38th Season Announced at American Players Theatre in Spring Green Wisconsin

Theatre Road Trip:

Live Shows On Our Radar

American Players Theatre announces 38th Summer Festival Season

June 10 – October 22, 2017

Diverse lineup of eight classical and contemporary works in repertory,

Including the return of Chicago director William Brown

TICKETS ON SALE TO RETURNING PATRONS MARCH 13;

GENERAL PUBLIC ON APRIL 24

American Players Theatre (APT) announces its 38th Summer Festival Season, June 10 – October 22, 2017, a diverse lineup of eight classical and contemporary plays in repertory that includes the return and work of visiting Chicago director and Jeff Award-winner William Brown taking on Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters in APT’s newly renovated flagship 1140-seat outdoor amphitheater on the Hill. 

Additional outdoor productions for 2017 include: William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Pericles, Prince of Tyre, Georges Feydeau’s A Flea in her Ear and Edmond Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac. Playing in APT’s intimate 200-seat Touchstone Theatre are Jean Genet’s The Maids, Yasmina Reza’s The Unexpected Man and Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge. The Creditors by August Strindberg will run in the Touchstone Theatre from November 2-19 after the regular season closes.

Located on 110 acres of hilly woods and meadows above the Wisconsin River in Spring Green, Wisconsin, American Players Theatre was founded in 1979 and continues to be one of the most popular outdoor classical theaters in the nation. 

Returning patrons can purchase tickets beginning Monday, March 13 and tickets go on sale to the general public Monday, April 24. Single tickets for APT’s 2017 Season start at $49, with special Four Pack ticket packages starting at just $112 for four tickets in the Very Fine seating level to select shows in the Hill Theatre. Ticket and lodging packages are also available at discounted rates. For more information on ticket prices, schedules, plays and casting, call the APT Box Office at 608-588-2361 starting March 13, or visit www.americanplayers.org.

American Players Theatre’s 2017 

Summer Festival Season

A Midsummer Night’s Dream – June 10 to October 8, 2017 (On the Hill)

By William Shakespeare │Directed by John Langs

Opening night: June 17 at 8 p.m.

APT’s first season on its newly rebuilt stage will be christened by the same play that kicked off its first season in 1980. Wedding plans between Theseus, Duke of Athens, and Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons are underway when the couple is interrupted by angry parents trying to stop their headstrong daughter, Hermia, from marrying Lysander instead of their choice, Demetrius. A plan that backfires as the couple flees into the mystical Forest of Arden followed by Demetrius and Helena, (who is, in turn, love with Demetrius). There, Oberon and Titania – king and queen of the fairies – are having a quarrel of their own. And when Oberon enlists his servant Puck to cast a spell on his queen, everyone gets caught up in the magic of this iconic Shakespearean fairy tale.

Featuring Colleen Madden as Titania, Gavin Lawrence as Oberon and Cristina Panfilio as Puck.

A Flea in Her Ear – June 16 to October 7, 2017 (On the Hill)

By Georges Feydeau │ Directed by David Frank

Opening night: June 24 at 8 p.m.

The lovely Raymonde Chandebise wonders why her husband has stopped visiting her bedroom, and assumes he must be having an affair. So she asks her friend Lucienne to write him a love letter meant to lure him to a rendezvous where she can catch him in the act of being unfaithful. But when Raymonde’s (very faithful) husband Victor Emmanuel receives the letter, he assumes it’s for his bachelor friend Tournel and gives it to him instead, setting in motion a hilarious series of events that bounces from the Chandebise home to a hotel of ill repute, where anything (and apparently everyone) goes. Featuring David Daniel as Victor Emmanuel and Marcus Truschinski as Tournel.

Cyrano de Bergerac – June 23 to October 6, 2017 (On the Hill)

By Edmond Rostand│ Directed by James DeVita

Opening night: July 1 at 8 p.m.

Cyrano de Bergerac is a fearless soldier. A loyal braggadocio. And a man furiously self-conscious about his very protuberant nose. He’s also a man in love with a woman (Roxane) who’s in love with someone else (Christian), and promised in marriage to yet another (De Guiche). When Christian is assigned to Cyrano’s platoon, Roxane begs him to protect her love, which Cyrano reluctantly agrees to do. And when Christian in turn begs Cyrano to help him woo Roxane, a plot unfurls that begs the question: does love truly lie in the eyes or in the soul? A funny, action-packed romance with a heart full of poetry. Featuring James Ridge as Cyrano.

Three Sisters – August 4 to September 23, 2017 (On the Hill)

By Anton Chekhov │Directed by William Brown

Opening night: August 12 at 8:00 p.m.

