REVIEW: Nobody's Home, Part of the Physical Festival Chicago at Stage 773

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Nobody's Home, 

part of the 

Physical Festival Chicago at Stage 773, 

showing at 1225 W. Belmont 

(773)327-5252

Review
By Catherine Hellmann, Guest Critic 

Wow.

I have never seen a play before where all the action revolves around a bathtub. “Set in a bathroom, Nobody’s Home follows a soldier’s journey through his own mind, as he struggles with the monsters of his past to finally come home,” as described by Theatre Temoin and Grafted Cede theatre. While sometimes hard to witness, Nobody’s Home is an important story to tell about PTSD---the hell it creates for the central figure as well as his frustrated and exasperated wife. During the pre-show introduction, the audience is reassured that if anyone needs to step out because of the intensity of the show, the actors will not be offended; they are used to it from their many performances on military bases.

Returned soldier Grant and wife Penny are struggling to return to normalcy after his third tour of duty, which has pushed him over the edge. Penny wants Grant to finally fix the bathtub drain, but Grant’s demons prevent him from accomplishing anything other than basic survival. While her traumatized husband plays Zombie Hunter for endless hours in the bathroom, his also-suffering wife reminisces to their unborn child about the man she married. “He’s been home eight months, and I still feel like I’m waiting.” She reassures herself by reading the love letters he had sent home from the front. The husband she knew is damaged beyond recognition. “Either he’s playing video games in the bathroom, or he is lying next to me, and I’m afraid for my life.”

Will Pinchin does a great job playing the emotionally tormented Grant. But his real-life wife Dorie Kinnear as Penny is amazing in her many roles, playing a psychiatrist, a dead comrade who torments Grant’s thoughts, (“Where were you when I was getting my face blown off?”) and a woman Grant encountered overseas who still haunts him. Penny deserves a medal for what she is tolerating, and I wondered how spouses in these tough circumstances are able to cope. (They are heroes as well.) Just as she is ready to leave Grant, he begs her to stay. In a cool bit of choreography, Pinchin and Kinnear alternate between reality and scary flashbacks in a move they call “the spin.” The lights dim when Grant envisions the native woman from the war and brighten as he embraces Penny, trying to not let her slip away.

Nobody's Home has been perfected over the ten years since its inception. We were lucky to chat with the actors after the show, delighted to discover they are a married couple with a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter. Americans from the two coasts, they met doing theater and currently reside in England. They said the play has a prominent, kind of weird place in their relationship. It is a story that needs to be told. 

Pinchin and Kinnear were impressed with our city and commented on how “nice everyone has been in Chicago.” Awwww. They planned to explore a bit the next day, so we made suggestions on where to eat and what to see. We are lucky they shared their unique play with the Windy City and hope they return soon.

Click here for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops

LET’S GET PHYSICAL!

FINAL WEEK PHYSICAL FESTIVAL CHICAGO HIGHLIGHTS:

AN INGENIOUS DON QUIXOTE VIA SPAIN/UK

A KICK-ASS, ONE-WOMAN LITTLE GIRL WAR

REFUGEE TALE VIA BRAZIL/FRANCE

THIS JUST IN!

A NEW AUDITION WORKSHOP

WITH A LEADING CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TALENT SCOUT

New workshop just added!

From the Inside Out- Dance/Physical Theater Guided Improv – Friday, June 8, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Learn directly from top Cirque du Soleil talent scout Leon Kupferschmid. Find out what he looks for in potential performers prior to Cirque du Soleil’s Chicago auditions for dancers, clowns and physical actors, June 9 and 10.

Bouffon Workshop with Eric Davis (aka Red Bastard), Sunday, June 3, 10 a.m.- 1 p.m. has sold out.

Limited space is still available for the remaining workshops:

Sculpting Space with Dorie Kinnear and Will Pinchin (UK/USA), Monday, June 4,
10 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Dreams, Wishes, Lies with Michael Montenegro, Wednesday, June 6, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Create Your Own Solo with Gaël Le Cornec and Ben Samuels, Thursday, June 7,
10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Comedy & Clowning with Little Solder Productions, Saturday, June 9 at 10 a.m.-1 p.m.


Visit physicalfestival.com/workshops for full workshop descriptions and to register. Workshops are $50 each, or look for information on a discounted workshop pass.



Tickets and for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops HERE

REVIEW: "Red Bastard" in the 5th Annual Physical Festival Chicago at Stage 773

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Red Bastard

Featured as part of the 5th Annual 

Physical Festival Chicago, 

Stage 773 at 1225 W. Belmont  (773)  327-5252

Review
By Catherine Hellmann, Guest Critic

I’m gonna be honest with you,
I’m not gonna lie,
this is the TRUTH:

The Red Bastard is worth seeing. It is theater like you have not seen before. (And he begins the performance by informing us there is no ending.) 

Then again, all people LIE, so why would you believe me??  ;-)

The premise that all people fib, cheat, or are perverts is the foundation of the Red Bastard’s guide to life and love, especially in matters of the heart. Because who really writes these “Rules of Love” that we follow in terms of our relationships? What do we consider “cheating” in a relationship? How honest do
we need to be with our partners? 

Swans may pair off and mate for life, but Eric Davis, a.k.a. Red Bastard, concedes he was not wired for being a swan and had his share of sexual shenanigans that made him a “dirty pony.” (How many audience members will make that their new naughty catch phrase?)

