Robert Falls News

The Public Theater will begin performances for the acclaimed production WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME on Thursday, June 13 with a Joseph Papp Free Preview. Written and performed by David Cale, with music co-written with Matthew Dean Marsh, the musical memoir is directed by Robert Falls, in a co-production with Goodman Theatre. Cale's acclaimed autobiographical solo-show runs 90 minutes and plays through Sunday, July 14, with an official press opening on Thursday, June 27.

A Nubian Princess and an Egyptian war hero Captain fall in love at the risk of their lives and the heartbreak of others.

No modern American director is better at making a play's iconic moments pop with fresh irreverence' (Chicago Tribune). Artistic Director Robert Falls reimagines The Winter's Tale-one of William Shakespeare's final and most wildly theatrical works-following his celebrated revivals of Measure for Measure (2013) and King Lear (2006) at Goodman Theatre. 

We found ourselves in the conflict zone of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, where protesters on stage were shouting "Down with Mubarak!" as we entered The Singapore Airlines Theatre of LASALLE College of the Arts. We settled down to watch the latest production of Aida, as part of The Lasalle Show, an annual graduation showcase.

Artistic Director Robert Falls reimagines The Winter's Tale-one of William Shakespeare's final and most wildly theatrical works-following celebrated revivals of Measure for Measure (2013) and King Lear (2006) at Goodman Theatre. Hailed as "no modern director better at making a play's iconic moments pop with fresh irreverence" (Chicago Tribune), Falls has cast a 19-member company of Chicago's new and familiar faces. In The Winter's Tale, a jealous king accuses his wife of infidelity, setting off a calamitous series of events. But what begins as tragedy evolves, unexpectedly, into a fantastical journey-from wrath to redemption to reconciliation.

Black Lives, Black Words International Project, in partnership with Goodman Theatre and Artistic Directors of the Future, is proud to announce the festival line-up for "I AM…FEST: A Celebration of Women of Color in Arts, Activism and Leadership." Curated by Black Lives, Black Words Co-founders Reginald Edmund and Simeilia Hodge-Dallaway, "I AM…FEST" is a first-of-its-kind international festival that shines a spotlights on female voices across the globe through three days of innovative and inspiring events.

The DirectorsLabChicago (DLC) Steering Committee and Artistic Director Wm. Bullion are pleased to announce their 2019 DirectorsLab to be held Sunday-Saturday, August 18-24, 2019, at Victory Gardens Theater as well as in other prominent Chicago theater venues throughout the week-long collaborative symposium for stage directors. The theme for this year's Lab is "In the Room."

"Not everyone will go home a winner" in Goodman Theatre's world-premiere production of Lottery Day by Ike Holter, which appears through April 28 in the Owen Theatre. Holter concludes his seven-play "Rightlynd Saga"-the first play of which premiered five years ago, and has been hailed as "one of the most significant literary achievements in modern-day Chicago" (Chicago Tribune)-with a raucous theatrical bash, directed by Chicago native Lili-Anne Brown. Commissioned by the Goodman and developed through its New Stages Festival of new plays, Lottery Day takes place in a Rightlynd backyard where new characters and returning characters from the saga come together to create a work about the cost of belonging and the gift of community. Lottery Day appears through April 28 in the Owen Theatre.

The Goodman Theatre announces the new 2019/2020 Season of 'Theater That Moves'-three world premiere productions (including a new musical), four Chicago premieres and a major revival of a beloved contemporary classic-on the theater's two stages (the 856-seat Albert Theatre and 350-seat flexible Owen Theatre).

Powerful drama: still made in America. Lynn Nottage's 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning play Sweat opens tonight in its Chicago premiere at Goodman Theatre. Ron OJ Parson directs the collision of race, class and friendship at a pivotal moment in America-hailed as 'extraordinarily moving' (The New York Times) and 'passionate and necessary...a masterful depiction of the forces that divide and conquer us' (Time Out New York). Sweat marks the fourth Nottage play to be produced at the Goodman, following Crumbs from the Table of Joy (2006), Ruined (a 2008 world-premiere Goodman commission that earned the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama) and By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (2013). Sweat appears through April 14 in the Albert Theatre. Tickets ($20 - $80; subject to change) are available at Goodmantheatre.org/Sweat, by telephone at 312.443.3800 or at the box office (170 N. Dearborn).

