Trap Door Takes OCCIDENTAL EXPRESS to Europe

Trap Door Theatre has been invited to bring their production of OCCIDENTAL EXPRESS to several festivals in Hungary, Romania and to represent the United States in The Republic of Moldova Chisinau International Theatre. Written by Matei Visniec, with a translation by Nick Awde, the production will be directed by Istvan Szabo K. and feature Dennis Bisto, Michael Garvey, Emily Nichelson, Beata Pilch, Mike Steele, and Nicole Wiesner. OCCIDENTAL EXPRESS will perform at various times and dates between September 20th and October 7th. For more information visit trapdoortheatre.com.

League of Chicago Theatres Announces Theatre Thursday Lineup

The League of Chicago Theatres had announced the Theatre Thursday event line-up for the 2018-2019 Chicago theatre season, featuring one world premiere per month. “Theatre Thursdays are a way to experience one of the reasons Chicago theatre has become world-renowned, the incredible array of world premiere plays produced each year here,” says Deb Clapp, Executive Director of the League of Chicago Theatres. “These ten plays offer us an extraordinary range of playwriting and events meant to keep the conversation going long after we leave the theatre.”

The 2018-2019 series includes:

September 20, 2018
SOUTHERN GOTHIC by Leslie Liautaud
Windy City Playhouse
3014 W. Irving Park Rd. in Chicago’s Albany Park neighborhood
Tickets: $65
Use code THURSDAY at checkout on windycityplayhouse.com, or call our box office at 773.891.8985. *If buying online, select ticket type: “Adult”

Join Windy City Playhouse for a special performance of the immersive SOUTHERN GOTHIC. Admission includes a drink ticket to sample modern twists on classic 1960s cocktails pre-show. After the performance, stick around for a private talk-back with the cast and creators of Southern Gothic, including Artistic Director Amy Rubenstein.

It’s 1961. Ashford, Georgia. Tom Collins is the drink of choice. Dean Martin’s on the radio. Everyone’s driving a Cadillac, and Suzanne Wellington is about to turn 40. Four couples gather to celebrate the big day — old college buddies who’ve known one another for decades. But even best friends keep secrets, and over the course of this evening’s party, a few of those are bound to be revealed…

Event and reservations details for the following productions will be announced closer to the date:

October 11, 2018
WITCH by Jen Silverman
Writers Theatre
325 Tudor Court in Glencoe

Mischief is afoot in the sleepy village of Edmonton and the fate of the world is at stake in this smart modern fable. When the emotionally conflicted son of the local lord and an ambitious newcomer come into conflict, help presents itself to both of them in the same guise—as the Devil himself. But while these two young men take advantage of the Devil’s bargain to accomplish their own questionable ends, someone else in town stands her ground—Elizabeth, an outcast whom everyone believes to be a witch.

November 1, 2018
FRANKENSTEIN by Manual Cinema
Court Theatre
5535 S. Ellis Ave. in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood

Love, loss, and creation merge in unexpected ways in this thrilling classic gothic tale. Stories of Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein, and his Monster expose how the forces of family, community, and education shape personhood—or destroy it by their absence.

December 13, 2018
LA RUTA by Isaac Gomez
Steppenwolf Theatre Company
1650 N. Halsted in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood

To the U.S.-owned factories in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, La Ruta is just a bus. But to the hundreds of women who live, work and often disappear along the route, it’s so much more than that. Inspired by real testimonies, and using live music to evoke factory work and protest marches, LA RUTA is a visceral unearthing of secrets buried in the desert and a celebration of the Mexican women who stand resiliently in the wake of loss.

January 24, 2019
HOW TO CATCH CREATION by Christina Anderson
Goodman Theatre
170 N. Dearborn in Chicago’s Loop

Four artists and intellectuals in San Francisco struggle to nurture creative impulse and establish legacy—in both their professional and personal lives. When one discovers the works of a black queer feminist writer from a bygone era, their lives begin to intersect in unexpected ways.

February 21, 2019
THE ABUELAS by Stephanie Alison Walker
Teatro Vista at Victory Gardens Theater
2433 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood

Gabriela is an Argentine concert cellist living in Chicago with her American husband and adjusting to life as a new mom. Life is good until a visit from two strangers upends everything. Walker’s play, about the devastating repercussions of Argentina’s military dictatorship from 1976-1983, asks how one goes on after discovering their life is a lie. Does the restoration of truth bring freedom or suffering? Is it possible to integrate two identities into one life? The Abuelas explores these questions as well as the heart’s capacity for forgiveness even in the face of the harshest betrayal.

March 28, 2019
ACT(S) OF GOD by Kareem Bandealy
Lookingglass Theatre Company
821 N. Michigan Ave. on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile

Three siblings, two parents, and one very unexpected dinner guest. As a family gathers for an overdue dinner, a mysterious envelope arrives with astonishing news. They soon find themselves scrambling to welcome a visitor of cosmic proportion. Absurdity reigns as ancient fissures open wide, long-held certainties crumble, and sh*t gets real. Will this nuclear family explode? Lookingglass Ensemble Member Kareem Bandealy unleashes this existential dark comedy, directed by Artistic Director Heidi Stillman (Cascabel, Hard Times).

April 18, 2019
PINOCCHIO by Joseph Streakley and Ben Lobpries. Based on the works of Carlo Collodi
The House Theatre of Chicago at the Chopin Theatre
1543 W. Division in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood

The House brings to life the classic fairy tale of a wooden boy who wishes to become real. Funny, imaginative, and moving,PINOCCHIO explores how the lies we tell ourselves hurt those we love.

May 2, 2019
FAST FOOD CHAIN by Andrew Marikis
Adventure Stage Chicago at the Vittum Theater
1012 N. Noble in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood

FAST FOOD CHAIN follows a brother and sister as they wrestle with the pressure of food insecurity in Chicago. They struggle to make it on their own until one day they discover a garden in the unlikeliest of places. It’s an adventure into magical realism, showcasing the power of community and storytelling in combating social issues.

June 20, 2019
MIRIAM FOR PRESIDENT by Madhuri Shekar
Victory Gardens Theater
2433 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood

Miriam hates to be known as “that girl who got kidnapped then escaped that sex trafficking ring.” She wants to be known as Miriam, your top candidate for student council president at Roosevelt High School. But her parents, counselor, and best friend keep insisting that she’s not ready. But what do they know? What do they really know about what happened to Miriam? From Madhuri Shekar, the author of Queen, comes a powerful play about survival, rebirth, and the silent crime of human trafficking in Chicago.

Marriott Theatre Announces 2019 Season

The Marriott Theatre has announced the five shows that will make up its 2019 season: MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET, FOOTLOOSE THE MUSICAL, DARLING GRENADINE, SOMETHING ROTTEN and OLIVER!

Second City Announces 107th Mainstage Revue Cast

The Second City has announced the cast for 107th Mainstage Revue. Under the direction of ten-time resident stage director Matt Hovde and with returning music direction by Vinnie Pillarella, The Second City’s 107th Mainstage Revue will feature current Mainstage ensemble members Ryan Asher, Tyler Davis, Jeffrey Murdoch, and Nate Varrone, who will be joined by “Gaslight District” cast member Emily Fightmaster and “She the People” cast member Kimberly Michelle Vaughn. The stage manager is Craig Taylor. For more information visit secondcity.com.