To prove that “Everyone lies,” at the beginning of the show, Red Bastard has the audience stand up. (if you are uncomfortable with participating in live theater, BEWARE...or sit waaay in the back. I discovered this personally. More on that later...) To locate an honest person, just one, Red Bastard surveys the crowd. If someone has lied to that particular question, he or she sits down.

It only took three questions to leave nobody standing. 

I expected the usual questions: have you fibbed about your age, weight, or a past job experience... but the question that “killed” over half the crowd dealt with how often we select the “I have read and understand” the content on any online website’s “terms and conditions” page before we sign off on all that annoying fine print. As Red Bastard exclaims: “It’s a show about YOU--LIES!” In the theater, which is “a temple of lies!”

So how was I dragged into this soul-baring experience? “If you have ever dated more than one person at a time, wink at me.” I winked. He noticed. Oh, crap. He grilled me on particulars. “Did I lie to one of them?” No. “Why not?” I answered truthfully that they “lived in different cities.” Oh, Red Bastard
loved that and mimed driving across the stage, back and forth, back and forth, visiting my lovers.

Did I regret it? If I could erase the experience, would I?

No.

“Why Not?”

I shrugged. “It was fun.”

I think I earned the respect of Red Bastard at that moment with my candor.

Told with boundless energy, humor, music (he plays a concertina!), physical theatrics, and wonderful improv, Eric Davis’ tour-de-force was vastly entertaining and thought-provoking. He had the audience rapt; we even laughed when he ate a piece of chocolate onstage. He ate a mango and slow-danced with a man from the crowd, charming all. And this English teacher learned a new vocabulary word from the show: “compersion.” Look it up.

Davis is also running a Bouffon Workshop for the fest. We chatted with Eric (our new BFF) after the show, and he was a delightful, friendly person. When asked where he lives, he said his wife is a member of Cirque du soleil, so he travels to follow her career. What a great husband! His wife got him to finally rebuke his dirty pony ways. We teased him that he needs to officiate at our maybe-someday-wedding.

No lie.

Click here for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops

LET’S GET PHYSICAL!

FINAL WEEK PHYSICAL FESTIVAL CHICAGO HIGHLIGHTS:

AN INGENIOUS DON QUIXOTE VIA SPAIN/UK

A KICK-ASS, ONE-WOMAN LITTLE GIRL WAR

REFUGEE TALE VIA BRAZIL/FRANCE

THIS JUST IN!

A NEW AUDITION WORKSHOP

WITH A LEADING CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TALENT SCOUT

New workshop just added!

From the Inside Out- Dance/Physical Theater Guided Improv – Friday, June 8, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Learn directly from top Cirque du Soleil talent scout Leon Kupferschmid. Find out what he looks for in potential performers prior to Cirque du Soleil’s Chicago auditions for dancers, clowns and physical actors, June 9 and 10.

Bouffon Workshop with Eric Davis (aka Red Bastard), Sunday, June 3, 10 a.m.- 1 p.m. has sold out.

Limited space is still available for the remaining workshops:

Sculpting Space with Dorie Kinnear and Will Pinchin (UK/USA), Monday, June 4,
10 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Dreams, Wishes, Lies with Michael Montenegro, Wednesday, June 6, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Create Your Own Solo with Gaël Le Cornec and Ben Samuels, Thursday, June 7,
10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Comedy & Clowning with Little Solder Productions, Saturday, June 9 at 10 a.m.-1 p.m.


Visit physicalfestival.com/workshops for full workshop descriptions and to register. Workshops are $50 each, or look for information on a discounted workshop pass.



Tickets and for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops HERE

OPENING: US PREMIERE of PINK ORCHIDS to Launch PAC Pride Fest

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

PINK ORCHIDS

By Patrick Cash

US PREMIERE

Directed by Brennan T. Jones

The first play of the “PAC Pride Fest” - a summer season of five plays, PINK ORCHIDS by Patrick Cash is a British play in which five eloquently interwoven and often funny monologues explore the experience of living with HIV - a virus that attacks the emotions as well as the body.  It premiered in London in 2016 under the title THE HIV MONOLOGUES. This production will be directed by Brennan T. Jones and will open to the press on Friday, June 8 at 7:30 pm, in the Pride Arts Center’s Buena space. Jones directed JUMPERS FOR GOALPOSTS for Pride Films and Plays in summer 2017 and was Assistant Director for TimeLine Theatre’s THE AUDIENCE last fall.

Jones’ cast will include Jerome Beck (DONTRELL, WHO KISSED THE SEA for First Floor, and THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH for Remy Bumppo), Don Baiocchi (HOT PINK AND READY TO BLOW for New American Folk Theatre), Nick Dorado (AS YOU LIKE IT  for Eclectic Full Contact Theatre Company and ON GOLDEN POND at Oil Lamp Theatre); and Kathleen Puls Andrade, whose stage credits include BIBLE BINGO, part of the LATE NITE CATECHISM series at the Royal George and whose television credits include CHICAGO MED, BOSS, BERNIE and the award winning SHERYL STILL SINGLE.

Top row L-R: Don Baiocchi, Jerome Beck., Lower row: Kathleen Puls Andrade, Nick Dorado.

