OPENING: CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY at Raven Theatre East Stage October 4 – November 18, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Raven Theatre Presents 

CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY

By Lynn Nottage

Directed by Tyrone Phillips

October 4 – November 18, 2018

I'll be out for the press performance October 8th, so check back soon for my full review. We're eager to see two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner, Lynn Nottage's period piece set in 1950's Brooklyn.

Raven Theatre is pleased to launch its 2018-19 season with CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY by two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Lynn Nottage, directed by Tyrone Phillips. This sharp and boisterous drama about family, faith and revolution will play October 4 – November 18, 2018 on Raven’s 99-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.

CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY will feature Chanell Bell, Brianna Buckley, Brandi Jiminez Lee, Terence Sims and Emily Tate.

Brooklyn, 1950. Ernestine and Ermina Crump have moved to New York with their father, Godfrey, who is seeking spiritual guidance from a man called Father Divine. In the swirling, glamorous commotion of this new city, with calls for equal rights and communist rebellion hanging in the air, the girls begin a turbulent journey toward independence and a challenging future.

Comments Raven Theatre Artistic Director Cody Estle, “Lynn Nottage is a prolific writer and her work is a gift to all who encounter it. This is the first time Raven Theatre has produced one of her plays. As a theatre known for producing the classics of Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller, it seems only fitting to include Lynn’s voice among these greats. Set in 1950, Crumbs from the Table of Joy examines a family experiencing change in a country filled with racial and social turmoil. Audiences will connect with the struggles of this family, while getting a glimpse into a time in our past whose complexity resembles that of today.”

The production team for CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY includes: Arnel Sancianco (scenic design), Christine Pascual (costume design), Kathy A. Perkins (lighting design), Matt Test (sound design), Mealah Heidenreich (props design), Jon Martinez (choreography), Eva Breneman (dialect coach), Megan Pirtle (wig design), Kanomé Jones (casting director), Alexis Taylor (assistant director), Cole von Glahn (production manager), Bobby Huggins (technical director), Wilhelm Peters (stage manager) and Sapier Weinglass (assistant stage manager).




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

Dates: Previews: Thursday, October 4 at 7:30 pm, Friday, October 5 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, October 6 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, October 7 at 3 pm

Regular run: Thursday, October 11 – Sunday, November 18, 2018

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. 

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.

Touch Tour/Open Captioned performance: Sunday, November 4 at 3 pm. Touch tour begins at 1:45 pm.

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 Artists:

Lynn Nottage (Playwright) received the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and three Tony Award nominations for her play Sweat. For her play Ruined, she received the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for drama, along with an Obie, the Lucille Lortel Award, New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Play (Manhattan Theatre Club, Goodman Theatre). Her other plays include Intimate Apparel (New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Play; Roundabout Theatre, CENTERSTAGE, South Coast Repertory); Fabulation, Or the Re-Education of Undine (Obie Award; Playwrights Horizons, London’s Tricycle Theatre); Crumbs from the Table of Joy; Las Meninas; Mud, River, Stone; Por’Knockers and Poof! Nottage is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2007 MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant,” the National Black Theatre Festival’s August Wilson Playwriting Award, the 2004 PEN/Laura Pels Award for Drama, and the 2005 Guggenheim Grant for Playwriting, as well as fellowships from the Lucille Lortel Foundation, Manhattan Theatre Club, New Dramatists, and New York Foundation for the Arts. She is a member of The Dramatists Guild, an alumna of New Dramatists and a graduate of Brown University and the Yale School of Drama, where she is a visiting lecturer. For additional information, visit www.lynnnottage.net.

Tyrone Phillips (Director) is the founding Artistic Director of Chicago's Definition Theatre Company. Named one of the Chicago Tribune's “Hot New Faces of 2015” and Newcity's “Players 2016: The Fifty People Who Really Perform for Chicago,” he is a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where he received his BFA with honors. Directing credits include the critically-acclaimed production of Byhalia, Mississippi (Joseph Jefferson Awards nomination), which remounted to open the Steppenwolf 1700 Theatre, Dutchman (Definition Theatre), The MLK Project: The Fight for Civil Rights (Writers Theatre), 33 to Nothing (A Red Orchid Theatre), Dontrell, Who Kissed The Sea (Illinois Theatre), We the People, Our Town, Lord of the Flies, The Tempest (Niles North Theatre). You also may have seen his work as associate director for Red Velvet (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre) and as the assistant director for Trevor the Musical, Parade and The Mystery of Love and Sex (Writers Theatre). Tyrone also studied abroad at Shakespeare’s Globe and was an emerging professional resident at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre where he worked on A Raisin in the Sun, The Mountaintop, and Clybourne Park. Tyrone is represented by Grossman and Jack Talent and was recently selected as one of Newcity's “Players—the 50 leaders of Chicago’s theater, dance, opera and comedy culture of 2018”. 

