Goodman Theatre News

One of the hottest tickets of past holiday seasons - Midsommer Flight's "pay-what-you-can" production of TWELFTH NIGHT, performed in the beautiful Show House Room of the Lincoln Park Conservatory - will return for its fourth year on November 29, 2018. Shakespeare's delightful comedy of mistaken identity and gender switching has a strictly limited seating among the lush flowers of the Show House Room.

The Ensemble Theatre special project series entitled: Celebrating the Creative Journeywill include its BOLD Women's Leadership Network Master Classes facilitated by a roster of all-female arts industry leaders, Adult Sessions (Men and Women) Saturday, October 27, 2018, 9:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m. and Teen Sessions (Girls Age 13-19) Saturday, November 10, 2018 Noon-3:00 p.m. Main Street, Houston, TX 77002.

The Gift Theatre is pleased to present its 17th annual benefit, Gift Gala 2018: The Next Chapter, an evening of literature and libations, Wednesday, November 14, 2018 from 6 pm - 9:30 pm at one of Chicago's most exciting new cultural institutions: American Writers Museum

The Muse Project, in association with The Tank, presents Musings: a collection of Mini Muse presentations at The Flea Theater as a part of their Anchor Partnership. Musings runs from Monday, October 15th - Sunday October, 21st at The Flea's new home at 20 Thomas Street in Tribeca.

The Muse Project, in association with The Tank, will present Musings: a collection of Mini Muse presentations at The Flea Theater as a part of their Anchor Partnership. The Muse Project gives women performers the time, space, and opportunity to experiment with and explore their fantasy projects. Musings will showcase the exciting, fresh, paradigm-shifting storytelling that 5 of New York's leading stage actresses have developed through intensive workshops, called Mini Muses. The week will culminate in a party on October 19th, the 'Mini Gala' - a wine and cheese event to celebrate the week's presentations; and 'Tea Time,' a one-of-a-kind Muse pilot program, where a veteran stage actress discusses her experiences building her career. Actress Florencia Lozano is set to partake as the Tea Time guest.

The Old Globe announces its inaugural New Voices in the Community series: free public performances at libraries across San Diego County, followed by conversations with the playwrights and experts in the community. The first New Voices in the Community features three solo shows by women: Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, "A" Train by Anne Torsiglieri, and Unveiled: A One-Woman Play by Rohina Malik.

The Lark is thrilled to announce five plays and playwrights have been chosen through its Open Access Program for the 25th Annual Playwrights' Week. This year's plays, selected from a pool of over 1,200 submissions, will be: Sistren by Erin Buckley; Even Flowers Bloom in Hell, Sometimes by Franky D. Gonzalez; As Is: Conversations With Big Black Women in Confined Spaces by Stacey Rose; form of a girl unknown by Charly Evon Simpson; and Desarrollo by Juliany Taveras. The selected playwrights will participate in an intensive seven-day retreat, designed to foster a peer-based community among the writers, their creative teams, and The Lark's staff.

More than 1.5 million people have experienced A Christmas Carol, now returning for the 41st year at Goodman Theatre, November 17 - December 30.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater announces that four-time Tony Award nominee and Law and Order: SVU alum Raul Esparza will lead William Shakespeare's Hamlet, staged by Artistic Director Barbara Gaines, in the Courtyard Theater, April 17-June 9, 2019.

Applications are now available for two Goodman Theatre Education and Engagement programs-Disney Musicals in Schools and Cindy Bandle Young Critics-offered at no cost to Chicagoland youth. Applications for Disney Musicals in Schools are available through Monday, October 15 and Cindy Bandle Young Critics through Friday, October 19 at GoodmanTheatre.org/Engage-Learn. For more information, call 312.443.5581.

Latino Theatre Projects (LTP) and Producing Artistic Director Fernando Luna, in association with Theatre Off Jackson, will present the Pacific Northwest premiere of Brainpeople by prize-winning Puerto Rican playwright Jose Rivera. Brainpeople will be directed by LTP's Producing Artistic Director Fernando Luna. The production will be presented Today-Saturday evenings, October 11 through November 3, 2018 at 8:00 pm. Performances will be bilingual in English with some Spanish phrases. General admission is $25 in advance or $30 at the door. Seniors and students are $20. Links: www.latinotheatreprojects.org www.theatreoffjackson.orghttps://www.facebook.com/Latino-Theatre-Projects-346266545430336/ 

Pivot Arts presents Charged Spaces/Changing Bodies, a series of site-specific performances in two historic Uptown spaces in conjunction with Chicago Architecture Foundation's Open House Chicago weekend. Performances are scheduled for Today, Oct. 11, Friday, Oct. 12 and Saturday, Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 14 at 4 p.m.