PINK ORCHIDS begins with Alex (Beck) meeting Nick (Baiocchi) and finding a connection. This connection is tested when Alex learns Nick is HIV-positive. He procrastinates about how to behave when confronted with Nick’s HIV status and makes some regretful mistakes. An Irish nurse, Irene (Kathleen Puls Andrade), and a producer, Barney (Dorado), also explain how HIV has affected their lives and the devastation caused by media negativity and other elements within society, even from within the LGBT community.

The production team for PINK ORCHIDS will include Evan Frank (scenic design), Noel Huntzinger (costume design), Blake Cordell (lighting and sound design), Hillarie Shockley (properties design), Erica Hughes (Dialect Coach) and Megan Chaney (Stage Manager).

PINK ORCHIDS will open to the press on Friday, June 8, following previews on Wednesday, June 6 and Thursday, June 7. It will run through July 7th, playing in repertory with THE GREEN BAY TREE, which will open on June 13 following previews on June 11 and 12. The “PAC Pride Series” will continue with Joe DiPietro’s FUCKING MEN, playing from July 1 – August 25; a world premiere, HURRICANE DAMAGE by Kevin Brofsky playing from August 1 – 26; and the American Premiere of HOLDING THE MAN, by Australian playwright Tommy Murphy, from August 5 – 26, 2018.

Patrick Cash (playwright) is a writer living in London. His plays include a queer adaptation of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, THE CLINIC, QUEERS, THE CHEMSEX MONOLOGUES, SUPERFICIAL and THE HIV MONOLOGUES. He is a senior contributing editor to ATTITUDE and has written for VICE and DAZED. Both THE HIV MONOLOGUES and THE CHEMSEX MONOLOGUES are published by Oberon Books, and THE CHEMSEX MONOLOGUES was nominated for the Polari Prize 2017. THE HIV MONOLOGUES was produced in Sydney, Australia in 2017. He also wrote and co-produced the short film series THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GRINDR.

Tickets for all events are on sale now at  www.pridefilmsandplays.com or by phone at 866-411-4111 or 773-857-0222.

Previews Weds. 6/6 and Thurs. 6/7 at 7:30 pm

Beginning 6/14, Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 3:30 pm through July 7. No performance Thursday, July 5. Also Sundays, June 17 and July 1 at 7:30 pm



Buena Theater
Pride Arts Center
4147 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60613
Tickets: Previews $15, Regular Run: Premium seats $30, General Admission $25, Seniors/Students/Military $23
Tickets available at www.pridefilmsandplays.com or by phone at 866-811-4111 or 773-857-0222.

He’s just your type. But hold on. He’s about to tell you he’s got HIV.  How will you respond emotionally? Brush it aside and practice safe sex? Go on to a deeper relationship? Or do you walk away? In five eloquently interwoven and often funny monologues, Patrick Cash invites you to explore these emotions of living with a virus that attacks the emotions as well as the body.

"Pink Orchids is a piece that, while full of optimism, doesn’t shy away from the very real prejudices that are still aimed at HIV positive people to this very day. It’s educational and informative, but at the play’s centre are characters that walk off the page and straight into our hearts.' Gay Times ★★★★★



ABOUT PRIDE FILMS AND PLAYS
Pride Films and Plays creates diverse new work (or work that is new to Chicago) with LGBTQ+ characters or themes that is essential viewing for all audiences. We accomplish this mission through fully-staged productions, writing contests and staged readings, and filming one short film each season.

PFP is the primary tenant in the Pride Arts Center (PAC), which connects and promotes other artists who share our values, creating a safe environment for all. PAC books one-night events or limited runs, cabaret, film, dance, comedy, and other events. PAC opened in 2016 and consists of two performance spaces: The Buena at 4147 N. Broadway which has 50 seats and The Broadway at 4139 N. Broadway which has 85 seats.
                                                                                                  
Pride Films and Plays is supported by The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at The Richard Driehaus Foundation, The Illinois Arts Council, City of Chicago’s City Arts Fund, the Elliott Fredland Charitable Trust, Proud to Run, the AmazonSmile Foundation, Arts and Business Foundation, Tap Root Foundation and Alphawood Foundation. 

PFP is a member of the Smart Growth Program of the Chicago Community Trust. Pride Films and Plays is a member of the LGBT Chamber of Commerce of Illinois and The League of Chicago Theatres.

For more information, visit www.pridefilmsandplays.com or call 1.800.737.0984.

ABOUT PRIDE ARTS CENTER
PRIDE ARTS CENTER has become an important part of the arts environment in the Buena Park neighborhood and beyond. In addition to performances by PFP, (www.pridefilmsandplays.com), PAC hosts monthly events including play readings, film screenings, cabaret nights, and variety shows. Guest productions are also included in the PAC schedule. Find a full calendar of everything happening at PAC here. http://pridefilmsandplays.com/calendar/

REVIEW: "The Revolutionists" by Organic Theater at Greenhouse Theater Center, running May 29-July 8, 2018

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

THE REVOLUTIONISTS & 

TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN 

Via Organic Theater Company of Chicago at the Greenhouse Theater Center

Sara Copeland (Charlotte Corday) in Organic Theater’s production of The Revolutionists, directed by Bryan Wakefield, assistant director Julia Rufo, May 29 – July 8, 2018. All Production Photos by Anna Gelman.

