SAVE THE DATES: Sean Masterson’s Message in a Bottle at Chicago Magic Lounge Wednesdays beginning April 6, 2022

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Chicago Magic Lounge Presents

Sean Masterson’s Message in a Bottle

Wednesdays beginning April 6, 2022

**Tickets go on sale February 7, 2022**

Chicago Magic Lounge, Chicago’s home for close-up magic, continues its Artist-In-Residence series with Sean Masterson’s Message in a Bottle, Wednesdays at 7:00pm, April 6 – June 29, 2022. Masterson’s combination of magic and storytelling in this brand new show will amaze and enchant audiences. Tickets for all Chicago Magic Lounge shows are available at the box office, (312) 366-4500 or online at chicagomagiclounge.com.

The discovery of a message in a bottle makes the past present in Sean Masterson’s very visual and highly deceptive show. Sleight-of-hand magic is seamlessly woven into the true tale of the 19th century battle to decide American’s #1 magician.

In 1912 theatrical impresario Michael B. Leavitt published his 700-page memoir dishing the untold story of this jealousy-fueled battle between his clients, the magic greats Alexander Herrmann and Harry Kellar. Recently, Sean Masterson procured a signed edition of Leavitt’s memoir at auction and together with his research of Harry Houdini’s original archives at the Library of Congress in D.C., he has found the thread that nearly tells the whole tale. All Masterson needs now is a message in a bottle.

Sean’s blend of magic and storytelling have been part of the Chicago theater scene since his 1992 run at Shattered Globe Theater. Since then, he has performed in extended runs at Live Bait Theater, The Actors Gymnasium, The Music Box Theater, and Theater Wit. His close-up magic has been seen at many corporate, social events including Abbott Laboratories, The Chicago Architecture Foundation, Copia Capital and The Driehaus Museum. He regularly performs at the Old Town Art Fair and The Acorn Theater in Three Oaks, MI and has made appearances at Festimagic in Paris and The International Theater Festival of Grenoble, France. Each year Sean makes 40 appearances in local children’s hospitals.

Message in a Bottle will be presented on Wednesdays at 7:00pm, April 6 – June 29, 2022. Tickets are priced $45 (Main Floor) and $50 (Front Row). Tickets go on sale February 7, 2022.

Also Happening at Chicago Magic Lounge

 

Music & Magic

Mondays at 7:00pm

Tickets: General Admission $25

 

The Showcase

Tuesdays at 7:00pm

Tickets: Standard: $35; Front Row: $40

Artist-in-Residence Series

Wednesdays at 7:00pm

 

Kayla Drescher: Magic in Heels, Now through March 30, 2022

Tickets: Standard: $45; Front Row: $50

Ever wonder what the life of a magician is like? Join Kayla Drescher on this wild ride of magic, laughter, and interactive fun. And it’s all done in heels…because “magic in pajamas” was already taken.

Kayla Drescher, based in Los Angeles, brings her interactive show to the Chicago Magic Lounge. She’s performed for clients like Microsoft, IBM, Wells Fargo, and many more. You may have seen her on Penn & Teller’s “Fool Us,” Access Hollywood, or NBC’s “Today Show,” where she was given the title “The Next Great Magician” by David Copperfield. Most recently, Kayla could be seen touring the world with the Champions of Magic. Kayla hosts a popular magic podcast, Shezam, focused on diversity and inclusion within the magic and allied arts communities.

 

The Signature Show

Thursdays-Sundays at 7:00pm, Fridays and Sundays at 10pm

Tickets: Front Row $80, Premium Main Floor (main floor banquette and main floor cabaret) $70, Standard (rail and elevated banquette) $60, Mezzanine $50 

The Signature Show was conceived in 2015 as an homage to the historic, Chicago magic bar scene. Experience close-up magic right at your table during the cocktail hour, followed by an hour of stage magic featuring masters of their craft performing feats of prestidigitation and sleight of hand. Guests who purchase Premium tickets (Front Row, Main Floor Cabaret, Main Floor Banquette) are invited to an exclusive performance of close-up magic directly after the main stage show in our 43-seat close-up gallery, The 654 Club.

Tickets for all Chicago Magic Lounge performances are available at the box office, (312) 366-4500 or online at chicagomagiclounge.com. Chicago Magic Lounge is a 21+ venue. Ages 16+ allowed to ticketed shows with a legal guardian. 

For the health and safety of our staff, guests and community, you must be fully vaccinated to enter the premises. Ticket holders will be asked to present proof of vaccination status upon arrival.

For a complete schedule of performances and more information about Chicago Magic Lounge, resident and guest performers, and more, please visit chicagomagiclounge.com.

Pay What You Can World Premiere of THIS IS ONLY A TEST Via Broken Nose Theatre February 11 – March 12, 2022

 

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World Premiere!

