OPENING: Tennessee Williams' SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER Via Raven Theatre 5/2-6/17/18

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Raven Theatre Presents 

SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER

By Tennessee Williams

Directed by Jason Gerace

May 2 – June 17, 2018

Raven Theatre is pleased to conclude its 35th anniversary season with Tennessee Williams’ stark and intriguing drama SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER directed by Jason Gerace, playing May 2 – June 17, 2018 on Raven’s 105-seat East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville) in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177. I'll be out for the press opening on May 8th so check back shortly for my full review.

The cast of Raven Theatre's SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER includes (top, l to r) Ayanna Bakari, Grayson Heyl, Wardell Julius Clark, Mary Nigohosian, (bottom, l to r) Ann James, Janyce Caraballo and Andrew Rathgeber.

In 1930s New Orleans, wealthy socialite widow Violet Venable has summoned a brain surgeon to her home. Her niece Catherine has been crazed and traumatized since witnessing the horrifyingly violent death of Violet’s son. Enraged by Catherine’s claims, and unwilling to accept other facts about her son’s life, Mrs. Venable pursues extraordinary measures to keep Catherine silent. 

SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER originally opened on Broadway in 1958, toward the end of a 15-year period in which Williams produced his greatest and most popular works, from The Glass Menagerie (1944) to Sweet Bird of Youth (1959). The 1959 film adaptation starring Katharine Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift was a box office hit and earned Academy Award nominations for Hepburn and Taylor.

The production team for SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER includes: Joanna Iwanicka (scenic design), Brittany Bodley (costume design), Claire Chrzan (lighting design), Christopher Kriz (sound design), Mary O'Dowd (props design), Kathy Logelin (dialect coach), Lynn Baber (casting), Lindsey Marsland (assistant director), Cole von Glahn (production manager), Alex Meyer (stage manager) and Hannah Siglin (assistant stage manager).

Location: Raven Theatre East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville), Chicago

Dates: Previews: Wednesday, May 2 at 7:30 pm, Thursday, May 3 at 7:30 pm, Friday, May 4 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, May 5 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, May 6 at 3 pm and Monday, May 7 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Friday, May 11 – Sunday, June 17, 2018

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Thursday, May 10.

Tickets: Previews $32 ($29 if purchased online). Regular run $46 ($43 if purchased online). Seniors/teachers $41 ($38 if purchased online). Students/active military and veterans $15. Every Thursday is “Under 30 Thursday,” when patrons under age 30 can purchase tickets for $15. Single tickets and subscriptions for the 2018-19 Season are currently available at www.raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177.

Group tickets: Groups of 10 or more are $30 per person for Thursday and Friday performances and $35 per person for Saturday and Sunday performances. Student groups are $15 per person.

Plan Your Visit: 

Free parking is provided in a lot adjacent to the theatre – additional street parking is available. Nearest El station: Granville Red Line. Buses: #22 (Clark), #36 (Broadway), #151 (Sheridan), #155 (Devon), #84 (Peterson).

About the Director:

Jason Gerace (Director) is a freelance director in Chicago, and is so thrilled to be directing for Raven Theatre for the first time. He was the recipient of the 2014 Non-Equity Jeff Award in Outstanding Direction for Great Expectations with Strawdog Theatre Company, which broke box office records, was twice remounted, and led to the adaptation’s first publication. His production of Last Train to Nibroc for Haven Theatre was hailed as “an exquisitely acted and generally gorgeous little show” by the Chicago

Tribune. Regional directing credits include the world premiere of Gabe McKinley's The Source (Route 66 Theatre), the Chicago Premiere of Yussef El Guindi’s Threesome (Other Theatre), Wrecks (with John Judd; Chicago), Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Opus (RedTwist Theatre, Chicago). Jason originally hails from Anchorage, Alaska and holds an MFA in Directing from The University of Oklahoma. He is an associate member of SDC, and served as Artistic Associate of American Theater Company from 2008 – 2018.

About Raven Theatre

Raven Theatre tells stories of today and the past that connect us to our cultural landscape. Through its plays as well as its educational programming, Raven is committed to serving our communities’ needs through the arts.

Raven Theatre Company is funded in part by the Alphawood Foundation, Dramatists Guild Fund, Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, Polk Bros. Foundation, The Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development, S&C Electric, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the PAV Fund and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

OPENING: World Premiere of Brett Neveu's To Catch A Fish Via Timeline Theatre 4/25-7/1/18

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

TIMELINE THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS 

WORLD PREMIERE OF BRETT NEVEU'S 

TO CATCH A FISH, 

DIRECTED BY RON OJ PARSON, APRIL 25 - JULY 1

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we're beyond excited to catch this world premiere. Brett Neveu and Ron OJ Parson are long time Chicago favorites of ours in writing and directing respectively. I'll be ChiILin' with Chi, IL's acclaimed Timeline Theatre for the press opening on May 2nd so check back soon for my full review. 

Inspired by true events, this compelling new play is the first to be produced that was written and developed through TimeLine's Playwright Collective

TimeLine Theatre Company announces casting and other details for the world premiere of TO CATCH A FISH by Brett Neveu, directed by Ron OJ Parson, May 3 – July 1, 2018 (previews 4/25 – 5/2) at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. For tickets and information, visit timelinetheatre.com or call (773) 281-8463 x6.

Inspired by true events, this compelling new play takes you inside a flawed search for justice that walks the line between good intentions and deceit, testing the bonds of family and 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, the stakes rise quickly and his loved ones begin to question what is really going on. This play’s vibrant mix of family, romance, and danger swirls with mysteries about who to trust and what to believe. And its story confronts society’s fluid definition of justice—and the truth about who is allowed to benefit from it.

