Shattered Globe to Present MARVIN'S ROOM, 10/1-11/14

Shattered Globe Theatre is pleased to open its 25th season with a 25th anniversary production of MARVIN'S ROOM, Chicago playwright Scott McPherson's award-winning, mordantly funny dark comedy about putting family first, directed by Producing Artistic Director Sandy Shinner. MARVIN'S ROOM will play October 1 - November 14, 2015 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are available at www.theaterwit.org, in person at the Theater Wit Box Office or by calling (773) 975-8150. The press performance is Sunday, October 4 at 3 pm.

MARVIN'S ROOM will feature Ensemble Members Rebecca Jordan*, Linda Reiter* and Drew Schad* and SGT Protégé Program graduate Nate Santana with Deanna Dunagan, Kyle Klein II, Deanna Reed-Foster and Don Tieri.

Linda Reiter (Bessie) was recently nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award for her performance in The Testament of Mary at Victory Gardens, as well as numerous SGT shows including Come Back Little Sheba, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Manchurian Candidate, Other People's Money, among others. Rebecca Jordan (Lee) is known for her SGT performances in Mill Fire, A Streetcar Named Desire, Anna Karenina and others. Deanna Dunagan (Ruth) won the Tony Award for Best Actress in Steppenwolf Theatre's August Osage County. She has recently performed at Lookingglass in The North China Lover and Death Tax, as well as the Goodman's Other Desert Cities, and stars in the upcoming movie The Visit directed by M. Night Shyamalan.

Winner of the Outer Critics Circle Award and the Drama Desk Award for New Play, MARVIN'S ROOM has been rapturously praised by audiences and critics alike since its world premiere at Chicago's Goodman Theater in 1990. Bessie devotes her life to caring for her elderly father and aunt and so her own diagnosis of leukemia plummets their world into a tailspin. In need of a bone marrow transplant, Bessie reaches out to her estranged sister Lee and her two nephews. If they are to be of any help, then old wounds must be opened. MARVIN'S ROOM is about finding family and the timeless concerns of living, dying and caring for others told with McPherson's signature humor.

During the play's Chicago debut, the Chicago Tribune's Richard Christiansen wrote, "From the everyday environment of a suburban home to the fantasy land of Disney World, McPherson found the exact scene, the perfect dialogue and the precise image to express his American tragicomedy." The Chicago Sun-Times' Hedy Weiss said "it is McPherson's great and original gift to make his characters and their fates seem almost shamefully comical and absolutely honest at every moment" and The New York Times called the play "one of the funniest plays of the year as well as one of the wisest and most moving." The Chicago Tribune's Chris Jones wrote during a later production in 2009, "time has withered neither its power nor its wisdom."

"I am particularly excited to open Shattered Globe's 25th anniversary season with Scott McPherson's play Marvin's Room, also celebrating its 25th anniversary," comments Producing Artistic Director Sandy Shinner. "Marvin's Room's generous spirit and its reminder of the rewards of caring for others seems like healing balm when the theater community is still reeling from recent profound losses. As the original dramaturg on the play, and a friend of Scott's, I had always hoped to spend a little more time in his witty, loving world. The cast is incredibly strong with award winning SGT Ensemble members Linda Reiter and Rebecca Jordan playing sisters Bessie and Lee. As Scott himself said, one of the sisters 'has trouble showing love and one is an expert at it.' We are very happy that Deanna Dunagan loves the role of Ruth and has chosen to perform for the first time with SGT," adds Shinner.

The production team for MARVIN'S ROOM includes Nick Mozak (scenic designer), Sarah Jo White* (costume designer), Shelley Strasser Holland* (lighting designer), Chris Kriz (sound designer), Vivian Knouse* (props designer), Deanna Dunagan (associate director), Kelly Claussen (production manager) and Razor Wintercastle and Tina Jach (stage managers). *Denotes SGT Ensemble Member.

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