Prepare for auditions by taking a peek into the audition experience here. HD Broadcast quality video available for download here.
​
Nearly 1.5 million theatergoers have attended “the crown jewel of the holiday season” (Daily Herald) since the Goodman established it as an annual offering in 1978. The 41st production of A Christmas Carol at Goodman Theatre, features Chicago favorite actor Larry Yando in his 11th turn as Ebenezer Scrooge. Directed by Henry Wishcamper for the sixth year, A Christmas Carol follows Scrooge as he journeys through his past, present and future to discover the true meaning of hope, redemption and friendship—with plenty of music, costumes and “Bah, Humbugs!” along the way. Tickets to A Christmas Carol ($25 - $89; subject to change) go on sale to the general public on August 10 at GoodmanTheatre.org/Carol, by phone at 312.443.3800 or at the box office (170 North Dearborn). Discounted Group Tickets for 15+ are available at 312.443.3820.

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 ChristmasCarol, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in the 2017-2018 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.

Ira Amyx will play the attorney, J.B. Benton.  Amyx is a Chicago based artist who has enjoyed time on stage with Steppenwolf Theater, The Irish Theater of Chicago, Strawdog Theater Company and many others. He has been seen on TV and movie theaters in EMPIRE, SHAMELESS, CHICAGO PD, SIRENS, WRITTEN OFF, PUBLIC HOUSING UNIT AND a myriad of independent content. He has been nominated for three Joseph Jefferson acting awards, winning for best ensemble (Equity). He also works as an art director and scenic designer, gleaning two Jeff Award nominations for scenic design. Joshua Zambrano will take the role of J.B.’s son, Eddie. Zambrano is an alum of the Chicago High School for the Arts (Class of 2014), and a recent graduate of Colorado College.
The victim’s mother will be played by Chicago native Jamise “Slim” Wright. Wright was recently seen in CHICAGO FIRE’s winter finale episode, “The One Hundred”; in WINDY CITY, an Indie film directed by Gunjan Badjatya; and the theater production of JUST RANTING THE BLUES. Todd Wojcik will understudy the role of J.B. Benton.
The production team will include Parker Langvardt (projection design), Blake Cordell (lighting design), CCDM (music design) and Rafael Zhang (stage manager).
Bonnett’s play uncovers the nationwide, anonymous brotherhood of men who use the Internet to find and compare notes on the women and underage girls they pay for sex. It also explores the toxicity of many of the prevailing notions of masculinity and how they contribute to an environment that allows these abuses to exist. Though the characters are composites of people Bonnett interviewed and the plot details are inspired by real-life events in Chicago. Bonnett’s script includes actual posts from online chats among men engaged in this activity along with dialogue she imagined for the characters.
MONGER, sponsored by the Oppenheimer Family Foundation, will be performed over five weekends at the Greenhouse Theater Center from August 30 – September 30, 2018.
Since 2013, Her Story Theater has been a company dedicated to raising awareness of the epidemic of sexual exploitation. The three previously-produced plays in Her Story’s “Chicago Sex Trafficking Cycle” include SHADOW TOWN (2013), THE JOHNS (2014), and MONEY MAKE'M SMILE (2016, 2017). As a group, the plays depict sex trafficking from the perspectives of the various participants – the traffickers, girls and boys who are trafficked, and the men who buy them.
BIOS
MARY BONNETT (Producing Artistic Director, Playwright) created and cofounded HER STORY THEATER.  Mary is the creator and director of GLOSS OVER, SHADOW TOWN, THE JOHNS, MONEY MAKE'M SMILE, MONGER.  She has won numerous awards for excellence and outstanding contributions in professional theater, writing, directing, theater education. Her plays and directing have been seen in various theaters and universities. She speaks regularly to organizations across Illinois on domestic sex trafficking and the impact the current culture has on our youth.  Mary has appeared on television and radio shows, championing the need for change in laws and awareness to protect children and women. Under Mary's leadership, Her Story Theater has raised thousands of dollars from ticket sales for its partner service organizations.
Mary created the Front Line Series on domestic sex trafficking which includes, COURT SIDE in partnership with Federal, county, and state governments; and most recently, nationally with trial court judges in Philadelphia, PA and Rhode Island. SCHOOL SIDE includes performance, curriculum and study guide for teachers and administrators. The stage readings series focuses on the trauma-based journey of a domestic trafficked victim. Front Line raises awareness, empathy, and understanding for professionals working with these victims and generates post show workshops in problem-solving. Two more works are in the making: BED SIDE for the medical community and JAIL SIDE for law enforcement.
Mary is a member of SAG-AFTRA, and the Dramatists Guild of America. She is winner of the BIBO Award for Community Action and the Illinois Senate Hero Award for her work in combatting sex trafficking in Illinois.  Mary holds a BFA in Theater Arts, BFA in English Literature, MA in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University, England.
JOHN MOSSMAN (Director) is co-founder of The Artistic Home, where he recently earned a Jeff Award nomination for his leading performance in HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE and in 2017 directed the hit production of BY THE BOG OF CATS. He also adapted and directed the world premiere of Paddy Chayefsky's Oscar nominated screenplay THE GODDESS for which he received an equity Jeff Award for New Adaptation, as well as directed the Jeff Nominated JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK, LOOK HOMEWARD, ANGEL; MARISOL, and the acclaimed revival of William Inge's NATURAL AFFECTION.  Other productions include LANDSCAPE OF THE BODY, the revival of Clifford Odets’s CLASH BY NIGHT, as well as Beth Henley's THE MISS FIRECRACKER CONTEST and RIDERS TO THE SEA by J.M. Synge. He directed THE SHADOW OF A GUNMAN for Seanachai Theater, for which he was named one of the top directors of 2011 by WBEZ, and JULIUS CAESAR for Lakeside Shakespeare Theater.  
Also a filmmaker, he directed the award winning feature film INTO THE WAKE and has written and directed several short films that have won top awards at numerous international film festivals, including the Artistic Home-produced SPACEMAN DAN'S 243RD FLIGHT.  He directed the short films DRAGGAGE and JELL-OHH LADY, featured in the American Cinematheque Series at LA's Egyptian Theater, for which he received the Best Director of 2002 award at the Midwest Independent Film Fest. Documentaries include THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS CRAZY, which received a Telly and a Voice Award for its portrayal of teenagers struggling with mental illness.  
LISTING INFORMATION

MONGER: THE AWAKENING OF J.B. BENTON
WORLD PREMIERE
Written by Mary Bonnett
Directed by John Mossman
August 30 – September 30, 2018
Sponsored by the Oppenheimer Family Foundation
Previews Thursday, August 30 – Sunday, September 2 and Thursday, September 6
PRESS OPENING Friday, September 7 at 7:30 pm
Thursdays – Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 3 pm
Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago
Tickets: $35 https://www.greenhousetheater.org/monger-tickets
Info: www.HerStoryTheater.org

ABOUT HER STORY THEATER
Her Story Theater is a small, grass roots theater for social change. Through theater and the written word, our mission is to shine bright lights in dark places on women and children in need of social justice and community support.  The company started in 2011 and has continued to grow with partners and audience awareness on our focused issues.  Backstage.com listed Her Story Theater as one of the Top Ten Best Theaters for “Changing Lives”.
MONGER follows a Chicago criminal defense attorney with a secret sex life who deals with his sensitive 16-year-old son’s legal crisis on the day he takes a deposition from the mother of a deceased teenager. The play uncovers the nationwide, anonymous brotherhood of men who use the Internet to find and compare notes on the women and underage girls they pay for sex. Though the characters and plot are fictional, they are inspired by real-life events and includes actual posts from online chats among men engaged in this activity.

DEFACING MICHAEL JACKSON will feature Samuel Martin, JoJo Pender, Eldridge Shannon III and Chris Taylor.
 
Set among the swamps and canals of rural Florida, a motley group of African-American teenagers create their own Michael Jackson fan club in 1984. But when a white boy moves to the neighborhood and tries to join the club, all the rules of the community are challenged and changed. DEFACING MICHAEL JACKSON is a satire about the do's and don'ts of Blackness, hero worship and American identity. 
 
Comments Director Alexis J. Roston, “The title alone had me at 'hello,' however from the very first page of Spire's script, I found myself caught up in a world that I was already familiar with – ‘metal jacks and Thundercats’… ‘GI Joes and Cabbage Patch.’ Though set circa 1984, this story is universal and will still strike a chord in the present day. It explores interracial conflicts, as well as intra-racial ones through the lens of five adolescents varying in race, gender and mental stability. My hope for this production is to evoke a sense of community, to take each audience member by the hand and say, ‘Here is a glimpse into where I come from. Can we talk now?’ Because this play has the power to do that. It can open closed doors of dialogue and uncover areas of confusion that have been left unchartered. And on top of all that, it’s pretty darn funny!” 
 