Review By Catherine Hellmann, guest critic

A play about a woman playwright, a woman Haitian rebel spy, dethroned Queen Marie Antoinette, and a tough-girl would-be rebel assassin? In the same play set in 18th Century France with female characters dropping f-bombs? Sign me up!

Playwright Lauren Gunderson uses modern language in her clever, thought-provoking play that is tough to classify. It begins in a somber mood, images of serious discord, pending beheadings...until the delightful Stephanie Sullivan as playwright Olympe de Gouges breaks the tension by asking how could a light-hearted comedy begin with a scene at a guillotine? (Or something like that...I forgot a pen and was mad at myself for not capturing more lines of dialogue verbatim. There are so many wonderful lines in this script.)

Stephanie Sullivan (Olympe de Gouges) and Laura Sturm (Marie Antoinette)

The Revolutionists explores feminism, friendships, rebelliousness, the French Revolution, and makes us feel sympathy for ousted Queen Marie Antoinette---all while making us laugh!

One of the best lines in the witty script is when the characters are debating topics for Olympe de Gouges’ next play, and musicals are discussed. “Who would want to see a musical about the French Revolution?” There is an inside-joke line about a barricade, which elicited laughs from the appreciative audience, and such banter makes The Revolutionists extra fun for theater fans. Gunderson takes advantage of having a playwright character as the others in the story discuss the impact of theater and how a play can affect society or cause change.

All four actresses are so perfect; if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the Narcissistic Queen Marie Antoinette played by Laura Sturm. She was so funny in her “It’s all about ME” mode, like how she knows it is her cue to stand up when she hears the blare of trumpets to announce her entrance! But there is a vulnerable side to her as well, when she describes her life, and how she was married off to a stranger she met on her wedding day.

Taylor Raye (Marianne Angelle) in Organic Theater’s production of The Revolutionists, directed by Bryan Wakefield, assistant director Julia Rufo, May 29 – July 8, 2018. Photo by Anna Gelman.

My companion said his favorite was Taylor Raye as rebel spy Marianne Angelle. Her character is undercover in France fighting for freedom in Haiti, where she has left her husband and two young children behind. I loved her description of her family as she recalls what she is risking for them.

Stephanie Sullivan (Olympe de Gouges)

                                                      Sara Copeland (Charlotte Corday)

Energetic and intense Sara Copeland as assassin Charlotte Corday is also excellent. I had to look up the backstory on her tale, which is fascinating. Indeed, twenty-four-year old Corday did fatally stab a very sickly Jean-Paul Marat in his own bathtub. She was persistent--it took three tries to receive admittance to his home. For her efforts, she was beheaded a mere four days after her crime. In contrast, Marat was hailed as a martyr to his cause, which is mentioned in Gunderson’s play.

As Corday is killed, Copeland ties a red ribbon around her neck to signify the beheading. She later, as an interrogator, gets to wear the coolest stage mask ever. It is unusual to see an all-female cast get to debate art, politics, andtheir destinies in a funny, entertaining way. The Revolutionists are some thought-provoking, kick-ass women. Go support them.

The Revolutionists runs from now until July 8 and is being performed in rotating repertory with Tiresias Was a Weatherman by Jaime Mire, which also sounds intriguing. Greenhouse Theater Center is located at 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue near Oz Park.

ORGANIC THEATER COMPANY – 2018 SUMMER REPERTORY SEASON:

AWE-INSPIRING WOMEN STAND UP AND FIGHT BACK; OR, 

 WHICH IS WORSE, THE REIGN OF TERROR OR THE REIGN OF BIG PHARMA?

Check out full show details here.

TICKETS ON-SALE TODAY AT NOON: IONESCO'S VICTIMS OF DUTY REMOUNT VIA RED ORCHID THEATRE

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

                                                           

A RED ORCHID THEATRE ANNOUNCES CASTING FOR

VICTIMS OF DUTY

BY EUGENE IONESCO

DIRECTED BY SHIRA PIVEN

FEATURING ORIGINAL CAST MEMBERS

ENSEMBLE MEMBERS MICHAEL SHANNON AND GUY VAN SWEARINGEN

PLUS KAREN ALDRIDGE, RICH COTOVSKY AND ENSEMBLE MEMBER MIERKA GIERTEN

July 11 – August 5, 2018

**TICKETS ON-SALE WEDNESDAY, MAY 30 AT NOON**

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're so very excited for this remount for too many reasons to count. I've adored Ionesco since my college intro to his Theatre of the Absurd began with Rhinoceros. I'm also quite fond of Shira Piven's work, Michael Shannon, Guy Van Swearingen (original cast members)... and the rest of this cast of Chicago's finest. A Red Orchid Theatre is at it again, bringing vividly stunning works and star power to their intimate Old Town storefront. This is where theatre gets real. Don't miss this! Book ASAP. This run is sure to sell out.

A Red Orchid Theatre presents a special summer engagement of Victims of Duty by Eugene Ionesco and directed by Shira Piven. Victims of Duty runs July 11 – August 5, 2018 at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N Wells in Chicago.

The cast of Victims of Duty includes original cast members Ensemble Members Michael Shannon (The Detective) and Guy Van Swearingen (Choubert), as well as Karen Aldridge (Madeleine), Rich Cotovsky (Nicolas D’eu), and Ensemble Member Mierka Gierten (The Lady).

