The Cabaret Room at Drury Lane presents The Summer Series Featuring Some of Chicago’s Top Cabaret Artists

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

The Cabaret Room at Drury Lane presents The Summer Series

featuring Chicago's Cabaret Queen Denise Tomasello,

Beckie Menzie & Tom Michael,

and Joan Curto

August 2018 in the Cabaret Room at Drury Lane

The Cabaret Room at Drury Lane Theatre announces The Summer Series featuring some of Chicago’s top cabaret artists in unforgettable limited engagements at Drury Lane’s intimate Cabaret Room. The Summer Series will include performances by Chicago's Cabaret Queen Denise Tomasello (August 3 and 4), Beckie Menzie and Tom Michael (August 17 and 18), and Joan Curto (August 24 and 25). Performances will be held on Friday and Saturday evenings in the Cabaret Room at Drury Lane Theatre located at 100 Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace. 

The elegant evenings of Chicago’s premier cabaret performers will feature a special menu from Drury Lane’s Lucille restaurant, including shareable plates, classic cocktails, and a wide selection of wines, beer, and coffee. Performances will be held on Fridays at 7:30pm and Saturdays at 5pm and 8:30pm, with doors opening in advance for food and beverage service. Tickets for The Cabaret Room’s Summer Series are priced at $50 for ringside tables and $40 for general seating. There is a $25 food and beverage minimum per person. Reservations may be placed by calling the box office at 630.530.0111.

The Cabaret Room’s Summer Series schedule for August 2018 is as follows:

Chicago's Cabaret Queen Denise Tomasello in “To Chicago With Love”
Friday, August 3 at 7:30 pm (doors at 6pm)
Saturday, August 4 at 5 pm (doors at 4pm) and 8:30 pm (doors at 7:30pm)
“To Chicago With Love” is a retrospective of Denise’s remarkable and enduring 40-year career that made her the toast of Chicago. The unforgettable evening will feature her fan-favorite signature songs, classics from the great American songbook, and show-stopping Broadway numbers, as well as a special video and photo presentation of career highlights.

Beckie Menzie and Tom Michael present "That 60’s Show"
Friday, August 17 at 7:30 pm (doors at 6pm)
Saturday, August 18 at 5 pm (doors at 4pm) and 8:30 pm (doors at 7:30pm)
The sixties are back!  “That 60’s Show” - a celebration of the decade that forever changed popular music. From the idyllic early Motown sound and British invasion to Woodstock, “That 60’s Show” will feature songs by many of the decades favorites including The Beatles, The Supremes, The Everly Brothers, Elvis, Petula Clark, Simon and Garfunkle, and many more, all done in Menzie & Michael’s unique award-winning style.

Joan Curto salutes “Broadway Women”
featuring songs from women who performed on and composed for Broadway
Friday, August 24 at 7:30pm (doors at 6pm)
Saturday, August 25 at 5pm (doors at 4pm) and 8:30pm (doors at 7:30pm)
Women and Broadway have a long history not only for the songs that have been introduced and made famous by legendary performers but also for the songs composed by legends as well. This show celebrates their contributions to Broadway history, from Mary Martin to Carole King and Angela Lansbury to Sara Bareilles and many in between!

For more information or to make a reservation, call the Drury Lane Theatre box office at 630.530.0111.

About the Artists

DENISE TOMASELLO most recently sold out concerts at the Auditorium, the Metropolis Performing Arts Center, Skokie Theatre, and The Drake Hotel’s Grand Ballroom. Winner of the After Dark Award for “Outstanding Cabaret Performer” and the Gold Coast Award from CCP, Denise has headlined and sold out every major venue in Chicago including Park West, the Chicago Theatre, Empire Room, The Pump Room, Davenport’s, a six-year record-breaking run at Sages, and a two-year residency at The Fairmont’s Metropole Room. Denise has performed at New York’s Town Hall and Eighty Eights; Michael Feinstein’s Cinegrill and Gardenia in Los Angeles headlining with entertainers Don Rickles, Jackie Mason, and Alan King.

BECKIE MENZIE & TOM MICHAEL have appeared in NYC’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center and Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre, Park West, the Pritzker Stage at Millennium Park, Empire Room, and Davenport’s. Their imaginative musical twists on jazz favorites, standards, contemporary pop, Broadway show tunes, and film gems have won them audience and critical acclaim across the country and around the globe. These five-time After Dark Award winners’ recording efforts have been praised by Billboard Magazine, BackStage, Show Business Weekly, and Playbill. Their duo CD, “Better Two-gether,” is currently available on iTunes and Amazon.

JOAN CURTO created, produced, directed, and appeared in concerts at the Auditorium Theatre celebrating the music of Cole Porter and vocal legends Ella Fitzgerald and Lena Horne. She has appeared across the nation in concerts and clubs, often celebrating the music of the Great American Songbook. A Chicago-based artist, she is a familiar face to Chicago audiences, garnering a reputation for her thoughtful interpretations and powerful voice. Joan has performed in many Chicago theaters and clubs including: the Auditorium Theatre, the Harris Theater, Empire Room, Victory Gardens, Davenports, Drury Lane Theatre, Park West, the Thorne Auditorium, and the Claudia Cassidy Theater. She has been seen in numerous Chicago Humanities Festivals and the Mabel Mercer Foundation’s Cabaret Conventions. Nationally, Joan has performed in some of the top cabaret clubs and concert series, including New York’s Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Room, the Sharon Lynne Wilson Center in Milwaukee, the Overture Center in Madison, Gardenia in Los Angeles, and the Colony Hotel in Palm Beach. In 2016, Joan was recognized and awarded with the Gold Coast Award by Chicago Cabaret Professionals for her contributions to the art of cabaret and awarded the Chicago After Dark Award for Outstanding Cabaret Artist. She continues to explore the songs of both the Classic and the New American Songbook and has developed and performed shows across the country featuring the music of Cole Porter, George & Ira Gershwin, Richard Rodgers, Jerry Herman, and Stephen Sondheim.

