Joel Drake Johnson's THE END OF THE TOUR Opens 2/4 at 16th Street

16th Street Theater, a part of the North Berwyn Park District, is proud to announce Joel Drake Johnson's THE END OF THE TOUR directed by Cecilie Keenan performing February 4 - March 6, 2010 at the Berwyn Cultural Center, 6420 16th Street in Berwyn, with a press opening of Saturday, February 6 at 5:00 PM. 

THE END OF THE TOUR immediately follows the special engagement 2-week run of Tony Fitzpatrick in THIS TRAIN January 21 - 30, 2010.

Andrew Morris shares only one thing with former President Ronald Reagan and that's the town of Dixon, Illinois. When a frantic phone call from his sister forces Andrew to return home with his partner, the audience is taken on an often comic, sometimes disturbing tour of the lives of loved ones who still walk the line. Joel Drake Johnson is the author of The Fall to Earth (Steppenwolf), Four Places (Victory Gardens) and A Blue Moon (Chicago Dramatists). He is a Jeff Award and Emmy award nominee.

Cast: Roslyn Alexander, Valerie Gorman, Kevin Mayes, Kathleen Powers, Madrid St. Angelo, H.B. Ward and Ron Wells.

BUNGALO (Berwyn United Neighborhood Gay and Lesbian Organization) is the Production Sponsor of THE END OF THE TOUR.

JOEL DRAKE JOHNSON

"I am interested in creating stories with characters who despite their flaws, their bad decisions, and tragic set backs, push themselves on to an enlightened understanding of their place in the world."

Joel Drake Johnson is one of the newest members of Chicago's Victory Gardens Theater Playwrights Ensemble. The critically acclaimed, Jeff nominated Four Places was produced by Victory Gardens in the spring of 2008 and was published by Northwestern University Press. His earlier works at VG, Before My Eyes and The End of the Tour, were also Jeff-nominated for Best New Play and all three plays were directed by Sandy Shinner, Victory Gardens' Associate Artistic Director. The End of the Tour was chosen for inclusion in the anthology New Plays From Chicago and was published once again by The Broadway Play Publishing Company.

Johnson's relationship with Steppenwolf Theater began in 2004 with the Jeff Award winning20production of The Fall to Earth (director: Rick Snyder) featuring Tony Award winner Rondi Reed. The Fall to Earth was also published by the Broadway Play Publishing Company. Steppenwolf subsequently commissioned Johnson to write A Blameless Life (director: Anna D. Shapiro) and Tranquillity Woods (director: Sandy Shinner) which they produced in the summer of 2005 and 2007. The Fall to Earth was later produced by the Penguin Repertory Theatre featuring Tony award winner Michele Pawk and directed by Joe Brancato.

Johnson won Illinois Arts Council grants for Blind Hearts, The Fall to Earth and A Blue Moon, which was first produced at Chicago Dramatists and also Jeff nominated for best new work . He got his start as a writer at Chicago's critically acclaimed Econo-Art Theater, which (under the leadership of Lynn Baber, Barb Reeder and Marc Silvia) produced such plays as Beautiful Dreamer and A Slim and Crooked Genius. As the Beaver, was a critical and popular hit for Chicago's Zebra Crossing Theater. His teleplay "A Moment of Rage"(co-written with VG ensemble member John Logan) was nominated for an Emmy award.

He has taught playwriting at Northwestern University, DePaul University and Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire. He lives in Chicago and New Buffalo, Michigan where he is working on three new plays: The First Grade ,a third commission from Steppenwolf Theatre and a winning finalist in The Aurora Theatre Company's Global Age Project where it will be produced as part of their 2009-10 season; A Guide for the Perplexed which will be produced by Victory Gardens in their 2009-2010 season and star Kevin Anderson and Fran Guinan; The Boys' Room which was first read at Victory Gardens Theatre and was also a part of Northlight Theatre's Interplay and Steppenwolf Theatre's First Look new play reading series.

Johnson is a member of the Dramatists Guild and Pen America.

DESIGN TEAM

The design team for THE END OF THE TOUR includes veteran scenic designer Rick Paul (Writers' Theatre, Northlight) and Resident Lighting Designer Mac Vaughey (The Last Barbecue, S-E-X-OH!, Fires in the Mirror, Kita y Fernanda, MACHOS) and Resident Sound Designer Barry Bennett (Unveiled, Kita y Fernanda, The Scarlet Ibis), costumer Samantha C. Jones (Fires in the Mirror), and props designer Jesse Gaffney (The Last Barbecue, Unveiled, Fires in the Mirror) Stage manager is Devhan Bridgett. The play is directed by Cecilie Keenan. Full bios and photos available at www.16thstreettheater.org

BUNGALO

We too are Berwyn. One of the goals of BUNGALO is communication with and education of the people off Berwyn that gays and lesbians are an integral part of all aspects of the community.
Protection. The second goal is to ensure that all people, including gays and lesbians, are protected from all forms of discrimination.
Unity. A third goal of BUNGALO is to unite the gay and lesbian community of Berwyn to support and participate in cultural and social activities.

16TH STREET THEATER

Recognized by the Chicago Reader as Chicago's Best Emerging Theater 2009, 16th Street Theater is located 17 minutes from downtown Chicago at the Berwyn Cultural Center, 6420 16th Street, Berwyn, IL 60402. Just west of Ridgeland, the theater is one mile southwest of the Austin exit off the Eisenhower Expressway/290 and the Austin Blue line. There is free parking in the lot one block west at 16th and Gunderson. Go to www.16thstreettheater.org to subscribe to Season Three, purchase tickets or for more information.

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