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Tuesday, April 11, 2023
LOVE AND ROCKETS EXPANDS THEIR U.S. TOUR Adds Midwest And East Coast Dates Tickets On Sale Thursday, April 13th
INCOMING: One Eleven Productions/Last Rites Presents Black Flag April 14, 2023 7:00 PM
Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar
One Eleven Productions/Last Rites Presents
Black Flag
Avondale Music Hall
April 14, 2023 7:00 PM
Doors Open: 6:00 PM
More Information
TICKET PRICES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
GEN ADMISSION: $42.00
Show:
Fri, April 14th, 2023
One Eleven Productions/Last Rites Present...
BLACK FLAG
Performing "My War" and Greatest Hits
2 Sets - No Support
DJ Vaseline Dion will be spinning between sets
Doors at 6pm, show at 7pm
GEN ADMISSION: $42.00. Purchase HERE.
17+
Avondale Music Hall, 3336 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60641
https://www.avondalemusichall.com
Black Flag
https://www.facebook.com/BlackFlagBand
Black Flag is an American band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California, by guitarist, primary songwriter, and sole continuous member Greg Ginn. Their discography includes seven studio albums and two live albums. The band has released all of their material on Ginn’s independent label, SST Records beginning with 1981’s Damaged. Vocalist Mike Vallely, first sang with the band as a guest vocalist in 2003, before becoming the band’s fifth vocalist in 2014
AUSTRALIAN GARAGE PUNKS CABLE TIES ANNOUNCE FALL U.S. TOUR DATES WITH SUPERCHUNK
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Saturday, April 8, 2023
ART BEAT: WRIGHTWOOD 659 OFFERS RARE OPPORTUNITIES TO MEET THE INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS BEHIND SPRING/SUMMER EXHIBITIONS
Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar
Wrightwood 659 presents Trio of Exhibitions,
April 14 – July 15, 2023:
Kongkee: Warring States cyberpunk / Shahidul alam: singed but not burnt /
Patric McCoy: Take My Picture
London-based artist and animation director kongkee leads tour of electronic arts exhibition, warring states cyberpunk, with curator abby chen, saturday, April 15th, acclaimed bangladeshi photographer/activist Shahidul Alam shares his vocabularies of resistance, plus Burnt but not singed book signing, at south asia institute, tuesday, April 18th, an artful evening offers exhibition tour with chicago photographer Patric McCoy at wrightwood 659, plus festive reception at casati’s modern italian, thursday, May 4th.
In support of its upcoming trio of Spring/Summer exhibitions opening April 14 –Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk, Shahidul Alam: Singed But Not Burnt, and Patric McCoy: Take My Picture – Wrightwood 659 is proud offer a series of rare and insightful meet-the-artist opportunities:
Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk exhibition tour with artist and curator
Saturday, April 15, 12:30-1:30pm.
Through multi-screen videos, wall projections, neon installations, vibrant graphic works, narrative texts, and ancient Chinese objects, Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk tells the story of legendary poet Qu Yuan, who lived during the Warring States Period (c. 481-221 BCE), as his soul journeys from the ancient Chu Kingdom to a retro-futuristic Asia where he is reborn as an android in a psychedelic cyberpunk landscape. Originally conceived by Kongkee as a comic series in 2013, the exhibition transports viewers into an imaginary world where past and future collide. Join artist Kong Khong-chang, known as Kongkee, and Abby Chen, Senior Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, which organized the exhibition, for a unique and intimate tour of this illuminating work.
Tour included with standard $15 exhibition tickets; online reservations required by visiting https://tickets.wrightwood659.org/events
Shahidul Alam on Vocabularies of Resistance
Tuesday, April 18, 6-7:30pm.
South Asia Institute, 1925 S. Michigan Avenue
Direct from Bangladesh, Shahidul Alam, a humanitarian activist, institution builder, and prominent South Asian photographer will introduce Vocabularies of Resistance. Following the War of Independence in his home country of Bangladesh, Alam witnessed the effects of political upheaval, from the rise of an autocratic general to the displacement of indigenous groups and the burgeoning Rohingya refugee crises. Alam makes visible the resilience of those living in the world’s densest regions while empowering people to use photography to reveal their own stories. Following the lecture, Alam will sign copies of his new photo book, also titled Singed But Not Burnt, available for purchase on-site.