Quill Reading Series
Raven Theatre will present a staged reading of POOF! by Lynn Nottage, directed by Wardell Julius Clark on Wednesday, November 14 at 7:30 pm (reception at 7 pm). Quill is a series of four staged readings produced in tandem with each of the plays in Raven’s season. The readings provide an opportunity for audiences to engage further with the work of this season’s playwrights and explore their artistic voice on stage. Each Quill reading features a pre-show reception with complimentary wine provided by Income Tax. Admission is a suggested donation of $10.



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, Bayless Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, Polk Bros. Foundation, S&C Electric Company Fund, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the PAV Fund and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

OPENING: World Premiere Immersive Theatrical Experience MASQUE MACABRE Via Strawdog Theatre Company Through October 31, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar  

Strawdog Theatre Company Presents

the World Premiere Immersive Theatrical Experience

MASQUE MACABRE

Inspired by the Stories of Edgar Allan Poe

Written by Aly Greaves Amidei, Cara Beth Heath & 

John Henry Roberts  

Directed by Anderson Lawfer, Janet Howe & Eli Newell

October 4 – October 31, 2018

I'll be ChiILin' with Chi, IL's Strawdog Theatre Company for the press opening October 12th. I can't wait to catch this unique world premiere production where the audience travels from room to room, experiencing scenes. Check back soon for my full review.

Just in time for Halloween, Strawdog Theatre Company launches its 31st season with the world premiere of MASQUE MACABRE, a dark and bloody thrill ride inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe – think Carrie meets Eyes Wide Shut. The handlers of a "bad boy" entrepreneur go to extremes to give him one last big bash before his past catches up to him. An explorative immersive theatre experience a la Sleep No More, guests travel from room to room throughout the space and follow stories of revenge and murder as they play out in real time.

Written by ensemble members Aly Greaves Amidei* and John Henry Roberts* and company member Cara Beth Heath^ and directed by Co-Artistic Director Anderson Lawfer*, Janet Howe and Eli Newell, MASQUE MACABRE will play October 4 – 31, 2018 at Strawdog’s new home at 1802 W. Berenice Ave. in Chicago’s Northcenter neighborhood. Single tickets and season subscriptions are currently available at www.strawdog.org. 

MASQUE MACABRE will feature Strawdog ensemble member Michael Reyes* with guest artists Andrew Bailes, Dan Cobbler, Katie Gonzalez, Henry Greenberg, Adam Hinkle, Brian Hinkle, Patrick TJ Kelly, Lisa McConnell, Laura Nelson, Ella Raymont, Collin Quinn Rice, Shaina Schrooten and Julian Stroop.

Comments Co-Artistic Director Michael Dailey, “MASQUE MACABRE is the most ambitious project in our 31 year history. We’re thrilled to share the immersive and horrifying world of MASQUE with Chicago audiences. With fourteen storylines playing out in real time throughout our entire space, you could see this show multiple times and come out with a totally different experience each time. At a haunting time of year, MASQUE delivers a modern nightmare that explores the line between revenge and justice and how what we do (or don’t do) makes us complicit in the evil and darkness of others. It may just keep you up at night.”

The production team for MASQUE MACABRE includes: Strawdog ensemble members Claire Chrzan* (co-lighting designer), Heath Hays* (sound designer) and Kyle Hamman* (video/media designer) with guest artists: Tom Burch (scenic designer), Virginia Varland (costume designer), Shelbi Arndt and Daniel Friedman (co-lighting designers), Lacie Hexom (props designer), Bobby Wilhelmson (violence designer), Kate Lass (intimacy designer), Mike Sanow (technical director) and Megan Gray (stage manager).

* Denotes Strawdog ensemble member
^ Denotes Strawdog company member


Location: Strawdog Theatre Company, 1802 W. Berenice Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Thursday, October 4 at 7 pm, Friday, October 5 at 7 pm, Sunday, October 7 at 2 pm & 5 pm and Thursday, October 11 at 7 pm & 9:30 pm

Board Night Performance: Special performance with hosted drinks and appetizers, Saturday October 6 at 7 pm.