Drury Lane Theatre 2018/2019 Season and Subscription Information
The 2018/2019 season will open with the Tony Award-winning Rodgers & Hammerstein landmark musical South Pacific (April 5 – June 17, 2018). The season continues with Tennessee Williams’ sultry family drama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (July 5 – August 26, 2018) followed by the darkly comedic musical Little Shop of Horrors (September 6 – October 28, 2018). For the holiday season, Drury Lane brings to life the treasured story of Belle with Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (November 9, 2018 – January 27, 2019) and then closes its 18/19 season with the global smash-hit Mamma Mia! featuring the music of ABBA (February 7 – April 14, 2019). The 2018/2019 season runs April 5, 2018, through April 14, 2019, at Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace.

Subscriptions for the 2018/2019 Season are priced from $157 to $187 and are currently on sale. Subscribers receive special offers on dining, flexible ticket exchanges, and early notification and priority seating for added events and concerts. 

The performance schedule for all productions is as follows: Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m., Thursdays at 1:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Student group tickets start as low as $30 and Senior Citizens start at $40 for matinees. Dinner and show packages are also available. For individual ticket on-sale dates and ticket reservations, call the Drury Lane Theatre box office at 630.530.0111 or TicketMaster at 800.745.3000 or visit DruryLaneTheatre.com.

About Drury Lane Theatre
Under the leadership of President Kyle DeSantis and Artistic Director William Osetek, Drury Lane Theatre is a major force in the Chicagoland theatre scene, presenting world-class productions in collaboration with some of the nation’s leading actors, artists, writers and directors. Over the past 30 years, Drury Lane has staged more than 2,000 productions and has been nominated for more than 350 Joseph Jefferson Awards. Drury Lane is committed to breathing new life into beloved classics and introducing audiences to exciting new works.

Throughout its 30-year history, Drury Lane has employed more than 7,500 actors and 10,000 musicians, designers and crewmembers to entertain upwards of nine million audience members. Originally founded by Anthony DeSantis, Drury Lane Theatre remains a family-run organization known for producing breathtaking Broadway classics, top-rated musicals, bold new works, hilarious comedies and unforgettable concert events.

REVIEW: Nobody's Home, Part of the Physical Festival Chicago at Stage 773

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Nobody's Home, 

part of the 

Physical Festival Chicago at Stage 773, 

showing at 1225 W. Belmont 

(773)327-5252

Review
By Catherine Hellmann, Guest Critic 

Wow.

I have never seen a play before where all the action revolves around a bathtub. “Set in a bathroom, Nobody’s Home follows a soldier’s journey through his own mind, as he struggles with the monsters of his past to finally come home,” as described by Theatre Temoin and Grafted Cede theatre. While sometimes hard to witness, Nobody’s Home is an important story to tell about PTSD---the hell it creates for the central figure as well as his frustrated and exasperated wife. During the pre-show introduction, the audience is reassured that if anyone needs to step out because of the intensity of the show, the actors will not be offended; they are used to it from their many performances on military bases.

Returned soldier Grant and wife Penny are struggling to return to normalcy after his third tour of duty, which has pushed him over the edge. Penny wants Grant to finally fix the bathtub drain, but Grant’s demons prevent him from accomplishing anything other than basic survival. While her traumatized husband plays Zombie Hunter for endless hours in the bathroom, his also-suffering wife reminisces to their unborn child about the man she married. “He’s been home eight months, and I still feel like I’m waiting.” She reassures herself by reading the love letters he had sent home from the front. The husband she knew is damaged beyond recognition. “Either he’s playing video games in the bathroom, or he is lying next to me, and I’m afraid for my life.”

Will Pinchin does a great job playing the emotionally tormented Grant. But his real-life wife Dorie Kinnear as Penny is amazing in her many roles, playing a psychiatrist, a dead comrade who torments Grant’s thoughts, (“Where were you when I was getting my face blown off?”) and a woman Grant encountered overseas who still haunts him. Penny deserves a medal for what she is tolerating, and I wondered how spouses in these tough circumstances are able to cope. (They are heroes as well.) Just as she is ready to leave Grant, he begs her to stay. In a cool bit of choreography, Pinchin and Kinnear alternate between reality and scary flashbacks in a move they call “the spin.” The lights dim when Grant envisions the native woman from the war and brighten as he embraces Penny, trying to not let her slip away.

Nobody's Home has been perfected over the ten years since its inception. We were lucky to chat with the actors after the show, delighted to discover they are a married couple with a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter. Americans from the two coasts, they met doing theater and currently reside in England. They said the play has a prominent, kind of weird place in their relationship. It is a story that needs to be told. 

