SAVE THE DATES: City Lit’s 2022-23 Season Announced

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

City Lit’s 2022-23 season to include a classic by Pinter  and two world premieres: a Kingsley Day/Philip LaZebnik musical and the first installment of a trilogy

City Lit Theater today announced its lineup for the 2022-23 season – its 42nd. The season will begin in October with the world premiere of THE MARK OF KANE, by Chicago playwright/actor Mark Pracht, continue in January and February with Harold Pinter’s THE BIRTHDAY PARTY and conclude in late spring with the world premiere of Kingsley Day and Philip LaZebnik’s musical AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE.  In a departure from previous years, this season will include three rather than four productions, as the company’s previous season of four plays had its start delayed until January 2022 due to COVID and will conclude in early October when its current production of HAY FEVER closes. City Lit’s eclectic three-show season announced today by the company’s Producer and Artistic Director Terry McCabe will return the company’s scheduling to the more common industry pattern of beginning in fall and continuing into late spring and summer.  Future seasons will include four productions. Pracht's play, ranging in setting across eight decades, begins in 1939 as Bob Kane and Bill Finger create the comic book character Batman; one of them goes on to fame and fortune while the other languishes in obscurity  THE MARK OF KANE is the first play of "The Four-Color Trilogy," a set of plays Pracht is writing for City Lit that will make their world premieres over the next three seasons and will highlight major turning points in the history of the comic book industry, once a denigrated art form but now at the center of American pop culture. McCabe will direct. THE MARK OF KANE will open to the press on Sunday, October 30, following previews from October 21 and will play through December 4, 2022.   City Lit will return after the holidays with Harold Pinter’s THE BIRTHDAY PARTY, his first full-length play and the work which established him as a major writer. McCabe will direct this dark comedy, which like Pinter’s later work, is ambivalent in its plotting, presentation of characters, and ending, but is a work of undeniable power and originality. Like Pinter’s later plays, it is often called “a comedy of menace,” in which a character is suddenly threatened by the vague horrors at large in the outside world. It is an unquestioned classic of 20th Century theater. THE BIRTHDAY PARTY will open to the press on Sunday, January 22, following previews from January 13. It will play through February 26, 2023.   The season will end with the world premiere of AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE, a musical by Chicagoan (and City Lit regular performer) Kingsley Day and Hollywood screenwriter Philip LaZebnik (POCAHONTAS, MULAN, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT), authors of the legendary Chicago musical comedy SUMMER STOCK MURDER. The musical, rescheduled from its previously announced slot in City Lit’s 41st season, concerns the “Chosen One” to be sacrificed to the Sun God, but who has instead run off with the Emperor’s daughter. The community pursues the young man, who must be found and sacrificed so that the world does not end. AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE will open to the press on Sunday, May 14, 2023, following previews from May 5, and will play through June 18, 2023.   Subscriptions for the three-show season are available at $75.00, good for all performances, or $58.50 for preview performances. Subscriptions may be ordered online at www.citylit.org. Single tickets for the 22-23 season are priced at $30 for previews and $34 for regular performances and will be on sale at www.citylit.org. Senior prices are $25 for previews and $29 for regular performances. Students and military are $12.00 for all performances.   HEALTH PRECAUTIONS AT CITY LIT   Everyone at City Lit--casts, crews, and office staff alike--is or will be fully vaccinated by the time performances begin.  Patrons will be required to show their vaccination cards and wear masks at all times while in the building. 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. THE MARK OF KANE By Mark Pracht WORLD PREMIERE Directed by Terry McCabe October 21 – December 4, 2022 Previews October 21 – 29, 2022 Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm, Sunday at 3 pm. Preview ticket prices $30.00, seniors $25, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees) PRESS OPENING Sunday, October 30, 2022 – 3 pm Regular run October 30 – December 4, 2022 Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 3 pm. Mondays November 21 and 28 at 7:30 pm Regular run ticket prices $34.00, seniors $29.00, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees) Performances at City Lit Theatre, 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. In 1939, two young friends huddled in a Bronx apartment and created a legend – the comic book character Batman. One, Bob Kane, goes on to fame and fortune while the other, Bill Finger, languishes in obscurity. THE MARK OF KANE is the first play of "The Four-Color Trilogy," a set of plays Mark Pracht is writing for City Lit that will make their world premieres over the next three seasons and will highlight major turning points in the history of the comic book industry, once a denigrated art form but now at the center of American pop culture.   THE BIRTHDAY PARTY By Harold Pinter Directed by Terry McCabe January 13 – February 26, 2023 Previews Jan. 13 – 21, 2023 Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm, Sunday at 3 pm. Preview ticket prices $30.00, seniors $25, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees) PRESS OPENING Sunday, January 22, 2023 – 3 pm Regular run January 22 – February 26, 2023 Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 3 pm. Mondays ­­­February 13 and 20 at 7:30 pm Regular run ticket prices $34.00, seniors $29.00, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees) Performances at City Lit Theatre, 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 comedy of menace. Stanley may or may not play the piano, and today may or may not be his birthday, and he may or may not be hiding from someone in Meg's boarding house where he's lived for a year. But he's definitely made nervous by news that two new boarders are about to arrive, and she's definitely throwing him a party.   AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE Music & Lyrics by Kingsley Day Book by Kingsley Day and Philip LaZebnik May 5 – June 18, 2023 Previews May 5 – 13, 2023 Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm, Sunday at 3 pm. Preview ticket prices $30.00, seniors $25, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees) PRESS OPENING Sunday, May 14, 2023 – 3 pm Regular run May 14 – June 18, 2023 Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 3 pm. Mondays ­June 5 and 12 at 7:30 pm Regular run ticket prices $34.00, seniors $29.00, students and military $12.00 (all plus applicable fees) Performances at City Lit Theatre, 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   It’s the night before the beginning of the Aztec empire’s new millennium, and the Chosen One – so named because he is to be sacrificed in order to make the sun rise next morning -  has run off with the Emperor’s daughter.  If he is not found, the sun will not rise and the world will end.  By the writer of the legendary Chicago musical comedy SUMMER STOCK MURDER.