Broken Nose Theatre Presents

THIS IS ONLY A TEST

By Eric Reyes Loo

Directed by Toma Tavares Langston 

February 11 – March 12, 2022 at The Den Theatre

Broken Nose Theatre, one of Chicago’s premier Pay-What-You-Can theatre companies, is pleased to welcome back live audiences this winter with the world premiere of Eric Reyes Loo’s drama This Is Only a Test, directed by Toma Tavares Langston. This all-too-prescient view of the future our youth may be inheriting will play February 11 – March 12, 2022 at BNT’s resident home, The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at brokennosetheatre.com and thedentheatre.com. Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre performances are “Pay-What-You-Can,” allowing patrons to set their own price. I'll be out for the press opening February 13th so check back soon for my full review.

Broken Nose Theatre adheres to all CDC, state and local safety guidelines. Additionally, masking is required for all guests during performances. For the most current information on The Den’s COVID guidelines, visit thedentheatre.com/covid19-policy.

 

The cast includes company members RjW Mays* with Zhanna Albertini, Graham Helfrick, Sophia Vitello, Christopher M. Walsh and Austyn Williamson. Understudies: Maureen Azzun, Jeremiah Davis, Tim Huggenberger, Audrey Michaela, Kiefer Otto and Toma Lynn Smith.

It could happen anywhere, at any time, and the faculty at Washington High have decided to take "being prepared" to a whole new level. Through a series of Active Shooter Drills, their students will be trained on how to fight back against intruders. But as they’re asked to quell violence by responding violently, four teenagers begin to wonder: if we’re so prepared, why do we feel even more unsafe? Directed by rising director Toma Tavares Langston (The Light; Hedwig and the Angry Itch), this brand-new play asks us to consider the moment when preparing for the worst tips over into a whole new breed of violence all its own.

Artistic Director E.M. Davis and Managing Director Rose Hamill comment, “When the ensemble first read Eric's darkly satirical play over three years ago, the terrifying but necessary questions it asked were immediately impossible to shake. And now, as we continue to stare into an uncertain future, the conversations it provokes feel all the more prevalent. What sort of world are we passing down to our children? If they can't even feel safe in their place of learning, what haven can we possibly offer them? And worse, when we place the promise of security in the kids' own ability to retaliate, how soon before we exacerbate the issue and push them to their breaking point? We're proud to be partnering with director Toma Tavares Langston to bring this highly original new play to Chicago audiences for its world premiere.”

The production team includes Jessie Baldinger (scenic design), Jessica Van Winkle (costume design), Conchita Avitia (lighting design), Hannah Foerschler (sound design), Charlotte Lastra (props design), Carly Cason (fight director), Sarah Scanlon (intimacy director), David Weiss* (dramaturg), Ben F. Locke* (assistant director), Rose Hamill* (production manager), Evan Sposato (technical director), Liz Gomez* (master electrician), Jac Pytlik (stage manager) and Becca Smith (assistant stage manager).

*Denotes Broken Nose Theatre company members

 

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Cast (in alphabetical order): Zhanna Albertini (Selma), Graham Helfrick (Kramer), RjW Mays* (Woman), Sophia Vitello (Lenore), Christopher M. Walsh (Man) and Austyn Williamson (Wynn).

Understudies: Maureen Azzun, Jeremiah Davis, Tim Huggenberger, Audrey Michaela, Kiefer Otto and Toma Lynn Smith.

Location: The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago

Dates: Previews: Friday, February 11 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, February 12 at 7:30 pm

Opening: Monday, February 14 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Thursday, February 17 – Saturday, March 12, 2022

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

Industry night: Monday, February 28 at 7:30 pm

Understudy night: Wednesday, March 9 a 7:30 pm

Tickets: Pay-what-you-can. Tickets are currently available at brokennosetheatre.com and thedentheatre.com.

About the Artists

Eric Reyes Loo (Playwright) spent his childhood crafting the perfect comeback during his sixteen years of Catholic school education, where his mother sent him to become a priest. He came out a theatre queen and loudmouth jokester instead. All of this gave him plenty of material as he turned to writing and producing theatre in New York and his native Los Angeles. Eric’s critically-acclaimed play Death and Cockroaches was produced by Chalk Repertory Theatre, where Eric is also a member of the Artistic Circle. In addition, Eric is a television writer/producer who has written on Guidance for AwesomenessTV/Hulu and A.J. and the Queen for Netflix. He also has numerous projects in development.

Toma Tavares Langston (Director) is a Chicago freelance theater director. Notable works include Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Theo Ubique – 2020 Jeff Nomination, Production – Musical) and The Light (The New Colony – 2018 Jeff Nomination, Director – Play). Toma was awarded a 2015 Victory Gardens Theater Director Inclusion Initiative fellowship. Other Chicago works include Sucker Punch (Victory Gardens, Assistant Director), 1980 or Why I'm Voting for John Anderson (Jackalope Theatre, Assistant Director), The Last Five Years, The Shadow Box, For Colored Girls Who Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf. He is currently pursuing his MBA in Public Administration at Southern New Hampshire University. Toma would like to give a special thanks to E.M., Rose, Eric and the Broken Nose Theatre crew for the opportunity to tell this impactful story. 