The production team for DEFACING MICHAEL JACKSON includes Nicholas Schwartz (scenic design), Jessica Gowens (costume design), Becs Bartle (lighting design) and Jordan Affeldt (stage manager).
 
PRODUCTION DETAILS:
 
Title: DEFACING MICHAEL JACKSON
Playwright: Aurin Squire
Director: Alexis J. Roston
Cast (in alphabetical order): Samuel Martin (Jack), JoJo Pender (Frenchy), Eldridge Shannon III (Red, Yellow, Commish) and Chris Taylor (Obadiah).
 
Location: Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, July 27 at 8 pm
Press performance: Saturday, July 28, 2018 at 8 pm
Regular run: Saturday, July 28 – Sunday, August 12, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays at 7:30 pm; Fridays & Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. 
Tickets: Preview $30. Regular run $40. 
Industry Night: Monday, July 30 at 8 pm – $10 with headshot/resume.
Tickets are currently available at stage773.com, by calling (773) 327-5252 or in person at the Stage 773 box office.
 
About The Creative Team
 
Aurin Squire (Playwright) is an award-winning playwright, journalist and multimedia artist. In 2017, he won the Helen Merrill Prize for Emerging Playwrights, as well as Seattle Public Theatre's Emerald Prize for new American plays. Squire's play Defacing Michael Jackson was the winner of the 2014 Act One Writing Contest at Lincoln Center Theatre and the one-act version of the play has been published by Samuel French. His dark comedy To Whom It May Concern won New York LGBT theatre awards for best play, best playwright, and best actor before being optioned and remounted off-Broadway to critical acclaim at the Arclight Theatre. As a documentary writer, Squire received a year-long commission to live in New Mexico, interviewing Jewish Latinos. He worked with an ensemble to create A Light in My Soul, a docudrama produced around New Mexico about Jewish families who fled from the Spanish Inquisition and settled in the American southwest. Squire also wrote Dreams of Freedom, the multimedia installation video about Jewish immigrants in the 20th century for the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia. Dreams won three national museum awards and is in the permanent exhibit at NMAJH. In 2013, his drama Freefalling was produced at Barrington Stage Company and won the 2013 Fiat Lux Award ("Let There Be Light") from the Catholic Church’s Theatre Conference. Article 119-1, his drama about a gay rights activist in Belarus, was produced in Florence, Italy, Norway, Vancouver and Los Angeles in March 2014. Squire’s comedy African Americana received its world premiere at London’s Theatre 503 in June 2014. His plays have been produced at venues including Abingdon Theatre, ArcLight Theatre, Ars Nova, Barrington Stage Company, Brooklyn Arts Exchange (BAX), Cherry Lane, Lincoln Center Lab, National Hispanic Cultural Center. TV credits include the new CBS political satire BrainDead, The Good Fight and This is Us. He lives in New York City. 
 
Alexis J. Roston (Director) has been deemed a seasoned triple threat. Her list of accomplishments in musical theatre aren’t simply on stage. She has directed as well as vocal arranged for several productions throughout the Chicagoland area. Alexis is an award winner (Jeff Award, Black Excellence Award and Black Theatre Alliance Award) for her performance as Billie Holiday in Lady Day At Emerson’s Bar And Grill (Porchlight Music Theatre). Other Chicago credits include: Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair (Paramount Theatre), Ain’t Misbehavin’, Crowns (Goodman Theatre), Porgy And Bess, Spunk, Piano Lesson (Court Theatre), Shrek (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), What I Learned In Paris, Black Nativity, Seven Guitars (Congo Square Theatre Company), and Company, The Old Settler (Writer’s Theatre). Alexis is a proud ensemble member of Congo Square Theatre Company, as well as a member of Actor’s Equity and SAG-AFTRA. She is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency. 


About Flying Elephant Productions
 
Nothing is more challenging than getting a creative career off the ground. In many ways, it would be easier to get an elephant to fly. Flying Elephant Productions is dedicated to presenting new works, musicals and plays, that are dynamic, impassioned, and, in our belief, prone to fly. We not only give them first voice, but will also work with the creators to market and promote their work further. Our success at production and our entrepreneurial experience make us a uniquely qualified voice in theatre. For additional information, visit www.flyingelephantproductions.com.

​Next winter, SGT partners with Theater Wit to co-produce Will Eno’s heartbreaking new comedy THE REALISTIC JONESES, directed by Theater Wit Artistic Director Jeremy Wechsler, who has directed the Chicago premieres of four of Eno’s plays. Eno’s breakout Broadway work of unspoken love and possibility features the SGT Ensemble.
 
The season concludes next spring with Kate Fodor’s drama HANNAH AND MARTIN. SGT Ensemble Member Louis Contey* also directs this World War II drama in which a passionate love affair is abruptly interrupted by political realities. 
 
The full 2018-19 Season will be presented at Shattered Globe’s resident home, Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. SGT’s VIP Season Traveler Memberships are on sale on at www.shatteredglobe.org. Single tickets for CRIME AND PUNISHMENT go on sale Friday, July 6 at www.shatteredglobe.org, by calling (773) 975-8150 or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office. Discounted group sales for all three productions are currently available at [email protected] or by calling (773) 770-0333.
 
Shattered Globe Theatre’s 2018-19 Season includes:


September 6 – October 20, 2018
CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
Adapted for the stage by Chris Hannan
Based on the novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Directed SGT Ensemble Member Louis Contey*
Press opening: Wednesday, September 12 at 8 pm
 
One of the great stories of world literature comes to life in this fresh, theatrical adaptation featuring an ensemble of 11 actors as chorus and conscience.    
 
As Raskolnikov plays a dangerous cat and mouse game with a mercurial investigating magistrate, a psychological thriller unspools and probes how far humanity might go when driven by disillusionment and whether any crime can be justified by a higher purpose.  
 
January 11 – March 9, 2019
THE REALISTIC JONESES – Chicago Premiere!
By Will Eno
Directed by Jeremy Wechsler
Press opening:  Monday, January 21, 2019 at 7 pm
 
A bucolic evening, which begins in a suburban backyard, evolves into a funny, intimate and profound meditation on life. The four Joneses attempt to muddle through the strange and amazing moments of each day knowing that “talking with someone can make you feel better,” but fearing that actual communication may elude them in the end. THE REALISTIC JONESES was recently named one of the “25 Best Plays since Angels in America” by the New York Times.
 
April 11 – May 25, 2019
HANNAH AND MARTIN 
By Kate Fodor
Directed SGT Ensemble Member Louis Contey*


Based on the tumultuous love affair between Jewish political theorist Hannah Arendt and renowned philosopher Martin Heidegger, this soul-stirring drama focuses on the crisis that erupts when Arendt discovers that her lover and former teacher is using his brilliance and fame to help further the goals of the Nazi Party.  


* Denotes SGT Ensemble Member


About the Artists
 
Chris Hannan’s (Adapter, Crime and Punishment) work as a playwright has been produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Old Vic, Shakespeare's Globe and the National Theatre of Scotland. His most recent play, What Shadows, opened at Birmingham Rep in October 2016 and was described by the Daily Telegraph as "the most provocative theatrical act of the decade." His 1990 play The Evil Doers was produced by the Bush Theatre in London and received a Time Out Award among other prizes, and in 1996 his highly-acclaimed Shining Souls won him a nomination for Lloyds Bank Playwright of the Year. In Scotland, he is best known for Elizabeth Gordon Quinn, which is widely studied and was re-mounted by the National Theatre of Scotland in the first year of its existence. In his plays, he often creates big central roles for women. The critic Joyce McMillan, writing in The Guardian, hailed Elizabeth Gordon Quinn as a "monstrous and magnificent heroine." The same critic described the central character of Shining Souls as a kind of Mother Courage cum Marilyn Monroe of the post-industrial wastelands and called the play a "funny and serious postmodern masterpiece."
 
