OPENING: TONY AWARD-WINNING PIPPIN VIA MUSIC THEATER WORKS JUNE 1 - 25, 2023

ChiIL Mama’s ChiIL Picks List

MUSIC THEATER WORKS ANNOUNCES CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM FOR THE TONY AWARD-WINNING 

PIPPIN

 JUNE 1 - 25 AT THE NORTH SHORE CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS IN SKOKIE

Music Theater Works’ 43rd Season Continues with the Musical That Won Four Tony Awards Including Best Musical Revival, Directed by Producing Artistic Director Kyle A. Dougan and Music Directed by Justin Akira Kono

Run time, including the intermission, is 2 hours and 50 minutes.

Tickets: $39 to $106, tickets for guests 25 years old and younger are available for half-price.

Music Theater Works, recently launched its 43rd season with the highly recommended Avenue Q, today announces the cast and creative team for its second production in the 2023 season, Pippin in the North Theatre at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts In Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, June 1 - 25. The Tony Award-winning musical comedy with book by Roger O. Hirson, music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, directed by Producing Artistic Director Kyle A. Dougan, assistant directed by Sasha Gerritson and Patrick Tierney, co-choreographed by Mollyanne Nunn and Kaitlyn Pasquinelli and music directed by Justin Akira Kono. 

Here at ChiIL Mama, we adored Music Theater Works' Avenue Q and can't wait to see their take on crowd pleaser, Pippin. I'll be out to review the first week of June so check back shortly after for our full coverage.  

The performance schedule includes a preview performance Thursday, June 1 at 1 p.m. with press opening Friday, June 2 at 8 p.m. The running time, including the intermission, is currently, including the intermission, 2 hours and 45 minutes. The performance schedule is Wednesdays at 1 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. with a Saturday matinee, June 10 at 2 p.m. Complete performance schedule is included at the end of this release. Tickets are now on sale from $39 to $106 with tickets for guests 25 years old and younger available at half-price at  MusicTheaterWorks.com or by calling the Music Theater Works box office at the North Shore Center, 847.673.6300. Group discounts are available for groups of 10 or more by contacting 847.920.5360.

The unforgettable score of Pippin has shown multiple generations how to forge their own path in the world. Imaginatively presented through multiple revivals of a young person’s journey to self, join Music Theater Works’ staging among the toys and games that defined childhood. Winner of four 2013 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival with some of the most infectiously memorable music from Broadway by four-time Grammy winner, three-time Oscar winner and musical theater giant Stephen Schwartz.

“All of us at Music Theater Works are excited to share with audiences this Broadway classic where we pay homage to the games and memories of our youth,” said Director Kyle A. Dougan. “The North Theatre at the North Shore Center allows us an opportunity to present all the songs of this beloved show and put our own spin on it.”

The cast of Pippin includes Sonia Goldberg (Leading Player); Connor Ripperger (Pippin); Kathleen Puls Andrade (Berthe); Thomas M. Shea (Charlemagne); Savannah Sinclair (Fastrada, Leading Player U/S); Andrew Freeland (Lewis); Desiree Gonzalez (Catherine) and Di’Aire Wilson (Theo).

The Pippin ensemble includes, alphabetically, Jenny Couch (ensemble, Catherine U/S); Ciara Hickey (ensemble); Alex Iacobucci (ensemble); Lacey Jack (ensemble), Samira Jasmine (ensemble); Katie Kotila (ensemble, Fastrada U/S); Justin Payton Nelson (ensemble, Lewis U/S); Mollyanne Nunn (ensemble); Jordan “J.Ro” Ordonez (ensemble); Kaitlyn Pasquinelli (ensemble); Dane Strange (ensemble) and Eustace J. Williams (ensemble, Pippin U/S).

The Pippin understudies and swings are Jenny Rudnick (Berthe U/S); Bob Sanders (Charlemagne U/S) and John Locke (Theo U/S) with Adeera Harris (swing) and Wilson Paul Hicken (swing). 