BIOS   Mark Pracht (Playwright, THE MARK OF KANE) has worked as an actor, director and playwright in Chicago since 2001. He has appeared on stage at City Lit in the title role of PROMETHEUS BOUND, as The Creature in FRANKENSTEIN, and as Milt Shanks in THE COPPERHEAD, among other roles. He was a company member of the Shelterbelt Theatre in Omaha, where he helped develop and produce seven world premiere productions, including his own full-length play, NEON.  He is an ensemble member of The Artistic Home, where he won a Jeff Award for Leading Performer in a Play for REQUIEM FOR A HEAVYWEIGHT. Beyond THE MARK OF KANE, his Four-Color Trilogy includes THE INNOCENCE OF SEDUCTION, about the 1950s Congressional investigation of horror comics, and THE HOUSE OF IDEAS, about the 1960s rise of Marvel.   Harold Pinter (Playwright, THE BIRTHDAY PARTY) was one of the most influential modern British dramatists, with a writing career that spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include THE BIRTHDAY PARTY (1957), THE HOMECOMING (1964), and BETRAYAL (1978), each of which he adapted for the screen. His screenplay adaptations of others' works include THE SERVANT (1963), THE GO-BETWEEN (1971), THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT'S WOMAN (1981), THE TRIAL (1993), and SLEUTH (2007). He also directed or acted in radio, stage, television, and film productions of his own and others' works.

Kingsley Day (Composer, Lyricist, Co-bookwriter AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE) has composed the scores for City Lit’s productions of PROMETHEUS BOUND, LONDON ASSURANCE, THE TEMPEST, and VOLPONE. With Philip LaZebnik, he cowrote the comedy TOUR DE FARCE, which premiered at the old Wisdom Bridge Theatre in Chicago starring Steve Carell and Hollis Resnik under the direction of Terry McCabe and has since been performed across the United States and Europe, and the book for the musical STATE STREET, premiered by City Lit as directed by Sheldon Patinkin.

Day’s other collaborations with LaZebnik include writing the music and lyrics and cowriting the books for the musicals SUMMER STOCK MURDER, which ran for 18 months and won a record-setting eight Jeffs in its premiere production; DEAR AMANDA, which starred Alene Robertson at Pheasant Run Playhouse; BYRNE, BABY, BYRNE, which with its sequel ran a total of three years at Zanies Comedy Club; THE JOY OF SOCKS, premiered and revived by the Chicago Premiere Society; and the upcoming AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE.   Philip LaZebnik (Co-bookwriter AZTEC HUMAN SACRIFICE) has written screenplays for films including POCAHONTAS, MULAN, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT, THE ROAD TO EL DORADO, He wrote the book for the musical FAIRY TALE, about Hans Christian Andersen with songs by Stephen Schwartz, and wrote the book and lyrics for DreamWorks' theatrical musical version of THE PRINCE OF EGYPT with songs by Stephen Schwartz. LaZebnik also wrote episodes for WINGS, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE, THE TORKELSONS and ALMOST HOME.   Terry McCabe (Producer, Artistic Director, Director THE MARK OF KANE, THE BIRTHDAY PARTY) 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.   HEALTH PRECAUTIONS AT CITY LIT   Proof of vaccination is required for all attendees of all performances (physical vaccination card or legible image of vaccination card. Refunds will not be issued if admittance is refused due to lack of vaccination documentation.   ABOUT CITY LIT   For over four decades, 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. 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.    For more information and to donate, visit www.citylit.org and by phone at 773-293-3682.

New Release: Chicago Musician Karim Nagi's Album Huzam Out On Friday, August 19th, 2022

New Release On Our Radar

Karim Nagi's upcoming album Huzam will be released on Friday, August 19 and is available HERE for pre-oder.

"HUZAM" is a profound Arab maqam musical scale that starts and ends on a microtone, with no penchant for Western harmonies. It is widely used in Arab traditional music and has a mystifying and ecstatic temper. 

Karim Nagi composed these pieces all in maqam Huzam using classic Arab art music forms such as Dulab, Samai, Tahmila, Istihlal and Longa, intended to be performed on traditional instruments. These forms make up the Turath Arabic music legacy, but are infrequently employed in today's musical era. A revival is needed, one that honors both tradition and progression. So rather than rigidly replicating past formulas, Nagi uses a fertile approach to the rhythms, sections, arrangements and modulations. 