 

About Broken Nose Theatre

Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT was the 2018 recipient of the Emerging Theater Award, presented by the League of Chicago Theatres and Broadway in Chicago. The company has produced and developed 30 full-length plays (including 12 Chicago or world premieres) and over 60 new short plays through our annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit brokennosetheatre.com. 

Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning RUINED Via Invictus Theatre Company February 17 - March 20, 2022

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RUINED

by Lynn Nottage

Directed by Ebby Offord

February 17 – March 20, 2022

Invictus Theatre Company's production of Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning RUINED, directed by Ebby Offord, will be performed in their new home venue – the Reginald Vaughn Theatre at 1106 W. Thorndale Avenue in Edgewater (the space formerly known as The Frontier) - from February 17 - March 20, 2022. Offord is a 2019 graduate of Washington University in St. Louis who has studied at Shakespeare’s Globe in London and appeared as Ophelia in Invictus’s fall 2021 production of HAMLET. I'll be out for the press opening February 21st, so check back soon for my full review.

RUINED, a drama originally commissioned by the Goodman Theatre, where it premiered in 2008, is a story of women caught in a civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. They find a refuge of sorts with Mama Nadi, a brothel owner who takes victims of sexual violence into her establishment. There, she profits from them but also protects them from the brutality of the world outside her doors.

Leading Offord’s cast as Mama Nadi will be Tekeisha Yelton Hunter. Hunter earned raves for her performance of the title character in Invictus’s 2020 live stream of “NIGHT MOTHER, as did Courtney Gardner, who played the daughter in that two-character play. Gardner will appear in RUINED as Salima, who along with Sophie (Jenise Sheppard) and Josephine (Jemima Charles), are three of the girls taken in by Mama Nadi. The cast will also include Javier Carmona (Mr. Harari), Tamarus Harvell (Fortune), Barry Irving (Simon), Stanley King (Christian), Edward Neequaye (Osembenga), Brandon Boler (Kisembe), Kejuan Darby (Ensemble, U/S Osembenga and Kisembe), Todd Douglas (Ensemble, U/S Simon and Fortune). Additional understudies are Jasmine Robertson (Salima, Sophie), Simmery Branch (Josephine), Barry Irving (Christian), and Jorge Salas (Mr. Harari).

Top row left - right: Takeisha Yelton Hunter, Jemima Charles, Courtney Gardner, Jenise Sheppard.

Second row left - right: Brandon Boler, Javier Carmona, Kejuan Darby, Tamarus Harvell.

Third row left - right: Barry Irving, Stanley King, Edward Neequaye, Simmery Branch.

Bottom row left - right: Todd Douglas, Jasmine Robertson, Jorge Salas.

The production team for RUINED includes Rueben Echoles (Costume Designer), Kevin Rolfs (Set Designer), Levi Wilkins (Lighting Designer), Warren Levon (Sound Designer), Lana Whittington (Fight/Intimacy Designer), Ian R. Q. Slater (Dialect Coach), Jessica Minogue (Stage Manager), Todd Faulstich (Production Manager), Marquecia Jordan (Assistant Costume Designer and Wardrobe Supervisor), and Arlicia McClain (Assistant Director). Charles Askenaizer is Invictus’ Artistic Director.

Offord says RUINED is “a reminder that the decades of violent turmoil in the Congo and other regions of Sub-Saharan Africa have anything but subsided. War is still being waged on women's bodies. Black women especially. Therefore, their stories must continue to be told.”

VARIETY said RUINED “takes us inside an unthinkable reality and into the heads of victims and perpetrators to create a full-immersion drama of shocking complexity and moral ambiguity.” The CHICAGO TRIBUNE praised it as “Sincere, passionate, courageous and acutely argued… a remarkable theatrical accomplishment…In the hands of this talented playwright, what might have been a predictable political polemic instead emerges as a richly stirring and complex drama that even includes generous doses of humor.”

Invictus Theatre Company has, over its five-year history, built a reputation for intimate and honest interpretations of classics with fidelity to the original texts and close attention to character development. The CHICAGO READER’s Albert Williams said the company’s HAMLET was “stellar…storefront Shakespeare at its best.” The READER’s Kerry Reid praised the “fearless and layered performances” of the company’s live stream production of “NIGHT, MOTHER in 2020. Of their 2019 A RAISIN IN THE SUN, Reid said “(director Aaron) Boseman’s production goes for broke with heartfelt zest, spilling over the edge of Kevin Rolfs’s appropriately tiny dingy set.” Nancy Bishop of the THIRD COAST REVIEW said of Invictus’s 2018 MERCHANT OF VENICE that “Charles Askenaizer’s direction results in a smoothly performed production of what is considered one of Shakespeare’s problem plays—and it may make you squirm in your seat as you’re sitting very close to the action.”