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 of presenting plays inspired by history that connect to today’s social and political issues. TO CATCH A FISH—the first play developed through the Collective to receive a full production—is inspired by headlines in Milwaukee and around the country about the conflict between intention versus implementation in law enforcement, and how often one may in fact run counter to the other.

“I get interviewed a lot and they ask, ‘what excites you about theatre right now?’” said director Ron OJ Parson. “And it’s doing new work, especially plays that are inspired by real events. In the climate we are living in today, we need to tell these stories to give people an idea that this stuff really happens—and people need to know about it. Theatre is active. And we are activists when we do it.”

Chicago-based playwright Brett Neveu is an alumnus of TimeLine’s Playwright’s Collective (2013-2016), and his play HARMLESS received its world premiere at TimeLine in 2007. A prolific writer who has been widely produced around Chicago and beyond, Neveu is particularly known for his work with A Red Orchid Theatre, where he is an Ensemble Member. Recent plays include TRAITOR, HER AMERICA, PILGRIM’S PROGRESS, DETECTIVE PARTNER HERO VILLAIN, and THE OPPONENT.

“It’s been a great conversation with TimeLine,” said Neveu. “Part of the research was meeting the Milwaukee journalists who reported a specific story there, meeting the subject of their story and hearing what happened to him, touring the city and going to the locations where this stuff took place. That deepened my involvement, my desire to get right a story inspired by these events, my connection to TimeLine and its mission.”

“We are thrilled to have TO CATCH A FISH in our 21st season after nurturing the play’s inception and development over the past few years as part of our Playwright’s Collective,” said TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers. “Under the leadership of Literary Manager Ben Thiem, the Playwright’s Collective is furthering our commitment to Chicago writers and to the creation of provocative new work inspired by history. This is the first of many more scripts that TimeLine audiences will see from this exciting new play incubator.”

TimeLine Theatre’s world premiere of TO CATCH A FISH by Brett Neveu (from left), directed by Ron OJ Parson, will feature Tiffany Addison, Linda Bright Clay, Al’Jaleel McGhee, Geno Walker, Stephen Walker, AnJi White, and Jay Worthington. 

The cast of TO CATCH A FISH (listed with pronouns each uses) features Linda Bright Clay (she/her) as Brenda Cameron; AnJi White (she/her) as Regina “G” Whitnall; Jay Worthington (he/him) as Ike Jeno; Tiffany Addison (she/her) as Rochelle Walker; Al’Jaleel McGhee (he/him) as Dontre Cameron; Geno Walker (he/him) as Terry Kilbourn; and Stephen Walker (he/him) as Dex Farwell.

The production team for TO CATCH A FISH includes Regina García (Scenic Designer, she/her); Christine Pascual (Costume Designer, she/her); Mike Durst (Lighting Designer, he/him); David Kelepha Samba (Sound Designer, he/him), Vivian Knouse (Properties Designer, she/her); Matt Hawkins (Fight Director/Intimacy Choreographer, he/him); Kristiana Rae Colón (Assistant Director, she/her); Gabriella Welsh (Production Assistant, she/her); Dina Spoerl (Lobby Designer, she/her); Regina Victor (Co-Dramaturg, they/them); Tanya Palmer (Co-Dramaturg, she/her); and Amalie Vega (Stage Manager, she/her).

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE/EVENTS 
PREVIEWS: Wednesday 4/25 through Saturday 4/28 at 8 p.m.; Sunday 4/29 at 2 p.m.; Tuesday 5/1 and Wednesday 5/2 at 7:30 p.m.
PRESS NIGHT: Wednesday 5/2 at 7:30 p.m.
OPENING NIGHT: Thursday 5/3 at 7:30 p.m.
REGULAR RUN, through July 1: Tuesday (6/19 only), Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. (except no performance 5/5 at 4 p.m.); and Sunday at 2 p.m. (except no performance 6/24).

DISCUSSION & ACCESSIBILITY EVENTS:
— Post-Show Discussion: A brief, informal post-show discussion hosted by a TimeLine Company Member and featuring the production dramaturg and members of the cast on Wednesday 5/9, Thursday 5/17, Wednesday 5/23, Thursday 5/31, Wednesday 6/6, and Thursday 6/21.
— Pre-Show Discussions: Starting one hour before these performances, a 30-minute introductory conversation hosted by a TimeLine Company Member and the production dramaturg with members of the production team on Sunday 6/3 and Thursday 6/14.
— Captioned Performance: An open-captioned performance with a text display of words and sounds heard during the performance on Saturday 6/2 at 4 p.m. Partial support of open captioning is provided by Theatre Development Fund.
— Company Member Discussion: A post-show discussion with the collaborative team of artists who choose TimeLine’s programming and guide the company’s mission on Sunday 5/20.
— Sunday Scholars Panel Discussion: A one-hour post-show discussion featuring experts on the themes and issues of the play on Sunday 6/10.
All discussions are free and open to the public. For further details about all planned discussions and events, visit timelinetheatre.com.

SPONSORS
TimeLine's world premiere of TO CATCH A FISH is supported in part by The Pauls Foundation, with additional support provided by the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation.

BUYING TICKETS
Single ticket prices are $40 (Wednesday through Friday), $49 (Saturday evenings) and $54 (Saturday and Sunday matinees). Preview tickets are $25. Student discount is 35% off regular price with valid ID. TimeLine is also a member of TCG’s Blue Star Theatre Program and is offering $25 tickets to U.S. military personnel, veterans, first responders, and their spouses and family.
Discounted rates for groups of 10 or more are available. Ticket buyers age 18-35 may join TimeLine’s free MyLine program to obtain access to discounted tickets, special events and more. Visit timelinetheatre.com/discounts for more about Blue Star, MyLine and other available discounts.
Advance purchase is recommended as performances may sell out. For tickets and information, visit timelinetheatre.com or call the Box Office at (773) 281-8463 x6.