Read more at http://karimnagi.com/huzam/.

https://www.facebook.com/KarimNagiFans

https://www.instagram.com/huzamensemble/

American Blues Theater announces casting for The World Premiere of Alma September 22 – October 22, 2022

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar 

September 22 – October 22, 2022  

By Benjamin Benne

Directed by Ana Velazquez

Featuring Jazmín Corona and Bryanna Ciera Colón  

American Blues Theater, under the continued leadership of Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside, announces the World Premiere production of Alma, in cooperation with Center Theatre Group. The production will run at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 Ridge Avenue in Chicago, September 22 – October 22, 2022. I'll checking out the opening performance September 29th, so check back soon for my full review. 

Tickets will be available beginning September 1 at (773) 654-3103 and www.amercanbluestheater.com.

Alma is the winner of the Blue Ink Award & National Latinx Playwriting Award and is presented in association with Chicago Latino Theater Alliance as part of the 5th Annual Destinos Festival.

Alma crossed the border 17 years ago in search of the American Dream. Now, on the eve of her U.S.-born daughter Angel’s SAT, Alma believes all their sacrifices and hard work will pay off. There’s one problem – Angel has very different plans for her future. Told in real time, playwright Benjamin Benne’s Alma is a heartfelt and complex exploration of the immigrant generation and their first-generation children.

The cast is: Jazmín Corona (Alma) and Bryanna Ciera Colón (Angel).

The creative team is: Tara A. Houston (scenic design), Rachel West* (lighting design / master electrician), Lily Walls* (costume design), Eric Backus* (sound design), Verity Neely (properties design), Gaby Labotka (fight & intimacy direction), Manny Ortiz* (technical director), Ana Maria Campoy (Spanish translations), and Shandee Vaughan* (production & stage manager).

*Denotes Ensemble Member or Artistic Affiliate of American Blues Theater

 

About the Artists

BENJAMIN BENNE he/him (Playwright) is newly graduated from the David Geffen/Yale School of Drama MFA Playwriting program and represented by Paradigm Talent Agency. He is a member of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages and currently under commission from South Coast Repertory Theatre and Seattle Repertory Theatre. His plays include Alma (Center Theatre Group & ArtsWest; forthcoming: Curious Theatre Company & Central Square Theater) and In His Hands (Mosaic Theater Company). His work has been developed by the O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Playwrights Realm, The Lark, The Public, Roundabout, Denver Center, The Old Globe, Two River, Boston Court Pasadena, New Harmony Project, SPACE on Ryder Farm, Pillsbury House Theatre, Parley, among many others. Benjamin has been the recipient of Portland Stage’s Clauder Competition Gold Prize, Arizona Theatre Company’s National Latinx Playwriting Award, Kennedy Center/KCACTF Latinx Playwriting Award, American Blues Theater’s Blue Ink Playwriting Award, Chesley/Bumbalo Playwriting Award, Playwrights’ Center’s McKnight Fellowship in Playwriting and Many Voices Fellowship. www.benjaminbenne.com

ANA VELAZQUEZ she/her (Director) is a Mexican American director and teaching artist in her native Chicago. Her directing experience is deeply tied to new play development and is often in collaboration with playwrights exploring underrepresented stories. Her directing credits include A Los Angeles Mural for Wrights of Spring Festival at The Theatre School at DePaul; I Come From Arizona staged reading for Vittum Theater’s grand reopening at Adventure Stage Chicago; La Ofrenda at Adventure Stage Chicago; Alma for Blue Ink Festival at American Blues Theater; El Pico for A Night of New Works at Something Marvelous; Macha for Tutterow Fellows Showcase at Chicago Dramatists; Oak & Pallets for Peacebook at Collaboraction; Los Frikis for El Semillero at Victory Gardens Theater; Meet Juan(ito) Doe (co-directed) at Free Street Theater; Everybody Loves Big E for Our Chicago Project at Collaboraction; Art House and The Scream for Scrapbook 2017 at Chicago Dramatists; Epic Tales with FEMelanin for Kid’s Fringe 2016 and Raisin Puffs for Black Lives, Black Words at Black Ensemble Theatre. She received the 2018 Alta Award for Outstanding Director of Play for Meet Juan(ito) Doe (co-directed). Ana is a PlayMakers Laboratory company member. Her teaching artist experience includes Disney Musicals in Schools and PlayBuild Youth Intensive Program with Goodman Theatre; TimeLine South Living History Program with Timeline Theatre and Young Playwrights Festival with Pegasus Theatre. Ana recently completed her second residency with Teatro Comunal, a new youth program created through We the Many with Arts Midwest and The Honeywell Foundation in Wabash & North Manchester, Indiana. She received her BA in Theatre from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

JAZMÍN CORONA she/her (Alma) previously appeared in Hurricane Diane (Theater Wit); Zulema (Goodman/Sones de Mexico); Roe (Goodman Theatre); Shrew’d and Macbeth (First Folio Theatre); I’m Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter and The Compass (u/s, Steppenwolf Theatre); 1776 (Porchlight Music Theatre); Women of 4G (Babes With Blades); A Work Of Art (Chicago Dramatists); Two Mile Hollow (First Floor Theater); Gender Breakdown (Collaboraction); Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Christmas Goose (Raven Theatre). TV credits include Chicago Fire (NBC). 