Press performance: Friday, October 12 at 7 pm or 9:30 pm

Regular run: Saturday, October 13 – Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7 pm & 9:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm & 5 pm. Please note: Halloween week performances added on Monday, October 29 at 7 pm & 9:30 pm, Tuesday, October 30 at 7 pm & 9:30 pm and Wednesday, October 31 at 7 pm & 9:30 pm. 

Tickets: Previews $30. Regular run $50. Seniors: $40. Board Night: $75. Single tickets and season subscriptions are currently available at www.strawdog.org. Half price Rush and Student tickets available at every performance and other discounts available. Call (773) 644-1380 for details. 

About the Artists

Aly Greaves Amidei (Co-Writer) has worked as a designer, playwright and maker based in Chicago for the last 18 years. She is an Assistant Professor of Costume Design at UNC-Charlotte. She is proud ensemble member of Strawdog Theatre Company and Lifeline Theatre. Her plays and audio dramas have been produced at Lifeline Theatre, WildClaw Theatre, Strawdog Hit Factory, College of DuPage and Cartage Theatre of Charlotte. 

Cara Beth Heath (Co-Writer) has an MFA in Playwriting from Western Michigan University and a BA in Creative Writing from the College of Charleston. She is the Literary Manager at Strawdog Theatre Company. She's also been invited to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for dramaturgy, directing and playwriting. Her work has been read and produced in several festivals and workshops across the Midwest, including her award-winning play Good Enough about the women of the Gibson guitar factory during WWII. She's been in Chicago for a couple of years now, developing her plays and advocating for local playwrights. 

John Henry Roberts (Co-Writer) joined the Strawdog ensemble in 2004. Previous writing credits include Strawdog’s production of The Sweeter Option and the Neo-Futurists’ production of True Dreams of Annie Arbor. Recent acting credits include Pillars of the Community, Barbecue and The Night Season (Strawdog), Neverwhere and Miss Holmes (Lifeline Theatre), The Little Flower of East Orange (Eclipse Theatre, Jeff Nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role), Diamond Dogs and The Hammer Trinity (The House Theatre). He’ll next appear in Twelfth Night at Writers Theatre. He is represented by Paonessa Talent. 

Janet Howe (Co-Director) is a director, immersive theatre consultant and Co-Artistic Director of (re)discover theatre. Over the past four years, Janet’s work has focused exclusively on immersive and site-specific works. Janet directed and spearheaded projects such as FOR ONE: a series of plays built for an audience of one and Farewell My Friend, an immersive melding of Romeo & Juliet and Tristan & Iseult. Other directing credits include Lysistaratra, Fifty Shades of Shakespeare and Jason & (Medea). Starting October 2018, Janet will be studying immersive theatre at Middlesex University: London, focusing on accessibility in immersive forms. www.janetkhowe.com

Anderson Lawfer (Co-Director) is a Co-Artistic Director of Strawdog. He was the previous Artistic Director of Strawdog's Hugen Hall and focused on new works, adapting and directing Pontypool, Fail/Safe and Kill Shakespeare. He is the creator and host of many Strawdog late night shows including Theatre Wars!, The Direct Off! and The Game Show Show and Stuff! He will also be directing a new musical in the spring written by Mark Guarino and Jon Langford called Take Me.

Eli Newell (Co-Director) Eli Newell is thrilled to return to Strawdog after having previously assistant directed Damascus. He is a Chicago-based director from the Twin Cities, Minnesota. In Chicago, Eli has assisted at Goodman Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Raven Theatre, Strawdog Theatre Company, Haven Theatre and Windy City Playhouse. In the Twin Cities, he has worked with Guthrie Theater, Children’s Theatre Company, Ordway Center and the Playwrights’ Center. Eli is a graduate of Northwestern University’s School of Communication.

Crystal Head Vodka is the official vodka of MASQUE MACABRE.

About Strawdog Theatre Company
Since its founding in 1988, Strawdog Theatre Company has offered Chicagoland the premiere storefront theatre experience and garnered numerous Non-Equity Jeff Awards with its commitment to ensemble acting and an immersive design approach. The celebrated Company develops new work, re-imagines the classics, melds music with theatre, asks provocative questions and delivers their audience the unexpected.

