SAVE THE DATES: Brown Paper Box Co.'s 2018/2019 Season Kicks Off This Weekend 5/4 & 5/518

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Brown Paper Box Co. 2018/2019 Season

Brown Paper Box Co.’s 2018/2019 season poster designs by Artistic Associate Charlie Sheets.

Following their Jeff Recommended run of They’re Playing Our Song and the Chicago Reader Recommended Speech & Debate, Brown Paper Box Co. is proud to announce its 2018/2019 season. With an exciting regional premiere fresh out of New York - cast by lottery each night live on stage, a Chicago storefront chamber musical premiere, a new cabaret at Mary’s Attic in Andersonville, and a Spring 2019 Special Event to be announced soon, BPBCo.’s upcoming season has a little bit of something for everyone & everybody.

"Our staff got about 6 pages into reading Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ EVERYBODY and immediately knew it was the perfect play for our new season,” says Artistic Director Kristi Szczepanek. “And when William & Stephanie brought us their bare-bones concept for Little Women the Musical, it seemed like a great compliment. Thematically, the shows are very different, but we hope to tie them together aesthetically, as we focus this year on our ‘theatre, plain and simple’ roots."

Additional information regarding tickets, casting, outreach, becoming a season donor, and auditions for Brown Paper Box Co.’s 2018/2019 season can be found by visiting www.BrownPaperBox.org.

Brown Paper Box Co. presents An Existential Cabaret
Host: Kristi Szczepanek, Accompanist: Emilie Modaff
May 4 and 5, 2018 
Mary’s Attic above Hamburger Mary’s

Inspired by life’s great mysteries presented in our first play in our 2018/2019 season, EVERYBODY, An Existential Cabaret will be a little different from our previous cabarets! As we begin to explore life, love, and morality through Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ modern morality play, guests at Mary’s Attic can expect to hear the musical stylings of Love, Death, Stuff, Friendship, Understanding, and even God — just to name a few. Join us on May 4th and 5th at Mary’s Attic to celebrate our season with the Brown Paper Box Co. family - and a few special guests!

EVERYBODY 
Regional Premiere
Playwright: Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
Director: Erin Shea Brady
July 13 - August 12, 2018
Pride Films & Plays’ The Buena 

This modern riff on the 15th-century morality play Everyman follows Everybody (chosen from the cast by lottery at each performance) as they travel down a road toward life’s greatest mystery. Making its regional premiere in Chicago following its 2017 world premiere off-Broadway, playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Gloria, An Octoroon) bases his new play on a medieval morality play that instructs sinners on how to repent and seek redemption.

“EVERYBODY harnesses theatricality to drop these conversations into our laps in a way that is hopeful, engaging, and unique,” says director Erin Shea Brady. “The actors literally get to try on different roles. They literally get to step into different points of view, giving us a new opportunity to explore bias and conditioning. There will be some permutations of this piece that have never happened before, that an audience is seeing for the very first time. It’s a huge, exciting experiment and it is electric. EVERYBODY is in on the rarity, taking ‘different every night’ to a whole new level.”

Erin Shea Brady (Director) joined the BPBCo. team this year as Production Director. She is the founder of No Stakes Theater Project, an organization dedicated to supporting the creative risks of emerging artists, where she has produced several productions, staged readings, and initiatives since 2014. Directing credits include: Kander & Ebb's Cabaret, Sharr White’s Annapurna (staged reading) and Jim Cartwright’s The Rise and Fall of Little Voice (No Stakes Theater Project); Stands (Spartan Theater, staged reading) and Anna Schutz's Prodigy: A Modern Family Portrait (staged reading). In assistant direction and dramaturgy roles, Erin has worked on productions at the Goodman, TimeLine, A Red Orchid, Jackalope, Northlight, and Remy Bumppo. A graduate from the directing program at Columbia College Chicago, her training also includes internships at Steppenwolf (Casting Department), American Blues (Performance Intern, Waiting for Lefty), Northlight and A Red Orchid.  Erin is also a contributing critic at Newcity Stage and Perform.Ink and is hard at work on her new play, Revival.

LITTLE WOMEN The Musical
Music: Jason Howland, Lyrics: Mindi Dickstein Book: Allan Knee
Musical Direction: T.J. Anderson
Co-Directors: M. William Panek and Stephanie Rohr
Opening January 2019

This timeless, captivating story is brought to life in this Broadway chamber musical filled with personal discovery, heartache, hope and everlasting love. Based on Louisa May Alcott’s life, Little Women follows the adventures of sisters Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy March. Jo is trying to sell her stories for publication, but the publishers are not interested. Her friend, Professor Bhaer, tells her that she has to do better and write more from herself. Begrudgingly taking this advice, Jo weaves the story of herself and her sisters and their experience growing up in Civil War America.

Under the co-direction of company members M. William Panek and Stephanie Rohr and musical direction of artistic associate T.J. Anderson, Brown Paper Box Co.’s production will focus on the season's mantra of "theatre, plain and simple." The "back to the basics" approach will re-orchestrate the Broadway score for single piano to transport Jo's memories and the events of the musical into her childhood attic. The bare-bones reimagining will elevate the March sisters’ relationships as important focal points rather than simple plot points. 