The South Asia Institute, under the direction of founders Shireen and Afzal Ahmad, aims to cultivate the art and culture of South Asia and its diaspora through local and global collaborations, curated exhibitions, innovative programs, and educational initiatives that aim to engage diverse communities.
Tickets are $10, and available by reservation at https://tickets.wrightwood659.org/1906/vocabularies-of-resistance or at the door. Ticket price includes the lecture and a reception with the artist.
An Artful Evening with Patric McCoy
Thursday, May 4, 5:30-8:30pm.
This sophisticated evening of art and apps starts off at Wrightwood 659 (659 W. Wrightwood Ave.), for viewing the galleries of three newly opened exhibitions including Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk, Shahidul Alam: Singed But Not Burnt, and Patric McCoy: Take My Picture. At 6pm, Chicago photographer Patric McCoy will lead a tour of his exhibition and share behind-the-scenes stories of the 1980s Black gay scene he captured in photographs. Starting at 7pm, guests are invited to enjoy a festive champagne reception at nearby Casati’s Modern Italian (444 Fullerton Pkwy.) Note: last entry to Wrightwood 659 will be 6:45pm.
Tickets are $40 (all-inclusive for gallery entry and reception), and are available by advance reservation only https://tickets.wrightwood659.org/1903/cyberpunkchampagne
More about Spring/Summer Exhibitions at Wrightwood 659,
April 14-July 15, 2023:
Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk
Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk features the work of London-based Chinese artist and animation director Kong Khong-chang, known as Kongkee. Through multi-screen videos, wall projections, neon installations, vibrant graphic works, narrative texts, and ancient Chinese objects, the exhibition tells the story of legendary poet Qu Yuan, who lived during the Warring States Period (c. 481-221 BCE), as his soul journeys from the ancient Chu Kingdom to a retro-futuristic Asia where he is reborn as an android in a psychedelic cyberpunk landscape. Originally conceived by Kongkee as a comic series in 2013, the exhibition transports viewers into an imaginary world where past and future collide.
Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk is organized by the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, where it debuted in November 2022, and curated by its head of contemporary art, Abby Chen.
Patric McCoy: Take My Picture
In the 1980s, Patric McCoy traveled around Chicago on his bike, always with his camera. From the lakefront to the Loop, McCoy found no shortage of Black men who wanted their picture taken. Over a ten-year period, he shot thousands of images at his subjects’ request. Patric McCoy: Take My Picture is a selection of some 50 black and white and color photographs from this rich document of 1980s Black gay Chicago. McCoy’s subjects are neither posed nor directed; each has agency over how he is seen, elevating the subject’s humanity, inverting and subverting the gaze. HIV/AIDS hit Black men especially hard. Thousands would die before the end of the decade, including many of McCoy’s friends, lovers—and subjects. Take My Picture can be seen as a marker of place, time, and memory. It is an altar to those lost.
The exhibition is curated by Juarez Hawkins, artist, educator, and curator, who noted, “McCoy and his camera fulfilled an unspoken need for Black men to be seen. Seen by someone who did not objectify them as ‘Other’, but an insider who allowed them, to paraphrase Langston Hughes, to be their ‘beautiful black selves’.”
Shahidul Alam: Singed But Not Burnt
“As journalists, we need to feel the heat, stand close to the fire, and risk being burnt. Take one step back, you become ineffective. The trick, therefore, is to get singed but not burnt.” – Shahidul Alam
Shahidul Alam: Singed But Not Burnt surveys the four-decade career of the renowned Bangladeshi photographer, writer, activist, and former Time magazine Person of the Year, as he documents the consequences of catastrophic weather, repressive regimes, and political upheaval in his home country. Through select projects and more than 80 searing photographs, Singed But Not Burnt showcases art, education, and institution building as forms of resistance. Using the photographic image, Alam illuminates discrepancies in everyday life, from early attempts to oppose military rule to autocratic rulers. At a time of rising autocracy, and with freedom of expression under threat worldwide, this exhibition sheds light on the resilience of those who continue to resist.
