Physical Theater Festival Chicago Reveals First Acts

International, innovative, highly visual storytelling and live theater that defies norms will all play big parts in the 2019 Physical Theater Festival Chicago, May 31-June 8, 2019 at Stage 773.

Returning for its sixth year, Chicago's Physical Theater Festival will present a diverse slate of radically different works of physical theater, loosely defined as storytelling through highly physical, highly visual means to create live, original and contemporary works.

Today, Festival Directors Alice da Cunha and Marc Frost announced three acts from Denmark, the UK and Chicago, each an intense, visceral live theater experience that promises to move you:

Freeman, a Chicago premiere by Strictly Arts (UK), is the largest international production ever presented at Physical Theater Festival Chicago. This stunning new work, a critically acclaimed, sold out hit at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, is inspired by William Freeman, the first man in America to plead insanity as his defense. Using physical theater, spoken word, gospel singing, shadow puppetry and more, Freeman threads together six true stories, including Sandra Bland's, to examine the unspoken link between mental health and systemic racism. The Guardian called Freeman "a revelation, a piece of stunning physical theatre." Freeman will close the festival with performances Thursday, Friday and Saturday, June 6, 7 and 8 at 9 p.m.

Next Door, an award winning show by Danish company Out of Balanz, returns after a sold-out smash hit run at Chicago's first Physical Theater Festival. Now, this lo-fi, high-octane, poignant physical comedy comes back to celebrate the importance of relationships and what connects all of us, even with your neighbor. Copenhagen Post called Next Door "imaginative and groundbreaking...an unforgettable journey into the human psyche." The Scotsman found it "irresistible." Performances open the festival Thursday,

May 31 at 7 p.m., Friday, June 1 at 9 p.m. and Saturday, June 2 at 2 p.m.

This year's Chicago spotlight slot belongs to Aura CuriAtlas Physical Theatre, which makes its hometown Physical Theater Festival debut with A Life with No Limits. Inspired by the life and work of astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, this ambitious new piece is told wordlessly through dance, theater, acrobatics and original music. It reflects on the determination, passion and sense of humor of someone who has severe physical limitations, yet also has an imagination that roams free. BroadwayWorld.com praised Aura CuriAtlas as "eye-popping in their execution and touching in their meaning." A Life with No Limits is a mid-festival entry, with performances Monday and Tuesday, June 3 and 4 at 7 p.m.

Home base for Physical Theater Festival Chicago is Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. Festival passes ($50 and $65) and single tickets ($15-$20) to today's announced shows are on sale now at physicalfestival.com.

Stay tuned for announcements of two more international acts, a Scratch Night showcasing veteran and emerging local physical theater artists, and professional education workshops as part of Physical Theater Festival Chicago.

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