Much of the original 1995 team come together to revisit Ionesco's absurd masterpiece. Choubert, the archetypal bourgeois everyman, and his wife Madeleine are spending a quiet evening at home when the Detective arrives to enlist their help in finding the previous tenant. A roller-coaster ride of high comedy and horrific tragedy as Choubert examines his past present and future in a quest to find out where Mallot could be hiding.

“Victims of Duty was the very first show I ever saw at A Red Orchid,” says Artistic Director Kirsten Fitzgerald. “I am not entirely sure Ionesco's investigation of a life made logical sense to me at the time, but it made perfect emotional sense and was viscerally stunning.  So much so, that I knew I needed to work with these people in this space.  That was 1996.  With many of the originals returning (including Director Shira Piven, Production Designer Danila Korogodsky, and actors Guy Van Swearingen and Michael Shannon) the investigation promises to go even deeper.”

In addition to Director Shira Piven, the creative of Victims of Duty includes Danila Korogodsky (Production Designer), Ensemble Member Mike Durst (Lighting Designer), and Brando Triantafilou (Sound Designer).

Tickets, priced at $50, will go on-sale Wednesday, May 30 at noon and may be purchased at the A Red Orchid Theatre Box Office (1531 N. Wells Ave, Chicago) by calling (312) 943-8722, or online www.aredorchidtheatre.org.

About the Artists

EUGENE IONESCO (Playwright) was a Romanian-born French playwright. He studied in Bucharest and Paris, where he lived from 1945. His first one-act antiplay, The Bald Soprano (1950), inspired a revolution in dramatic techniques and helped inaugurate the Theatre of the Absurd. He followed it with other one-act plays in which illogical events create an atmosphere both comic and grotesque, including The Lesson (1951), The Chairs (1952), and The New Tenant (1955). His most popular full-length play, Rhinoceros (1959), concerns a provincial French town in which all the citizens are metamorphosing into rhinoceroses. Other plays include Exit the King (1962) and A Stroll in the Air (1963). He was elected to the Acadmie Franaise in 1970.



SHIRA PIVEN (Director) is a director of both stage and film.  She was the child of theatre people and established herself originally as an actress and stage director in Chicago in the 90's.  Shira has directed numerous stage productions, many of them original adaptations, in New York, Chicago, LA, and Washington D.C. She was the director and a founding member of Burn Manhattan spontaneous theatre, a groundbreaking group performing entirely improvised physical theatre throughout New York City.  In Los Angeles Shira developed and directed the plays Little and All Cake No File at the Actor’s Gang Theatre and Fully Loaded at UCB Theatre. Her first foray into film combined live theatre with film sequences in Water's show Death of a Judge in 2003.  Shira completed her second feature film, Welcome To Me, starring Kristen Wiig in 2015. Her first feature Fully Loaded won the audience favorite feature award at Palm Beach International Film Festival as well as best feature at both The River's Edge International and Carmel Art and Film Festivals. It was also featured at the Boston, San Luis Obispo, Talking Pictures and Newport Beach film festivals and released by Starz. She also directed a short documentary The Beast and The Angel that premiered at the Lincoln Center Film Society and aired on PBS.



MICHAEL SHANNON (The Detective) is a founding member of A Red Orchid Theatre. He directed the world premiere of Traitor by Brett Neveu earlier this year and made his directing debut here with Ionesco’s Hunger and Thirst. He has been seen on stage at A Red Orchid in Pilgrim’s Progress, Simpatico, Mistakes Were Made, Gagarin Way, Mr. Kolpert, BUG, 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, The Killer, The Persecution of Arnold Petch, Canus Lunis Balloonis, Victims of Duty, and Drinking in America. Elsewhere around Chicago, he has worked at Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, Northlight, Famous Door (RIP), and the Next Lab, birthplace of Killer Joe, in which he originated the role of Chris Smith and performed it a gillion times all over God's green earth. Mike currently lives in NYC where he Performed in Ionesco's The Killer with Theatre for a New Audience and made his Broadway debut in Grace at the Cort Theatre. He also played Astrov in Annie Baker's adaptation of Uncle Vanya at Soho Rep, directed by Sam Gold.  Film credits include Groundhog Day, Chicago Cab, The Ride, Jesus' Son, Cecil B. Demented, Tigerland, Pearl Harbor, 8 Mile, Bad Boys II, Kangaroo Jack, Grand Theft Parsons, The Missing Person, Zamboni Man, Revolutionary Road, My Son My Son What Have Ye Done?, Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, Mud, Machine Gun Preacher, Premium Rush, The Iceman, Man of Steel, 99 Homes, Free Held, Elvis & Nixon, The Shape of Water, Fahrenheit 451 and more. On TV: Boardwalk Empire, and the recent miniseries Waco. 



