Buzz Center Stage
Eddie Izzard performs Shakespeare’s "Hamlet" in limited engagement, April 19–May 4
Chicago Shakespeare Theater announces today a thrilling addition to the season: Tony Award-nominated actor Eddie Izzard brings her celebrated solo theatrical performance of Hamlet to Chicago, direct from a triple-extended New York run at the Orpheum and Greenwich House Theaters and prior to launching a highly anticipated London transfer at Riverside Studios. Izzard portrays 23 characters in William Shakespeare's iconic play in this dynamic new staging adapted by Mark Izzard and directed by Selina Cadell. This strictly limited two-week engagement plays April 19–May 4, 2024 in the Courtyard Theater.
In Hamlet, The King of Denmark is dead, and Prince Hamlet is determined to take revenge—initiating a cascade of events that will destroy both family and state. Izzard portrays men, women, ghosts, scholars, tyrants, courtiers, lovers, fools, and poets.
She says of the monumental undertaking, "I have always gravitated towards playing complex and challenging characters and Hamlet is the ultimate. This is a production for everyone, a timeless drama with an accidental hero. Selina, Mark, and I want audiences to see and hear an accessible, touching, scary, and dramatic Hamlet."
CST Executive Director Kimberly Motes and Artistic Director Edward Hall shared, "After seeing Eddie's extraordinary performance in New York, we are thrilled she's agreed to join us at CST and share her Hamlet with Chicago audiences before London. It's a rare opportunity to see a Hamlet that makes this a play for all of us—truly a play for today."
A Tony Award-nominated and Emmy Award-winning actor, Izzard's boundary-pushing career includes critically acclaimed roles in theater, film, and television. On Broadway, Izzard starred in Roundabout Theatre Company's 2003 revival of A Day in the Death of Joe Egg, garnering the Tony nomination for Leading Actor in a Play—and appeared in David Mamet's Race. Major London stage credits include The Cryptogram, Edward II, 900 Oneonta, Joe Egg, and Lenny. Izzard made her West End debut in 1993 in the solo show Live at the Ambassadors, receiving an Olivier Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement. Izzard's film roles include Stephen Frears' Victoria & Abdul opposite Dame Judi Dench, Julie Taymor's Across the Universe, Peter Bogdanovich's The Cat's Meow, Valkyrie, Ocean's Twelve, Ocean's Thirteen, and the recent Doctor Jekyll in which she plays Dr. Nina Jekyll and Rachel Hyde. She is the recipient of two Emmy Awards for her televised special, Dressed to Kill. She's also been seen as Dr. Abel Gideon in "Hannibal" and in FX's critically acclaimed series, "The Riches," in which Izzard both starred and executive produced.
In 2022, Izzard performed a solo adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations—also created in collaboration with Mark Izzard and Selina Cadell—which played to rave reviews and sold-out audiences in New York and in London's West End. The creative team reunites for Hamlet, which features set design by Tom Piper, lighting by Tyler Elich, costume styled by Tom Piper and Libby DaCosta, composer Eliza Thompson, movement director Didi Hopkins, and fight director J. Allen Suddeth. It is produced by Westbeth Entertainment, Mick Perrin Worldwide, and John Gore.
More information at www.chicagoshakes.com/hamlet or on social media at @chicagoshakes.
Hamlet will be presented April 19–May 4, 2024, in the Courtyard Theater. Single tickets starting at $69 are on sale now. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact the Box Office at 312.595.5600 or visit www.chicagoshakes.com.
ABOUT CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER
Regional Tony Award-recipient Chicago Shakespeare Theater produces a bold and innovative year-round season—plays, musicals, world premieres, family productions, and theatrical presentations from around the globe—alongside nationally recognized education programming serving tens of thousands of students, teachers, and lifelong learners each year. Founded in 1986, Chicago Shakespeare's onstage work has expanded to as many as twenty productions and 650 performances annually. CST is dedicated to welcoming the next generation of theatergoers; one in four of its audience members is under the age of eighteen. As a nonprofit organization, Chicago Shakespeare works to embrace diversity, prioritize inclusion, provide equitable opportunities, and offer an accessible experience for all. On CST's three stages at its home on Navy Pier, in classrooms and neighborhoods across the city, and in venues around the world, Chicago Shakespeare Theater is a multifaceted cultural hub—inviting audiences, artists, and community members to share powerful stories that connect and inspire. www.chicagoshakes.com.
GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY is On Sale
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'Gypsy' - Exciting Production With An Exhilarating Take on Ambition And Family Conflict
'Gypsy' is an excellent musical about a family in Vaudeville. The mother is overbearing trying to make the children, specifically the daughters, create a wildly famous act. It is at Marriott Theater in Lincolnshire, Illinois directed by Amanda Dehnert.
An initial striking character is Rose, played by Lucia Spina. She brings great energy and urgency right from the get-go that captures the audience's attention. Rose intensely rushes and pushes her children, Louise (Lauren Maria Medina) and June (Tori Heinlein), to fulfill bold theater dreams as a family. There are spirited performances at the beginning with Young Louise played by Elin Joy Seiler and Baby June played by Daryn Whitney Harrell.
The production takes an exhilarating turn at the song "Mr. Goldstone," when the family gains the connection to a powerful theater figure Mr. Goldstone played with an idiosyncratic charm by Sawyer Smith. The "Mr. Goldstone" number highlights the epic singing skills of Lucia Spina as Rose. All musical numbers have great choreography.
Another force in Act I is Tulsa, played by J'Kobe Wallace. The budding romance between Tulsa and June (Tori Heinlein) has a more carefree tenderness that is expressed in standout dance choreography. The more relaxed yet gleeful pacing of the number "All I Need Is the Girl" toward the end of Act I contrasts the relentlessness overdrive of the musical numbers starring Rose. This demonstrates the excellent quality of this production of 'Gypsy' that the pacing and sense of speed frequently varies, which makes it highly engaging for viewers.
Set design and lighting shines in Act II, where characters are constantly on tour in different areas. The stage set up demonstrates their changes in location in clear and innovative ways. The joy of many different locations, from Wichita, Kansas to New York City, adds to the charm of the Act II.
The production comes to a captivating emotional climax towards the end of Act II, powered by dialogue expertly directed by Amanda Dehnert. Dialogue between Rose, played by Lucia Spina, Herbie, played by Nathaniel Stampley, and Louise, played by Lauren Maria Medina, is extremely expressive. One of the core narratives of mother-daughter conflict and expectation is made widely resonant to all viewers by the amazing acting.
The themes of ambition, expectation, family, adventure, and joy are expressed in a thought-provoking and relevant way to all viewers.
'Gypsy' is scheduled to run Wednesdays at 1 pm and 7:30 pm, Thursdays at 7:30 pm, Fridays at 8 pm, Saturdays at 4 pm and 8 pm, and Sundays at 1 pm and 5 pm. To reserve tickets, call the Marriott Theatre Box Office at 847.634.0200 or go to tickets.marriotttheatre.com.
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