The Reviews Are In

The reviews for The Iliad are coming in, and they're good.  The show is "Highly Recommended" by Hedy Weiss at the Chicago Sun-Times, who wrote that the actors "impress with the ferocity of their emotions, the sureness of their intellectual attack and the force and clarity of their diction" and that the show is a "highly unusual but rewarding take on a story that bares the truth about how ego, envy and the sheer addiction to war can result in unbridled savagery."  (Full review here)  The Chicago Tribune also gave it a great review, calling it "a most remarkable theatrical experience," and adding "Wright has given these girls quite a gift. But while many people are understandably reluctant to watch children — or, at least, children to whom they have no relation — this one offers glory on all sides." (Full review here)  The Chicago Critic review is also good, claiming "The girls DID make the Trojan Wars come to life. Amazing!"  It also includes some great photos from the the performance.

And in another news, last night The Inconvenience took over A Red Orchid's theater space for their Fresh Mean Reading Series.  The play, "The Triple Dog Dare of King Pluto the Dark," was written by Aaron Weissman, and performed by five talented actors, including Walter Briggs, who was seen recently in A Red Orchid's The Louis Slotin Sonata.  The Fresh Meat Reading Series continues on Dec. 8, and more information can be found on their website.  This was my first time seeing this group, and I have to say, they have a great energy.  Before the show, the audience buzzed with chatter.  The opening acts were firery.  And the reading was funny, heart-felt, and immensely entertaining.  How refreshing to see a group of performers doing what they love, simply because they love doing it.

Two openings this weekend

The Iliad opens tomorrow, with two previews this weekend, and tickets ($15) are still available for both shows.  Monday's press opening is still sold out, and Sunday's performance is for the families of the performers.  The show begins its regular run on the 18th, with performances at 8 pm on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, and the 3 pm matinee on Sundays.

Because this is a Youth Ensemble production, and because we kept getting asked about it, we've decided to schedule some matinees during the week, especially for school groups who want to come see the show.  Tickets for those matinees have to be booked in blocks, and if you know anyone who might be interested, tell them to call us and we'll answer all their questions.  And while we're on the topic, keep in mind that we offer summer classes through the Red OrKids program, and we can tell you about those, too. 

In other Ensemble news, the New York production of Mistakes Were Made is set to open on Sunday.  So  that's two plays opening this weekend for ensemble member and playwright Craig Wright.  I haven't seen any reviews for the New York production, yet, but the NYT has the play listed in their theatre section here, with all the ticketing information and such.  There's also this piece, with one of the strangest pictures of Mike Shannon I've seen in a while. 

The Iliad at A Red Orchid

The previews for The Iliad are just over a week away (November 12 and 13), the press opening has sold out (November 15), and we're already getting some great buzz about the show.  TimeOut Chicago ran this piece, with a great shot of the actors at rehersal: 

Also, the poster is pretty great, too:

Corporal Show at Double Door

Last night, ensemble member Mike Shannon gathered his band, Corporal, at Double Door for a one-night-only show.  Scott Lucas and the Married Men played first, treating the audience to a great set that ended with a jam-session version of The Beatles classic, "I Got a Feeling."  Corporal took over, playing all the songs on their first album in order.  One audience member suggested the show should be called "A Corporal Experience," given the range of the kind of songs they played, some slow and melodic and others louder and even a little aggressive (including the reprise of "Obama," a timely song given the show took place on Election Day Eve).  The crowd filled out to about 100 people (a very rough estimate), and included fellow Ensemble members Guy Van Swearingen, Kirsten Fitzgerald, and Craig Wright (whose adaptation of The Iliad opens in less than two weeks).  We also spotted Walter Briggs, last seen in A Louis Slotin Sonata here at A Red Orchid Theatre.

Corporal consists of Mike Shannon on vocals and guitar, Ray Rizzo (center) on drums, and Rob Beitzel (to the left) on guitar as well.  Last night, Matt Scobee stepped in to cover the bass.  You can find the band here and on i-Tunes.  Thanks for coming, guys.

The End is near for Louis Slotin.

A Red Orchid Theatre is offering 2-for-1 tickets  this weekend only (September 30, and October 1, 2, and 3) - just mention promo code "Manhattan Project" to get this great deal!

4 STARS – TimeOut Chicago

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED – New City Magazine

INTELECTUALY THRILLING AND RIGOROUS... A MUST SEE!!! – WBEZ 91.5

SURREAL AND FUNNY WITH SCENES OF STAGGERING SORROW – Chicago Theatre Examiner

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE – chicagotheatreblog.com

STAGED WITH VIBRANCY AND VERVE… A RED ORCHID’S BEST ACTORS – Chicago Tribune

JEFF NOMINATIONS ARE OUT:

A Red Orchid Theatre lands

7 Nominations!

  

Including nominations for:

 

*Production -- Abigail's Party

*Ensemble -- Abigail's Party

*New Work -- Craig Wright's Mistakes Were Made

*Director -- Shade Murray's Abigail's Party

*Actor in Prinicpal Role -- Michael Shannon in Mistakes Were Made

*Actress in Principal Role -- Kirsten Fitzgerald in Abigail's Party

*Actress in Supporting Role -- Natalie West in Abigail's Party

 

 

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!