GUY VAN SWEARINGEN (Choubert) is founding Artistic Director and Ensemble Member of A Red Orchid Theatre where he has appeared in over a dozen productions, including Traitor, The Nether, Red Handed Otter, The Sea Horse (Jeff Nomination), Simpatico (Jeff Nomination) and the World Premiere of The Opponent (which was also produced at 59E59 in NYC).  Regional credits include Simpatico at the McCarter Theatre, The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window at the Goodman Theatre, the World Premiere of Taking Care and a revival of The Time of Your Life at Steppenwolf (which transferred to Seattle Rep and A.C.T.) and Eleven Rooms of Proust (a Lookingglass/About Face/Goodman Theatre collaboration).  Other local theatres he’s appeared with include Defiant, Plasticene, Famous Door and Mary Arrchie.  Film credits include Captive State (2018 release), The Dilemma, The Merry Gentleman, Take Shelter, Public Enemies, The Weatherman, Ali, Janie Jones and The Unborn. TV credits include Chicago Fire (NBC), Boss (STARZ), Sirens (USA), Detroit 1-8-7 (ABC), Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story (TNT), The Beast (A&E), Turks and Early Edition (CBS). 



KAREN ALDRIDGE (Madeleine) is a critically acclaimed theater artist consistently starring in productions at Chicago's most prestigious theaters such as The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre and Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. Karen originated the role of "Mrs. Phelps" in Matilda on Broadway.  She also toured around the world in Le Costume with the Theatre des Bouffes du Nord. Karen has been nominated for two Joseph Jefferson Awards.  On television, Karen has appeared in a recurring role as "Dr. Kendra" on NBC's CHICAGO FIRE and as "Dr. Ella Harris" in the Golden Globe winning series BOSS.  Other television & film credits include CBS' Blue Bloods, CBS' Unforgettable and Ron Howard's THE DILEMMA.  



RICH COTOVSKY (Nicolas D’eu) directed the very first show at A Red Orchid Theatre in 1993.  He was the founder and Artistic Director of Mary Arrchie Theatre Company for all of it’s 30 years.  Cotovsky has performed in or directed more than 50 productions at Mary-Arrchie and other theaters, along with the occasional film, television, and commercial gig. Among his favorites: a record-setting run as the Hellcab cabbie and the role of Arthur in Mary-Arrchie's 2012 production of Tracy Letts's Superior Donuts, which he workshopped and understudied at Steppenwolf.  Though Rich and Guy and Mike have collaborated many times, this is the first time they will share the stage outside of the occasional late-night talk show at Mary Arrchie’s Abby Hoffman Died for our Sins festival.


MIERKA GIRTEN (The Lady) is an ensemble member at A Red Orchid, where she has been seen in over thirteen productions, including The Room, The Mutilated, Simpatico, Red Handed Otter, Mud Blue Sky and Abigail’s Party among others. Mierka was honored to reprise her role in Simpatico last fall with A Red Orchid at The McCarter Center in Princeton NJ.   She played Maria Callas in Master Class at The Human Race Theatre Company in Dayton Ohio.  Additionally, she has worked with The Hypocrites, Rivendell Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Cobalt Ensemble, Apple Tree, Provision, Strawdog, Circle Theatre, American Blues, Mary-Arrchie, Live Bait, Roadworks, Steppenwolf and The Goodman. She played Esther in Mistakes Were Made both here at A Red Orchid and in the Off-Broadway Barrow Street Theatre production with friend Mike Shannon. Her voice can be heard on national broadcast and web commercials.

DANILA KOROGODSKY (Production Designer) is a director and stage designer. He is the Artistic Director of Pokoleniy Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia and serves as the head of set design at California State University, Long Beach.  Born into a theatrical family, his father Zinovy Korogodsky, a Stanislavsky prize winner, was one of the most important directors and theater pedagogues in Soviet Union. His mother, Liah Danilina, was a playwright. Danila grew up and was educated in the Soviet Union. He graduated from Leningrad Theater Academy in 1977 as a stage and costume designer, and after graduation worked as a resident designer at the Leningrad TYS (Theater for Young Spectators) - a premier company for young audiences in the Soviet Union. During that time he also worked as a freelance designer for theaters around the country designing more than 80 productions for various companies such as Baku Youth Theater, Tallin Drama Theater, Leningrad Comedy Theater, Novy Drama Theater, Mossoviet Theater, Ilkhom Theater, and Tashkent. In 1989 he was invited to design a show at Honolulu Theater for Youth. Since then he has worked in the United States as a stage designer and design professor. He designed more than 250 productions in the United States and around the world. He also started designing for the opera, and has worked with Chicago Lyric Opera, Opera Bielefeld and Opera Dessau in Germany, Opera Nantes in France, The Spoleto Festival and Opera Theater of Pittsburgh. Other theatrical design work has been with NYC Japan Society, A Noise Within, Actors Gang, Pittsburgh Playhouse, Minneapolis Children Company, ACT, Wheelock Theater, and more.  At Pokoleniy Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia. He has directed Without Lear based on King Lear by Shakespeare, Far Away on Lake Tchad, The Table, Peter-Burg, Songs of Love and Death, The Light Bulb all conceived and developed by the company, which were well received by the Russian and international press. He developed a project based on a play by Maxim Gorky The Summer Folks, which opened in Theater Pokoleniy in October 2012.

Dates:
Previews: July 11-14, 2018
Wednesday, July 11 at 7:30 p.m.
hursday, July 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, July 13 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 14 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Press Performances: Saturday, July 14 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Opening:Sunday, July 15 at 7:00 p.m. 

Regular Run:
July 17 – August 5, 2018           
Tuesday, July 17 at 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, July 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, July 20 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 21 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 22 at 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday, July 25 at 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, July 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 28 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 29 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, July 31 at 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, August 1 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, August 3 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, August 4 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, August 5 at 3:00 p.m.

