OPENING: Paramount and Destinos Festival Pair Up for BULL: a love story by Nancy García Loza Oct. 5-Nov. 20

 ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

 BULL: a love story by Nancy García Loza 

closes Paramount’s BOLD Series with a tale about a contemporary Latino family 

Oct. 5-Nov. 20

Paramount’s BULL marks the first suburban production in Destinos Festival history

Bull dealt drugs, got caught, and served his time. After a decade, he is released from prison and returns to an unrecognizable Lakeview. What will it take to really get home? Find out in BULL: a love story, a world premiere play by Chicago writer Nancy García Loza. 

 

BULL: a love story, Nancy García Loza’s (left) world premiere play, directed by Laura Alcalá Baker, wraps up Paramount’s first BOLD Series, October 5-November 20, 2022 in downtown Aurora’s new Copley Theatre.

BULL: a love story has been developed for the past two years through Paramount Theatre’s Inception Project. Now this riveting, contemporary family drama will be brought to the stage as a full production as the finale of Paramount’s first-ever BOLD Series, now bringing a new brand of fearless, thought-provoking and unexpected forms of live theater to downtown Aurora.

Paramount’s new Copley Theatre is a sleek, state-of-the-art, 165-seat theater with a modern new lobby bar and lounge, reopened this past March as downtown Aurora’s newest live theater space following a two-year, $2 million, top-to-bottom renovation. The Copley is located at 8 E. Galena Blvd., in the North Island Center, right across the street from Paramount Theatre, in downtown Aurora.

BULL: a love story, directed by Laura Alcalá Baker, starts previews October 5, including two Pay What You Can Previews: Thursday, October 6, at 7 p.m., and Saturday, October 8, at 2 p.m. Press openings are Wednesday and Thursday, October 12 and 13 at 7 p.m. Performances continue through November 20: Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Thursdays at 7 p.m.; Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sundays at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $67 to $74.

For tickets and information to BULL: a love story at the Copley Theatre, visit paramountaurora.com, call (630) 896-6666, or stop by the Paramount box office, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Note:  BULL: a love story is suggested for ages 13 and up for adult language.

BULL: a love story is part of the 5th Destinos, Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, an annual, city-wide event produced by the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) showcasing top Latino theater artists and companies from Chicago, the U.S. and Latin America, September 14-October 16, 2022. Paramount Theatre is proud to be the first suburban theater to be included in Destinos.

Use promo code DESTINOS online, via phone or in person at the Paramount box office to access $35 tickets to BULL: a love story for performances during festival dates, October 5-16. This discount may not be combined with any other offer, and excludes opening nights, October 12 and 13. Learn more about the 2022 Destinos Festival at destinosfest.org. 

Behind-the scenes of Paramount’s BOLD Series production

BULL: a love story was originally presented in January, 2021 as a virtual staged reading as part of Paramount’s new play development program, The Inception Project. “Nancy García Loza has written such a beautiful love story and we are so honored to be a part of the journey of this piece from inception to full production,” said Amber Mak, Paramount’s artistic producer and new works development director.

BULL: a love story features (from left) Eddie Martinez as Bull, Alexandra Casillas as Sadie, Kelsey Elyse Rodriguez as Sol, Jocelyn Zamudio as Emme, Sammy A. Publes as Tio, and Andrew Perez as Otherman, Lawman and G.

For its world premiere staging, Paramount’s cast features Eddie Martinez as Bull, Alexandra Casillas as Sadie, Kelsey Elyse Rodriguez as Sol, Jocelyn Zamudio as Emme, Sammy A. Publes as Tio, and Andrew Perez as Otherman, Lawman and G. 

The production team includes Yeaji Kim, scenic designer; Izumi Inaba, costume designer; Cat Wilson, lighting designer; Jeffrey Levin, sound designer; Aimee Plant, properties designer; Liviu Pasare, projection designer; Ismael Lara, Jr., dramaturg and associate director; Maegan Burnell, stage manager; and Lanita VanderSchaaf, assistant stage manager.

Nancy García Loza is an award-winning self-taught, pocha playwright rooted in Chicago, Illinois and Jalisco, México. She is a two-time alumni of the national Fornés Playwriting Workshop. She has enjoyed residencies with Goodman Playwrights Unit and Future Labs, Steppenwolf Theatre and The New Harmony Project, Oregon Shakespeare Festival Black Swan Lab, SPACE on Ryder Farm Institutional Residency, and more. Her audio drama, Brava, is available on all podcast platforms (Make-Believe Association, 2019). She is currently under commission/development with Steppenwolf Theatre (Ascent), Goodman Theatre (Rust), the National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA) (Pénjamo: a Pocha Road Trip story; Macha), and more. This year, she received The Joyce Award, as well as the APAP ArtsForward Award, both in collaboration with the National Museum of Mexican Art. She was most recently recognized by the Dramatists' Guild Council (NYC) as the 2022 Lanford Wilson Award recipient. She is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and the eldest daughter of seven children. She lives in Chicagolandia and writes in her kitchen. She is Mexican American, no hyphen.

Laura Alcalá Baker (director, she/her/hers) is a Chicago-based director and new play developer. She served as the Casting Director/Artistic Programs Manager at Victory Gardens Theater from 2016-2019 leading programs such as The Access Project and Directors’ Inclusion Initiative. Baker has developed and directed multiple new works including Isaac Gómez’s The Leopard Play, or sad songs for lost boys (Steep Theatre), The Way She Spoke (DCASE, Greenhouse Theater Center) and Omer Abbas Salem’s The Secretaries (First Floor Theater). She also directed the audio drama Brava by Nancy García Loza (Make Believe Association) which is available on all podcast platforms. Other select works include The Pillowman (The Gift Theatre), There is No Message in the Message, Shamed (The Gift Theatre’s TEN), Project Potential (Broken Nose Theatre’s Bechdel Fest), and Jets, Sharks, and Beckys (Collaboraction's PEACEBOOK Festival). Baker is a Steep Theatre Ensemble Member, a 2021 3Arts Make a Wave Recipient, and a proud member of the Alliance of Latinx Theatre Artists. For more visit, labdirecting.com. 

"Nancy is creating a canon of Chicago narratives,” said Baker. “She paints vividly, urgently to capture these stories while they are still living memory. BULL: a love story is just the first of many to make it to the stage. It is a heartfelt love letter to Chicago’s Lakeview and the people who built a life there. I believe it to be a new American classic."

Special Events

Paramount will offer two Pay What You Can Performances on Thursday, October 6, at 7 p.m., and Saturday, October 8, at 2 p.m.

College Night is Friday, October 21, at 8 p.m.

Church Night is Sunday, October 23, at 5:30 p.m. 

Access Services

Paramount will offer an American Sign Language interpreted performance on Friday, November 9, at 8 p.m.

If you require wheelchair or special seating or other assistance, please contact the box office at (630) 896-6666 or boxoffice@paramountarts.com in advance.

Paramount offers assistive listening devices free of charge at all performances. Check in at the coat room before the show to borrow a listening device.

Paramount Theatre’s Covid-19 commitment to and safety and protocol

Paramount Theatre has followed, and will continue to follow, the requirements of the State of Illinois and the Kane County Health Department. Therefore, Paramount is following the guidance of the State of Illinois and recommends, but no longer requires, masks, proof of vaccination or negative COVID test for patrons. Mask wearing is strongly encouraged, but will be optional. 