Louis Contey (Director, Crime and Punishment & Hannah and Martin) marks his 23rd SGT collaboration with Crime and Punishment. For SGT, Lou has also directed The Heavens are Hung in Black ,The Tall Girls, In the Heat of the Night, A View From The Bridge, The Manchurian Candidate, A Streetcar Named Desire, All My Sons, Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?, Peter Pan, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Warhawks and Lindberghs, Holy Ghosts, Judgment at Nuremberg, Requiem for a Heavyweight, The Whaleship Essex, Meet John Doe, The Lower Depths, Escape From Happiness, Real Classy Affair, Rocket to the Moon, Anna Karenina and Brilliant Traces. He has directed over 75 plays, among them The Master & Margarita, Marriage Play, The Diviners, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth and Hamlet. He is an Associate Artist at TimeLine Theatre, where he directed Frost/Nixon, Awake And Sing!, The General from America, Lillian, Copenhagen, It’s All True, Pravda, Paradise Lost, A House With No Walls, The Apple Family Plays and The Price. He has also worked at The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Strawdog Theatre,Theatre at the Center, Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Provision Theatre, Eclipse Theatre and American Theater Company. He is a twelve-time Jeff nominee and has received seven Jeff Citations, as well as an After Dark Award. He teaches part-time at The Theatre School/DePaul University where he received his MFA in Directing. 
 
Will Eno (Playwright, The Realistic Joneses) is a Residency Five Fellow at the Signature Theatre. The Realistic Joneses had its premiere at the Yale Repertory Theatre. The Realistic Joneses was recently named  as one of the “25 Best Plays Since Angels in America” by the New York Times and The Realistic Joneses and Title and Deed (Signature Theater) were both onThe New York Times "Best Plays of 2012" list. Gnit, an adaptation of Ibsen's Peer Gynt, premiered at the Actors Theatre of Louisville in 2013. Middletown, winner of the Horton Foote Award, premiered at the Vineyard Theatre and was subsequently produced at Steppenwolf Theatre. Thom Pain (based on nothing) was a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize and has been translated into more than a dozen languages.
 
Jeremy Wechsler (Director, The Realistic Joneses) is the Artistic Director of Theater Wit where he has directed the Chicago premieres of The Antelope Party, 10 Out of 12, Naperville, The New Sincerity, The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence (Best of 2015 – Chicago Sun Times), Bad Jews (Best of 2015 – New City), Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play (Time Out Peoples’ Choice Award for Direction, Best of 2015), Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England (Chicago Sun Times – Best of Year 2014), Completeness, Tigers Be Still, This, The Four of Us, Feydeau-Si-Deau, Men of Steel, Thom Pain (Based on Nothing) (Jeff Award – Best Solo Performance), Two for the Show and annual favorite The Santaland Diaries. Under Jeremy’s leadership, Theater Wit has emerged as the go to destination for cutting edge contemporary work, gaining national recognition for excellence. He has directed over sixty shows in the last twenty years at various theaters, including Tragedy a Tragedy, The Flu Season, A Taste of Honey (“U.S. Best of 2008” in The Wall Street Journal), Now Then Again (Jeff Award – Best New Work), The Play About the Squirrel, The White Devil, This Is Not a Play About Cancer, Peer Gynt, The Real Thing, Szinhaz, The Duchess of Malfi, Tragedy a Tragedy, Titus Andronicus, The Roaring Girl, Flight, The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, This Is the Rill Speaking, Hay Fever, A Month in the Country, Europe, Henry VI: Blood of a Nation, The Promise, Spin, Un Robot, Horror Academy, Kind Lady, Playing by the Rules, The Marriage of Bette and Boo, Solitaire, The Coarse Acting Show, Life is a Dream, The Prisoner’s Dilemma, Cabaret and The Threepenny Opera. His productions have been nominated for and won multiple awards for design, performance, adaptation and best new work.
 
Kate Fodor (Playwright, Hannah and Martin) is a 2013 Guggenheim fellow in playwriting. Her comedy Rx was produced Off-Broadway by Primary Stages and will had its Los Angeles premiere in January 2014. Her plays have also been produced by Playwrights Horizons, Epic Theatre Ensemble, San Jose Repertory Theatre, London’s Courtyard Theatre and Chicago’s TimeLine Theatre Company, among others. She has been a resident playwright at New Dramatists since 2008. Kate’s play Hannah and Martin received the Kennedy Center’s Roger L. Stevens Award, a Joseph Jefferson Citation, an After Dark Award and a finalist position for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. 100 Saints You Should Know received the National Theatre Conference’s Stavis Award and was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award, as well as being named one of the 10 Best Plays of the year by Entertainment Weekly and Time Out New York. The plays are published by Dramatists Play Service and have been anthologized and excerpted in a number of volumes from Smith & Kraus. Kate’s work has been developed at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Hartford Stage and Centre Theater Group. She has been named one of “Eight to Watch” by The New York Times and has received commissions from Chautauqua Theater Company, Center Theater Group and The Playwrights’ Center, where she was the recipient of the 2011-2012 McKnight National Residency.  
 
About Shattered Globe Theatre
 
Shattered Globe Theatre (Sandy Shinner, Producing Artistic Director; Doug McDade, Managing Director) was born in a storefront space on Halsted Street in 1991. Since then, SGT has produced more than 60 plays, including nine American and world premieres, and garnered an impressive 42 Jeff Awards and 106 Jeff Award nominations, as well as the acclaim of critics and audiences alike. Shattered Globe is an ensemble driven theater whose mission is to create an intimate, visceral theater experience that challenges the perspective of audience and artist alike through passionate storytelling. Shattered Globe is inspired by the diversity of our city and committed to making the theater available to all audiences.   Through initiatives such as the Protégé Program, Shattered Globe creates a space which allows emerging artists to grow and share in the ensemble experience.
 
Shattered Globe Theatre is partially supported and funded by generous grants from The Shulman-Rochambeau Charitable Foundation, The James P. and Brenda S. Grusecki Family Foundation, Alphawood Foundation, The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Illinois Arts Council, a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events, The Shubert Foundation, The Bayless Family Foundation, The Blum-Kovler Family Foundation, and The Robert J. & Loretta W. Cooney Family Foundation.
 
For more information on Shattered Globe Theatre, please visit www.shatteredglobe.org.

​When a terrifying sea monster is spotted off the coast, renowned scientist Professor Aronnax and fellow explorers set out to investigate. They soon find themselves kidnapped and held under the command, and spell, of the mysterious Captain Nemo. As they circle the globe aboard the most advanced submarine the world has never seen, they confront giant squids, bizarre sea creatures, and the monsters that lurk below…and within.
 
Adapted from Jules Verne’s epic adventure exploring the murky perils of the seas, Ensemble Member David Kersnar invites you to board the Nautilus and “Dive! Dive! Dive!” into this Lookingglass World Premiere.
 
“This story is the same hardcore thriller it’s been for over a century: Victorian submarines, sea battles, hairbreadth escapes. On a deeper level, the story really has grown into a near-parable in many ways more resonant to our world than to the world for which it was originally intended,” comments writer/director David Kersnar. “At Lookingglass, we often start with a physical or visual hunch to support the mission or ‘big idea’ of the adaption of extant text. For 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas, all images are created and performed by human hand through intercultural puppetry, as well as chain and rope rigging. Lookingglass has a storied relationship with the Actors Gymnasium up in Evanston, and we tested many physical elements up at the gym and staged physical sequences in the show. In addition, the design team was selected to turn this adventure up to full blast, so stay tuned as we lift the largest and heaviest object ever in the 30-year history of Lookingglass!”
 
20,000 Leagues Under the Seas features Ensemble Members Kareem Bandealy (Captain Nemo) and Thomas J. Cox (Gideon Spillet/J.B. Hobson/Guard/Boatswain) with Artistic Associates Walter Briggs (Ned Land) and Kasey Foster (Professor Morgan Aronnax). The cast also includes Joe Dempsey (Pencroff/Farragut), Micah Figueroa (Harbert/Ensign Smith/Nicholas), Edwin Lee Gibson (Cyrus Smith/Constable Weaver/Engineer), Glenn-Dale Obrero (Kin-Fo/Mr. Drax/First Mate) and Lanise Antoine Shelley (Brigette Conseil).
 
The creative team includes Todd Rosenthal (scenic), Sully Ratke (costumes), Artistic Associate Christine A. Binder (lighting), Artistic Associate Rick Sims(sound and composition), Artistic Associate Sylvia Hernandez-Distasi (circus choreography), Blair Thomas, Tom Lee, and Chris Wooten (puppet designers),Isaac Schoepp (rigging), Amanda Herrmann (props), Kathy Logelin (dialect), Max Fabian (fight choreography) and Mary Hungerford (stage manager).
 
