WildClaw Theatre Presents Carmilla At DCA Theater 1/13-2/20/2011

WildClaw Theatre, in association with Chicago DCA Theater, presents the world premiere stage adaptation of J. Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla. Female vampires unleash upon the stage in this Victorian horror story, adapted by Aly Renee Greaves. The production comes to Chicago DCA's Storefront Theater at 66 E. Randolph Street, from January 13 to February 20, 2011. Members of the press are invited to the opening performance on Friday, January 14, at 7:30 pm.

A young English woman living in a remote castle in Eastern Europe becomes intrigued by a mysterious house guest, the enigmatic Carmilla. As the neighboring countryside and villages fall victim to a series of unexplained grisly murders, young Laura finds herself swept up in a whirlwind of forbidden desire quite extraordinary for a 19th-century woman. Before Edward, before Lestat, before Dracula, there was Carmilla.

Performances of Carmilla are on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 7:30 pm. and Sunday afternoons at 3 pm. There is no performance on Friday, February 11, due to the holiday, but a special Valentine's Day performance will take place on Monday, February 14, at 7:30 pm. A post-show discussion with the cast and crew will follow the performances on Thursday, February 3.

Tickets are $20 for general admission and $10 for students and seniors with ID. The preview performance on January 13 also costs $10. Discounts are available for Chicago Cultural Center Mosaic Members, theater industry affiliates, military personnel, ADA companions, and large groups. All tickets are available by calling 312.742.TIXS (8497), visiting www.dcatheater.org, or stopping by the DCA Box Office in the Chicago Cultural Center at 78 E. Washington Street, open Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 pm and Sundays, noon to 4 pm. When available, tickets go on sale one hour before each performance at the Storefront Theater.

Cast and Production Team
The cast features WildClaw Company members Brian Amidei, Scott T. Barsotti, and Charley Sherman, with guest artists Brittany Burch, Sarah Gorski, Steven Herson, Allie Kunkler, Erin Myers, Michaela Petro, Moira B. Smith, Mandy Walsh, Allie Kunkler, Steven Herson, and Josh Zagoren.

Scott Cummins directs the performance. The show's set design is by Alan Donohue, with lighting by Paul Foster and Dani McKenzie, sound design by Scott Tallarida and Mikhail Fiksel, and costumes and makeup by Aly Renee Greaves. Stage Manager is Anna M. K. Brenner. Dialect Coach is Barbara Zahora. Fight Designers are Scott Cummins and David Chrzanowski., and Movement Coach is Karen Tarjan. Jason Piskcher is Technical Director, and Charlie Athans is Special Effect Director.

WildClaw Theatre brings the world of horror and the supernatural to the stage, attracting audiences that crave strange journeys of dread, suspense, terror, and wonder. The company's recent productions include Legion, The Revenants, The Dreams in the Witch House, and The Great God Pan, as well as their annual DEATHSCRIBE Horror Radio Festival.

Special Events
In association with the production, WildClaw Theatre and Chicago DCA Theater present the following FREE programs:

Film Screening of Let's Scare Jessica to Death
Wednesday, January 19, at 6:30 pm
Claudia Cassidy Theater in the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington Street
This eerie low-budget chiller from 1971 has recently released mental patient Jessica (Zohra Lampert) moving to a Connecticut farm with her husband and some friends. But a strange girl named Emily is at The Farm too, and it soon becomes obvious that she is somehow related to a young woman who drowned on her wedding day in the 1800s. This screening will feature an Introduction and Q & A with the film's director, John D. Hancock.

Panel Discussion: Women in Horror
Monday, February 7, at 7 pm
Claudia Cassidy Theater in the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington Street
Best-selling author Leslie Banks, casting director Anne Adams, Carmilla playwright Aly Renee Greaves, WildClaw board member Sabine Cummins, Sourcebooks editor Marie Macaisa, and actress Michaela Petro discuss representations of women in the horror genre.

The Storefront Theater and the Studio Theater, its companion theater located in the Chicago Cultural Center at 78 E. Washington Street, comprise Chicago DCA Theater, an anchor of the downtown theater district. Chicago DCA Theater offers downtown audiences an off-Loop theater experience with an exciting look at the vibrant emerging theater companies that call Chicago home. Proposals for creative and innovative productions for the July to December 2011 season are being accepted now through October 15, 2010.

Discounted parking is available at Wabash Randolph Self Park at 20 E. Randolph. Patrons can receive the $10 rate by validating their ticket at the Storefront Theater box office.

For more information about WildClaw Theatre's Carmilla and Chicago DCA Theater, call 312.742.TIXS (8497) or visit www.dcatheater.org. The enhanced website features more about DCA Theater performances and programs, including a blog, photo galleries, and visitor information. More information on WildClaw Theatre is available at www.wildclawtheatre.com.

The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs is dedicated to promoting an ongoing celebration of the arts and supporting the people who create and sustain them.

 

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