Across the street, Dreamgirls kicks off Paramount’s 11th Broadway Series, August 31- October 16

Right across the street from the Copley, Paramount Theatre is kicking off its 11th Broadway series with Dreamgirls, the Tony-winning musical inspired by The Supremes that spawned an Oscar-winning movie. Performances are August 31-October 16, 2022. 

Also playing the big stage during the final weeks of BULL: a love story is Paramount’s second 2022-23 Broadway production, The Sound of Music, November 9, 2022-January 8, 2023.

Paramount still offers the same “Buy Two Shows, Get Two Shows Free” subscription offer, just as it has since it launched its first Broadway Series in 2011. Four-show Broadway Series packages including Dreamgirls, The Sound of Music, plus Into the Woods and School of Rock in 2023 start as low as $56 (fees not included). To subscribe, visit ParamountAurora.com, call (630) 896-6666, or stop by the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in downtown Aurora.

Photos of new Copley Theatre and lobby bar by Thomas J. King

About Paramount Theatre

Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., is the center for performing arts in Aurora, the second largest city in Illinois. The beautiful, 1,843-seat theater, graced with a strong 1930s Art Deco influence and original Venetian décor, nationally known for its high-quality productions, superb acoustics and historic grandeur, has been downtown Aurora’s anchor attraction since 1931.

After launching its own Broadway Series in 2011, Paramount Theatre grew to be the second largest subscription house in the U.S. Before Covid, more than 41,000 subscribers from all over Chicagoland and the Midwest were enjoying Paramount’s critically acclaimed, 2019-20 Broadway-caliber productions. In addition, Paramount also presents an array of internationally known comedians, musicians, dance troupes and family shows annually.

Paramount Theatre is one of four live performance venues programmed and managed by the Aurora Civic Center Authority. ACCA also oversees downtown Aurora’s newly renovated 165-seat Copley Theatre, home to Paramount’s new BOLD Series, along with the Paramount School of the Arts, RiverEdge Park, the city’s 6,000-seat outdoor summer concert venue, and Stolp Island Theatre, an immersive space opening in summer 2023.

Paramount Theatre continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Tim Rater, President and CEO, Aurora Civic Center Authority; Jim Corti, Artistic Director, Paramount Theatre; a dedicated Board of Trustees and a devoted staff of live theater and music professionals.

For the latest updates, visit ParamountAurora.com or follow @ParamountAurora on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, and @paramountarts on Tik Tok.

ART BEAT: The National Hellenic Museum announces two new exhibitions

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Gather Together: Chicago Street Photography

by Diane Alexander White

September 16, 2022 – April 30, 2023

 

Storytelling in Cloth and Light

Open run beginning September 16, 2022

 

Museum’s grand reopening celebration in September also includes

world premiere of Resilience by HRH Prince Nikolaos

Greek Independence Day Parade in Chicago (1980), photo by Diane Alexander White

 

The National Hellenic Museum (NHM) in Chicago’s Greektown neighborhood—a premier museum dedicated to sharing Greek history, art, culture and the Greek American story—announced today two additional exhibitions as part of its grand reopening celebration this September. These exhibitions join the previously announced world premiere photography exhibition Resilience by HRH Prince Nikolaos.

In Gather Together: Chicago Street Photography by Diane Alexander White (September 16, 2022–April 30, 2023), the Chicago-based Greek American photographer presents 80 historic works showcasing Chicago’s Greek American celebrations alongside other ethnic and cultural festivals and parades, primarily from the 1970s and 1980s. Depicted events include the Greek Independence Day Parade, Greek Festival, Bud Billiken Day Parade, Japanese Festival, Chinese New Year Parade, Puerto Rican Festival, Mexican Civic Society Parade, Mexican Festival, St. Patrick’s Day Parade, Jewish Festival, German Von Steuben Day Parade, Polish Festival, Festa Italiana and the Indo-Pak Parade.

“Our mission at the National Hellenic Museum is to share Greek history, art and culture, and the Greek American experience. Diane’s works vividly capture how Chicago’s Greek American community gathers in the public space to show pride in its identity and share its culture. Through her images of other ethnic and cultural celebrations, Diane also explores the universality of how Chicagoans gather together to show pride in their diverse communities,” says NHM Executive Director Marianne Kountoures.

Storytelling in Cloth and Light (open run beginning September 16, 2022) presents a series of textiles and photographs side by side. The textiles, part of NHM’s expansive collection of more than 10,000 Greek American artifacts, were meticulously woven in Greece, largely by women, and brought across the ocean to the United States. The photographs are additional images from Diane Alexander White, which capture the people and landscapes of Greece in 1977, including her father’s village of Poulithra. Together, these artifacts tell stories connecting audiences with the people, places and events of the past—and encouraging viewers to remember their own stories.

These new exhibitions join the previously announced world premiere photography exhibition Resilience by HRH Prince Nikolaos (September 16–December 30, 2022). Prince Nikolaos’ North American debut includes 19 new works exploring Greece’s strong relationship with nature and environmental preservation. The exhibition also features the North American premiere of Together, an immersive scene of life-size illuminated, embracing olive trees accompanied by sounds of Greek nature, which first premiered at the London Design Biennale in 2021.

The National Hellenic Museum (333 S. Halsted Street, Chicago) presents three new exhibitions as part of its grand reopening celebration: the world premiere of Resilience by HRH Prince Nikolaos (September 16–December 30, 2022), Gather Together: Chicago Street Photography by Diane Alexander White (September 16, 2022–April 30, 2023) and Storytelling in Cloth and Light (open run beginning September 16, 2022). Beginning Friday, September 16, museum hours are Thursday-Sunday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tickets to the museum are $10 and include admission to all exhibits. Discounts are available for seniors, students and children. For more information, visit nationalhellenicmuseum.org or call 312-655-1234.

 The Resilience exhibition is sponsored by NHM Trustee John S. Koudounis.

 

Artist Bio

Photographs from film begin as negative images which are developed in the darkroom where a positive print is created. As a lifelong Chicago photographer, Diane Alexander White has explored the negative and positive effects of photography since 1972. Her father Angelo D. Alexander, who emigrated from Greece in 1920, became an avid photographer and shared his knowledge of the camera with his daughter, Diane. While attending the University of Illinois Chicago she took her knowledge of photography one step further by learning the ways of the darkroom. Photography instructor Robert Steigler opened her eyes to the art of capturing the street image as he was influenced by Harry Callahan, Arthur Siegel, Aaron Siskind and others at the Institute of Design (IIT). Upon graduating in 1976, she began working in studios and darkrooms and continued with her street photography. In 1983 Diane was hired by Field Museum head photographer Ron Testa to photograph natural history collections and she continues to work there to this day. For more information, visit dawhitephotography.com.

About the National Hellenic Museum

The National Hellenic Museum (NHM) is a premier museum dedicated to sharing Greek history, art and culture, from ancient times to the present day, including the modern Greek American experience. NHM preserves the Hellenic legacy and makes this rich heritage relevant today through its collection of thousands of physical artifacts, oral histories, exhibits, educational programs and special events. Originally founded in 1983 and located in Chicago’s historic Greektown neighborhood since 2011, the NHM provides lifelong learning for the community and sparks inquiry and discussion about the broader issues in our lives and society. Museum hours are Thursday-Sunday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. For more information, visit nationalhellenicmuseum.org or call 312-655-1234.