About the Artists
 
DAVID KERSNAR (Director/Playwright/Lookingglass Ensemble Member) has directed, performed, written, designed and taught for Lookingglass since 1988. David previously served as the Lookingglass Artistic Director, founded and directed Lookingglass Education & Community Programs, and served as Master Teacher. Other directing and writing credits include: premiere productions at Next Theatre Company, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lively Arts Dance Academy, and Chicago Children’s Theatre. David also worked with Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Remains Theater, Brooklyn Academy of Music, The Actors’ Gang, Touchstone Theatre, and Alley Theatre of Houston. David has served as Theatre Chair for Monterey Peninsula College, as well as professor of theatre at such institutions as Northwestern University, DePaul University, Roosevelt University
and University of Illinois. He co-founded and produced over 40 films and plays nationally and internationally with Shaking the Tree Interactive Productions, which uses theatrical problem-solving techniques in business environments. Film and TV credits include: U.S. Marshals, Since You’ve Been Gone, Early Edition, Turks. David holds a B.S. in theatre/performance studies and a MFA in directing from Northwestern University.
 
STEVE PICKERING (ALTHOS LOW/Playwright) is a Chicago-based actor, director, and playwright. A Goodman Theatre Creative Partner and Project Manager for Shanghai Low Theatricals (SLT), he is formerly the Artistic Director of Next Theatre Company in Evanston. For SLT, he has served as the primary adaptor—in collaboration with company members—of Orwell’s Animal Farm (Steppenwolf for Young Adults, 2014); Conan Doyle’s The Hound Of The Baskervilles (Idle Muse Theatre Company); Alastair Reynolds’ Diamond Dogs (The House Theatre of Chicago); and his own production of Alphaburn, retelling the Joan of Arc story (DePaul University, 2017). As an actor, he last appeared in Robert Falls’ world premiere staging of Rogelio Martinez’ Blind Date (Goodman Theatre—one of over 30 productions with the company since 1987); Sean Grennan’s The Tin Woman (Theatre at the Center); and Mary Zimmerman’s Treasure
Island (Lookingglass; Berkeley Repertory Theatre). In 2016, he was awarded a Lunt-Fontanne Fellowship by the Ten Chimneys Foundation.
 
KAREEM BANDEALY (Captain Nemo/Lookingglass Ensemble Member) has previously appeared at Lookingglass in Blood Wedding, Moby Dick, The Little Prince, Big Lake Big City, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, The Last Act of Lilka Kadison, and Peter Pan (A Play). Chicago credits: A Christmas Carol (2014–2017), Rock ‘N’ Roll, Gas For Less and King Lear at Goodman Theatre; The Wheel at Steppenwolf Theatre Company; Oklahoma! at Paramount Theatre; The Good Book and The Illusion at Court Theatre; Julius Caesar, Hamlet, The Caretaker and Heartbreak House at Writers Theatre; A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Edward II and Romeo and Juliet at Chicago Shakespeare Theater; A Disappearing Number, Blood and Gifts at TimeLine Theatre; The Skin of Our Teeth and The Real Thing at Remy Bumppo Theatre Company; Othello (as Othello) at The Gift Theatre, and many others. Regional credits include: The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Three Musketeers and The Tempest at Illinois Shakespeare Festival; Love’s Labour’s Lost at Notre Dame Summer Shakespeare; Julius Caesar and Stuff Happens at Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre, and four seasons with Orlando Shakespeare Theater. He has appeared in several films including The Merry Gentleman directed by Michael Keaton, in the new web series Code-Switched, and on TV in Chicago Fire. His new play, Act(s) of God, is slated for its world premiere as part of Lookingglass’ 2018–19 Season. Kareem is a recipient of the 2011 3Arts Artist Award.
 
WALTER BRIGGS (Ned Land/Lookingglass Artistic Associate) returns to Lookingglass, where he is an Artistic Associate, after performing as Ishmael in last summer’s production of Moby Dick. He has previously appeared at Lookingglass in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo and The North China Lover, as well as performing as Starbuck in the touring production of Moby Dick at South Coast Repertory, Arena Stage and Alliance Theatre. Chicago credits include:
Sucker Punch (Victory Gardens Theater), Hit The Wall (The Inconvenience/Steppenwolf Theatre Company), All Our Tragic (The Hypocrites), and The Glass Menagerie (Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.). Regionally, Walter has performed at A.R.T., Actors Theatre of Louisville, and The Getty Villa. TV/Film credits include:Chicago Med, Jessica, A Good Person,
Ballad, and Older Children. Walter is a founding member of The Inconvenience and a graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University.
 
THOMAS J. COX (Gideon Spillet/J.B. Hobson/Guard/Boatswain/Lookingglass Ensemble Member) most recently appeared at Lookingglass in Cascabel. A founding Ensemble Member, Thom has appeared in many productions since 1988, including The Jungle, The Odyssey, West, The Arabian Nights, The Master and Margarita, The Great Fire, Nelson Algren: For Keeps and a Single Day, 1984, The Old Curiosity Shop, and Peter Pan (A Play), among others. Regionally, he has appeared at Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Northlight Theatre, Court Theatre, The House Theatre of Chicago, The Gift Theatre, Victory Gardens Theater, and Milwaukee Repertory Theater. He also serves Lookingglass’ Education and Community Program as Master Teacher. Most recently, Thom was seen in Blind Date (Goodman Theatre) and Book of Will (Northlight Theatre). TV/Film: Brotherhood (Showtime), Chicago Fire (NBC), Since You’ve Been Gone (Miramax).
 
JOE DEMPSEY (Pencroff/Farragut) returns to Lookingglass where he has appeared in Around the World in 80 Days, The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World,Summertime and My Life in Pop. More recent credits include: Faceless (The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis; Northlight Theatre); The Rembrandt (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), and Ah, Wilderness! (Goodman Theatre). Around Chicago, he has also acted at Court Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Victory Gardens Theater, Paramount Theatre, Drury Lane Theatre, Theater Wit, plus many others, as well as regionally at Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Baltimore Center Stage, City Theatre Company (Pittsburgh, PA), Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and Kansas City Repertory Theatre. He is an artistic affiliate of American Blues Theater and a former member of The Second City National Touring Company and The Neo-Futurists.
 
MICAH FIGUEROA (Harbert/Ensign Smith/Nicholas) returns to Lookingglass after performing in Moby Dick
in 2015 and 2017 and (once!) in Lookingglass Alice. Chicago theatre credits include: Tall Girl and the Lightning Parade (Walkabout Theater); The Winter Pageant(Redmoon Theater); Distance to the Moon (First Floor Theater). Regional theatre credits include: Moby Dick (Alliance Theatre, Arena Stage, South Coast Repertory); In the Beginning, Henry
IV (Dallas Theater Center); The Farnsworth Invention, Wild Oats (Theatre Three); Coriolanus, Cyrano de Bergerac, Macbeth (Shakespeare Dallas); Titus Andronicus (Kitchen Dog Theater). He earned a BFA from Southern Methodist University and the British American Drama Academy.
 
KASEY FOSTER (Professor Morgan Arronax/Lookingglass Artistic Associate) is a performer, choreographer, producer, and director. She is an Artistic Associate at Lookingglass Theatre, a member of Actors’ Equity, and is represented by Gray Talent Group. Most recently, she was seen on stage in A Journey for the Sun (The Actors Gymnasium); Mementos Mori (Manual Cinema); and touring the country with Moby Dick (Lookingglass Theatre). On camera credits include: Chicago Med and IFC’s Documentary Now!. Kasey sings with Chicago bands Grood, Babe-alon 5, Old Timey, This Must be the Band and a mysteriously nameless private events band. She has created over forty original works, and produces an annual series called Dance Tribute.
 
EDWIN LEE GIBSON (Cyrus Smith/Constable/Weaver/Engineer) was last seen at Lookingglass in Beyond Caring. Off Broadway: Battlefield by Peter Brook (2017–2018 International Tour); Love and Information (US premiere, Minetta Lane Theatre/New York Theatre Workshop); The Seven (New York Theatre Workshop); The Diary of Black Men (London, UK), Five ‘Til (Dixon Place; NYC). Chicago Theatre: The Royale (American Theater Company); St. James Infirmary(Congo Square Theatre Company). Edwin just returned from nine months work with director Peter Brook in London (National Theatre) and Paris (Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord). Awards: O.B.I.E. Award for Outstanding Performance. TV: Law and Order: SVU, Shameless. Film: Mom and Dad, director Brian Taylor;Marshall, director Reginald Hudlin.
 