Pinchin and Kinnear were impressed with our city and commented on how “nice everyone has been in Chicago.” Awwww. They planned to explore a bit the next day, so we made suggestions on where to eat and what to see. We are lucky they shared their unique play with the Windy City and hope they return soon.

Click here for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops

LET’S GET PHYSICAL!

FINAL WEEK PHYSICAL FESTIVAL CHICAGO HIGHLIGHTS:

AN INGENIOUS DON QUIXOTE VIA SPAIN/UK

A KICK-ASS, ONE-WOMAN LITTLE GIRL WAR

REFUGEE TALE VIA BRAZIL/FRANCE

THIS JUST IN!

A NEW AUDITION WORKSHOP

WITH A LEADING CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TALENT SCOUT

New workshop just added!

From the Inside Out- Dance/Physical Theater Guided Improv – Friday, June 8, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Learn directly from top Cirque du Soleil talent scout Leon Kupferschmid. Find out what he looks for in potential performers prior to Cirque du Soleil’s Chicago auditions for dancers, clowns and physical actors, June 9 and 10.

Bouffon Workshop with Eric Davis (aka Red Bastard), Sunday, June 3, 10 a.m.- 1 p.m. has sold out.

Limited space is still available for the remaining workshops:

Sculpting Space with Dorie Kinnear and Will Pinchin (UK/USA), Monday, June 4,
10 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Dreams, Wishes, Lies with Michael Montenegro, Wednesday, June 6, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Create Your Own Solo with Gaël Le Cornec and Ben Samuels, Thursday, June 7,
10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Comedy & Clowning with Little Solder Productions, Saturday, June 9 at 10 a.m.-1 p.m.


Visit physicalfestival.com/workshops for full workshop descriptions and to register. Workshops are $50 each, or look for information on a discounted workshop pass.



Tickets and for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops HERE

REVIEW: "Red Bastard" in the 5th Annual Physical Festival Chicago at Stage 773

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Red Bastard

Featured as part of the 5th Annual 

Physical Festival Chicago, 

Stage 773 at 1225 W. Belmont  (773)  327-5252

Review
By Catherine Hellmann, Guest Critic

I’m gonna be honest with you,
I’m not gonna lie,
this is the TRUTH:

The Red Bastard is worth seeing. It is theater like you have not seen before. (And he begins the performance by informing us there is no ending.) 

Then again, all people LIE, so why would you believe me??  ;-)

The premise that all people fib, cheat, or are perverts is the foundation of the Red Bastard’s guide to life and love, especially in matters of the heart. Because who really writes these “Rules of Love” that we follow in terms of our relationships? What do we consider “cheating” in a relationship? How honest do
we need to be with our partners? 

Swans may pair off and mate for life, but Eric Davis, a.k.a. Red Bastard, concedes he was not wired for being a swan and had his share of sexual shenanigans that made him a “dirty pony.” (How many audience members will make that their new naughty catch phrase?)

To prove that “Everyone lies,” at the beginning of the show, Red Bastard has the audience stand up. (if you are uncomfortable with participating in live theater, BEWARE...or sit waaay in the back. I discovered this personally. More on that later...) To locate an honest person, just one, Red Bastard surveys the crowd. If someone has lied to that particular question, he or she sits down.

It only took three questions to leave nobody standing. 

I expected the usual questions: have you fibbed about your age, weight, or a past job experience... but the question that “killed” over half the crowd dealt with how often we select the “I have read and understand” the content on any online website’s “terms and conditions” page before we sign off on all that annoying fine print. As Red Bastard exclaims: “It’s a show about YOU--LIES!” In the theater, which is “a temple of lies!”

So how was I dragged into this soul-baring experience? “If you have ever dated more than one person at a time, wink at me.” I winked. He noticed. Oh, crap. He grilled me on particulars. “Did I lie to one of them?” No. “Why not?” I answered truthfully that they “lived in different cities.” Oh, Red Bastard
loved that and mimed driving across the stage, back and forth, back and forth, visiting my lovers.

Did I regret it? If I could erase the experience, would I?

No.

“Why Not?”

I shrugged. “It was fun.”

I think I earned the respect of Red Bastard at that moment with my candor.

Told with boundless energy, humor, music (he plays a concertina!), physical theatrics, and wonderful improv, Eric Davis’ tour-de-force was vastly entertaining and thought-provoking. He had the audience rapt; we even laughed when he ate a piece of chocolate onstage. He ate a mango and slow-danced with a man from the crowd, charming all. And this English teacher learned a new vocabulary word from the show: “compersion.” Look it up.

Davis is also running a Bouffon Workshop for the fest. We chatted with Eric (our new BFF) after the show, and he was a delightful, friendly person. When asked where he lives, he said his wife is a member of Cirque du soleil, so he travels to follow her career. What a great husband! His wife got him to finally rebuke his dirty pony ways. We teased him that he needs to officiate at our maybe-someday-wedding.

No lie.

Click here for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops

LET’S GET PHYSICAL!

FINAL WEEK PHYSICAL FESTIVAL CHICAGO HIGHLIGHTS:

AN INGENIOUS DON QUIXOTE VIA SPAIN/UK

A KICK-ASS, ONE-WOMAN LITTLE GIRL WAR

REFUGEE TALE VIA BRAZIL/FRANCE

THIS JUST IN!

