Lookingglass Theatre Presents THE GREAT FIRE, Previews 9/21

Lookingglass Theatre Company presents The Great Fire, a Lookingglass Original written and directed by Ensemble Member John Musial. The production, coinciding with the 140th Anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire, runs September 21 - November 20, 2011 at Lookingglass Theatre Company, located inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson. The Press Opening is Saturday, October 1, 2011, at 7:30 p.m.

October 8, 1871

It has been one of the hottest, driest autumns on record, and now a strong wind blows from the Southwest. At 9:40 pm, the Chicago Fire Department gets their first report of a small blaze on the city's southwest side. Soon there is no stopping the Great Chicago Fire until it finally runs out of things to burn. In one night, the very rich, the very poor, and everyone in between are transformed forever.

Ensemble Member John Musial (Our Future Metropolis, Nelson Algren: For Keeps and a Single Day) revisits his acclaimed 1999 production about the disaster that redefined Chicago. Spectacular, spiritual, highly physical and exquisitely emotional, the Chicago Sun-Times praised The Great Fire as "highly original, hugely entertaining" and remarked that "no one who sees this show will be able to look at Chicago in the same way again."

John Musial comments, "The Great Fire is the creation myth of our city. In it lie the origins of our identity as a city, as a people, as a community. Lookingglass loves telling local stories-like Eastland and The Great Fire-and we also love telling the stories of great world myths. With our theater being located at the heart of one of the main landmarks of the Great Fire, the question is, ‘How could we not tell this story?"
"This is a great time to revisit The Great Fire - not just because of the 140th anniversary, or because the production takes place this time in one of the few buildings to survive the Fire, but because this whole season is very much about decisions that are made in times of crisis, about ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances and having to make hard choices. We're thrilled to have John Musial's bold imagination and flair for visual spectacle at work in service of this incredible story," comments Artistic Director Andy White.

Lookingglass previously produced The Great Fire in 1999 at the former site of the Jane Addams Center on Broadway in Chicago. It is particularly meaningful to produce the new, updated incarnation at Lookingglass' home at the Waterworks Pumping Station, one of the only buildings to survive the historical fire.

The Great Fire features Ensemble Member Thomas J. Cox, Artistic Associate Kevin Douglas, Artistic Associate Troy West, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Stephanie Diaz, Lindsay Noel Whiting, and Gary Wingert.

Designers include John Dalton (scenic); Alison Siple (costume); Mike Durst (lighting); Josh Horvath (sound); Ray Nardelli, (sound); and Joel Lambie (properties). Stephanie Diaz is the puppeteer and Kathleen Petroziello is the stage manager.
As with many previous productions, most recently Trust and The Last Act of Lilka Kadison, Lookingglass is partnering with organizations to enhance the audience experience with additional education and outreach programming. The Lead Community Partner for The Great Fire is the City of Chicago Fire Department. Season Community Partners include: Chicago History Museum, Chicago Architecture Foundation and WBEZ Chicago Public Radio.

United Airlines is the Production Sponsor of The Great Fire and the Official and Exclusive Airline of Lookingglass Theatre.

About The Great Fire artists

John Musial (Director/Writer/Ensemble Member) is a Chicago-based film & theatermaker. He writes, directs, designs and makes stuff. As a writer/director with Lookingglass, he created The Great Fire, The Grail ‘97, Nelson Algren: For Keeps and a Single Day, and most recently, Our Future Metropolis. Musial has been a Lookingglass Ensemble Member since 1991, and in that ancient past, he designed lights and sets for The Jungle, West, and Eurydice, among many other projects. Most recently he was scenographer for Our Town and Great Men of Science. As a filmmaker John contributed films & video for 1984, 28 and Nelson Algren. In 2001 Musial redirected and edited Nelson Algren as an hour-long television program for WTTW Channel 11's PBS program series Network Chicago Presents and was nominated for a regional Emmy. He has multiple Jeff nominations for Best Scenic Design, for Best New Work and for Achievement in Film Design (which he received for Nelson Algren in 2008). Apart from Lookingglass, Musial has directed and designed projects with Redmoon Theater, Local Infinities Visual Theater, American Theater Company, Northlight and recently designed scenery for About Face's Float. Professionally, he holds a Master's degree in Architecture from UIC and is working toward his professional license at Mark Miller Architects & Builders.