Strawdog Theatre Company is supported in part by The Macarthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the Alphawood Foundation, The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, and the Illinois Arts Council Agency. 

OPENING: The Midwest Premiere of COSMOLOGIES Via The Gift Theatre Through December 9, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar:

The Gift Theatre Presents the Midwest Premiere of 

COSMOLOGIES

By Ensemble Member David Rabe

Directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton

October 19 – December 9, 2018

(front, l to r) Ensemble members Martel Manning, Gregory Fenner, Kenny Mihlfried and Hannah Toriumi with (back, l to r) Darci Nalepa, John Kelly Connolly and James D. Farruggio in a publicity image for The Gift Theatre’s Midwest premiere of David Rabe’s COSMOLOGIES. Photo by Claire Demos.

                                   
The Gift Theatre is pleased to conclude its 17th season with the Midwest premiere of Tony Award-winning playwright and ensemble member David Rabe’s* COSMOLOGIES, directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton*, playing October 19 – December 9, 2018 at 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Jefferson Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available by calling the Gift’s box office at (773) 283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org. 

COSMOLOGIES will eature an all-ensemble cast including John Kelly Connolly*, James D. Farruggio*, Gregory Fenner*, Martel Manning*, Kenny Mihlfried*, Darci Nalepa* and Hannah Toriumi*.

Put the whimsical humor of the Keystone Cops and Bugs Bunny into a particle collider with the philosophy of Soren Kierkegaard and George Berkeley and you’re getting close to the style of this existential absurdist comedy from David Rabe. When a young man’s negotiation for a date goes very wrong, we are transported through kaleidoscopic worlds of possibilities, identities and loves. 

Comments playwright and Gift ensemble member David Rabe, “Here's the thing: working on Good for Otto with The Gift was among the very best experiences I've ever had in the theater. Cosmologies and I are eager to get there and go at it again with Mike Thornton, some of the same actors, along with new ones drawn from the Gift ensemble.”

The production team for COSMOLOGIES includes Angela McIlvain and Courtney O'Neill (scenic design), Izumi Inaba (costume design), Charlie Cooper (lighting design), Christopher Kriz (sound design), Grace Bolander (assistant director) and Sarah Luse (stage manager).


Location: The Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, October 19 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, October 20 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, October 21 at 2:30 pm, Wednesday, October 24 at 7:30 pm, Thursday, October 25 at 7:30 pm, Friday, October 26 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, October 27 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Thursday, November 1 – Sunday, December 9, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm. Please note: there will not be a 3 pm performance on Saturday, October 20.

Tickets: Previews $25. Regular run $35 – $50. Tickets are currently available by calling the Gift’s box office at (773) 283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org. 

*Denotes Gift Theatre ensemble member

About the Artists

David Rabe (Playwright) was born in Dubuque, Iowa, where he lived though his college years, studying creative writing under Reverend Ray Roseliep, a renowned poet. After the army and a gloriously productive period at Villanova University where a number of his early plays were written and performed, his first professional productions were in New York, a Vietnam Quartet starting in 1971: The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel, Sticks and Bones, The Orphan and Streamers. All were produced by Joseph Papp to whom he owes a complex and absolute debt. In the Boom Boom Room followed, as did Goose and Tom Tom, Hurlyburly, Those the River Keeps, A Question of Mercy, The Dog Problem, The Black Monk adapted from Chekov, An Early History of Fire and Good For Otto, which in 2015 gave him his first experience of Chicago theater with The Gift, followed by Visiting Edna at Steppenwolf. Four of his plays have received Tony nominations, and Sticks and Bones, for which the actors requested combat pay, won in 1972. He has received the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award, and an Obie award; the Drama Desk, John Gassner Outer Critics, the New York Drama Critics Circle awards, and three times won the Elizabeth Hull-Kate Warriner Drama Guild Award. Screenplays are I’m Dancing as Fast as I Can, Casualties of War and Hurlyburly. His fiction includes the book of stories A Primitive Heart, and the novels Recital of the Dog, Dinosaurs on the Roof and Girl by the Road at Night.  He has three children, Jason, Lily and Michael.