Singed But Not Burnt draws on an exhibition currently touring in India which was first organized by curator and art writer Ina Puri. As an award-winning documentarian, she has chronicled the lives of India’s most distinguished art practitioners.
These exhibitions are presented by Alphawood Exhibitions at Wrightwood 659.
New Hours of Operation
Thursdays 1-8 pm; Fridays 12 noon-7 pm; Saturdays 10 am-5 pm
Tickets
Admission for all three exhibitions is $15 and available online only at https://tickets.wrightwood659.org/events. Please note, admission is by advance ticket only. Walk-ups are not permitted.
COVID NOTE: All guests are required to be fully vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19. By entering Wrightwood 659, you warrant to us that you are fully vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19. We reserve the right to ask guests to produce evidence of their vaccination. Masks are required throughout the gallery. https://wrightwood659.org/terms-and-conditions/health-safety/
About Alphawood Exhibitions
Alphawood Exhibitions is an affiliate of Alphawood Foundation, a Chicago-based, grant-making private foundation working for an equitable, just, and humane society.
About Wrightwood 659
Founded in 2018, Wrightwood 659 is a private, non-collecting institution devoted to socially engaged art and architecture. Wrightwood 659 was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando, who transformed a 1920s residential building with his signature concrete forms and poetic treatment of natural light. Located in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood and acclaimed as “a hidden treasure,” Wrightwood 659’s expansive and light-filled galleries offer both intimate and monumental experiences as visitors engage with the pressing issues of our time. Exhibitions are presented by Alphawood Exhibitions at Wrightwood 659. For additional information: https://wrightwood659.org.
Kongkee – London-based artist & Abby Chen, Curator and Head of Contemporary Art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, of Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk, an immersive futurist fantasy combining ancient poetry and modern anime.
Shahidul Alam – Bangladesh-based photographer, writer, a Time magazine Person of the Year in 2018, and artist of Shahidul Alam: Singed But Not Burnt, a retrospective of the renowned photojournalist and human-rights activist.
Patric McCoy – Artist and Chicago resident & Juarez Hawkins, Curator, artist, and educator, for Patric McCoy: Take My Picture, an exhibition of poignant images of 1980s Black gay Chicago.
INFO: This trio of Spring/Summer exhibitions is presented by Alphawood Exhibitions and are on view from April 14 through July 15, 2023. Read more: www.wrightwood659.org/exhibitions
Image credits:
Installation view of Kongkee: Warring States Cyberpunk, 2022 © Asian Art Museum
Kongkee headshot photo credit: Art Director: Kongkee@penguinlab/Fashion Director: Mayao & Yoyo Kwan @Fameglory/
Photographer: Jason@chanaphotostudio/Venue Sponsor: Seyami Studio/Sponsors: First Initiative Foundation@fif.hk, Leo & Xaviour@Number 2 Ltd
Alam headshot photo credit: Rahnuma Ahmed
McCoy headshot photo credit: Isadore Howard
Cast Announced for NEW FACES SING BROADWAY 1984 With Host Honey West April 25-26, 2023
ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar
PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE ANNOUNCES THE CAST FOR
NEW FACES SING BROADWAY 1984,
FEATURING HOST HONEY WEST,
TUESDAY, APRIL 25 AT EVANSTON SPACE AND
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 26 AT THE DEN THEATRE
The Popular Series Returns this Spring. New Faces Sing Broadway 1984, Directed by Tommy Novak and Music Directed by Micky York, Takes Audiences Back in Time to the 1984 Broadway Season with Chicago’s Newest Talents Performing Songs from the Hit Shows La Cage Aux Folles, Sunday in the Park with George, Baby, The Rink and others
Porchlight Music Theatre announces the roster of new faces starring in its latest 2022 – 2023 season offering, New Faces Sing Broadway 1984, hosted by Honey West*, directed by Tommy Novak^ with music direction and arrangements by Micky York+. New Faces Sing Broadway 1984 takes place Tuesday, April 25 at 7:30 p.m. at Evanston SPACE, 1245 Chicago Ave. in Evanston and Wednesday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m. at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. There will be a pre-show lobby gathering at The Den Theatre beginning at 6:30 p.m. with complimentary appetizers and a cash bar. Tickets are $37 and are now on sale at PorchlightMusicTheatre.org. I'll be catching the show on the 25th, so check back soon after for my full review.