Tickets for RUINED are available now at www.invictustheatreco.com/tickets. RUINED will also participate and offer tickets as part of Chicago Theatre Week, a celebration of Chicago’s world-class theatre scene now in its 10th year that will run from February 17-27, 2022.

COVID-19 PRECAUTIONS AND POLICIES

All actors have been vaccinated. All audience members are required to show proof of vaccination at the door and to wear masks throughout the performance.

Previews February 17 – 20, 2022.

Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays 7:00 pm, Sundays 3 pm

1106 W. Thorndale, Chicago

Ticket prices: Previews $25.00 Regular run $30. $25 for students (with valid student ID) and seniors. $1 handling fee for online or credit card purchases. www.invictustheatreco.com/tickets

This winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize is set in a small mining town in the Democratic Republic of Congo., RUINED follows Mama Nadi, a shrewd businesswoman in a land torn apart by civil war. But is she protecting or profiting by the women she shelters? How far will she go to survive? Can a price be placed on a human life?

BIO

Ebby Offord (Director) is a Chicago-based actor, director, and teaching artist. She graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a degree in Drama in 2019 (Favorite credits include AUNT DAN AND LEMON, PASSING STRANGE, and AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY.) After graduating, Ebby returned to Chicago to teach with the Institute of Reading Development. She now dedicates her time to pursuing art full-time and working as a caretaker for her father. Ebby appeared in Invictus’s HAMLET as Ophelia last fall, and she’s excited to make her professional directing debut with Invictus on RUINED. 

ABOUT INVICTUS THEATRE COMPANY

At Invictus Theatre Company our mission is to create theatre that promotes a better understanding of language: its poetry, its rhythm, its resonance; through diverse works by diverse artists. We respect the power of heightened language: spoken, written, sung; to express the breadth of the human condition. We work to harness the power of language: to promote diversity, to engender respect, to foster collaboration; and to empower our communities to share their voices.

Invictus Theatre Company incorporated in January 2017 and received its 501 (c)(3) nonprofit status in February 2017. A diverse group of Chicago actors and directors founded Invictus with the vision to empower their communities through theatrical productions of heightened language. We are committed to the idea that our productions should reflect the communities we represent, and, to that end, we are committed to non-discriminatory hiring practices. In working with local artists, designers, and production teams, Invictus Theatre Company does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, nationality, citizenship, religion, or any other protected status by law.

Invictus Theatre Company is supported by the MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, and the Illinois Arts Council Agency.

EXTENDED: The Martyrdom of Peter Ohey Via Trap Door Theatre and the Polish Cultural Institute New York February 3rd – March 26th, 2022

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Trap Door is back on stage!

With

The Martyrdom of Peter Ohey

Written by Sławomir Mrożek

Directed and Adapted by Nicole Wiesner

Associate Directed and Choreographed by Miguel Long

**The Martyrdom of Peter Ohey

Now Extended 2 Weeks Through March 26th**

One of Poland’s most celebrated playwrights, Sławomir Mrożek wrote this absurdist piece about a family, who's home life turns upside down when a tiger suddenly appears in their bathroom. As more and more absurd characters invade their home (a Scientist, a Government Official, a Circus Manager, and more), the family must decide whether or not to give in and join the circus.

Pictured: Venice Averyheart and Dennis Bisto. Photos by J. Michael Griggs

Experience sensational spectacle and twisted terrors as director Nicole Wiesner brings her signature Trap Door style to adapt and direct this obscure Mrożek farce!

Cast: Venice Averyheart, Dennis Bisto, Natara Easter, Matty Robinson, Keith Surney, Bob Wilson, and Carl Wisneiwski.

 

Pictured: Dennis Bisto, Carl Wisniewski, and Matty Robinson. Photos by J. Michael Griggs

The Martyrdom of Peter Ohey is Co-Presented with the Polish Cultural Institute New York

Playwright

Sɫawomir Mrożek (Playwright) was a Polish playwright born in 1930 in a small town near Kraków.  He started his professional career as a cartoonist and journalist, and later on wrote many grotesque stories.  His first play, The Police (1958) is a Kafkaesque parable, and was followed by a series of political, critical allegories cloaked in absurdist comedy such as Out at Sea (1961), Striptease (1961) and The Party (1963).  His most famous play from this period is Tango which had its world premiere in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in January 1965. That same year a famous Polish critic Jan Kott observed that while Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz and Witold Gombrowicz, Mrożek’s dramatic predecessors, were ahead of their time, Mrożek has arrived right on time both in Poland and in the West. Some perceived Mrożek as a kind of “Polish Ionesco” as his plays poke absurdist fun at contemporary mores and life in the 20th century communist-dominated Poland. Mrożek emigrated to France in 1963 and lived in Italy and Mexico before returning to Poland after the fall of communism. While his plays were periodically banned in Poland, they were performed in the cities around the world including New York City where they were produced several times off Broadway and at La MaMa Theatre Club. Among other plays written by Mrożek are Vatzlav (1972—produced at Trap Door Theatre in 2014), The Emigrés (1974), The Ambassador (1981), Alpha (1984) and Love in the Crimea (1994). Mrożek died in France in 2013.

