Goodman Theatre Holds Encore Benefit for BEING HAROLD PINTER, 2/21

 

A one-night-only encore benefit performance of Being Harold Pinter on February 21 at 7:30pm has just been added to Belarus Free Theatre's (BFT) sold-out engagement-concluding an historic theatrical event for the City of Chicago. Goodman Theatre, the League of Chicago Theatres and Chicago Shakespeare Theater together present this special event in which members from Chicago's theater community join the Belarusian company on stage during the moving climactic moments of Being Harold Pinter. Chicago participants will be announced closer to the event. The February 21, 7:30pm benefit takes place Upstairs at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Tickets are $50 for the performance and $100 for the performance and post-show reception. To purchase tickets, contact Chicago Shakespeare Theater (800 E. Grand on Navy Pier) box office at 312.595.5600

or www.chicagoshakes.com.

 

Natalia Koliada, co-founder of BFT, remarked, "It was at The Public Theater's benefit performance of Being Harold Pinter when we received the invitation from Goodman Theatre to come perform in Chicago. That night was devoted to the arts, to what people of art could do in attempt to stop dictatorship in Belarus, and appeal to the world politicians' morality. The Belarusian actors shared the stage that night with American actors such as Philip Seymour Hoffman, Olympia Dukakis, Kevin Kline and Mandy Patinkin; as they heard the news about our Chicago engagement, Mandy told us, 'That's my hometown, people are great there, they will love you'. He was right: we are so grateful to the Chicago theater community and to the people who have come to support us. They are the real Goodmen!"

 

Critics have praised Being Harold Pinter in its sold-out Chicago run as "physical, vocal and emotional intensity that is riveting from first word to last" (Chicago Sun-Times), "exceptionally well-layered dramatic art" (Variety) and "gut-wrenching –" (Chicago Tribune). Being Harold Pinter incorporates transcripts from Belarusian political prisoners with excerpts from Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter's lifetime of writings. BFT creates visually striking images with simple means and underscores the fierceness of Pinter's words with the intense physicality of the actors. Being Harold Pinter blurs the boundaries between art and reality, delivering a poignant contemporary commentary on violence, oppression, freedom and human dignity.

 

This unprecedented artistic event took shape when Goodman Artistic Director Robert Falls and Goodman Theatre Executive Director Roche Schulfer learned about BFT's performance at New York's Under The Radar Festival (January 5-16, 2011)-an engagement for which the artists left Belarus by clandestine means after learning that the government was seeking their arrest. Without a subsequent invitation to perform in the United States, the company would have had to return to Belarus following their New York engagement, putting them at personal risk. On January 17, Goodman Theatre, in association with Northwestern University, Chicago Shakespeare Theater and the League of Chicago Theatres, invited to the company to perform in Chicago while the artists considered their options. Special Encore Performance of Being Harold Pinter Just Added to Conclude Chicago Run Page 2 of 2 February 21 at 7:30pm at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier

 

"The leading regional theater in the nation's most important theater city" (Time), Goodman Theatre is a major cultural, educational and economic pillar in Chicago, generating nearly $300 million in economic impact over the past decade in its state-of-the-art two-theater complex on North Dearborn Street. Founded in 1925 and currently under the leadership of Artistic Director Robert Falls, "Chicago's most essential director" (Chicago Tribune), and Executive Director Roche Schulfer, Chicago's oldest and largest not-for-profit resident theater has experienced unprecedented success over the past 10 years in its downtown facility, welcoming nearly 2 million patrons to productions and events-including 10 festivals celebrating playwrights such as David Mamet, August Wilson and Horton Foote, as well as the biennial Latino Theatre Festival-serving students through its Education and Community Engagement programs (including the FREE Student Subscription Series and other interactive programs) and employing more than 3,000 artists and theater professionals. The Goodman has earned more than 90 awards for hundreds of productions, including the Pulitzer Prize for Ruined by Lynn Nottage-one of 25 new-work Goodman commissions in the last decade. The Chairman of Goodman Theatre's Board of Trustees is Patricia Cox, and Joan

Clifford is President of the Women's Board. American Airlines is the Exclusive Airline of Goodman Theatre.

 

The Theatre and Interpretation Center at Northwestern University produces and presents as many as 40 productions annually, in four theatres, for the School of Communication, and in partnership with the Departments of Theatre and Performance Studies, and the Dance Program. In addition, the Center produces the annual Waa-Mu Show, an original student written and performed musical, and is home for the American Music Theatre Project (AMTP) that is dedicated to developing and producing new musicals by leading local and national artists. Celebrating its 30th anniversary and currently under the leadership of Artistic Director Henry Godinez and Managing Director Diane Claussen, the Center is a rich laboratory for experimentation for 400 undergraduate and graduate students who create, design, direct and perform in classic and contemporary plays, dance performances and musicals directed by faculty, MFA students and guest professional artists. The Center reflects the academic mission and values of the University, the curricular needs of the Theatre and Performance Studies departments, the educational priorities of Communication students and seeks to engage through performance the campus and greater Metropolitan Chicago area communities in civic dialogue. The Dean of Northwestern University's School of Communication is Barbara O'Keefe, Rives Collins is Chair of the Department of Theatre and E. Patrick Johnson is Chair of the Department of Performance Studies. President Morton Schapiro and Provost Daniel Linzer lead Northwestern University.

 

The League of Chicago Theatres is an alliance of theatres which leverages its collective strength to promote, support and advocate for Chicago's theatre industry locally, nationally and internationally. The League's membership includes more than 200 theatres, a vast majority of Chicago's rich theatre community. Membership reaches into all regions of the metropolitan area, and range from storefront theatres with budgets under $10,000 to cultural centers with multi-million dollar shows. The League bridges the gaps between our members with programs and services that directly impact administrative and artistic operations, and promote awareness and visibility for live theatre.

 

Recipient of the 2008 Regional Theatre Tony Award, Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) offers a broad spectrum of theatrical e periences year-round, engaging and entertaining audiences from all walks of life and from around the world. CST has garnered acclaim under the leadership of Artistic Director Barbara Gaines and Executive Director Criss Henderson, including 55 Joseph Jefferson Awards and three Laurence Olivier Awards. The Theater has experienced record growth since moving to its current, state-of-the-art facility on Navy Pier in 1999, and will celebrate its 25th Anniversary next season. The 38-play canon of William Shakespeare forms the core of CST's work and Subscription Series, complemented by other dramatic works-from traditional classical theater to new classics that resonate with Shakespeare's timeless insights into the human condition. Through a 48-week season encompassing more than 600 performances, Chicago Shakespeare leads the community as the largest employer of Chicago actors. CST also contributes to an international community of creative exchange through its World's Stage Series, which affords Chicago audiences prime opportunities to experience the cultural and artistic traditions of some of the world's iconic theater troupes as well as sending some of CST's best works abroad. For family audiences, CST Family presents abridged Shakespeare productions, timeless fables and fairy tales, interactive music concerts and world-premiere musical theater created with families in mind. CST's education outreach program, Team Shakespeare, has served over 1 million students and teachers throughout the Midwest, introducing the Bard's legacy to a new generation.

 

 

 

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