Anton Chekhov (The Seagull, staged by APT in 2014) returns with another soul-searing masterpiece about hope, regret and the complexities of love. Three sisters – Olga, an unwed schoolteacher; Masha, a pianist in an unhappy marriage and Irina, an idealist with plans for a vibrant future – live together with their brother Andrei. In the past, the family lived well-to-do in Moscow, but moved to a provincial town with their father, who had been a military general before his death a year prior. The girls dream of moving back to the city, and more aristocratic lives. Surrounded by soldiers from a nearby artillery post with whom the family has grown close, they watch their lives play out in ways they’d never imagined. A hearty, cathartic story about the moments we allow to pass, and how they shape the future. Featuring Kelsey Brennan as Masha.

Pericles, Prince of Tyre – August 11 to September 29, 2017 (On the Hill)

By William Shakespeare │Directed by Eric Tucker

Opening night: August 19 at 8 p.m.

The most epic of Shakespeare’s late romances, Pericles, Prince of Tyre sails from island to island in a search for love and a place to call home. The first stop is Antioch, where Pericles has traveled to attempt to win the hand of Antiochus’ daughter. But once there, the young prince discovers a secret that could cost him his life. As Pericles flees before he can be murdered, he’s shipwrecked in a storm and recovered by fishermen in Pentopolis, where he catches the eye of Princess Thaisa. Together they create a story that spans oceans, decades and the expanse of the human heart.

The Unexpected Man – June 10 to September 30, 2017 (Touchstone Theatre)

By Yasmina Reza│ Directed by Laura Gordon

Opening night: June 17 at 2 p.m.

Yasmina Reza, author of the international hit Art, brings her unique style of existential comedy to the Touchstone Theatre. Two strangers on a train – an author and a devoted fan – have a secret power struggle as they silently size each other up while reflecting on the decisions and events that led them to their shared train car. A story told through a series of fascinating and funny internal monologues, as two brilliant, lonely people search for a moment of connection. Featuring Sarah Day and Brian Mani.

The Maids – June 27 to October 5, 2017 (Touchstone Theatre)

By Jean Genet│ Directed by Gigi Buffington

Opening night: July 1 at 2 p.m.

Claire and Solange are sisters and servants. Trapped in a life they didn’t ask for and can’t leave, they pass the time by impersonating their Madame, with Claire dressing up in her fine clothes and makeup and relishing her role as the cruel, bullying mistress; using her character to spar with Solange. As the sisters dig deeper into their make-believe, their games become more sinister as they struggle against and within their identities and class roles. A provocative, absurdist fantasy about sex and pain; power and playacting. Featuring Melisa Pereyra as Claire.

A View from the Bridge – August 12 to October 22, 2017 (Touchstone Theatre)

By Arthur Miller│ Directed by Tim Ocel

Opening night: August 19 at 2 p.m. 

In Eddie and Beatrice’s humble and hardworking Brooklyn neighborhood, family ties are a fierce point of pride. Case in point, Bea’s orphaned niece, Catherine has lived with them since she was a child and is now ready to make her way in the world, though Eddie seems reluctant to let her grow up. When the couple agrees to take in two of Bea’s cousins, Marco and Rodolpho, who have traveled from Italy to find work illegally, Catherine and Rodolpho start spending more time together, fanning Eddie’s hot temper and driving the family to an emotional boiling point. A Greek Tragedy set in in 1950s Brooklyn. Featuring Jim DeVita.

Creditors – November 2 to November 19, 2017 (Touchstone Theatre)

By August Strindberg │ Directed by Maria Aitken

Opening night: November 4 at 6 p.m. 

Adolph has made a new friend; a mentor of sorts who seeks to guide him both on his artistic ventures and in matters of his marriage to the charming, vivacious Tekla, who is older than Adolph. It quickly becomes apparent that this new friend – Gustav – may have some ulterior motives, as Adolph and Tekla’s relationship becomes more and more fraught due to Gustav’s influence and Adolph’s own insecurities. A dark and chilling psychological experiment played out on the Touchstone stage. Featuring Tracy Michelle Arnold and Jim DeVita.

About American Players Theatre

APT is a professional repertory theater devoted to the great and future classics. It was founded in 1979 and continues to be one of the most popular outdoor classical theaters in the nation.

The Theatre is located in Spring Green, Wis., on 110 acres of hilly woods and meadows above the Wisconsin River. The outdoor amphitheater is built within a natural hollow atop an oak-wooded hill. Under the dome of sky, almost 1,100 comfortably cushioned seats encircle three sides of the stage. In 2009, APT opened the 200-seat indoor Touchstone Theatre, offering a different type of play and experience.

