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New York theaters bounce back: Four shows ask questions about identity
All theater critics worth their salt should take a bite of the Big Apple now and then, savoring the bright lights of Broadway and a soggy slice of what passes for pizza. On my first visit in nearly three years, Broadway ...
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Gay man to head Chicago Latino Theater Alliance
The Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) announced the appointment of Jorge Valdivia as its new executive director, according to the Lawndale News. Valdivia's previous position was director of performing arts at the National Museum of Mexic ...
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THEATER REVIEW: The Mark of Kane
The Mark of Kane
Playwright: Mark Pracht At: City Lit Theatre Tickets: www.cityl ...
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Theater Review: Porchlight's Rent is a winner
By Jonathan Abarbanel
Title: Rent. Playwright: Jonathan Larson (book, music, lyrics) At: Porchlight Music Theatre at Ruth Page Center. Tickets: 773-777-9884; PorchlightMusicTheatre.org; $25 and up. Runs through: Dec. 11 From its 1996 premiere ...
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Mister International Rubber takes the stage at Center on Halsted, Riviera Theatre
The MIR26 (Mister International Rubber) competition took place at the Center on Halsted and the Riviera Theatre over the Nov. 4-6 weekend. Pusckatt Pumera Onyx won the competition. The event was co-emceed by Lucy Stoole and ...
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SHOWBIZ Gay racer, GALECA, Lena Waithe, 'Chicago,' LGBTQ+ films
Gay motorsports racer Zach Herrin made his long-awaited debut in a NASCAR-affiliated race in Phoenix, The Advocate noted. "I know I have a lot of eyes on me, and all I want to do is get out there and blur everything ...
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SHOWBIZ Nathan Lane, gala, Beyonce, Kevin Aviance, Henry Cavill, Shania
Video below
Nathan Lane is returning to Broadway this winter to star in the debut run of Pictures of Home, per The Hollywood Reporter. Based on the photo memoir by Larry Sultan of the same name and adapted ...
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Young trans playwright queers Shakespeare in new production 'Malapert Love'
The Artistic Home will debut Malapert Love on Nov. 5-Dec. 11 in Wicker Park at The Den Theatre's Upstairs Mainstage, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. The gender-bending, Shakespearean romantic comedy was written by 18-year-old Siah Berlatsky, who's ...
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THEATER 'The Golden Girls' holiday special Nov. 26-Dec. 30
Hell in a Handbag Productions is in The Golden Girls: The Lost Episodes, The Obligatory Holiday Special, playing Nov. 26-Dec. 30 at The Hoover-Leppen Theatre at The Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St. Dorothy, Rose, ...
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'Cirque Dreams Holidaze' to take place Dec. 22-24
Cirque Dreams Holidaze is set to dazzle Chicago audiences with a Broadway-style production infused with contemporary circus arts. The production will play for six performances on Dec. 22-24 at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 Ida B. Wells ...
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16th Street Theater to close at the end of the year
The board of Berwyn's 16th Street Theater announced that the award-winning, nationally acclaimed Equity theater company will close at the end of 2022. A statement read, "For 15 inspiring seasons, plus two years of the pandemic, ...
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Cody Estle to step down as Raven Theatre artistic director
Raven Theatre's board of directors announced that Cody Estle will step down as the company's artistic director at the end of November. Estle has been the company's artistic leader since 2017. He will join Milwaukee's Next ...
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Five Worth Finding: COVID book, 'Wicked' cocktails, 'A Taste of Hope' and more
—COVID-19, the LGBTQIA+ Community and Public Policy: As studies emerge to help us understand the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on every facet of modern life, it is critical that the effect of the pandemic on ...
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Chicago Theatre Week 2023 to take place Feb. 16-26
-- From a press release
Chicago—Chicago Theatre Week (#CTW23), an annual celebration of the rich tradition of theatergoing in Chicago during which visitors and residents can access value-priced tickets, will take place Feb. 16-26, 2023. ...
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'Lady Day,' 'Rock of Ages' part of Mercury Theater Chicago's 2023 season
-- From a press release
Chicago — Mercury Theater Artistic Director Christopher Chase Carter, Managing Director Kristi J. Martens and Executive Producers L. Walter Stearns and Eugene Dizon announced the 2023 Mercury Theater Chicago season ...
