Strawdog 24th Anniversary Season Begins

Strawdog Theatre Company and newly named Artistic Director, Brandon Bruce, are pleased to announce their 24th Anniversary Season. The season includes Old Times by Harold Pinter, directed by Strawdog Artistic Associate Kimberly Senior; Petrified Forest by Robert E. Sherwood, directed by Strawdog Artistic Associate Shade Murray and Duchess of Malfi by John Webster, directed by Strawdog's Artistic Director Brandon Bruce.

Strawdog Theatre Company's 24th Season includes:
Old Times by Harold Pinter
October 6 - November 12
Kimberly Senior, director
Show Dates:
Previews: Thursday, Oct.6 at 8 p.m.;
Friday, Oct. 7 at 8 p.m.
Benefit Preview: Saturday, Oct. 8. at 7 p.m.
Press Opening: Sunday, Oct. 9. at 4 p.m.
Industry Night: Thursday, Oct. 13. at 8 p.m.
Closing Night: Saturday, Nov. 12. at 8 p.m.
Performance Times:
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 4 p.m.
Kate and her husband Deeley are expecting a visit by Anna, Kate's former flat mate. By all appearances a typical gather, but this is Pinter, and as the friendly meeting begins and memories begin colliding with reality, and people begin colliding with each other, Kate and Deeley's seaside cottage gets a little too cozy for the three.
"What Pinter is asking the audience to consider, and what I am excited to explore, is 'which reigns supreme-- desire or memory?'" says Director and Artistic Associate Kimberly Senior as she prepares to helm the Old Times production this fall at Strawdog.
Petrified Forest by Robert E. Sherwood
February 23, 2012 - March 31, 2012
Shade Murray, director
Show Dates:
Previews: Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012 at 8 p.m.;
Friday, Feb. 24, 2012 at 8 p.m.
Benefit Preview: Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012 at 7 p.m.
Press Opening: Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012 at 4 p.m.
Industry Night: Thursday, March 1, 2012 at 8 p.m.
Closing Night: Saturday, March 31, 2012 at 8 p.m.
Performance Times:
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 4 p.m.
Part crime drama, part political allegory, The Petrified Forest uses a tense roadside hostage drama to show both the rewards and the consequences of taking action during a time of widespread stagnation, national uncertainty, and personal desperation. Written by a gifted playwright who would go on to become one of FDR's most valued speech-writers, The Petrified Forest is a Depression-era masterpiece which is alternately funny, romantic, thrilling and violent, but consistently political.
Director and Artistic Associate Shade Murray sees the "Petrified Forest as Sherwood's wake-up call to the revolutionary spirit that lives inside each artist and criminal, entrepreneur and immigrant, ideological teenager and grizzled war-veteran. In essence, each American."
Duchess of Malfi by John Webster
April 19, 2012 - May 26, 2012
Brandon Bruce, director
Show Dates:
Previews: Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 8 p.m.; Friday, April 20, 2012 at 8 p.m.
Benefit Preview: Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 7 p.m.
Press Opening: Sunday, April 22, 2012 at 4 p.m.
Industry Night: Thursday, April 26, 2012 at 8 p.m.
Closing Night: Saturday, May 26, 2012 at 8 p.m.
Performance Times:
Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 4p.m.

Based on actual events in the Italian Court of the Sixteenth Century, Webster's The Duchess Of Malfi tells the story of the widowed Duchess and her secret marriage to Antonio. The love of the Duchess defies both social convention and the wishes of her brothers, The Cardinal, and her twin, Ferdinand. Publicly the brothers want the Duchess to remain unmarried, appealing to Christian piety; however, their true motives are greed and an incestuous lust. When the brothers learn of the marriage, it unleashes a storm of murderous revenge.

Directing for the first time at Strawdog and for the first time as Artistic Director, Brandon Bruce says, "This is a challenging play about corruption, madness and betrayal. I find it to be a deeply disturbing work that floods its audiences with waves of sexuality and intrigue. I believe it's the perfect play for my re-entry into the Chicago theatre scene."

