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/

OPENING: Small Mouth Sounds at A Red Orchid Theatre Through December 9, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar:

A RED ORCHID THEATRE PRESENTS

SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS

By Bess wohl

directed by ensemble member shade murray

October 18 – December 9, 2018

A Red Orchid Theatre presents Small Mouth Sounds by Bess Wohl, directed by Ensemble Member Shade Murray. Small Mouth Sounds runs October 18 – December 9, 2018 at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N Wells in Chicago.  Press performances are scheduled for Saturday, October 27 at 3:00pm and 7:30pm.

“Consider those times in your life when you ached for a fresh start or a hard stop,” suggests Artistic Director, Kirsten Fitzgerald. “It is hard to break a cycle, but when we find ourselves in real agony a change is needed; a reset. In Bess Wohl’s beautiful play we get to witness six individuals risking something new, trying desperately–sometimes hilariously–to hit that reset button. They give up comfort and familiarity and some discover that when the talking stops, the real communication begins.”

Six urbanites take their troubles to the woods and attempt to work them out at a secluded spiritual retreat. Attendees may not speak for the entire week, clothing is optional at the lake, and beware of bears.  The isolating silence collides with the human ache to connect.  How do we address life’s biggest questions when words fail us?  A Chicago premiere that is at once strange and compassionate, awkward and graceful, silly and profound. 

The production features Ensemble Members Jennifer Engstrom (Joan) and Lawrence Grimm (Jan), with Cynthia Hines (Judy), Heather Chrisler (Alicia), Meighan Gerachis (Teacher), Levi Holloway (Ned), Travis A. Knight (Rodney). 

The creative team includes Kurtis Boetcher (Scenic), Myron Elliott-Cisneros (Costumes), Heather Gilbert (Lights), Jeffrey Levin (Sound), Jenny Pinson (Props), Samantha Rausch (Technical Director), Cortney Hurley (Production Manager), S.G. Heller (Stage Manager), Chloe Orlando (Assistant Director), Kate DeVore (Vocal Coach) and Leean Kim Torske (Dramaturg).

About the Artists
BESS WOHL (Playwright) Bess Wohl's Plays include Small Mouth Sounds, American Hero, Barcelona, Touched and In. They have been produced or developed at theaters in New York and around the country. Her original musical about the adult entertainment industry, Pretty Filthy, produced by The Civilians, also premiered off-Broadway and was nominated for both the 2015 Lucille Lortel and Drama Desk Awards for Outstanding Musical. She won the Sam Norkin special Drama Desk Award for “establishing herself as an important voice in New York theater, and having a breakthrough year” in 2014-2015. She also writes for film and television, most recently the pilot Broad Squad for ABC. Her screenplay adaptation of her play In was included on Hollywood's Black List of best scripts. She has also developed original television pilots for HBO, USA, FOX and the CW. As an actress, Ms. Wohl appeared onstage in New York and regionally, and in numerous films and television shows. She is a graduate of Harvard University, Magna Cum Laude, where she was awarded the Rona Jaffe Writing Prize and the Tennessee Williams Scholarship. She earned her MFA from the Yale School of Drama, where she was a recipient of the Rebecca West Scholarship. She is originally from Brooklyn, New York, and lives in New York.

SHADE MURRAY (Director) is an ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theater, where he has directed the world premieres of Brett Neveu’s Pilgrim’s Progress and Ike Holter’s Sender, as well as productions of Wallace Shawn's Evening at the Talk House, David Adjmi’s 3C, Grant Varjas's Accidentally Like a Martyr, Marisa Wegrzyn’s Mud Blue Sky and The Butcher of Baraboo, Annie Baker’s The Aliens, Nick Jones’ Trevor, Mike Leigh’s Abigail’s Party and Kimberly Akimbo by David Lindsay-Abaire.  He also performed in the A Red Orchid production of The Mutilated.  Other directing credits include Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The House Theater, Steep Theater, Second City, Writers’ Theater and elsewhere. Shade is a lecturer at University of Chicago and teaches at DePaul University and Actors’ Studio Chicago.

