Here’s the press release from Corn Productions:

Corn Productions has made it to 20! Founded in 1992, Corn has continued to bring original comedy to Chicago through three new Presidents, two Iraq wars, and one heck of a lot of laughs. Corn is celebrating twenty long years with a spectacular season that honors our mission to produce new works and celebrates our history with some slammin’ Corn classics. So, be prepared for a 20th season that will prove, once and for all, that Corn Productions is the best thing to ever come out of the early nineties.  Read the rest of this entry »

Terry Hamilton gets Fatt

By Brian Hieggelke

When the American Blues Theater ensemble was gathered in the spring of 2010 to vote on the next season, the idea to produce Clifford Odets’ “Waiting for Lefty” spawned a spirited debate over the relevance of its subject. “We were like, ‘Does anyone even care about unions?’” says producing artistic director Gwendolyn Whiteside.

“And then after we selected ‘Waiting for Lefty,’ all hell started to break loose in Wisconsin,” Whiteside says. “I was fascinated and I couldn’t believe what was going on. And then Indiana erupted, and Ohio, and everything that was going on in world politics. I probably learned more about union politics because of these events in the past year than I had in school.”

School starts early, in mid-August, for the cast of “Lefty.” It’s the opening night of rehearsals and about three dozen or so folks are gathered in a large room that is the Remy Bumppo Rehearsal Space in Lakeview.

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Here’s the press release from Drury Lane:

DRURY LANE ANNOUNCES ITS EXCITING 2012-2013 SEASON
Featuring HAIRSPRAY, THE 39 STEPS, PROMISES, PROMISES, SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN AND SUNSET BOULEVARD

Oak Brook, Ill.—Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, known for producing acclaimed, innovative and classic musicals and comedies, announces its 2012-2013 season featuring five glorious films brought to new life on stage. The Tony Award-winning phenomenon HAIRSPRAYpreviews April 12, opens April 19 and runs through June 17; the riveting thriller THE 39 STEPS previews July 5, opens July 12 and runs through August 26; the effervescent Broadway classic PROMISES, PROMISES previews September 6, opens September 13 and runs through October 28; the beloved masterpiece SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN previews November 8, opens November 15 and runs through January 13; and SUNSET BOULEVARD, the triumphant Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, previews January 24, opens January 31 and runs through April 7. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from SiNNERMAN:

SiNNERMAN ENSEMBLE ANNOUNCES FIFTH ANNIVERSARY SEASON
SinFest party, Sept. 4, kicks the celebration off with just a bit of “SiN”

CHICAGO — After five years of creating award-winning, attention-grabbing, provocative theatre, SiNNERMAN Ensemble is pleased to announce the arrival of their latest season, which they will kick off with a new take on their hit show, Sweet Confinement, opening Thursday, Nov. 17 at the Viaduct Theatre. Read the rest of this entry »

By Erin Kelsey

Few production managers work harder than the one in charge of the Chicago Fringe Festival. The festival is nothing if not ambitious—with 200 shows to schedule in five venues over two weekends, Executive Director Sarah Mikayla Brown and the staff face an incredible challenge. They are better prepared to face the challenge this year, though, as they embark on their second annual festival. “Last year was all about getting off the ground,” says Tim Mullaney, Director of Development, “and this year is maintaining it and starting to put the pieces together.”

The major difference the second-time attendee will notice this year is the fact that the festival has extended to two weekends. Last year, it was difficult to bring audiences in for the weekday afternoon shows, but expanding to a two-week run allows shows to only perform in the evenings on workdays. “This year we had the luxury of spreading it out and leaving a little more room,” Brown says. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from State Theatre:

“CHI-SPY!” STATE THEATRE THROWS A MULTI-MEDIA SCAVENGER HUNT FUNDRAISER ON SATURDAY, AUG. 27
Company Announces 2011-2012 Season

CHICAGO – The State Theatre of Chicago is turning boring fundraisers on its head with “Chi-Spy” a city-wide, multi-media scavenger hunt on Saturday, Aug. 27 starting at 4 p.m. Advanced tickets are on sale for $20 at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/193075 or can be purchased day of at the event for $25. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from Polarity:

POLARITY ENSEMBLE THEATRE ANNOUNCES AN EXPANDED 2011-12 SEASON OF NEW PLAYS AND CHICAGO PREMIERES

CHICAGO, IL – For its seventh season, Polarity Ensemble Theatre will further increase its significant commitment to the development of new work with its World Premiere of Kabulitis and its sixth annual Dionysos Cup Festival of New Plays, as well as local and regional premieres of new adaptations of literary classics. Read the rest of this entry »

By Erin Kelsey

When Kathryn Lamkey directed shows at Elmwood Park High School, she would occasionally encounter a student who found their job on the lighting crew to be unimportant. “If you don’t turn the lights on, nobody can see the show,” she says. “In some ways, that’s our job at Equity. We work behind the scenes so actors don’t have to worry.” Lamkey is very well acquainted with this unseen role in theater, having worked with the Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) for the past twenty-five years. She is currently the regional director for the AEA’s Central Region (which includes Chicago), and she will retire this December after many years of working to better Chicago theater.

Before beginning her work with AEA, Lamkey was an Equity stage manager for theatrical and dance productions, a lighting designer and a schoolteacher. In her fourteen years as a social studies teacher at Elmwood Park, she also directed theater and negotiated for the teachers’ union—both experiences which would serve her well when she made the move to Equity. In 1986, she saw an ad for a position with Equity and decided to apply, and ten years later became the Central Regional Director, overseeing contract administration for sixteen states. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from Tympanic:

DISCOVER WHAT’S OUT THERE…

This season, Tympanic invites you to dust off your boots and get rustic with two productions exploring what we find out about ourselves and each other on the edges of civilization. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from Harris Theater:

HARRIS THEATER FOR MUSIC AND DANCE LAUNCHES FALL 2011 SEASON, PACKED WITH PREMIERES AND DEBUTS BY THE CITY’S MOST ACCLAIMED MUSIC AND DANCE ORGANIZATIONS AND WORLD-RENOWNED ARTISTS AND ENSEMBLES

Highlights of the Harris’ eighth season include the final Chicago appearances of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company; the Harris Theater debuts of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and Eroica Trio; the return of the nationally acclaimed Sphinx Virtuosi; and a solo performance by Broadway’s original Dreamgirl Jennifer Holliday

The Harris Theater is pleased to announce that UBS is serving as the 2011-2012 Season Sponsor. Read the rest of this entry »