22nd Annual Black Excellence Gala Awards November 14 at Black Ensemble Theater

 The African American Arts Alliance announces nominations for 

The 22^nd Annual Black Excellence Awards 

Recipients to be announced at the 22^nd Annual Black Excellence Gala Awards

November 14 at Black Ensemble Theater

The Board of Directors of the African American Arts Alliance (AAAA), and the Black Excellence Awards Committee announce the nominations for the 22nd Annual Black Excellence Awards. The Awards were established in 2002 to honor the outstanding works of art by African Americans in Theater, Dance, Music, Film, Literature, Visual Arts and Digital Media. 

 

The awards recipients will be announced at the 22nd Annual Black Excellence Gala Awards on Monday, November 14, 2022, at the Black Ensemble Theater, located at 4450 North Clark Street. The evening begins at 6:00 pm with a lavish reception for the 2022 nominees and sponsors. The awards ceremony begins promptly at 7:00 pm. Tickets, priced at $50, are available at https://www.aaaachicago.org/.

 

““The Black Excellence Awards moves the mission of the African American Arts Alliance forward by highlighting African American achievements in the arts and promoting the excellence of our artistic community,” comments AAAA Board Chair and Black Ensemble Theater Founder and CEO Jackie Taylor.”

 

African American Alliance Executive Director Jackie Williams adds, “The African American Arts Alliance is beyond excited to be back live, celebrating Black Excellence in the arts, and we invite everyone to join us for our 22nd year!”

 

The Black Excellence Awards provides recognition of professional African American artists for their achievements of excellence and creativity in the areas of dance, theater, film, literature, music, technology, and visual arts. More information is available at https://www.aaaachicago.org/.

The 2022 Black Excellence Awards Nominations are as follows:

MUSIC

 

Outstanding Achievement in R & B:

London Kay – London Kay

Brandon James – Brandon James

Illville Vanguard – IllVille 2022

           

Outstanding Achievement in Jazz:

Darrell Wilson Sax Preacher – Live at Music in the Park/Dolton IL

Ava Logan

Michele Thomas           

           

Special Recognition in Music:

Tony Wilson – Tribute to James Brown

           

THEATER

 

Outstanding Achievement in Theater Production:

Black Ensemble Theater Company – It's Just Like Coming to Church

Black Ensemble Theater Company – Grandma's Jukebox

Congo Square Theatre – What to Send Up, When IT Does Down

Theater 47 – Living All Alone, the Phyllis Hyman Musical

MPAACT Ma'at Production Association of Afrikan Centered Theatre – Pulled Punches

 

Outstanding Achievements for Director:        

Jackie Taylor – It's Just Like Coming to Church

Michelle Renee Bester – Grandma's Jukebox

Daniel Bryant & Erika Ratcliff – What to Send Up, When IT Does Down

Lauren Wells Mann – Pulled Punches

John L. Ruffin Jr. – Living All Alone, the Phyllis Hyman Musical

           

Outstanding Achievement for Actor:

Vincent Jordan – It's Just Like Coming to Church

Vincent Jordan – Grandma's Jukebox

Anthony Irons – What to Send Up, When IT Does Down

Randle Michael – Living All Alone, the Phyllis Hyman Musical

           

Outstanding Achievement for Actress:          

Dawn Bless – It's Just Like Coming to Church

Jessica Brooks Seals – Grandma's Jukebox

McKenzie Chinn – What to Send Up, When IT Does Down

Melanie Victoria – Pulled Punches

Liberty Clay – Living All Alone, the Phyllis Hyman Musical

           

Special Recognition in Theater:

Felicia P. Fields – Pearl’s Rollin’ With the Blues: A Night with Felicia P. Fields

Jerod Haynes – Two Trains Running

Kierra Bunch – Two Trains Running

Mildred Langford – Intimate Apparel

Al’Jaleel McGhee – Intimate Apparel

Ayanna Bria Bakari – Relentless

 

DANCE 

 

Outstanding Achievement for Dance Company Production:  

Praize Productions – NINE

South Chicago Dance Theatre – An Evening with South Chicago Dance

MUNTU – MAMAYA

           

Outstanding Achievement for Choreographer:

Vershawn-Sanders-Ward – BLACKBIRD

Trevon Lawrence & Anthony Sampson – REACT

Kevin Iega Jeff – SURRENDER

Joel Hall – FOUR WOMEN

           

Special Recognition in Dance:

Muntu 50th Anniversary 

           

VISUAL ART

 

Outstanding Achievement for a Gallery/Exhibition:

South Side Community Art Center – EMERGENCE – Curated by Lamar Gayles, Jr and zakkiyyah najeebah dumas o'neal

Blanc Gallery – To Whom This Ground Belongs – Curated by Jalen Hamilton

Anthony Gallery – In The Eye of the Beholder – Curated by Isimeme "Easy" Otabor

 

Outstanding Achievement for an Individual Artist:

Brandon Breaux – BIG WORDS

Rose Blouin – To Washington Park, with Love

Gerald Lovell – In The Eye of the Beholder

           

DIGITAL MEDIA/TECHNOLOGY

 

Outstanding Achievement in Digital Media:   

Jewel Ifeguni – How We Got Here

Crystal Marshal – Real Talk in Jeans

Cody Mack – What's the Word TV

           

LITERATURE

 

Outstanding Achievement in Fiction:

Rahsaan Lewis – Forgotten Heir

Clyde David Jones – The Lost Babies of Dexter Street

Tracy Clark – What You Don't See (A Chicago Mystery)

           

Outstanding Achievement in Non-Fiction:

Mark Davis – Race Traitors

Dawn Turner – Three Girls from Bronzeville

Bernard Turner – A View of Bronzeville

           

Outstanding Achievement in Children’s Literature:   

Evan J. Roberts – Share Share Share

Darryl Harvey – What Do You Do When A Bully Picks on You?

Tony Lindsey – Almost Grown

The Black Excellence Awards, a lavish awards ceremony honoring outstanding artists and arts organizations in the categories of music, film, literature, theater, dance, visual arts, and technology is produced by the African American Arts Alliance of Chicago. The award was created to honor the voices, trailblazers, innovators, and risk takers, whose performances and works of art represent a wide representation of the arts in Chicago. The Alliance is committed to celebrating the artistic vitality of Chicago's African American community by recognizing their excellence through The Black Excellence Awards.

The Black Excellence Committee is a 33-member committee of the African American Arts Alliance of Chicago made up of art lovers and supporters from the community. Formed in 2001, the purpose of the Black Excellence Committee is to identify outstanding African American individuals and organizations working in the arts. The membership of each committee is made up of art lovers within the Chicago community. Each committee member must serve on a sub-committee in film, music, literature, dance, theater, visual arts, or technology/digital media. Each sub-committee must identify and nominate artists for the opportunity to receive a Black Excellence Award at the Annual Black Excellence Award Gala and has judging criteria specific to their art form. To serve on the Black Excellence Committee member must have a passion for the arts and the time to experience the work of as many artists and art organizations as possible within the category.