HEATHER CHRISLER (Alicia) was recently been seen in Chicago in Mies Julie (Victory Gardens); Machinical (Greenhouse Theatre Center // Jeff Award Nomination Performer); Her Majesty’s Will (Lifeline); and Good Friday (Oracle // Jeff Award Nomination Ensemble). Chrisler is an Artistic Associate of First Folio Theatre where she was recently seen in Mary’s Wedding and Captain Blood. Upcoming appearances include Twilight Bowl (Goodman). Television work includes CHICAGO PD on NBC. Chrisler holds a Masters of Fine Arts from Ohio University. 

JENNIFER ENGSTROM (Joan) has been part of A Red Orchid’s ensemble since 2003, Jen has appeared in many productions, most recently a revival of AROT's 2014 Simpatico, in a co-production with McCarter Theatre, NJ. Other Chicago credits include: Women Laughing Alone with Salad (Theatre Wit); HIR, The North Plan, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (Steppenwolf Theatre); Sweet Bird of Youth (Goodman Theatre); A Streetcar Named Desire, Death Of A Streetcar Named Virginia Woolf, (Writer's Theatre); Sky Girls (Northlight Theatre). Regionally, Jen appeared in The David Cromer directed Angels in America (Kansas City Rep); Ground (Humana Festival); MacBeth (Notre Dame Shakespeare); A Streetcar Named Desire (Williamstown Theatre Festival). Off Broadway, Excuse My Dust, A Dorothy Parker Portfolio (Soho Playhouse). Jen has appeared in Chicago Fire, APB, The Onion Network and the feature film SLICE. 

MEIGHAN GERACHIS (Teacher) returns to A Red Orchid, where she previously appeared in Solstice. She most recently appeared in Graveyard Shift at The Goodman Theatre where she also appeared in The Wolves, A Christmas Carol and the New Stages production of Blue Skies Process. Other Chicago credits include Domesticated, Our Town and The House on Mango Street (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England (Theater Wit); The Electric Baby, Precious Little, The Walls, Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue, Indulgences at the Louisville Harem, Factory Girls, My Simple City, Wrens and Ten Tiny Fingers, Nine Tiny Toes (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble); Measure for Measure (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); Cloud Nine (About Face Theatre); Cigarettes and Moby Dick and Che Che Che (Latino Chicago); The Underpants (Noble Fool Theatricals) and The Road to Graceland (Lifeline Theatre). Regional and international credits include Charm (Mixed Blood Theatre); Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue (Stageworks) and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Contact Theatre in Manchester, England). Film credits include Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, At Any Price and Virginia. Television credits include Chicago P.D., Crisis, Bobby & Iza, Sirens and Battleground. 

LAWRENCE GRIMM (Jan) is a founding Ensemble Member of A Red Orchid theatre. Favorite and most recent at A Red Orchid: Traitor, (Jeff Nomination); 3C, Trevor (Jeff Nomination); Solstice, In a Garden, Pumpgirl, Abigail’s Party, The Meek, The Physicists, Mr. Kolpert, Caine-Mutiny Court Martial, In the Solitude of Cotton Fields, and Born Guilty. Selected credits: The Heavens Are Hung in Black as Abraham Lincoln (Shattered Globe); King Charles III and The Tempest (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre); 2666 (Goodman Theatre); My Name is Asher Lev (Timeline Theatre); In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play (Victory Gardens); Maple and Vine, Welcome Home Jenny Sutter (Next Theatre); Orlando (Court Theatre);  King Lear, Two by Pinter (Piven Theater Workshop); The Glass Menagerie (Raven Theatre // Jeff Award); The Brothers Karamazov, 1984, The Naked King (Lookingglass); I Never Sang for My Father, Wolf Lullaby (Steppenwolf). Film: Welcome to Me, Perfect Manhattan, Cicero in Winter, Captive State. Television: Chicago PD, Chicago Med. 

