The Mill Announces its 2008-2009 Season

The Mill's 2008-2009 season will be a time of growth and reflection. This, The Mill's sixth year, begins by looking back. Paula Vogel's Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief was the company's inaugural production in 2002, and the season kicks off with a new staging of the play by Artistic Director Jaclyn Biskup, opening July 27th at 8pm. In the winter, The Mill will bring a new voice to Chicago audiences when it produces The Private Lives of Eskimos (Or 16 Words for Snow) by emerging playwright Ken Urban, opening January 11th at 8pm. As is tradition, the season closes with the Etcetera Festival. 

Season ticket packages are now on sale through www.themilltheatre.org for $45 and include tickets to all 3 shows. "This season marks an exciting step forward for The Mill. I am so excited to be bringing Ken Urban's work to Chicago. He is a fantastic playwright and a great match for our company," says Biskup.

Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief

This summer, The Mill will remount Paula Vogel's Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief at Stage Left (3408 N. Sheffield) July 25 – August 23. The play re-imagines the last days of Desdemona's life. The Mill's production draws inspiration from the structure of early burlesque, using original songs and skits poking fun at Othello and contemporary gender politics to make up the first act of the performance and finishing with Vogel's parody of one of Shakespeare's great plays. The remount of this production is a celebration of the company's longevity.

The Private Lives of Eskimos

The second production in this coming season The Private Lives of Eskimos (or 16 Words for Snow) by Ken Urban will also run at Stage Left, January 8 – February 7.  Eskimos is the story of the misadventures one man gets himself into after the sudden death of his sister and the loss of his cell phone.  Eskimos is a surreal exploration of loss and the emotional distance one must travel in order to begin the process of healing.

Etcetera VIII

To round out our programming, The Mill will produce Etcetera VIII at The Prop Thtr (3502 N. Elston) in Spring 2009. Submissions, as always, are open to any interested party and we anticipate that this year's festival will feature as diverse and as exciting pieces as in years past. The festival in many ways is a celebration of the talent of those working within the company as well as the greater Chicago theatre community.

The Mill Introduces Ken Urban to Chicago Audiences
The Mill is extremely excited to be presenting not only the Chicago premiere of Eskimos, but also the Chicago premiere of Urban's work.  His work has been previously produced to critical acclaim in New York and Los Angeles. The play exhibits the contemporary, offbeat, non-traditional style for which The Mill is known. Ken Urban is the Founding Artistic Director of The Committee, a New York based theatre company that produces "catastrophe theatre." He has been published in New York Theatre Review, The Brooklyn Rail, The Brooklyn Review, Plays and Playwrights 2002, and numerous monologue compilations. He teaches at Harvard University. Urban represents a fresh voice on the cutting edge of the fringe theatre scene. 

The Mill, a not for profit organization, is a member of the League of Chicago Theatres. The Mill promotes progressive performance and theatrical risk taking. It produces artistically challenging work that is progressive in form and content. 

The Mill's 2008-9 season is partially supported by a Community Arts Assistance Program grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and the Illinois Arts Council, and the annual support of businesses and individuals.

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