M. William Panek (Co-Director) is a proud graduate of the University of Illinois' Theatre Department. Most recent he collaborated with Zach Zimmerman on Luke Babylon: Christian Magician and Spell: An Interactive Solo Performance at iO Chicago, iO New York, The Duplex New York, and the Annoyance Theatre. Previously directing: Now. Here. This., [title of show] (Jeff Award Nominated), A New Brain, Aloha, Say the Pretty Girls, Godspell, To Tree (world premiere), Reefer Madness! The Musical in 2010, 2011, and 2012. Casting Associate: EVERYBODY, The Baltimore Waltz, Julius Caesar, Spike Heels. Cabaret: "Positively Present," "Mary'z With a Z," "Proud at Mary's" at Mary's Attic, "Spring Forward Fail Back" at Uncommon Ground, and "BPB Yearbook" "Character Breakdown" at Davenport's. William served as an artistic associate with The Orchard Project in Hunter, NY, production assistant for the 24-Hour Musicals at Joe's Pub, and the business management assistant at the Williamstown Theatre Festival.

Stephanie Rohr (Co-Director) has worked with BPBCo. as director of Spike Heels, assistant director of A New Brain, and coordinator for Spring Forward Fail Back cabaret. She has performed with BPBCo. in Godspell, Aloha Say the Pretty Girls, and [title of show]. Stephanie holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Drake University and an MA in Classical Acting from Drama Centre London. She made her West End debut in Opera Up Close's Olivier Award winning production of La Boheme, and also performed at the Roundhouse Theatre and the Barbican Centre in London. Chicago credits include: High Fidelity (Refuge Theatre), Macbeth, Reservoir Dogs, and Predator: The Musical (Roundhouse Productions), Two Gentlemen of Verona (Spectralia Theatre), Jesus Camp (Cornservatory), Perfect Wedding and Secrets of a Soccer Mom (Towle Theater), and No Sex Please, We're British (JPAC). Stephanie also works as a private vocal coach, sings with The Moxie Sisters and The Bangers, and is a fiber artist and cross-stitch designer. (StephXstitch.com)

OPENING: Having Our Say at Goodman Theatre Through June 10th, 2018

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar:

EXPERIENCE A CENTURY OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY ON STAGE IN 

HAVING OUR SAY: THE DELANY SISTERS’ FIRST 100 YEARS, 

FEATURING ELLA JOYCE AS BESSIE AND MARIE THOMAS AS SADIE

 

***SPECIAL EVENTS INCLUDE MAY 10 “SORORITY SISTERS NIGHT,” MAY 13 “ARTIST ENCOUNTER,” MAY 23 “HAVING YOUR SAY” ESTATE PLANNING SEMINAR AND MORE***

As a long time admirer of director Chuck Smith’s work, I'm very much looking forward to catching Goodman's latest. We'll be out for the press opening May 14th. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Delany centenarians' New York Times bestselling memoir. We're eager to hear a century of wisdom and history from the immortalized experiences of Bessie (1891 – 1995) and Sadie (1889 –1999). 

Goodman Theatre celebrates the lives of “two strong, vibrant women dispensing joy and wisdom” (Chicago Tribune) in a major revival of Emily Mann’s Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years. Directed by the Goodman’s longtime Resident Director Chuck Smith, the production features Ella Joyce and Marie Thomas as the Delany centenarians, Bessie (1891 – 1995) and Sadie (1889 –1999), respectively. 

The sisters were discovered in 1991 when Amy Hill Hearth interviewed them for The New York Times. Following the article, the trio co-authored the book, Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years—a New York Times bestseller and heartfelt reflection of their family history and triumphs over prejudices in times of social unrest. Mann adapted it for the stage, first at McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, New Jersey and then to Broadway, where it ran for 317 performances. 

Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years appears May 5 – June 10, 2018 in the Albert Theatre (opening night is Monday, May 14). Tickets ($20 - $75; subject to change) are now on sale at GoodmanTheatre.org/HavingOurSay, by phone at 312.443. 3800 or at the box office (170 North Dearborn). ComEd is the Major Corporate Sponsor, Conagra Brands Foundation is the Major Production Sponsor and ITW and PwC are the Corporate Sponsor Partners. 

“While many plays deal with a particular moment in time, Having Our Say encapsulates more than a century of America, introducing us to two women who serve as discerning, loving narrators of both their personal story and of our nation’s history,” said Artistic Director Robert Falls. “For 25 years, Chuck Smith’s work has given audiences the unparalleled opportunity to explore the 19th and 20th centuries through the lens of the African American experience—and I’m thrilled to present his interpretation of this deeply moving and vital play.”

This year marks the 25th anniversary of their New York Times bestselling memoir, which serves as a narrative of a century-long swath of triumphs, stagnations and progress in 20th century America. Born in 1889 and 1891 in North Carolina, Sarah “Sadie” L. Delany and A. Elizabeth “Bessie” Delany lived together for more than 100 years and were two of 10 children born to Henry and Nanny Delany. Their father was born a slave in 1858, and later became the country’s first African American Episcopal bishop and vice principal of St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh, North Carolina. Their mother also worked at St. Augustine’s as a matron, and the sisters spent their childhood on the campus before moving to New York City to pursue educations and careers. Sadie was a schoolteacher---the first African American permitted to teach high school-level domestic science in New York City—until her retirement in 1960. She passed away at the age of 109 in 1999. In 1923, Bessie became the second African American woman to work as a dentist in New York City. Throughout her tenure, she never once raised her prices from $2 for a cleaning and $5 for a silver filling. She retired in 1950 and later passed away at the age of 104 in 1995.

