MARIE CHRISTINE Creator Michael John LaChiusa Set for Talkback Tonight at BoHo Theatre

BoHo Theatre Artistic Director Peter Marston Sullivan welcomes Marie Christine composer, lyricist and librettist Michael John LaChiusa in a post-show talkback following BoHo's performance of the musical tonight, November 17, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont, Chicago.

Marie Christine, an updating of the Medea myth to 1890's New Orleans and Chicago that mixes voodoo with Windy City politics at the turn of the century, opened to rave reviews and Jeff Award recommendation on October 28. It is directed by Lili-Anne Brown, who has a long history of staging LaChiusa's musicals.

LaChiusa is a five-time Tony Award nominee, with nominations for his Broadway musicals The Wild Party and Chronicle of a Death Foretold as well as Marie Christine.

The talkback will be open only to ticket holders of the November 17 performance. Tickets for that performance (and all other performances of the musical, which will play through December 10, 2017) are available online at www.BoHoTheatre.com, by phone at 773-975-8150 and at the Theater Wit box office. Tickets are $33 for Thursdays and Fridays, $35 for Saturdays and Sundays.

Michael John LaChiusa is a five -time Tony Award nominated Composer, lyricist and librettist for his Broadway productions of The Wild Party, Marie Christine and Chronicle of a Death Foretold. LaChiusa's acclaimed Off-Broadway musicals have been seen at The Public Theater and Lincoln Center in NY and include First Daughter Suite, Giant, Queen of the Mist, See What I Wanna See, First Lady Suite, Bernarda Alba, Hello Again, Little Fish, and Four Short Operas: Break, Agnes, Eulogy For Mr. Hamm and Lucky Nurse. (Click on image to access high res file).

LaChiusa's musical The Wild Party recently made its London premiere and opened the new theatre The Other Palace. A revised version of LaChiusa's musical Los Otros premiered at Everyman Theatre in Baltimore, Maryland in Spring 2017, while his newest full-length musical, Rain, premiered at The Old Globe in San Diego in Spring 2016. LaChiusa has been commissioned by Chicago Lyric Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival among others and has penned Lovers & Friends: The Chautauqua Variations for CLO and Send (who are you? I love you) written for Audra McDonald at HGO. LaChiusa's revues of his own work include la..la...LaChiusa (Joe's Pub), Hotel C'est l'Amour (Blank Theatre), and most recently Heartbreak Country: Michael John LaChiusa's Stories of America (Jazz at Lincoln Center). LaChiusa's awards include an Obie, Gillman Gonzalez-Falla, Kleban Foundation, Dramatists Guild, and 2008 & 2009 Daytime Emmy Awards. LaChiusa teaches at NYU, Yale, Pace, and Columbia. He is a resident of New York City.

Taking inspiration from the life of Marie Laveau, the famed Voodoo Queen of New Orleans, MARIE CHRISTINE is a visceral reimagining of the Greek myth of Medea. Set in the twilight years of the 19th century, this dark musical chronicles the journey of Marie Christine, a racially mixed woman imprisoned without a trial to face death. From her jail cell, she recounts her journey, beginning with a genteel life of privilege in New Orleans Creole society. There, she falls madly in love with a white ship captain named Dante. When the relationship comes to light, Marie and Dante flee to Chicago, where Dante abandons her for a career in politics. Betrayed and alone, Marie undertakes the darkest vengeance, which leads her to her tragic fate. MARIE CHRISTINE received Tony Award nominations for Best Book of a Musical and Best Score.

BoHo Theatre's mission is to create bold theatre that challenges convention through innovative storytelling and unites artist and audience in the examination of Truth, Beauty, Freedom and Love through the lens of human relationships. Its vision is to create a shared community of artists and patrons in which all members are moved through art to make thoughtful, well-examined, caring relationships the highest priority in their lives.