A NEW AUDITION WORKSHOP

WITH A LEADING CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TALENT SCOUT

New workshop just added!

From the Inside Out- Dance/Physical Theater Guided Improv – Friday, June 8, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Learn directly from top Cirque du Soleil talent scout Leon Kupferschmid. Find out what he looks for in potential performers prior to Cirque du Soleil’s Chicago auditions for dancers, clowns and physical actors, June 9 and 10.

Bouffon Workshop with Eric Davis (aka Red Bastard), Sunday, June 3, 10 a.m.- 1 p.m. has sold out.

Limited space is still available for the remaining workshops:

Sculpting Space with Dorie Kinnear and Will Pinchin (UK/USA), Monday, June 4,
10 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Dreams, Wishes, Lies with Michael Montenegro, Wednesday, June 6, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Create Your Own Solo with Gaël Le Cornec and Ben Samuels, Thursday, June 7,
10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Comedy & Clowning with Little Solder Productions, Saturday, June 9 at 10 a.m.-1 p.m.


Visit physicalfestival.com/workshops for full workshop descriptions and to register. Workshops are $50 each, or look for information on a discounted workshop pass.



Tickets and for full details on all Physical Festival shows and workshops HERE

OPENING: US PREMIERE of PINK ORCHIDS to Launch PAC Pride Fest

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

PINK ORCHIDS

By Patrick Cash

US PREMIERE

Directed by Brennan T. Jones

The first play of the “PAC Pride Fest” - a summer season of five plays, PINK ORCHIDS by Patrick Cash is a British play in which five eloquently interwoven and often funny monologues explore the experience of living with HIV - a virus that attacks the emotions as well as the body.  It premiered in London in 2016 under the title THE HIV MONOLOGUES. This production will be directed by Brennan T. Jones and will open to the press on Friday, June 8 at 7:30 pm, in the Pride Arts Center’s Buena space. Jones directed JUMPERS FOR GOALPOSTS for Pride Films and Plays in summer 2017 and was Assistant Director for TimeLine Theatre’s THE AUDIENCE last fall.

Jones’ cast will include Jerome Beck (DONTRELL, WHO KISSED THE SEA for First Floor, and THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH for Remy Bumppo), Don Baiocchi (HOT PINK AND READY TO BLOW for New American Folk Theatre), Nick Dorado (AS YOU LIKE IT  for Eclectic Full Contact Theatre Company and ON GOLDEN POND at Oil Lamp Theatre); and Kathleen Puls Andrade, whose stage credits include BIBLE BINGO, part of the LATE NITE CATECHISM series at the Royal George and whose television credits include CHICAGO MED, BOSS, BERNIE and the award winning SHERYL STILL SINGLE.

Top row L-R: Don Baiocchi, Jerome Beck., Lower row: Kathleen Puls Andrade, Nick Dorado.

PINK ORCHIDS begins with Alex (Beck) meeting Nick (Baiocchi) and finding a connection. This connection is tested when Alex learns Nick is HIV-positive. He procrastinates about how to behave when confronted with Nick’s HIV status and makes some regretful mistakes. An Irish nurse, Irene (Kathleen Puls Andrade), and a producer, Barney (Dorado), also explain how HIV has affected their lives and the devastation caused by media negativity and other elements within society, even from within the LGBT community.

The production team for PINK ORCHIDS will include Evan Frank (scenic design), Noel Huntzinger (costume design), Blake Cordell (lighting and sound design), Hillarie Shockley (properties design), Erica Hughes (Dialect Coach) and Megan Chaney (Stage Manager).

PINK ORCHIDS will open to the press on Friday, June 8, following previews on Wednesday, June 6 and Thursday, June 7. It will run through July 7th, playing in repertory with THE GREEN BAY TREE, which will open on June 13 following previews on June 11 and 12. The “PAC Pride Series” will continue with Joe DiPietro’s FUCKING MEN, playing from July 1 – August 25; a world premiere, HURRICANE DAMAGE by Kevin Brofsky playing from August 1 – 26; and the American Premiere of HOLDING THE MAN, by Australian playwright Tommy Murphy, from August 5 – 26, 2018.

Patrick Cash (playwright) is a writer living in London. His plays include a queer adaptation of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, THE CLINIC, QUEERS, THE CHEMSEX MONOLOGUES, SUPERFICIAL and THE HIV MONOLOGUES. He is a senior contributing editor to ATTITUDE and has written for VICE and DAZED. Both THE HIV MONOLOGUES and THE CHEMSEX MONOLOGUES are published by Oberon Books, and THE CHEMSEX MONOLOGUES was nominated for the Polari Prize 2017. THE HIV MONOLOGUES was produced in Sydney, Australia in 2017. He also wrote and co-produced the short film series THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GRINDR.

Tickets for all events are on sale now at  www.pridefilmsandplays.com or by phone at 866-411-4111 or 773-857-0222.

Previews Weds. 6/6 and Thurs. 6/7 at 7:30 pm

Beginning 6/14, Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 3:30 pm through July 7. No performance Thursday, July 5. Also Sundays, June 17 and July 1 at 7:30 pm



Buena Theater
Pride Arts Center
4147 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60613
Tickets: Previews $15, Regular Run: Premium seats $30, General Admission $25, Seniors/Students/Military $23
Tickets available at www.pridefilmsandplays.com or by phone at 866-811-4111 or 773-857-0222.