GLENN-DALE OBRERO (Kin-Fo/Mr. Drax/First Mate) is making his Lookingglass debut. Other Chicago credits include: The Beauty Queen of Leenane(Northlight Theatre, u/s); A Wrinkle in Time (Lifeline Theatre); Akeelah and the Bee (Adventure Stage Chicago); How We Got On (Haven Theatre, u/s). TV:Chicago Fire (NBC). He received his BFA in Performing Arts from Savannah College of Art and Design and is represented by Gray Talent Group.
 
LANISE ANTOINE SHELLEY (Brigette Conseil) is a Lookingglass Teaching Artist and was last seen in Goodman Theatre’s An Enemy of the People. Chicago credits include: Chicago Shakespeare Theater, The Back Room Shakespeare Project, and Victory Gardens Theater. Regionally: American Repertory Theater, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Book-It Repertory Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Outside the Wire, Shakespeare Santa Cruz. Favorite productions during her years as resident company member at Milwaukee Repertory Theater include: Eurydice, The Night is a Child, The Glass Menagerie, Gem of the Ocean, King Lear,Sueno, …Young Lady From Rwanda, The Crucible, and I Just Stopped By to See The Man. International Theatre: Stratford Festival’s Chicago Fellow for 2016. TV/Film: Chicago Fire (NBC), Discovery World. Training: MFA from ART/MXAT at Harvard University, BFA from Cornish College of the Arts, certificate from British American Drama Academy in Oxford, England.
 
REFLECT Panels
Lookingglass’ REFLECT Series is a curated selection of post-show discussions featuring panelists with a range of viewpoints and expertise on the content and context of each production. These wide-ranging conversations, moderated by artistic staff, offer an opportunity for Lookingglass audiences and guests to engage with the vision and visionaries behind each show, get a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the unique Lookingglass process, and hear from artists, academics and authorities with diverse perspectives on the material.
 
REFLECT post-show panel discussions take place directly following the 2:00 p.m. matinee on select Sundays at Lookingglass Theatre. The discussions are free and open to the public.
 
July 15: Creatures From The Deep!
Jules Verne’s sea creatures take on legendary proportions in many popular films, television, and theatrical adaptations.  Learn about their real-life counterparts with scientists from Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium. Featuring panelists Andy Casper and Karen Furnweger (Shedd Aquarium).
 
 
July 22: The Fate of the Oceans
Like Captain Nemo, Jules Verne was a fierce admirer of the oceans and all that they hold.  What new challenges are posed by oceanic warming, rise, and pollution, and how can we save the seas for future generations? Featuring panelists Karen Hobbs (National Resource Defense Council) and Benjamin Morgan (Department of English Language and Literature, University of Chicago).
 
July 29: The Politics of Destruction
Captain Nemo commits acts of violence in the name of a greater good.  Is one man’s environmental activist another’s eco-terrorist?  Is violence ever warranted, or even effective? Featuring panelists Jose-Luis Moctezuma (Department of English Language and Literature, University of Chicago) and Bill Savage (Department of English, Northwestern University).
 
FACT SHEET / 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas
 
Title:                            20,000 Leagues Under the Seas
Adapted by:                 David Kersnar and Althos Low
From the books by:     Jules Verne
Directed by:                 Ensemble Member David Kersnar
 
Featuring:                   Ensemble Members Kareem Bandealy (Captain Nemo) and Thomas J. Cox (Gideon Spillet/J.B. Hobson/Guard/Boatswain) with Artistic Associates Walter Briggs (Ned Land) and Kasey Foster (Professor Morgan Aronnax). The cast also includes Joe Dempsey (Pencroff/Captain Farragut), Micah Figueroa (Harbert/Ensign Smith/Nicholas), Edwin Lee Gibson (Cyrus Smith/Constable Weaver/Engineer), Glenn-Dale Obrero (Kin-Fo/Mr. Drax/First Mate) and Lanise Antoine Shelley (Brigette Conseil).
 
Creative Team:            The creative team includes Todd Rosenthal (scenic), Sully Ratke (costumes), Artistic AssociateChristine A. Binder (lighting), Artistic Associate Rick Sims (sound and composition), Artistic Associate Sylvia Hernandez-Distasi (circus choreography), Blair Thomas, Tom Lee, and Chris Wooten (puppet designers), Isaac Schoepp (rigging), Amanda Herrmann (props), Kathy Logelin (dialect), Max Fabian (fight choreography) and Mary Hungerford (stage manager).
 
Dates:                          Regular run: June 6 – August 19, 2018
                                    Additional Dates: August 22 – 26, 2018
 
Times:                          Tuesdays:                   7:30 p.m. (July 17 & 31; August 14 only)
Wednesdays:                     7:30 p.m.
Thursdays:              2:00 p.m. (July 12 & 26; August 9, 23 only)
7:30 p.m.
                                      Fridays:                       7:30 p.m.
                                                  Saturdays:                         2:00 p.m.
7:30 p.m.
Sundays:                           2:00 p.m.
7:30 p.m.
 
Family Days:               Family Days include sea-worthy bingo, a 2:00 p.m. performance and a post-show meet and greet with actors, and will be held on July 14, 28 and August 9, 2018. Tickets for Family Days are $40 with code FAM40.
 
Accessible
Performances:           
Open Captioned performance, Thursday, July 19, 2018 at 7:30 p.m.
lookingglasstheatre.org/access
 
Additional
Programs:                   REFLECT Post-Show Panel Series 
Lookingglass’ REFLECT Series is a curated selection of post-show discussions featuring panelists with a range of viewpoints and expertise on the content and context of each production. These wide-ranging conversations, moderated by artistic staff, offer an opportunity for Lookingglass audiences and guests to engage with the vision and visionaries behind each show, get a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the unique Lookingglass process, and hear from artists, academics and authorities with diverse perspectives on the material.
 
The 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas REFLECT post-show panel discussions will take place directly following the 2:00 p.m.matinees at Lookingglass Theatre on July 15, 22 and 29. The discussions are free and open to the public.lookingglasstheatre.org/reflect
 
Location:                      Lookingglass Theatre Company, located inside Chicago's historic
Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson.
  
Prices:                                     Previews are $35 - $55
Regular Run is $45 - $80
Student tickets are available the day of the show for $20 with a valid student ID. Based on availability.
Groups of 8 or more patrons save up to 20%. Call 773-477-9257 X 125 or email [email protected] for details.
 
Box Office:                  Buy online at lookingglasstheatre.org
or by phone at (312) 337-0665
The Lookingglass box office is located at Water Tower Water Works,
821 N. Michigan Ave.
 
Subscriptions
Subscriptions are on sale for the 2018–2019 Season. Performances will be held at Lookingglass Theatre Company, located inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson. 
 
Subscribers can choose between a 3-play subscription, or two flex pass options: the Gglasspass, or for those under 35, the Madhatter’s Club. For the 2018–2019 Season, 3-play subscriptions range from $116–$170.
 
The Gglasspass is a flex pass available to all ages. For $150, Gglasspass holders receive 3 tickets that can be used in any combination and denomination for any Lookingglass production in the 2018–2019 Season.
 
The Madhatter’s Club flex pass is available to those 35 or younger. The Madhatter’s Club flex pass is $75 and includes 3 tickets that members can use in any combination and denomination for any Lookingglass production in the 2018-2019 Season.
 
Lookingglass also offers a 3-play subscription for Accessible performances during the 2018-2019 Season for $75. Patrons can choose between the Touch Tour/Audio Described performances or the Open Captioned performances.
 
Subscription benefits include access to the best seats in the house, pre-sale opportunities and savings before single tickets go on sale to the general public, special perks at restaurant partners, unlimited ticket exchanges, discounted parking at 875 N Michigan Ave, Water Tower Place and Olympia Centre Garage, reduced tuition for Lookingglass’ renowned classes and summer camps, and access to exclusive subscriber-only events. For season subscription and ticket information, call the Lookingglass Theatre box office at (312) 337-0665 or visit lookingglasstheatre.org.
 
 
About Lookingglass Theatre Company
Inventive. Collaborative. Transformative. Lookingglass Theatre Company, recipient of the 2011 Regional Theatre Tony Award, was founded in 1988 by eight Northwestern University students. Now in its 30th season, Lookingglass is home to a multi-disciplined ensemble of artists who create story-centered theatrical work that is physical, aurally rich and visually metaphoric. The Company has staged 65 world premieres, received 144 Joseph Jefferson Awards and nominations, and work premiered at Lookingglass has been produced in New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle, Berkeley, Philadelphia, Princeton, Hartford, Kansas City, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Louisville and St. Louis. Lookingglass original scripts have been produced across the United States. In 2016, Lookingglass received the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions and in 2017, was the recipient of the League of Chicago Theatres’ Artistic Achievement Award.
 