Lighting Designer: Richard Norwood / Set Designer: Michael Griggs / Costume Designer: Rachel Sypniewski / Original Music and Sound Design: Danny Rockett / Make-up Designer: Zsofia Otvos / Graphic Designer: Michal Janicki / Understudy/Swing: David Lovejoy / Stage Manager: Anna Klos

The Martyrdom of Peter Ohey

February 3 @ 8:00 pm - March 12 @ 8:00 pm

Runs: 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Admission: $25 on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, with two for one admission on Thursdays.

Where: Trap Door Theatre is located at 1655 W. Cortland St.

TICKETS

HELP OUT: Theo Ubique Cabaret Presents Viva La Diva January 29th To Help Amy Armstrong Fight Cancer

 With her powerful and soulful voice, Amy Armstrong mesmerizes listeners while her hilarious and sometimes risqué humor keeps them doubled over in laughter.

Amy has been one of Chicago’s favorite cabaret performers and an LGBTQ+ supporter, advocate and angel since moving here in 1995. In 2018, she was diagnosed with cancer and moved to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico permanently to receive medical care. 

Please join us for this one-night benefit to back to Amy and support her on her journey by hosting her to help raise funds for her treatment costs.

 "Choose Your Price for the Fight" 

100% of ticket sales will go directly to Amy for her medical expenses.

You can choose one of three ticket prices to support Amy. All seats are general admission.

Ally - $50.00

Friend - $75.00

Angel - $125.00

https://ci.ovationtix.com/35352/production/1092818

COVID-19 POLICIES

Everyone is required to be vaccinated to enter the building.

Each audience member must show photo ID & proof of vaccination at the door for admittance. (Scans, photos and copies of vaccination proof are acceptable.)

At this time, children under the age of 12 are not admitted.

If you forget proof of vaccination, we will reschedule your tickets at no charge.

If you are feeling ill, please do not attend. Contact our box office on the day of performance and we will reschedule your ticket at no cost.

North American Tour of The Tony Award-Winning Best Musical Moulin Rouge! The Musical Premieres in Chicago March 19, 2022

 ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar 

North American Tour of The Tony Award-Winning Best Musical 

Moulin Rouge! The Musical

Based on the 20th Century Fox Motion Picture by Baz Luhrmann

 North American Tour premieres in Chicago

March 19, 2022

Producers Carmen Pavlovic, Bill Damaschke and Gerry Ryan are pleased to announce the full cast for the North American Tour of the Tony Award-winning Best Musical MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL when the show premieres March 19 in Chicago at the James M. Nederlander Theatre. Tickets are now on sale at BroadwayInChicago.com.

The cast is led by previously announced Courtney Reed as Satine and Conor Ryan as Christian, as well as Austin Durant as Harold Zidler, André Ward as Toulouse-Lautrec, David Harris as The Duke of Monroth, Gabe Martínez as Santiago and Libby Lloyd as Nini. Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer is the Satine Alternate. The cast includes Nicci Claspell, Harper Miles, Andres Quintero, Adrienne Balducci, Andrew Brewer, Jack Cahill-Lemme, Sam J. Cahn, Darius Crenshaw, Alexander Cruz, Alexa De Barr, Tamrin Goldberg, Alexis Hasbrouck, Jordan Fife Hunt, Justin Keats, Tyler Logan, Tanisha Moore, Brayden Newby, Kent Overshown, Amy Quanbeck, Adéa Michelle Sessoms, Jenn Stafford, Denzel Tsopnang, Travis Ward-Osborne, Sharrod Williams, Jennifer Wolfe and Ricardo Zayas.

Tony Award winning Director Alex Timbers said, “I’m thrilled and honored to welcome an extraordinary and vibrant group of actors to MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL as we begin our rehearsal process this week. After years of anticipation, we are all so excited to finally be taking this show on the road to audiences throughout North America.”

The full touring company is now in rehearsal at New 42 Studios and then travels to Chicago at the end of February to run technical rehearsals.

Following the multi-week engagement in Chicago (March 19 – May 14, 2022), MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL will play the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis (May 18 – June 5, 2022), the Buell Theatre in Denver (June 9 – 26, 2022), the Hollywood Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles (June 30 – September 4, 2022) and the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco (September 7 – November 6, 2022).  Additional tour stops will be announced soon. For more information, please visit: MoulinRougeMusical.com.

 

ABOUT MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is the winner of ten 2021 Tony Awards including Best Musical, two Drama League Awards including Outstanding Production of a Musical, five Drama Desk Awards and ten Outer Critics Circle Award Honor citations including New Broadway Musical. 

