Raven Theatre to Present Chicago Premiere of a New Adaptation of A DOLL'S HOUSE

Raven Theatre will continue its 2019-20 season with a revival of Henrik Ibsen's masterpiece A DOLL'S HOUSE, in a vibrant and progressive new adaptation making its Chicago premiere. Directed by Lauren Shouse, the new work features translation by Anne-Charlotte Hanes Harvey and adaptation by Hanes Harvey and Kirsten Brandt. A DOLL'S HOUSE will play February 6 - March 22, 2020 on Raven's 85-seat East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville) in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177. The press opening is Monday, February 10, 2020 at 7:30 pm.

The cast includes Amira Danan, Mike Dailey, Carmen Liao, Shadana Patterson, Nelson Rodriguez, Kelli Walker and Gage Wallace.

Nora, a spirited young housewife, is a radical thinker trapped in the patriarchal world of 1870s Norway. Life with her husband, Torvald, is comfortable, if uninteresting. But when an Old Acquaintance reappears, threatening to bring Nora's secrets to light, everything changes. As her marriage, her relationships and her world crumble, she begins to speak her mind and question what she really wants for herself.

The production team includes: Jacqueline Penrod (scenic design), Izumi Inaba (costume design), Becca Jeffords (lighting design), Eric Backus (original music and composition), Caitlin McCarthy

(props design), Ariel Etana Triunfo (choreographer), Skylar Grieco (assistant director), Lynn Baber (casting director), Cole von Glahn (artistic producer), Bek Lambrecht (technical director), Liz Gomez (master electrician), Ian Liberman (wardrobe supervisor), Eileen Rozycki (scenic artist), Wilhelm Peters (stage manager) and Julia Toney (assistant stage manager).

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Title:

A DOLL'S HOUSE

Written by Henrik Ibsen

Translation by Anne-Charlotte Hanes Harvey

Adaptation by Anne-Charlotte Hanes Harvey and Kirsten Brandt

Directed by Lauren Shouse

Cast:

(in alphabetical order): Amira Danan (Nora), Mike Dailey (Dr. Rank), Carmen Liao (Helene), Shadana Patterson (Mrs. Linde), Nelson Rodriguez (Krogstad), Kelli Walker (Anne-Marie) and Gage Wallace (Helmer).

Understudies: Bryan Carter, Caitlin Dobbins, Sadie Elizondo, Terry Gallagher, Hilary Hensler and Bernhard Verhoeven

Location:

Raven Theatre's East Stage, 6157 N. Clark St. (at Granville), Chicago

Dates:

Previews: Thursday, February 6 at 7:30 pm, Friday, February 7 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, February 8 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, February 9 at 3 pm

Press performances: Monday, February 10, 2020 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Thursday, February 13 - Sunday, March 22, 2020

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. Tickets are currently available at raventheatre.com or by calling (773) 338-2177.

Touch Tour/Open Captioned performance: Sunday, March 8 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 Sunday performances. 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:

Henrik Ibsen's (Playwright, 1828-1906) other plays include Hedda Gabler, Ghosts, An Enemy of the People, The Lady from the Sea, Peer Gynt, Pillars of Society, The Wild Duck, Rosmersholm, The Master Builder, Little Eyolf, John Gabriel Borkman and When We Dead Awaken.

Kirsten Brandt (Adaption) is an award-winning playwright, director and producer. She served for six seasons as Artistic Director of Sledgehammer Theatre where she directed over a dozen plays and wrote Berzerkergäng, The Frankenstein Project and NU. She was the Associate Artistic Director of San Jose Repertory Theatre, where she co-wrote the book and lyrics to a new musical version of Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen with Haddon Kime and Rick Lombardo. With Anne-Charlotte Hanes Harvey, she adapted and directed Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House at the Old Globe Theatre. Her telematic, multi-site play The Thinning Veil was produced at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her other plays include The Mechanic's Daughter, The Waves and an adaptation of Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights. As a director, Ms. Brandt work has been seen at San Jose Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe, TheatreWorks, La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego Repertory, Santa Cruz Shakespeare, North Coast Repertory, Arizona Theatre Company, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Marin Theatre Company and City Lights Theatre. www.kirstenbrandt.com

Anne-Charlotte Hanes Harvey (Translation, Adaption) is Professor Emerita of Theatre at San Diego State University. As a Swedish-born translator/dramaturg, Harvey specializes in the plays of Ibsen and Strindberg. Her unique platform translations have served a wide range of productions, from academic theatre to regional theatre to Broadway, including adaptations by David Chambers, Jon Robin Baitz, Christopher Shinn, Kirsten Brandt, Mabou Mines, and others. Ibsen productions in Southern California include Ghosts (Old Globe 1993), Hedda Gabler (SDSU and South Coast Rep 1998), Intimate Ibsen (ion 2008), Ghosts (North Coast Rep 2010), A Doll's House (Old Globe 2013) and Hedda Gabler (North Coast Rep 2016). Her own play Dinner With Marlene premiered at Lamb's Players, Coronado, in April 2016.

Lauren Shouse (Director) is a director, dramaturg and teacher. She is currently the Associate Artistic Director at Northlight Theatre. Her recent directing credits include: What We're Up Against with Compass Theatre, The Cake at Rivendell Theatre (for which she received a Joseph Jefferson nomination for best director), The Legend of Georgia McBride at Northlight Theatre, Nice Girl and Betrayal at Raven Theatre, Avenue Q, Rapture, Blister, Burn, Superior Donuts and A Christmas Story at Nashville Repertory Theatre, the world premiere of Long Way Down with 3Ps productions (nominated for American Theatre Critics Association Steinberg New Play Award 2011); the world premiere of Religion and Rubber Ducks with Ovvio Arte, Parallel Lives, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, The Last Five Years and Chess in Concert with Street Theatre Company, the world premiere of Rear Widow at Chaffin's Barn Theatre, and Sylvia Plath's 3 Women. As Artistic Associate at Nashville Rep, Lauren directed the Ingram New Works Play Lab and Festival, which developed new works by John Patrick Shanley, David Auburn, Steven Dietz and Victoria Stewart. Lauren also co-founded Ten Minute Playhouse, a company that produces short plays by local playwrights. Before moving to Nashville, Lauren lived in London, UK and worked with Producer/Director Hugh Wooldridge. Her work abroad includes: Production Executive for The Night of 1000 Voices (celebrating John Kander and Fred Ebb and starring Joel Grey with Avenue Q) at The Royal Albert Hall, Production Executive of An Evening with Michael Parkinson at The Theatre Royal - Windsor, Children's Director/Assistant to the Director of A Gift of Music, and Assistant Director of The Night of 1000 Voices at The Odyssey Arena in Belfast, Ireland. Lauren holds an MA in Performance studies from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill where she adapted and directed The Time Traveler's Wife. She received her MFA in theatre directing at Northwestern University where she directed Stop Kiss, Eurydice and In the Next Room or the Vibrator Play. In Chicago, Lauren has also worked with Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Lookingglass Theatre, Sideshow Theatre, Route 66, The Gift Theatre, Chicago Dramatists and Stage Left Theatre.

www.LaurenShouseDirects.com