LOCATION/TRANSPORTATION/PARKING
TO CATCH A FISH will take place at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. TimeLine Theatre is located near the corner of Wellington and Broadway, inside the Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ building, in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood.

The location is served by multiple CTA trains and buses. TimeLine offers discounted parking at the Standard Parking garages at Broadway Center ($8 with validation; 2846 N. Broadway, at Surf) or the Century Mall ($9 with validation; 2836 N. Clark), with other paid parking options nearby, plus limited free and metered street parking.

ACCESSIBILITY
TimeLine Theatre is accessible to people with disabilities. Two wheelchair lifts provide access from street level to the theatre space and to lower-level restrooms. Audience members using wheelchairs or who need to avoid stairs, and others with special seating or accessibility needs should contact the TimeLine Box Office in advance to confirm arrangements. See DISCUSSION & ACCESSIBILITY EVENTS above for information about the open-captioned performance for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing.



BIOGRAPHIES
Brett Neveu (Playwright) is an alumnus of TimeLine’s Playwright’s Collective (2013-2016), and his play HARMLESS received its world premiere at TimeLine in 2007. Recent theatre productions include TRAITOR and PILGRIM’S PROGRESS (A Red Orchid Theatre), HER AMERICA (The Greenhouse 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) is a Company Member of TimeLine, where he previously directed A RAISIN IN THE SUN, SUNSET BABY, and PARADISE BLUE, and will direct Jiréh Breon Holder’s TOO HEAVY FOR YOUR POCKET in the upcoming 2018-19 season. Other recent directing credits include FIVE GUYS NAMED MOE at Court Theatre and SKELETON CREW by Dominique Morisseau at Northlight Theatre. 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. Parson is a Resident Artist at Court Theatre and an Associate Artist with Teatro Vista and Writers Theatre. Since moving to Chicago from New York in 1994, he has worked as an actor, director, and voiceover artist. His Chicago credits include work with The Chicago Theatre Company, Victory Gardens, Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Dramatists, Northlight, Court, Black Ensemble Theatre, Congo Square, Northlight, Urban Theatre Company, City Lit, ETA Creative Arts, and Writers. Regionally, Ron has worked with 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 (New York), Portland Stage, and Kansas City Repertory Theatre, 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, CHICAGO P.D., EARLY EDITION, TURKS, AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE, VAMPING, BARBERSHOP 2, PRIMAL FEAR, DROP SQUAD, and BOSS. He is a member of AEA, SAGAFTRA, and SDC. 



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 21 seasons, TimeLine has presented 75 productions, including 10 world premieres and 33 Chicago premieres, and launched the Living History Education Program, now in its 11th 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 54 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 Eileen LaCario. 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, Bayless Family Foundation, The Chicago Community Trust, The Crown Family, The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science & Technology Project, Forum Fund, The Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Illinois Arts Council Agency, Laughing Acres Family Foundation, A.L. and Jennie L. Luria Foundation, MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Pauls Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, and The Shubert Foundation.
TimeLine is a member of the League of Chicago Theatres, Theatre Communications Group, Choose Chicago, Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce, Chicago Green Theatre Alliance, and Chicago’s Belmont Theater District.

OPENING: Jane The Virgin's Ivonne Coll Stars in Teatro Vista's World Premiere of The Madres

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Award-wining Latin film, TV and stage star Ivonne Coll, who plays matriarch Alba Villanueva on TV’s Jane The Virgin, will lead the cast of 

Teatro Vista’s Spring world premiere, 

The Madres.

ChiIL Live Shows will be out to review the World Premiere of The Madres at Victory Gardens on April 29th. The story of Argentina's terrifying reign of state sanctioned abductions and incarceration should have a voice on stage. I'm glad to hear Teatro Vista's staging this powerful work and bringing awareness of the tragedies that have been occurring for generations to Chicago audiences. Check back soon for my full review.

Set in the late 1970s during Argentina’s notorious Guerra Sucia, or “Dirty War,” The Madres by Stephanie Alison Walker tells the empowering story of three generations of women - a grandmother, a mother and a daughter - and their desperate attempt to keep their family intact in the face of state-sponsored intimidation, kidnappings and murder.

Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez directs The Madres, which makes its debut in Chicago as a National New Play Network 2018 Rolling World Premiere.

Teatro Vista’s cast for The Madres: (from left) Ivonne Coll, Lorena Diaz,
Ramón Camín, Felipe Carrasco and Ilse Zacharias. Stephanie Alison Walker is the playwright.
Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez will direct. 

In addition to Coll as Josefina, the grandmother, The Madres stars Lorena Diaz (Carolina, the mother), Ramón Camín (Padre Juan), Felipe Carrasco (Diego) and Ilse Zacharias (Belén, the daughter). Designers are Jose Manuel Diaz (set), Uriel Gomez (costumes), Jessica Doyle (lights) and Eric Backus (sound). Jennifer Aparicio is production manager. Stage manager is Stephanie Hurowitz. 

The Madres premieres April 21-May 27, 2018 at Victory Gardens, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, in the Richard Christiansen Theater. Previews are Saturday, April 21 at 8 p.m., Sunday, April 22 at 3:30 p.m., and Thursday, April 26 at 8 p.m. 

Performances run through May 27: Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are $20-$45, and go on sale March 5 at 10 a.m.

For tickets and group discounts, visit TeatroVista.org, call the Victory Gardens box office, (773) 871-3000, or visit Victory Gardens (The Biograph) during box office hours. Metered, street and valet parking is available near the Biograph. The theater is easily accessed on the CTA Red, Purple and Brown lines via the Fullerton stop. The CTA 8 Halsted and 74 Fullerton buses also stop at Fullerton and Halsted, 1/2 block south of the theater. For more information, visit VictoryGardens.org/PlanYourVisit.