He’s just your type. But hold on. He’s about to tell you he’s got HIV.  How will you respond emotionally? Brush it aside and practice safe sex? Go on to a deeper relationship? Or do you walk away? In five eloquently interwoven and often funny monologues, Patrick Cash invites you to explore these emotions of living with a virus that attacks the emotions as well as the body.

"Pink Orchids is a piece that, while full of optimism, doesn’t shy away from the very real prejudices that are still aimed at HIV positive people to this very day. It’s educational and informative, but at the play’s centre are characters that walk off the page and straight into our hearts.' Gay Times ★★★★★



ABOUT PRIDE FILMS AND PLAYS
Pride Films and Plays creates diverse new work (or work that is new to Chicago) with LGBTQ+ characters or themes that is essential viewing for all audiences. We accomplish this mission through fully-staged productions, writing contests and staged readings, and filming one short film each season.

PFP is the primary tenant in the Pride Arts Center (PAC), which connects and promotes other artists who share our values, creating a safe environment for all. PAC books one-night events or limited runs, cabaret, film, dance, comedy, and other events. PAC opened in 2016 and consists of two performance spaces: The Buena at 4147 N. Broadway which has 50 seats and The Broadway at 4139 N. Broadway which has 85 seats.
                                                                                                  
Pride Films and Plays is supported by The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at The Richard Driehaus Foundation, The Illinois Arts Council, City of Chicago’s City Arts Fund, the Elliott Fredland Charitable Trust, Proud to Run, the AmazonSmile Foundation, Arts and Business Foundation, Tap Root Foundation and Alphawood Foundation. 

PFP is a member of the Smart Growth Program of the Chicago Community Trust. Pride Films and Plays is a member of the LGBT Chamber of Commerce of Illinois and The League of Chicago Theatres.

For more information, visit www.pridefilmsandplays.com or call 1.800.737.0984.

ABOUT PRIDE ARTS CENTER
PRIDE ARTS CENTER has become an important part of the arts environment in the Buena Park neighborhood and beyond. In addition to performances by PFP, (www.pridefilmsandplays.com), PAC hosts monthly events including play readings, film screenings, cabaret nights, and variety shows. Guest productions are also included in the PAC schedule. Find a full calendar of everything happening at PAC here. http://pridefilmsandplays.com/calendar/

REVIEW: "The Revolutionists" by Organic Theater at Greenhouse Theater Center, running May 29-July 8, 2018

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

THE REVOLUTIONISTS & 

TIRESIAS WAS A WEATHERMAN 

Via Organic Theater Company of Chicago at the Greenhouse Theater Center

Sara Copeland (Charlotte Corday) in Organic Theater’s production of The Revolutionists, directed by Bryan Wakefield, assistant director Julia Rufo, May 29 – July 8, 2018. All Production Photos by Anna Gelman.

Review By Catherine Hellmann, guest critic

A play about a woman playwright, a woman Haitian rebel spy, dethroned Queen Marie Antoinette, and a tough-girl would-be rebel assassin? In the same play set in 18th Century France with female characters dropping f-bombs? Sign me up!

Playwright Lauren Gunderson uses modern language in her clever, thought-provoking play that is tough to classify. It begins in a somber mood, images of serious discord, pending beheadings...until the delightful Stephanie Sullivan as playwright Olympe de Gouges breaks the tension by asking how could a light-hearted comedy begin with a scene at a guillotine? (Or something like that...I forgot a pen and was mad at myself for not capturing more lines of dialogue verbatim. There are so many wonderful lines in this script.)

Stephanie Sullivan (Olympe de Gouges) and Laura Sturm (Marie Antoinette)

The Revolutionists explores feminism, friendships, rebelliousness, the French Revolution, and makes us feel sympathy for ousted Queen Marie Antoinette---all while making us laugh!

One of the best lines in the witty script is when the characters are debating topics for Olympe de Gouges’ next play, and musicals are discussed. “Who would want to see a musical about the French Revolution?” There is an inside-joke line about a barricade, which elicited laughs from the appreciative audience, and such banter makes The Revolutionists extra fun for theater fans. Gunderson takes advantage of having a playwright character as the others in the story discuss the impact of theater and how a play can affect society or cause change.

All four actresses are so perfect; if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the Narcissistic Queen Marie Antoinette played by Laura Sturm. She was so funny in her “It’s all about ME” mode, like how she knows it is her cue to stand up when she hears the blare of trumpets to announce her entrance! But there is a vulnerable side to her as well, when she describes her life, and how she was married off to a stranger she met on her wedding day.

Taylor Raye (Marianne Angelle) in Organic Theater’s production of The Revolutionists, directed by Bryan Wakefield, assistant director Julia Rufo, May 29 – July 8, 2018. Photo by Anna Gelman.

My companion said his favorite was Taylor Raye as rebel spy Marianne Angelle. Her character is undercover in France fighting for freedom in Haiti, where she has left her husband and two young children behind. I loved her description of her family as she recalls what she is risking for them.