Michael Patrick Thornton (Director) is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of The Gift, where previous directing credits include: world premiere of Gift ensemble member David Rabe’s Good For Otto; world premiere of Claire Kiechel’s Pilgrims (co-directed with Jessica Thebus), War of the Worlds (75th Anniversary Production), the Chicago Premiere of ensemble member Will Eno’s Oh, The Humanity (and other exclamations), Prairie View, Night & Her Stars, Stop/Kiss, Santa’s Great American Depression Holiday Show! America, White People, Three Sisters, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, Hurlyburly (Joseph Jefferson Award: Actor In Leading Role), A Young Man In Pieces, Language Of Angels, County Fair and Orestes 2.0. Elsewhere: Of Mice and Men (Steppenwolf), the world premieres of Sean Graney’s IS N UR B1UDS7REEM… and Mark Harvey Levine’s LA 8AM (Collaboraction) and Picasso At The Lapin Agile (Noble Fool). Michael was a very grateful assistant director on Steppenwolf’s Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning August: Osage County. 

A Joseph Jefferson Award-winning actor for Solo Performance in Conor McPherson’s The Good Thief (The Gift) Michael was nominated for a Best Actor Jeff Award (Suicide, Incorporated) and Best Director Jeff Award (Good For Otto). 

About The Gift Theatre

The Gift’s 17th season: 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. 

EXTENDED: Remy Bumppo's Chicago Premiere of Frankenstein by Nick Dear October 11 – November 17, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar
Chicago Premiere!
Remy Bumppo Theatre Company Announces

Added Performances for
FRANKENSTEIN
by Nick Dear, from the novel by Mary Shelley

October 11 – November 17, 2018 at Theater Wit

Chicago's love affair with Frankenstein continues with Remy Bumppo's rendition of Shelley's creepy classic. I'll be out for the press performance October 16, so check back soon for my full review. Chicago's having a monster of an anniversary celebration with 4 productions on stage and film versions at The Music Box. 

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company is pleased to announce that FRANKENSTEIN will be EXTENDED by popular demand. The production will now play October 11 – November 17, 2018 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago. The Press Opening is October 16, 2018 at 7:00pm.

FRANKENSTEIN will feature Remy Bumppo Core Ensemble Member Eliza Stoughton with Claire Alpern, Zachary Scott Fewkes, Jyreika Guest, Steve Lords, Ben Miller, Frank Nall, Jose Nateras, and Michael Turrentine. This production will also feature Remy Bumppo Producing Artistic Director Nick Sandys and Remy Bumppo Core Ensemble Member Greg Matthew Anderson alternating the roles of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature each performance.

Mary Shelley’s revolutionary horror classic will be shocked to life in Nick Dear’s adaptation directed by Ian Frank. Retold from the abandoned creature’s point of view, this taut muscular version will raise urgent questions about scientific responsibility, parental neglect, and the nature of good and evil. 

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s production of FRANKENSTEIN will be performed October 11 through November 17, 2018 at Theater Wit on 1229 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago. 2018-2019 Subscriptions and single tickets are on sale at www.RemyBumppo.org or by calling the Theater Wit Box Office at 773.975.8150.

Production made possible in party by Presenting Sponsor, Geoffrey A. Anderson and 2018 – 2019 Season Sponsors Nancy and Gene DeSombre and Brenda and James Grusecki.

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Title: FRANKENSTEIN

Novel by: Mary Shelley

Adapted by: Nick Dear

Director: Ian Frank

Stage Manager: Dana M. Nestrick

Assistant Director: Erika Haaland

Dramaturg: Peter A. Davis

Scenic Designer/Technical Director: Joe Schermoly

Costume Designer: Kristy Leigh Hall

Assistant Costume Designer: Virginia Varland

Lighting Designer: Mike Durst

Original Music and Sound Design: Christopher Kriz

Properties Designer: Amanda Herrmann

Cast (in alphabetical order): Claire Alpern (Gretel/Clarice), Greg Matthew Anderson (Victor/Creature), Zachary Scott Fewkes (William – Cast 1), Jyreika Guest (Agatha), Steve Lords (Klaus/Ewan), Ben Miller (William – Cast 2), Frank Nall (Delacey/M. Frankenstein), Jose Nateras (Client/Felix/Constable), Nick Sandys (Creature/Victor), Eliza Stoughton (Elizabeth), and Michael Turrentine (Gustav/Rab).

Understudies: Maryam Abdi, Keith Illidge, Jim Morley, Jeremy Pfaff, Jillian Skale, and Marc Harley Wilson.

Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, IL 60657

Dates: Previews: Thursday, October 11 at 7:30pm, Friday, October 12 at 7:30pm, Saturday, October 13 at 7:30pm, and Sunday, October 14 at 2:30pm

Regular Run: Thursday, October 18 – Sunday, November 11, 2018

Curtain Times: Wednesdays – Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sunday at 2:30pm

Matinee Performances (other than Sundays): Saturday, October 20 at 2:30pm, Saturday, November 3 at 2:30pm, and Thursday, November 8 at 2:30pm

Audio Description/Touch Tour Performances: Saturday, October 20 (Touch Tour starts at 1:00pm, and the performance starts at 2:30pm)

Tickets: Previews: $37.75

Regular Run: $37.75 - $62.75

Audio Description/Touch Tour Performances: $15.00

Industry Tickets: $20.00, available Wednesdays – Fridays

Student Tickets: $15.00

Group Discounts: Available for parties of 10 or more, call 773.975.8150

ABOUT REMY BUMPPO THEATRE COMPANY:

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company produces theatre that thrills the ear, stirs the heart, feeds the mind, and sparks a conversation. As an ensemble-based producer of intellectually and emotionally inspiring plays that reveal the power and pleasure of language, we explore timeless ideas in timely productions that celebrate our common humanity; and we invite audiences to converse directly with the art and the artists.

Remy Bumppo challenges our audiences with the intersection of expansive ideas and rich language, often presenting texts that have been sidelined because they may seem too intellectually complex, demanding active intelligence as well as great passion from artist and patron alike. We produce such art in order to advance deeper understanding of the human condition, test commonly perceived notions, and elevate cultural discourse. We then invite audiences to converse directly with the art and the artists, engaging them in one-on-one conversation about the work itself through innovative supplementary programming.

OPENING: NEIL TOBIN, NECROMANCER: NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE RETURNS OCTOBER 7 – NOVEMBER 4, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

INTERACTIVE THEATER, DEAD-SERIOUS FUN RETURNS FOR HALLOWEEN TO ROSEHILL CEMETERY IN 

NEIL TOBIN, NECROMANCER: 

NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE, 

OCTOBER 7 – NOVEMBER 4 

Interactive, Magical Theatre about Life and Death in a Once-in-a-Lifetime Setting

In the original run, audiences and critics were spellbound by the performance. 

ChiIL Live Shows says, “Tobin raises very thought-provoking observations ... While the subject matter and the locale may suggest morbidity, Tobin's message is life-affirming." 

PicturethisPost.com said, “Near Death Experience is perfect for adults who love interactive and site-specific theatre that makes you think.” 

 Tobin's Award-Winning Exploration of Mortality and Mystery will Make You 

Laugh, Ponder and Wonder

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we caught the original run of this show. If you didn't, you have another chance to catch this return engagement. Neil Tobin, Necromancer: Near Death Experience is back, at the lovely Rosehill Cemetery through November 4th. Check out our full review here. 

After a successful run at Rosehill Cemetery this spring, Neil Tobin, Necromancer: Near Death Experience returns to the historic Chicago site with more thought-provoking theatre just in time for the Halloween season. Chicago-area writer/producer/ performer Neil Tobin performs nine interactive, magical, site-specific solo shows about mortality at the rarely open to the public May Chapel on the grounds of Rosehill Cemetery, 5800 N. Ravenswood Ave. Performances are 60 minutes and begin at 3 p.m. Sunday, October 7; Saturday, October 13; Sunday, October 14; Saturday, October 20; Sunday, October 21; Saturday, October 27; Sunday, October 28; Saturday, November 3 and Sunday, November 4. Tickets are $25 - $30 and available at neardeathx.com. 



Winner of IndyFringe Theatre Festival's Audience Choice Award, this show is no horror show or cheap, spooky thrill. Tobin maintains a sophisticated tone, deftly fusing mortality and mystery into a life-affirming experience that's smart, darkly humorous, never scary and completely entertaining. According to Tobin, “this show is ultimately about the good that comes from improving our relationship with mortality.” So, though it does contain magical performance elements, this is no children's show. This is dead serious fun.  

Underscoring this exploration of life and death is the exceptional location: one of the most history-rich cemeteries in the nation. Rosehill Cemetery is on the National Registry of Historic Places; and its Gothic and Romanesque designed May Chapel — built in 1899 and rarely open to the public — provides a fitting setting for the proceedings.