Cheryl Lynn Bruce (Hildreth, Babcia) returns to Lookingglass where she performed in Race. Ms. Bruce has performed on stages across the country as well as in Europe and Mexico. She created the role of Elizabeth Sandry for Steppenwolf's Tony Award-winning production of The Grapes of Wrath (Broadway, The National Theatre-UK, La Jolla Playhouse.) Last season she made her Teatro Vista company debut in Freedom, NY and performed in Harriet Jacobs at Kansas City Repertory Theatre. Film credits include: Stranger Than Fiction, Daughters of the Dust, The Fugitive. Television credits include: Prison Break, There Are No Children Here, Separate but Equal, To Sir with Love, 2. Artist-in-Residence (Yale University-2011); Woman of Valor (Jane Addams Hull House Association-2010); 3Arts Artist Award & grant (2010); Inaugural Fellowship & grant (Ellen Stone Belic Institiute for the Study of Women and Gender in the Arts and Media, Columbia College-2006); Some Ra published in Traveling the Spaceways: Sun-Ra, the Astro Black and Other Solar Myths (2009, WhiteWalls, Inc.).
Thomas J. Cox (Arthur Tree, Mayor, Mr. O'Leary) is a founding ensemble member of Lookingglass, with whom he has done over thirty productions, including Nelson Algren: For Keeps and a Single Day (Jeff-Nominated Solo Performance), The Old Curiosity Shop (Jeff-Nominated Supporting Actor), 1984, Vanishing Twin, Master and Margarita, Jungle, S/M, and most recently as Hook in Peter Pan (A Play). He has appeared at Goodman, Steppenwolf, Court, and Northlight Theatres, among others, most recently appearing in The Outgoing Tide at Northlight. Film/TV: Chi-Girl (independent), Since You've Been Gone (Miramax), Brotherhood (Showtime).

Stephanie Diaz (Mrs. Lemos/Tree, Archivist/Puppet Design) is making her Lookingglass debut, eleven years after being wowed by Metamorphoses on tour in Seattle. In Chicago, she has been seen at Victory Gardens, Remy Bumppo, ShawChicago, Drury Lane Oakbrook, Steppenwolf, Teatro Vista, Goodman Theatre, Chicago Dramatists and 16th Street Theater, where she is an Associate Artist. Regional credits include Seattle Rep, Kansas City Rep, The Magic Theatre, First Stage Milwaukee, Mixed Blood, Shakespeare Santa Cruz and The Village Theatre. TV/Film: The Chicago Code and the recently-wrapped indie film Beyond Redemption. As a puppeteer, she trained and worked with Seattle's Thistle Theatre, specializing in the Bunraku style, and wrote the company's first-ever bilingual (Spanish/English) production. She has since worked with Monkey Wrench Puppet Lab (Seattle) and Blair Thomas (Chicago), and recently designed shadow and Bunraku puppets for Prop Theatre's No Roosters in the Desert.
Kevin Douglas (Frenchy), a Lookingglass Artistic Associate, has appeared at Lookingglass in five runs of Lookingglass Alice, Our Town, Around the World in 80 Days, and Black Diamond. Kevin was most recently seen in Orlando at Court Theatre and before that A Civil War Christmas at Northlight. He is also a member of MPAACT (MA'AT Production Association of African Centered Theatre). Regional credits include: Actors Theatre of Louisville, Baltimore Centerstage, Kansas City Rep and Alliance Theatre in Atlanta. Kevin would like to thank God for this opportunity and John.
Troy West (Mr. Tree, Mistress Hobson) With Lookingglass: more than ten shows, including the original incarnation of tonight's play. He has appeared in seven productions with Steppenwolf, ncluding the original productions of Picasso at the Lapin Agile (which transferred to the Geffen in LA ) and August: Osage County (also Broadway, London and Australia.) Additional Chicago credits include work with A Red Orchid Theatre, Remains, Famous Door, Goodman, Next and Roadworks. Regional credits include work with American Conservatory Theatre, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Portland Center Stage and New Harmony. Off Broadway includes Bug at the Barrow Street Theatre. Television appearances include Early Edition, The Pursuit of Happiness and Unusual Phenomena and films include The Dilemma, Hellcab and Chi Girl.
Lindsey Noel Whiting (The Fire) Previous Lookingglass credits include Icarus and Lookingglass Alice. Lindsey has performed regionally with Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Alliance Theatre and Syracuse Stage. Chicago credits include: The Snow Queen (Victory Gardens); Once Upon A Time (or The Secret Language of Birds), The Golden Truffle, The Cabinet, and Sink, Sank, Sunk (Redmoon); Dream and Lost & Found at Actors' Gymnasium. Lindsey is also a member of Barrel of Monkeys and performs with Mucca Pazza, a circus punk marching band.

