Writers’ Theatre Presents Heartbreak House 4/19-6/26

Writers' Theatre Artistic Director Michael Halberstam and Executive Director Kathryn M. Lipuma announce Heartbreak House by George Bernard Shaw, directed by William Brown. The production runs April 19- June 26, 2011 at Writers' Theatre, 325 Tudor Court in Glencoe.

In the English countryside on the estate of Captain Shotover, an extraordinary assemblage of guests gather to reunite. Affairs begin, engagements end and hearts and minds become irreparably ensnared in a young woman's dilemma-whether to marry for love or for money. George Bernard Shaw-the master of wit and social thought-bitingly chronicles the demise of the leisure class in his favorite play, Heartbreak House.

"Writers' Theatre has enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with Shaw," says Artistic Director Michael Halberstam. "It is fitting that as A Minister's Wife-adapted from Shaw's Candida-makes its premiere at Lincoln Center, that William Brown (who played Morell in our 1998 production), should be at the helm of Heartbreak House. His seminal productions of Misalliance and Arms and the Man position him as the perfect director for one of the world's greatest plays."

The production features Jeannie Affelder, Atra Asdou, Kareem Bandealy, Kevin Christopher Fox, Tim Gittings, John Lister, John Reeger, Tiffany Scott, Karen Janes Woditsch and Martin Yurek

The designers are Keith Pitts (set), Jesse Klug (lighting), Rachel Anne Healy (costumes) and Andrew Hansen (sound). The production stage manager is David Castellanos.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS
George Bernard Shaw (Playwright) (1856-1950) was born in Dublin, the son of a civil servant. His education was irregular, due to his dislike of any organized training. After working in an estate agent's office for a while he moved to London in 1876, where he established himself as a leading music and theatre critic in the eighties and nineties and became a prominent member of the Fabian Society. In addition to his countless publications for the Fabian Society, Shaw established his literary career writing novels, including Immaturity, The Irrational Know, Love Among the Artists, Cashel Byrons's Profession and An Unsocial Socialist.

Shaw soon became a fervent advocate of the new theatre of Ibsen, and was inspired to present his social criticisms on the stage. His first play, Widowers' Houses was produced in 1893 at the Independent Theatre in London. His major plays include The Doctor's Dilemma, Candida, The Man of Destiny, You Never Can Tell, Mrs. Warren's Profession, The Devil's Disciple, Caesar and Cleopatra, Misalliance, Man and Superman, John Bull's Other Island, Major Barbara, And Rocles And The Lion, Pygmalion, Heartbreak House and Saint Joan.

Shaw received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925 after the success of Saint Joan and the Academy Award for Best Screenplay for Pygmalion in 1938. George Bernard Shaw died while pruning an apple tree at Ayot Street, Lawrence, Hertfordshire, England, on November 2, 1950. He left a third of his royalties to the National Gallery of Ireland where a statue of him stands today.

William Brown (Director) directed the world premiere of Brett Neveu's Do The Hustle at Writers' Theatre, where he has directed productions of Old Glory, As You Like It, Another Part of the Forest, Arms and the Man, Our Town, Rocket to the Moon, Misalliance, The Glass Menagerie and Arthur Miller's Incident at Vichy. For the last five years he has directed A Christmas Carol at Goodman Theatre and at Northlight Theatre he has directed Lady Windermere's Fan, The Chalk Garden and his own adaptation with music of She Stoops to Conquer. At American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin, he has directed Hay Fever, The Comedy of Errors, A Midsummer's Night Dream, Night of the Iguana, Shaw's You Never Can Tell, Antony and Cleopatra, All's Well that Ends Well, The Cherry Orchard, Twelfth Night and Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker. At TimeLine Theatre he recently directed the world premiere of the play he wrote with Doug Frew, To Master The Art, as well as Tennessee Williams' Not About Nightingales and the Chicago premieres of two Steven Dietz plays, Halycon Days and Paragon Springs. He is the Associate Artistic Director of Montana Shakespeare in the Parks where he most recently directed Romeo and Juilet. Brown received a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry Kissinger in Nixon's Nixon.

Jeannie Affelder (Nurse Guinness) makes her Writers' Theatre debut. She recently playEd Simone Beck in To Master the Art directed by William Brown and was seen speaking French in When She Danced (TimeLine Theatre Company). She has performed with First Folio Theatre, Bailiwick Repertory Theatre, Court Theatre, Circle Theatre, Chicago Dramatists, ShawChicago and City Lit Theater Company, where she was awarded Joseph Jefferson Citations for Best Production and Best Ensemble for The Good Times Are Killing Me. Affelder is a former weekend voice and guest host on WBEZ Radio.

Atra Asdou (Ellie Dunn) makes her Writers' Theatre debut. Recent Chicago credits include Make Me Love You (The Verge Theatre Company), Wrath: Reverb (Goodman Theatre), Scorched (Silk Road Theatre Project) and Thirst (Chicago Dramatists). Asdou can also be glimpsed in a commercial for Ji Ga Zo. She holds a BA in Theatre from Loyola University Chicago.