CYNTHIA HINES (Judy) has worked previously in Women at War (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble); Clybourne Park and Doubt (both at Harper College); Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Galaxy Theatre Company); Barbecue (Understudy-Strawdog Theatre Company); Wedding Band (Understudy-The Artistic Home) and Everything In Between (Dandelion Theatre).

LEVI HOLLOWAY (Ned) is an actor, producer and playwright. As an actor, Chicago credits include works with companies such as Steppenwolf, Northlight, Aboutface, Chicago Children’s Theatre, Provision, Shattered Globe, and Hell in a Handbag. Levi is the co founder and co artistic director of Neverbird Project, a Chicago based Deaf and hearing youth theatre company. Also a playwright, his own play, The Haven Place had it’s world premiere here at AROT in 2016. He currently holds a Tutterow Fellowship at Chicago Dramatists and is a teaching artist for Lookingglass Theatre and Silk Road Rising. Levi is a graduate of The Theatre School at DePaul University.

TRAVIS A. KNIGHT (Rodney) Chicago credits include: The Crucible (Steppenwolf Theatre); Ah, Wilderness! Christmas Carol, The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window, Measure for Measure, and Camino Real (Goodman Theatre) and Camelot (Drury Lane). Regional credits include: The Brothers Size (Milwaukee Chamber Theatre); A Streetcar Named Desire (Uprooted Theatre) and Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Forward Theatre). He also spent five seasons at American Players Theatre appearing in The Tempest, Glass Menagerie, Two Gentlemen of Verona, and Richard III. TV and web series credits: Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Chicago Med, Mind Games, and Dad Man Walking. Film credits: Henry Gamble’s Birthday Party, and Runner. 

Dates:
Previews: October 18-27, 2018 
Press Performances: Saturday, October 27 at 3pm & 7:30pm 
Opening: Sunday, October 28, 2018 at 7pm 
Red Night: Friday, November 2, 2018 at 7:30pm 

Schedule: 
Thursdays: 7:30 p.m. 
Fridays: 7:30 p.m. 
Saturdays: 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.  
Sundays: 3:00 p.m.  

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



Tickets:
$15-$25 previews, $30-$40 regular run.  ($30 Thurs, $35 Fri, Sat matinee, $40 Sat evening & Sun) 

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

Ticket Information
A Red Orchid continues the FLASHPASS. As always, FLASHPASS holders get reserved seats, ticket and date flexibility, no-fee ticket exchanges, discounts for friends & family tickets, and early access to events such as readings, panel discussions, and more. The Three-show FLASHPASS is $90 and includes one ticket to each of the 3 shows in our 26th Season, excluding Opening and Red Nights. The Three-show Red Night FLASHPASS is $150 and includes a ticket to each of the 3 show's Red Night performances and post-show receptions with the cast and creative team.  The Preview FLASHPASS is $60 and includes one ticket to a preview performance of each of the 3 shows in our 26th season.

FLASHPASSes may be purchased from the Box Office at 1531 N. Wells Street, Monday through Friday from 12pm to 5pm, by telephone during office hours by dialing (312) 943-8722, or online at www.aredorchidtheatre.org. Individual tickets will go on sale at a later date.

With our 26th 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 recently honored with a MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Over the past 26 years, its Artistic Ensemble has welcomed into its fold an impressive array of award-winning actors, playwrights and theatre artists with the firm belief that live theatre is the greatest sustenance for the human spirit. A Red Orchid is well known and highly acclaimed for its fearless approach to performance and design in the service of unflinchingly intimate stories. 
  