The Pippin creative team currently includes Kyle A. Dougan (director); Patrick Tierney (assistant director); Sasha Gerritson (assistant director/chorus master); Justin Akira Kono (music director); Amber Wuttke (intimacy and fight choreographer); Nathan Lamp (dramaturg); Mollyanne Nunn (co-choreographer); Kaitlyn Pasquinelli (co-choreographer); Allison Gonzales (stage manager); Lily Landoch (assistant stage manager); Shane Cinal (scenic director); Ellen Markus (properties designer); Jazmin Aurora Medina (costume designer); Kristen Brinati (assistant costume designer); Alice Salazar (hair, wig, and makeup designer); Melanie Saso (assistant hair, wig, and makeup designer); Andrew Meyers (lighting designer); Chelsea Lynn (ME/lighting programmer); Matthew R. Chase (sound designer); Forrest Gregor (production sound engineer); David Sajewich (media designer); Anthony Churchill (projections designer); Will Hughes (scene shop technical director); Ben Lipinski (paint charge); Ethan McIntosh (lighting board), Chris Chase (production manager) and Jennifer King Russell (company manager). 

Health Safety Procedure:

All guests are recommended to wear face masks during the performance regardless of vaccination status.

ABOUT PRODUCING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR KYLE DOUGAN, DIRECTOR

Kyle Dougan worked as casting associate and events manager for Music Theater Works, and rejoined the company in 2018 as producing artistic director, following a two-year stint in academia. He relocated to Chicago in 1999, after completing his Masters in Musical Theatre at Goldsmiths, University of London, where he produced and directed a workshop of new musicals. He also stage managed a series of new musicals with Perfect Pitch: New Musicals at Trafalgar Studios. In the Chicago area Dougan has directed, associate-directed and assistant-directed shows for Chamber Opera Chicago, Theatre at the Center, Big Noise Theater and The Music Theatre Company. He has served as artistic producer of a series of new musicals with Midwest New Musicals, as executive director of FWD Theatre Project and as co-owner of Style Theatrical Casting, a professional casting company in Chicago.

ABOUT JUSTIN AKIRA KONO, MUSIC DIRECTOR

Justin Akira Kono is a percussionist, pianist, conductor and orchestrator of uncommon range. After studying at DePaul and Northwestern Universities, he started transitioning into leadership and music direction roles. Previously at Music Theater Works, he has music directed Zorro the Musical, Legends of the 50s and 60s and MAMMA MIA! He frequently worked with Porchlight Music Theater and has music directed Spring Awakening, their traveling show Broadway in your Backyard and has played drums for Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies, Chicago Sings Rock and Roll Broadway and Billy Elliot. Other regional credits include All Shook Up, Freaky Friday (Williams Street Rep) and Kiss Me Kate (The Marriott Theater). He has also music directed at The Chicago College of Performing Arts. He serves as a music director at First Congregational Church in Downers Grove. He is the piano player for the Midwest’s premiere ABBA tribute band, Dancing Queen: An ABBA Salute and plays drums in Piano Man: A Tribute to Elton John and Billy Joel. 

ABOUT MUSIC THEATER WORKS

Music Theater Works is a resident professional not-for-profit music theater founded in

1980. During its 42-year history it has presented more than 150 productions and intimate

presentations. Music Theater Works is a professional theater company whose mission is

to present works for the musical stage including historic repertoire, revitalizing the Golden Age of Broadway and earlier works, celebrating the Great American Songbook and introducing modern classics. 

JOYCE SAXON is the 2023 Music Theater Works Season Sponsor.

 ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Preview: Thursday, June 1 at 1 p.m.

Press Performance: Friday, June 2 at 8 p.m.

Saturday, June 3 at 8 p.m.

Sunday, June 4 at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, June 7 at 1 p.m.

Friday, June 9 at 8 p.m.

Saturday, June 10 at 2 and 8 p.m.

Sunday, June 11 at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, June 14 at 1 p.m.

Friday, June 16 at 8 p.m.

Saturday, June 17 at 8 p.m.