 

 

And a sincere thank you to all our designers, directors, writers, technicians, performers, administrators, interns, board of directors and audience. Without whom none of this would be possible.

  

For a full list of 2009-2010 Nominees, check out JEFF's site

______________________________________________

Individual tickets for our first show of the 2010/11 season, LOUIS SLOTIN SONATA, are on sale now!! Grab those tickets, you won't want to miss out on this explosive production. 

Call us at 312.943.8722 between the hours of 12:30 and 5 on weekdays

OR jump on our website at www.aredorchidtheatre.org and order your tickets online.

We are very excited for the show, and we would love to share it with you.

So join us and get your tickets today!

We at A Red Orchid know it's that time of the year again...

 The time when sweet, sticky summer slowly makes it way back to bed, and leaves the front door open for crisp autumn to stroll straight on in. And as much as we'd all like to keep that summer feeling for longer and hold on to it's nostalgia, fall has started to creep on in, bringing the start of schools, long coats, colorful trees, hot chocolate, and new beginnings. And what goes better with your fall coat or the vibrant trees, than the beginning of a fresh Season here at A Red Orchid Theatre?


Don't be fooled, the weather may be cooling down, but we are just warming up...


FROM ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, KIRSTEN FITZGERALD -

 On the heals of our most successful season to date, we maintain that theatre is potentially the greatest sustenance for the human spirit. Are we more ambitious animals than moral ones? More curious than kind? The exploring of these questions is often hilarious, sometimes horrifying and always carries the potential for deepened intimacy. Paul Mullen (our first playwright this season) recently posited that "theatre at it's best exists at the intersection of the intimate and the sublime." I would ad that life at it's best exists at that same intersection. As always, our 2010-2011 productions have been hand picked by our artistic ensemble.

drum roll please....

THE 2010/2011 SEASON:

The Midwest Premiere of
Louis Slotin Sonata

By Paul Mullin

Directed by Ensemble Member Karen Kessler

Will our innate curiosity and confidence kill us or lead us to greater awakenings? At 3:20 PM on Tuesday, May 21, 1946 Louis Slotin's hand slipped—a small, practically insignificant blunder, except that Slotin was the chief -bomb builder at Los Alamos, and at that fateful moment he held in his hands a plutonium bomb core named "Rufus". With a structure inspired by classical music's sonata allegro form, Louis Slotin Sonata traces the true story of a brilliant scientist's last nine days, as his body and mind gradually succumb to the chaos wrecked by radiation.
 

Homer’s The Iliad
By Craig Wright

Adapted from Robert Fagles’ translation

Directed by Steve Wilson and featuring the young women of the A Red Orchid Youth Ensemble

Adapted by Craig Wright specifically for our young, all-female cast, this version of The Iliad offers a provocative and playful new spin on Homer’s age-old tale of the Trojan War. Vengeance, loyalty, or honor: which is most important? And, in this saga of bloody battles and huge male egos, where exactly do women and children fit in? Packed with swordplay, gender politics, and even a few songs, this is one war you don’t want to miss.

The Midwest Premiere of

The New Electric Ballroom

By Enda Walsh

Directed by Robin Witt

Featuring Ensemble Member and founding Artistic Director, Guy Van Swearingen

Trapped in the years that have passed since their halcyon days at The New Electric Ballroom, three sisters relive memories of something resembling romance with hilarious and horrible effect. Interruptions from the local fishmonger only remind of the dangers of love and life outside. Words, in Mr. Walsh’s harsh but illuminating vision, are both the making of experience and its destruction. How do we share our history and how does it shape us?

 

Machiavelli’s The Mandrake

Adapted by Peter Constantine

Directed by Steve Scott

A young Italian merchant, Callimaco, dreams of loving the beautiful Lucrezia, but there are several obstacles. Lucrezia is married (to a real pea-brain) and her virtue seems beyond reproach. Callimaco enlists the help of Ligurio who devises an extraordinarily complicated, and hilarious, plan; Involving a corrupt Priest, Lucrezia’s mother, and the root of the Mandrake. With everyone behaving so badly, can anyone possibly win?
 
 
 
 

We want to share this fresh beginning, this exciting season, with you!

So call 312.943.8722 to subscribe to our season Flashpasses!

 

 

Yours truly,

 

A Red Orchid Theatre