BRYANNA CIERA COLÓN she/her (Angel) is making her American Blues Theater debut in ALMA as Angel. The Chicago based performer made her national tour debut in the hit holiday musical The Elf on The Shelf: A Christmas Musical (Ella) fresh out of high school. She then went on to do In the Heights (Yolanda, Nina US, Ensemble) at the Arts Center of Costal Carolina on Hilton Head Island right after. Some of her other credits include episodes in the critically acclaimed NBC TV series Chicago Fire and the FOX TV series The Big Leap.

Dates:  Previews September 22-25, 2022

Opens September 28 and 29, 2022

Runs through October 22, 2022

Schedule:        

Thursdays: 7:30pm

Fridays: 7:30pm

Saturdays: 3:00pm and 7:30pm

Sundays: 2:30pm

 

Location: Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 Ridge Avenue in Chicago

Ticket prices: $25-$45

Box Office: Buy online at www.amercanbluestheater.com or (773) 654-3103

Group Sales discounts and Blue Card Memberships available now by calling (773) 654-3103 or visiting www.amercanbluestheater.com

About American Blues

Winner of the American Theatre Wing’s prestigious National Theatre Company Award, American Blues Theater is a premier arts organization with an intimate environment that patrons, artists, and all Chicagoans call home. American Blues Theater explores the American identity through the plays it produces and communities it serves.

The diverse and multi-generational artists have established the second-oldest professional Equity Ensemble theater in Chicago. As of 2022, the theater and artists received 221 Joseph Jefferson Awards and nominations that celebrate excellence in Chicago theater and 44 Black Theatre Alliance Awards. The artists are honored with Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize nominations, Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Emmy Awards and numerous other accolades.   

OPENING: BABES WITH BLADES' RICHARD III, AUGUST 25 – OCTOBER 15th AT THE EDGE THEATER

 COME SLAY WITH US: 

 BABES WITH BLADES THEATRE COMPANY ANNOUNCES CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM FOR RICHARD III, AUGUST 25 – OCTOBER 15, 

AT THE EDGE THEATER

Directed By Richard Costes, Babes With Blades Theatre Company’s Shakespeare Features Non-Traditional Casting and is Informed by a Collaboration with the University Of Illinois Chicago and their incubators for Disability Arts and Culture

Babes With Blades Theatre Company (BWBTC) returns to live performances with its 2022 season and its presentation of William Shakespeare’s Richard III, in partnership with the University of Illinois Chicago’s Disability Cultural Center and directed by Richard Costes, August 25 – October 15, at The Edge Theater, 5451 N. Broadway Ave., with select performances being live streamed. Previews are Thursday, Aug. 25 – Saturday, Aug. 27 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Aug. 28 at 3 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 1 and Friday, Sept. 2 at 8 p.m. I'll be out for the press opening Sept. 3rd so check back shortly after for my full review. The regular performance schedule is Thursdays – Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. All performances are presented with open captioning and select performances will be live streamed. Tickets are $20-35 available HERE.

Babes With Blades Theatre Company brings the tale of Shakespeare’s most complex, cruel and fascinating protagonist to life this summer in a new version that accounts for previously disregarded perspectives.  BWBTC Shakespeare’s Richard III tells the story of Richard of Gloucester, who uses intelligence, deception and political manipulation towards his ultimate goal: England’s crown. Babes With Blades’ production is a partnership with a project called “Making Inclusive Theatre: Richard III as Disability Art,” a collaboration with the University of Illinois Chicago’s Disability Cultural Center, the UIC Department of Theatre and Bodies of Work, a network of disability arts and culture. BWBTC Shakespeare’s production of Richard III adds a new layer to the complex tale by making it more inclusive in order to further explore othering and disability culture.  

“This production represents so many aspects that are priorities for BWBTC: focusing on marginalized stories, telling complicated tales of flawed humans and our signature of stage combat as a storytelling tool,” states Artistic Director Hayley Rice. “This team is ready to tell Richard III’s story in the manner it should be told, with the artists who should be telling it, but are so often left out of the conversation completely.”

The ensemble cast of 13 artists features Kristen Alesia,  (she/her/hers/they/them/theirs; Lady Anne/Lord Hastings), Aszkara Gilchrist, (she/her/hers; Richard III); Madison Hill, (they/them/theirs; Ratcliffe/Duke of York); Leah Huskey, (she/her/hers; Lord Grey/Duchess of York); Kayla Marie Klammer, (she/her/hers; Lord Lovell/Archbishop of Canterbury); Lauren Paige, (she/her/hers; Queen Elizabeth); Pat Roache, (they/them/theirs; Queen Margaret/Brackenbury); Genesis Sanchez, (she/her/hers/they/them/theirs; Earl of Richmond); Symmone Sill, (she/her/hers; Marquis of Dorset/Prince Edward); Marianna Gallegos, (she/her/hers; understudy for Margaret/Brackenbury, Ratcliffe/York, Catesby); Jo Hoch, (she/her/hers, understudy Richard III); Alison Kertz, (she/her/hers, understudy Queen Elizabeth/Richmond, Grey/Duchess of York); Emma Norville, (she/her/hers, understudy Clarence/Stanley/Lord Mayor, Anne/Hastings); Elizabeth Quilter, (she/her/hers, understudy Lovell/Archbishop, Buckingham) and Xela Rosas, (she/her/hers, understudy Rivers/Bishop of Ely/Messenger, Dorset/Prince Edward, King Edward IV) along with BWBTC ensemble members Kim Fukawa, (she/her/hers, Catesby/King Edward IV); Jillian Leff, (she/her/hers; Duke of Buckingham); Jennifer L. Mickleson, (she/her/hers; Duke of Clarence/Lord Stanley/Lord Mayor); Izis Mollinedo, (they/them/theirs/she/her/hers; Rivers/Bishop of Ely/Messenger).  