OPENING: Uncle Vanya at Goodman Now Extended Through March 19th

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

OPENING AND JUST EXTENDED: ROBERT FALLS’ PRODUCTION OF 

UNCLE VANYA 

BY ANTON CHEKHOV, ADAPTED BY ANNIE BAKER

**THE CHICAGO PREMIERE MARKS FALLS’ 30TH ANNIVERSARY AS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR**

***SIX PERFORMANCES ADDED BY POPULAR DEMAND, EXTENDED THROUGH MARCH 19***

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we've long been fans of Chekhov's writing and Robert Falls' directing. This is sure to be a stellar match up of talents. We're looking forward to this one and will be out to review at the press opening. Check back soon for our full review.

Goodman Theatre Artistic Director Robert Falls, “Chicago’s most essential director” (Chicago Tribune), marks his 30th anniversary season with the Chicago premiere of Pulitzer Prize winner Annie Baker’s (The Flick) adaptation of Uncle Vanya. Taken from a literal translation by Margarita Shalina and the original Russian text, Baker’s adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s intimate play about relationships, love and loss, has been hailed as “easygoing, free of the stilted or formal locutions that clutter up some of the more antique-sounding translations” (The New York Times) with “fresh pockets of rawness and disorientation in the classic” (Time Out New York). Falls returns to Chekhov following his critically-acclaimed productions of The Seagull (2010) and Three Sisters (1994). 

Uncle Vanya appears through March 19 in the Owen Theatre. Tickets ($20-$59; subject to change) are available at GoodmanTheatre.org/Vanya, the box office (170 North Dearborn) or by phone at 312.443.3800.

“Uncle Vanya is Chekhov’s first mature play—and as such, his most radical. It’s essentially about life, whether you’re 27, 47, 60 or 80. Time is going by, and you naturally start to examine your life and how you’re living it, or have lived it. For many years, I had a hard time connecting to it. But I re-read it last year, and suddenly it demanded to be done,” said Artistic Director Robert Falls. “Chekhov was really the creator of modern drama. To an enormous extent, everything that we are as contemporary theater artists comes from him and his very complex collaboration with [Konstantin] Stanislavsky.”

In Uncle Vanya, tensions are high at the remote estate of an elderly professor, where resentments flow as freely as the vodka. As the professor’s health fails, his extended family is forced to confront their disturbing futures, while still foundering in their disconcerting pasts. As previously announced, Falls’ all-star cast includes Kristen Bush (Yelena), Marton Csokas (Astrov), David Darlow (Serebryakov), Marilyn Dodds Frank (Maria), Tim Hopper (Vanya), Caroline Neff (Sonya), Larry Neumann, Jr. (Telegin), Alžan Pelesić (Yefim) and Mary Ann Thebus (Marina).

Falls frequent collaborators bring life to Chekhov’s famed classic including: Todd Rosenthal (Set), Ana Kuzmanic (Costumes), Keith Parham (Lighting) and Richard Woodbury (Sound). 

Baker’s adaptation of Uncle Vanya first premiered in 2012 Off-Broadway at the Soho Repertory Theatre. Baker, who is not fluent in Russian, noted that she wanted to “create a version that sounds to our contemporary American ears the way the play sounded to Russian ears during the play’s first productions.” 

EXTENSION WEEK PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Thursday, March 16 at 7:30pm 

Friday, March 17 at 8pm 

Saturday, March 18 at 2pm and 8pm 

Sunday, March 19 at 2pm and 7:30pm (closing performance) 

TICKETS AND DISCOUNTS

Tickets ($20-$59) – GoodmanTheatre.org/UncleVanya; 312.443.3800; Fax: 312.443.3825; TTY/TDD: 312.443.3829

Box Office Hours –12noon - 5pm; on performance days, the box office remains open until 30 minutes past curtain

MezzTix – Half-price day-of-performance mezzanine tickets available at 10am online (promo code MEZZTIX)
$10Tix – Student $10 day-of-performance tickets; limit four, with valid student ID (promo code 10TIX)

Group Sales – Discounted tickets for parties of 10+; 312.443.3820
Gift Certificates – Available in any amount; GoodmanTheatre.org/GiftCertificates

ACCESSIBILITY AT GOODMAN THEATRE

Touch-Tour, March 5 at 12:30pm – A presentation detailing the set, costume and character elements

Audio-Described Performance, March 5 at 2pm – The action/text is audibly enhanced for patrons via headset.