Más about The Madres (The Mothers)

It's 1979 in Buenos Aires, Argentina where people are disappearing right off the street. The so-called "Dirty War" waged by the military Junta against its own people is in full-swing. Carolina and her mother Josefina are searching for “Caro’s” pregnant daughter Belén, who has been missing for twelve weeks. Then they receive a surprise visit from a priest who is now the chaplain to the military at ESMA, a known concentration camp. Next to drop by is Diego, a young soldier from the neighborhood, also stationed at ESMA. Their visits lead Josefina and Carolina to devise a plan to try to see Belén one last time. Will it work? Will they save her baby? Will they be able to save themselves?  

The “Dirty War” was the name the Argentine military dictatorship used for a period of state terrorism in Argentina from roughly 1974 to 1983, who targeted anyone believed to be a subversive or in any way associated with socialism. This included students, artists, journalists, political activists, mothers looking for the disappeared, nuns and anyone who spoke out against the military's reign of terror. As estimated 30,000 Argentines disappeared and were never heard from again.

Photo of Las Madres courtesy Argentinian photojournalist Daniel Garcia

Las Madres, also known as the Mothers of the Disappeared or Madres de los Desaparecidos, are a group of brave women who, when public protest was outlawed by the military dictatorship, marched in front of the Casa Rosada (Pink House) demanding the truth about the whereabouts of their missing children and later, grandchildren. Three of the original founding members ended up among the "disappeared." They began marching every Thursday in 1977 and continue marching today.


About the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere Initiative

Teatro Vista’s production of The Madres is presented with support from the National New Play Network (NNPN) Rolling World Premiere initiative. With support from NNPN, The Madres will receive four consecutive productions in 2018, kicking off in Los Angeles with Skylight Theatre Company, then Chicago at Teatro Vista, followed by San Diego at Moxie Theatre and Austin with Shrewd Productions. NNPN’s Rolling World Premiere program supports three or more theaters that choose to mount the same new play within a 12-month period, allowing the playwright to develop a new work with multiple creative teams in multiple communities. The playwright is part of the process, working on the script and making adjustments based on what is learned from each production. For more information, visit nnpn.org.


About Teatro Vista

Teatro Vista produces, develops and commissions plays that explore the wealth and variety of the human experience from a Latinx perspective. The company provides work and professional advancement opportunities for Latinx theatre artists, with special emphasis on the company’s ensemble members, and seeks to enhance the curricular goals of Chicago students through theatre. Teatro Vista was recently celebrated as one of “Chicago’s Cultural Leaders” by the Arts & Business Council of Chicago and received the League of Chicago Theatre’s Artistic Leadership Award.

Teatro Vista’s primary focus is producing new works by Latinx theatre artists and presenting classic plays featuring artists of color. Its artistic vision is shaped by the company’s ensemble members, a group of multi-generational, multi-ethnic and multi- disciplinary artists. They inform Teatro Vista’s artistic aesthetic by devising original works as well as by selecting plays with themes that are engaging and relevant to Chicago’s diverse population.

Teatro Vista was founded in 1990 by Edward Torres and Henry Godinez. As Teatro Vista’s first Artistic Director, Godinez guided the company during the formative years. He helped stage successful productions and establish vital relationships with other theatre companies and artists. When Godinez stepped down, Torres was appointed Artistic Director. Under Torres’ direction, Teatro Vista used the stage to engage, connect and challenge audience members using the company’s mission as his guide.

In 2012, Torres moved to New York and the Board of Directors promoted Associate Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez to the position of Executive Artistic Director. In 2017, Sylvia Hevia joined Teatro Vista as Managing and Development Director. Previously, Hevia was Director of Marketing and Development of the International Latino Cultural Center and had her own multicultural event production company.

In addition to Gutiérrez, Teatro Vista ensemble members include Charín Álvarez, Max Arciniega, Desmín Borges, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Ramón Camín, Ivonne Coll, Laura Dahl, Sandra Delgado, Liza Fernández, Khanisha Foster, Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel, Issac Gomez, Erik Juárez, Jon Lyon, Sandra Márquez, Eddie Martinez, Salome Martinez, Joe Minoso, Ayssette Muñoz, Christina Nieves, Marvin Quijada, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Gabriel Ruíz, Nate Santana, Cecilia Suarez and co-founder Edward Torres.

Teatro Vista’s Board of Directors includes Ezequiel “Zeek” Agosto, President; Rodrigo García and Rosanna Márquez, Vice Presidents; Joan Pantsios, Secretary; Tom Vega-Byrnes, Treasurer; and Bhuvana Badrinathan, Edgar Delgado, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Sylvia Hevia, Kareem C. Mohamednur and Angel Torres.

Teatro Vista is supported by The Joyce Foundation, Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events of the City of Chicago, The Shubert Foundation, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, the Bayless Family Foundation and The Saints.

Purple Group is Teatro Vista’s Headline Season Sponsor. Teatro Vista is a Victory Gardens Resident Theater. For more information, visit TeatroVista.org.

SAVE THE DATES: 2018 SEASON ANNOUNCED FOR FOLKS OPERETTA

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

FOLKS OPERETTA ANNOUNCES ITS 2018 SEASON AND MAJOR FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN FOR AN

AMERICAN PREMIERE IN 2019

 The 2018 Season Includes:

Emmerich Kálmán’s operetta The Csárdás Princess (July 7 – 22),  

Forbidden Opera multi-media concert (October 18 and 21),

Franz Lehár’s Children’s Holiday Operetta Peter & Paul in the Land of Nod (December 2018)

 Attached image features lead actors in The Csárdás Princess

William Roberts (Boni), Emma Sorenson (Stasi), Lani Stait (Sylvia) and Jonathan Zeng (Edwin) 

Folks Operetta also announces The Korngold Initiative - A fundraising campaign to bring Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s rarely heard opera Die Kathrin (Kathrin) to Chicago for its American Premiere in 2019

Folks Operetta is proud to announce its 2018 season and a new fundraising campaign, The Korngold Initiative. All of these projects are part of their new Reclaimed Voices Series, which focuses on recovering and reviving the lost music of the Jewish composers of the Second World War. The series grew out of their research on operetta and the disproportionate numbers of Jewish composers who were silenced both before and after the Second World War. Jewish composers of opera suffered a similar fate. In a world where old prejudices resurface and where a new generation demagogues seeks to draw new lines of division and enmity, the stories of these composers take on a new urgency. Their works need to be heard, their stories told, and their memories restored.