The Lookingglass Theatre in Chicago's landmark Water Tower Water Works opened in June 2003. In addition to developing and presenting Ensemble work, Lookingglass Education and Community programs encourage creativity, teamwork and confidence with thousands of community members each year.
 
Lookingglass Theatre Company continues to expand its artistic, financial and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Artistic Director Heidi Stillman, Executive Director Rachel L. Fink, Producing Director Philip R. Smith, Connectivity and Engagement Director Andrew White, General Manager Michele Anderson, a 24-member artistic ensemble, 23 artistic associates, an administrative staff and a dedicated board of directors led by Chairman John McGowan and President Nancy Timmers. For more information, visit lookingglasstheatre.org.

​The season kicks off this fall with the Chicago premiere of the poetic and political romance THIS BITTER EARTH by award winning playwright and McKnight Fellow Harrison David Rivers, directed by Mikael Burke, recipient of the 2017 Princess Grace Award in Theatre.
 
The 23nd season continues next winter with the Chicago premiere of DADA WOOF PAPA HOT, a sexy comedy about gay parenting and modern families from Peter Parnell (The Cider House Rules), directed by Jeff Award-nominated About Face Artistic Associate Keira Fromm.
 
For its 20th anniversary year, About Face Youth Theatre and AFT artists will create a citywide multigenerational performance and civic dialogue project to gather lessons from the past and mobilize for a better collective future with the world premiere of 20/20 led by AFT Artistic Director Megan Carney.
 
“This season we’re featuring dynamic LGBTQ+ artists who are leading the way forward”, comments AFT Artistic Director Megan Carney. “It has been a thrilling process charting out my first full season with About Face Theatre. The projects and collaborations for the year contain nuanced stories of complicated desire along and insightful revelations about the many ways that politics remain deeply personal. We’ll be highlighting underrepresented points of view while joyfully affirming our lives.”
 
AFT is also launching two public program initiatives to correspond with each production. Revolutionary Conversations will bring together community experts reflecting on themes in each play. AFT Up Close events will feature intimate conversations with company and guest artists.  
 
The 23rd season will also include special projects, workshops and readings presented throughout the year featuring the work of AFT’s phenomenal Artistic Associates. The AFT Outreach Program will continue touring schools to create more inclusive and affirming learning environments. This program typically reaches over 5,000 students and teachers each year.
 
About Face Theatre is in residence at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. AFT’s On Demand Memberships – a flexible, year-round membership ticket – are currently available at aboutfacetheatre.com. Single tickets for additional programming will go on sale at a later date.
 
About Face Theatre’s 2018-19 Season:
 
November 1 – December 8, 2018 
THIS BITTER EARTH – Chicago Premiere!
By Harrison David Rivers 
Directed by Mikael Burke
Thursday, November 8 at 7:30 pm 
 
In this poetic romance, deep love is challenged by divisive political realities. Jesse, an introspective black playwright, finds his choices called into question when his boyfriend, Neil, a white Black Lives Matter activist, calls him out for his political apathy. As passions and priorities collide, this couple is forced to reckon with issues of race, class and the bravery it takes to love out loud.
 
Comments Director Mikael Burke, “This Bitter Earth is a beautiful and unflinching play about race and relationship in contemporary America – about the need for connection and the apparent differences that hold us back. Jesse is black, Neil is white, and against a backdrop of police shootings and Black Lives Matter rallies, this tale of interracial love and heartache asks us: How do we save one another in this tumultuous world? How do we save ourselves? How do we navigate love in a world with so much hate? What do we carry in order to survive that we must learn to let go of in order to live? 
 
January 10 – February 16, 2019 
DADA WOOF PAPA HOT – Chicago Premiere!
Written by Peter Parnell
Directed by AFT Artistic Associate Keira Fromm
Thursday, January 17 at 7:30 pm
 
This funny and sexy play introduces two gay couples and their circle of friends who have ventured into the world of modern day parenting. As friendships deepen and vulnerabilities get exposed, the foundation of family and commitment are shaken. With same sex marriage the law of the land… what happens next? DADA WOOF PAPA HOT is a fast-paced glimpse into the world of 21st century parenthood. 
 
Comments Director Keira Fromm, “Dada Woof Papa Hot is a funny and moving play about the challenges of modern day marriage and parenting. It examines how parenting lives up to and defies expectations, how it collides with identity, and how it’s changes your life and the lives of your nearest and dearests in the process. I love that the play reaches into contemporary married life and examines its difficulties for straight and gay people alike. It's refreshing that it takes place today in the post-marriage-equality moment where gay relationships and parenting have been normalized in our culture. The way it explores the unique problems that the central gay couple encounters while raising their young daughter in the wake of marriage equality makes for incredibly potent and compelling theater.”
 
Summer 2019
20/20 – World Premiere!
Created by AFT Artists with the Youth Theatre Ensemble
Directed by AFT Artistic Director Megan Carney
 
For its 20th anniversary year, About Face Youth Theatre goes to the next level with a citywide multigenerational performance and civic dialogue project to gather lessons from the past and envision a better collective future. Youth and adult artists will engage LGBTQ+ thought leaders and program alumni through interviews, workshops and story circles to explore markers of social change over the last two decades and mobilize a community in transition. Other lead artists include Associate Director of AFYT Donny Acosta, Associate Director of Outreach and Engagement Mia Vivens, AFT Artistic Associates and the AFYT Youth Ensemble. This project is engaging with Chicago’s diverse LGBTQ+ communities with specific partnerships to be announced soon.
 
Comments AFT Artistic Director Megan Carney, “AFYT has a special collaborative model for creating new plays that has gained a national reputation for the program. For the 20th anniversary, we are expanding the process to create mutigenerational spaces around the city, bringing youth and adult leaders together, and using the tools of the theatre in acts of collective imagination.” 
 
About the Playwrights


Harrison David Rivers (The Bitter Earth, he/him/his) resides in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he was recently named one of City Pages’ Artists of the Year. His plays include: When Last We Flew (GLAAD Media Award, NYFringe Excellence in Playwriting Award, NYFringe), Sweet (AUDELCO nomination for Best Play, NBT), And She Would Stand Like This (20% Theatre Company, The Movement Theatre Company), Where Storms Are Born (Berkshire Theatre Award nomination for Best New Play, Edgerton Foundation New Play Award, Williamstown), A Crack in the Sky (History Theatre), Five Points (Theatre Latte Da) and This Bitter Earth (New Conservatory Theatre Center, Penumbra). Harrison has received McKnight and Many Voices Jerome Fellowships, a Van Lier Fellowship, an Emerging Artist of Color Fellowship and New York Stage & Film’s Founders’ Award. He was the 2016 Playwright-in-Residence at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Harrison is an alumni of the Public Theater's Emerging Writers' Group, Interstate 73, NAMT and The Lincoln Center Directors' Lab. He is a NYTW Usual Suspect and a Core Writer at the Playwrights’ Center where he is also a member of the Board of Directors. Harrison received his BA from Kenyon College and MFA from Columbia School of the Arts. www.harrisondavidrivers.com 


Peter Parnell’s (Dada Woof Papa Hot, he/him/his) plays, including Sorrows of Stephen, The Rise and Rise of Daniel Rocket, Romance Language, Hyde in Hollywood, Flaubert’s Latest and An Imaginary Life, have been produced by the Public Theater, Playwrights Horizons, the Mark Taper Forum, the Seattle Rep Theatre, the Old Globe and Center Stage in Baltimore, among others. His two-part stage adaptation of John Irving's The Cider House Rules won the American Theatre Critics Association Award, Ovation Awards, Joseph Jefferson Awards and Drama League nominations, and was produced at the Seattle Rep, the Taper, Trinity Repertory and the Atlantic Theatre Company in New York. His play QED was produced at the Taper and then on Broadway at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theatre. For television, he was a co-producer for The West Wing (NBC; two Emmy Award Citations, two Humanitas Awards), producer for The Guardian (CBS, GLAAD episode nomination), and Inconceivable (NBC). He has written television pilots for ABC and Fox. He has served on the Literary Award Committee in Playwriting for PEN, and been the recipient of Guggenheim, Ingram Merrill, NEA and Fund for New American Plays grants. He has taught playwriting at Dartmouth and at the New School, and television writing in the Columbia University Film Division. His children’s book, And Tango Makes Three, co-authored with Justin Richardson, was published by Simon & Schuster in 2005, and is an ALA Notable Book, a Henry Bergh Award winner and was nominated for a LAMBDA Literary Award as best children’s book of the year.
 