Gary Wingert (FM Williams, Dzadzio) has performed at Lookingglass in George, The Baron in the Trees, 1984, and a previous production of The Great Fire. Other credits include Pericles, Finding the Sun, and The Odyssey (Goodman Theater); Winesburg, Ohio (About Face Theater); Measure for Measure (Chicago Shakespeare); Long Day's Journey Into Night (The Gift Theater); The House of Lily (Steppenwolf); Romeo and Juliet, Sylvia, The Grapes of Wrath, and The Diary of Anne Frank (New American Theater). Regional credits include The Odyssey at Seattle Repertory Theater and the McCarter Theater. Gary is an ensemble member of The Artists' Ensemble Theater.

The Great Fire -Dates, Times and Ticket Information

Tickets are available online, www.lookingglasstheatre.org; by phone, (312) 337-0665; or at the Lookingglass Theatre box office, located inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson. For more information and box office hours, visit www.lookingglasstheatre.org.

Previews of The Great Fire are September 21-October 1, 2011. The press opening is Saturday, October 1, 2011, at 7:30 p.m. The production runs through November 20, 2011. Tickets are $20-$68.
Target Saturday Matinees offer a limited number of buy one, get one free tickets which are available to all 3:00 p.m. Saturday matinees. This program is made possible with the generous support of Target, working with Lookingglass to make the arts accessible to all. A limited number of student tickets are available the day of the show for $20 with valid student ID. (See FACT SHEET for full performance schedule.)
Groups of 10 or more people save up o 20% on tickets. Special student group tickets are also available.
Lookingglass Theatre is located in the heart of the Magnificent Mile shopping district inside Chicago's historic Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave. at Pearson. Discounted parking is available for Lookingglass patrons at both the nearby John Hancock Center and Olympia Centre Self Park (161 E. Chicago Ave.). To purchase tickets, call the Lookingglass Theatre box office at (312) 337-0665 or visit lookingglasstheatre.org.
About Lookingglass Theatre Company

Inventive. Collaborative. Transformative. Lookingglass Theatre Company, recipient of the 2011 Regional Theatre Tony Award, was founded in 1988 by eight Northwestern University students. 2011-2012 marks the company's 24th anniversary season. Lookingglass is home to a multi-disciplined ensemble of artists who create story-centered theatrical work that is physical, aurally rich and visually metaphoric. Lookingglass has staged 56 world premieres at 23 venues across Chicago, and garnered 52 Joseph Jefferson Awards and Citations.

Work premiered at Lookingglass has been produced in New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle, Berkeley, Philadelphia, Princeton, Hartford, Kansas City, Washington D.C., and St. Louis. Lookingglass original scripts have been produced across the United States.

The Lookingglass Theatre in Chicago's landmark Water Tower Water Works opened in June 2003. In addition to developing and presenting ensemble work, Lookingglass Education and Community programs encourage creativity, teamwork and confidence with thousands of community members each year.

Lookingglass Theatre Company continues to expand its artistic, financial and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Artistic Director Andrew White, Executive Director Rachel Kraft, Producing Artistic Director Philip R. Smith, Artistic Director of New Work Heidi Stillman, a 22-member artistic ensemble, 15 artistic associates, 11 production affiliates, an administrative staff and a dedicated board of directors led by Chairman Richard Ditton of Incredible Technologies and President Joe Brady of Jones Lang LaSalle. For more information, visit lookingglasstheatre.org.

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