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 Scientific Method Via Rivendell Theatre Ensemble October 19 – December 2, 2018

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble presents

the World Premiere of

Scientific Method

by Jenny Connell Davis

directed by Devon de Mayo

featuring RTE Member Ashley Neal, with Glenn Obrero,

Josh Odor, Courtney Williams and Carmen Roman

October 19 – December 2, 2018

Here at ChiIL Mama and ChiIL Live Shows, we're all about supporting and elevating women in the arts. I'll be out for the press opening of the world premiere of Scientific Method on October 30th, so check back soon for my full review. We've been huge fans of Rivendell Theatre Ensemble (RTE), Chicago’s only Equity theatre dedicated to producing new work with women at the core. 

As a female theatre critic with two woman owned websites, I'm completely on board with Rivendell Theatre Ensemble's mission statement. RTE advances the lives of women through theatre. Rivendell cultivates the talents of women artists—writers, actors, directors, designers and technicians—
by seeking out innovative plays that explore unique female experiences and producing them in an intimate, salon environment. Rivendell fills an important role in the Chicago region as the only Equity theatre dedicated to producing artistically challenging and original plays created by and about women.

Check out the World Premiere of Scientific Method by Jenny Connell Davis, directed by Devon de Mayo, and featuring RTE Member Ashley Neal, with Glenn Obrero, Josh Odor, Courtney Williams and Carmen Roman. Scientific Method runs October 19 – December 2, 2018, at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Avenue in Chicago. 

Amy, a hotshot scientist at an elite U.S. cancer research lab, is moments from publishing data that could revolutionize the field. When she’s scooped by a senior scientist from a competing lab, she first questions her own ability to compete in her chosen field. But as new information comes to light, Amy must face the possibility of willful sabotage by a powerful male colleague. Scientific Method is a witty and complex behind-the-scenes look at women in the sciences—and the struggle many women have to keep moving forward on the rocky terrain of an uneven playing field.

The cast of Scientific Method includes RTE Member Ashley Neal (Amy), with Glenn Obrero (Manish), Josh Odor (Julian), Courtney Williams (Makayla), and Carmen Roman (Marie).

The creative team includes Lauren Nichols (Scenic Design), Izumi Inaba (Costume Design), Heather Sparling (Lighting Design), Shain Longbehn (Sound Design), Jonathan Berg-Ein (Properties Design), and Tony Churchill (Projections Design). The stage manager is Jenniffer Thusing.

Rivendell’s Town Hall Series:
Saturdays, November 17 and December 1 after the 4pm matinee performances
During the run of each production, Rivendell hosts Town Halls Discussions after select Saturday matinees. These are an essential touchstone for our organization to extend the conversation from the stage to the community. Panelists help field questions, present observations, and participate in supporting a thoughtful, in-depth dialogue for all involved. Audience participants need not be present for the Saturday matinee and are welcome to join the conversation following the performance.

This production is sponsored in part by Dan Cyganowski in memory of Carol K. Cyganowski, scholar and theatre lover.

ARTIST BIOS

Jenny Connell Davis’s (Playwright) plays include End of Shift, Goddess of Mercy, The Dragon Play, and Scientific Method.  Her work has been produced or developed at Chance Theater, the Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, The Playwrights’ Center, Icicle Creek Theater Festival, ACT Seattle, ATC Chicago, the Araca Group, Asolo Rep, New York Stage and Film, Ars Nova, The Gift Theatre, Shrewd Productions, ScriptWorks, NAATCO and Rivendell. Her first screenplay, Playing House, was a finalist for the Nicholl Fellowship; her second, Two Truths and a Lie, was a semi-finalist.  Her short with writer/director Soham Mehta, Fatakra, has screened worldwide and been recognized with more than a dozen audience awards and jury prizes. She currently has film and television projects in development with Maven Pictures/Tangerine Entertainment, Fox Animation, Astronauts Wanted/Cinestar Pictures, and Iconoclast/Anonymous Content. Jenny has an MFA from UT Austin, is a former member of Ars Nova’s Play Group, an Affiliated Writer with the Playwrights’ Center, and was the 2014-2015 Hot Seat Resident Playwright at Baltimore’s Center Stage. She is a member of Chicago’s Gift Theatre Company and a proud member of ScriptWorks and the MARTHAs, an Austin-based playwrights’ collective.

