John Hancock Productions to Present THE GREATEST THEATRICAL EVENT... EVER!

The Greatest Theatrical Event...EVER! is a merciless yet loving tribute to theater as seen through the eyes of three theater historians who also happen to be unreliable ghosts! Not a spoiler alert. They literally tell you that in the first minute of the show.

The Grand Carlysle has hosted some of the worst shows in history including Unsinkable Love - The Musical Tragedy about The Titanic, Come and Get Me - a musical adaptation of Herman Melville's Moby Dick told from the whale's perspective, and Death of a Salesman on Ice!

Three Chicago comedians from The Second City and The Improvised Shakespeare Company want you to come see the US premiere of the show they created. It's a hysterical romp through 100 years of the world's most flammable theater, The Grand Carlysle.

The Greatest Theatrical Event...EVER! premiered at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The original cast and creators have added material and are bringing their show home to Chicago.

John Hancock Productions presents...The Greatest Theatrical Event...EVER!

written by Joe Janes, Lori McClain, and Ric Walker
Performed by Joe Janes, Kelly Haran, and Ric Walker
Directed by Andrea J. Dymond. Original music by Jeff Bouthiette and Steph McCullough. Graphics by Shane Swinea.

Showtimes

Preview: Thursday, March 26

Opening Night: Friday, March 27th

Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm. Matinees Saturdays at 4:40pm.

Closing night is Saturday, April 25th

75 minutes running time

Tickets are pay-what-you-can ($20 suggested donation) are are available online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-greatest-theatrical-eventever-tickets-95514571655?aff=ebdssbdestsearch) or may be purchased at the door

Joe Janes - Writer/Actor

Joe Janes is an Emmy Award winning writer who teaches comedy writing and improv at The Second City and Columbia College Chicago. His previously produced plays include Our Christian Nation, Metaluna and the Amazing Science of the Mind Revue, and A Hard Day's Journey into Night. His collaborations include Senioritis: The Musical, The Edward Hopper Project, and The Greatest Theatrical Event...EVER! He has a few books of collected works that you can find on Amazon. You can find out more about Joe at www.joejanes.net and you can read his weekly satirical column The Minutes of Our Last Meeting at www.literateape.com. He acts, directs, and does a little improv.

Ric Walker - Writer/Actor

Ric is a performer, director, teacher, and writer. As a performer, Ric has had the pleasure of working on stage and on camera. His credits include performing at The Goodman, in Chicago, the Alliance in Atlanta and for The Second City Chicago, among many other stages. On Camera, he has been seen on Chicago Fire and Chicago PD and for a season on Fox TV's APB. He is also an ensemble member and current director of The Improvised Shakespeare Company in Chicago. He has directed a number of sketch comedy reviews and plays. He is a professor in the Comedy Writing and Performance department at Columbia College Chicago, the nation's first BA in Comedy. As a member emeritus of 2nd Story, Ric has been a part of the Chicago Storytelling scene since 2006 and was published in a compendium of short stories entitled Briefly Knocked Unconscious by A Low-Flying Duck.

Kelly Haran - Actor

Kelly Haran is a Chicago native and has had the joy of performing for The Second City in The National Touring Company and at their Las Vegas venue. More recently, she has appeared
in The Cherry Orchard, Itziar Barrio's The Perils of Obedience and had fun
taking 39 Defaults from a Brooklyn living room to Teatro Stage Fest and on to LaMaMa e.t.c. As a teacher, Kelly has led improvisation workshops for varied students - from kids in Buenos Aires to business people in New York.

Andrea J. Dymond - Director

Andrea J. Dymond is ecstatic to be working with this ensemble and returning to The Fringe! She and Joe Janes were last here, in 2017, when she directed his satire, Our Christian Nation. A Chicago-based freelance director, specializing in developing and directing new work; Andrea was Resident Director at Victory Gardens Theater, where she directed 11 productions, including 7 world premieres and helped to develop and launch the The Ignition Festival of new plays. In addition, her experience includes research and production dramaturgy, directing at new works festivals; serving as thesis play advisor for MFA playwrights at Carnegie Mellon; and, directing at NNPN's MFA Playwrights Workshops, at the Kennedy Center. Andrea teaches at Columbia College Chicago, where her courses have included directing, collaboration, text analysis, acting and new play development.

Lori McClain - Writer

Lori was born in Toledo, OH and received her BFA in Acting from Wright State University. Immediately after graduation, she put her theatre degree to good use by going on the road as a singer in a Top 40 cover band. She currently works with The Second City as an actor, facilitator and teacher, and in 2004, she was honored to perform with Second City for US troops in Iraq as part of a USO Tour. She is a founding member of the WNEP Theatre, a former ComedySportz Chicago performer, and currently improvises with the nation's longest-running all-female improv group, Sirens. She can be seen in numerous national TV commercials for KFC, Lyrica, and Aldi, among others. She is a proud union member of Actors' Equity and SAG-Aftra. lorimcclain.com

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