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL opened to critical acclaim at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in the Summer of 2019 and reopened in September 2021 following the shutdown of Broadway due to the pandemic.

“Spectacular! Euphoric! In MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL, life is beautiful,” raves The New York Times. “MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is a fabulous new musical. The high begins the instant you walk into the theatre,” said the New York Post. Entertainment Weekly concludes that “it’s easy to believe that MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL could run for 50 years.”

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is directed by Tony Award winner Alex Timbers and with a book by Tony Award winner John Logan, choreography by Tony Award winner Sonya Tayeh and music supervision, orchestrations, and arrangements by Tony Award winner Justin Levine.

The design team for MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL includes Tony Award winner Derek McLane (sets), Tony Award winner Catherine Zuber (costumes), Tony Award winner Justin Townsend (lighting), Tony Award winner Peter Hylenski (sound), Drama Desk Award winner David Brian Brown (wig and hair design), Sarah Cimino (Make-up design) and Tony Award winner Matt Stine (Music Producer). Casting is by Jim Carnahan and Stephen Kopel.

Enter a world of splendor and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur, and glory! A world where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel in electrifying enchantment. Pop the champagne and prepare for the spectacular spectacular… Welcome to MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL.

Baz Luhrmann’s iconic film comes to life onstage, remixed in a new musical mash-up extravaganza. MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is a theatrical celebration of Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and - above all - Love. MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is more than a musical; it is a state of mind.

As in the film, MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL celebrates over 160 years of music – from Offenbach to Lady Gaga. The stage musical features many of the iconic songs from the movie, and also includes recent hits released since the movie premiered 20 years ago.

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is produced by Carmen Pavlovic and Gerry Ryan OAM for Global Creatures and Bill Damaschke. General management is by Foresight Theatrical.

Co-producers of the touring production include Aaron Lustbader, Hunter Arnold, Darren Bagert, Erica Lynn Schwartz/Matt Picheny/Stephanie Rosenberg, Adam Blanshay Productions/Nicolas & Charles Talar, Iris Smith, Aleri Entertainment, Sophie Qi/Harmonia Holdings, CJ ENM, Len Blavatnik, Ambassador Theatre Group, Endeavor Content, John Gore Organization, Spencer Ross, Gilad-Rogowsky/InStone Productions, AF Creative Media/International Theatre Fund, Nederlander Presentations/IPN, Cody Renard Richard, Jujamcyn Theaters, Eric Falkenstein/Suzanne Grant, Peter May/Sandy Robertson, Tom & Pam Faludy, Triptyk Studios, Carl Daikeler/Sandi Moran, Desantis-Baugh Productions, Red Mountain Theatre Company/42ND.CLUB, Candy Spelling/Tulchin Bartner, Roy Furman, Andrew & Ruby Ryan, Brent & Sarah Deboer and Michael Ryan.

Released by 20th Century Fox, Baz Luhrmann’s MOULIN ROUGE! premiered at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. At the 74th Academy Awards, the film was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture, and won two.

The Moulin Rouge of Paris, managed by Jean-Jacques Clerico (CEO), is a dazzling and spectacular universe, the symbol of the Parisian way of celebrating since 1889. Starting life as a popular cabaret and dance hall, the venue became an iconic music hall in the Roaring Twenties, and then a theatre where numerous famous French and international artists stepped out into the limelight. Today, the Moulin Rouge and its 60 artists present the Féerie revue show: two hours of amazement between cabaret and music hall styles where dance scenes and surprise acts intersperse – without forgetting the Moulin Rouge’s most emblematic dance, the French Cancan! Since its creation, the Moulin Rouge of Paris has always been an invitation to live and share all the emotions and effervescence of a unique party extravaganza. http://www.moulinrouge.fr/

The Grammy-nominated MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL Original Broadway Cast Recording, produced by Baz Luhrmann, Justin Levine, Matt Stine & Alex Timbers, is now available by Baz Luhrmann’s label, House of Iona, and RCA Records. The album debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Cast Album chart.

MAC is the Official Makeup Partner and Preciosa is the Official Crystal Partner of MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL.

TICKET INFORMATION

Individual tickets for MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL are now on sale and start at $52.50 with a select number of premium tickets available. Tickets are available now for groups of 10 or more by calling Broadway In Chicago Group Sales at (312) 977-1710 or emailing GroupSales@BroadwayInChicago.com. For more information, visit www.BroadwayInChicago.com.

