Photo Flash: The Ruffians' BURNING BLUEBEARD Returns This December

The Ruffians are thrilled to announce the return of their critically acclaimed holiday hit, BURNING BLUEBEARD for three performances only, December 16, 17 & 18, 2016. The fantastical tale inspired by Chicago's 1903 Iroquois Theatre celebrates the fifth anniversary of its creation at the theater where it was born, The Neo-Futurarium, 5153 N. Ashland Ave. in Chicago. Tickets go on Thursday, December 1, 2016 at brownpapertickets.com.

Written by Jay Torrence and directed by Halena Kays, BURNING BLUEBEARD will feature last season's full cast: Pam Chermansky, Anthony Courser, Molly Plunk, Jay Torrence, Leah Urzendowski and Ryan Walters.

Inspired by the true story of Chicago's 1903 Iroquois Theatre Fire, BURNING BLUEBEARD is the story of six singed clown performers who emerge from the burnt remains of history attempting to perform their spectacular Christmas Pantomime once and for all. But this time, they hope to finally reach the true happy ending of their second act and avoid the fateful fire that killed 600 of its audience members. BURNING BLUEBEARD is a whimsical romp with a sensitive heart, a joyful eulogy with a sharp irreverent wit including music, clowning, tumbling, acrobatics and dance. Each performance is a vaudevillian delight with a story that excavates the poetic and poignant remains of a piece of Chicago's rich history.

The production team for BURNING BLUEBEARD includes: Lizzie Bracken (scenic and costume design), Mike Tutaj (sound design), Maggie Fullilove-Nugent (lighting design, production manager), Lizzie Bracken and Maggie Fullilove-Nugent (co-properties designers), Archer Curry (technical director), Justine Palmisano (stage manager) and Victoria Johnson (assistant stage manager).

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Title: BURNING BLUEBEARD

Playwright: Jay Torrence

Director: Halena Kays

Cast: Pam Chermansky (Fancy Clown), Anthony Courser (Henry Gilfoil), Molly Plunk (Faerie Queen), Jay Torrence (Robert Murray), Leah Urzendowski (NEllie Reed) and Ryan Walters (Eddie Foy).

Location: The Neo-Futurarium, 5153 N. Ashland Ave. in Chicago

Dates/times: Friday, December 16 at 8 pm, Saturday, December 17 at 8 pm and Sunday, December 18 at 7 pm.

Tickets: $35 in advance/$40 at the door. Students: $25. Tickets go on Thursday, December 1, 2016 at brownpapertickets.com.

About the Playwright
Jay Torrence's credits include Burning Bluebeard, Roustabout: The Great Circus Train Wreck! and Ivywild. Torrence is a current resident playwright at Chicago Dramatists and is a former Neo-Futurist ensemble member. He has over a decade of professional experience writing, performing and directing in the show Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind and has written and/or performed in over ten of the Neo-Futurist's full length original works. He is also the former Neo-Futurist Artistic Director and a current and founding member of the artistic collective called The Ruffians. Some of his other performance credits include 500 Clown Frankenstein (Francis), 500 Clown The Elephant Deal (understudy), Redmoon's Hunchback (Quasimodo).

About the Director

Halena Kays is former Artistic Director of The Hypocrites and a founding member of the artistic collaborative, The Ruffians. She is an artistic associate with the Neo-Futurists where she has created and directed Pop Waits, Burning Bluebeard, 44 Plays for 44 Presidents, Daredevils, Daredevils Hamlet and Fake Lake. Other interesting Chicago credits include: Endgame, Ivywild, Six Characters in Search of an Author at The Hypocrites; The Magic Play at The Goodman, Lord of the Flies at Steppenwolf Theatre Company TYA; Feast (part of a collaborative directing effort) with The Albany Park Theatre Project at The Goodman. Kays is the co-founder and former artistic director of Barrel of Monkeys where she directed the majority of their public performances. She is a UT-Austin and Northwestern grad, former member of the Big Apple Circus Clown Care unit and professor of directing at MTSU. Halena has been nominated for a Jefferson Citation for Best Supporting Actress and Best Direction and was the recipient of the prestigious 3Arts Award.

About The Ruffians

The Ruffians are an artistic collective of theater makers (clowns, daredevils, acrobats, dancers, writers, performers, designers, directors). The Ruffians have all honed their craft working over a decade in Chicago's various and thriving experimental, clown and storefront theater communities. A Ruffians objective is to make beautiful things with rough edges. A Ruffians motto: Breathe. Dare. Live.

Photos by Evan Hanover