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Steppenwolf offering free performances of '1919' on Nov. 1-5 in Chicago parks
Steppenwolf for Young Adults' (SYA) will bring its world-premiere adaptation of 1919 to audiences across Chicago this fall for a series of free performances through the Chicago Park District's "Night Out in the Parks" initiative. The ...
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Haven hosting 'Rocky Horror Picture Party' on Oct. 29-30
Haven is welcoming back its "Science Fiction/Double Feature: A Rocky Horror Picture Party"—an immersive Rocky Horror-themed Halloween party that brings to life in vivid technicolor the world of the cult-classic film. Hosted by Helena Handbasket, the ...
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Jeff Awards for Equity Theater presented
-- From a press release
CHICAGO — In its 54th anniversary celebration of Equity theater excellence, the Jeff Awards recognized 46 award recipients selected from among 201 theater artist nominees across 38 artistic and technical categories on Oct. 17. Award-winning Chicago ...
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THEATER Queer-inclusive original play 'The Cleanup' set to debut
Playwright Hallie Palladino's The Cleanup focuses on four parents, one of whom is a gay father, as they interact behind the scenes of a DIY preschool co-op. The play, directed by Jen Poulin, will run Oct. ...
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THINGS TO DO Open House Chicago taking place Oct. 15-16
The Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) is presenting Open House Chicago (OHC) 2022 presented by Wintrust on Oct. 15-16. The public is encouraged to discover a roster of 150+ sites in 20 community areas over the weekend, ...
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Sarah Siddons Society to honor Sandy Duncan on Nov. 14
The Sarah Siddons Society, celebrating its 70th-anniversary year, will present its 2022 Award to three-time Tony Award nominee Sandy Duncan. The annual award is presented to an individual who has achieved outstanding artistic achievement in theater. ...
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THEATER Attendees encouraged to dress in costume at 'Southern Gothic'
Windy City Playhouse Artistic Director Amy Rubenstein, with Goodman Theatre and Greg Schaffert, announced the theater invites guests to attend the Oct. 20, 21, 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30 evening performances of the immersive production ...
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Groundbreaking Broadway musical 'A Strange Loop' set to close
A Strange Loop, the 2022 Tony Award winner for best musical, will close on Broadway on Jan. 15, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The musical, which also took home the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for drama, will ...
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DANCE Deeply Rooted performing Nov. 5 at Auditorium Theatre
The Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Dr., will present Deeply Rooted Dance Theater—a Chicago-based African-American contemporary dance company—in a one-night-only performance Saturday, Nov. 5, at 7:30 p.m. as ...
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BoHo Theatre exec director to leave; search for successor begins
BoHo Theatre Executive Director Sana Selemon announced she will be stepping down from her position in March 2023. Selemon—from Columbus, Ohio—became a company member before taking over as executive director in August 2020. BoHo's board of ...
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Yvie Oddly summons sinful drag queens in upcoming 'Night of the Living Drag'
RuPaul's Drag Race: Night of the Living Drag is coming to the Rosemont Theater on Tuesday, Oct. 25, starring Yvie Oddly as The Boogie Man and featuring ...
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THEATER Steppenwolf running Eve L. Ewing's '1919' Oct. 4-29
Steppenwolf Theatre Company will present the Steppenwolf for Young Adults' world premiere of 1919, adapted by J. Nicole Brooks from Eve L. Ewing's collection of poems about the killing of Black teenager Eugene Williams in 1919 ...
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Celebration of trans icon Gloria Allen's life on Oct. 6
A celebration of life for the late Chicago trans icon "Mama" Gloria Allen will take place Thursday, Oct. 6, at 10 a.m. at Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., inside the third-floor theater. Allen founded ...
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THEATER About Face showing LGBTQ+ play 'Mosque4Mosque'
About Face Theatre opens its 2022-23 season with the world premiere of Omer Abbas Salem's new play Mosque4Mosque, directed by Sophiyaa Nayar. Mosque4Mosque is a family comedy about a queer Arab-American Muslim man navigating his first ...
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More special guests announced for Chicago International Film Festival
-- From a press release
CHICAGO, Illinois (September 28, 2022) — Today, the Chicago International Film Festival announced new guests and details for its 58th edition, running October 12 - 23, 2022. Film screenings and programs will take place at theaters ...