 

The Black Excellence Awards Committee Members are: Tanita Abrahamson, Mike Abrantie, Alan Davis, Ernson Augustin, Allan Baldwin, Ezra Brown, Pamela Brown, Marcus Bullock, Hilda Coleman, Sylvia Dyer, Erika Flowers, Sandra Gibson, Wilburn Green, Barbara Hayes, Valeria Hubbard, Jewel Ifeguni, Ivy Jackson, Elneda Khaan, Denise Leaks, Ronald Leveston, Claudette Lewis​, Portia McFarland, Barnetta Montgomery-McKinney, Lynette Moore, Alicia Moore, Rahsaan Clark Morris, Kim DuBoise Morris, Delaware Patricia, Mae Pearson, Troy Pryor, Alice Rivers, Pamela Roberts, Dara Sanders, Gwendolyn Sea, Bonnie Taylor-Williams, Gabrina Thornton, Scott Tia, Covana Washington, David Weathersby, Etta Williams, Wanda Young, and Roxanne Walton.

About the African American Arts Alliance

In 1997 a group of Chicago’s leading African American artists and arts organizations came together and formed a new organization; incorporated as the African American Arts Alliance of Chicago. This organization embraced the history of the original 1977 Chicago Black Theater Alliance while expanding their scope to include diverse groups of artistic mediums which includes theaters, dance, music, literature, film, visual arts organizations, and individuals.

 

The mission of the African American Art Alliance is to increase public awareness, interaction, communication and development of African American arts organizations and individuals while delivering programs that increase their visibility, marketability, stability, and sustainability.

 

The Board of Directors includes: President Jackie Taylor (Black Ensemble Theater, Executive Director), Vice President Runako Jahi, Jackie Williams (AAAA Chicago, Executive Director), Treasurer Wendell Etherly (Playwright), Charlique-Rolle (Congo Square Theatre, Executive Director), Chuck Smith (Goodman Theatre, Associate Director), Cheryl Lynn Bruce (Goodman Theatre), Sydney Chatman (Tofu Chitlin' Circuit), Vershawn Sanders-Ward (Red Clay Dance), and Troy Pryor (Producer/Perfomer).

 

The AAAA is supported in part by the MacArthur Foundation, Fifth Third Bank, The Chicago Community Trust, Illinois Arts Council Agency, The Field Foundation of Illinois, the Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), the Driehaus Foundation, the Walder Foundation, and the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation

SWEENEY TODD: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Via Kokandy Productions September 8 – November 6, 2022 at The Chopin Theatre

  ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

Kokandy Productions Presents

SWEENEY TODD: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street 

Music & Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by Hugh Wheeler

Directed and Choreographed by

Producing Artistic Director Derek Van Barham

Music Direction by Nick Sula

September 8 – November 6, 2022 at The Chopin Theatre

 

Kokandy Productions is thrilled to continue its 10th anniversary season with an intimate, in-the-round revival of Stephen Sondheim’s macabre masterpiece Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, featuring music and lyrics by Sondheim, book by Hugh Wheeler, direction and choreography by Producing Artistic Director Derek Van Barham (he/him) and music direction by Nick Sula (he/him). Just in time for Halloween, the already atmospheric Chopin Theatre basement will be transformed into 19th century London, daring audiences to attend this haunting, harrowing tale playing September 8 – November 6, 2022 at 1543 W. Division St. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are now on sale at bit.ly/SweeneyChicago. 

The cast includes Kevin Webb and Caitlin Jackson as Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett, partners in coiffed and culinary crime. They are joined by Quinn Rigg (Adolfo Pirell/Jonas Fogg), Isabel Cecilia García (Beggar Woman), Christopher Johnson (Judge Turpin), Josiah Haugen (Beadle Bamford), Chamaya Moody (Johanna),Patrick O’Keefe (Tobias Ragg) and Ryan Stajmiger (Anthony Hope). The Fleet Street ensemble includes Joel Arreola, Brittney Brown, Ethan Carlson, Stephanie Chiodras, Christopher Johnson, Nikki Krzebiot, Charlie Mann and Daniel Rausch. Swings include Tyler DeLoatch, Nathan Kabara and Angela Yu.

Sweeney Todd has become a bloody, worldwide success since being awarded eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical for its Broadway premiere. An infamous tale, Sweeney Todd, an unjustly exiled barber, returns to nineteenth century London, seeking vengeance against the lecherous judge who framed him and ravaged his young wife. The road to revenge leads Todd to Mrs. Lovett, a resourceful proprietress of a failing pie shop. Mrs. Lovett's luck sharply shifts when Todd's thirst for blood inspires the integration of an ingredient into her meat pies that has the people of London hungry for more. Stephen Sondheim's and Hugh Wheeler's tasty, thrilling, theatrical treat has simultaneously shocked, awed and delighted audiences around the world.

Kokandy Producing Artistic Director Derek Van Barham comments, “For our 10thanniversary season, it felt important to celebrate with a master of the musical form–and it doesn’t get much better than Sondheim. It will be fun to take on another tale of revenge, but this time with a twist on class. Whereas Cruel Intentions allows the elite to wreak havoc, no one is safe in Sweeney Todd, where those above will serve those down below. Another show of the flesh, this will be a dark delight for the Halloween season, a Sweeney you can smell and taste and feel.”

The production team includes G "Max" Maxin IV (he/him, Scenic and Lighting Designer), Rachel Sypniewski (she/her, Costume Designer), Mike Patrick (he/him, Sound Designer), Kirsten Baity (they/them, Intimacy Choreographer), Drew Donnelly (he/him, Stage Manager), Andrew Lund (he/they, Assistant Director), Vivica Powell (she/her, Assistant Choreographer), Roman Sanchez (he/him, Casting Associate), Scot Kokandy (he/him, Executive Producer) and Derek Van Barham (he/him, Producing Artistic Director).

COVID-19 safety: Patrons are required to wear a face mask when not actively eating or drinking. The theatre will no longer require proof of vaccination to attend a production.

 

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Cast (in alphabetical order): Joel Arreola (he/him, ensemble, Toby u/s), Brittney Brown (she/her, ensemble, Lovett u/s), Ethan Carlson (he/him, ensemble, u/s Turpin), Stephanie Chiodras (she/her, ensemble, Beggar Woman u/s), Isabel Cecilia García (they/them, Beggar Woman), Josiah Haugen (he/him, Beadle Bamford), Caitlin Jackson (she/her, Mrs. Lovett), Christopher Johnson (he/him, Judge Turpin, Sweeney u/s), Nikki Krzebiot (she/her, ensemble, Johanna u/s), Charlie Mann (he/him, ensemble, Beadle u/s), Chamaya Moody (she/her, Johanna), Patrick O'Keefe (he/him, Tobias Rigg),  Daniel Rausch (he/him, ensemble, Anthony u/s), Quinn Rigg (he/him, Adolfo Pirelli, Jonas Fogg), Ryan Stajmiger (he/him, Anthony Hope) and Kevin Webb (he/him, Sweeney Todd).

Swings: Tyler DeLoatch (he/him, u/s ensemble), Nathan Kabara (he/they, ensemble u/s) and Angela Yu (she/her, ensemble u/s). 

Location: The Chopin Theatre (Studio), 1543 W Division St. in Chicago

Dates: Previews: Thursday, September 8 at 7 pm, Friday, September 9 at 7 pm, Saturday, September 10 at 7 pm, Sunday, September 11 at 5 pm and Thursday, September 15 at 7 pm

Regular run: Saturday, September 17 – Sunday, November 6, 2022

Curtain Times: Wednesday, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7 pm; Sundays at 5 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Wednesday, October 5.