Now in its eighth season, Porchlight Music Theatre’s New Faces Sing Broadway series returns, taking audiences on a musical journey from the start to the finish of an entire Broadway season in 90 minutes. Host Honey West will introduce the audience to the next generation of Chicago music theatre artists while serving as the guide to the stars, songs and stories of the past. New Faces Sing Broadway 1984 includes hit songs from the seminal age of Broadway musicals including La Cage Aux Folles, Sunday in the Park with George, Baby, The Rink and others.
(L to R) The New Faces Sing Broadway 1984 cast
Pronoun Key: + (he/him/his); * (she/her/hers); ^ (they, them, theirs). = (any with respect)
Many of the artists who have appeared in Porchlight’s New Faces Sing Broadway series have continued their careers on television, and local and national stages including Neala Barron (Porchlight's Merrily We Roll Along), Frankie Leo Bennett (Porchlight's In the Heights), Dawn Bless (Waitress-national tour), Katherine Bourne (School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play at Goodman Theatre), Kayla Boye (Call Me Elizabeth-national tour), Anna Brockman, Tim Foszcz, Haley Gustafson, Josiah Haugen, Cam Turner, Jerod Turner and Evan Wilhelm (Porchlight's Cabaret), Lydia Burke and Molly Kral (Jeff Award winners [ensemble] - Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies), Darilyn Burtley and Max Cervantes (The Light in the Piazza at Lyric Opera of Chicago), Kyrie Courter (Broadway's Sweeney Todd), Maddison Denault and David Moreland (Jeff Award-nominees, Cruel Intentions), Gilbert Domally (Broadway's The Lion King), Andres Enriquez (Jeff Award nominee-Porchlight’s A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder), Nik Kmiecik, Ziare Paul-Emile and Alix Rhode (Porchlight's Rent), Theo Germaine (Showtime’s “Work in Progress”), Lucy Godinez (Jeff Award nominee-Oliver), Emily Goldberg (Jeff Award nominee-Porchlight’s A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder), Nicole Michelle Haskins (Jeff Award winner-The Color Purple), Michelle Lauto (Jeff Award winner-Spamilton), Yando Lopez (Broadway’s Wicked), Henry McGinniss (Book of Mormon-national tour), Brandy Miller and Bryce Ancil (Jeff Award-nominees She Loves Me), Chloé Nadon-Enriquez (Broadway's Bad Cinderella), Anthony Norman (The Prom on Broadway, Dear Evan Hansen-national tour), Patrick Rooney (Les Miserables-national tour), Aalon Smith (Porchlight’s Gypsy), Katherine Thomas (Jeff Award winner-Ragtime), Aeriel Williams (Oedipus Rex at Court Theatre) and Nicole Lambert, Courtney Mack, Mallory Maedke and Samantha Pauly (SIX on Broadway).
The 2023 season of New Faces Sing Broadway concludes with New Faces Sing Broadway NOW, coming this summer. Tickets go on sale May 2 at 12 p.m.
(L to R) New Faces Sing Broadway 1984 host Honey West director Tommy Novak and music director Micky York.
ABOUT HONEY WEST, host
Honey West (she/her/hers) was most recently seen in Clue and as “Bernadette” in Priscilla Queen of the Desert at Mercury Theater Chicago, (the role she previously received a Jeff Nomination for Best Supporting Actress, in addition to a Best Actress award from BroadwayWorld.com.) La Cage Aux Folles as “Jacqueline/U/S Albin'' at Music Theater Works, “Danni” in Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn at Drury Lane Theater and “Mrs. Cratchitt/Electra'' in Gypsy at Porchlight Music Theatre. She starred in Dirty Dreams Of A Clean-Cut Kid, Vampire Lesbians Of Sodom, Diva Diaries, Jerry’s Girls, Tony And Tony’s Wedding, As You Like It and Pussy On The House. She was a 2012 inductee into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. Currently she is working on a new cabaret act and an autobiographical one woman show. She also landed a co-starring role on Fox's “Proven Innocent.”