Kareem Bandealy (Mazzini Dunn) makes his Writers' Theatre debut. Additional Chicago credits include Rock 'n Roll, Gas For Less, King Lear (Goodman Theatre), A Midsummer Night's Dream, Edward II, Romeo & Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), The Illusion (Court Theatre), Peter Pan (Lookingglass Theatre Company), The Real Thing (Remy Bumppo Theatre Company), It's A Wonderful Life, Oklahoma! (American Theater Company where he is an ensemble member), Wedding Play (About Face Theatre), Our Enemies, Back of the Throat, and 10 Acrobats (Silk Road Theatre Project where he is an associate artist). Regional credits include The Tempest, The Three Musketeers, The Merry Wives of Windsor (Illinois Shakespeare Festival), Julius Caesar, Stuff Happens (Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre), Love's Labour's Lost (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival), Cyrano de Bergerac, The Winter's Tale, The Taming of the Shrew, Jack and the Beanstalk, As You Like It and Romeo & Juliet (Orlando Shakespeare Theater). Bandealy has appeared in several films including The Merry Gentleman, directed by Michael Keaton.

Kevin Christopher Fox (Randall Utterword) returns to Writers' Theatre, where he previously appeared in Butley and Incident at Vichy. An actor and director based in Chicago, Fox's additional acting credits include ShawChicago, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Northlight Theatre, Remy Bumppo Theatre Company, Court Theatre, Noble Fool Theatre, Chicago Dramatists and Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company. Regionally, Fox has performed with American Players Theatre, Montana Shakespeare in the Parks, Human Race Theatre Company and TheatreSquared. Directing credits include shows for The Gift Theatre Company, Oak Park Festival Theatre, Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company, Strawdog Theatre Company, 16th Street Theatre, Northern Illinois University, Oakton Community College and most recently, the world premiere of Sundown Town for TheatreSquared, in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Tim Gittings (The Burglar) returns to Writers' Theatre, where he was last seen as Adam and Corin in As You Like It. Other Chicago credits include The Taming of the Shrew (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Awake and Sing! (Northlight Theatre), A Christmas Carol (Goodman Theatre), When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder (Circle Theatre), Mrs. Mackenzie's Beginners Guide to the Blues (Stage Left Theatre). Regional credits include Henry V, Comedy of Errors, Ah, Wilderness! (American Players Theatre), All My Sons, Coriolanus, Twelfth Night (Alabama Shakespeare Festival), The Tempest, Tartuffe and Much Ado About Nothing (Door Shakespeare).

John Lister (Boss Mangan) returns to Writers' Theatre having previously appeared in As You Like It. Chicago credits include Guys and Dolls (Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire), The Crucible (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), A Christmas Carol (Goodman Theatre), Richard III, Twelfth Night, The Herbal Bed, Edward II (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Lady Windermere's Fan, Red Herring, Inherit the Wind, She Stoops to Conquer (Northlight Theatre), The Lark (Eclipse Theatre Company) and Enter the Poet... (Collaboraction). Regional credits include Around the World in 80 Days (Indiana Repertory Theatre), Deathtrap, The Foreigner, Shady Business (Peninsula Players), Romeo and Juliet, Henry V, The Comedy of Errors (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival) and the United States premiere of Agatha Christie's Chimneys (International Mystery Writers' Festival). Film and television credits include: Public Enemies, Prison Break and The Beast. Lister earned his MFA from Michigan State University. He can next be seen this summer performing for the first time with American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

John Reeger (Captain Shotover) returns to Writers' Theatre where he was last seen in Bach at Leipzig. He has been a proud member of Actor's Equity for thirty-seven years. Recent credits include The Illusion, The Wild Duck (Court Theatre), The Music Man, The Drowsy Chaperone (Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire), Richard III, Amadeus (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Curtains (Drury Lane Oakbrook Terrace), 42nd Street and Les Miserables (Fulton Theatre in Lancaster, PA). Reeger co-authored the holiday musical The Christmas Schooner with Julie Shannon, which has received more than 100 productions throughout the USA and England. Reeger's received a Joseph Jefferson Award, an After Dark Award and an Illinois Artist Fellowship.

Tiffany Scott (Ariadne Utterword) makes her Writers' Theatre debut. Chicago credits include A Christmas Carol, The Edward Albee Festival (Goodman Theatre), The Two Noble Kinsmen (Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination - Supporting Actress), Short Shakespeare!, The Comedy of Errors (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Beast on the Moon (Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination- Principal Actress, Provision Theatre), work with Court Theatre, Griffin Theatre, Lifeline Theatre, Lookingglass Theatre Company, TimeLine Theatre Company and others. Regional credits include Berkeley Repertory Theatre, McCarter Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Illinois Shakespeare and Utah Shakespearean Festivals. Scott has spent three seasons at American Players Theatre, where her favorite roles include Regina Hubbard in Another Part of the Forest, Celia in As You Like It, Sorel Bliss in Hay Fever, Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Perdita in The Winter's Tale.