The production team includes Richard Costes, (he/him/his; director); Claire Alston, (she/her/hers; dramaturg); Esau Andaleon, (he/him/his; assistant stage manager); Dr. Margaret Fink, (she/her/hers; director of Disability Cultural Center, UIC); Bianca C. Frazer, PhD (she/her/hers; UIC Disability Culture Advisory Team) Rose Hamill, (she/her/hers; production manager); Carrie Hardin, (she/her/hers; text coach); Jesse D. Irwin, (he/him/his; sound design); Matt Lauterbach, (he/him/his; accessibility coordinator); Sydney Lynne, (she/her/hers; scenic design); Clare McKellaston (she/her/hers; costume design), Tab Mocherman (they/them/theirs; COVID compliance officer); AJ Morley (he/him/his; props design); Gabrielle Owens, (she/her/hers/they/them/theirs; stage manager); Kat Pleviak, (she/her/hers; puppet design); Keyana Robinson, (she/her/hers); UIC videographer); Carrie Sandahl, (she/her/hers, PhD, professor of Department of Disability and Human Development; UIC Disability Culture Advisory Team), Rachelle Tsachor, (she/her/hers; UIC Disability Culture Advisory Team), Becca Veneable, (she/her/hers; lighting design) and BWBTC Ensemble Members Maureen Yasko, (she/her/hers; fight/intimacy design) and Jillian Leff, (she/her/hers; assistant fight/intimacy design). 

 

ABOUT RICHARD COSTES, DIRECTOR OF RICHARD III 

Richard Costes is a deaf artist of color who has also worked as an actor, director, playwright and accessibility consultant. Costes grew up near Youngstown, Ohio where he graduated from Kent State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies. His professional career began in Chicago, where he fell in love with the storefront theater scene and its continued work towards diversity and inclusion. Since 2014, he has performed at Steep Theatre Company, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Red Tape Theatre, Redtwist Theatre, Broken Nose Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Rasaka Theatre Company and many others.  He is a 2017 recipient of a 3Arts Make a Wave grant. He has presented at Gallaudet University’s symposium on Visual Shakespeare and was a member of the 2019 Deaf Theatre Action Planning Session hosted by HowlRound at Emerson College. 

ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS CHICAGO DISABILITY CULTURAL CENTER (UIC DCC)

As one of the first Disability Cultural Centers in the country, the UIC DCC is committed to building community around disability experience and anti-ableism. It centers disability issues as social justice issues, exploring intersectional identities, developing disability culture, fostering a sense of belonging, and imagining radically different futures. Most UIC DCC programming is open to everyone--students, staff, faculty, and community members--and nondisabled allies are welcome to join; the Center also hosts intentional spaces for disabled people to find community. The UIC DCC's programs include public lectures, discussion series, arts-based workshops and one-on-one support.

 

ABOUT BWBTC SHAKESPEARE

Aligned with their mission of representing marginalized voices, BWBTC Shakespeare specifically features actors of marginalized genders to provide an opportunity for audiences to perceive these classic stories through a new lens.  For this production, BWBTC has partnered with UIC’s Disability Cultural Center, the department of Theatre, and Bodies of Work to tell the tale of Richard of Gloucester’s rise to power. Casting both disabled and non-disabled actors and exploring disability beyond the role of Richard III, this production will not only examine stage combat as a storytelling tool, but also interrogate the barriers that the theatre industry often creates when it comes to accessibility for actors.

ABOUT BABES WITH BLADES THEATRE COMPANY

Babes With Blades Theatre Company – over the past 20 years and moving into the future – strives to develop and present scripts focused on complex, dynamic (often combative) characters who continue to be underrepresented on theatre stages based on gender. Babes With Blades Theatre Company uses (and will continue to use) stage combat to tell stories that elevate the voices of underrepresented communities and dismantle the patriarchy.

In each element of their programming, they embrace two key concepts:

1)     Folks of marginalized genders and underrepresented communities are central to the story, driving the action rather than responding or submitting to it.

2)     Everyone is capable of a full emotional and physical engagement, up to and including violence and its consequences.

The company offers participants and patrons alike an unparalleled opportunity to experience every person as heroes and villains; rescuers and rescues; right, wrong and everywhere in between: exciting, vivid, dynamic PEOPLE. It’s as simple and as subversive as that.

This production of Richard III is supported by a UIC Creative Activity Award for a project called "Making Inclusive Theatre: Richard III as Disability Art." 