 

COVID-19 PROTOCOL 

When entering the theatre, audience members will be required to provide their valid ticket, be masked, and provide valid I.D. (ages 16 and up). Guests, ages 5 and up, will be required to provide vaccination card that proves full vaccination, meaning 14 days after their second dose of a two-dose FDA authorized COVID-19 vaccine or at least 14 days after a single dose vaccine. Those with vaccine exemptions, including children 2 – 4, religious or medical, will be required to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test along with a photo ID and valid ticket. Acceptable tests are either a PCR test taken within 72 hours of the performance start time, or an antigen test taken within 6 hours of the performance start time. No home tests will be accepted. Due to COVID-19 protocol, children under the age of 2 will not be admitted to any Broadway In Chicago Theatre. We are currently not serving or allowing food and beverage inside the theatres to allow audience members to remain masked throughout the performance.

 

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THE VIRGINIAN: A HORSEMAN OF THE PLAINS Via City Lit Theater through February 20, 2022

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THE VIRGINIAN: A HORSEMAN OF THE PLAINS 

City Lit Theater will open its 41st season with the world premiere adaptation of THE VIRGINIAN: A HORSEMAN OF THE PLAINS. Owen Wister’s novel, published in 1902, is said to have established the Western genre of narrative fiction and the cowboy ideal as an American icon. Its climactic gun duel is the first "showdown" in fiction and the novel has the first known use of the phrase "When you call me that, smile!" THE VIRGINIAN, which was a 1946 feature film and a TV series that aired from 1962-1971, has been adapted for the stage by Chicago playwrights L.C. Bernadine and Spencer Huffman. THE VIRGINIAN will play through February 20, 2022.

Artistic Director Terry McCabe, who will direct the production, announced the diverse cast today, saying "The value of any national myth lies in its availability to everyone." Robert Hunter Bry will appear in the title role – the character known simply as “The Virginian,” the cowpuncher from “back east” who struggles to uphold his code of honor while in conflict with the rustler who becomes his deadly enemy. Ben Auxier will play the rustler, Trampas; and Liz Falstreau will be Molly, the fiercely independent schoolteacher that The Virginian courts.

Left to right: Robert Hunter Bry, Liz Falstreau, Ben Auxier. 

The cast will also include DC Cathro (Honey-Wiggins/Medicine Salesman), Andie Dae (Mrs. Taylor), Tyler De Loatch (Chalkeye/Cigar Salesman), Tony DiPisa (Nebrasky), David Fink (Shorty), Hilary Hensler (Mother), Varris Holmes (Judge Taylor), Tom Lally (Balaam), marssie Mencotti (Great Aunt Agnes), Huy Nguyen (Scipio), Aaron Sarka (Steve), and Adèle Watel (Krista/Bride/Puppeteer).

The show will also feature a small herd of puppet horses, created for the show by The Puppet Company. Three quarters the size of real horses, the puppet horses will be able to do the things horses in Westerns do, from dodging the lariat to brushing away flies with their tails. The puppeteers will be Adèle Watel, Linsey Falls, Sarah Franzel, and David Weisenhahn.

Single tickets for the four-show 41st season (beginning with THE VIRGINIAN) are priced at $30 for previews and $34 for regular performances and are sale now at www.citylit.org . Senior prices are $25 for previews and $29 for regular performances. Students and military are $12.00 for all performances. Season subscriptions are available at $90.00, good for all performances, or $68.00 for preview performances. Subscriptions may be ordered online at www.citylit.org.

 

HEALTH PRECAUTIONS AT CITY LIT

Everyone at City Lit--casts, crews, and office staff alike--is fully vaccinated. We also require vaccination for anyone coming to see a show here; City Lit does not accept negative Covid tests, no matter how recent, as a substitute for proof of vaccination. We will also be following CDC ventilation guidelines on a daily basis to ensure a complete exchange of air in the theatre between performances. City Lit will of course comply with the full set of whatever official health guidelines are in place at any time.

January 7 – February 20, 2022

Previews January 7 - 15, 2022

Preview ticket prices $30.00, seniors $25.00, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees)

Regular run Sunday, January 16 – February 20, 2022

Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 3 pm. Mondays February 7 and 14 at 7:30 pm.

Regular run ticket prices $34.00, seniors $29.00, students and military $12 (all plus applicable fees)

Performances at City Lit Theater, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. Chicago 60660 (inside Edgewater Presbyterian Church)

Info and tickets at www.citylit.org and by phone at 773-293-3682.

A world premiere adaptation of the novel that originated the archetype of the American cowboy. Never named, rough-hewn but soft-spoken, living on the frontier between nature and civilization, The Virginian pursues his own singular code of honor. On a ranch near Sunk Creek, Wyoming, the cowpuncher from Virginia struggles to uphold this code in conflict with his deadly enemy, a former ranch hand turned rustler, as well as in his courting of the fiercely independent schoolmarm, whose own personal code is as strong as his. A study of the meaning of honor in the Old West, City Lit's production will feature a diverse cast. "The value of any national myth lies in its availability to everyone," McCabe stated. The show will also feature a small herd of puppet horses, created for the show by The Puppet Company. Three quarters the size of real horses, the puppet horses will be able to do the things horses in Westerns do, from dodging the lariat to brushing away flies with their tails.

