Steep Theatre Stages U.S. Premiere of THE KNOWLEDGE, Now thru 5/25

Director Jonathan Berry teams up with actor Caroline Neff in Steep Theatre's upcoming U.S. Premiere of John Donnelly's The Knowledge. The two long-time Steep associates quickly have become two of Chicago theater's brightest stars. Mr. Berry, 2012 Jeff Award winner for Best Director, and Ms. Neff, 2011 Jeff Award winner for Best Actress in a Featured Role, have been delighting audiences at Steep for the better part of the last decade; however, The Knowledge will mark the first time that the two have collaborated on a Steep production. The Knowledge opens tonight, April 18th, at Steep Theatre.

The Knowledge premiered in 2011 at London's Bush Theatre as part of their "School Series": a pairing of plays examining the current state of education in Britain. Playwright John Donnelly worked as a teacher in various schools across England and, in The Knowledge, offers a disturbing, blisteringly funny account of a young teacher going off the rails in a failing school system. Mr. Donnelly is a past winner of the Tom Erhardt Award, the PMA Award for Best New Writer, and the NSDF Sunday Times Playwriting Award. His other plays include Little Russians (Tricycle Theatre/ First Blast: Proliferation Season), Encourage the Others (Almeida Projects), Songs of Grace and Redemption (Liminal Theatre/Theatre 503), Showtime (LAMDA), Conversation #1(The Factory/V&A/Latitude Festival) and Bone (Royal Court Theatre).

Director Jonathan Berry is a Steep Artistic Associate whose past collaborations with the company have produced some of the more memorable shows in recent Chicago theater history. In 2011, their Midwest Premiere of Festen received rave reviews from critics across the board and was sold out for the entirety of its 10-week extended run. Festen was given the Chicago Tribune's highest rating of Four Stars and was named one of the top shows of 2011 by Timeout Chicago, the Chicago Sun Times, theatreinchicago.com, and Chicago Theatre Beat. Steep and Berry followed in 2012 with yet another Four Star, extended hit -- Moment. Moment ran for 9 sold-out weeks at Steep before transferring to Theater Wit for an added six-week run in front of near capacity crowds.

Berry's other Steep credits include the Midwest Premiere of Howard Korder's The Hollow Lands and Bertolt Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, which was named one of the top shows of 2007 by Timeout Chicago and the Sun Times and was named one of the top ten shows of the decade by Kelly Kleiman of WBEZ. Mr. Berry is also a Griffin Company artistic associate where he has directed the North American premieres of Simon Stephens' Punk Rock, Port, and On the Shore of the Wide World, among many other productions. He was nominated for two 2012 Jeff Awards for Best Director for his work on Griffin's Punk Rock and Spring Awakening, winning the award for Punk Rock.

Steep Ensemble Member Caroline Neff won the 2011 Jeff Award for Best Actress in a Featured Role for her work in Steep's A Brief History of Helen of Troy. She followed that up in 2012 with another Jeff nomination for her work in Steep's Under the Blue Sky. The Knowledge will mark Ms. Neff's first time back at Steep since Under the Blue Sky. In that time, she has worked extensively throughout the city, perhaps most notably as Irina in Steppenwolf's production of Three Sisters, adapted by Tracy Letts and directed by Anna Shapiro. The last time Caroline Neff and Jonathan Berry worked together, on Griffin Theatre's 2011 production of Simon Stephens' Port, Ms. Neff received a Jeff Nomination for Best Actress in a Featured Role. She ultimately lost -- to herself, for A Brief History of Helen of Troy.

Caroline Neff will be joined by fellow Steep Company Members Jim Poole and Michael Salinas. Steep newcomers Carrie Braver, Jerry MacKinnon, Jr., Clancy McCartney, and Sarai Rodriguez round out the cast. The Design Team will be comprised of Dan Stratton (Set Design - Moment, Festen), Pete Dully (Light Design - Luther, The Receptionist), Matthew Chapman (Sound Design - Harper Regan), Sally Dolembo (Costume Design), and Ellen Willett (Stage Manager - Festen, The Receptionist).

Steep Theatre has become known as a home for hard-hitting, finely tuned ensemble work. With each production, the company has shepherded a growing community of audiences and stakeholders into bold new territories of story and performance. Over the years, Steep productions have been named to TimeOut Chicago's Top Ten Shows of the Year list five times, the Tribune's Top Ten List once, the Tribune's Best of the Fringe list twice, the Sun Times's best of the year list twice, and WBEZ's Top Ten Shows of the Decade. In six years of Jeff Eligibility, Steep has received 11 Jeff Nominations and has won the 2009 Jeff Award for Best Ensemble (In Arabia We'd All Be Kings), the 2010 Jeff Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Harper Regan), and the 2011 Jeff Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Steep was named the 2010 Broadway in Chicago Emerging Theatre Award Winner.

The Knowledge runs Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 8pm from tonight, April 18th through Saturday, Mary 25th. There are two Sunday matinee performances scheduled for April 28th and May 5th at 4pm. Tickets for the production range from $20-$22. Reservations can be made by calling (866) 811-4111 or by visiting www.steeptheatre.com. Steep Theatre is conveniently located by the Berwyn Red Line stop and is within blocks of the #92, #36, #146, #147, and #151 buses.

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