Piven & American Blues Theater Present RIPPED: THE LIVING NEWSPAPER PROJECT 5/10

Piven Theatre Workshop and American Blues Theater proudly present RIPPED: the Living Newspaper Project, an original production of short scripts inspired by current events, ripped from today's headlines. All proceeds from RIPPED benefit the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The one-night-only performance is Monday, May 10, 2010 at Piven Theatre Workshop, 927 Noyes Street.

RIPPED: the Living Newspaper Project is based on the 1930 WPA-era program that brought writers Orson Welles, Arthur Miller and Clifford Odets into public attention. RIPPED is an on-going project of ABT, which gives a voice to today's headlines for today's audience. The May 10th edition deals with the impact of current events on women and their families. Playwrights include: Lydia Stryk, MEH Lewis, Nambi Kelley, Deborah Puette, Bret Angelos, Pete Wolf Smith, Steve Spencer.

"This event is about creating art together to benefit people from our community. Each week the Greater Chicago Food Depository and its agencies serve 142,400 men, women and children. 47% of those households have to choose between paying for utilities and buying groceries," says Heather Meyers, ABT Literary Manager. "We hope folks will come out and support the art, but more importantly, we hope they will be generous to those who need our support the most."

Purchase tickets online at Brown Paper Tickets for $20 at: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/107304. Tickets may also be purchased at the door for $25, cash only. Seating is general admission.

About The Piven Theatre
For over 35 years, the Piven Theatre Workshop has remained a nationally respected acting school and professional Equity theatre. Within recent history, Piven Theatre has received a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Sound Design, and an After Dark Award for Outstanding Ensemble. The theatre has also received several Joseph Jefferson Recommendations, a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Adaptation, and Jeff nominations for Best Original Score, and Best Ensemble. Co-Founders Byrne & Joyce Piven have trained countless theatre artists such as John and Joan Cusack, Kate Walsh, Aidan Quinn, Lili Taylor and Jeremy Piven, to name only a few. Stagebill honored the Pivens with the designation "Chicago's first family of acting."

The Pivens have been awarded the Evanston Mayors Award for the Arts, Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Chicago Improv Festival, and the University of Chicago's Glorious Gargoyle Award for lifetime contribution to the theatre. They were named 1996 Artists of the Year by the Chicago Tribune and were recipients of the Chicago Drama League's 1998 Crystal Award. In 2000, they were awarded a Joseph Jefferson Lifetime Achievement Award. For more information, please visit www.piventheatre.org.

About American Blues Theater
American Blues Theater is an Ensemble of inherently collaborative theater artists. We re-envision great American classics and reach out to the Chicago theater community to create new work that reflects our working class roots and celebrates the diverse American character. We dedicate each production to the working people of our region and partner with social service and community organizations. For more information, please visit www.americanbluestheater.com.

About The Greater Chicago Food Depository

Chicago's food bank is a nonprofit food distribution and training center providing food for hungry people while striving to end hunger in our community. The Food About the Greater Chicago Food Depository

Depository distributes donated and purchased food through a network of 650 pantries, soup kitchens and shelters to 678,000 adults and children in Cook County every year. Last year, the Food Depository distributed 58 million pounds of nonperishable food and fresh produce, dairy products and meat, the equivalent of 119,000 meals every day. The Food Depository's programs and services for children, older adults and the unemployed and underemployed address the root causes of hunger. For more information, log onto www.chicagosfoodbank.org or call 773-247-FOOD.

To post a comment, you must register and login.