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MUSIC Jessie Mueller and Seth Rudetsky at Steppenwolf on Jan. 14, 2023
On Jan. 14, 2023 in Steppenwolf's Downstairs Theater, 1650 N. Halsted St., Steppenwolf Theatre and Mark Cortale will present Tony winner Jessie Mueller (Beautiful; Waitress) for a hometown concert, hosted and music directed by Sirius XM ...
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SHOWBIZ Cardi B, Sam Smith, 'Wednesday' series, Sean Hayes, Serena
Video below
Cardi B clapped back at someone on Twitter who declared her a celebrity who "came out as bisexual but never dated someone of the same gender," per Out Magazine. The tweet,—featuring pictures of Cardi, Grimes, Lady ...
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Jackalope Theatre Company announces 15th season
-- From a press release
CHICAGO (September 20th, 2022) — Jackalope Theatre Company announces its return to in-person productions with its 2022-23 season featuring the Among the Dead by Hansol Jung, directed by Jackalope Artistic ...
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THEATER Underscore to permanently close; festival gains new home
The board of directors of Underscore Theatre Company announced the company will close its doors permanently after eleven dynamic years of producing musical theatre in Chicago, including 16 world premieres. However, the company's Chicago Musical Theatr ...
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THEATER The Gift running thriller 'The Locusts' Oct. 20-Nov. 19
The Gift Theatre will conclude its 2022 season with the world premiere of Jennifer Rumberger's thriller The Locusts, commissioned and developed by The Gift and directed by ensemble member John Gawlik. The Locusts will run Oct. ...
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COMEDY Extra performances added for Jerrod Carmichael at Steppenwolf
Due to popular demand, Steppenwolf Theatre has added two additional performances of Emmy award-winning comedian Jerrod Carmichael's new solo show on Friday-Saturday, Nov. 4-5, at 10 p.m. as part of ...
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MUSIC Cabaret singer Jeff Harnar talks Sondheim, coming out
Jeff Harnar wasn't born in Chicago, but he will tell you first-hand that it is his home. Having spent his formative years in this city, Harnar discovered a passion for musical theater. Decades later, he has ...
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Out comic/writer Sam Jay talks career ahead of Wicker Park performance
Stand-up comic and Emmy-nominated writer Sam Jay will be performing at The Den Theatre, located in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood, on Sept. 23-24. The first Black lesbian writer in Saturday Night Live's history, Jay is a ...
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COMEDY Cameron Esposito at The Den Theatre on Dec. 30-31
The Den Theatre is welcoming back LGBTQ+ comedian Cameron Esposito, performing two stand-up shows on Dec. 30-31, 2022 on The Heath Mainstage, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. Esposito (a onetime Windy City Times 30 Under 30 honoree) ...
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Mercury Theater Chicago announces fun enhancements to the Clue live on-stage experience
-- From a press release
Chicago (September 16, 2022) — Mercury Theater Artistic Director Christopher Chase Carter, Managing Director Kristi J. Martens and Executive Producers L. Walter Stearns and Eugene Dizon have announced fun experiences ...
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'Phantom of the Opera' closing on Broadway after 35 years
After more than three decades, The Phantom of the Opera, the longest-running show in Broadway history, is closing. A representative verified that the play's final performance will be on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2023. It will have ...
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THEATER 'Cabaret' at Metropolis through Oct. 22
Musical Broadway classic and hit film Cabaret re-creates the decadent and complicated world of 1929 Berlin at the Arlington Heights venue Metropolis Performing Arts Centre through Oct. 22. Cabaret is Kander and Ebb's legendary musical masterpiece ...
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'The Wizards,' a genderqueer play that examines racism, to run Oct. 14-Nov. 19
The Wizards, written by Ricardo Gamboa and directed by Katrina Dion, will run at the APO Cultural Center, 1438 W. 18th St., on Oct. 14-Nov. 19. The production follows Amado and Sam (played by Gamboa and ...
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THEATER Shattered Globe's 'Stew' running through Oct. 22
Shattered Globe Theatre will launch its 2022-23 season with the Chicago premiere of Stew, Zora Howard's Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Drama that Malkia Stampley is directing. The production is running through Oct. 22 at Theater Wit, ...
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THEATER PrideArts appoints new managing director, three new board members
The board of directors of PrideArts—the Uptown-based theater company focused on presenting queer stories on live stages and virtual platforms—announced the appointment of Amber Mandley (she/her/hers) as Managing Director, a ...