BWBTC’s 2022 programming is partially made possible by the kind support of The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, a grant from The Illinois Arts Council Agency, a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events (DCASE), and the support of the Small Business Alliance Shuttered Venue Operators (SVOG) grant program.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT STATEMENT:

Babes With Blades Theatre Company produces theatre in venues located on the traditional homelands of the Council of the Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations. Many other tribes such as the Miami, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Sac, and Fox also called this area home. This region that we now commonly refer to as “The Chicagoland Area”, has long been a center for Indigenous people to gather, trade, and maintain kinship ties. Today, one of the largest urban Native American communities in the United States resides in Chicago. Members of this community continue to contribute to the life of this city and to celebrate their heritage, practice traditions and care for the land and waterways.

REVIEW: Failure: A Love Story at Oil Lamp Theater in Glenview, On Stage Through September 4, 2022

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Failure: A Love Story 

at Oil Lamp Theater in Glenview

Review

By Catherine Hellmann, Guest Critic 

“Cool space!” we noted upon our arrival at the Oil Lamp Theater in Glenview. The front lobby has a nice bar, and complementary cookies are provided for patrons during every performance. Tucked away near the library and the Glenview House Restaurant, (where we had a lovely meal served by a young man with fabulous hair who reminded me of Patrick Swayze), this is the only Professional Theatre in Glenview. 

Photo Credit for all Production Shots, Gosia Photography

I was not acquainted with Failure: A Love Story, which may have detracted from my enjoyment. The script was kind of hard to follow for those of us unfamiliar with the storyline. Having one actress play the three sisters, and their mother, (Kendal Romero) was confusing. Some of the action, especially of the Snake character on the floor, (yes, there are Pet characters. Weird.) was difficult to see. The staging needs to be considered, as the sightlines were tough to overcome for the Short of Stature. 

The Fail Family “got rid of their ‘Bottoms”” at Ellis Island when their name was shortened from “Failbotton” to just “Fail.” Owning a clock company, “A ‘Fail Clock’ is a working clock,” provides for the family. (All the clocks on the walls, and the actors mimicking clocks, reminded me of my childhood home because my Mom loved clocks.) When the parents die, the sisters take over the family business downtown. 

The cast was very energetic and enthused. I liked the chorus parts played by Jasmine Robertson, Jordan Zelvin, and Philip J. Macaluso. The Chicago storyline was cool, opening with references to the Eastland disaster of 1915 which killed 844 people, including nearly two dozen entire families. The setting was all in Chicago, and the parents perish the day of the worst shipwreck on the Great Lakes. The entire show focuses on loss and death. The Mom loses a baby in 1910 and is never the same. One of the daughters dies accidentally on her wedding day. Another sister tries to swim Lake Michigan from Chicago to Indiana (wouldn’t it be Michigan?) but disappears in the process. (“Have you ever smelled Indiana?” asks one of the characters.) 

Failure: A Love Story reminds us how “it is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.” (Thank you, Alfred Lord Tennyson). 

Catherine Hellmann teaches teens by day and attends theater by night. She thinks sleeping until noon on Saturday is an accomplishment. 

FAILURE: A LOVE STORY

By Philip Dawkins

Directed by Xavier Custodio

Oil Lamp Theater's 10th Anniversary season rolls on with this whimsical romp exploring life and death in the Roaring '20s. 

PLOT: The year is 1928 and we meet the Fail sisters: Nelly, Jenny June, and Gerty. Born in that order. The sisters were bubbly, determined, and brittle. Also in that order. Set in the family home and clock shop near the Chicago River, this magical, musical fable follows the Fail sisters’ triumphs and tragedies. As with so many things in life such as blunt objects, disappearances and consumption, the Fail sisters never saw death coming. Happily ever after can’t last forever. But in this upbeat look at life’s ups and downs, we learn you can either be a grump about death, or you can live, love, and sing some catchy songs along the way.

CAST:

Trevor Earley: Mortimer Mortimer

Van Ferro: John N.

Philip J. Macaluso: Chorus Member

Kendal Romero: Gertie, Jenny June, Nelly Fail

Jasmine Robertson: Chorus Member

Jordan Zelvin: Chorus Member

Esther Fishbein: Gertie, Jenny June, Nelly Fail (U/S)

Rae Hamilton-Vargo: John & Chorus (U/S)

Katie Luchtenburg: Chorus Member (U/S)

Brooks Whitlock: Mortimer Mortimer (U/S)

CREW:

Director: Xavier M. Custodio

Rochelle Hovde: Stage Manager

Philip Dawkins: Playwright

Greg Korak: Technical Director / Carpenter

Hannah Wien: Lighting Designer

Elizabeth Monti: Costume Designer

Ellen Markus - Co-Set Designer & Prop Designer

Jay Pastucha - Co-Set Designer

SHOWTIMES:

Thursday, 8pm

Friday, 8pm

Saturday, 3pm & 8pm

Sunday, 3pm

PRICE:

$35 - Previews July 21, 22, 23 (3pm)

$45 - Run July 23 (8pm) - Sept. 4

For tickets and more: https://oillamptheater.org

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

Xavier M. Custodio is one of the Co-Founders and Artistic Director of Visión Latino Theatre Company. He feels honored to be directing Failure: A Love Story, and getting the opportunity to work with Oil Lamp Theater to bring this fun story to life. Xavier’s directing credits includes: Y Tu Abuela, Where is She?, Baskerville: A Sherklock Holmes Mystery, Stories of Us, Fame, In The Heights, Yellow Eyes, Revolt, and Parachute Man (Assistant Director). He has been in the following productions: The Scarecrow (Minster Dodge), Rent (Benny), Godspell (John the Baptist), Man of La Mancha (Juan), Nine Lives: A Musical Web Series (BFPS Manger), Evita, Ragtime, and The Wiz.