Devon de Mayo (Director) is working with Rivendell for the first time. Recent directing credits include: Women Laughing Alone With Salad (Theatre Wit); The Burn (Steppenwolf Theatre), Harvey (Court Theatre), Sycamore (Raven Theatre), You on the Moors Now (The Hypocrites), Animals Out of Paper (Shattered Globe Theatre), You Can’t Take it With You, and Lost in Yonkers (Northlight Theatre), Jet Black Chevrolet (side project); Compulsion and Everything is Illuminated (Next); Roadkill Confidential, The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, and Clouds (Dog & Pony). Directing and devising credits: Don’t Look Back/Must Look Back (Pivot Arts); Guerra: A Clown Play (La Piara, Mexico); The Whole World is Watching, As Told by the Vivian Girls and The Twins Would Like to Say (Dog & Pony). She received her MFA from Middlesex University in London and did further studies at the Russian Academy of Dramatic Arts in Moscow and the Indonesian Institute for the Arts in Bali, Indonesia. 

Ashley Neal (Amy) is back at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, where she is a longtime member and most recently appeared in Cal in Camo. She has appeared in many Rivendell productions including: Alias Grace, Wrens, 26 Miles, The Walls, Be Aggressive, and others. Ashley most recently appeared in A Red Orchid Theatre's The Nether where she also appeared in A Red Handed Otter. Other shows include: London Wall, Men Should Weep and Stage Door with Griffin Theatre, The Life and Sort of Death of Eric Argyle with Steep Theatre, as well as work with Chicago Dramatists, Pine Box, Irish Theatre Company, Step Up, Jackalope Theatre, Victory Gardens, Strawdog, The Greenhouse Theatre, and others. Ashley is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago and The School at Steppenwolf. She is represented by Big Mouth Talent.

Glenn Obrero (Manish) is making his Rivendell debut. Other Chicago credits include: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Lookingglass Theatre); A Beauty Queen of Leenane (Northlight Theatre, u/s); A Wrinkle in Time (Lifeline Theatre); Akeelah and the Bee (Adventure Stage Chicago); How We Got On (Haven Theatre, u/s). TV credits include Chicago Fire (NBC). He received his BFA in Performing Arts from Savannah College of Art and Design and trained on-camera at Vagabond School of the Arts. He is represented by Gray Talent Group.

Josh Odor (Julian) is back at Rivendell where he was last seen in The Firebirds Take the Field. Most recently Josh performed in TimeLine's To Catch a Fish, ATC's Welcome to Jesus and The Hypocrites' You On the Moors Now - also directed by Devon DeMayo. Josh has also worked at Steppenwolf, The Goodman, Steep, Teatro Vista, The Artistic Home, The Inconvenience, Griffin, The House, Haven, Erasing the Distance, The New Colony, Collaboraction, Side Project, LiveWire, Buffalo Ensemble, at The Long Wharf in New Haven, CT, and as a member of Pine Box. Josh's television work includes Chicago PD, Chicago Fire, Betrayal and Boss.

Courtney Williams (Makayla) is making her Chicago stage debut with Rivendell. Originally a Brooklyn based performer from Oakland, CA, her work has primarily been in New York's colorful downtown scene. She's performed and collaborated with Daniel Alexander Jones, Kaneza Schaal, Mike Iveson, Tea Alagic, Gracie Gardner and other artists who have enriched her collaborative process.

