Williams Street Repertory Announces Transfer of ANY OTHER NAME to Chicago's Theatre Wit

WSR is excited to announce the transfer of "Any Other Name" to Theatre Wit in Chicago. The dark comedy by new playwright George Brant opens on March 17, 2017 at Raue Center For The Arts and runs through April 2, 2017. "Any Other Name" will transfer to Theatre Wit for the Chicago Premiere on April 21, 2017 and will run in Chicago through April 30, 2017.

"Any Other Name" appeared as a WSR Lab Series selection during the 2015-2016 season of the new play reading series dedicated to showcasing new work. "Any Other Name" is a dark comedy (or light tragedy) about poetry, madness and identity theft in Victorian England. The show follows Edward and his American wife, Margaret, who are starving for Edward's art as he tries to become England's most famous and beloved poet.

The first draft of "Any Other Name" was workshopped at WordBRIDGE Playwrights Lab in 2008, under Managing Director Mike Vandercook. Vandercook is now Producing Director of WSR. At WordBRIDGE, the script was explored with a full cast including WSR ensemble member Michele Vazquez in the role of Margaret. The resulting script was subsequently produced at Premiere Stages and The Winnipesaukee Playhouse.

On the return of "Any Other Name" to Crystal Lake, Brant explains "as I got my start in Chicago, I couldn't be more thrilled to have WSR bring the play to my hometown - and even more so that Michele [Vazquez] will finally be playing the role that she helped to originate."

Brant's work has been produced internationally and has received numerous accolades including the Lucille Lortel Award, The Edgerton Foundation New Play Award, the Smith Prize, the Fringe First Award and the Keene Prize for Literature. Recently, Brant has garnered national attention with his award-winning play "Grounded" which has been produced nationwide, including a very high-profile production starring Anne Hathaway and directed by Julie Taymor at NYC's Public Theater.

WSR's production of "Any Other Name" is directed by Brad Raimondo. In 2016, he was named the Associate Artistic Director of the Hangar Theatre in Ithaca, NY. He is also the co-founder and Producing Artistic Director of The Dreamscape Theatre, a NYC-based indie theater company dedicated to telling epic stories on a human scale. Raimondo has also served as an assistant director Off-Broadway (with director Michael Barakiva on Topher Payne's "Perfect Arrangement" at Primary Stages).

"The process so far has been terrifically exciting," says Raimondo, "I think that Williams Street Rep and I share a certain all-hands-on-deck approach to getting the best possible work in front of the widest possible audience - and that's always a treat." Raimondo is proud member of SDC, a Drama League Classical Directing Fellow, and holds a BFA in Theater from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, an MA in Educational Theater from NYU's Steinhardt School and an MFA in Directing from the New School for Drama.

WSR, McHenry County's only professional theatre company, recently joined the Theatre Communications Group. TCG is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that seeks to increase the organizational efficiency of its member theatres, cultivate and celebrate the artistic talent and achievements of the field and promote a larger public understanding of, and appreciation for, the theatre.

Tickets to WSR's production of "Any Other Name" at Raue Center may be purchased online at rauecenter.org or via the Box Office at 815.356.9212 or 26 N. Williams Street in downtown Crystal Lake. Tickets for Theatre Wit may be purchased via the Box Office at 773.975.8150. Theatre Wit is located at 1229 West Belmont Avenue, Chicago, IL 60657. For more information, please visit wsrep.org.

Founding Artistic Director: Richard Kuranda, SDC

Production Stage Manager: Caitlin I. Quinn

Producing Director: Mike Vandercook

Company Manager: Kate Wilford

Marketing Manager: Miriam Naponelli

Marketing Manager: Michele V. Knight

Raue Center offers special seating arrangements and hearing devices for patrons with disabilities. Please call the box office at 815.356.9212 to make arrangements prior to the performance.

Raue Center Box Office | 815.356.9212 | 12 to 4p | Mon-Sat | Open Sundays on performance days 1 hour prior to performance.
www.rauecenter.org

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