Industry Night; Monday, October 24 at 7 pm

Tickets: Previews $25 (with code “PREVIEW). Regular run $40. Students/senior $30. There will be a limited number of $15 tickets available for students and artists for each performance. Tickets are now on sale at bit.ly/SweeneyChicago.

 

About the Artists

Derek Van Barham (Director/Choreographer, he/him) is the Producing Artistic Director of Kokandy Productions. He previously served as Associate Artistic Director of Pride Films & Plays and Artistic Director of The Ruckus. Directing credits include Head Over Heels (Kokandy); The View Upstairs (Circle Theatre); Three Days of Rain(BoHo Theatre); Miracle by Dan Savage, Poseidon, Skooby Don’t (Hell in a Handbag); Hot Pink, TRASH (New American Folk); Taylor Mac’s A Walk Across America for Mother Earth (CCPA); From These Fatal Loins (The Ruckus); Homos, or Everyone in America, Perfect Arrangement, Angry Fags in Steppenwolf Garage Rep, Songs from an Unmade Bed (Jeff nomination) and PRISCILLA, Queen of the Desert (PFP). He was named one of Windy City Times 30 Under 30, recognizing individuals from Chicago's LGBTQ community. MFA: Chicago College of the Performing Arts (CCPA) at Roosevelt University. www.derekvanbarham.com IG: @dvbarham 

Nick Sula (Music Director, he/him) is a pianist, arranger and award-winning music director for theater and cabaret. Music Direction credits include Ghost Quartet (Jeff nomination), Nevermore, Amour, Coraline (Black Button Eyes); Myths & Hymns, The Glorious Ones (Jeff nomination), Pippin (BoHo Theatre), His & His, Boys in Briefs, Broadway at the Broadway (Pride Films and Plays); Head Over Heels, The Pajama Game, The Pirates of Penzance (CCPA). He performs with vocalists at venues such as Davenport’s Piano Bar, Skokie Theatre, Drew’s on Halsted and the Park West, and teaches as a music director, instructor and vocal coach at the Chicago College of Performing Arts (CCPA) at Roosevelt University.

 

About Kokandy Productions

Founded in 2010, Kokandy Productions seeks to leverage the heightened reality of musical theater to tell complex and challenging stories, with a focus on contributing to the development of Chicago-based musical theater artists, and raising the profile of Chicago's non-Equity musical theater community.

The company's artistic staff is comprised of Derek Van Barham (Producing Artistic Director), Scot T. Kokandy (Executive Producer) and Adrian Abel Azevedo & Leda Hoffman (Artistic Associates). The Board of Directors includes Preston Cropp, Allison Hendrix, Scot T. Kokandy, and Katie Svaicer. 

For additional information, visit www.kokandyproductions.com. 

World Premiere of Campaigns, Inc. Now Extended Through September 25, 2022 at TimeLine Theatre

 ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar

WILL ALLAN’S 

CAMPAIGNS, INC., 

A WORLD PREMIERE, ELECTION SEASON COMEDY ABOUT THE ORIGINS OF “FAKE NEWS,” DEBUTS AUGUST 3 – SEPTEMBER 25, 2022 AT TIMELINE THEATRE

NICK BOWLING DIRECTS ALLAN’S HILARIOUS LOOK AT THE SMEAR CAMPAIGN THAT STYMIED UPTON SINCLAIR’S 1934 CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR’S RACE

Pictured (from top left): Campaigns, Inc. playwright Will Allan and director Nick Bowling. Tyler Meredith and Yuriy Sardarov star as Leone Baxter and Clem Whitaker, the co-founders of Campaigns, Inc. The cast also includes TimeLine Company Members Anish Jethmalani and David Parkes and TimeLine Associate Artist Terry Hamilton, plus Jacqueline Grandt, Matt Mueller, and Mark Ulrich. 

TimeLine Theatre Company returns to its longtime home at 615 W. Wellington Avenue in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood for its 26th season opener, the world premiere of Campaigns, Inc.

Written by TimeLine Company Member Will Allan and directed by TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling, Campaigns, Inc. is a timely, fast-paced, and funny screwball comedy about the serious power that persuasion, deceit, and perception hold in the U.S. electoral system. 

Campaigns, Inc. is a hysterical and jaw-dropping inside look at the underbelly of politics through the lens of two of the undeniable founders of “fake news,” Leone Baxter and Clem Whitaker. The year is 1934, and Baxter and Whitaker have just formed the first political consulting firm in U.S. history. Famous novelist Upton Sinclair is all but guaranteed to become the first Democratic governor of the state of California—until this young, unknown pair of consultants from the shadows of the challenger’s campaign attempt to take him down. As Republican nominee Frank Merriam and Sinclair battle it out in the spotlight—seeking endorsements from the likes of Charlie Chaplin and FDR—Baxter and Whitaker work behind-the-scenes to methodically construct one of the most spectacular, unbelievable, and star-studded political smear campaigns ever.

Campaigns, Inc. co-founders are played by Tyler Meredith (she/her), in her TimeLine debut as Leone Baxter, and Yuriy Sardarov (he/him) as Clem Whitaker. Chicago theatre fans will recall Sardarov performing in TimeLine’s memorable 2009 production of The History Boys before landing the role of Otis on NBC’s Chicago Fire.

The cast also features TimeLine Company Member Anish Jethmalani (he/him) as Upton Sinclair and David Parkes (he/him) as FDR/Louis B. Mayer/Douglas Fairbanks/others, and TimeLine Associate Artist Terry Hamilton (he/him) as Frank Merriam. Jacqueline Grandt (she/her) as Eleanor Roosevelt/Mary Pickford/others, Matt Mueller (he/him) as Charlie Chaplin, and Mark Ulrich (he/him) as George Hatfield complete the cast.

Performances now extended through September 25th, due to popular demand, at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood. For tickets and information, visit timelinetheatre.com or call the TimeLine Box Office at (773) 281-8463 x6.

FAKE NEWS, LIES, AND PROPAGANDA:

BEHIND THE SCENES OF CAMPAIGNS, INC.

 Setting the Stage: CAMPAIGNS, INC.

"The number one thing? Vote. The number two thing? Come see my play." Watch playwright Will Allan set the stage for TimeLine Theatre's world premiere of Campaigns, Inc.

“Campaigns, Inc. is the story of America, or really, it’s the story of how screwed up our political system is,” said director Nick Bowling. “The true story of Baxter and Whitaker is the center of the play, but it is also about the right and left of America—the dirty dealings of politics that pushes those two groups further and further from each other. It’s about the power of winning and what people will do to achieve that.”

“I think my favorite response to this play is ‘wait … is that real?’ And while I have taken some dramatic liberties, a lot of it is very real. I also want people to laugh. The current political climate is so volatile that I wanted a play about politics that is fun to watch,” said playwright Will Allan. “Baxter and Whitaker are relatively unknown and they changed the game of politics forever, especially Leone Baxter, a woman being president of a company and accomplishing what she did in the 1930s, it is truly remarkable.” 

Campaigns, Inc. was developed through the same TimeLine Playwrights Collective that brought Tyla Abercrumbie’s break-out new play, Relentless, to its acclaimed world premiere run last season at TimeLine, followed by a transfer and extended sold-out run at Goodman Theatre.