“I think the sisters’ stories and points of view have become even more important over time, we need to listen to one another, and especially to our wise elders, now more than ever”, said Hearth, who recently published her 10th book, Streetcar to Justice: How Elizabeth Jennings Won the Right to Ride in New York, which is dedicated in part to the sisters. “The sisters had an enormous impact on my life. I don’t take on any new writing projects unless I think Sadie and Bessie would approve.”

The production design element features Linda Buchanan’s turntable set that alternates between the Delany kitchen and living room, which houses more than 70 photo frames—some of which illuminate with historical images using projections designed by Mike Tutaj. The design team also includes Birgit Rattenborg Wise (costumes), John Culbert (lights) and Ray Nardelli (sound). Kimberly Ann McCann is the production stage manager.

TICKETS, DISCOUNTS AND SPECIAL EVENTS

Tickets ($20-$75) – GoodmanTheatre.org/HavingOurSay; 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 are available for parties 10 ; 312.443.3820
Gift Certificates – Available in any amount; GoodmanTheatre.org/GiftCertificates

PROJECT CONECT BENEFIT – May 5 at 5pm | Petterino’s (150 North Dearborn)
Tickets are $45-50. Project CoNect hosts “theater night” surrounding the major revival of Having Our Say. Join members of Project CoNect and director Chuck Smith for a pre-show reception, followed by the 8pm performance. Project CoNect is a community-based non-profit organization dedicated to empowering individuals through educational programming. Tickets can be found at Projectconect.org

SORORITY SISTERS NIGHT – May 10 at 6pm | The Alice Center
Tickets are $25. The Delany sisters were devoted members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. Celebrate sisterhood with complimentary drinks and hors d'oeuvres, followed by the 7:30pm performance and post-show discussion.

ARTIST ENCOUNTER – May 13 at 2pm | The Alice Center
Tickets are free for members; $10 for general public. Artist Encounters bring together audiences and Goodman artists in an intimate environment for a behind-the-scenes look at the plays and the playmaking process. Join director Chuck Smith as he discusses the process of bringing Having Our Say to life.

HAVING YOUR SAY ESTATE PLANNING SEMINAR – May 23 at 11:30am | The Alice Center
Tickets are free. Join Goodman Theatre for an afternoon of insights, artistic conversation and lunch. Learn from estate planning professions and a moderated discussion with artists from Having Our Say. 

ACCESSIBILITY AT THE GOODMAN

Touch Tour,  June 2 at 12:30pm – A presentation detailing the set, costume and character elements
Audio Described Performance, June 2 at 2pm – The action/text is audibly enhanced for patrons via headset
ASL Interpreted Performance, June 6 at 7:30pm – Professional ASL interpreter signs the action/text as played 
Open Captioned Performance,  June 9 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

Emily Mann (Playwright) most recently collaborated with the Goodman on The Convert  during the 2011/2012 Season. She is a multi-award-winning director and playwright in her 28th season as artistic director and resident playwright of McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, New Jersey. Under Mann’s leadership, McCarter was honored with the 1994 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theater. Her nearly 50 McCarter directing credits include productions by Shakespeare, Chekhov, Ibsen and Williams and the recent world premieres of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express; Baby Doll; Five Mile Lake; The Convert; The How and the Why; Miss Witherspoon and Me, Myself & I. This spring, Mann will direct the McCarter-commissioned world premiere of Christopher Durang’s Turning Off the Morning News. Broadway credits include A Streetcar Named Desire, Anna in the Tropics, Execution of Justice and Having Our Say. Her plays include Having Our Say, adapted from the book by Sarah L. Delany and A. Elizabeth Delany with Amy Hill Hearth; Execution of Justice; Still Life; Annulla, An Autobiography; Greensboro (A Requiem); Meshugah; Mrs. Packard and Hoodwinked (a Primer on Radical Islamism). She is currently writing a play with Gloria Steinem and the stage adaptation of The Pianist.  Adaptations include Baby Doll, Scenes from a Marriage, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, A Seagull in the Hamptons, The House of Bernarda Alba,  Antigone. Awards and honors received include Peabody, Hull Warriner, NAACP, Obie's, Guggenheim; Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle nominations, a Princeton University Honorary Doctorate of Arts, a Helen Merrill Distinguished Playwrights' Award, and the Margo Jones Award given to a "citizen-of-the-theater who has demonstrated a lifetime commitment to the encouragement of the living theatre everywhere.”