COVID-19 POLICY

Oil Lamp Theater recommends wearing masks when not actively eating or drinking.

Masks will be required for our Saturday 3pm matinees.

About OLT

Mission Statement

Oil Lamp Theater is a professional not-for-profit theater organization that is dedicated to the presentation of traditional theater in a unique, inviting and intimate venue. Its mission is not only to stimulate interest in the performing arts but also to promote a sense of, and provide a service to, the community.

OPENING: Miss Holmes Returns at Lifeline Theatre August 26–October 16th, 2022

 ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Lifeline Theatre Kicks Off 40th Anniversary Season with

Highly Anticipated 

Miss Holmes Returns

Performances with Open Captioning on September 17 and October 7

Performance with Touch Tour and Audio Description on October 2

The production runs approximately 2 hours with an intermission. The novel will be on sale in the lobby. 

Attached image caption: (L to R): Katie McLean Hainsworth as Sherlock Holmes and Mandy Walsh as Dr. Dorothy Watson; in Lifeline Theatre’s “Miss Holmes Returns.” Photography by Suzanne Plunkett

Lifeline Theatre presents Miss Holmes Returns, written by ensemble member Christopher M. Walsh and directed by Lifeline ensemble member Elise Kauzlaric.  Ensemble member Christopher M. Walsh, adaptor of 2016’s Miss Holmes, teams up with ensemble member Elise Kauzlaric (Northanger Abbey [2017 Non-Equity Jeff Award: New Work-Musical], Emma, A Wrinkle in Time) in a return to the Holmes universe with the next iteration of his invigorating update to one of literature’s favorite detectives.  Miss Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Dorothy Watson are back on the case! After a string of successes in assisting Scotland Yard, a seemingly clear-cut murder case finds itself at the detective’s feet. The powers that be know for certain the murderer was a young woman of immigrant heritage, but Holmes and Watson aren’t as sure. Can they find the truth before the authorities catch and convict their suspect? The game is afoot in this provocative Midwest premiere sequel to the hit play Miss Holmes, based on familiar characters from the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I'll be out for the press opening on September 4th, so check back shortly after for my full review.

Miss Holmes Returns runs August 26–October 16 at Lifeline Theatre, 6912 N. Glenwood Ave. (free parking and shuttle; see below.) Opening night is Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 7:30 p.m. (Previews are Fridays, Aug. 26 and Sept. 2 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays, Aug. 27 and Sept. 3 at 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Aug.28 at 2:30 p.m.).  Regular performance times (September 9 – October 16) are Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2:30 p.m.

Ticket prices are $45 for regular single tickets, $25 for previews, $35 for seniors and active/retired military personnel (with ID), $15 for students (with ID), with group rates for 8 or more available upon request. Tickets may be purchased visiting www.lifelinetheatre.com or at the Lifeline Theatre Box Office, 773.761.4477. 

Accessible Performances: The Saturday, September 17, 2:30 p.m. performance and the Friday, October 7, 7:30 p.m. performances will feature open captioning for patrons who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. The Sunday, October 2, 2:30 p.m. performance will feature a pre-show touch tour of the set at 1:00 p.m. and live audio description for patrons who are blind or have low vision. For more information about Lifeline’s accessibility services, please contact our Accessibility Coordinator at 773.761.4477 x703 or at access@lifelinetheatre.com.

The complete cast and production team for Miss Holmes Returns includes:

CAST:  Lifeline ensemble members Katie McLean Hainsworth (Sherlock Holmes) & Chris Hainsworth (Mycroft Holmes/Dock Worker); with guest artists Linsey Falls (Inspector Geoffrey Lestrade), Tommy Malouf (Adam Worthington/Daniel Burke), Julie Partyka (Josephine Butler), Vinithra Rajagopalan (Priya Singh), Annie Slivinski (Mrs. Hudson/Mrs. Wiggins), Mandy Walsh (Dr. Dorothy Watson), & Hilary Williams (Olive McGann); with understudies Daniel Dauphin, Laura Fudacz, Alex Hultman, Jean Marie Koon, & Elise Soeder

PRODUCTION TEAM: Lifeline ensemble members Alan Donahue (Scenic & Properties Designer), Diane Fairchild (Lighting Designer), Elise Kauzlaric (Director & Dialect Coach), Maren Robinson (Dramaturg) & Christopher M. Walsh (Adaptor); with guest artists Amelia Ablan (Production Manager), Olivia Ash (Asst. Stage Manager/COVID Compliance Officer), Eric Backus (Sound Designer), Morgan Gire (Stage Manager), Christina Gorman (Violence Designer), Emily McConnell (Costume Designer), & Harrison Ornelas (Technical Director)

Celebrating its 40th season, Lifeline Theatre continues to explore, interpret, and reimagine books and other literary works to create stories that move us beyond the margins of our own lives. Lifeline Theatre – Big Stories, Up Close.