This season includes the fully-staged Emmerich Kálmán masterpiece, The Csárdás Princess, July 7 – 22; a multi-media concert, Forbidden Opera, Friday, October 18 and 21 and for families celebrating the Holidays, Franz Lehár’s children’s operetta Peter & Paul in the Land of Nod, December. Specific details for each event are listed below. Tickets are on sale and available at folksoperetta.org.

The 2018 Folks Operetta season includes:

The Csárdás Princess
July 7 – 22
Music by Emmerich Kálmán
Book by Leo Stein and Bela Jenbach
English translation by Hersh Glagov and Gerald Frantzen
Directed by Gerald Frantzen
Conducted by Mark Taylor
Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave.
Opening Night: Saturday, July 7 at 7:30 PM
Performance schedule: Fridays – Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.

Tickets: $40 for adults, $35 for seniors (65 years and older) and $25 for students (with student ID)

Folks Operetta’s 2018 season kicks off with Emmerich Kálmán’s operetta The Csárdás Princess. Kálmán’s mastery of the Viennese waltz and of the music of his native Hungary have made this show an enduring favorite in Europe. The story follows the ups and downs of the unlikely love affair between an aspiring young singer from the provinces and the scion of a wealthy Viennese family. Kálmán, as an assimilated Hungarian Jew living in Vienna, would have been well aware of the pitfalls of navigating the upper echelons of Viennese society. The Csárdás Princess, which takes aim at the rigid class divisions of Kálmán’s time, resonates in our own. Critics consider The Csárdás Princess to be Kálmán’s masterpiece.

Written in 1915, the show played on Broadway under the title The Riviera Girl in 1917 – just as the U.S. was entering “The War to End All Wars.” Broadway would not prove to be the boon that Kálmán had been seeking as it ran for only 78 performances. P.G. Wodehouse and Guy Bolton, who were responsible for The Riviera Girl’s book and lyrics, admitted that the fault lay with them, not with Kálmán. Wodehouse later wrote that “the Kálmán score was not only the best that gifted Hungarian ever wrote, but about the best anybody ever wrote.” With America’s entry into the War, anti-German sentiment was high, precluding more performances of the show. It would not be performed again in this country until 1932, when it was given at the St. Louis Municipal Opera and warmly received.

The Second World War would take a tremendous toll on Kálmán. Although he managed to escape, first to France and then to America, many of his relatives died at the hands of the Nazis. Settling in California, Kálmán suffered the indignity of having his music declared “degenerate” by the Nazis while finding himself in a strange country with no prospect of work. He tried writing film scores, but the industry proved to be a hard fit. He died in 1953, leaving his last show Arizona Lady, an homage to his adopted country, unfinished. (Folks Operetta gave the U.S. premiere in 2010.)


The production team includes Conductor Mark Taylor, Director Gerald Frantzen, Set Designer Eric Luchen, Lighting Designer Erik Barry, Costume Designer Patti Roeder, and Technical Director Josh Prisching.


Forbidden Opera
Multi-media Concert Including Five Singers and a Small Chamber Orchestra
October 19 at 7:00 PM and October 21 at 2:00 PM
Directed by Gerald Frantzen
Written by Gerald Frantzen and Hersh Glagov
Piano and small chamber orchestra
Illinois Holocaust Museum, 9603 Woods Dr., Skokie
Tickets: $35

As part of the Reclaimed Voices series, Folks Operetta takes a look at the composers of opera that time has forgotten. During the Third Reich Jewish composers, as well as any composers whose music did not suit the Nazis, were banned and labeled degenerate. Some Jewish composers such as Gideon Klein, Viktor Ullman, Hans Krasa, Erwin Schulhoff and Pavel Haas, would perish in the Holocaust. The more fortunate ones (Ernst Toch, Hans Gál, Kurt Weill, Hanns Eisler, Arnold Schoenberg, Egon Wellesz and Erich Wolfgang Korngold) would ply their craft in their newly adopted homelands. For all of these composers, whether they survived the war or not, the post war years inflicted a further indignity; there was no one to champion their music after the war.

The concert Forbidden Opera will feature the work of these composers and the stories of their lives. This multi-media event will feature five singers, a small chamber group, a narrator and video projections.


Peter & Paul in the Land of Nod
A Children’s Operetta Workshop
DECEMBER 2018
Music by Franz Lehár
The Nineteenth Century Club
Performance schedule: 3 shows
Tickets: $35, $30 for groups
Recommended for families and children ages 5 and older.

Folks Operetta brings back Franz Lehár’s Peter and Paul in the Land of Nod, as part of its Reclaimed Voices series. Boasting nine ballet numbers á la The Nutcracker, this magical show was the first operetta Lehár wrote following his success with The Merry Widow. The librettists were Fritz Grünbaum and Robert Bodanzky. Grünbaum, a popular actor and cabaret performer and satirist,  would meet a terrible fate at the hands of the Nazis in the Second World War.

This wonderfully human story with its message of hope and love is a poignant reminder of the loss of writers such as Grünbaum and their contributions to art and music. The company will present this wonderful show in a new production with an English translation in rhyming verse by Hersh Glagov and Gerald Frantzen.  Featuring performers from the  Chicago Symphony  Orchestra  Chorus, children from the Children’s Operetta Workshop, a 15-piece orchestra, and leading ballet  dancers from the Chicago area, this is a holiday show not to be missed.