TimeLine’s Playwrights Collective was launched in 2013 to support Chicago-based playwrights in residence and create new work centered on TimeLine’s mission of presenting plays inspired by history that connect to today’s social and political issues. Campaigns, Inc. is now the third play developed through the Collective to receive a full production, after Relentless and Brett Neveu’s To Catch a Fish, which premiered at TimeLine in 2018.

TimeLine’s production team for Campaigns, Inc. includes Sydney Lynne (Scenic Designer, she/her), Sally Dolembo (Costume Designer, she/her), Jared Gooding (Lighting Designer, he/him), Forrest Gregor (Co-Sound Designer, he/him), Andrew Hansen (Co-Sound Designer, he/him), Rowen Doe (Properties Designer, they/them/), Anthony Churchill (Projections Designer, he/him), Katie Cordts (Co-Wig and Hair Designer she/her), Megan Pirtle (Co-Wig and Hair Designer and Associate Costume Designer, she/her), Sammi Grant (Dialect Director, she/her), Alka Nayyar (Associate Director, she/her), Maren Robinson (Dramaturg, she/her), and Miranda Anderson (Stage Manager, she/her).

CAMPAIGNS, INC. PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE/EVENTS

Regular performances continue through September 25: Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.; Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 p.m. Exceptions: No 4 p.m. performance Saturday August 13. Show time Sunday, August 21 is 4 p.m.

BUYING TICKETS

Single tickets to Campaigns, Inc. go on sale Wednesday, July 6 at timelinetheatre.com or by calling the TimeLine Box Office at (773) 281-8463 x6.

Preview tickets are $25. Single tickets to regular performances start at $42 (Wednesday through Friday), $49 (Saturday evenings) and $57 (Saturday and Sunday matinees). Student discount is 35% off regular price with valid ID. TimeLine is also a member of TCG’s Blue Star Theatre Program and is offering $25 tickets to U.S. military personnel, veterans, first responders, and their spouses and family.

Discounted rates for groups of 10 or more are available. Ticket buyers age 18-35 may join TimeLine’s free MyLine program to obtain access to discounted tickets, special events and more. Visit timelinetheatre.com/discounts for more about available discounts.

LOCATION/TRANSPORTATION/PARKING

Campaigns, Inc. will take place at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, near the corner of Wellington and Broadway, inside the former Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ building, now Chabad East Lakeview.

TimeLine is served by multiple CTA trains and buses. There are multiple paid parking options nearby, plus limited free and metered street parking. Visit timelinetheatre.com for details and available discounts.

DISCUSSIONS, EVENTS, AND ACCESSIBILITY

TimeLine’s schedule of post-show discussions, pre-show discussions, a Company Member discussion, and Sunday Scholars panel discussion, plus accessibility services such as distanced performances, captioned performances, and an audio-described performance, are still to be announced. Event dates and details will be posted on TimeLine’s website at timelinetheatre.com once available.

TimeLine Theatre is accessible to people with disabilities. Two wheelchair lifts provide access from street level to the theatre space and to lower-level restrooms. Audience members using wheelchairs

or who need to avoid stairs, and others with special seating or accessibility needs should contact the TimeLine Box Office in advance to confirm arrangements.

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Since returning to live performances in January 2022, TimeLine has been ensuring COVID-19 vaccination and mask requirements for audiences, artists, and staff. In general, protocols have required that patrons be masked and fully vaccinated with an FDA-authorized vaccine in order to attend. These protocols are subject to change as the pandemic evolves. For current information about TimeLine’s COVID-19 safety protocols, visit timelinetheatre.com/health-and-safety.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

TimeLine’s 2022-23 subscription season includes two more riveting plays that link past, present and future: a landmark classic that recently enjoyed a Tony Award-nominated production on Broadway, and another exciting world premiere from a Los Angeles-based playwright new to Chicago.

Trouble in Mind by Alice Childress, directed by TimeLine Company Member Ron OJ Parson, a scathingly funny backstage drama about interracial politics and the complex, difficult, and often emotional way people talk about race. Previews start November 2, 2022. Press Night is Wednesday, November 9 at 7:30 p.m. Performances run through December 18.

The world premiere of Boulevard of Bold Dreams by LaDarrion Williams, directed by Malkia Stampley, set on the night in 1940 that Hattie McDaniel made history at the Oscars, this is a story of dreamers striving to overcome considerable obstacles and fighting for recognition amidst the racism and inequity of Hollywood. Previews start February 1, 2023. Press Night is Wednesday, February 8 at 7:30 p.m. Performances run through March 19.

Save on tickets to TimeLine’s 2022-23 season with a 3-Admission FlexPass Subscription. Four different tiers, priced from $74.50 to $178, are now on sale. For more information and to purchase, call (773) 281-8463 x6 or visit timelinetheatre.com .

All three 2022-23 productions will be presented at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Avenue in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. 

ABOUT TIMELINE THEATRE COMPANY

TimeLine Theatre Company, recipient of the prestigious 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, was founded in April 1997 with a mission to present stories inspired by history that connect with today's social and political issues. Currently launching its 26th season, TimeLine has presented 84 productions, including 11 world premieres and 39 Chicago premieres, and launched the Living History Education Program, which brings the company's mission to life for students in Chicago Public Schools. Recipient of the Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence and the Richard Goodman Strategic Planning Award from the Association for Strategic Planning, TimeLine has received 58 Jeff Awards, including an award for Outstanding Production 11 times.

The company has long been bursting at the seams of its current leased home located at 615 W. Wellington Avenue in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, where the theatre has been in residence since 1999. In December 2018, TimeLine announced the purchase of property at 5033-35 North Broadway in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood to be the site of its new home. Plans feature an intimate black box theatre seating up to 250 audience members, expanded area for the immersive lobby experiences that are a TimeLine hallmark, new opportunities for education and engagement, room to allow audience members to arrive early and stay late for theatergoing experiences that extend far beyond the stage, and more. TimeLine is working with HGA as architect for its new home project, which is expected to be completed in 2024.

TimeLine is led by Artistic Director PJ Powers, Executive Director Mica Cole, and Board President John Sterling. TimeLine Company members are Tyla Abercrumbie, Will Allan, Nick Bowling, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Wardell Julius Clark, Behzad Dabu, Charles Andrew Gardner, Lara Goetsch, Juliet Hart, Anish Jethmalani, Mildred Marie Langford, Mechelle Moe, David Parkes, Ron OJ Parson, PJ Powers, and Maren Robinson.

Major corporate, government and foundation supporters of TimeLine Theatre include Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Arts Consulting Group, Bayless Family Foundation, The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation, Crown Family Philanthropies, Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation, Forum Fund, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Illinois Arts Council Agency, Laughing Acres Family Foundation, MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, National Endowment for the Arts, Polk Bros. Foundation, Pritzker Traubert Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, United States Small Business Administration, and Walder Foundation.

For more information, visit timelinetheatre.com or Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram (@TimeLineTheatre).