Stephanie Sullivan (Olympe de Gouges)

                                                      Sara Copeland (Charlotte Corday)

Energetic and intense Sara Copeland as assassin Charlotte Corday is also excellent. I had to look up the backstory on her tale, which is fascinating. Indeed, twenty-four-year old Corday did fatally stab a very sickly Jean-Paul Marat in his own bathtub. She was persistent--it took three tries to receive admittance to his home. For her efforts, she was beheaded a mere four days after her crime. In contrast, Marat was hailed as a martyr to his cause, which is mentioned in Gunderson’s play.

As Corday is killed, Copeland ties a red ribbon around her neck to signify the beheading. She later, as an interrogator, gets to wear the coolest stage mask ever. It is unusual to see an all-female cast get to debate art, politics, andtheir destinies in a funny, entertaining way. The Revolutionists are some thought-provoking, kick-ass women. Go support them.

The Revolutionists runs from now until July 8 and is being performed in rotating repertory with Tiresias Was a Weatherman by Jaime Mire, which also sounds intriguing. Greenhouse Theater Center is located at 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue near Oz Park.

ORGANIC THEATER COMPANY – 2018 SUMMER REPERTORY SEASON:

AWE-INSPIRING WOMEN STAND UP AND FIGHT BACK; OR, 

 WHICH IS WORSE, THE REIGN OF TERROR OR THE REIGN OF BIG PHARMA?

Check out full show details here.

TICKETS ON-SALE TODAY AT NOON: IONESCO'S VICTIMS OF DUTY REMOUNT VIA RED ORCHID THEATRE

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

                                                           

A RED ORCHID THEATRE ANNOUNCES CASTING FOR

VICTIMS OF DUTY

BY EUGENE IONESCO

DIRECTED BY SHIRA PIVEN

FEATURING ORIGINAL CAST MEMBERS

ENSEMBLE MEMBERS MICHAEL SHANNON AND GUY VAN SWEARINGEN

PLUS KAREN ALDRIDGE, RICH COTOVSKY AND ENSEMBLE MEMBER MIERKA GIERTEN

July 11 – August 5, 2018

**TICKETS ON-SALE WEDNESDAY, MAY 30 AT NOON**

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're so very excited for this remount for too many reasons to count. I've adored Ionesco since my college intro to his Theatre of the Absurd began with Rhinoceros. I'm also quite fond of Shira Piven's work, Michael Shannon, Guy Van Swearingen (original cast members)... and the rest of this cast of Chicago's finest. A Red Orchid Theatre is at it again, bringing vividly stunning works and star power to their intimate Old Town storefront. This is where theatre gets real. Don't miss this! Book ASAP. This run is sure to sell out.

A Red Orchid Theatre presents a special summer engagement of Victims of Duty by Eugene Ionesco and directed by Shira Piven. Victims of Duty runs July 11 – August 5, 2018 at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N Wells in Chicago.

The cast of Victims of Duty includes original cast members Ensemble Members Michael Shannon (The Detective) and Guy Van Swearingen (Choubert), as well as Karen Aldridge (Madeleine), Rich Cotovsky (Nicolas D’eu), and Ensemble Member Mierka Gierten (The Lady).

Much of the original 1995 team come together to revisit Ionesco's absurd masterpiece. Choubert, the archetypal bourgeois everyman, and his wife Madeleine are spending a quiet evening at home when the Detective arrives to enlist their help in finding the previous tenant. A roller-coaster ride of high comedy and horrific tragedy as Choubert examines his past present and future in a quest to find out where Mallot could be hiding.

“Victims of Duty was the very first show I ever saw at A Red Orchid,” says Artistic Director Kirsten Fitzgerald. “I am not entirely sure Ionesco's investigation of a life made logical sense to me at the time, but it made perfect emotional sense and was viscerally stunning.  So much so, that I knew I needed to work with these people in this space.  That was 1996.  With many of the originals returning (including Director Shira Piven, Production Designer Danila Korogodsky, and actors Guy Van Swearingen and Michael Shannon) the investigation promises to go even deeper.”

In addition to Director Shira Piven, the creative of Victims of Duty includes Danila Korogodsky (Production Designer), Ensemble Member Mike Durst (Lighting Designer), and Brando Triantafilou (Sound Designer).

Tickets, priced at $50, will go on-sale Wednesday, May 30 at noon and may be purchased at the A Red Orchid Theatre Box Office (1531 N. Wells Ave, Chicago) by calling (312) 943-8722, or online www.aredorchidtheatre.org.

About the Artists

EUGENE IONESCO (Playwright) was a Romanian-born French playwright. He studied in Bucharest and Paris, where he lived from 1945. His first one-act antiplay, The Bald Soprano (1950), inspired a revolution in dramatic techniques and helped inaugurate the Theatre of the Absurd. He followed it with other one-act plays in which illogical events create an atmosphere both comic and grotesque, including The Lesson (1951), The Chairs (1952), and The New Tenant (1955). His most popular full-length play, Rhinoceros (1959), concerns a provincial French town in which all the citizens are metamorphosing into rhinoceroses. Other plays include Exit the King (1962) and A Stroll in the Air (1963). He was elected to the Acadmie Franaise in 1970.