The Korngold Initiative
The Korngold Initiative is a two-year fundraising campaign to bring Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s rarely-heard opera, Die Kathrin (Kathrin), to Chicago for its American premiere. The goal is to raise $150,000 to employ local singers, actors, musicians, artists and designers for a new production of the opera at the Athenaeum Theatre in 2019. Folks Operetta’s version will be faithful to Korngold’s original intention to set the show in occupied Germany following the First World War. In keeping with Folks Operetta’s mission to make shows accessible, we will translate the libretto and perform the opera in English.

Erich Wolfgang Korngold was one of the most unjustly neglected composers of the twentieth century. A child prodigy, he was praised by Gustav Mahler and Richard Strauss and considered by many to be the successor to Mozart and Beethoven. His father, the prominent Viennese music critic Julius Korngold, was careful to nurture his son’s remarkable talent, securing composition lessons for the boy with Alexander Zemlinsky. Erich Wolfgang Korngold already had a sizeable body of work to his credit when he burst onto the world stage with his opera, Die tote Stadt, in 1923, at the tender age of 19.

Die Kathrin was Korngold’s last opera. He began working on it in 1933, when he was engaged in re-orchestrating some of the classic operettas of Johann Strauss Jr. and Leo Fall. A first performance, scheduled for 1938 in Vienna, was cancelled. This opera by a Jewish composer, depicting a love story between a German woman and a French soldier in French-occupied Saarland, was destined to run afoul of Nazi censors. The opera received its European premiere in Sweden in 1939, where it was given an overtly harsh and anti-Semitic review. To make matters worse, Die Kathrin was almost lost forever when the Nazis broke into Korngold’s villa to destroy his work. Michael Haas, in his book, “Forbidden Music, “writes: “Weinberger [music publisher] employees broke into the cellar, recovered what was left of the manuscript, and returned it to Korngold by interleaving sheets between pages of Beethoven, Mozart, and other acceptably ‘Aryan’ composers and posting them to the composer in California.”

Die Kathrin was finally given its Viennese premiere in 1950, but ran for only eight performances. In 1997, the BBC Orchestra created a complete recording of the work.

Since then, the work has seldom been performed. Its music, however, is compelling and masterfully written. It deserves another look. Folks Operetta is uniquely suited to the task of reviving Korngold’s masterpiece.


ABOUT FOLKS OPERETTA
Folks Operetta is a 501(c)(3) non-profit theater company devoted to the nurturing of live operetta through articulate and dynamic productions. In the belief that the arts serve to illuminate the human condition, Folks Operetta is dedicated to the revival and development of operetta, a popular and accessible form of music and theater for general audiences. In particular, the Folks Operetta concentrates on producing both Viennese and American operettas from the early 20th century. Our mission also includes recovering the lost operas of Jewish composers who suffered or perished during The Second World War.

Lois D. and Maurice Jerry Beznos, Mr. Jerry Critser, The Pauls Foundation, The Richard Driehaus Foundation, Northern Trust

SAVE THE DATES: TAPPED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME AT THE ATHENAEUM THEATRE TWO NIGHTS ONLY 6/23 & 6/29

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

TWO SHOWS ONLY! 

CHICAGO TAP THEATRE AND THE ATHENAEUM THEATRE PRESENT 

TAPPED FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME 

AT THE ATHENAEUM THEATRE, JUNE 23 AND 29 AT 7:30 P.M.

All photos by Josh Hawkins

  

Chicago Tap Theatre Celebrates the Conclusion of Pride Month and Returns to the Athenaeum for an All-new Program of Dance Inspired by Divas and Featuring Live Music by the JC Brooks Band, the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus and other Special Guests

Artistic Director Mark Yonally and Chicago Tap Theatre (CTT) present Tapped for the Very First Time at the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave.,  Saturday, June 23 and Friday, June 29 at 7:30 p.m. Tapped for the Very First Time coincides with the end of Pride month and is a celebration of divas and their music that have inspired all of us to dance for decades including Patti Labelle, Whitney Houston, Madonna and others. Tapped for the Very First Time is hosted by the incomparable Mattrick Swayze and has performances with all new arrangements and live music by the JC Brooks Band and featuring special appearances by the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus. 

Doors will open at 7 p.m. and the running time is two hours with one fifteen minute intermission. Tickets are $24 - $65 for reserved admission seating and may be purchased at www.athenaeumtheatre.org or by calling 773-935-6875 or at the door. Group discounts are also available for groups of 10 or more. A preview rehearsal is open to the press at the Joel Hall Dance Center, 5965 N. Clark St. on Sunday, June 10 at 2 p.m.



“Two years ago we presented our first Pride-focused evening, We Will Tap You, to the music of Queen, and it was a HUGE success,” said Artistic Director Yonally. Indeed, that year’s production ended up on the Chicago Tribune and Windy City Times “10 Best Dance Events of the Year” list, with the Chicago Tribune saying, “an entertainment that, in under two hours, brought everybody to a new plane of joy and love.” Also, worth noting, three of the four reviews specifically asked for this to be an annual production!

“To make the 2018 performances even bigger, we have added the JC Brooks Band who are arranging and performing the music live. If you have never seen JC Brooks in person, you are in for a treat. I am also thrilled to be partnering with the Athenaeum Theatre to present TWO performances this year,” Yonally continued.

“Audiences who saw “We Will Tap You” remember CTT”s big over-the-top moments with unexpected guest artists, humor and passion. They have chosen to reprise the Act One closing scene, “Somebody to Love,” which left the audience and even many on stage with tears running down their face. Showcasing artists such as  Cher, Chaka Kahn, Janet Jackson, Tina Turner and others, gives the company many opportunities for more over the top madness and rhythmic sublimity.”