L.C. Bernadine (Co-adapter, THE VIRGINIAN: HORSEMAN OF THE PLAINS) is a Chicago-based playwright who has worked with Underscore Theatre, the Writers Room program at New Colony Theatre, and the Playwrights Lab at Jackalope Theatre. In addition to THE VIRGINIAN for City Lit Theater, she is currently at work on a musical titled IS YOU IS, about false racial science and the 1933 “Races of Mankind” exhibit at The Field Museum. Past plays include YARD WORK (New Colony Theatre); WILL THE CIRCLE (Chicago Musical Theatre Festival); and BORDERLANDS, an adaptation of the book ‘A Guitar and A Pen’(Underscore Theatre). She is a member of the Dramatists Guild, and co-founder of a new play development support project for playwrights in Chicago, called Broken Bell Reads.

Spencer Huffman (Co-adapter, THE VIRGINIAN: HORSEMAN OF THE PLAINS) is a playwright, actor, and director based in Chicago. His plays include WHEN WE WERE LITTLE, SHINE DOWN ON US, THE SWAMP PLAY, LIKE SOME DEEP BOOMING, and IF ONLY WE WERE GHOSTS. His plays have earned finalist and semi-finalist nominations from The National Playwrights Conference, American Stage’s 21st Century Voices New Play Festival, and the Landing Theatre Co. New American Voices Festival among others and staged readings from Three Cat Productions (Chicago, IL) and Relative Theatrics (Laramie, WY). He was a member of the Writers Room 7.0 at the New Colony in Chicago and is currently a writer in residence at The Marble House Project in Dorset, VT. He is a member of the School at Steppenwolf class of 2019. 

Terry McCabe (Producer, Artistic Director, Director) has been City Lit’s artistic director since February 2005 and its producer since July 2016. He has directed plays professionally in Chicago since 1981. He was artistic director of Stormfield Theatre for four years, resident director at Wisdom Bridge Theatre for five years, and worked at Body Politic Theatre three separate times in three different capacities over a span of 14 years. His City Lit adaptations of HOLMES AND WATSON, GIDGET (co-adapted with Marissa McKown), THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, SCOUNDREL TIME, and OPUS 1861 (co-adapted with Elizabeth Margolius) were Jeff-nominated. He won two Jeff Citations for directing at Stormfield and has been thrice nominated for the Jeff Award for Best Director, for shows at Court Theatre, Wisdom Bridge, and Victory Gardens. He has directed at many Chicago theatres either long-gone or still with us, as well as off-Broadway at the Cherry Lane Theatre and at Vienna’s English Theatre. His book MIS-DIRECTING THE PLAY has been denounced at length in American Theatre magazine and from the podium at the national convention of The Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas but has been used in directing courses on three continents and is now available in paperback and Kindle e-book.

 

City Lit 41st Season

 

THE VIRGINIAN

Adapted by L.C. Bernadine and Spencer Huffman, from Owen Wister’s novel

Directed by Terry McCabe

January 7 – February 20, 2022

 

EMMA’S CHILD

By Kristine Thatcher

Directed by Terry McCabe

April 15 – May 29, 2022

 

THE PLAYBOY OF THE WESTERN WORLD

By John Millington Synge

Directed by Brian Pastor

July 1 – August 14, 2022

 

AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE

By Kingsley Day and Philip LaZebnik

Directed by Terry McCabe

August 26 – October 9, 2022

 

ABOUT CITY LIT

For over forty-one years, City Lit Theater has been dedicated to the vitality and accessibility of the literary imagination. City Lit produces theatrical adaptations of literary material, scripted plays by language-oriented playwrights, and original material. City Lit Theater was founded with $210 pooled by Arnold Aprill (at the time the Body Politic Theatre’s box office manager), David Dillon, and Lorell Wyatt on October 9, 1979, and was incorporated on March 25, 1980. There were still so few theatres in Chicago that at City Lit’s launch event, they were able to read a congratulatory letter they had received from Tennessee Williams. 

City Lit is in the historic Edgewater Presbyterian Church building at 1020 West Bryn Mawr Avenue. We are two blocks east of both the Bryn Mawr Red Line stop and the #36 Broadway and the #84 Peterson buses. We are one block west of the #147 Sheridan and #151 Sheridan buses. Divvy bike stations are located at Bryn Mawr & Lakefront Trail, and at Broadway & Ridge at Bryn Mawr. The metered street parking pay boxes on Bryn Mawr have a three-hour maximum duration and are free on Sundays. $10 valet service is available at Francesca's Bryn Mawr at 1039 W Bryn Mawr diagonally across the street from us on the SW corner of Kenmore and Bryn Mawr and is available whether you are dining at the restaurant or not. There are additional details about parking and dining options at www.citylit.org.

City Lit is supported by the MacArthur Funds for Arts and Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the Ivanhoe Theater Foundation, the Illinois Arts Council Agency and is sponsored, in part, by A.R.T. League.