Chicago-area writer/producer/performer Neil Tobin has a long track record of employing interactive magical and psychic performance skills to involve audiences in larger narratives and serious subjects (hence the “necromancer” title). Previous shows include Palace of the Occult (Eclectic Full Contact Theatre/Prop Thtr), which immersed guests in the world of a Jewish psychic entertainer trying to survive during the rise of the Nazis in 30s Berlin, and Supernatural Chicago, another site-specific piece which ran weekly for 10 years at Chicago's reputedly haunted Excalibur nightclub.

As magic advisor for the Mercury Theater, Tobin was on the creative team for the Jeff Award-winning The Addams Family and the Jeff Award-nominated Barnum. He's also the recipient of two Presidential Citations from the Society of American Magicians, and has served on the board of directors for the Psychic Entertainers Association.

After a successful run at Rosehill Cemetery this spring, Neil Tobin, Necromancer: Near Death Experience will return to this historic Chicago site with more thought-provoking theatre. Chicago-area writer/producer/ performer Neil Tobin performs nine interactive, magical, site-specific solo shows about mortality at the rarely open to the public May Chapel on the grounds of Rosehill Cemetery, 5800 N. Ravenswood Ave. Performances are 60 minutes and begin at 3 p.m. Sunday, October 7; Saturday, October 13; Sunday, October 14; Saturday, October 20; Sunday, October 21; Saturday, October 27; Sunday, October 28; Saturday, November 3 and Sunday, November 4. Tickets are $25 - $30 and available at neardeathx.com.

OPENING: World Premiere of FUN HARMLESS WARMACHINE Via The New Colony

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

The New Colony Presents the World Premiere of

FUN HARMLESS WARMACHINE

By Co-Artistic Director Fin Coe

Directed by James Fleming

October 3 – November 4, 2018 at The Den Theatre 

I'll be out for the press opening October 9th. The New Colony is a favorite of ours here at ChiIL Live Shows, for edgy, relevant choices, and impressive production values. Check back shortly for my full review.

The New Colony, under the new artistic leadership of Fin Coe* and Stephanie Shum*, is pleased to launch its 2018-19 season with the world premiere of FUN HARMLESS WARMACHINE, written by Co-Artistic Director Fin Coe* and directed by James Fleming. This kinetic journey down the rabbit hole of online masculinity cults will play October 3 – November 4, 2018 at The New Colony’s resident home, The Den Theatre’s Upstairs Main Stage, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at www.thenewcolony.org. 

FUN HARMLESS WARMACHINE features Ayanna Bria Bakari, Daniel Chenard, Robert Koon, Emily Marso, Victor Musoni, Londen Shannon, Ian Michael Smith and Laura Sturm.

By day, Tom works a dead end job for the man and can't get a date. But by night, he's top of the leader board, a master gamer. Othered and lonely, Tom is sucked into the Order of the Sword, an online community  that seems to promise him his digital persona in real life. Developed through The New Colony's Writers' Room and inspired by Gamergate and online hate movements, FUN HARMLESS WARMACHINE is a cautionary tale of the power of fear and the seductive pull of the alt right.

Comments TNC Co-Artistic Director Stephanie Shum, “When Fin began working on this script as part of  the 2015 Summer Session of The Writers' Room, we were immediately struck by the timeliness and depth of this story about online hate. More than three years later, as we prepare for its world premiere, it seems more prescient and current than ever.”

The production team for FUN HARMLESS WARMACHINE includes: Sotirios Livaditis (scenic design), Rachel Sypniewski (costume design), Claire Chrzan (lighting design), Eric Backus (sound design), Omer Abbas Salem* (props design), Zoe Benditt (dramaturg), James Fleming and the cast (choreography), Ella Silverman (assistant director), Brian Sprague (technical director), Jennifer Aparicio (stage manager) and Lili Bjorklund (assistant stage manager).


Location: The Den Theatre’s Upstairs Main Stage, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Wednesday, October 3 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, October 6 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, October 7 at 3 pm 
Press opening: Tuesday, October 9 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Thursday, October 11 – Sunday, November 4, 2018
Curtain times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Industry Night: Monday, October 15 at 7:30 pm
Tickets: Previews: $10; Regular run: $20. Students/seniors: 25% off. Tickets are currently available at www.thenewcolony.org.  

*Denotes The New Colony Ensemble Member.

Cast of "Fun Harmless Warmachine": Daniel Chenard, Robert Koon, Londen Shannon 

& Ayanna Bria Bakari.