Sunday, June 18 at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, June 21 at 1 p.m.

Friday, June 23 at 8 p.m.

Saturday, June 24 at 8 p.m.

Sunday, June 25 at 2 p.m.

Music Theater Works Box Office: (847) 673-6300

Website: MusicTheaterWorks.com

LOVE AND ROCKETS EXPANDS THEIR U.S. TOUR Adds Midwest And East Coast Dates Tickets On Sale Thursday, April 13th

 

LOVE AND ROCKETS EXPANDS THEIR U.S. TOUR Adds Midwest And East Coast Dates

Tickets On Sale Thursday, April 13th  at 10am ET / 9am CT Vinyl Reissues Continue with Earth, Sun, Moon and Love And Rockets Out April 28th

LOVE AND ROCKETS Photo credit: Kevin Westenberg

LOVE AND ROCKETS, the seminal, groundbreaking trio of Daniel Ash, David J, and Kevin Haskins, has added a second leg to their Spring U.S. Tour including dates in Chicago, New York, Atlanta and a trio of Texas shows.  Dates below. Pre sale begins at 10:00am ET / 9:00pm CT on Wednesday, April 12th with tickets going on sale to the general public on Thursday, April 13th at 10:00am ET / 9:00am CT.   Special guest for May 24th in Salt Lake City and May 27th in Portland, OR will be Soriah. Support on all other dates including the first Portland show (May 26th) will be Vinsantos.  The tour dates are:

May 20 Los Angeles, CA Cruel World   May 21 Oakland, CA Fox Theater (Tickets)   May 24 Salt Lake City, UT Sandy Amphitheater (Tickets)   May 26 Portland, OR Roseland Theater - SOLD OUT   May 27 Portland, OR Roseland Theater (Tickets)   May 28 Seattle, WA Moore Theater (Tickets)   June 5 St. Paul, MN Palace Theatre (Tickets)   June 6 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre (Tickets)   June 7 Royal Oak, MI Royal Oak Music Hall (Tickets)   June 9 Brooklyn, NY Kings Theater (Tickets)   June 10 Philadelphia, PA Fillmore (Tickets)   June 11 Silver Spring, MD Fillmore (Tickets)   June 13 Atlanta, GA Coca Cola Roxy (Tickets)   June 15 Dallas, TX Factory in Deep Ellum (Tickets)   June 16 Austin, TX ACL Live at The Moody Theater (Tickets)   June 17 San Antonio, TX Boeing Center at Tech Port (Tickets)

Named after the underground comic by the Hernandez brothers, the band made seven records over the course of thirteen years. 2023 has seen the release and immediate sell-out of a limited edition box set containing their six Beggars Banquet albums on colored vinyl, the announcement of the first Love And Rockets show in 15 years at Cruel World Festival in Pasadena, and the continued reissuing of their six Beggars albums. Vinyl reissues of Seventh Dream Of Teenage Heaven and Express came out on January 13th. April 28th sees the release of two more reissues from their catalogue with more reissues in the series will be announced soon! Click HERE for a link to the previously released reissues.

APRIL 28th - Earth, Sun, Moon In 1987, the band's third album, the acoustic leaning Earth, Sun, Moonwas released and spawned the college radio hit "No New Tale To Tell". It was described as "at once gutsy and rootsy yet also rhapsodic and uplifting". -This is a single black LP with a standard sleeve (pre-sale/stream)

APRIL 28th - Love And Rockets Everything changed for the band in 1989 when they released their self-titled breakthrough fourth album Love And Rockets. The song "So Alive" was a massive worldwide #1 hit and Billboard wrote that it was the "best T. Rex tune that Marc Bolan never wrote."  -This is a single black LP with a standard sleeve (pre-sale/stream)

Forming in 1985 after the first split of their band Bauhaus, Love and Rockets provided a clean slate and an opportunity to plumb the depths of imagination and influences. Named after the underground comic by the Hernandez brothers, the band made seven records over the course of thirteen years. They announced themselves to the world with their radically unique take on the classic Temptations song “Ball Of Confusion.” This debut proved that they were going to be a force to contend with. It became a huge seller and a popular club hit in the US and Canada, where it also went gold. It marked the beginning of a career that would span an impressive 14 years and 7 albums. The legacy of the band has only grown, with more people realizing the extent of their influence, and generations of new fans discovering them. The list of artists who cite their influence is impressive: The Flaming Lips, The Dandy Warhols, A Place To Bury Strangers, Jane's Addiction, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Beck, Maynard Keenan, Dubfire and the Pixies.