Sign-Interpreted Performance, March 11 at 2pm – Professional ASL interpreter signs the action/text as played. 

Open-Captioned Performance, March 12 at 2pm – An LED sign presents dialogue in sync with the performance.
Visit Goodman Theatre.org/Access for more information about Goodman Theatre’s accessibility efforts.

About the Artists 

Robert Falls is celebrating 30 years as Goodman Theatre Artistic Director this season. Last season, he directed Rebecca Gilman’s Soups, Stews, and Casseroles: 1976 and co-adapted/directed the world premiere of his critically acclaimed production of 2666, based on Roberto Bolaño’s internationally celebrated novel.  Previous credits include the critically acclaimed production of The Iceman Cometh at the Brooklyn Academy of Music; Gilman’s Luna Gale at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles; and a new production of Mozart’s Don Giovanni for the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Other recent productions include Measure for Measure and the world premiere of Beth Henley’s The Jacksonian. Among his other credits are The Seagull, King Lear, Desire Under the Elms, John Logan’s Red, Jon Robin Baitz’s Three Hotels, Eric Bogosian’s Talk Radio and Conor McPherson’s Shining City; the world premieres of Richard Nelson’s Frank’s Home, Arthur Miller’s Finishing the Picture (his last play), Eric Bogosian’s Griller, Steve Tesich’s The Speed of Darkness and On the Open Road, John Logan’s Riverview: A Melodrama with Music and Gilman’s A True History of the Johnstown Flood, Blue Surge and Dollhouse; the American premiere of Alan Ayckbourn’s House and Garden and the Broadway production of Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida. Falls’ honors for directing include, among others, a Tony Award (Death of a Salesman), a Drama Desk Award (Long Day’s Journey Into Night), an Obie Award (subUrbia), a Helen Hayes Award (King Lear) and multiple Jeff Awards (including a 2012 Jeff Award for The Iceman Cometh). For “outstanding contributions to theater,” Falls has also been recognized with such prestigious honors as the Savva Morozov Diamond Award (Moscow Art Theatre), the O’Neill Medallion (Eugene O’Neill Society), the Distinguished Service to the Arts Award (Lawyers for the Creative Arts) and the Illinois Arts Council Governor’s Award.

Annie Baker grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her full-length plays include John (Signature Theatre), The Flick (Playwrights Horizons, Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Hull-Warriner Award, Susan Smith Blackburn Award, Obie Award for Playwriting), Circle Mirror Transformation (Playwrights Horizons, Obie Award for Best New American Play, Drama Desk Award nomination for Best New American Play),The Aliens (Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Obie Award for Best New American Play), Body Awareness (Atlantic Theater Company, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award nominations for Best Play/Emerging Playwright) and an adaptation of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya (Soho Rep, Drama Desk nomination for Best Revival), for which she also designed the costumes. Her plays have been produced at over 150 theaters throughout the U.S. and have been produced internationally in over a dozen countries. Other recent honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship, Steinberg Playwriting Award, American Academy of Arts and Letters Award and the Cullman Fellowship at the New York Public Library. She is a resident playwright at the Signature Theatre.

About Goodman Theatre 

America’s “Best Regional Theatre” (Time magazine) and “Chicago’s flagship resident stage” (Chicago Tribune), Goodman Theatre is a not-for-profit organization distinguished by the quality and scope of its artistic programming and civic engagement. Founded in 1925, the Goodman is led by Robert Falls—“Chicago’s most essential director” (Chicago Tribune), who marks 30 years as Artistic Director this season—and Executive Director Roche Schulfer, who is celebrated for his vision and leadership over nearly four decades. Dedicated to new plays, reimagined classics and large-scale musical theater works, Goodman Theatre artists and productions have earned hundreds of awards for artistic excellence, including: two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards, nearly 160 Jeff Awards and more. Over the past three decades, audiences have experienced more than 150 world or American premieres, 30 major musical productions, as well as nationally and internationally celebrated productions of classic works (including Falls’ productions of Death of a Salesman, Long Day’s Journey into Night, King Lear and The Iceman Cometh, many in collaboration with actor Brian Dennehy). In addition, the Goodman is the first theater in the world to produce all 10 plays in August Wilson’s “American Century Cycle.” For nearly four decades, the annual holiday tradition of A Christmas Carol has created a new generation of theatergoers. 

The 2016 opening of the Alice Rapoport Center for Education and Engagement (“the Alice”) launched the next phase in the Goodman’s decades-long commitment as an arts and community organization dedicated to educating Chicago youth and promoting lifelong learning. Programs are offered year-round and free of charge. Eighty-five percent of the Goodman’s youth program participants come from underserved communities. 