ABOUT TOMMY NOVAK, director
Tommy Novak (they/them/theirs) is a non-binary Chicago-based theater artist, international director, vocal coach and movement specialist. They return to Porchlight where they were seen in Billy Elliot The Musical and Porchlight Revisits Do Re Mi. They directed The Spongebob Musical For Young Audiences (First Stage), Romeo and Juliet (Arkansa Shakespeare Theatre), Songs for a New World (Carthage College) and Danny and the Deep Blue Sea (Coastline Theater). Additional credits include Fiddler on the Roof (Lyric Opera of Chicago), The Producers (Night Blue; Jeff nomination); Little Shop of Horrors (Mercury Theater Chicago), Hairspray (Skylight Music Theatre), Love’s Labour’s Lost, King John (Utah Shakespeare Festival), The Music Man and Taming of the Shrew (Arkansas Shakespeare Theater), Rudolph In The Red-Nosed Reindeer™: The Musical and Robin Hood (First Stage). Novak is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency.
ABOUT MICKY YORK, music director
Micky York’s (he/him/his) Chicago theatre credits include Porchlight Revisits Call Me Madam (Porchlight), Whisper House and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (Black Button Eyes Productions), Happy End (2007 After Dark Award - Outstanding Music Direction) and Jacques Brel (Brown Couch, RIP) and a variety of musicals over the past 20 years for other theatres that no longer exist. He's a current member of Dancing Queen: An ABBA Salute and can likely be seen at a street festival near you.
ABOUT PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE
Porchlight Music Theatre, now in its 28th season, is the award-winning center for music theatre in Chicago. Through live performance, youth education and community outreach, we impact thousands of lives each season, bringing the magic of musicals to our theatre home at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts in the Gold Coast and to neighborhoods across the city. Porchlight has built a national reputation for boldly reimagining classic musicals, supporting new works and young performers, and showcasing Chicago’s most notable music theatre artists, all through the intimate and powerful theatrical lens of the “Chicago Style.”
Porchlight's history over the last 27 years includes more than 70 mainstage works with 15 Chicago premieres and five world premieres. Porchlight’s commitment to the past, present and future of music theatre led the company to develop the Porchlight Revisits and New Faces Sing Broadway program series, both quickly becoming audience favorites.
Porchlight's education and outreach programs serve schools, youth of all ages and skill levels and community organizations, most notably the ongoing collaboration with Chicago Youth Centers. Porchlight annually awards dozens of full scholarships and hundreds of free tickets to ensure accessibility and real engagement with this uniquely American art form.
The company’s many honors include 178 Joseph Jefferson Award (Jeff) nominations and 49 Jeff awards, as well as 44 Black Theatre Alliance (BTA) nominations and 15 BTA awards. In 2019, Porchlight graduated to the Large Theatre tier of the Equity Jeff Awards and has been honored with seven awards in this tier to date including Best Ensemble for Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (2019) and Best Production-Revue for Blues in the Night (2022).
Through the global pandemic, Porchlight emerged as one of Chicago’s leaders in virtual programming, quickly launching a host of free offerings like Sondheim @ 90 Roundtables, Movie Musical Mondays, Porchlight by Request: Command Performances and WPMT: Classic Musicals from the Golden Age of Radio. In 2021, Porchlight launched its annual summer series, Broadway in your Backyard, performing at parks and venues throughout the city.
Porchlight Music Theatre announces the roster of new faces starring in its latest 2022 – 2023 season offering, New Faces Sing Broadway 1984, hosted by Honey West*, directed by Tommy Novak^ with music direction and arrangements by Micky York+. New Faces Sing Broadway 1984 takes place Tuesday, April 25 at 7:30 p.m. at Evanston SPACE, 1245 Chicago Ave. in Evanston and Wednesday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m. at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. There will be a pre-show lobby gathering at The Den Theatre beginning at 6:30 p.m. with complimentary appetizers and a cash bar. Tickets are $37 and are now on sale at PorchlightMusicTheatre.org.