Carmen Roman (Marie) most recently performed in Angels in America at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Last fall she played Margaret Thatcher in The Audience at Timeline Theatre and in Native Son at Yale Rep. She also played in the world premiere production of Native Son - a co-production of American Blues Theater and The Court Theatre. She played Mrs. Eynsford-Hill in My Fair Lady at The Lyric Opera last season. Other recent production include: Sotto Vocce by Nilo Cruz at Portland Stage (Maine), Alabama Story by Kenneth Jones at Peninsula Players (Wisconsin) and playing opposite Hal Linden in Moon Over Buffalo at The New Theater (Kansas City). Carmen was in the National Tour of Angels in America and appeared Off-Broadway in The Iphigenia Cycle (Theater for a New Audience); The Mysteries (Classic Stage Company); Paradise (Gary Allen productions), and Love, Sex and Death in the Amazon (Paradise Factory Theater). Regional credits include 13 seasons with Peninsula Players; Wit, Black Snow, Brutality od Fact (Goodman Theatre, Chicago) Side Man (Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago), The Price (Syracuse Stage and Geva), The Importance of Being Earnest  (Centerstage Baltimore), Lost in Yonkers (Coconut Grove, Walnut Street Theater) Sonia Flew (The Huntington Theatre), According to Goldman (Philadelphia Theater Company) Electra (Hartford Stage Company), Big Love (The Wilma), Shadowlands (The Alliance Theater). Film/Television credits include Chicago PD; Betrayal; Boss; All My Children; Early Edition; Law and Order; Law and Order SVU; Criminal Intent; Savages, The Falcon (a co-production shot in Soviet Georgia) She is a proud company member at American Blues Theater and Circling the Drain, New York. Awards and honors include 2002 Fox Fellow, Sarah Siddons Award, Florence Herscher Award, and Joseph Jefferson Awards for Master Class and Wit. 
  
Previews: 
October 19 – 27, 2018
Friday, October 19 at 8:00pm
Saturday, October 20 at 8:00pm
Sunday, October 21 at 3:00 pm
Thursday, October 25 at 8:00pm
Friday, October 26 at 8:00pm
Saturday, October 27 at 8:00pm

Press Opening: Tuesday, October 30 at 7:00pm
VIP Gala Opening: Sunday, October 28 at 6:00pm

Regular run:
Thursday, November 1 – Sunday, December 2, 2018

Schedule: 
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm
Saturdays at 4:00pm
Sundays at 3:00pm (November 18 and December 2 ONLY)

No performance on Thursday, November 22 (Thanksgiving)
Additional performance on Tuesday, November 20 at 8:00pm
Town Hall Discussions will follow Saturday 4pm matinees on November 17 and December 1

Friday, November 2: Performance to Benefit Planned Parenthood: See a show and support Planned Parenthood at the same time! $10 of every ticket sold will be donated to Planned Parenthood of Illinois.

Friday, November 9: Mama’s Night / Ladies Night: Following the performance, please join us in our rehearsal studio for wine, cheese and great conversation!

Friday, November 23: Open Captioned Performance
$15 tickets with the code ACCESS

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

Tickets: 
General Admission:
Previews: $28
Regular Run: $38
Student, Senior, Active Military, Veteran:
Regular Run: $28

Pay What You Can: Five seats (10% of the house) are available for each performance. Reservations are made on a first come, first served basis.
Three-show pass: $59-$80 for one ticket each to the next three Rivendell plays

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

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

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

Rivendell fills an important role in the Chicago region as the only Equity theatre dedicated to producing artistically challenging and original plays created by and about women. After years of being an itinerant company, Rivendell moved into its own theater space in 2011 in Edgewater. The company is focused on becoming an integral community partner and serving as a catalyst to engage audiences in a discussion of local social issues.

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

Rivendell Theatre Ensemble is supported by generous grants from: The Alphawood Foundation; Paul M. Angell Family Foundation; The Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development; The Chicago Community Trust; The Chicago Foundation for Women; The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation; The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; The MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation; The League of Chicago Theatres and ComEd; The Reva and David Logan Foundation; The Luria Family Foundation; The Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust; The Alfred Pick Jr. Fund; Shubert Foundation; SIF Fund at The Chicago Community Trust; Cultural Outreach Program Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events; and the Illinois Arts Council Agency.