Goodman Theatre was founded by William O. Goodman and his family in honor of their son Kenneth, an important figure in Chicago’s cultural renaissance in the early 1900s. The Goodman family’s legacy lives on through the continued work and dedication of Kenneth’s family, including Albert Ivar Goodman, who with his late mother, Edith-Marie Appleton, contributed the necessary funds for the creation of the new Goodman center in 2000. 

Today, Goodman Theatre leadership includes the distinguished members of the Artistic Collective: Brian Dennehy, Rebecca Gilman, Henry Godinez, Dael Orlandersmith, Steve Scott, Chuck Smith, Regina Taylor, Henry Wishcamper and Mary Zimmerman. Joan Clifford is Chair of Goodman Theatre’s Board of Trustees, Cynthia K. Scholl is Women’s Board President and Justin A. Kulovsek is President of the Scenemakers Board for young professionals. 

Visit the Goodman virtually at GoodmanTheatre.org—including OnStage+ for insider information—and on Twitter (@GoodmanTheatre), Facebook and Instagram

Thodos Dance's Timeless Motion Saturday February 25th

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar: Timeless Motion Saturday, February 25, 7:30 p.m. at the  North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie 9501 N. Skokie Blvd. DON'T MISS TDC'S FINAL  COMPANY PERFORMANCE ON THE NORTH SHORE! With the announcement of a new chapter for Thodos Dance Chicago  after the conclusion of this season,Timeless Motion will be TDC's final performance at the North Shore Center as an ensemble-based company.  Program highlights include the world premieres of  Changing Strangers by Melissa Thodos  boasting her singular fluid, kinetic style, and Acid Reign  in which TDC guest choreographer Brian Enos answers the question  "what might a celebration look like on another planet in the future?"

THODOS DANCE CHICAGO'S TIMELESS MOTION CONCERT WITH WORLD PREMIERE WORKS 

BY MELISSA THODOS AND BRIAN ENOS 

IS FEBRUARY 25 

AT NORTH SHORE CENTER 

Near Light by Melissa Thodos 

Timeless Motion program, February 25, 2017 at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie. 
Photo credit: Cheryl Mann.

Thodos Dance Chicago makes its annual return to Skokie's North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie with a fun, fresh and electrifying concert titled Timeless Motion, Saturday, February 25, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.

Highlights of this unique program include the world premieres of Changing Strangers by Melissa Thodos boasting her singular fluid, kinetic style, and Acid Reign in which TDC guest choreographer Brian Enos answers the question "what might a celebration look like on another planet in the future?" 

Also on TDC's Timeless Motion program are Near Light, a very personal 2015 work by Melissa Thodos with glistening lighting and daunting lifts that combine for a memorable story of healing and support. 

Sunrise by Shannon Alvis

North Shore Thodos fans can also look forward to three more works that have emerged from the company's New Dances in-house choreography series: Flawed, a lovely 2014 duet by TDC ensemble member John Cartwright, and two works that premiered at New Dances 2016, now making their official debut in Skokie as part of Thodos Dance Chicago's repertoire, Uncovering by Thodos ensemble member Briana Robinson, and Sunrise by guest choreographer Shannon Alvis.

Timeless Motion will be performed at theNorth Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, Center Theatre; located at 9501 Skokie Boulevard, Skokie, Illinois. 

Tickets range from $28 to $58 and are available online HERE or by calling (847) 673-6300.

Flawed by John Cartwright and Uncovering by Briana Robinson. 

                                                         

Also on tap for Thodos Dance Chicago in 2017

In addition to Timeless Motion at North Shore Center, Thodos Dance Chicago will celebrate its 25th Anniversary Season Saturday, March 11, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Chicago's majestic Auditorium Theatre. 

The program, titled FULL CIRCLE, promises an exhilarating evening of dance celebrating a quarter century of the company's innovation and artistry. Highlights include the Chicago premiere of Nos Duraturi, a compelling and dramatic commentary on mankind's ability to endure by the legendary Bella Lewitzky, "the Grand Dame of West Coast modern dance" as part of the company's American Dance Legacy Project. 

The program will also boast Acid Reign by Brian Enos, a triumphant world premiere signature work by Melissa Thodos that will complete a trilogy by Thodos when paired with two signature works from the company's near and distant past. Note: this will be the only time this trilogy will be performed, ever. Single tickets are $29-$68. Purchase HERE or call (312) 341-2300 or buy in-person at Auditorium Theatre's Box Office, 50 E. Congress Parkway, Chicago.