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League of Chicago Theatres names new executive director
The League of Chicago Theatres Board of Directors announces the selection of Marissa Lynn Ford as the organization's new executive director. Ford comes to the League of Chicago Theatres from Goodman Theatre, where she was associate ...
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ATTRACTIONS Haunted events set to scare Chicagoland residents
Fall is definitely approaching when the haunted events/sites start to emerge. —Dungeon of Doom, in the suburb of Zion, will take place Sept. 23-Oct. 31. Popular attractions and new updates for the site's 26th season include ...
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THEATER Goodman running 'Pequenos Territorios' Sept. 21-25
Goodman Theatre and the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) will present the Midwest premiere of Pequenos Territorios en Reconstruccion, by Teatro Linea de Sombra of Mexico City, Sept. 21-25 at the Goodman, 170 N. Dearborn St. ...
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THEATER Chicago Shakespeare running 'The Notebook' through Oct. 16
Chicago Shakespeare Theater is running the world premiere of The Notebook, a new musical based on the best-selling novel by Nicholas Sparks that inspired the iconic film. The production will run through Oct. 16. Allie and ...
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Broadway musical Chicago to open Sept. 12 with Angelica Ross as Roxie Hart
-- From a press release
The Broadway company of the Tony Award-winning, record-breaking hit musical Chicago will welcome actress and human rights advocate Angelica Ross ("Pose," "American Horror Story") making her Broadway debut in the ...
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Chicago Gay Men's Chorus, 'Carrie 2' part of Venus Cabaret Theater's fall programming
-- From a press release
Chicago, IL — Venus Cabaret Theater, the intimate performance space at Mercury Theater Chicago, under the director of Cabaret Director Honey West, Artistic Director Christopher Chase Carter, Managing Director Kristi ...
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THEATER Paramount to run 'BULL: a love story'
Aurora's Paramount Theatre will run BULL: a love story on Oct. 5-Nov. 20. Bull will be the first suburban production in Destinos Festival history. Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival is an annual, city-wide event produced ...
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DANCE Ensemble Espanol at Auditorium Theatre on Oct. 1
The Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Dr., will kick off the 2022-23 season of its Chicago Dance series with Ensemble Espanol Spanish Dance Theater, for one performance only, on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 7:30 ...
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Non-binary performer Tommy Novak talks being in Lyric Opera's 'Fiddler on the Roof'
Fiddler on the Roof is a series of stories based on Jewish life in a village that was made into a musical play in 1964. The North American premiere of a new production of this classic musical will debut Sept. 17 ...
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THEATER Griffin launches season with 'Marys Seacole'
Griffin Theatre Company will launch its 33rd season with the Midwest premiere drama Marys Seacole, written by Pulitzer Prize winner Jackie Sibblies Drury, and directed by Jerrell L. Henderson and Hannah Todd. The production will run ...
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THEATER Theo Ubique to launch 25th-anniversary season with 'Refuge'
Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre will open its 25th-anniversary season with the Midwest premiere of Refuge, a new play with music and puppetry from creators Satya Jnani Chavez and Andrew Rosendorf, with translations by Mari Meza-Burgos. Refuge ...
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About Face Theatre announces 2022-2023 season
-- From a press release
CHICAGO (August 31, 2022) — About Face Theatre is excited to announce plans for its 28th season. Dedicated to advancing LGBTQ+ equity through community building, education, and performance, AFT will ...
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MUSIC KOKUMO talks about moving to New York City, other endeavors
The multifaceted artist KOKUMO, The Queen of Queer Soul has recently released a new album, Wildflowa': Da' Prelude Ta' Freedom Mixtape, featuring 16 tracks focusing on traumatology, Afro-Elysium and other ...
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Raven Theatre to open 40th season with Noel Coward's 'Private Lives'
Raven Theatre will open its 40th Anniversary Season with a fresh take on Noel Coward's iconic 1930 comedy Private Lives. The production, directed by Ian Frank, will run Sept. 29-Nov. 13 on Raven's 85-seat East Stage, ...
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THEATER Steppenwolf to run 'Spectacularly Lamentable Trial' Sept. 1-Oct. 9
Steppenwolf Theatre Company will open its 47th season with the Chicago premiere of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright James Ijames' fantastical play The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington. The production will run Sept. 1-Oct. ...
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Hollywood medium Tyler Henry talks tour, coming out and celebrity readings
Odds are that someone you know is familiar with the name Tyler Henry. Henry, star of the Netflix series Life after Death with Tyler Henry, continues to be the most sought-after clairvoyant medium both in the ...