Photo Credit: Joe Mazza/Brave Lux

About the Artists

Fin Coe (Playwright) is a Chicago-based theatre artist and the Co-Artistic Director of The New Colony. A native of Silicon Valley and a graduate of Case Western Reserve University, his past writing credits include Pretty/Windy Theatre Company, Scribble Bibble, A-Squared Theatre, the Sketch Review, and others. Fun Harmless Warmachine is his first full-length play to be produced.

James Fleming (Director) is a Chicago-based director, Director of New Works at The New Colony and Associate Artistic Director at Redtwist Theatre. At Redtwist, he has directed Our Town by Thornton Wilder and Sagittarius Ponderosa by MJ Kaufman. He has also directed readings, workshops and events for Goodman Theatre, Route 66 Theatre, Broken Nose Theatre, arc theatre and The New Colony. He's had the pleasure of assistant directing at Goodman Theatre, Court Theatre and Greenhouse Theatre Center. He worked as part of a collaborative team with Peca Stefan, Tamilla Woodard and Ana Margineanu of PopUp Theatrics, producing the Chicago story for #THENEWOLDHOME, which premiered at CLB Berlin in January 2018. He has served on the literary panels for the National New Play Network’s Annual Showcase of New Plays, Route 66’s TEST DRIVE and Kitchen Dog Theatre’s New Play Festival. James was a participant in the Chicago Directors Lab and a recipient of an SDC Foundation Observership. Upcoming projects: Herland by Grace McLeod for Redtwist Theatre.

About The New Colony

The New Colony develops New Art and New Artists in order to educate and build New Audiences.

Now in its tenth year, The New Colony has established itself as “one of Chicago’s essential off-Loop companies” (Chicago Tribune). Through the premiere of now thirty premiere plays and musicals, The New Colony has cultivated a diverse audience of theatergoers eager to have a voice in the storytelling. Conversation, collaboration and innovation remain at the heart of everything they produce. The New Colony’s work has been honored with five non-Equity Jeff Awards, Broadway In Chicago’s 2011 Emerging Theatre Award and Best Overall Production at the 2012 New York International Fringe Festival. The New Colony’s 2018/19 Season marks their fourth year as a resident company in the Upstairs Mainstage of The Den Theatre in Wicker Park.

INCOMING: MONSTER MAGNET Drops Lyric Video For "When the Hammer Comes Down" Kicks Off North American Tour Tonight

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar

MONSTER MAGNET To Play Chicago's Bottom Lounge 
October 2nd

March of 2018 saw the release of the latest MONSTER MAGNET masterpiece "Mindfucker"(Order and Stream The Album) on Napalm Records. Today the band has released a brand new lyric video for the track "When The Hammer Comes Down". Watch it HERE:

Tonight, MONSTER MAGNET kicks off their North American tour supporting "Mindfucker" in Toronto, ON.  The tour runs through October 28th in Boston, MA.  Electric Citizen and Dark Sky Choir will open the tour. A complete list of dates can be found below.

Dave Wyndorf's excitement for this upcoming run is summed up perfectly with the following statement:

"And the electrified circus leaves town! Time to ROCK, bitches!"

   

Monster Magnet:

9/28: Toronto, ON @ Lee's Palace
9/29: Pontiac, MI @ The Emerald Theatre
10/2: Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
10/3: Minneapolis, MN @ Cabooze
10/5: Denver, CO @ The Bluebird Theater
10/6: Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
10/8: Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater
10/9: Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
10/10: Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
10/12: San Francisco, CA @ Thee Parkside
10/13: Sacramento, CA @ Aftershock Festival*
10/15: Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory
10/16: San Diego, CA @ Brick By Brick
10/17: Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge
10/19: San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
10/20: Dallas, TX @ Canton Hall
10/21: Houston, TX @ White Oak (Upstairs)
10/23: Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade
10/24: Nashville, TN @ Basement East
10/26: Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage
10/27: New York, NY @ Gramercy Theater
10/28: Boston, MA @ The Sinclair

*Festival Appearance


MONSTER MAGNET line up:
Dave Wyndorf (vocals, guitar)
Garrett Sweeny (guitar)
Phil Caivano (guitar)
Chris Kosnik (bass)
Bob Pantella (drums)


For more info visit:
http://zodiaclung.com
https://www.facebook.com/monstermagnet/
https://www.instagram.com/monstermagnetofficial/