Theatre News Wire

The Board of Directors of The House Theatre of Chicago announced that it will formally wind down operations following its production of the North American premiere of The Tragedy of King Christophe, which closed on Sunday, May 29.

The non-profit, ensemble company completes 20 productive years as the renowned home to countless imaginative artists who helped to create breakthrough and acclaimed original productions. The company's unique blend of innovative stagecraft and joyful storytelling has been widely celebrated for bringing new, younger, and more diverse audiences to theaters throughout Chicago and across the country.

Highlights include Death and Harry Houdini, The Terrible Tragedy of Peter Pan, The Sparrow, The Hammer Trinity, Rose and the Rime, United Flight 232, The Nutcracker, and many others, which, in total, garnered 50+ Jeff Awards and nominations. The House's entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to developing new work also led to unique long-running programs like The Magic Parlour and The Last Defender. Through a founding partnership with the University of Chicago's Chicago Performance Lab, The House commissioned and supported the development of dozens of new plays and projects by Chicago artists. The House's reputation as an essential voice in the American Theatre led to being recognized in 2014 with a national grant from the American Theater Wing.

The House Theatre of Chicago originated in 2001, helmed by Nathan Allen and a group of co-collaborators who shared theater training from Southern Methodist University and the British American Drama Academy. When Allen stepped down in 2020, The House programming went dark for much of the pandemic, reemerging in 2021 with a limited operational footprint and a new Artistic Director, Lanise Antoine Shelley. The board mobilized to support her vision and ambition to produce two new plays during this artistic year, Shelley's world premiere, critically acclaimed, holiday season adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen, and its most recent production, the North American premiere of The Tragedy of King Christophe.

Though the board is informing all stakeholders of the wind down, the funding, resources and talent were kept fully in place to make The Tragedy of King Christophe an artistic success and a fitting finale to The House's legacy of excellence. Third Coast Review called House's final production, "Chicago theater at its rebellious and fearless best." The Chicago Tribune wrote "Shelley has pulled off something notable, in service of the resilience of the country of her birth and of what remains possible in Chicago theater if an audience is willing to take a risk."

"Thanks to the hard work and patience of so many - as well as the Shuttered Venue Operating Grant funding we qualified for - we were able to rise from the challenges of the initial pandemic hibernation and point the company in a new direction," explained Board President Renee Duba. "However, our strategic assessment looking to the future made it clear that we did not have the financial momentum or audience/donor support to continue beyond this fiscal year. We chose instead to maximize our current year programming and to honor all present commitments and partnerships with a thoughtfully planned exit from the Chicago theater scene - and a wealth of pride in what The House Theatre of Chicago has accomplished."

The legacy of The House will live on through the talents of so many company members and collaborators who brought their best to the Chicago stage since 2001. The board expresses great gratitude for all of those friendships and for all of those creative dreams fulfilled.