The Grand Theatre is pleased to bring to the Spriet Stage a contemporary classic, AUGUST WILSON'S FENCES. One of the most honoured plays in American theatre, winning the Pulitzer Prize along with Tony and Drama Desk awards for best new play, AUGUST WILSON'S FENCES will take the Spriet Stage from March 19 to April 6. The Title Sponsor is Tricar.

The Public Theater announced today that the New York premiere of WE'RE ONLY ALIVE FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME has been added to The Public's 2018-19 Season.

Now in its 2nd year, Goodman Theatre selects five Chicagoland elementary schools to participate in the "Disney Musicals in Schools" program--an outreach initiative developed by Disney Theatrical Productions to create sustainable musical theater programs in under-resourced elementary schools. The selected schools include John C. Haines Elementary School (China Town) performing Aladdin KIDS; Jonathan Y. Scammon Elementary School (Logan Square) performing The Lion King KIDS; Richard Yates Elementary School (Humboldt Park) performing Aladdin KIDS; Belmont-Cragin Elementary School (Belmont Cragin) performing The Lion King KIDS; and Gerald Delgado Kanoon Magnet Elementary School (Little Village) performing Aladdin KIDS. Coordinated by Goodman Theatre artists Adrian Azevedo and Anna Gelman, under the leadership of Walter Director of Education and Engagement Willa J. Taylor, the five area public elementary schools received performance rights to a Disney KIDS musical of their choice, at no cost.

I'm preparing. I'm expecting. I haven't figured out the path to creation yet. Christina Anderson's bold, imaginative portrait of three artist/intellectual couples exploring personal and professional legacy, How to Catch Creation makes its world premiere at Goodman Theatre. A playwright of note for more than a decade, with previous works at The Public Theater, Yale Repertory Theatre and Playwrights Horizons, Anderson makes her Goodman debut. Niegel Smith, who most recently directed the smash sensation Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3) last season at the Goodman, directs Anderson's play, which appeared as a reading in the Goodman's 2017 New Stages Festival.

A season filled with unforgettable music, riveting stories, thrilling singers from around the world, and stirring productions goes on sale by subscription Friday, January 25, at 10am. Six new and new-to-Chicago productions including three Lyric premieres and three performances of the Ring cycle will engage and entertain audiences from late September 2019 through June 2020.

The Trap Door Theatre presents The Old Woman Broods written by Tadeusz Rozewicz

For the first time in six years, Goodman Theatre's Costume Shop hosts a costume sale today, 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 today, 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. 

Goodman Theatre adds to its 2018/2019 Season a limited engagement of St. Nicholas-an internationally-acclaimed major revival by London's Donmar Warehouse of Conor McPherson's 1997 intimate thriller, directed by Simon Evans. The monologue play stars Olivier Award-winning actor Brendan Coyle ("Mr. Bates" of the smash sensation Downton Abbey, for which he earned an Emmy Award nomination) in "a superlative, mesmerizing performance that's simply not to be missed" (The Arts Review). The U.S. premiere, which appears in the Goodman's 350-seat flexible Owen Theatre, follows two acclaimed recent appearances at the Donmar Warehouse and the Dublin Theatre Festival. The creative team includes Peter McKintosh (Set), Matt Daw (Lighting) and Christopher Shutt (Sound). Goodman Theatre's limited engagement of St. Nicholas appears January 9 - 27, 2019 in the Owen Theatre (170 N. Dearborn). Tickets are available now ONLY with the purchase of a new Classic Membership (4-play packages start at $80). Individual tickets ($25 - $60; subject to change) go on sale Friday, November 9. For tickets and more information, visit GoodmanTheatre.org/StNicholas or call the box office (312.443.3800, 12 noon - 5pm daily).

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.

Over the past few years DC's Constellation Theatre Company (CTC) has branched out from its mostly classical offerings by presenting a few musicals. They include the blockbusters Avenue Q and Urinetown and one lesser known entity – the Andrew Lippa version of The Wild Party. In all three cases, the shows fit perfectly into CTC's home at Source.