SHIRA PIVEN (Director) is a director of both stage and film.  She was the child of theatre people and established herself originally as an actress and stage director in Chicago in the 90's.  Shira has directed numerous stage productions, many of them original adaptations, in New York, Chicago, LA, and Washington D.C. She was the director and a founding member of Burn Manhattan spontaneous theatre, a groundbreaking group performing entirely improvised physical theatre throughout New York City.  In Los Angeles Shira developed and directed the plays Little and All Cake No File at the Actor’s Gang Theatre and Fully Loaded at UCB Theatre. Her first foray into film combined live theatre with film sequences in Water's show Death of a Judge in 2003.  Shira completed her second feature film, Welcome To Me, starring Kristen Wiig in 2015. Her first feature Fully Loaded won the audience favorite feature award at Palm Beach International Film Festival as well as best feature at both The River's Edge International and Carmel Art and Film Festivals. It was also featured at the Boston, San Luis Obispo, Talking Pictures and Newport Beach film festivals and released by Starz. She also directed a short documentary The Beast and The Angel that premiered at the Lincoln Center Film Society and aired on PBS.



MICHAEL SHANNON (The Detective) is a founding member of A Red Orchid Theatre. He directed the world premiere of Traitor by Brett Neveu earlier this year and made his directing debut here with Ionesco’s Hunger and Thirst. He has been seen on stage at A Red Orchid in Pilgrim’s Progress, Simpatico, Mistakes Were Made, Gagarin Way, Mr. Kolpert, BUG, 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, The Killer, The Persecution of Arnold Petch, Canus Lunis Balloonis, Victims of Duty, and Drinking in America. Elsewhere around Chicago, he has worked at Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, Northlight, Famous Door (RIP), and the Next Lab, birthplace of Killer Joe, in which he originated the role of Chris Smith and performed it a gillion times all over God's green earth. Mike currently lives in NYC where he Performed in Ionesco's The Killer with Theatre for a New Audience and made his Broadway debut in Grace at the Cort Theatre. He also played Astrov in Annie Baker's adaptation of Uncle Vanya at Soho Rep, directed by Sam Gold.  Film credits include Groundhog Day, Chicago Cab, The Ride, Jesus' Son, Cecil B. Demented, Tigerland, Pearl Harbor, 8 Mile, Bad Boys II, Kangaroo Jack, Grand Theft Parsons, The Missing Person, Zamboni Man, Revolutionary Road, My Son My Son What Have Ye Done?, Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, Mud, Machine Gun Preacher, Premium Rush, The Iceman, Man of Steel, 99 Homes, Free Held, Elvis & Nixon, The Shape of Water, Fahrenheit 451 and more. On TV: Boardwalk Empire, and the recent miniseries Waco. 



GUY VAN SWEARINGEN (Choubert) is founding Artistic Director and Ensemble Member of A Red Orchid Theatre where he has appeared in over a dozen productions, including Traitor, The Nether, Red Handed Otter, The Sea Horse (Jeff Nomination), Simpatico (Jeff Nomination) and the World Premiere of The Opponent (which was also produced at 59E59 in NYC).  Regional credits include Simpatico at the McCarter Theatre, The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window at the Goodman Theatre, the World Premiere of Taking Care and a revival of The Time of Your Life at Steppenwolf (which transferred to Seattle Rep and A.C.T.) and Eleven Rooms of Proust (a Lookingglass/About Face/Goodman Theatre collaboration).  Other local theatres he’s appeared with include Defiant, Plasticene, Famous Door and Mary Arrchie.  Film credits include Captive State (2018 release), The Dilemma, The Merry Gentleman, Take Shelter, Public Enemies, The Weatherman, Ali, Janie Jones and The Unborn. TV credits include Chicago Fire (NBC), Boss (STARZ), Sirens (USA), Detroit 1-8-7 (ABC), Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story (TNT), The Beast (A&E), Turks and Early Edition (CBS). 



KAREN ALDRIDGE (Madeleine) is a critically acclaimed theater artist consistently starring in productions at Chicago's most prestigious theaters such as The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre and Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. Karen originated the role of "Mrs. Phelps" in Matilda on Broadway.  She also toured around the world in Le Costume with the Theatre des Bouffes du Nord. Karen has been nominated for two Joseph Jefferson Awards.  On television, Karen has appeared in a recurring role as "Dr. Kendra" on NBC's CHICAGO FIRE and as "Dr. Ella Harris" in the Golden Globe winning series BOSS.  Other television & film credits include CBS' Blue Bloods, CBS' Unforgettable and Ron Howard's THE DILEMMA.  



RICH COTOVSKY (Nicolas D’eu) directed the very first show at A Red Orchid Theatre in 1993.  He was the founder and Artistic Director of Mary Arrchie Theatre Company for all of it’s 30 years.  Cotovsky has performed in or directed more than 50 productions at Mary-Arrchie and other theaters, along with the occasional film, television, and commercial gig. Among his favorites: a record-setting run as the Hellcab cabbie and the role of Arthur in Mary-Arrchie's 2012 production of Tracy Letts's Superior Donuts, which he workshopped and understudied at Steppenwolf.  Though Rich and Guy and Mike have collaborated many times, this is the first time they will share the stage outside of the occasional late-night talk show at Mary Arrchie’s Abby Hoffman Died for our Sins festival.