Chuck Smith (Director) is a member of Goodman Theatre’s Board of Trustees and is Goodman Theatre’s Resident Director. He is also a resident director at the Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe in Sarasota, Florida. Goodman credits include the Chicago premieres of Objects in the Mirror; Pullman Porter Blues; By the Way, Meet Vera Stark; Race; The Good Negro; Proof and The Story; the world premieres of By the Music of the Spheres and The Gift Horse; James Baldwin’s The Amen Corner, which transferred to Boston’s Huntington Theatre Company, where it won the Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Award for Best Direction; A Raisin in the Sun; Blues for an Alabama Sky; August Wilson’s Two Trains Running and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; Ain’t Misbehavin’; the 1993 to 1995 productions of A Christmas Carol; Crumbs From the Table of Joy; Vivisections from a Blown Mind and The Meeting. He served as dramaturg for the Goodman’s world-premiere production of August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean. He directed the New York premiere of Knock Me a Kiss and The Hooch for the New Federal Theatre and the world premiere of Knock Me a Kiss at Chicago’s Victory Gardens Theater, where his other directing credits include Master Harold... and the Boys, Home, Dame Lorraine and Eden, for which he received a Jeff Award nomination. Regionally, Smith directed Death and the King’s Horseman (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Birdie Blue (Seattle Repertory Theatre), The Story (Milwaukee Repertory Theater), Blues for an Alabama Sky (Alabama Shakespeare Festival) and The Last Season (Robey Theatre Company). At Columbia College he was facilitator of the Theodore Ward Prize playwriting contest for 20 years and editor of the contest anthologies Seven Black Plays and Best Black Plays. He won a Chicago Emmy Award as associate producer/theatrical director for the NBC teleplay Crime of Innocence and was theatrical director for the Emmy-winning Fast Break to Glory and the Emmy-nominated The Martin Luther King Suite. He was a founding member of the Chicago Theatre Company, where he served as artistic director for four seasons and directed the Jeff-nominated Suspenders and the Jeff-winning musical Po’. His directing credits include productions at Fisk University, Roosevelt University, Eclipse Theatre, ETA, Black Ensemble Theater, Northlight Theatre, MPAACT, Congo Square Theatre Company, The New Regal Theater, Kuumba Theatre Company, Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre, Pegasus Players, the Timber Lake Playhouse in Mt. Carroll, Illinois and the University of Wisconsin in Madison. He is a 2003 inductee into the Chicago State University Gwendolyn Brooks Center’s Literary Hall of Fame and a 2001 Chicago Tribune Chicagoan of the Year. He is the proud recipient of the 1982 Paul Robeson Award and the 1997 Award of Merit presented by the Black Theater Alliance of Chicago.

Amy Hill Hearth is a New York Times  Bestselling Author, and an American Library Association “Notable Book” and Peabody Award Winner. She is also a Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, USA Today and Publisher's Weekly Bestselling Author. Hearth's most recent book, Streetcar to Justice: How Elizabeth Jennings Won the Right to Ride in New York, was published Jan. 2, 2018. Written for middle-grade to adult readers, the book tells the all-but-forgotten story of Elizabeth Jennings, a black schoolteacher who refused to leave a segregated streetcar in Manhattan in 1854, setting into motion a historic court case and the first major step in ending segregation in public transportation in New York.  She is the author of two novels, Miss Dreamsville and the Collier County Women’s Literary Society and Miss Dreamsville and the Lost Heiress of Collier County,  both published by Simon & Schuster's Atria Books imprint, as well as seven nonfiction books including Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years, a blockbuster bestseller which spawned a Broadway play and television film. She is the co-author of Know Your Power: A Message to America’s Daughters by the first female speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Rep. Nancy Pelosi.  Having Our Say, called a "classic oral history" by Newsweek magazine, remains a staple in American classrooms. The book is the story of two very wise and candid centenarian sisters, Sarah L. and A. Elizabeth Delany, whose father was born into slavery in the American South. The book was a New York Times Bestseller for 113 weeks. Hearth was an advisor on the Broadway play adaptation of Having Our Say, which earned three Tony Award nominations including Best Play. Hearth served again as advisor when the book was adapted for a CBS Sunday Night Movie in 1999. Directed by Academy Award winner Lynne Littman, the film starred Ruby Dee, Diahann Carroll, and Amy Madigan. Hearth's real-life role was portrayed by Madigan. Hearth began her career in the newspaper business. Having Our Say, in fact, began as a story she wrote about the then-unknown Delany Sisters for The New York Times. As a reporter who had always been interested in telling the stories of older people, she eagerly followed up on several leads about the mysterious and reclusive pair. When she finally met them, her hopes of an interview almost didn't work out, as she later told The New York Times  in a story published on April 2, 1995: "They didn't think they were important enough. I had to convince them and gave this little impromptu speech - that I thought it was very important that people from their generation be represented, especially black women who hadn't had much opportunity. I guess my enthusiasm rubbed off." Hearth attended the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, majoring in Sociology, then transferred to the University of Tampa, Fla., where she earned a B.A. in Writing and was editor of the college newspaper. Her first newspaper job was assistant arts and entertainment editor at The Berkshire Eagle in Pittsfield, Mass. She was, also, an intern in investigative journalism at Tampa Magazine in spring 1982. Her first fulltime reporting job was in Florida at the Daytona Beach News-Journal  (where she met her future husband when she interviewed him for a story). After relocating to the New York area, she wrote 88 bylined news and feature stories for The New York Times including her article on the Delany Sisters. Amyhillhearth.com

ABOUT GOODMAN THEATRE
AMERICA’S “BEST REGIONAL THEATRE” (Time magazine), Goodman Theatre is a premier not-for-profit organization distinguished by the excellence and scope of its artistic programming and civic engagement. Led by Artistic Director Robert Falls and Executive Director Roche Schulfer, the theater’s artistic priorities include new play development (more than 150 world or American premieres), large scale musical theater works and reimagined classics (celebrated revivals include Falls’ productions of Death of a Salesman and The Iceman Cometh). Goodman Theatre artists and productions have earned two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards, over 160 Jeff Awards and many more accolades. In addition, the Goodman is the first theater in the world to produce all 10 plays in August Wilson’s “American Century Cycle” and its annual holiday tradition A Christmas Carol, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this season, has created a new generation of theatergoers. The Goodman also frequently serves as a production partner with local off-Loop theaters and national and international companies by providing financial support or physical space for a variety of artistic endeavors.

