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Michael Menendian announces Raven Theatre’s Silver Anniversary Season, which includes classic works by Tennessee Williams and Neil Simon, as well as the Chicago premiere of a play exploring the tragic events at Columbine High School. Raven kicks-off the season with a Silver Celebration gala event on Saturday, July 21.
Founded in 1983, Raven Theatre is dedicated to breathing new life into American classics and exploring other works that illuminate the American experience. In addition to its regular season, Raven produces a Workshop Series of new and experimental productions, as well as a Youth Program, including teaching partnerships with various Chicago Public Schools, summer youth classes and original children’s shows performed at Raven Theatre.
Raven Theatre’s Silver Season
The Night of the Iguana
by Tennessee Williams
directed by Michael Menendian
Previews: October 9 through 13, 2007 at 8:00 p.m.
Opening Night: Sunday, October 14, 2007 at 8:00 p.m.
Performances continue through December 8, 2007
Raven Founder Michael Menendian says, “I am thrilled to begin our 25th Anniversary Season with the playwright who started it all: Tennessee Williams, whose 27 Wagons Full of Cotton was Raven’s very first play in 1983.”
The Night of the Iguana is set in 1940 in Mexico, where an American widow endeavors to keep both her tropical hotel and her love life intact. Her guests include: the defrocked Reverend Shannon, desperately struggling with addictions to alcohol and young women; the ethereal yet penniless artist Hannah Jelkes; her grandfather Nonno, “the oldest living and practicing poet;” a family of boisterous Germans; and a difficult busload of Baptist women. This Tony Award-winning play by two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Tennessee Williams is a provocative exploration of human struggle and passion -- full of intense drama, biting wit, and sexual tension.
Columbinus (Chicago premiere)
by the United States Theatre Project, written by Stephen Karam and PJ Paparelli
directed by Greg Kolack
Previews: January 22 through 26, 2008 at 8:00 p.m.
Opening Night: Sunday, January 27, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.
Performances continue through March 15, 2008
According to writer PJ Paparelli, Columbinus is a theatrical discussion more than just a play. Artists with the United States Theatre Project conducted exhaustive interviews and research in order to create this two-part piece which first sets up a fictional but realistic world of adolescence that could be anywhere in America, and then morphs into the factual events leading directly to the school shootings at Columbine. Ultimately, Columbinus asks more than just ‘Why?’, but perhaps more importantly, ‘Why do people treat each other the way we do?’ Reminiscent of Moisés Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project’s The Laramie Project, Columbinus is a fascinating and heartbreaking examination of human behavior.
Laughter on the 23rd Floor
by Neil Simon
directed by Michael Menendian
Previews: April 29 through May 3, 2008 at 8:00 p.m.
Opening Night: Sunday, May 4, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.
Performances continue through June 28, 2008
Laughter on the 23rd Floor was inspired by Simon’s own early-career experience churning out jokes for Sid Caesar’s Your Show of Shows, where he worked alongside Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner and Woody Allen. Laughter introduces a room full of oddball writers, many based upon actual personalities, including Simon himself. The Sid-Caesar-like character of Max Prince, star of a 1953 variety show, is a booze-guzzling, pill-popping comic genius who goes to any lengths to protect his team in the face of network cutbacks. This hilarious play chronicles the writing room’s outrageous antics and increasing stress levels under the pressures of rising McCarthyism and television executives resistant to sophisticated humor.
Writer Neil Simon is a three-time Tony Award-winner (with another fourteen nominations), four-time Best Screenplay Academy Award-nominee, an Emmy Award-nominee, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Lost in Yonkers. Menendian notes, “Neil Simon is one of America’s greatest comic playwrights, and I am very excited to be producing his work at Raven for the first time.”
All performances take place in Raven Theatre’s East Stage at 6157 N. Clark Street. Preview performances are Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., with openings on Sundays at 7:00 p.m. Shows continue Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $15 during previews and $25 during the regular run ($20 for students and seniors). Flexible subscription passes, good for three tickets to any combination of shows/performances, are available for just $50 – by subscribing, patrons buy two tickets and get their third ticket free. For tickets or information, visit www.raventheatre.com or call 773-338-2177
Raven Theatre’s Silver Celebration
On Saturday, July 21, Raven Theatre kicks offs its 25th Anniversary season with a gala event, including a retrospective of past productions with unique back-stage stories, a delicious dinner catered by Zhivago Restaurant, music, live auction, and more! Tickets are $100. For information and reservations call 773-338-2177 or email raventheatreevents@hotmail.com.