Shattered Globe's THE ROSE TATTOO Begins Tonight at Theater Wit

Shattered Globe Theatre will continue its 24th season with Tennessee Williams' Tony Award-winning comedy/drama THE ROSE TATTOO directed by Greg Vinkler, playing today, January 15 - February 28, 2015 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. Tickets go on sale Saturday, November 1, 2014 at www.theaterwit.org, in person at the Theater Wit Box Office or by calling (773) 975-8150. The press performance is Sunday, January 18 at 3 pm.

THE ROSE TATTOO will feature Shattered Globe Ensemble Members Eileen Niccolai, Christina Gorman, Doug McDade, Kelsey Melvin, Drew Schad and Megan Skord with Daniella Colucci, Nic Grelli, Daria Harper, Debra Rodkin, Noah Simon and Rachel Sledd. Additional casting to be announced.

THE ROSE TATTOO is unique in Williams' work - a special blend of comedy, emotional depth and lyricism. Set in an Italian-American community on Louisiana's Gulf Coast, a passionate overprotective Sicilian widow, Serafina Delle Rose, controls the life of her daughter, Rosa. The volatile Serafina also hides herself in the hazy memory of the husband she idealized who was killed smuggling illegal goods on the highway. The earthy eroticism of the play is unleashed as an unknown truck driver pulls into town and disturbs this simple seamstress' life. These two equally matched and impulsive characters develop an almost operatic relationship and, serenaded by exuberant townspeople, Serafina is finally delivered from her past memories and grief.

THE ROSE TATTOO premiered in Chicago in 1950 prior to opening on Broadway on February 3, 1951, where it received four Tony Awards, including Best Play. It was adapted into a film in 1955, which was nominated for eight Academy Awards, receiving three.

"Some of Shattered Globe's most dynamic and applauded ensemble work has been in four of Tennessee Williams' plays: A Streetcar Named Desire, Suddenly Last Summer, The Glass Menagerie and Orpheus Descending," comments Producing Artistic Director Sandy Shinner. "That tradition continues this winter with The Rose Tattoo - set in a steamy, romantic village on the Gulf Coast. Filled with passionate joy, The Rose Tattoo is seldom produced because of its large cast. The play is unique in the canon of the playwright's work: optimistic and operatic. It is a valentine which Williams himself called 'my love-play to the world.'"

"What about The Rose Tattoo spoke to me? Why did I want to direct it?" adds director Greg Vinkler. "After experiencing loss in my own life, it has become important for me to express the notion of hope to myself and to others in this world. The Rose Tattoo does that. It is a play in praise of life. It embraces the birth of love at the same time that it embraces its loss. And for those who have suffered loss, as many of us have, the play punches us with the very affirming possibilities and joys of rebirth and reconcilement with life. It is passionate, primal and funny. It is about life bursting at the seams."

The production team for THE ROSE TATTOO includes: Sarah Ross (scenic designer), Sarah Jo White (costume designer), Charlie Cooper (lighting designer), Christoper Kriz (sound designer), Vivian Knouse (props designer), Judy Anderson (production manager), Amanda Rozmiarek (technical director) and Jeffrey Clark Stokes (stage manager).

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