Committed to three core values of Quality, Diversity and Community, the Goodman proactively makes inclusion the fabric of the institution and develops education and community engagement programs that support arts as education. This practice uses the process of artistic creation to inspire and empower youth, lifelong learners and audiences to find and/or enhance their voices, stories and abilities. The Goodman’s Alice Rapoport Center for Education and Engagement is the home of such programming, most offered free of charge, and has vastly expanded the theater’s ability to touch the lives of Chicagoland citizens (with 85% of youth participants coming from underserved communities) since its 2016 opening.

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 also 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. David W. Fox, Jr. 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.

OPENING: HAMLET Via The Gift Theatre 6/1-7/29/18

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

The Gift Theatre 

HAMLET

By William Shakespeare

Directed by Guest Artist Monty Cole

June 1 – July 29, 2018

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we've long been big fans of Gift Theatre's little space. They're outliers from all the cities various theatre districts, but well worth the trek to Jefferson Park on Chicago's northwest side. They've made a go of it for 17 seasons, with intimate, excellent, and award winning productions. Gift often likes to play vertically with multilayered shows, physically and mentally. We're eager to catch their take on Hamlet.

The Gift Theatre is pleased to announce casting for William Shakespeare’s HAMLET, directed by guest artist Monty Cole. The Gift’s production of the Bard’s great tragedy will crack open the mind of one of western drama's most fascinating and complex characters. 

The cast of The Gift Theatre’s HAMLET includes (top, l to r) John Kelly Connolly, Robert Cornelius, Shanésia Davis, Gregory Fenner and Daniel Kyri (bottom, l to r) Martel Manning, Casey Morris, Jake Szczepaniak, Hannah Toriumi and Netta Walker.

HAMLET will feature Daniel Kyri as Hamlet with Gift ensemble members John Kelly Connolly* as Claudius, Gregory Fenner* as Laertes, Martel Manning* as Guildenstern and Hannah Toriumi* as Rosencrantz, and guest artists Robert Cornelius as Ghost/Polonius, Shanésia Davis as Gertrude, Casey Morris as Horatio, Jake Szczepaniak as Fortinbras/Marcellus/Gravedigger and Netta Walker as Ophelia.

HAMLET will play June 1 – July 29, 2018 at 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Jefferson Park neighborhood. Single tickets and season subscriptions are currently available by calling the Gift’s box office at 773-283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org. The press opening is Thursday, June 7 at 7:30 pm

After the death of his dad, a young black man named Hamlet returns home to grieve and seek revenge. Fighting against the injustice of his father's murder and the powers that want him out of the picture, Hamlet quickly loses power and sanity. 

Director Monty Cole comments, “Over the last year, this script has only become more personal to me and my production team. What makes this Hamlet unique isn’t necessarily “a new spin” from me but rather a process of personalization from incredibly respected Chicago artists working to make this 400 year old story feel prescient.”

Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton adds, “Experiencing Shakespeare at The Gift is electrifying. In our intimate space, we can deliver performances that mirror Hamlet’s advice to the players: stripped-down, clear, lyrical, and conversational. To be mere feet away from Hamlet’s heartache and blazing mind would be gift enough; with the colossal talents of these artists, our HAMLET will be one for the ages.”

The production team for HAMLET includes: William Boles (scenic design), Samantha Jones (costume design) Claire Chrzan and Michelle Benda (lighting design) Jeffery Levin (sound design) and Michael Petersen, Ph.D. (dramaturg).  

Location: The Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, June 1 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, June 2 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, June 3 at 2:30 pm and Wednesday, June 6 at 7:30 pm
Press openings: Thursday, June 7 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Friday, June 8 – Sunday, July 29, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3:30 pm & 7:30 pm; Sundays at 2:30 pm. Please note: there will not be a 3:30 pm performance on Saturday, June 9.

Tickets: Previews $25. Regular run $35 – $40. Single and season subscriptions are currently available by calling the Gift’s box office at 773-283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org.

*Denotes Gift Theatre ensemble member

About the Director
Monty Cole is a director based in Chicago and Los Angeles. Cole has directed for The Goodman Theatre, Victory Gardens Theater, American Theatre Company, Definition Theater Company/ALTA, The House Theatre of Chicago, the Chicago Theater Marathon, California Institute of the Arts and others. Cole directed the critically acclaimed and Jeff Award winning production of The Hairy Ape for Oracle Productions. Monty is working with collaborator and choreographer Breon Arzell on revitalizing In Dahomey, the first black written and performed Broadway musical from 1903 for the Center for New Performance. Recently, he directed Kiss by Guillermo Calderon at the California Institute of the Arts where he is currently an MFA2 Directing candidate.