BIOGRAPHIES

 

Will Allan (Playwright), a TimeLine Company Member and member of the 2017-18 Playwrights Collective, is a former Chicago-based actor and playwright who now resides in Los Angeles. His Chicago debut was as a member of the original cast of TimeLine's Chicago premiere of The History Boys (directed by Nick Bowling, Equity Jeff Awards—Production and Ensemble). Campaigns, Inc. is his first full-length play, and he is ecstatic that the place he got his start as an actor is the place he'll get his start as a professional playwright. During his decade in Chicago, he performed in numerous productions with Steppenwolf, Goodman, Chicago Shakespeare, Victory Gardens, Remy Bumppo, Theater Wit, and more. Regionally, he has performed with Milwaukee Repertory, Indiana Repertory, Cardinal Stage, and The Human Race Theatre Company. His film and TV acting credits include Awkwafina is Nora from Queens, Chicago Fire, Station 19, Chicago Justice, Runner, and the upcoming Netflix film Unfrosted: The Pop Tarts Story directed by Jerry Seinfeld. His first short film (as screenwriter, producer, and actor), Star Vehicle, will be making the festival rounds throughout 2022 and 2023. A native of Dayton, Ohio, Allan studied at Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia and earned his BA degree in Theatre Performance from North Central College in Naperville, Illinois.

Nick Bowling (Director) was the founding Artistic Director and is now Associate Artistic Director and a Company Member of TimeLine Theatre, where he has directed more than 30 productions. He is the recipient of eight Jeff Awards for Outstanding Direction (The History Boys, The Normal Heart, Fiorello!, This Happy Breed, and The Crucible at TimeLine, Ragtime at Marriott Theatre, Sondheim on Sondheim at Porchlight Music Theatre, and Another Part of the Forest at Eclipse Theatre) and also received Jeff Award nominations for Oslo, Blood and Gifts, The Farnsworth Invention, Hauptmann, and The Lion in Winter at TimeLine; Closer Than Ever at Porchlight Music Theatre; and City of Angels, The King and I, and Man of La Mancha at Marriott Theatre. Other recent credits at TimeLine include the Chicago premiere of J.T. Rogers’ Oslo at Broadway In Chicago’s Broadway Playhouse, Master Class, The Audience, A Disappearing Number, The Last Wife, and Blood and Gifts. Other Chicago credits include Marriott’s The Sound of Music, Oliver!, and The Bridges of Madison County, Paramount's A Christmas Story, Northwestern University’s Guys and Dolls and Cabaret, Porchlight’s A Catered Affair, Writers Theatre's Bach at Leipzig, and Shattered Globe Theatre's Time of the Cuckoo and Frozen Assets.

About Face Theatre announces 2022-2023 Season Advancing LGBTQ+ Equity

AFT’s 28th season will include two world-premiere plays building on its mission to advance LGBTQ+ equity

About Face Theatre is excited to announce plans for its 28th season. Dedicated to advancing LGBTQ+ equity through community building, education, and performance, AFT will present two world-premiere productions at The Den Theatre in Wicker Park, as well as workshops and projects in development.

About Face’s 2022-2023 season will begin in November 2022 with the world premiere of Omer Abbas Salem’s new play Mosque4Mosque, directed by Sophiyaa Nayar. Mosque4Mosque is a family comedy about a queer Arab-American Muslim man navigating his first real relationship while his relentlessly caring immigrant mother tries to find the perfect man for him to marry. In May 2023 the company will present the world premiere of Gender Play, or what you Will, a new one-person performance co-created by Will Wilhelm and Erin Murray. Gender Play, or what you Will is a highly personal exploration of the works of William Shakespeare through a gender-imaginative lens.

Clockwise, from upper left: Omer Abbas Salem, Sophiyaa Nayar, Erin Murray, Will Wilhelm.  

Throughout the year, About Face Theatre will continue its commitment to leadership development, intergenerational collaboration, and learning opportunities. AFT’s Green Room Collective will enter its second full year supporting early career LGBTQ+ arts leaders with part-time staff roles. In addition, creative workshops will explore new possibilities for programs asking, "Who are we becoming? What are our collective dreams? How will we grow together?" Further details will be available on the website later this fall.

“Connect, grow, and find joy with us”, invites About Face Theatre Artistic Director, Megan Carney. “The stories in our upcoming season combine bravery and humor to deepen community connections and move us toward a more just world. These productions combined with signature About Face programs and new work development promise a year of visionary collaborations ahead.”

 

ABOUT FACE THEATRE’S 2022-2023 SEASON

Mosque4Mosque

Written by Omer Abbas Salem

Directed by Sophiyaa Nayar

 

November 17 - December 17, 2022  |  Press opening: Mon, Nov 21, 2022 @ 7:30pm

Typical showtimes: Thurs & Fri @ 7:30pm, Sat @ 3:00pm and 7:30pm, Sun @ 3:00pm

Check the calendar for schedule details around holidays. All performances will take place at The Den Theatre, 1331 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago

 

Pay-what-you-can tickets ($5-$35) will go on sale in the coming weeks at The Den Theatre box office or About Face Theatre’s website.

Ibrahim is an average 30-something queer Arab-American Muslim who is constantly being reminded how unmarried he is by his relentlessly caring immigrant mother, Sara. Having helped raise his smart, popular, cheerleading hijabi younger sister, Ibrahim has always been comfortable sinking into the background. Normal job, quiet life, easy men. But on the precipice of finding what could be his first real relationship, Sara feels compelled to take Ibrahim's future into her own hands by attempting to find the perfect man for him to marry. Mosque4Mosque is a comedy about a normal Muslim American family that asks us to wrestle with what we believe normal to be.

Mosque4Mosque was workshopped and performed virtually through the Criminal Queerness Festival and Dixon Place in July 2020, directed by Sharifa Elkady. It was selected to be Steppenwolf Theatre's SCOUT Development play for 2020 and received a 30-hour workshop and a fully produced reading in March of 2021. This world premiere production at About Face Theatre will receive dramaturgical and community engagement support from Silk Road Rising.

Director Sophiyaa Nayar says “Activist and author adrienne maree brown describes visionary fiction as centering marginalized peoples, ‘aiming neither for utopia nor dystopia, but that harder, more realistic place in the middle.’ Mosque4Mosque does exactly that -- it reimagines what our relationship with religion, queerness, and family could look like. It dismantles stereotypes about Arab, Muslim, and immigrant families, which are often harmfully painted in the media as violent caricatures or side-plot comedic relief.

“I can see myself in Abbas’ work. I see my family in it,” she continued. “I see Arab friends I've grown up with and their families in it. He paints these characters with such concrete detail and infuses them with so much life that it’s hard not to root for them. A friend once talked about how you can smell his plays when you read them, and I think that holds especially true with Mosque4Mosque.”

 

Gender Play, or what you Will

Co-Created by Will Wilhelm and Erin Murray

Performed by Will Wilhelm

Directed by Erin Murray

May 4 - June 3, 2023  |  Press opening: Fri, May 12, 2023

Typical showtimes: Thurs & Fri @ 7:30pm, Sat @ 3:00pm and 7:30pm, Sun @ 3:00pm

at The Den Theatre, 1331 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago

Pay-what-you-can tickets ($5-$35) will go on sale in the coming weeks at The Den Theatre box office or About Face Theatre’s website.

The classic works of Shakespeare are filled with queerness: cross-dressing, homoeroticism, the fluidity of masculine and feminine gender roles, and so many phallic puns! In this one-person show, actor Will Wilhelm conjures the spirit of playwright William Shakespeare to examine the Bard’s works through their own queer perspectives and life experiences. Together, Will & Will propose a new reason to keep these old stories alive: not as a relic of what our society has been, but as a testament to seeing ourselves reflected in history. Gender Play, or what you Will invites guests to share a mystical evening of laughter, poetry, and tarot that coalesces into a celebration of queer joy.

