10-10-08
Tis the Season for Galas and Honors
Awards season is upon us, so there are plaudits a’plenty to note. The Equity Jeff Awards will be held Monday, Oct. 20, at North Shore Center for the Performing Arts. This year’s honorees include Eileen Boevers, recipient of a special Jeff Award in recognition of her many years as founder and executive artistic director of Apple Tree Theatre.
Meantime, Gay Chicago Magazine announced their After Dark Awards, which honor a wide range of companies and productions, including Sarah Ruhl’s gargantuan Passion Play at the Goodman and the Hypocrites’ now-legendary production of Our Town, which snagged honors for director (and Stage Manager) David Cromer and actor Jennifer Grace. Cromer and Grace, however, won’t be accepting their After Dark plaques at the annual banquet. The economy has forced Gay Chicago to nix the ceremony, and the plaques. Seems in-kind donations dried up. Awardees will be getting a certificate in the mail.
Jennifer Grace is also one of nine thesps called out as “scene stealers” by Catey Sullivan and Craig Keller in Chicago Magazine—the others are Linda Reiter, Larry Yando, Elizabeth Laidlaw, Kevin Gudahl, Darrell W. Cox, Stephanie Diaz, E. Faye Butler and Jon Hill.
Hill’s fellow Steppenwolf ensemble member, Alana Arenas, is one of six recipients of the inaugural 3Arts Artists Awards, held on Oct. 6 and established to support “underrepresented” artists. Think of them as “Mini Macs”—like the better-known MacArthur “genius” grants, the 3Arts Award comes with a no-strings-attached purse, albeit in a smaller amount than the MacArthurs. (But in today’s economy, $15,000 ain’t chump change, either.) Tekki Lomnicki of Tellin’ Tales Theatre joined Arenas as an honoree in the theatre division.
The second annual Lester and Hope Abelson Award recognizes Luna Negra Dance Theater with a $25,000 purse and Collaboraction with $15,000. The latter will pick up their “Hopie” during their annual “decadent” black-tie fundraiser, “Beggars’ Banquet,” Saturday night at the Park West.
The Park West also hosts the annual gala for the Chicago Cabaret Professionals on Oct. 19. This year’s honorees include Amanda McBroom and Frank D’Rone, with the “Gold Coast Award” honor bestowed upon Nan Mason, longtime Diva of the Pump Room.
And what would awards be without Schadenfreude? No, we don’t mean happiness at the misfortune of others—we mean those wonderful sketch-comedy tricksters, who are up for a Chicago Emmy on Oct. 18 for their Channel 11 comedy series, “IL-Informed.” The troupe celebrates that night with a special show at the Lakeshore Theater. They may even have a live satellite hook-up—no promises, though!
One performer took Lakeshore audiences by surprise on Friday, Sept. 26. Robin Williams closed out the final set after headliner Christian Finnegan (who is practically a regular with Keith Olbermann’s “Countdown” this year) finished up. Williams discovered the Lakeshore earlier this year during a taping of an “Ellen” show, and made the trek north after his gig at the Chicago Theatre.
The Chicago Dance and Music Alliance, a consortium of 150 music and dance groups, has named Emily Herr as their new executive director. Herr comes to the nonprofit (formed in 2001 from a merger of the Chicago Music Alliance and the Chicago Dance Coalition) after stints with Lookingglass Theatre, Jam Theatricals, and Time Out Chicago.
Chicago Dramatists welcomes six new scribes to their stable of resident playwrights: Mary Ruth Clarke, Cheryl Coons, Christopher De Paola, Sarah Gubbins, David Scott Hay and Jon Steinhagen.
Programming updates: Pegasus Players’ now-in-previews production of David Edgar’s two-parter on American politics and partisanship, Continental Divide, mentioned in our last column, will delay the official opening dates, due to problems with the parking lot under construction at their home base, Truman College. Mothers Against now opens Oct. 13, and Daughters of the Revolution follows on the 15th. The company hopes to make other arrangements for patrons via neighborhood lots. But if you’re driving to Uptown, it’s probably wise to call ahead!
Links Hall presents a monthlong multidisciplinary festival, Studies N Black, curated by Baraka de Soleil and co-presented with his Brooklyn-based network of artists from the African Diaspora, D Underbelly. Featured performers this weekend include dancer/choreographer Margaret Morris and “Def Poetry Jam” vet Nikki Patin.
Parents deserve a break, and Victory Gardens gives it to ’em with their “Family Saturday” series of performances, kicking off on Oct. 18 with the 5 p.m. performance of Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice. Parents can leave their kids with childcare and educational professionals upstairs who will entertain the young’uns with theatre games and crafts, while parents can enjoy an evening of adult theatre. Each show this season will boast one “Family Saturday.”
Adventure Stage Chicago’s season of family-oriented shows kicks off in November with a stage adaptation of Louis Sachar’s award-winning novel Holes. Sachar himself will be on hand for a reading from the book and a Q & A session at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 19. The event is free, but reservations are required at 773/342-4141.
Vets get a break with Stage Left. Tonight’s performance of Gina Gionfriddo’s satirical look at the media’s appetite for grief, After Ashley, is free for all active-duty service members and military veterans. And on Oct. 18, Stage Left will host the Vet Art Project, bringing together veterans and community members in a workshop about war and its effects at the Stage Left rehearsal space. See www.vetartproject.com for more information.
Still stumped for a Halloween costume? Let Bailiwick dress you – and your home! It’s not all naked boys over there, you know. The company hosts a “Halloween Costume and Clearance Sale” on Oct. 18 as they clear out some excess baggage in preparation for leaving their longtime Belmont Ave. digs. Just one buck gets you admission, and for a few dollars more you can pick up a wide assortment of props and costumes from the company’s venerable line of productions.
Tony Award-nominated performer John Herrera returns to his Oak Park stomping grounds with the Village Players Theatre’s The Medium at Large. Harnessing the power of the internet, Village Players has made a clip of the world-premiere musical, based on Julia Cameron’s mega-best-seller “The Artists’ Way” and opening in previews on Oct. 17. It’s available on YouTube.
Meantime, Gorilla Tango Theatre announces the launch of GORILLATANGOTV (GTTV), an internet-based pay-per-view outlet that promises to split revenues 50/50 with short-film producers. Consumers ante up a set amount of money (around $10) in a viewer account, and then access the films, which are selected by Gorilla Tango, at around a dime a minute. For more information, visit www.gorillatango.tv.
And send your own embarrassing video clips and news tips to kerryreid@comcast.net.