The New Faces Sing Broadway series is sponsored by Elaine Cohen & Arlen D. Rubin
Porchlight Music Theatre is partially supported by generous contributions from Allstate; Michael Best & Friedrich LLP; Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation; Elegant Event Lighting; Glimpse Vision; James P. and Brenda S. Grusecki Family Foundation; Hearty Boys; A.L. and Jennie L. Luria Foundation; The MacArthur Fund for Culture, Equity and the Arts at Prince; the Pritzker Traubert Foundation; Ryan and Spaeth, Inc.; Daniel and Genevieve Ratner Foundation; The Saints and Dr. Scholl Foundation.
The season program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, a state agency, and by a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events.
Porchlight Music Theatre wishes to thank members of the Matching Gift Corporate Program including Abbvie; Allstate; Lloyd A. Fry Foundation; Peoples Gas; Pepsico; Polk Bros Foundation and The Saints.
Friday, April 7, 2023
THE LANGUAGE ARCHIVE Via AstonRep Theatre Company April 28 – May 28, 2023 at The Edge Off Broadway Theatre
Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar
AstonRep Theatre Company
Concludes 15th Anniversary Season with
THE LANGUAGE ARCHIVE
By Julia Cho
Directed by Dana Anderson
April 28 – May 28, 2023 at The Edge Off Broadway Theatre
Pictured (left to right) Aja Alcazar, Génesis Sánchez, Erin O’Brien, Jorge Salas and Sean William Kelly. AstonRep Theatre Company’s production of The Language Archive. Photo by Derek Bertelsen.
AstonRep Theatre Company is pleased to conclude it 15th and final season with The Language Archive, Julia Cho’s insightful play about language and love, directed by Company Member Dana Anderson*, playing April 28 – May 28, 2023 at The Edge Off-Broadway Theatre, 1133 W. Catalpa Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are now on sale at www.astonrep.com or by calling (773) 828-9129.
The cast includes Company Members Aja Alcazar*, Sean William Kelly* and Erin O'Brien* with Jorge Salas and Génesis Sánchez. Understudies include and Kelley Holcomb and James Reilly.
A quirky, comic drama about communication – its potential and its limits – this romantic parable for our times features a linguist at a loss for words, especially the vocabulary of the heart. Balanced delightfully between affection and adversity, it is the whimsical, life-affirming chronicle of a brilliant scientist who fights to preserve the dying languages of far-flung cultures, only to neglect the promise and passion of his own. Winner of the 2010 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for Playwrighting.
Comments Director Dana Anderson, “As AstonRep’s last production, this play is a special send-off about connecting with others on a level that goes beyond just words. It is my hope that the themes of this show amplify and reflect the legacy of our company, built on lasting friendships and the desire to express our truest selves.
The production team includes Jeremiah Barr* (Scenic and Props Designer Technical Director), Andrés Mota (Costume Designer), Becca Venable (Lighting Designer), Robert Tobin* (Sound Designer, Producer), Bethany Hart (Dialect and Vocal Coach), Kelley Holcomb (Assistant Dialect and Vocal Coach), Derek Bertelsen* (Producer), Samantha Barr* (Production Manager), Anna Vu (Production Stage Manager) and Miguel Salgado, Jr. (Assistant Production Manager, Stage Manager).
COVID safety: While in the theater, masks are highly recommended and encouraged, but not required. Disposable masks will be available to patrons who request one. If you are immunocompromised or at higher risk, please consider wearing a mask at indoor public settings where vaccination status is unknown.
*Denotes AstonRep Company Members.
Cast (in alphabetical order) Aja Alcazar* (Emma), Sean William Kelly* (George), Erin O'Brien* (Mary) with Jorge Salas (Resten, Ensemble) and Génesis Sánchez (Alta, Ensemble)
Understudies: Kelley Holcomb (u/s Mary, Emma) and James Reilly (u/s George).