About The Gift Theatre
The Gift’s 17th season consists of Stacy Osei-Kuffour’s world premiere of Hang Man, directed by Jess McLeod (March 2 – April 29, 2018); Shakespeare’s Hamlet, directed by Monty Cole (June 1 – July 29, 2018); and the Midwest premiere of Tony Award-winning playwright and ensemble member David Rabe’s Cosmologies, directed by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton (October 12 –December 9, 2018). The Gift subscribers ("Gifters") receive admission to three shows, free parking at Gale Street Inn, free admission to all Wednesday night “Natural Gas” improv shows and invitations to special subscriber-only special events. Subscribe at thegifttheatre.org or by calling (773) 283-7071. 

OPENING: World Premiere of REFRIGERATOR Via First Floor Theater at The Den 5/13-6/9/18

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

World Premiere!

First Floor Theater Presents 

REFRIGERATOR

By Lucas Baisch

Directed by Artistic Director Hutch Pimentel

May 13 – June 9, 2018 at The Den Theatre

I'll be ChiILin' with Chi, IL's First Floor Theater at The Den, on May 20th, so check back soon for my full review. Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we were impressed with the passion and creativity of their last production, Dontrell Who Kissed The Sea. We're eager to see their latest, the world premiere of Refrigerator, developed in Goodman's 2016-17 Playwrights Unit. 

First Floor Theater is thrilled to continue their sixth season with the world premiere of Lucas Baisch’s poetic and poignant drama REFRIGERATOR, directed by artistic director Hutch Pimentel. REFRIGERATOR will play May 13 – June 9, 2018 at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are on sale now at firstfloortheater.com. 

Pictured (top, l to r): Shariba Rivers and Avi Roque (bottom, l to r) Nathaniel Andrew, Kevin Stangler and Andrew Cutler. 

REFRIGERATOR features First Floor company members Andrew Cutler, Shariba Rivers and Avi Roque, with Nathaniel Andrew and Kevin Stangler. 

Eighty-two percent of the planet's people have dispensed with their physical bodies and uploaded their consciousnesses to IceBox in hopes of reaching a digital paradise. Some of the last employees of IceBox and Co. continue to provide transitional services for clients making the ascent. Benjamin has won the lottery, and as he spends his last day in the office, his coworkers battle with their own moral and socioeconomic inability to abandon their individual visions of reality. REFRIGERATOR asks what it is and what it should be.

This play was commissioned by The Goodman Theatre as a part of the 2016-17 Playwrights Unit.

The production team for REFRIGERATOR includes William Boles (scenic design), Uriel Gomez (costume design), Jared Gooding (lighting design), Thomas Dixon (sound design), Amanda Cantlin (props design), Sid Branca (video design), Charlie Baker (fight and intimacy choreographer), Morgan McNaught (dramaturg), Katrina Dion (dramaturg), Bobby Huggins (technical director), Caitlin McCarthy (production manager) and Aaryanna Renee (stage manager).

Location: The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago
Dates: Previews: Sunday, May 13 at 3 pm and Tuesday, May 15 at 7:30 pm
Press Performance: Wednesday, May 16 at 7:30 pm
Regular Run: Friday, May 18 – Saturday, June 9, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm.
Tickets: Previews: $5. Regular Run: $10 - $20. Tickets are on sale now at firstfloortheater.com.



About the Creative Team
Lucas Baisch (Playwright) is a playwright and visual artist, originally from San Francisco, based in both Chicago and Providence. Most recently, he has been commissioned as a member of The Goodman Theatre's 2016-17 Playwrights Unit. His work has been read and developed at Chicago Dramatists, InFusion Theatre Company, Salonathon, Victory Gardens Theater, Links Hall, Gloucester Stage, American Theatre Company, The Neo-Futurists, The Wulfden, The DeYoung Museum, SF Playground, etc. Productions include: Refrigerator (First Floor Theatre), The Scavengers (The Healy Theater at DePaul University) and A Measure of Normalcy (Gloucester Stage Company). Next, his artwork will be shown at the RISD Museum as part of “From the Loom of a Goddess: Reverberations of Guatemalan Maya Weaving” opened in February. Baisch is currently pursuing his MFA in Playwriting at Brown University. Education: BFA Playwriting, DePaul University.

Hutch Pimentel (Director) is a director and producer in Chicago. He is the Artistic Director of First Floor Theater where he's directed Polaroid Stories, Edith Can Shoot Things & Hit Them and Animals Commit Suicide, peerless, Two Mile Hollow and produced numerous other shows. During his time in Chicago, he's had the pleasure of working at About Face Theatre, American Theater Company, Polarity Ensemble, Redmoon, The Gift Theatre, The Goodman and Victory Gardens. He's worked outside of Chicago at Oregon Shakespeare Festival and The Vineyard Theatre. He is an Associate Member of SDC and graduated from Kalamazoo College in Michigan.



About First Floor Theater
First Floor Theater stages stories of individuals facing moments of radical change. Through a process of collaborative dramaturgy, FFT expands these stories to ask urgent social questions. FFT was named the "Best New Theater Company" in the Chicago Reader's Best of 2013 Reader's Pick edition. First Floor Theater is a Resident Company at The Den Theatre.

For more information on First Floor Theater, visit firstfloortheater.com.