A gala is also on tap to celebrate the company's 25 years as an integral part of Chicago's dance community, with Broadway legend and frequent Thodos collaborator Ann Reinking as Honorary Chair. 

On Saturday, February 4, 2017 at 6 p.m., hundreds of TDC friends and supporters will gather at the Chicago History Museum for the Thodos Dance Chicago FULL CIRCLE Silver Anniversary Gala. Tickets are $300; $2,500 for a table of 10. Purchase tickets HERE or call (312) 266-6255.

Proceeds will support Thodos Dance Chicago's popular New Dances in-house choreography series, building Chicago's future choreographers and new works. Always a highlight of Chicago's summer dance scene, New Dances 2017 will showcase the company's dancer's own, self-created works, Saturday and Sunday, July 15 and 16 at Chicago's Athenaeum Theatre.

About Thodos Dance Chicago

Twenty five years ago, in 1992, Melissa Thodos, a young Evanston-born, Chicago-based dancer and choreographer, was frustrated with the lack of opportunities for dancers to work in what in her mind was the obvious environment for a well-rounded dance professional: A place to perform. A place to create. And a place to educate.

Fast-forward 25 years, and Thodos is the only Chicago-based female choreographer and director to have helmed her own mid-sized, contemporary dance company with this unique mission for a quarter century. 

True to her original idea, Thodos Dance Chicago has been performing, creating and teaching dance in Chicago, across the country in 27 states, and around the world on six continents ever since. The company's unique mission of inspiring expression through dance education, dance creation and dance performance has established Thodos Dance Chicago as an innovative, internationally known presence in American contemporary dance.

Today, Thodos Dance Chicago (TDC) is an ensemble of 14 versatile dance artists with a captivating style that uses a variety of dance forms. In addition to performing works by Melissa Thodos, TDC performs works created by guest and other renowned choreographers. Notably, Melissa Thodos has collaborated on several new works with Broadway legend Ann Reinking, resulting in some of the company's most high-profile, critically acclaimed, full-length "story ballets" including The White City: Chicago's Columbian Exposition of 1893 ("Best dance of 2011" - Chicago Sun-Times) and their equally acclaimed A Light in the Dark: The Story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan in 2013. 

Through its American Dance Legacy Project, dedicated to keeping the creative voice on stage of renowned American dance artists no long visible to the public, Thodos Dance Chicago has presented Fosse Trilogy, a trio of rarely performed works by Bob Fosse, a suite of choreography originally created by iconic modern dance legend Sybil Shearer, last season's highly successful Sono's Journey, a tribute to legendary Japanese-American dance artist, Sono Osato, conceived and choreographed by Melissa Thodos, and this season's Nos Duraturi by West Coast modern dance legend Bella Lewitzky.

Numerous guest choreographers from the national dance landscape have set works on the company as well, including Ann Reinking, Lar Lubovitch, Shapiro & Smith, Jon Lehrer, Garfield Lemonius, Zachary Whittenburg, Lucas Crandall, Brian Enos, Amy Ernst, Ron De Jesús, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano, Ahmad Simmons, KT Nelson, Robyn Mineko Williams and Kevin Iega Jeff.

TDC's ensemble for the current 25th Anniversary season, who each teach, choreograph and perform for the company, include John Cartwright, Abby Ellison, Marchetta Genis, Alex Gordon, Hattie Haggard, Thomas Jacobson, Jessica Miller Tomlinson, Shelby Moran, Melissa Panetta, Richard Peña, Brennen Renteria, Briana Robinson and Luis Vasquez, plus performing trainee Tyler Ring. 

In addition to performing the work of others, these talented young dancers have the opportunity to create their own works via the company's annual New Dances initiative. Ensemble dancers also teach a full roster of dance classes for adults and children year round at the company's rehearsal home, the Drucker Center Menomonee Club in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. Thodos Dance also teaches after school dance classes for 50 at-risk youth at the Barreto Club in Humboldt Park and Club One in Pilsen. Both are branches of the Union League Boys and Girls Club improving the lives of children in underserved Chicago neighborhoods.                                                                

Thodos Dance Chicago continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Founder and Artistic Director Melissa Thodos, Executive Director Gail Ford, Booking Director Rick Johnston, Artistic Associate Laura Gates, Resident Lighting Designer Nathan Tomlinson, Education Outreach and Operations Manager Kate Weatherly, Board President Sharon Lear, a dedicated board of directors and the support of thousands of contemporary dance enthusiasts both in Chicago and nationwide. 

