CST Cast Members Record Hip-Hop Anthem for Sydney Sports Team

Cast members of Chicago Shakespeare Theater's (CST) acclaimed "hip-hoptation" Funk It Up About Nothin', now on tour Down Under in Sydney, Australia, have recorded a hip-hop anthem for the country's beloved Australian Football League (AFL) team the Sydney Swans. "Swan Song (Cheer, Cheer)" was such a hit with the AFL that creators GQ, JQ, Postell Pringle and Jackson Doran were invited to film a music video of the victory song in the Swans' locker room, decked out in footy gear like true players. Australian football is one of the most highly attended spectator sports in Australia, with a fan following similar to US football. The entire Funk It Up About Nothin' cast will be special guests at the highly anticipated Swans vs. Melbourne season opener this Sunday, capping off the show's acclaimed run in Sydney. The CST production finishes its six-week Australian tour next week before heading across the globe to make its London debut at Theatre Royal Stratford East on April 8, 2011.

"Swan Song (Cheer, Cheer)" has gone viral in Australia after acquiring instant popularity. Highlighting one of the main differences between Australian football and US football, one of the hip-hop anthem's verses proclaims:

We love the sport, but we're feelin' kind of bad.
You should get paid more to not wear pads.
You wouldn't wear 'em anyway, they're for goody-goodies.
Not for real men who play footy.

Created and directed by GQ and JQ (The Q Brothers), Funk It Up About Nothin'?an exuberant "hip-hoptation" of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing?is thrilling audiences the world over, from its home-town audience in Chicago to Joe's Pub at The Public Theater in New York to Scotland's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where Funk It Up About Nothin' garnered the Dress Circle Award for Best Musical Production. The show is presented in London by Theatre Royal Stratford East, CST, Merrigong Theatre Company and Richard Jordan Productions. For more information about Funk It Up About Nothin' and "Swan Song (Cheer, Cheer)," visit Chicago Shakespeare's website at www.chicagoshakes.com/funk.