MIERKA GIRTEN (The Lady) is an ensemble member at A Red Orchid, where she has been seen in over thirteen productions, including The Room, The Mutilated, Simpatico, Red Handed Otter, Mud Blue Sky and Abigail’s Party among others. Mierka was honored to reprise her role in Simpatico last fall with A Red Orchid at The McCarter Center in Princeton NJ.   She played Maria Callas in Master Class at The Human Race Theatre Company in Dayton Ohio.  Additionally, she has worked with The Hypocrites, Rivendell Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Cobalt Ensemble, Apple Tree, Provision, Strawdog, Circle Theatre, American Blues, Mary-Arrchie, Live Bait, Roadworks, Steppenwolf and The Goodman. She played Esther in Mistakes Were Made both here at A Red Orchid and in the Off-Broadway Barrow Street Theatre production with friend Mike Shannon. Her voice can be heard on national broadcast and web commercials.

DANILA KOROGODSKY (Production Designer) is a director and stage designer. He is the Artistic Director of Pokoleniy Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia and serves as the head of set design at California State University, Long Beach.  Born into a theatrical family, his father Zinovy Korogodsky, a Stanislavsky prize winner, was one of the most important directors and theater pedagogues in Soviet Union. His mother, Liah Danilina, was a playwright. Danila grew up and was educated in the Soviet Union. He graduated from Leningrad Theater Academy in 1977 as a stage and costume designer, and after graduation worked as a resident designer at the Leningrad TYS (Theater for Young Spectators) - a premier company for young audiences in the Soviet Union. During that time he also worked as a freelance designer for theaters around the country designing more than 80 productions for various companies such as Baku Youth Theater, Tallin Drama Theater, Leningrad Comedy Theater, Novy Drama Theater, Mossoviet Theater, Ilkhom Theater, and Tashkent. In 1989 he was invited to design a show at Honolulu Theater for Youth. Since then he has worked in the United States as a stage designer and design professor. He designed more than 250 productions in the United States and around the world. He also started designing for the opera, and has worked with Chicago Lyric Opera, Opera Bielefeld and Opera Dessau in Germany, Opera Nantes in France, The Spoleto Festival and Opera Theater of Pittsburgh. Other theatrical design work has been with NYC Japan Society, A Noise Within, Actors Gang, Pittsburgh Playhouse, Minneapolis Children Company, ACT, Wheelock Theater, and more.  At Pokoleniy Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia. He has directed Without Lear based on King Lear by Shakespeare, Far Away on Lake Tchad, The Table, Peter-Burg, Songs of Love and Death, The Light Bulb all conceived and developed by the company, which were well received by the Russian and international press. He developed a project based on a play by Maxim Gorky The Summer Folks, which opened in Theater Pokoleniy in October 2012.

Dates:
Previews: July 11-14, 2018
Wednesday, July 11 at 7:30 p.m.
hursday, July 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, July 13 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 14 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Press Performances: Saturday, July 14 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Opening:Sunday, July 15 at 7:00 p.m. 

Regular Run:
July 17 – August 5, 2018           
Tuesday, July 17 at 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, July 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, July 20 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 21 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 22 at 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday, July 25 at 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, July 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 28 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 29 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, July 31 at 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, August 1 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, August 3 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, August 4 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, August 5 at 3:00 p.m.

Schedule:
Tuesdays:7:30 p.m. (July 17 & 31)
Wednesdays: 7:30 p.m. (July 11 & 25)
Thursdays: 7:30 p.m. (July 12, 19 & 26)
Fridays: 7:30 p.m. (July 13 & 20 and August 3)
Saturdays: 3:00 p.m. (July 21 & 28 and August 4)
and 7:30p.m. (July 14, 21 & 28 and August 4)
Sundays:
3:00 p.m. (July 22, 29 and August 5)

Location: A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N. Wells Ave.
Tickets: $50
Box Office: Located at 1531 N. Wells Ave, Chicago, (312) 943-8722; or online www.aredorchidtheatre.org

Concluding our 25th season of ambitious and powerful storytelling, we continue to champion A Red Orchid Theatre’s Red League, which is a gift $1k or more, and the Founders Circle, which is a gift of $5k or more annually for a three-year pledge. These donors represent a community of our most committed and impactful cultural investors. Every profound and shocking moment on our stage is made possible through their critical annual contributions. Their philanthropic leadership fosters the development of raw and relevant work, creates a platform for our talented ensemble to reach new audiences, and ensures that A Red Orchid Theatre remains a source for honest, compassionate, and aesthetically rigorous theatre.

About A Red Orchid
A Red Orchid Theatre has served as an artistic focal point in the heart of the Old Town community of Chicago since 1993 and was honored with a 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Over the past 25 years, its Resident Ensemble has welcomed into its fold an impressive array of award-winning theatre artists with the firm belief that live theatre is the greatest sustenance for the human spirit. A Red Orchid is well known and highly acclaimed for its fearless approach to performance and design in the service of unflinchingly intimate stories. In addition to its professional season, the company is also committed to a Youth Project and hosts The Incubator (providing artists with space and time to explore new work, new forms and new artistic collaborations).

A Red Orchid Theatre is: Lance Baker, Kamal Angelo Bolden, Dado, Mike Durst, Jennifer Engstrom, Kirsten Fitzgerald, Joseph Fosco, Steve Haggard, Mierka Girten, Larry Grimm, Karen Kawa, Karen Kessler, Danny McCarthy, Shade Murray, Brett Neveu, Michael Shannon, Guy Van Swearingen, Doug Vickers and Natalie West.