Victory Gardens Hosts Free Season Previews on Sept 14th

VICTORY GARDENS TO HOST FREE SEASON PREVIEWS ON SEPTEMBER 14 AND SEPTEMBER
24 - FREE MASSAGES OFFERED AT BOTH EVENTS, BRING THE KIDS SEPTEMBER 14

Both events to feature sneak-peek scenes from all six 2008-2009 VGT productions, mingling with the artists, and deep discounts on added value subscriptions.

Victory Gardens Theater, Chicago's #1 presenter of new plays, will host two 2008-09 Season Preview events - Sunday, September 14 at 11 am, and Wednesday, September 24 at 6 pm - to give prospective new audiences an exclusive sneak peek at all six productions that make up the company's upcoming subscription season.

Both Season Preview events are free, feature top Chicago actors performing staged readings of key scenes from the season, include special deals on a variety of subscription options, and conclude with the opportunity to mingle
with the artists over light appetizers and refreshments at a post-event reception.

To spotlight Victory Gardens' newest value-added subscription plan, Lincoln Park Neighbors Night, Lincoln Park Massage Spa is sending its top massage therapists to both events, to offer free chair massages in the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater lobby before and after each preview.

To demonstrate Victory Gardens' Family Saturday series, parents with kids four and up who miss attending live theater - because they have children four and up! - are strongly encouraged to attend the September 14th Sunday Brunch Preview.  Victory Gardens education staff will keep kids entertained with theater games and crafts in the upstairs rehearsal room, while their parents enjoy the preview.

Special deals on five- and six-play subscriptions to Victory Gardens' 2008-09 season will be on sale at both Season Previews, starting at only $80. Both events will be held at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago.   Space is limited.  Advance reservations are recommended. To reserve, email events@victorygardens.org or call Will Rogers, 773.549.5788 x 2167.

To recap, Victory Gardens' 2008-09 season opens with a major revival of Eurydice, MacArthur Genius winner Sarah Ruhl's contemporary take on the Greek Orpheus myth, directed by Sandy Shinner and Jessica Thebus (October 3-December 9, opening October 13); the return of Victory Gardens' smash hit holiday musical The Snow Queen, adapted by Michael Smith, Blair Thomas and Frank Galati, directed by Frank Galati (November 28- December 28, opening December 1); Gloria Bond Clunie's new drama Living Green, about an upper middle class black family considering a move back to the "old neighborhood," directed by Andrea J. Dymond (January 23- March 1, opening February 2); Class Dismissed by Jeffrey Sweet, a comedic drama set in the free-spirited 1960s, directed by Dennis Zacek (March 20-April 26, opening March 30); the Chicago premiere of Aditi Brennan Kapil's Love Person., an intriguing romance performed in English, Sanskrit, American Sign Language, and projected e-mail, directed by Sandy Shinner (May 15-June 14, opening May 25); and the Chicago premiere of David Harrower's intense two-person drama Blackbird, starring William L. Petersen in his return to the Victory Gardens stage, directed by Dennis Zacek (July 3-August 9, 2009).

Victory Gardens' newest subscription series - Lincoln Park Neighbors Night - will be showcased at both events. This new added value series - scheduled for the Wednesday preview of each mainstage production - pairs each show with a different Lincoln Park business that will help make each Neighbors Night a unique, unforgettable experience. To illustrate, for Victory Gardens' season opener, Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl, Lincoln Park Massage Spa
will dispatch their top massage therapists to give Neighbors Night subscribers free rubdowns.Other partnerships include a group music lesson before The Snow Queen, courtesy of Old Town School of Folk Music and Different Strummer Music Store; a Facets Film School mini-seminar on the classic film A Raisin in the Sun, before Gloria Bond Clunie's Living Green; shopping eco-friendly wares and funking up free t-shirts from gratefulnotgreedy.com, before Jeffrey Sweet's 1960s comedy Class Dismissed; a pre-show tasting of high-end chocolates from Vosges Haut-Chocolate, before Aditi Brennan Kapil's contemporary romance Love Person; and a pre-show CAPS meeting sponsored by 43rd Ward Alderman Vi Daley, connected to William L. Petersen's return to the Victory Gardens mainstage in David Harrower's Blackbird. All events will be catered by Fiesta Mexicana, the Exclusive Restaurant Sponsor of Victory Gardens' Lincoln Park Neighbors Night series. Five- and six-play Lincoln Park Neighbors Night subscriptions will be on sale at both events, starting at only $120.  For more information, check out http://www.victorygardens.org/lincolnparkneighborsnight

To spotlight Victory Gardens' popular Family Saturday subscription series, parents (and grandparents!) of children ages 4 and up are encouraged to bring their kids to the Sunday, September 14th Season Preview. While the adults enjoy sneak peek scenes from the company's 2008-2009 season, Victory Gardens' education staff will keep kids entertained with theater games, crafts and storytelling, just as they do at every Family Saturday performance. A discounted introductory rate - only $155 per parent - for a five-play Family Saturday subscription will be offered at both Season Preview events.

"C'mon, parents, that's five guaranteed date nights for just over $300 - without the hassle of finding a babysitter - try to beat that deal," said Jay Kelly, Victory Gardens Director of Marketing and PR. For more information on subscribing to Victory Gardens' 2008-2009 Family Saturday performances, go to http://www.victorygardens.org/familysaturday

Five play packages to Victory Gardens' 2008-09 season include Blackbird, Eurydice, Living Green, Class Dismissed, and a choice of Love Person or The Snow Queen. Six-play packages are also available for $96-$222.   All performances will be staged at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago.  For subscription information, call the Victory Gardens box office, (773) 871-3000 (tty:  (773) 871-0682), email
information@victorygardens.org, or visit http://www.victorygardens.org

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