Ben Rimalower's PATTI ISSUES to Play Second Performance at Mary's Attic, 6/14

Ben Rimalower: "PATTI ISSUES" - the hit Off Broadway solo play hailed as "ecstatically vivid" by The New York Times and praised for its "wit, feeling and conviction" by Time Out New York - has added a second performance for its Chicago premiere due to high ticket demand. In addition to the show on Thursday, June 13, there will be an additional show on Friday, June 14. Both will be at Mary's Attic at 8:00 PM. After rave reviews and a host of awards, the New York production of "PATTI ISSUES" was recently extended for the sixth time and will run through June 29 at The Duplex in the West Village. Other summer tour spots include Fire Island Pines and Provincetown, hot off a recent string of sold-out performances in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego and Berkeley. Tickets for all shows can be purchased at PattiIssues.com.

Since "PATTI ISSUES" opened in August, it has become a must-see show on the downtown theater scene, garnering great word-of-mouth from attendees such as Alan Cumming, Michael Kors, Justin VivIan Bond, Tonya Pinkins, Perez Hilton and Ms. LuPone herself ("I was moved," she said. "He's a very talented man and I'm so proud of him.") Included as "Best New York Theater of 2012," The Advocate called the show "smart, poignant and dishy as hell," while it was dubbed "spellbinding" by The Village Voice and "pithy and unforgettable" by The Huffington Post. "PATTI ISSUES" received a special Bistro Award for solo play in March and just won the MAC Award for "Male Debut." Ben Rimalower: "PATTI ISSUES" is directed by Aaron Mark (Another Medea with Tom Hewitt, Random Unrelated Projects).

When Ben Rimalower was eight years old, his father came out of the closet and embarked on a drug-fueled tear that left his family in tatters. Amid the chaos of his young life, Ben found comfort-like so many gay boys before him and after-in musical theater, and specifically in the transportive voice of Broadway star Patti LuPone. "PATTI ISSUES" marks Rimalower's debut as a playwright and performer, after serving as the director of numerous Off-Broadway plays, concerts and all-star benefits (and blogging for the Huffington Post). With a mix of comic irreverence, stark candor and show-biz bravado, "PATTI ISSUES" poignantly explores the challenges facing LGBT parents and children while shining unique light on gay men's time-old obsessions with divas.

Ben Rimalower: "PATTI ISSUES" will be performed at MARY'S ATTIC, upstairs at HAMBURGER MARY'S on Thursday, June 13 and Friday, June 14 at 8:00 PM. The venue is located at 5400 N Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60640. Tickets are $20.00. More information and tickets at www.PattiIssues.com.

Ben Rimalower is the author and star of off Off-Broadway's long-running, critically acclaimed smash hit solo play Patti Issues. He writes the "Smash" recaps for Playbill.com, a blog for The Huffington Post and "The New Old Gay" for akawilliam.com. Ben directed and produced the Off-Broadway plays Joy (Actors Playhouse, Out Magazine: "Top Ten Theatre") and The Fabulous Life of a Size Zero (Daryl Roth/DR2 Theatre). He also directed Justin Sayre Is Alive And Well... Writing (Ars Nova), Project Lohan (La Mama E.T.C.), Snoopy! starring Sutton Foster (Symphony Space), And/or (Hot Festival), Sodom the Musical (Kraine Theatre) and the all-star Night Of A Thousand Judys (Playwrights Horizons) as well as staged readings for Second Stage, The York, Dixon Place and Ensemble Studio Theatre. He conceived and directed Leslie Kritzer is Patti LuPone at Les Mouches (Time Out New York Award) and subsequently produced Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight Records' long-awaited recording, Patti LuPone at Les Mouches (Billboard "Heatseekers" Chart), digitally restored from archival tapes of LuPone's legendary 1980 performances. In venues such as Joe's Pub, San Francisco's Plush Room and Los Angeles' Upright Cabaret, Ben has earned the title the "Midas of Cabaret" (The Advocate) helming a slew of solo shows for artists including Alec Mapa, Cole Escola, Our Lady J, Natalie Joy Johnson, Lindsey Alley, Molly Pope, Wendy Ho, John Hill, Scott Nevins, Kate Pazakis and Lance Horne in addition to producing and hosting the Laurie Beechman Theatre's recurring variety show, Saturday Night Underground. Assistant Director credits include Lonny Price's productions of A Class Act (Manhattan Theatre Club, Broadway and Tokyo) and A Little Night Music (starring Patti LuPone, George Hearn and Zoe Caldwell) as well as the Emmy-winning Sweeney Todd. Ben studied Theatre Arts at U.C. Berkeley where he was the founding Artistic Director of BareStage (now celebrating its 18th anniversary). Follow @benrimalower on Twitter and visit benrimalower.com.

Aaron Mark is most recently the writer/director of Another Medea, which just concluded its premiere run at The Duplex Theatre starring Tom Hewitt. His three independent feature films are Commentary (which premiered at Anthology Film Archives as part of NewFilmmakers New York), Random Unrelated Projects (Best Experimental Feature, NYIFF) and Zbornik Developing (available at SethTV.com). His other plays, Failed Suicide Attempts (Living Room Series, Blank Theatre in Hollywood), f-ing Wagner, Dead Agenting, Jackson, Plays With Landline Phones, Cirque du Mental (8 Plays in 8 Days, Hamilton Stage), Subject, Bait, and Deer are all in various stages of "development". Other directing work includes Hedwig and the Angry Inch twice for BC/EFA at New World Stages. He is twenty-six and does not have aaronmark.com because it belongs to a German gay porn star with the same name. aaronmark.net.

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