"Ball of Confusion" Link: https://youtu.be/NcfXWtI7ML0

"No New Tale to Tell" Link: https://youtu.be/iRrn67ovuRQ

"So Alive" Link: https://youtu.be/-L41MhFPU9s

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.blackflagband.com

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

 

AUSTRALIAN GARAGE PUNKS CABLE TIES ANNOUNCE FALL U.S. TOUR DATES WITH SUPERCHUNK THIRD ALBUM ALL HER PLANS ARRIVES JUNE 23, 2023 VIA MERGE RECORDS Photo credit: Kalindy Williams “At once pliable and willful, [McKechnie’s] voice might morph from a biting howl to a striking vibrato in the span of a verse.” - Pitchfork “Cable Ties’ songs wrap a clear purpose—its raucous anthems tackle gender inequality, environmental devastation and the flickers of hope that somehow shine through anyway— in speedball ragers that only gather velocity as they barrel along.” - NPR “Far Enough takes the most exhilarating form of resistance, much more than riot grrrl's DIY aesthetic, akin to a harder-rocking Sleater Kinney with a similarly wailing centrifugal force in singer/guitarist Jenny McKechnie.” - MOJO “At its loudest and most brash, the album is fun and cathartic on par with any good high-energy rock band. In the moments when punk vitriol meets reflective, thoughtful expression, Far Enough grows more intriguing and compelling.” - AllMusic Australian garage rock trio Cable Ties is thrilled to announce a run of U.S. tour dates supporting North Carolina indie greats Superchunk. Beginning on September 8 in Richmond, VA, the tour will make several stops across the Northeast before culminating at New York City’s famed Bowery Ballroom on September 16. See below for the full list of dates. The band recently announced their third album All Her Plans (June 23, Merge Records), which received a great deal of global praise from the likes of Stereogum, BrooklynVegan, NME, The Line of Best Fit and more, including a home-turf shout from Rolling Stone. The announcement was bolstered by the soaring new track “Time For You” and an official music video, both of which are streaming now.  LISTEN TO “TIME FOR YOU” / PRE-ORDER ALL HER PLANS WATCH THE VIDEO When public support systems fall short, who ends up carrying the burden? The question courses through All Her Plans, the third album from Naarm/Melbourne rock ‘n’ roll trio Cable Ties.  The band’s most sonically confident work yet, All Her Plans builds on Cable Ties trademarks: taut garage rhythms, perfectly wiry guitar lines, incandescent vocals. Bassist Nick Brown’s and drummer Shauna Boyle’s kraut-inflected grooves pulse reliably behind the post-punk jag of Jenny McKechnie’s guitar. Thrumming with the same intensity as the band’s previous releases, the record offers more concentrated, personal lyrics from lead vocalist and guitarist McKechnie as she traces themes of addiction, mental health, and Australia’s flagging healthcare system, with much drawn from the experiences of her own family.  “Perfect Client” vents the frustration McKechnie has felt watching someone close to her remain at the mercy of a flawed mental healthcare system. You can practically hear her blood boiling in “Silos” as she takes aim at privatization and the carceral state. Change laments how slow social progress can feel. “‘Change’ is about the trauma left by the violence of the patriarchy, and how to keep surviving and fighting even when it feels like we’re going backwards,” says McKechnie. Alongside the album’s fury, there are bright spots too. “Time for You” honors the solace found in the love of a partner and the anthemic chorus of “Crashing Through” is a testament to picking yourself up after being blindsided by something completely out of your control.  “I found the idea of writing a new album a little terrifying after all our touring plans got canceled just after we released Far Enough in 2020,” McKechnie says. “It felt as though that album had been lost. I thought I needed to write another album like that again, which wouldn’t be lost. This of course wasn’t true. I needed to write whatever album came out of me at this moment in time.” On “Mum’s Caravan” – the track from which the album’s title is drawn – McKechnie reaches into her folk background to pull out sweeter vocals and delicate storytelling, recognising the sacrifices her own mother has made to care for loved ones when mental health and aged care services failed to do so.  Boyle takes the lead vocal reins for the first time with “Thoughts Back,” delivering a fierce take on the toll of mental health challenges. “I wrote this song mostly centered around my own experiences with mental illness,” she says. “It also plays into the themes of the record, such as care-giving and mental workload. So often people give up their own lives to help others and, as a result, rarely have their voices, their experiences or their history acknowledged.” All Her Plans was recorded in June/July 2022 by long-time collaborator Paul Maybury at A Secret Location Studio in Fairfield. Fellow Melbourne-based legend Michael Beach cameos on piano and organ on “Too Late" and acoustic guitar and piano on “Mum’s Caravan." The album artwork riffs on the theme of relinquishing control: Emme Orbach and Noah Spivak’s work uses chemical reactions to create unique, evolving patterns.  Brown says, after a tough few years, the writing process for All Her Plans was liberating. “There was just a sense of enjoying being back together doing what we love. No pressure to make it good – just to make what felt good. With that came a freeing and in turn a playfulness; the re-sparking of why we started jamming together in a shed seven years earlier. The themes might be heavy, but the hands feel unburdened by the world outside our little practice space.” Formed in 2015, Cable Ties quickly became mainstays of Melbourne’s feminist punk scene. They released their second album Far Enough in March 2020 (Poison City, Australia/New Zealand; Merge Records, internationally), which won Best Rock/Punk Album at the 2020 Music Victoria Awards.  No strangers to international stages, Cable Ties supported Jen Cloher on her 2017 UK/EU tour, and played The Great Escape and UK shows with Tropical Fuck Storm and Amyl & the Sniffers in 2019. In Australia, they’ve played alongside artists including Sleaford Mods, Joan Jett, and The Kills.  CABLE TIES U.S. TOUR DATES 2023 Sep 8 - Richmond, VA - Richmond Music Hall # Sep 9 - Baltimore, MD - Ottobar # Sep 10 - Ardmore, PA - Ardmore Music Hall # Sep 12 - South Burlington, VT - Higher Ground # Sep 13 - Portland, ME - SPACE Gallery # Sep 14 - Hamden, CT - Space Ballroom # Sep 15 - Woodstock, NY - Colony # Sep 16 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom # # - w/Superchunk CABLE TIES ALL HER PLANS (Merge Records) Release Date: June 23, 2023 Tracklist: 1. Crashing Through 2. Perfect Client  3. Time For You 4. Too Late 5. Mum’s Caravan 6. Thoughts Back 7. Silos 8. Change 9. Deep Breath Out CONNECT WITH CABLE TIES: FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | BANDCAMP

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

The cast of new faces includes, in alphabetical order, Teddy Gales+ (national tour of The Spongebob Musical (Nickelodeon));  Isabel Garcia^/+(Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Kokandy Productions)); David Gordon-Johnson+ (And Neither Have I Wings to Fly (First Folio Theatre)); Mai Hartwich* (Avenue Q (Music Theater Works)); Nikki Krzebiot* (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Kokandy Productions)); Justin Grey McPike^ (Disney Deep Dive (The Beautiful City Project)); Nora Navarro* (Songs for a New World (Theo)); Patrick O’Keefe+ (Jeff Award winner - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Kokandy Productions)); Lincoln J. Skoien= (Merrily We Roll Along (CCPA)) and Luiza Vitucci* (The Threepenny Opera (Theo)).

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.