Chicago Breakout Artist Ben Larose Will Bring NOT AMERICAN to The Den Theatre

Combining drag, storytelling, song and physical comedy, NOT AMERICAN is a tour de force performance. In the span of 90 minutes, writer, director and performer Benjamin Larose portrays seven different characters, each one more unhinged than the previous. Together, they lead the show's main protagonist to question his core belief: "The only way to achieve real success is to become more American."

NOT AMERICAN is an hilarious, outrageous and moving one-person show. It tells the story of a middle-aged artist who realises he has NOT achieved the fame he dreamed of as a dorky kid growing up in French-speaking Québec. Embodying both male and female, Québecois and American, and performing in both his native French and English, Larose shares with the audience an audacious yet intimately crafted exploration of middle-age and his own obsessive yearning to be American.

NOT AMERICAN is a MUST-SEE drag theater event, red carpet and cardboard cutout included!

LOCATION + DATES

THE DEN THEATRE 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60622

May 31, June 1, June 7, June 8, June 14, June 15

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Benjamin Larose is a Québécois artist and teacher at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, SAIC. Larose holds a Master of Design in Fashion, Body and Garment from SAIC and a Bachelor of Media Arts from Emily Carr University in Vancouver, Canada.

Since coming to Chicago in 2014, Larose was the recipient of the New Artist Society Scholarship and the RumChata Foundation Fellowship. In 2017-18, Larose participated in the BOLT residency program at the Chicago Artists Coalition. He subsequently presented three solo exhibitions in two years, including a solo booth at EXPO Chicago in 2018.

His work was also presented in several group exhibitions across the Midwest at venues such as 6018|North, Ralph Arnold Gallery, Chicago Cultural Center, Illinois State Museum Art Gallery, Hiestand Gallery, Lubeznik Center and John Michael Kohler Art Center.

In 2019, Larose was named Breakout Artist by Chicago's NewCity Magazine. The same year, he won second prize in Miami University's Young Sculptors Competition. Most recently, Larose was awarded a generous grant from the Canada Council for the Arts for his first live performance project: NOT AMERICAN. The Canada Council for the Arts is among the most prestigious awards for Canadian artists.

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