Location: The Edge Off-Broadway Theatre, 1133 W. Catalpa Ave., Chicago
Dates: Preview: Friday, April 28 at 7:30 pm
Press performance: Saturday, April 29 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Sunday, April 30 – Sunday, May 29, 2023
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm.
Tickets: Previews: $10; Regular run: $20. Student/seniors discounts available. Tickets are now on sale at www.astonrep.com or by calling (773) 828-9129.
About the Artists
Julia Cho’s (Playwright) plays include Durango, The Winchester House, The Architecture of Loss and 99 Histories. Her work has been produced at The Vineyard Theatre, The Public Theater, Long Wharf Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, South Coast Repertory, New York Theatre Workshop, East West Players, The Theatre@Boston Court, Theater Mu and Silk Road Theatre Project, among others. Honors include the 2005 Barrie Stavis Award, the 2005 Claire Tow Award for Emerging Artists and the 2004 L. Arnold Weissberger Award. She was also a two-time finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award. An alumna of the Juilliard School and NYU’s Graduate Dramatic Writing Program, Julia also served as a resident playwright at New Dramatists.
Dana Anderson (Director) is an educator, director and actor based in Chicago. With AstonRep, she has worked on The Lonesome West, Laramie Project and 1984. Other directing credits include Wife Material (Underscore), Belle of Austin (Rhinofest) and Little Miss (Davenport’s). She has worked with Theo Ubique, Kokandy, The New Colony, Shawnee Summer Theatre, Stage Door Fine Arts and Chicago Dramatists. She is currently the drama teacher at Chiaravalle Montessori School, program manager at Storycatchers Theatre and the Associate Artistic Director of Shakespeare Corrected.
About AstonRep Theatre Company
AstonRep Theatre Company was formed in the summer of 2008. Since then, the company has produced numerous full-length productions, along with their annual Writer’s Series. They are currently in residence at The Edge Theater. AstonRep Theatre Company is an ensemble of artists committed to creating exciting, intimate theatrical experiences that go beyond the front door to challenge audiences and spark discussion where the show is not the end of the experience: it is just the beginning.
Thursday, April 6, 2023
Chicago Premiere of HATEF**K May 5 – June 10, 2023 at The Den Theatre
ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar
First Floor Theater
Presents the Chicago premiere of
HATEFUCK
By Rehana Lew Mirza
Directed by Arti Ishak
May 5 – June 10, 2023 at The Den Theatre
PHOTO CREDIT: The cast of First Floor Theater’s Chicago premiere of Hatefuck
includes (left to right) Aila Peck and Faiz Siddique.
First Floor Theater is pleased to conclude its Tenth Season with the Chicago premiere of Rehana Lew Mirza’s Kilroys’-lauded hit Hatefuck, directed by Arti Ishak, playing May 5 – June 10, 2023 at The Den Theatre (2B), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are now on sale at firstfloortheater.com. I'll be out for the press opening May 11th, so check back soon for my full review.
Passions ignite when Layla, an intense literature professor, accuses Imran, a brashly iconoclastic novelist, of trading in anti-Muslim stereotypes. But as their attraction grows into something more, they discover that good sex doesn't always make good bedfellows. Conflicting cultural identities collide in this thornily clever antidote to a meet-cute romance.
Comments Director Arti Ishak, “As an actor I’ve experienced first-hand how Muslim stories get filtered through the lens of whiteness, whether it’s pining to prove we’re ‘just like you,’ playing up the exotic other, or blatantly leaning into stereotypes. Muslim Americans deserve nuanced representation that asks us to wrestle with our intracommunity issues while tangled in a story about messy human connection. Rehana Lew Mirza’s Hatefuck is the modern Muslim love story I’ve been waiting for and I’m ready to help bring that story to Chicago as my directing debut.”
The production team includes Paloma Locsin (Scenic and Props Designer), Isaac Pineda (Costumes Designer), Ben Carne (Lighting Designer), Troy Cruz (Sound Designer), Samantha Kaufman (Fight and Intimacy Director), Layla Bahmanziari* (Assistant Director/Dramaturg), Shelbi Weaver* (Production Manager), Anastar Alvarez* (Director of Production) and Devonte Washington (Stage Manager).