Lifeline Theatre’s programs are partially supported by The Bayless Family Foundation; Carol Oppenheim + Jerome Lamet Charitable Fund; Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation; a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events; Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; Lloyd A. Fry Foundation; Illinois Arts Council Agency; MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince; The Polk Bros. Foundation; Rogers Park Social; The Saints; S&C Electric Company Fund; The Shubert Foundation; and the annual support of businesses and individuals.

CABARET ZAZOU’s Premier Production Luminaire To Open September 7, 2022

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

CABARET ZAZOU’S INAUGURAL PRODUCTION

LUMINAIRE 

NEW VARIETY SHOW FROM THE PRODUCERS OF SMASH HIT TEATRO ZINZANNI 

TO MAKE WORLDWIDE DEBUT IN CHICAGO’S THEATRE DISTRICT THIS FALL

Directed By Prolific Choreographer Dreya Weber

Featuring Acclaimed Chicago Favorite Performers Frank Ferrante and Liv Warfield, 

Luminaire to Premiere September 7 at Cabaret ZaZou on Randolph

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we're elated to hear that our friend and favorite MC, Frank Ferrante, will once again be gracing the Spiegeltent in Chicago's Cambria Hotel for a brand new show! We loved Teatro ZinZanni and were lucky to get to review both the original opening and the fabulous post-pandemic remount. The food is fantastic, and having an antique tent indoors makes for a truly magical setting for a world class show. This is not your parents' stodgy dinner theatre fare. My son and daughter studied circus arts from the age of 9, and as a family, we've covered the top touring circus acts in the world from 2008 to the present. Although we're losing some favorite Chicago natives in the new lineup, like Duo Rose Trapeze and Bethany Thomas as Madame Z, I'm eager to see this worldwide debut and I'm sure the acts will be breathtaking.

Randolph Entertainment LLC, producer of the fan favorite Teatro ZinZanni Chicago, announced CABARET ZAZOU’s premier production, Luminaire will open on September 7, 2022. The new, groundbreaking, immersive variety dinner show, will make its worldwide debut in a vintage Spiegeltent on the 14th floor of the Cambria Hotel in the heart of Chicago’s Theatre District. Luminaire is directed by Dreya Weber, and stars critically acclaimed performers Frank Ferrante and Liv Warfield as they lead an international cast of exceptional entertainers. Sassy, sexy, and sultry, Luminaire is designed to dazzle and delight audiences with stunning cirque acts, interactive comedy, captivating vocalists, and a stellar band, complimented by a delicious multi-course meal.

Luminaire will star Frank Ferrante, an award-winning actor, comedian, and director best known for his interactive stage comedy, including The Caesar in Teatro ZinZanni, which earned him a Chicago Tribune nod as a top ten performer of the year in 2019, and his PBS national television program Frank Ferrante’s Groucho. The production will also star singer, songwriter, and producer Liv Warfield. Her achievements include a critically acclaimed hit solo album - The Unexpected, a Soul Train Music Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Performance, and performing as part of Prince’s New Power Generation. Liv Warfield has toured with some of music’s biggest names, bringing her unique voice and style to audiences around the world. Luminaire is directed by Dreya Weber, whose aerial design and choreography credits include Magic Mike Live in addition to aerials for Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, Rihanna, Madonna, Cher, Michael Jackson, Christina Aguilera, Kylie Minogue, and Pink’s 2010 Grammy Awards performance of “Glitter in the Air”. Dreya brings in her unique death-defying grace to dazzle Cabaret ZaZou audiences.

“Cabaret ZaZou’s extraordinary antique Spiegeltent is a dream environment in which to create a show. Add world-class artists at the absolute top of their games and you have a recipe for a phenomenal entertainment experience. I am thrilled to be shepherding this production,” said Weber.

Luminaire also features an extraordinary cast of performers including Broadway star and Grammy nominee James Harkness from New York City, master juggler Viktor Kee from the Ukraine, thrilling contortionist Ulzii Mergen from Mongolia, and the highly acclaimed Hand to Trapeze Trio Trio Vertex from England. On the bandstand is music director Chuck Webb (bass), Jon Negus (woodwinds), Jose Martinez (drums), and new to the ensemble this fall are Theodis Rodgers (piano) and Phil Seed (guitar).

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets range from $125 - $210 with special VIP tickets available. “Show Only” tickets are $75. Special preview pricing of $99 available for performances September 7-11. Individual tickets are available by visiting CabaretZaZou.com or by calling 312.488.0900. Tickets are available for groups of 10 or more by calling Broadway in Chicago at 312.977.1710 or emailing GroupSales@BroadwayInChicago.com.

ABOUT RANDOLPH ENTERTAINMENT, LLC

Randolph Entertainment is a partnership of 25 mostly Chicago-based individuals who share in the vision of bringing an extraordinary entertainment experience to Chicago. The partnership is committed to being a good neighbor and contributor to Chicago’s vibrant cultural community. Stanley Feig, a veteran of the entertainment industry with a career spanning several decades, manages the partnership. Randolph Entertainment introduced Chicago to Teatro ZinZanni and is proud to continue with their new spectacle CABARET ZAZOU’s Luminaire.

For more information, visit www.cabaretzazou.com

Facebook @CabaretZaZou ● Instagram @CabaretZaZou