Holes at Indiana Repertory Theatre. 

Previews: 
September 1 – 9, 2017 
Friday, September 1 at 8:00pm
Saturday, September 2 at 8:00pm

Wednesday September 6 at 8:00PM
Thursday, September 7 at 8:00pm
Friday, September 8 at 8:00pm
Saturday, September 9 at 8:00pm

VIP Opening: Sunday, September 10, 2017 at 6:00pm
Press opening: Wednesday, September 13, 2017 at 7:00pm
Regular run: September 14 – October 14, 2017

Schedule:
Thursdays-Saturdays at 8:00pm
Saturdays at 4:00pm (select performances)
Sunday, October 8th at 3:00pm
Town Hall Discussions will follow select Saturday matinees

Location: Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Avenue in Chicago

Tickets: 
General Admission
Previews: $28
Regular: $38

Student, Senior, Active Military, Veteran
Previews: $18
Regular: $28

Pay What You Can: Five seats (10% of the house) are available for each performance. Reservations are made on a first come first served basis.
Subscriptions: $59-$80 for 3-plays  

Box Office: (773) 334-7728 or www.RivendellTheatre.org

Parking and Transportation: Free parking is available in the Senn High School parking lot (located a block and a half from the theatre behind the school off Thorndale Avenue). There is limited paid and free street parking in the area and the theatre is easily accessible via the Clark (#22) or Broadway (#36) bus, and is a short walk from the Bryn Mawr Red Line El station.



About Rivendell Theatre Ensemble
Founded in 1994, Rivendell Theatre Ensemble advances women’s lives through the power of theatre. Rivendell cultivates the talents of women artists—writers, actors, directors, designers and technicians—
by seeking out innovative plays that explore unique female experiences and producing them in intimate, salon environments.

Rivendell fills an important role in the Chicago region as the only Equity theatre dedicated to producing artistically challenging and original plays created by and about women. After years of being an itinerant company, we moved into our own theater space in 2010 in Edgewater. As new members of the neighborhood, we are focused on becoming an integral community partner and serving as a catalyst to engage our audiences in a discussion of local social issues.

For more information about Rivendell Theater Ensemble, visit http://rivendelltheatre.org. Follow RTE on Facebook at Facebook.com/rivendelltheatre and on Twitter @RivendellThtr.

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble is supported by generous grants from; The Lester and Hope Abelson Fund; The Alphawood Foundation; The Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development; The Chicago Community Trust; The Chicago Foundation for Women; The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation; The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; The MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation; The Reva and David Logan Foundation; The Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust; SIF Fund at The Chicago Community Trust; Cultural Outreach Program Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events; and the Illinois Arts Council Agency.