Chicago Tap Theatre is also pleased to bring back one of the most talked-about elements of We Will Tap You - host Mattrick Swayze. According to the Chicago Tribune, “Gay pride…reached new heights here, thanks in part to the extensive contributions of Swayze, backed by the Swayzettes. Truly funny, outrageously sexy, he not only offered various factoids on Freddie Mercury (which he found on the internet, so of course "they're all true!") but devised burlesque vignettes”

Tapped for the Very First Time features choreography by Mark Yonally and Kirsten Uttich. Dancers include Mark Yonally, Jennifer Yonally, Kirsten Uttich, Isaac Stauffer, Aimee Chase, Sara Anderson, Emily Broeker, Bailey Caves, Anabel Watson and Chris Matthews. Music will be arranged and performed by the JC Brooks Band, with guest artists including the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus, the Lakeside Pride Freedom Marching Band and many surprise guests.

ABOUT MARK YONALLY
Mark Yonally is currently the artistic director of Chicago Tap Theatre, one of the most critically well-regarded companies in Chicago. Yonally has developed a national and international reputation as a performer, with solo performances in Chicago, Kansas City, Albuquerque, Amsterdam and Paris. He has been blessed to have Sarah Petronio, Dianne Walker, Bill Evans and Billy Siegenfeld as mentors. As a company member of the Bill Evans Dance Company and Especially Tap Chicago (ETC), Yonally performed at such prestigious festivals as the St. Louis Tap Festival, the Chicago Human Rhythm Project, the Gus Giordano Jazz Dance World Congress and at the Royal Opera House in Helsinki, Finland. Furthermore, Yonally has gained the plaudits of major dance critics for his innovative approach to tap choreography. His works have been commissioned and performed by the Bill Evans Dance Company, ETC and Hope College, among others. Yonally also maintains a longstanding professional relationship with Valérie Lussac, Artistic Director of Tapage of Toulouse, France. Yonally is a noted educator and has taught at festivals throughout the U.S. and has served on the faculty at Oklahoma City University and Hope College. He is sought after for his multidisciplinary approach to tap teaching, which includes history, basic music theory and an emphasis on jazz music, and has taught in France, Germany, Switzerland and the United States. Yonally is also a published author, with pieces appearing in Dance Spirit, Dance Teacher and Dance Magazine.

ABOUT MATTRICK SWAYZE
Mattrick Swayze AKA Matthew Hollis is a long-time friend and fan of Chicago Tap Theatre.  As a dancer, Swayze has had the pleasure of performing for Hedwig Dances, The Seldoms, Joe Goode Performance Group and Mary Zimmerman.  As a choreographer, he has been a recipient of The Chicago Dancemakers Forum Grant and has presented his work throughout the world.  As a fitness expert, Swayze is a personal trainer and the co-creator of POMSQUAD Fitness which has been featured on WGN “Midday Fix,” NBC’s “1st Look” and WCIU’s “You  & Me in the Morning.”  Swayze is also a sassy mouthed high heel wearing host and late night fixture with The Chicago Dance Crash’s long running dance battle KTF. Mattrick recently competed on Wheel of Fortune, where he won fabulous cash and prizes.

ABOUT JC BROOKS
JC Brooks is a musician and actor who's main pastime is writing love letters to the Chicago arts scene. He makes a unique brand of "indiesoul" with some of Chicago's best musicians in an eponymous project (formerly The Uptown Sound). Sometimes you can catch him with electro-r&b duo, the K.i.D., or as a solo singer/poet.  He's played several Chicago venues from sweaty dance parties at the gritty Door#3 to laidback cabaret nights at City Winery to a sold out House Of Blues. Beyond Chicago he's been tapped for a week-long residency in Brooklyn at a one-of-a-kind multimedia salon called Nightcap Riot and also to play in Milan for its mayor's reception dinner for their new sister city, Chicago. He'll be releasing a brand new EP this upcoming April- find out where you can catch him at: www.JCBrooksBand.com.

ABOUT CHICAGO TAP THEATRE
Founded in 2002, Chicago Tap Theatre is a growing and vibrant dance company dedicated to preserving the quintessentially American dance form of tap while taking it to the next level of creativity, innovation and quality. CTT performs exclusively with live music provided by some of Chicago’s finest musicians playing everything from Duke Ellington to David Bowie and many artists in between. Under the dynamic direction of master teacher and performer Mark Yonally, CTT has gained a loyal and sizable following in Chicago and continues to tour both nationally and internationally. Having pioneered the “tap opera” format, which tells stories with compelling characters and intriguing plots, CTT has used the language of tap dance, live music and narration to move Chicago audiences for over 10 years.

YOB: Share New Song "The Screen" via Rolling Stone; Our Raw Heart is Due Out June 8

YOB: Share New Song "The Screen" 

via Rolling Stone

Our Raw Heart is due out June 8 on CD/2xLP/Deluxe 2xLP Boxset/CS/Digital

Photo Credit: Jimmy Hubbard

Listen to "The Screen" via Rolling Stone HERE

YOB, who recently announced the release of their eighth album, Our Raw Heart, on June 8 via Relapse Records, share “The Screen” on Rolling Stone HERE as the Oregon trio reveal the album artwork and pre-orders are made available.



“There was no guarantee that I was going to live long enough to record the album," said singer/guitar player Mike Scheidt in an accompanying interview about the 7-track release. 

Physical pre-orders are available via Relapse.com HERE with various physical bundles including a super deluxe 2XLP boxset (limited to 100 copies), a white/gold splattered deluxe version (limited to 300 copies), various merchandise and other formats including cassette and CD. Digital downloads can be found at the AT THIS LOCATION and include an instant download of “The Screen.”

Our Raw Heart was co-produced by the band and Billy Barnett at Gung Ho Studio in Eugene, Ore., with mastering handled by Heba Kadry (The Mars Volta, Diamanda Galas, Slowdive). Decibel Magazine and Stereogum named the release as one of their most anticipated albums of 2018.