The company is supported by The Sono and Victor Elmaleh Foundation, The Garden of the Phoenix Foundation, the Illinois Arts Council-a state agency, Target, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Arts Work Fund, The Morrison-Shearer Foundation, The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Service Club of Chicago, Project 120, The Garden of the Phoenix Foundation, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events and many individual and corporate sponsors. 

For more information, visit the main Thodos Dance Chicago site here. 

OPENING: Skin For Skin at Rivendell Theatre Via The Agency Theater

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

THE AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE PRESENTS  

THE WORLD PREMIERE OF 

SKIN FOR SKIN, 

WRITTEN BY PAUL PASULKA AND DIRECTED BY MICHAEL MENENDIAN, 

FEBRUARY 28 – APRIL 2 AT RIVENDELL THEATRE

ChiIL Live Shows will be there for the opening so check back after 3/4 for our full review. 

The Agency Theater Collective is pleased to announce its spring production of the world premiere of Skin For Skin, written by Paul Pasulka and directed by Michael Menendian, February 28  – April 2, at the Rivendell Theatre, 5779 N. Ridge Ave. Previews are Wednesday, Feb. 28 – Friday, March 3 at 7:30 p.m. Opening night is Saturday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m. (press are also invited to the final preview, Friday, March 3 at 7:30 p.m.) The performance schedule is Thursdays - Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. The running time is 90 minutes, without intermission. Ticket prices for previews are $20 and for the regular run $28.  For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit WeAreTheAgency.org or call 773.680.4596. 

Skin for Skin depicts the biblical Job as a Muslim-American contractor in Baghdad who is suspected of aiding Al-Qaeda. He is imprisoned in an Abu Ghraib-type ‘black site’ and subjected to ‘enhanced interrogation’ as supervised by an American psychologist. The play explores the unintended consequences of torture in the name of God, country and money. Skin for Skin, originally read at Chicago Dramatists, features choreography from members of Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble and Actors Gymnasium.

The Agency Theater Collective’s Skin for Skin acting company includes: Sunny Anam as “Abdul Walli;” David Goodloe as “Pvt. Ethan Michaels;” Robert Hardaway as “Lt. Milo;” Shariba Rivers as “Dr. O’Brien;” Steve Silver as “Ayyub;” Tony St. Clair as “Colonel Lewis;” Hannah Tarr as “Sgt. Lindsey” with understudies Marcellus Burt, as “Pvt. Ethan Michaels;” as Audrey Gladson,  as “Sgt. Lindsey” and Denise Hoeflich, as “Dr. O’Brien.”

The artistic and production staff of Skin for Skin includes: Michael Menendian, director; Jack Schultz*, assistant director/associate producer; Kat McNall, production manager; Bailey Howard, stage manager; Scott Dare, choreographer; Ellyzabeth Adler, choreographer; Alexandra Garfinkle, dramaturg; Ray Toler, set designer; Cristian Esparza, costume designer; Taylor Tolleson, properties designer: Sebby Woldt, sound designer; Jake Engram, scenic painter; Michael Rathbun, lighting designer; Huck Poe*, projection designer; Manny Ortiz, technical director; Fouad Teymour, script consultant; Andrew Gallant, artistic director of The Agency; Sommer Austin, managing director of the Agency; and Tim Touhy, company manager of The Agency. 

*indicates The Agency Theatre Collective Company member

ABOUT PAUL PASULKA, playwright 

Paul Pasulka is a Chicago playwright and a clinical psychologist in private practice and on faculty at Northwestern University School of Medicine. His plays have been produced and read throughout Chicago and in New York. La Maestra, the story of Renaissance painter Artemisia Gentileschi, received a staged reading with dance, movement and song at Chicago DanzTheatre Ensemble in June 2016 and is scheduled for production in its 2017-18 season.  Gruoch, or Lady Macbeth  was produced by Death and Pretzels in 2015.  When the Levee Breaks was produced as part of The Best of the 10's at Chicago Dramatists and Second City Theatre and was selected as a finalist and for publication at Secret Theatre in New York. Dark Angels was performed at the American Theatre Company (ATC) and Roberto Clemente High School in ATC’s Bridge Program. He has worked with Adventure Stage Theatre in assisting middle school students in writing plays for Young Playwrights for Change. He presented "Neuropsychology, Creativity, and Storytelling" at the Steel Pen Creative Writers' Conference in 2015. He has presented autobiographical stories throughout Chicago, including at Rhinofest and with the GenNarrations Project of The Goodman Theatre, and was invited to read at The International Storytelling Festival in San Miguel Allende, Mexico in 2014.