Schedule:
Tuesdays:7:30 p.m. (July 17 & 31)
Wednesdays: 7:30 p.m. (July 11 & 25)
Thursdays: 7:30 p.m. (July 12, 19 & 26)
Fridays: 7:30 p.m. (July 13 & 20 and August 3)
Saturdays: 3:00 p.m. (July 21 & 28 and August 4)
and 7:30p.m. (July 14, 21 & 28 and August 4)
Sundays:
3:00 p.m. (July 22, 29 and August 5)

Location: A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N. Wells Ave.
Tickets: $50
Box Office: Located at 1531 N. Wells Ave, Chicago, (312) 943-8722; or online www.aredorchidtheatre.org

Concluding our 25th season of ambitious and powerful storytelling, we continue to champion A Red Orchid Theatre’s Red League, which is a gift $1k or more, and the Founders Circle, which is a gift of $5k or more annually for a three-year pledge. These donors represent a community of our most committed and impactful cultural investors. Every profound and shocking moment on our stage is made possible through their critical annual contributions. Their philanthropic leadership fosters the development of raw and relevant work, creates a platform for our talented ensemble to reach new audiences, and ensures that A Red Orchid Theatre remains a source for honest, compassionate, and aesthetically rigorous theatre.

About A Red Orchid
A Red Orchid Theatre has served as an artistic focal point in the heart of the Old Town community of Chicago since 1993 and was honored with a 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Over the past 25 years, its Resident Ensemble has welcomed into its fold an impressive array of award-winning theatre artists with the firm belief that live theatre is the greatest sustenance for the human spirit. A Red Orchid is well known and highly acclaimed for its fearless approach to performance and design in the service of unflinchingly intimate stories. In addition to its professional season, the company is also committed to a Youth Project and hosts The Incubator (providing artists with space and time to explore new work, new forms and new artistic collaborations).

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

OPENING: World Premiere of BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY Via Lost and Found Productions at Theater Wit June 2 – July 1, 2018

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Lost and Found Productions Presents the 

World Premiere of

BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY 

Book and Lyrics by June Finfer

Music and Lyrics by Elizabeth Doyle 

Directed by Erik Wagner 

Music Direction by Paul W. Thompson

Choreography by Jessica Texidor 

June 2 – July 1, 2018 at Theater Wit

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're eager to catch Lost and Found Productions' World Premiere of BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY. Chicago wouldn't be the city it is today without the legendary architect, so we're ready to geek out on some architectural history in musical form, and enjoy this slice of Chicago's past. I'll be ChiILin' at Chi, IL's Theater Wit for the press opening June 5th, so check back soon for my full review.

The story of visionary architect Daniel H. Burnham and Chicago’s great World’s Fair comes to life in Lost and Found Productions’ world premiere musical BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY, with book and lyrics by June Finfer, music and lyrics by Elizabeth Doyle, direction by Erik Wagner, music direction by Paul W. Thompson and choreography by Jessica Texidor. Celebrating the 125th anniversary of the 1893 World’s Fair, this lively new musical will play June 2 – July 1, 2018 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.theaterwit.org, by calling (773) 975-8150, or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office. 

BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY will feature Pavi Proczko as Daniel Burnham, Sam Massey as John Root, Laura Degrenia as Margaret Burnham, Genevieve Thiers as Bertha Palmer, Daniel Leahy as Louis Sullivan, Chase Wheaton-Werle as Michael O’Malley, Arielle Leverett as Ida B. Wells, Michael Kingston as Lyman Gage and Stein, Rob Brady as Richard Hunt and Harlow Higinbotham and Jacob Fjare as Bobbie and Patrick.

When Chicago wins its bid to host a great World’s Fair to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ arrival in the New World, ambitious architect Daniel Burnham fights to win the job of building it.  But challenged by time, fate and Louis Sullivan, he’s forced to confront immigrants, women, and African-Americans who fight to be included in the Fair. Business leaders, workers and architects face looming deadlines to welcome millions of visitors to the Columbian Exposition. This new musical traces Burnham’s journey from an ambitious promoter to a visionary urban designer who would later direct the master plan for the future of Chicago’s development.

About Daniel H. Burnham
Daniel Burnham was eight when his family moved to Chicago from a failed farm in New York. The city of Chicago was 18 years old. He and the city grew up together. In 1871, after the Great Fire destroyed most of the center of the city, young Burnham told his mother he wanted to help rebuild it and “be the greatest architect in the world.” Failing college entrance exams, he tried other roads – unsuccessfully mining for silver in Nevada, and losing a bid for public office there. Returning to Chicago, he landed a job as a draftsman in an architect’s office, where he met brilliant architect and engineer John Root. The two became partners, and after ten years became the busiest architectural firm in the city, building the tallest skyscrapers and largest mansions. Inspired by his work planning the Fair, Burnham went on to direct the 1909 Plan of Chicago.

BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY is endorsed by the State of Illinois Bi-Centennial Committee. 