OPENING: Forever Plaid at Theatre at the Center In Munster, Indiana 5/6-6/3/18

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Theatre at the Center To Open 

Forever Plaid 

on May 6

Yando Lopez, Adam LaSalle, Christopher Ratliff and Matt Edmonds.  Photo by Guy Rhodes.

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're looking forward to catching TATC's production of perennial favorite, Forever Plaid, this spring. We thoroughly enjoyed Yando Lopez (Jinx and Dance Captain) in his Jeff-nominated role as Lin-Manuel Miranda in Spamilton at the Royal George Theatre, In the Heights at Porchlight Music Theatre and Little Shop of Horrors with American Blues Theatre. We also adored Christopher Ratliff (Smudge) in his TATC debut as part of the ensemble in A Wonderful Life - The Musical and in Chicago as Jon Snow/Jaime/Ramsay in Thrones! The Musical Parody at the Apollo Theatre. We can't wait to catch them again.

Matt Edmonds, in the role of Sparky, Adam LaSalle as Francis, Yando Lopez as Jinx and Christopher Ratliff as Smudge star in Theatre at the Center’s spring musical Forever Plaid.  Previews begin May 3 with Opening Night May 6 and performances continuing through June 3.

Performances are 2 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; 7:30 p.m. Fridays; 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Saturdays; and 2:30 p.m. on Sundays, with select Thursday and Sunday night performances. Individual ticket prices range from $42 - $46.  To purchase individual tickets, call the Box Office at 219-836-3255 or Tickets.com at 800-511-1532. Group discounts are available for groups of 11 or more, Student tickets are $20 and gift certificates are also available.  For more information on Theatre at the Center, visit www.TheatreAtTheCenter.com.  

Forever Plaid, written by Stuart Ross, is a musical revue that follows a quirky quartet of high school chums who dream of becoming like their singing idols, including the Four Aces, the Four Lads, the Four Freshmen and the Crew Cuts, as they rehearse for the biggest performance of their lives.   Their spirited antics and comic banter weave together such hits as “Three Coins in the Fountain,” “Heart and Soul” and “Love is a Many Splendored Thing,” in a playful tribute to the close harmony “guy groups” of the 1950’s. 

Adam LaSalle, Matt Edmonds, Yando Lopez, and Christopher Ratliff. Photo by Guy Rhodes

Matt Edmonds (Sparky) was last seen at TATC as L.M. in Pump Boys and Dinettes and in multiple roles in Big River. Recent work includes Ragtime at Griffin Theatre, James and the Giant Peach at Drury Lane Oakbrook and Death of a Salesman at Redtwist Theatre which earned him a Jeff Nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Play.   

Adam LaSalle (Francis) is making his TATC debut. He recently appeared Off-Broadway and in the Chicago premiere of Forbidden Broadway’s Spamilton playing King George and served as the show’s pianist and music director. 

Yando Lopez (Jinx and Dance Captain) also makes his TATC debut with Forever Plaid. He was Jeff-nominated for his role as Lin-Manuel Miranda in Spamilton at the Royal George Theatre. Other credits include The Christians at Steppenwolf, In the Heights at Porchlight Music Theatre and Paramount Theatre and Little Shop of Horrors with American Blues Theatre. 

Christopher Ratliff (Smudge) made his TATC debut as part of the ensemble in A Wonderful Life - The Musical. He has also appeared as Jon Snow/Jaime/Ramsay in Thrones! The Musical Parody at the Apollo Theatre, as Jason in Bare: A Pop Opera at Refuge Theatre, as Freddy in Pygmalion at the Rogue Theatre and as Laurie in Little Women at 20% Theatre.

Brenda Didier is Director and Choreographer of Forever Plaid.  Didier made her directorial and choreographic debut at TATC in 2017 with the stage hit My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra. Her work has been seen at Mercury Theater Chicago, Bailiwick Chicago, BoHo, Theo Ubique Cabaret and Porchlight Music Theatre. Didier has received Jeff Awards for both direction and choreography.

The creative team for Forever Plaid includes Scenic Designer Jessie Howe, Lighting Designer G. “Max” Maxin, Sound Designer Michael J. Patrick, Costume Designer Brenda Winstead, Wig Design by Kevin Barthel and Prop Design by Frank Roberts, who also serves as Assistant Director. Stage Manager is Jessica Banaszak. William Underwood is Music Director.

Linda Fortunato, as TATC’s Artistic Director, is teamed with Richard Friedman as General Manager and Ann Davis as Head of Production.



Founded in 1991, the 410 seat Theatre at the Center is a year-round professional theater at its home: The Center for Visual and Performing Arts, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, Indiana.  Theater at the Center is the only professional theater company in Northwest Indiana, offering downtown caliber performances in an accessible venue with plenty of free parking.   Theater at the Center is located off I-90/94, just 35 minute from downtown Chicago.

OPENING: A NEW ATTITUDE: IN TRIBUTE TO PATTI LABELLE Via BLACK ENSEMBLE THEATER 5/5-6/17/18

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

BLACK ENSEMBLE THEATER CONTINUES 2018 SEASON WITH

A NEW ATTITUDE: IN TRIBUTE TO 

PATTI LABELLE

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY RUEBEN D. ECHOLES

May 5-June 17, 2018

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we've been lifelong fans of Patti LaBelle's music. We're looking forward to seeing Black Ensemble Theater's tribute. 