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TPAN bringing back 'Barlesque' starting Sept. 1
Barlesque is back. On Thursday, Sept. 1, at 7 p.m. at Northalsted/Boystown nightspot Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted St., Barlesque will kick off. Nightlife figure Khloe Daniels will host introduce this year's bars, performers and choreographers. Attendanc ...
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THEATER Otherworld's 10th-anniv. Halloween gala on Oct. 14
Sci-fi and fantasy theatrical production company Otherworld Theatre is hosting its 10th-anniversary celebration, "Gothic Galaween: An Evening Celebrating 10 Years of Otherworld Theatre," on Friday, Oct. 14, at Michelle's Ballroom ...
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THEATER 'Botticelli in the Fire' running Sept. 22-Nov. 5
First Floor Theater is launching its 10th season with the Chicago premiere of Jordan Tannahill's Botticelli in the Fire—described as "a hot-blooded queering of Renaissance Italy that questions the value of art at the collapse of ...
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The Jeff Awards marks 54th anniversary with Equity Wing Award nominations
-- From a press release
August 23, 2022 — Chicago — Recognizing a strong return to the spotlight over the 2021-2022 Equity theater season, the Joseph Jefferson Awards announces its nominations for theater excellence. This year's nominees include 201 theater art ...
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Mercury Theater Chicago announces cast for 'Clue'
Mercury Theater Artistic Director Christopher Chase Carter, Managing Director Kristi J. Martens and executive producers L. Walter Stearns and Eugene Dizon announced the cast and creative team for the murder mystery comedy Clue. This Chicago premiere ...
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Real-life-based gay military movie 'The Inspection' coming out Nov. 18
Video below
The movie The Inspection—based on director Elegance Bratton's own life—will be out in theaters on Friday, Nov. 18. In Bratton's film inspired by his own story, a young, gay Black man—rejected by his mother and with ...
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SHOWBIZ Ariana DeBose, trans child model, 'Take Me Out,' 'Feud'
Video below
Prime Video and Blumhouse Television announced the upcoming psychological thriller House of Spoils, starring queer Academy Award winner Ariana DeBose, per a press release. The film (directed by Bridget Savage Cole and Danielle Krudy from their ...
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THEATER Hell in a Handbag's 'Frankenstreisand' running Sept. 29-Oct. 31
This Halloween season, Hell in a Handbag Productions kicks off its 2022-23 season with the world premiere of Frankenstreisand, written by Tyler Anthony Smith and directed by Stephanie Shaw. It will run Sept. 29-Oct. 31 at ...
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THEATER Noel Coward's 'Hay Fever' to open Sept. 4 at City Lit
Producer and Artistic Director Terry McCabe will direct Noel Coward's 1924 comedy Hay Fever as the final production of City Lit Theater's 41st season. (It replaces the previously announced Aztec Human Sacrifice, which has been moved ...
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THEATER Red Summer, connecting the 1919 Chicago race riots to present-day Chicago, is Sept. 16-25
-- From a press release
University Park, IL—Governors State University's Center for Performing Arts announces the world premiere of Red Summer written by Lookingglass Theatre's Andrew White and MPAACT's Shepsu Aakhu, composed by Shawn Wallace ...
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THEATER Kokandy's 'Sweeney Todd' running Sept. 8-Nov. 6
Kokandy Productions will continue its 10th-anniversary season with a revival of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street that will run Sept. 8-Nov. 6. The production will feature music and lyrics by Sondheim, ...
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COMEDY Talking with 'World' traveler Annick Adelle
Bay Area attorney Annick Adelle has decided to face one of her biggest fears: stand-up comedy. After starting in 2016, she is releasing her own album and touring throughout the United States. ...
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Congo Square Theatre's 'What to Send Up When It Goes Down' at Lookingglass on Sept. 24-Oct. 16
-- From a press release
CHICAGO (Aug. 10, 2022)—Congo Square Theatre Company, one of the nation's premier African American ensemble theater companies, and Lookingglass Theatre Company announce that single tickets are now on sale for ...
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Billy Masters
"I wasn't trying to have his career because he sings, he dances. I'm barely a single threat. I'm just an actor."—Tuc Watkins, explaining how he emulated the career trajectory of Kevin Kline— to the best of ...
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