The production team for BURNHAM’S DREAM: THE WHITE CITY includes: José Manuel Díaz-Soto (scenic designer), Alaina Moore (costume designer), Joseph A. Burke (lighting and projection designer), Tim McNulty (sound designer), Christina Casano (assistant director), Andy Lynn (production manager), Endia Brown-Bey (assistant costume designer), Erin Pleake (assistant lighting and projection designer), Nikki Marquardt (stage manager) and Molly Gloeckner (assistant stage manager).

Cast (in alphabetical order): Rob Brady (Richard Hunt, Harlow Higinbotham), Laura Degrenia (Margaret Burnham), Jacob Fjare (Bobbie, Patrick), Michael Kingston (Lyman Gage, Stein), Daniel Leahy (Louis Sullivan), Arielle Leverett (Ida B. Wells), Genevieve Thiers (Bertha Palmer), Sam Massey (John Root), Pavi Proczko (Daniel Burnham) and Chase Wheaton-Werle (Michael O’Malley).

Musicians: Annabelle Revak (conductor/pianist).

Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago.
Dates: Previews: Saturday, June 2 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, June 3 at 3 pm and Monday, June 4 at 7 pm

Regular run: Thursday, June 7 – Sunday, July 1, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Tickets: Previews $30. Regular run $42. Students & seniors $37 ($25 previews). Discounts available for groups of 10 or more.
Tickets are currently available at www.theaterwit.org, by calling (773) 975-8150, or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office.

About the Creative Team:
June Finfer (Book, Lyrics) is a Chicago playwright and documentary filmmaker, president of Lost and Found Productions. Her play about Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House, The Glass House, premiered in New York City’s Theatre Row, starring Harold Uhlin. Her adaptation of a novel by Shirley Jackson featuring Estelle Parsons was directed for American Playhouse by Joanne Woodward. She has written and produced numerous documentaries about architecture, which are distributed throughout the world. Her screenplay, Jersey Justice: The Trenton Six, was a Finalist in the 2017 Big Break Final Draft Screenplay Competition. She holds a B.A. in Theater from Northwestern University and a M.A. in Literature from the University of Chicago, as well as graduate studies in photography and film at the Illinois Institute of Technology. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America and the Writers Guild of America, East. 

Elizabeth Doyle (Music, Lyrics) is a singer, pianist, composer and music director. She has written music for several musicals, including Sleepy Hollow, which has had multiple productions in the Midwest and California and was featured in the Los Angeles' Disney/ASCAP workshop; along with Duo, Fat Tuesday, Alice in Analysis and The Virginian. She was a featured guest on legendary Marian McPartland's National Pubic Radio Show, Piano Jazz, and the magnet for many years at Chicago's famed Pump Room, Swiss Hotel, Drake Hotel, Palmer House and Fairmont Metropole. She has performed in two ASCAP new music showcases in New York, and had her material featured in the Chicago Humanities Festival, at Park West, Drury Lane Water Tower, Bailiwick, Maxim’s, Victory Gardens and in a Preston Bradley program honoring Chicago songwriters. Her original songs have been featured on BBC Radio, at U.S. theaters, museums and art centers as well as at the first Chicago Paris Cabaret Connexion in Paris last September. 

Erik Wagner (Director) is an Adjunct Professor at Elmhurst College, recently directing The Burnt Part Boys and Thark. Other recent productions include a piece he created with Shakespeare All-Stars, Shakespeare’s Revisionist Historie, as well as God of Carnage, 24 Words, Xanadu, Jane Eyre, Kimberly Akimbo, A Year with Frog and Toad, Shakespeare’s R & J, Next Fall and Orpheus Descending. He earned his MFA in Theatre Directing from Western Illinois University. 

Paul W. Thompson (Music Director): For the past 35 years, MD for shows like My One and Only (Bucks County Playhouse), Kiss Me Kate (Naples Dinner Theatre) and Rent (Dominican University); MD and Ensemble Member: The Improvised Sondheim Project (Chicago, Cincinnati and NYC). Actor: Forever Plaid at the Royal George Theatre, 20 productions with Light Opera Works. Singer: 23 seasons with the Grammy-winning Chicago Symphony Chorus, 27 years at St. James Cathedral. Teacher: music improv at The Second City, piano at the Des Plaines School of Music, voice at Chicago’s Fine Arts Building (current President, Chicago chapter, National Association of Teachers of Singing). Writer: co-author of a musical version of The Great Gatsby, Editor of BroadwayWorld Chicago for 8 years (authored the weekly column, The Showtune Mosh Pit). Degrees: musical theatre from Baylor University (BFA) and University of Miami (MM). Member, AEA, AGMA. 

Jessica Texidor (Choreographer) works in Chicagoland theatre and theatre education with several companies in many capacities. For Artreach/Spotlighttheatrix, Jessica is an associate producer and instructor, with American Eagle Productions she serves as choreographer, instructor and performer. Jessica has been a teaching artist for Raven Theatre, resident choreographer for The Round Barn Theatre, director and choreographer for Princess Cruise Lines Alaska with Little Pyramid Productions, and has performed in musicals throughout the country. She holds a B.A. in Theatre from Loyola University. 


About Lost and Found Productions
Lost and Found Productions creates thought provoking films and plays about the arts, including architecture for a wide audience, especially the work of Chicago area visionaries like Mies van der Rohe and Daniel Burnham. Lost and Found Productions is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt, charitable organization. June Finfer is President and Executive Producer. For additional information, visit www.lostandfoundproductions.org or www.whitecitymusical.org.