Black Ensemble Theater continues its 2018 Season (Movers and Shakers) with A New Attitude: In Tribute to Patti LaBelle, written and directed by Black Ensemble Theater Associate Director Rueben D. Echoles. A New Attitude: In Tribute to Patti LaBelle will be performed at the Black Ensemble Theater Cultural Center, 4450 N. Clark Street in Chicago, May 5 – June 17, 2018. 

A New Attitude is a fun-filled tribute to the ultimate diva—Patti LaBelle. This night of singing is sure to have you “Over the Rainbow.” Celebrate the life of Patti LaBelle from a shy little girl from Philly to the Superstar singing sensation that she is today.

The cast includes Dawn Bless as older Patti and Cherise Thomas as young Patti. Jessica Seals, Kylah, Williams, and Renelle Nicole are the Blue Belles. Ensemble members include Trequon Tate and Isaac Roseborough. Additional cast members are yet to be announced.

The creative team includes Bekki Lambrecht (set design and stage manager), Denise Karczewski (lighting), David Samba (sound) and Rueben D. Echoles (costumes).

As with all Black Ensemble Theater productions, A New Attitude: In Tribute to Patti LaBelle features live musicians led by musical director/arranger Robert Reddrick (drums). Musicians include Adam Sherod (keys), Gary Baker (guitar) and Mark Miller (bass).

Tickets are available at the Black Ensemble Box Office located at 4450 N. Clark St in Chicago, or online at www.blackensemble.org, or by phone at (773) 769-4451. Tickets are $45 for previews (May 5, 6, 11 and 12); $55 (Thursdays and Saturday matinees) and $65 (Fridays, Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees). A 10% discount is available for students, seniors, and groups.

The Black Ensemble Theater is also selling the Five Play Card which allows the holder to see all 5 plays of the 2018 Season or bring five friends to one play or any combination of 5. The Five Play Card is a great deal at $225 which represents a significant savings of $20.00 per full price ticket. For more details or to purchase a Five Play Card contact the box office at 773-769-4451. 




Dates: 
May 5 – June 17, 2018
Previews: May 5, 6, 11 and 12, 2018
Press Performance: Sunday, May 13 at 3pm

Schedule:

Thursdays: 7:30 pm
Fridays: 8:00 pm
Saturdays: 3:00 pm and 8:00 pm
Sundays: 3:00 pm

Location:
Black Ensemble Theater Cultural Center, 4450 N. Clark Street, Chicago
Valet parking is available.

Ticket prices:
$45 Previews
$55 on Thursdays and Saturday matinees;
$65 on Fridays, Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees
A 10% discount is available for students, seniors, and groups.
Box Office: Buy online at www.blackensemble.org or call (773) 769-4451





The Black Ensemble Theater
Founded in 1976, by the phenomenal producer, playwright and actress Jackie Taylor, Black Ensemble Theater is the only African American theater located in the culturally, racially and ethnically diverse north side Uptown community. Through its Five Play Season of Excellence, The Black Ensemble Theater dazzles audiences locally, nationally and internationally with outstanding original musicals that are entertaining, educational and uplifting. The Black Ensemble Theater has produced more than 100 productions and employed over 5,000 artists.

The mission of the Black Ensemble Theater Company is to eradicate racism and its devastating effects upon society through the theater arts.  For more information on the Black Ensemble Theater Company, visit www.blackensemble.org

2-Night Existential Cabaret to Open Brown Paper Box Co. 2018/2019 Season at Mary’s Attic above Hamburger Mary’s in Andersonville

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Brown Paper Box Co.

Opens Their 2018/2019 Season With

“An Existential Cabaret”

May 4 and 5, 2018

at Mary’s Attic above Hamburger Mary’s

in Andersonville

Inspired by life’s great mysteries presented in the regional premiere of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Pulitzer Prize finalist EVERYBODY, “An Existential Cabaret” continues Brown Paper Box Co.’s relationship with original cabaret series at Mary’s Attic in Andersonville. As we begin to explore life, love, and death through Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ modern morality play, guests at Mary’s Attic can expect to hear musical stylings inspired by EVERYBODY’s characters & themes including Love, Death, Stuff, Friendship, Family, Understanding, and even “God.” For only $10 in advance and $15 at the door, join the existential journey with the Brown Paper Box Co. family - and a few special guests - May 4th and 5th at Mary’s Attic. This 2-night cabaret has a little something for everyone and everybody.

Additional information and ticketing information can be found by visiting www.BrownPaperBox.org.

With performances by: Erin Shea Brady*, Ben Kaye, Alex Madda, Greg Mills, Emilie Modaff, Nire Nah, Nicole Nola, Rachel Relman, Anna Schutz*, Hannah Starr, Kristi Szczepanek*, and Peter Wilde.

With poster design by Charlie Sheets*, technical support from M. William Panek* & Gin To*, with Emilie Modaff on keyboard, produced by Erin Shea Brady*, and hosted by BPBCo. Artistic Director Kristi Szczepanek*

* denotes Brown Paper Box Co. members

About Brown Paper Box Co.
Brown Paper Box Co. creates challenging and inspiring theatre that focuses on the text. By employing a smart, simple aesthetic in intimate spaces, we connect audiences directly to the heart of the story. For more information, please visit www.BrownPaperBox.org.