Gender Play, or what you Will explores fresh, contemporary pathways into the classics. The play was developed with support from About Face Theatre, Island Shakespeare Festival, Northwestern University and the Arts Midwest’s Grow, Invest, Gather Fund.

“I love the conversation of Gender Play,” says director Erin Murray. “It is a smart exchange about how and why we continue to stage classic theatre that leaves the viewer feeling inspired and informed. Will Wilhelm is as vivacious as they are provocative.”

“And yet,” she says, “if you haven't picked up a play since your 9th grade R&J reading assignment, this show will happily carry you on its back and serve you a smile. It asks you to be gentle with yourself and those around you as it secures you into a wild ride through history and personal stories. In Gender Play, or what you Will, the audiences will find new peace in being once again part of a collective.”

 

LEADERSHIP AND EDUCATION

Leadership and education programming at About Face Theatre will include programs and workshops that combine storytelling and theatre making with wellness practices and community connections. Participants in the next cohort of the Green Room Collective leadership program will contribute in meaningful ways on projects throughout the season while strengthening their individual skills. The year ahead will also feature a unique play reading series that explores different models for production.

 

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Sophiyaa Nayar (she/her): Mosque4Mosque director

Sophiyaa is from New Delhi, India. She creates interdisciplinary and genre-bending work that centers (im)migrants. She is a member of the WP Lab 2020-22, 3Arts Make a Wave Grantee, a Definition Theatre ensemble member, a member of Directors' Lab Chicago 2017, and a resident in Milwaukee Rep’s 2017/18 season. Recent directing credits: MODERN WOMEN by Omer Abbas Salem (Playwrights Unit Reading, Goodman Theatre), PLURAL (LOVE) by Jen Goma and Haruna Lee (WP, Pipeline Festival), SHAKUNTALA by Lavina Jadhwani (Future Labs, Goodman Theatre). LOVE IN THE TIME OF JONESTOWN: A RADIO PLAY by Omer Abbas Salem (New Coordinates), GOOD YEARS by Ada Alozie (Film, Definition Theatre), PRETTY SHAHID by Omer Abbas Salem (Jackalope Theatre). Recent AD credits: SEARCH FOR SIGNS OF INTELLIGENT LIFE… with Cecily Strong (Leigh Silverman), NOLLYWOOD DREAMS (Saheem Ali). She was part of the SDC Foundation’s Observership Class, through which she worked on SOFT POWER by Jeanine Tesori and David Henry Hwang at The Public. Her production of ETHIOPIANAMERICA By Sam Kebede (Definition Theatre) won Black Theatre Alliance Awards for Best Play, Featured Actor and Actress, and a Jeff award for Fight Choreography. She has developed work with Steppenwolf,  Center Theatre Group, The Shed, American Players Theatre, Writers Theatre, Jackalope, Milwaukee Rep, and MCC theatre. Her recent touring show, MOVEMENT LIVE is headed to Lincoln Center in 2023. More on sophiyaanayar.net.

Abbas Salem (he/him): Mosque4Mosque playwright

Omer Abbas Salem is a Chicago actor and playwright. As an actor, he's worked with Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, The New Coordinates, Jackalope Theatre, Steep Theatre, Silk Road Rising, Griffin Theatre, The House, Bailiwick Chicago, Actors Theatre of Louisville, St. Louis Rep, Roundabout Theater, and The Atlantic Theater. As a playwright, his work has been developed and produced at Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Jackalope Theatre, First Floor Theater, DePaul University, National Queer Theater, Definition Theatre, About Face Theater, and The New Coordinates. He is the winner of Steppenwolf's SCOUT Development Project (20/21), Definition Theatre's Amplify Commission (20/21), Goodman Theatre's Future Labs Development (21), The Cunningham Commission at DePaul Theatre School (21/22), Goodman Theatre's Playwrights Unit (21/22) and First Floor Theater's Blueprint Commission (21/22). He was an apprentice of the Actors Theatre of Louisville (17/18) and is also a proud ensemble member with Jackalope Theatre, Steep Theatre, First Floor Theater, and The New Coordinates. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign and the University of Chicago. During the day, he's a Client Strategist in new-tech. Abbas is represented by DDO Artist Agency and The Gersh Agency. More at omerabbassalem.com.

Will Wilhelm (they/them): Gender Play, or what you Will co-creator

Will Wilhelm is a Chicago-based actor, writer, and educator. They were most recently seen as Angel in RENT (Portland Center Stage). Select Chicago credits include MR. BURNS (Theater Wit), STRAIGHT WHITE MEN (Steppenwolf Theatre), NOTEBOOKS OF LEONARDO DA VINCI (Goodman Theatre), and MY WONDERFUL BIRTHDAY SUIT (Chicago Children’s Theatre). Other regional credits include OKLAHOMA!, AS YOU LIKE IT, and MACBETH (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), where they were the first non-binary company member in the festival’s history. With Erin Murray, they are also the co-creator of the video podcast series TEACAKES & TAROT, produced by Island Shakespeare Festival and HowlRound Theatre Commons. In 2020, Will wrote “Gender is Performance” for HowlRound and was featured in the Chicago Tribune. A proud Northwestern graduate, Will is represented by Gray Talent Group. WillWilhelm.com

Erin Murray (she/her): Gender Play, or what you Will co-creator

Erin has directed both nationally and internationally in her twenty-year directing career. In 2005, Erin directed the Irish premiere of HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH (Best Production at the Speigeltent) which was remounted at Project Arts Centre in 2006. Erin was Staff Director for Ireland's Opera Theatre Company for three seasons and toured six fully staged English translation productions internationally. Favorite directing credits include Anne Washburn’s THE INTERNATIONALIST (Steppenwolf Garage), the Chicago premiere of Suzanne Heathcote’s I SAW MY NEIGHBOR ON THE TRAIN AND I DIDN’T EVEN SMILE (Redtwist), and the Seattle premiere of Annie Baker’s JOHN (ArtsWest). She was the Executive Producer on the sold-out 2012 world premiere of Ariel Zetina's PINK MILK: A MAGIC TRAGEDY BASED ON THE LIFE OF ALAN TURING at New York International Fringe and Chicago Fringe Festival. Erin has also adapted and created new work for audiences of all ages. She celebrated the world premiere of her adaptation, CYRANO DE BERGERAC: A QUEEROIC COMEDY WITH MANY ACTS, with Island Shakespeare Festival in July 2022; her adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's GHOSTS premiered in Chicago in 2018. Erin worked with Seattle artivist Ana Maria Campoy to adapt and direct Seattle Shakespeare Company's first bilingual school WA state tours TAMING OF THE SHREW/ LA FIERECILLA DOMADA (2017) and TWELFTH NIGHT/DUODÉCIMA NOCHE (2018). Additional collaborations with Will Wilhelm include the video podcast series TEACAKES & TAROT: CONVERSATIONS WITH QUEER FUTURISTS produced by Island Shakespeare Festival in 2020 and later in association with HowlRound Theatre Commons. Guests include Robert O'Hara, Bill Rauch, P Carl, and Lisa Wolpe with episodes available wherever you enjoy your podcasts.  Education: MFA Theatre Directing, Northwestern University; BA, Trinity College Dublin. ErinMurrayDirects.com.

ABOUT FACE THEATRE advances LGBTQ+ equity through community building, education, and performance. Learn more at aboutfacetheatre.com