About The Directors


Mikael Burke (The Bitter Earth, he/him/his) is a Chicago-based director, deviser and educator. He serves as Creative Director of the Indianapolis-based Young Actors Theatre, and previously served as Associate Artistic Director of Indianapolis’ NoExit Performance. Michael is a 2017 Princess Grace Award Winner in Theatre and a recipient of the 2012 Robert D. Beckmann Emerging Artist Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis. He has most recently worked with American Theatre Company, Strawdog Theatre Company and About Face Theatre in Chicago, and elsewhere with Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota, Florida, GEVA Theatre Center in Rochester, New York and the Indiana Repertory Theatre in Indianapolis, to name a few. Michael received his MFA in Directing from The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago. Recent directing credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, Native Son by Richard Wright, adapted by Nambi E. Kelley, Stupid F##king Bird by Aaron Posner, Still by Jen Siverman, Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen and Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl.
 
Keira Fromm (Dada Woof Papa Hot, she/her/hers) is a Jeff Award-nominated director, casting director and teacher based in Chicago. Some favorite recent directing credits include: Bull in a China Shop (About Face Theatre), hang (Remy Bumppo), Significant Other (About Face Theatre), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of New York City (Route 66 Theatre Company), Bright Half Life (About Face Theatre), The Columnist (American Blues Theater), How the World Began (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble), A Kid Like Jake (About Face), Luce (Next Theatre), Charles Ives Take Me Home (Strawdog), The How and the Why (TimeLine Theatre), Broadsword (Gift Theatre) and Fallow (Steep Theatre). Keira is a proud Artistic Associate with About Face Theatre. She received her MFA from DePaul University, her BFA from Boston University, is an alumna of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, and is a member of SDC, the professional directors union. Keira is a frequent guest director at DePaul, as well as Roosevelt University. She will be directing Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley at TheatreSquared in Northwest Arkansas this fall. 
 
Megan Carney (20/20, she/her/hers) is a director, playwright, educator and the Artistic Director of About Face Theatre. Carney’s work has been recognized with multiple After Dark Awards, the GLSEN Pathfinder Award, an APA Presidential Citation, induction in Chicago’s Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame, a Rockefeller Foundation MAP Grant and a GLAAD Media Award nomination. Recent directing credits include Time is on Our Side, Stupid Kids (About Face) Winter, Grizzly Mama, BODY/COURAGE, American Wee Pie, The Walls (Rivendell). She was lead interviewer and playwright for Women at War, a multi-year performance and civic dialogue project about women in the military that continues to tour. Megan’s oral history collection and ensemble plays have addressed issues of identity and place making with premieres in Chicago and tours around the country. Megan was a founding director of About Face Youth Theatre and served as the Director of the Gender and Sexuality Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a certified mediator, earned a MFA with a focus on Directing and Public Dialogue from Virginia Tech and a BA from Kalamazoo College, where her ideas about art as a tool for social justice and activism began to take shape.
Donny Acosta (20/20, he/him/his) is a queer performance artist from Orange County, California. He started working with About Face as a youth ensemble member and a member of the Youth Task Force. He has devised and performed his work all over Chicago including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Stage 773, Chicago Actors Call to Action and Salonathon. He is a proud ensemble member of the Drinking and Writing Theatre and artistic associate of the Wild Atlas Theatre Company.
Mia Vivens (20/20, she/her/hers) is a queer poetess/mover/maker originally hailing from Columbus, Ohio. She is a recent alumna of Valparaiso University, having studied Theater and Dance. She is specifically interested in exploring the intersections of the queer community amongst black and brown folks. In Chicago, she has worked with American Theatre Company, Collaboraction, The Inconvenience and The Jades. Mia was recognized as one of the 2018 “30 under 30” leaders by Windy City Times.
About Face Theatre creates exceptional, innovative, and adventurous theatre and educational programming that advances the national dialogue on sexual and gender identity, and challenges and entertains audiences in Chicago and beyond.

The Artistic Home’s production, directed by Michael Conroy, is performed with drag artists Patience Darling and Hinkypunk as the maids Claire and Solange. Artistic Home ensemble member Brookelyn Hébert has the role of the play’s third character, Madame. The play, Genet’s most popular, premiered in 1947 and has been performed continually ever since on several continents and in many languages. Conroy says, “we will respond to the play's history of gender nonconforming casting by embracing its latent queer themes and honoring Genet's gay identity and activism."
 
The production is playing at The Artistic Home’s theatre at 1376 W. Grand Avenue through Saturday, July 21. Tickets can be ordered by phone at 866-811-4111 or online at www.theartistichome.org.\

​BIOS
 
Michael Conroy (Director) Michael is a Chicago based director. He is excited to return to The Artistic Home after directing ALPHA ZULU for Cut to the Chase and working as the dramaturg for THE SEAGULL. Recently, he worked at Raven Theatre as the assistant director for THE ASSEMBLED PARTIES. His other assistant directing experiences include HANSEL AND GRETEL and A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS at Emerald City Theatre and ZIPPED AND PELTED at Chicago Fringe Festival. Michael is a graduate of The Theatre School at DePaul University where he directed JUICY AND DELICIOUS as a part of The Lab Series and assistant directed the Chicago premier of A FREE MAN OF COLOR.
 
Jean Genet (Playwright) was a French criminal and social outcast turned writer who, as a novelist, transformed erotic and often obscene subject matter into a poetic vision of the universe and, as a dramatist, became a leading figure in the avant-garde theatre, especially the Theatre of the Absurd.
 
After writing three novels, NOTRE-DAME DES FLEURS (1943; OUR LADY OF THE FLOWERS), POMPES FUNÈBRES (1947; FUNERAL RITES) and QUERELLE DE BREST (1947; QUERELLE OF BREST, filmed 1982), Genet began to experiment with drama. His early attempts, by their compact, neoclassical, one-act structure, reveal the strong influence of Sartre. HAUTE SURVEILLANCE (1949; DEATHWATCH) continues his prison-world themes. LES BONNES (1947; THE MAIDS), however, begins to explore the complex problems of identity that were soon to preoccupy other avant-garde dramatists such as Samuel Beckett and Eugène Ionesco. With this play Genet was established as an outstanding figure in the Theatre of the Absurd.
 
His subsequent plays, LE BALCON (1956; THE BALCONY), LES NÈGRES (1958; THE BLACKS), and LES PARAVENTS (1961; THE SCREENS), are large-scale, stylized dramas in the Expressionist manner, designed to shock and implicate an audience by revealing its hypocrisy and complicity. This “Theatre of Hatred” attempts to wrest the maximum dramatic power from a social or political situation without necessarily endorsing the political platitudesof either the right or the left.
 
Patience Darling (Claire) has a BA in Theater Arts from Illinois Wesleyan University and out of drag, works around the city as a costume designer and an actor with companies including Eclipse Theater Company, Something Marvelous, and The Artistic Home. She performs regularly around the city of Chicago as a drag artist and also crafts garments for her fellow queer bombshells.

Hinkypunk (Solange) is a mystical bog beast turned body-snatching parasite. She is a transfemme non-binary Chicago drag performer with a B.A. in Theater from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Hinkypunk is a resident performer at FABITAT at Beauty Bar, a frequent performer in the Chicago drag scene, and has performed at DePaul University, Columbia University, Wayne State University, University of Iowa, and Harold Washington University.
 
Brookelyn Hebert (Madame) has been in The Artistic Home productions of THE SCHOOL FOR LIES,  MACBETH and THE SEAGULL for which she was nominated for a Jeff Award (Best Supporting Actress) for her portrayal of Nina. Other theatre credits include THE SEAGULL (Eclectic Full Contact), STEEL MAGNOLIAS (The Arc), THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (Oak Park Festival) and the world premiere of Neil LaBute’s I’M GOING TO STOP PRETENDING I DIDN’T BREAK YOUR HEART. She has also appeared in NBC’s CHICAGO MED (ep. “Timing”). She is a recent graduate of Chicago College of the Performing Arts, Roosevelt and previously studied at Idyllwild Arts Academy (CA).
 