Our Raw Heart tracklist:

Ablaze
The Screen
In Reverie
Lung Reach
Beauty in Falling Leaves
Original Face
Our Raw Heart

YOB’s most recent release, Clearing the Path to Ascend, was one of 2014’s most heralded releases, with Rolling Stone saying the music “makes perfect bedfellows of volume and beauty, pain and transcendence.” Stereogum said the four-track album offers “a universe unto itself” while Decibel said the songs were “as riveting as you could ever hope for them to be.”



YOB Tour Dates:

May 25 Vancouver, BC @ Modified Ghost Festival

--- All Dates Jun 14 - Jul 14 w/ Bell Witch ---

June 14 Oklahoma City, OK @ 89th Street
June 15 Austin, TX @ Austin Terror Fest
June 16 Little Rock, AR @ Mutants of the Monster 2018
June 17 Memphis, TN @ Hi Tone
June 19 Birmingham, AL @ Saturn
June 20 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
June 22 Orlando, FL @ SoundBar
June 23 Wilmington, NC @ Reggies
June 24 Asheville, NC @ Mothlight
June 25 Raleigh, NC @ King’s
June 27 Baltimore, MD @ Metro
June 28 New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge
June 29 Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
June 30 Boston, MA @ Middle East
July 02 Montreal, QC @ La Sala Rosa
July 03 Ottawa, ON @ Mavericks
July 04 Toronto, ON @ Mod Club
July 06 Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theatre
July 07 Detroit, MI @ El Club
July 08 Chicago, IL @ Reggies
July 09 Chicago, IL  @Reggies
July 10 St. Paul, MN @ Club
July 11 Omaha, NE @ Lookout Lounge
July 12 Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theatre
July 13 Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
July 14 Boise, ID @ Neurolux

OFFICIAL YOB LINKS:
www.yobislove.com
www.facebook.com/quantumyob
www.twitter.com/quantumyob
www.instagram/com/quantumyob






Gruesome
Twisted Prayers
Available June 01

Skinless
Savagery
Available May 11

Control Denied
The Fragile Art of Existence (Vinyl)
Available June 01

The Gift Theatre's giftLit Resumes at Community Tavern at 8pm May 1, 2018

The Gift Theatre Presents 

giftLit

Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at Community Tavern

(left to right) Katherine Bourne, Sherman Edwards and Shaina Warfield are among the writers featured in The Gift Theatre’s May 2018 giftLit.

Join The Gift Theatre for a line-up of local writers, actors and musicians at giftLit, an evening of stories, wine and entertainment in the grand tradition of a Parisian salon on Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at 8 pm at Community Tavern, 4038 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Jefferson Park neighborhood. May giftLit writers include Maggie Andersen, Katherine Bourne, Sherman Edwards and Shaina Warfield. Tickets, priced at $10, are currently available at thegifttheatre.org. Advance reservations are highly recommended.

About giftLit
The giftLIT salons happen several times a year at Community Tavern. A salon has historically been defined as “a gathering of people under the roof of an inspiring host, held partly to amuse one another and partly to refine the taste and increase the knowledge of participants through conversation.” What does that mean to the Gift? It means we round up a diverse group of writers and performers – some experienced, some rookies, some comedians, some poets. We give them all the same prompt and ask them to tell their stories while we drink good wine and eat good food. In between stories, we enjoy live music. At the Gift, we strongly believe that these story-sharing experiences create meaningful connections among individuals and within our community.

About the Writers
Katherine Bourne makes her giftLit debut In Chicago, she has worked with The House Theater of Chicago, Raven Theatre, The Gift Theatre, The Women's Theatre Alliance and brings Shakespeare plays to high school students with A Crew of Patches. She is on staff as an instructor with Black Box Acting, and spent her summer on faculty in the Meisner classroom at The School at Steppenwolf. While living in in Dallas TX, her work as a producer and co-founder for Shakespeare in the Bar and The Tribe contributed towards awards such as Best of Big D, and The Dallas Observer Mastermind Award. She performed with Dallas Theater Center, Stage West, Watertower Theater, Dallas Actor’s Lab, and is an ensemble member at Undermain Theatre. Katherine graduated from The School at Steppenwolf Theatre in 2014 and is represented by Actor's Talent Group. www.Katherine-Bourne.com.

Sherman Edwards was named 2012’s ‘Best Stand Up Comic in Chicago’ by the Chicago Reader and has been lucky enough to perform at the TBS Just for Laughs Festival in Chicago, The Del Close Marathon in New York, The Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland and a few other notable places which has given him his cool, comfortable, laid-back style. Born and raised in Virginia but currently residing in Chicago, he can be found doing stand up, plays, improv, eating brunch with Brittany and can be seen on HBO GO's Single Long and FOX’s Empire.

Shaina Warfield is a 20-year-old sophomore from Dominican University. This is her first reading in the Chicago community and she's hoping it won’t be her last.  She gets half her personality from the protagonist of whatever novel she' s currently reading. The other half is written in a notecard in her wallet so she doesn’t forget it. She lives with her parents in Westchester.

About The Gift Theatre
The Gift’s 17th season consists of Stacy Osei-Kuffour’s world premiere of Hang Man, directed by Jess McLeod (March 2 – April 29, 2018); Shakespeare’s Hamlet, directed by Monty Cole (June 1 – July 29, 2018); and the Midwest premiere of Tony Award-winning playwright and ensemble member David Rabe’s Cosmologies, directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton (October 12 –December 9, 2018). The Gift subscribers ("Gifters") receive admission to three shows, free parking at Gale Street Inn, free admission to all Wednesday night “Natural Gas” improv shows and invitations to special subscriber-only special events. Subscribe at thegifttheatre.org or by calling (773) 283-7071.