*Denotes FFT company members
Cast: Aila Peck (Layla) and Faiz Siddique (Imran)
Understudies: Ben Matthew (Imran) and Donya Rahimi (Layla)
Location: The Den Theatre (2B),1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, May 5 at 8 pm, Saturday, May 6 at 8 pm, Sunday, May 7 at 3 pm and Wednesday, May 10 at 8 pm
Press Performance: Thursday, May 11 at 8 pm
Regular Run: Friday, May 12 – Saturday, June 10, 2023
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will be an added performance on Saturday, June 10 at 3 pm
Industry Nights: Monday, May 22 at 8 pm and Monday, June 5 at 8 pm
Understudy Performance: Wednesday, May 31 at 8 pm
Tickets: Previews: $0 - $20. Regular Run: $0 – $35. In the spirit of bringing accessibility to the theatre, a limited number of free tickets are available for each performance. Use the code FREE to unlock 1 complimentary ticket (subject to availability). Tickets are now on sale at firstfloortheater.com.
About the Artists
Rehana Lew Mirza (Playwright, she/her) is a playwright, writer and creator. Her plays include: Hatefuck (WP/Colt Coeur); A People’s Guide to History in the Time of Here and Now (Primary Stages Toulmin commission); Soldier X (Ma‐Yi); Tomorrow, Inshallah (Living Room Theater; Storyworks/ HuffPost commission); Neighborhood Watch (NNPN/InterAct commission) and Barriers (Desipina, Asian American Theater Company).
With her husband Mike Lew, she shared a Mellon Foundation National Playwright residency administered in partnership with Howlround at Ma‐Yi Theater, where they co‐wrote The Colonialism Project (La Jolla Playhouse commission) and the musical Bhangin’ It, with composer/lyricist Sam Willmott (La Jolla Playhouse 2022; Richard Rodgers Award; Rhinebeck Writers Retreat; Project Springboard).
Additional honors include: 2021 Cape Cod Theatre Project Artist‐in‐Residence, 2020 Kleban Award, 2019 NYFA Fellow, HBO Access Fellow, Lilly Award (Stacey Mindich “Go Write A Play”), and a TCG/New Georges Fellowship. MFA: Columbia University; BFA: NYU Tisch. www.rehanamirza.com
Arti Ishak (Director, they/them) is an actor, director and community organizer, recently named a 3Arts Make A Wave Artist. Directing credits include short films Shukran Bas (Means of Productions), Sun On Ice (Jackalope), BaLa (HF Productions). Catch their upcoming directing work on stage with SAME SECTS! by Paul Michael Thomson, produced as part of Haven Chicago’s Directors Haven. Recent acting credits include The Best Decision You Ever Made (The Second City), KISS (Haven), Venus in Fur (Circle), Witch (Writers), Buried Child (Writers), Men on Boats (American Theater Company), Fantastic Super Great Nation Numero Uno (The Second City). TV: Southside (HBO), Dark Matter (NBC), Chicago Med (NBC). Arti is staff with The Chicago Inclusion Project, an instructor at Black Box Acting and an organizer with SWANASA Central. They are represented by Paonessa Talent Agency. www.artiishak.com
About First Floor Theater
Founded in 2012, First Floor Theater has garnered a reputation for pairing some of the most cutting-edge scripts in Chicago and the American Theater with a signature innovative design style. Shortly after their inaugural season, FFT was named “Best New Theater Company” in the Chicago Reader. FFT was also honored to be recognized with the 2018 Francesca Primus Prize from ATCA for their production of Leah Nanako-Winkler’s Two Mile Hollow, and in Newcity’s Players 2019: “The Fifty People Who Really Perform for Chicago”. Some of First Floor’s notable past productions include Hooded or Being Black for Dummies, Mike Pence Sex Dream, Two Mile Hollow, peerless and Plano. First Floor Theater is a Resident Company at The Den Theatre.