Next Theatre Presents MAPLE AND VINE 10/27-12/4
By: Gabrielle Sierra Oct. 20, 2011
Next Theatre Company is set to present the Chicago premiere of Jordan Harrison's new play, Maple and Vine, directed by Damon Kiely, October 27 - December 4, at 927 Noyes Street. Previews are October 27 - 30 and the opening/press night is Tuesday, November 1 at 7 p.m. The regular performance schedule is Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Saturdays, Nov. 12, 19, 26 and Dec. 3 have an added 4 p.m. matinee. Tickets are $25 - $40 with subscriber and student discounts available. Tickets may be purchased at nexttheatre.org or by calling 847-475-1875 x2.
Jordan Harrison's new play, the hit of the 2011 Humana Festival, Maple and Vine, examines the modern world of today and asks the question "Were the 'good ole days' that good?" Katha and Ryu have become allergic to their fast-paced modern lives and all its attachments. After they meet a charismatic man from a community of 1950's re-enactors, they forsake cell phones and sushi for cigarettes and Tupperware parties. In this meticulously recreated world, Katha and Ryu are surprised by how much they are willing to sacrifice for happiness.
Harrison interviewed members of various religious sects, tribes and cults, as well as technological engineers, media specialists and Civil War re-enactors to help create the fictional world found in Maple and Vine.
Maple and Vine's cast includes Larry Grimm, Jenny Avery, Peter Sipla, Paul D'Addario and Molly Glynn. The production team is made up of set design: Keith Pitts, lighting design: Diane Fairchild, costume design: Alex Meadows and sound design: Lindsay Jones.
SUNDAY TALKBACKS
Every 2 p.m. Sunday matinee during the season is followed by a discussion with the artistic staff and artists involved in the production, as well as special guests familiar with the topic to be discussed.
ABOUT Next Theatre Company
Next Theatre Company produces socially provocative, artistically adventurous work. It is Next's vision to become a national destination for audiences and artists who share this vision that theatre can promote awareness and provoke change with more power than any other medium of expression.
Since its founding in 1981 by Harriet Spizziri and Brian Finn, the 167-seat space has been home to over a hundred productions, serving nearly a quarter of a million theatergoers and winning Jeff Awards in nearly every category. The theatre's adventurous spirit and great conviction prompted Richard Christiansen of the Chicago Tribune to announce that Next is "a resounding reaffirmation of what faith, dedication and talent can accomplish. It is what distinguished Chicago theatre in its Early Stages more than a quarter century ago, and it is what continues to make Chicago theatre so exciting."
Next Theatre serves over 15,000 patrons annually, including students, elderly and everyone in between. The Next audience includes locAl Evanstonians as well as Chicago and North Shore residents, and they have come to expect artistic excellence in the pursuit of culturally progressive work.
The Next Theatre is located inside the Noyes Cultural Arts Center in Evanston, adjoining the Noyes street stop on the Evanston "el." Free parking is available in the lot adjacent to the theatre and the Evanston Civic Center. Next Theatre Box Office hours are from 12 - 6 p.m. weekdays and two hours prior to curtain Saturday and Sunday. The box office is closed on Monday unless a show is scheduled. All tickets are held at will-call until pick-up on the day of performance, unless the tickets have been purchased in person.Next Theatre Company presents Maple and Vine at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes Street, Evanston. Previews are October 27 - 30 and the opening/press night is Tuesday, Nov. 1 at 7 p.m. The regular performance schedule is Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Saturdays, Nov. 12, 19, 26 and Dec. 3 have an added 4 p.m. matinee. Tickets are $25 - $40 with subscriber and student discounts available. Tickets may be purchased at nexttheatre.org or by calling 847-475-1875 x2.Videos