ABOUT THE ARTISTIC HOME
The Artistic Home is noted for their innovative and intimate presentations of rarely-produced classics as well developing new works. Audiences may know The Artistic Home best from its current production of HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE 2017’s WEDDING BAND, BY THE BOG OF CATS and THE SCHOOL FOR LIES, their Jeff-nominated productions of THE SEAGULL, WATCH ON THE RHINE, MACBETH and THE LATE HENRY MOSS; or their 2013 Jeff Award-winner THE GODDESS. Other Artistic Home productions include the Jeff-Award-winning production of JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK, which also received three After Dark Awards, the Jeff-Nominated SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH, THE TALLEST MAN, LANDSCAPE OF THE BODY, NATURAL AFFECTION, FIVE WOMEN WEARING THE SAME DRESS, AFTER THE FALL and PEER GYNT (which also received an After Dark award for Direction).
 
For more than 19 years, The Artistic Home has consistently produced compelling theatre in Chicago. First formed in 1998 with the belief that the actor is at the heart of great theater, the company strives to give birth to unforgettable moments; to touch audiences who are increasingly distanced from human contact; to readdress the classics and explore new works with passion.
 
LISTING INFORMATION
THE MAIDS
By Jean Genet
Directed by Michael Conroy
Assistant Directed by Jill Perez
June 22 – July 21, 2018
Fridays and Saturdays at 9:00 pm
Ticket prices: $25.00          
The Artistic Home Theatre
1376 W. Grand Avenue, Chicago 60642
Tickets: 866/811-4111  or go to http://www.theartistichome.org/
Accessible via the CTA #65 Grand bus and the Blue Line.
 
Solange and Claire are two housemaids who construct elaborate sadomasochistic rituals when their mistress (Madame) is away. The focus of their role-playing is the murder of Madame and they take turns portraying both sides of the power divide.

​Launching Raven’s 2018-19 season, CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY will play October 4 – November 18, 2018 on Raven’s 99-seat East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville) in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177. The press opening is Monday, October 8 at 7:30 pm.
 
Brooklyn, 1950. Ernestine and Ermina Crump have moved to New York with their father, Godfrey, who is seeking spiritual guidance from a man called Father Divine. In the swirling, glamorous commotion of this new city, with calls for equal rights and communist rebellion hanging in the air, the girls begin a turbulent journey toward independence and a challenging future.
 
Comments Raven Theatre Artistic Director Cody Estle, “Lynn Nottage is a prolific writer and her work is a gift to all who encounter it. This is the first time Raven Theatre has produced one of her plays. As a theatre known for producing the classics of Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller, it seems only fitting to include Lynn’s voice among these greats. Set in 1950, Crumbs from the Table of Joy examines a family experiencing change in a country filled with racial and social turmoil. Audiences will connect with the struggles of this family, while getting a glimpse into a time in our past whose complexity resembles that of today.”
 
The production team for CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY includes: Arnel Sancianco (scenic design), Christine Pascual (costume design), Kathy A. Perkins (lighting design), Matt Test (sound design), Mealah Heidenreich (props design), Jon Martinez (choreography), Eva Breneman (dialect coach), Megan Pirtle (wig design), Kanomé Jones (casting director), Alexis Taylor (assistant director), Cole von Glahn (production manager), Becca Venable (technical director), Wilhelm Peters (stage manager) and Sapier Weinglass (assistant stage manager).
 
PRODUCTION DETAILS:
 
Title: CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY
Playwright: Lynn Nottage
Director: Tyrone Phillips
Cast (in alphabetical order): Chanell Bell (Ernestine Crump), Brianna Buckley (Lily Anne Green), Brandi Jiminez Lee (Ermina Crump), Terence Sims (Godfrey Crump) and Emily Tate (Gerte Schulte).
 
Location: Raven Theatre East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville), Chicago
Dates: Previews: Thursday, October 4 at 7:30 pm, Friday, October 5 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, October 6 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, October 7 at 3 pm
Press performance: Monday, October 8 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Thursday, October 11 – Sunday, November 18, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. 
Tickets: Previews $32 ($29 if purchased online). Regular run $46 ($43 if purchased online). Seniors/teachers $41 ($38 if purchased online). Students/active military and veterans $15. Every Thursday is “Under 30 Thursday,” when patrons under age 30 can purchase tickets for $15. Single tickets and subscriptions for the 2018-19 Season are currently available at www.raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177.
 
Touch Tour/Open Captioned performance: Sunday, November 4 at 3 pm. Touch tour begins at 1:45 pm.
 
Group tickets: Groups of 10 or more are $30 per person for Thursday and Friday performances and $35 per person for Saturday and Sundayperformances. Student groups are $15 per person.
 
Plan Your Visit: 
 
Free parking is provided in a lot adjacent to the theatre – additional street parking is available. Nearest El station: Granville Red Line. Buses: #22 (Clark), #36 (Broadway), #151 (Sheridan), #155 (Devon), #84 (Peterson).
 
About the Artists:
 
Lynn Nottage (Playwright) received the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and three Tony Award nominations for her play Sweat. For her play Ruined, she received the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for drama, along with an Obie, the Lucille Lortel Award, New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Play (Manhattan Theatre Club, Goodman Theatre). Her other plays include Intimate Apparel (New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Play; Roundabout Theatre, CENTERSTAGE, South Coast Repertory); Fabulation, Or the Re-Education of Undine (Obie Award; Playwrights Horizons, London’s Tricycle Theatre); Crumbs from the Table of Joy; Las Meninas; Mud, River, Stone; Por’Knockers and Poof! Nottage is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2007 MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant,” the National Black Theatre Festival’s August Wilson Playwriting Award, the 2004 PEN/Laura Pels Award for Drama, and the 2005 Guggenheim Grant for Playwriting, as well as fellowships from the Lucille Lortel Foundation, Manhattan Theatre Club, New Dramatists, and New York Foundation for the Arts. She is a member of The Dramatists Guild, an alumna of New Dramatists and a graduate of Brown University and the Yale School of Drama, where she is a visiting lecturer. For additional information, visit www.lynnnottage.net.
 
Tyrone Phillips (Director) is the founding Artistic Director of Chicago's Definition Theatre Company. Named one of the Chicago Tribune's “Hot New Faces of 2015” and Newcity's “Players 2016: The Fifty People Who Really Perform for Chicago,” he is a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where he received his BFA with honors. Directing credits include the critically-acclaimed production of Byhalia, Mississippi (Joseph Jefferson Awards nomination), which remounted to open the Steppenwolf 1700 Theatre, Dutchman (Definition Theatre), The MLK Project: The Fight for Civil Rights (Writers Theatre), 33 to Nothing (A Red Orchid Theatre), Dontrell, Who Kissed The Sea (Illinois Theatre), We the People, Our Town, Lord of the Flies, The Tempest (Niles North Theatre). You also may have seen his work as associate director for Red Velvet (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre) and as the assistant director for Trevor the Musical, Parade and The Mystery of Love and Sex (Writers Theatre). Tyrone also studied abroad at Shakespeare’s Globe and was an emerging professional resident at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre where he worked on A Raisin in the Sun, The Mountaintop, and Clybourne Park. Tyrone is represented by Grossman and Jack Talent and was recently selected as one of Newcity's “Players—the 50 leaders of Chicago’s theater, dance, opera and comedy culture of 2018”. 
 
About Raven Theatre


Raven Theatre tells stories of today and the past that connect us to our cultural landscape. Through its plays as well as its educational programming, Raven is committed to serving our communities’ needs through the arts.
 
Raven Theatre Company is funded in part by the Alphawood Foundation, Bayless Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince, Polk Bros. Foundation, S&C Electric Company Fund, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the PAV Fund and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

This musical tribute to legendary 1920s football coach Knute Rockne tackles the challenges of managing a successful sports career and family. It includes full ensemble song and dance numbers like “Completing the Forward Pass,” and “If There Had Been Roses.”

The show will appeal to football fans and theater fans as well as everyone who has struggled to find balance and the need to redefine “winning” in life.  

​The 24 cast members include a mix of professional actor’s equity union actors and current Northwestern students. Leading the cast are James Earl Jones II (a former starting tailback at Whitney Young H.S.), Stef Tovar (as Knute Rockne) and Adrian Aguilar (as George “The Gipper” Gipp) who himself is a personal trainer and was the original understudy for “Rocky” on Broadway.

The show is written by Buddy Farmer, the only playwright to play football for Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama.

When the show premiered in 2008 at Indiana’s Theatre at the Center, the Chicago Tribune called it “a thrilling new Heartland tuner.” 

Under award-winning director David Bell, the artistic team has updated the show, adding new songs and script improvements for the summer 2018 production.

To sample or broadcast tracks from the show download mp3s here: (video clips available soon).

Fighting Irish
There’s Something in the Game
Final: Notre Dame Fight Song