ABOUT MICHAEL MENENDIAN, director

Michael Menendian is a founding member and the producing artistic director of Raven Theatre, where he has directed and designed sets for many productions, earning numerous Joseph Jefferson and After Dark awards. Along with JoAnn Montemurro, Menendian received a 2007/2008 Jeff Award for Outstanding Contribution to Chicago Theatre and he recently received a 2016 Jeff nomination for his direction of Raven's Direct From Death Row the Scottsboro Boys, which earned a Jeff Award for Outstanding Ensemble. Other local directing credits include productions at Victory Gardens, Chicago Dramatists and Lake Forest College,

ABOUT THE AGENCY THEATER COLLECTIVE

Founded in 2010, The Agency Theater Collective creates relevant, authentic work with a focus on new or rarely produced plays. Past productions include Mia McCullough’s Chagrin Falls this fall at The Den Theatre, Copi’s Four Twins, Clifford Odets’ Paradise Lost, Out of Tune Confessional, I Wish to Apologize to the People of Illinois, At the Center, Truth in Context (Non-Equity Jeff Award nominee for Best New Work in 2015/2016) and The Spirit of ’76. The Agency also hosts “No Shame Theatre,” a weekly theatrical open mic, every Saturday night at The Lincoln Loft. The Agency Theater Collective hold the follow principles sacred: revelation, paradox, humor, mischief and collaboration.

OPENING: Henry V, with an all female cast at City Lit Theater Via Babes With Blades

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Babes With Blades Theatre Company presents 

Henry V, with an all female cast, 

opening February 27, 2017

BWBTC’s ’16-‘17 season, WOMEN ON THE FRONT LINES, wraps up with William Shakespeare’s story of war and redemption.

“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.”

Babes With Blades Theatre Company is back with their newest biennial all-female Shakespeare production, Henry V, to be performed at City Lit Theater, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., in Chicago. Previews will be Saturday, February 18 at 8PM, Sunday, February 19 at 3PM, Friday, February 24 at 8PM, Saturday, February 25 at 8PM, and Sunday, February 26 at 3PM. The press opening is Monday, February 27 at 8PM, and the show will run Thursdays-Saturdays at 8PM and Sundays at 3 through Saturday, April 1.

Henry V is directed by Hayley Rice with Violence Design by Kim Fukawa*. The cast features Diana Coates, Catherine Dvorak*, Delia Ford*, Kim Fukawa*, Samantha Kaufman, Gaby Labotka, Morgan Manasa*, Jennifer L. Mickelson*, Chelsea Rolfes, Alexis Randolph, Alison Vodnoy Wolf, and understudy Rachel Mock.

The design and production team of Henry V  includes Elyse Balogh (Scenic Design), Lara Caprini (Stage Manager), Carrie Hardin (Dialect Coach), Scott Leaton (Props Design), Matthew Reich (Sound Design), Dustin Spence (Production Manager), Rachel Sypniewski (Costume Design), and Andrea Trygstad (Lighting Design).

*denotes BWBTC ensemble member

About the Play

Ascending the throne of England after the death of his father, young Henry V faces suspicion from within his country and pressure from without. Hoping to unite his kingdom and ensure its future security, he embarks on a risky campaign to conquer France. As a newly-anointed king with a lot to atone for, the odds are against him… but will his people rally around him?

 “The action of Henry V takes place during the Hundred Years' War between France and England,” says director Hayley Rice. “While the time span is not as long, the United States has been engaged in conflicts in the Middle East for over 15 years, embroiled in the region's unrest for decades beyond that, and one cannot help but feel that nothing will be resolved in the near future. The undeniable parallel - the sense of slogging through a battle that's both predestined and never-ending - makes this play both timely and accessible.”  

Tickets:

$25 general admission ($20 with online reservation before Feb 18)

$15 students and seniors

$10 previews

Available at babeswithblades.org or 773-904-0391.

About the Director

Hayley Rice is a Chicago-area director whose work has been seen at such theaters as First Folio Theatre, Focal Point Theatre Company, & Prairie Fire Children’s Theatre in Minnesota. As an actor, she’s worked with The Factory Theater, Prologue Theatre, AstonRep Theatre, The Chicago Mammals, Circle Theatre, LiveWire Theatre, and Illinois Theatre Center, among others. She is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University’s School of Theatre Arts and is a proud Artistic Associate of First Folio Theatre. 

About the Company

Babes With Blades Theatre Company uses stage combat to place women and their stories center stage. Through performance, script development, training, and outreach, our ensemble creates theatre that explores the wide range of the human experience, and cultivates broader perspectives in the arts community and in society as a whole.