Pulitzer Prize Finalist Dael Orlandersmith highlights the universal languages of love and music in Lady in Denmark, kicks off the 2018/2019 season in the 350-seat flexible Owen Theatre. Chay Yew, who also helmed the play's 2016 New Stages Festival staged reading, directs Linda Gehringer as Helene-a Danish American woman coping with the death of her husband who finds solace in the hauntingly beautiful music of their favorite singer, Billie Holiday. Orlandersmith's newest play is Helene's journey through the couple's time together-from the smoky jazz clubs of post-war Copenhagen to the home they shared in present-day Andersonville, Chicago. The creative team includes Andrew Boyce (set), Christine Pascual (costumes), Lee Fiskness (lighting) and Mikhail Fiksel (original music and sound). Donald E. Claxon is the production stage manager. Lady in Denmark appears October 19 - November 18, 2018 (opening night is October 29 at 7pm) in the Goodman's Owen Theatre (170 N. Dearborn); tickets ($15-45; subject to change), by telephone 312.443.3800 or online GoodmanTheatre.org/LadyInDenmark.

The Jeff Awards will celebrate its 50th anniversary by presenting four Special Awards to theatres thriving after more than 50 years at the 50th Annual Equity Jeff Awards on Monday, October 22 at Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace, IL.  These four award-winning theatres laid their Chicago foundations in drama, comedy, and musical theatre more than half a century ago and have endured to this day. The 2018 recipients are Goodman Theatre (1925), Drury Lane Productions (1949), Court Theatre (1955), and The Second City (1959). Collectively, they have received more than 1,400 nominations and 350 awards, dating back to the first ceremony.

New Jersey Repertory Company (NJ Rep) is proud to present the National New Play Network rolling world premiere of Marisela Treviño Orta's Wolf at the Door from October 18 to November 18. Broadwayworld.com had the pleasure of interviewing Marisela about her career and the upcoming show at NJ Rep.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater  announces the highly anticipated return of the raucous and irreverent holiday tradition Q Brothers Christmas Carolto The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare, November 20-December 30, 2018.

Steven Pasquale and Kerry Washington alongside Eugene Lee and Jeremy Jordan are gearing up to star in the new Broadway play American Son, beginning performances today, Saturday, October 6. Get to know the cast below as they begin Broadway performances!

AN ATTEMPT TO HEAL IN THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD, a new dark comedy about Wilhelm Reich, one of the most radical figures in the history of psychiatry, will have a limited engagement run from Tuesday, October 16thto Friday, October 28thas part of FringeNYC's 2018 lineup. The production is written and directed by David E. Tolchinsky.

For the first time in six years, Goodman Theatre's Costume Shop hosts a costume sale on Saturday, October 20 from 9am - 2pm. More than 100 handmade items by the Goodman's costume shop artisans will be available for sale, priced starting at just $1. From couture gowns to fashionable headwear, attendees can pick selections from acclaimed Goodman productions including-hats and headwear from Artistic Associate Regina Taylor's gospel musical sensation Crowns (2004, 2012); uniforms from Artistic Director Robert Falls' celebrated production of King Lear (2006); the majorette costume from Sweet Bird of Youth (2012) with Academy Award-winning actress Diane Lane and Finn Wittrock; and more. The costume sale takes place on Saturday, October 20 from 9am - 2pm at Goodman Theatre (170 N. Dearborn). Admission is free and costume pieces range from $1 - $300+; both cash and credit is accepted. All sales are final and proceeds support the Goodman. Costume previews will not be available prior to the sale. 

16th Street Theater announces their Season Twelve 2019: Shadows and Light featuring three new plays by Chicago authors Steven Strafford, Julie Ganey and Loy A. Webb, as well as a one-nighter of The South Side by WBEZ's Natalie Moore and a new play series curated by 16th Street's 2018-2019 NNPN Producer-in-Residence Nancy Garcia Loza.