Karen Janes Woditsch (Hesione Hushabye) returns to Writers' Theatre where she has been seen in multiple roles in Do the Hustle, Gertrude in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Emilia in Othello (After Dark Award), Masha in Seagull, Jennifer Dubidat in The Doctor's Dilemma, Belle Stark in Rocket to the Moon, among many others. Chicago credits include Julia Child in To Master the Art (TimeLine Theatre Company), five seasons of A Christmas Carol, Gerte in Crumbs from the Table of Joy (Goodman Theatre), Taming of The Shrew, Mariana in Measure for Measure (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Caroline Bingley in Pride and Prejudice and The Chalk Garden (Northlight Theatre). She has also appeared in productions at Theatre at the Center, Shakespeare on the Green, Shaw Chicago and others. Regionally she has appeared in five seasons at Peninsula Players Theatre.

Martin Yurek (Hector Hushabye) makes his Writers' Theatre debut. Yurek has appeared at Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Court Theatre, Drury Lane Oakbrook, Northlight Theatre, Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire, Illinois Theatre Center, Ravinia Festival, Victory Gardens Theater, Chicago Dramatists, ShawChicago, Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Theatre at the Center and Theatre Building Chicago. Regionally, Yurek has appeared at the Maltz-Jupiter Theatre (Utah Shakespeare), Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival, American Players Theatre, Riverfront Playhouse, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Madison Repertory Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, New American Theater, Milwaukee Shakespeare, Riverside Shakespeare and five seasons with Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival (in residence at the University of Notre Dame). Off-Broadway Yurek appeared at the New Victory Theatre. Yurek received his training at the Theatre School at DePaul University.

TICKET INFORMATION
Performances are April 19-June 26, 2011. The press performance is on Thursday, April 28, 2011, at 7:30 p.m. Curtain times are Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m; Thursdays and Fridays 8:00 p.m.; Saturdays at 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.; and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. There will be no 6:00 p.m. performance on May 22 and June 26. Wednesday matinees will be performed at 2:00 p.m. on May 18 and June 22.

Tickets are $45-$65 and are available at the Box Office, 376 Park Avenue, Glencoe; 847-242-6000 or online at www.writerstheatre.org.

WRITERS' WEDNESDAYS
Post-show discussions will be held every Wednesday after evening performances starting on May 4, as part of the Audience Enrichment Program. Join the artistic staff and actors from the production after the performance for an in-depth conversation. For more information, visit writerstheatre.org/enrichment.

TWEET SEATS
Follow Writers' Theatre on Twitter (Twitter.com/WritersTheatre) and everyday by 3pm, Writers' will Tweet a code that can be used to purchase remaining seats for that day's performance at a discount. Tweet Seats are available for purchase only through the Writers' Theatre website at writerstheatre.org.

WRITERS' PARTNERS
Writers' Theatre is thrilled to welcome back Magnetar Capital as Corporate Production Sponsor for Heartbreak House. Previously, Magnetar sponsored A Streetcar Named Desire in 2010, A Minister's Wife in 2009 and As You Like It in 2008.

Heartbreak House is also made possible through generous support from The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation. Over the past 10 years, the Cheney Foundation has collaborated with Writers' Theatre to fund numerous productions, including A Streetcar Named Desire (2010), A Minister's Wife (2009), As You Like It (2008), The Duchess of Malfi (2006) and Crime and Punishment (2003), among others.

The Writers' Theatre season is underwritten, in part, by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

Writers' Theatre welcomes back 2010/11 Season Restaurant Partner, Winnetka's award-winning Restaurant Michael. Featuring impeccably crafted cuisine of the freshest local and organic ingredients, Restaurant Michael prepares classic, haute cuisine, in a unique and contemporary presentation with French country flair. Writers' Theatre patrons receive 10% off their guest check when they present their ticket stub when ordering. Just 10 minutes from the theater at 64 Green Bay Road, Restaurant Michael is the perfect fit for any dining occasion. Call 847-441-3100 to make your reservation.

For more information about Writers' 2010/11 Season Restaurant Partners and offer restrictions visit writerstheatre.org/visitus.

ABOUT WRITERS' THEATRE
Writers' Theatre is a professional company focusing on the Word and the Artist. Remaining true to the intention of the playwright and nurturing the artist stand at the center of the mission. Now in its 19th season, the company both revives classic scripts and cultivates new works and adaptations while invigorating them with fresh energy in the intimacy of its venues. Founded in 1992, Writers' Theatre performed exclusively at Books on Vernon, 664 Vernon Avenue for the first 12 years. In the fall of 2003, the organization opened a new 108 seat performance venue at 325 Tudor Court. Today, Writers' Theatre continues to produce in both spaces, maintaining an intimate theatrical experience for audiences. Since 2000, the subscriber base has grown almost 250%, from 1,500 to more than 5,700 today. With an operating budget of $3.4 million, Writers' Theatre is supported by a staff of 20 full-time employees and a 31-member Board of Trustees.

You can find Writers' Theatre on Facebook or follow Writers' Theatre on Twitter at Twitter.com/WritersTheatre. For more information, visit www.writerstheatre.org.

 

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