ABOUT THE DIRECTORS
Kimberly Senior's long list of credits at Strawdog include The Conquest of the South Pole, Uncle Vanya, Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, Fuddy Meers, and Knives in Hens. Other recent credits in Chicago include The North Plan (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), Madagascar, The Overwhelming, and The Busy World is Hushed (Next Theatre Company) Bad Dates and Mouse Cop (Fox Valley Repertory), Bug and The Pillowman (Redtwist Theatre), Thieves Like Us (The House Theatre), All My Sons and Dolly West's Kitchen (TimeLine Theatre) among others. Regional: Mauritius (Theatre Squared, Fayetteville, AR) and A Few Good Men (Peninsula Players). Future productions involving Senior as Director include Waiting for Lefty (American Blues Theater), The North Plan (Theater Wit) and After The Revolution (Next Theatre). Kimberly is an Artistic Associate at Next Theatre, Strawdog Theatre and Chicago Dramatists. She is on the faculty of Columbia College Chicago (2010 Excellence in Teaching Award Winner), DePaul University and University of Chicago. Senior is a proud member of SDC. For more information go to Senior's website kimberlysenior.com
Shade Murray's directing credits include Abigail's Party at A Red Orchid (Jeff Nomination, Director), End Days at Next Theatre, The Chosen (Jeff Nomination, Director), The Subject Was Roses at Writers' Theatre, Fatty Arbuckle... at Second City, The Good Soul of Szechuan, R.U.R., Marathon '33 (Jeff and After Dark Awards, ensemble), Detective Story (Jeff Award, Production, Director, Ensemble), WRLS #5, and Our Country's Good at Strawdog Theatre, Stupid Kids (Jeff Nomination, Director), Some Explicit Polaroids, Santaland Diaries, Never Swim Alone at Roadworks as well as productions at the MCA, Shattered Globe, About Face, Colbalt, Shakespeare's Motley Crew, Timberlake Playhouse and dance theatre in collaboration with MK and Birgitta Victorson. Murray is an MFA candidate in directing at Northwestern University, an associate artist with A Red Orchid and Strawdog Theatre Companies and has taught at Northwestern University, DePaul University, Act One Studios, National Louis University, National High School Institute, Piven Workshop and the Actor's Gym. Murray is also scheduled to direct The Butcher of Baraboo at A Red Orchid Theatre.
Brandon Bruce comes to Strawdog after an award-winning tenure as artistic director of Chicago's BackStage Theatre and as the Iowa Arts Directing Fellow at the University of Iowa. At BackStage, Buce directed the Joseph Jefferson Award-winning production of The Skin of Our Teeth, The Ruling Class, the world premiere of Denise Druczweski's Inferno and Terra Nova (Jeff Recommended). At the University of Iowa (where he received his MFA in Directing), Bruce directed Reefer Madness! The Musical, the new musical The Boy in Black and Akarui (IRAM Award for Outstanding Direction). In 2009, his production of The Little Foxes at Chicago's Shattered Globe received three Joseph Jefferson nominations including Best Production. Currently, Bruce is serving as artistic director of Indiana's Shawnee Theatre where he will direct The Fantasticks and The 39 Steps. This fall, he will serve as a guest lecturer and direct Sunday in the Park with George at Grinnell College. In 2006, Bruce received the Orgie Award for Best Director for his staging of Tango at Chicago's Chopin Theatre. Other directing credits include The Scene (Iowa Summer Rep), The Importance of Being Earnest (Festival 56), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Pella Shakespeare Festival), Catch-22 (Signal Ensemble) and Picasso at the Lapin Agile (New Leaf Theatre). In 2007, Time Out Chicago listed Bruce as one of the "Top 20 Chicagoans to Watch". For more information, visit his website at www.brandon-bruce.com.

ABOUT STRAWDOG THEATRE COMPANY

Since its founding in 1988, Strawdog Theatre Company has offered Chicagoland the premiere storefront theatre experience and garnered numerous Non-Equity Jeff Awards with its commitment to ensemble acting and an immersive design approach. The celebrated Company develops new work, re-imagines the classics, melds music with theatre, asks provocative questions and delivers their audience the unexpected.

The current Strawdog ensemble includes Jennifer Avery, Hank Boland, Abigail Boucher, Don Cardiff, Erin Carlson, Michael Dailey, Anita Deely, Amy Dunlap, Paul Fagen, John Ferrick, Mikhail Fiksel, Kyle Gibson, Sarah Goeden, Aly Renee Amidei, Carmine Grisolia, Christopher Hainsworth, Kyle Hamman, Erik Hellman, Tom Hickey, Shannon Hoag, Jordan Kardasz, Anderson Lawfer, Sean Mallary, Kat McDonnell, Gregor Mortis, Stacy Parker Hirsch, Michaela Petro, Mike Przygoda, John Henry Roberts, Justine C. Turner, Jamie Vann and James Anthony Zoccoli. Strawdog Artistic Director is Brandon Bruce, Managing Director is Hank Boland and General Manager is Cortney Hurley. Notable Strawdog alums include Elizabeth Auman (TimeLine), Alexandra Billings (actress, cabaret star), Nancy Bishop (casting director), Chrisanne Blankenship (director), Becca Cardo (voice-over artist), Kristin Caskey (Fox Theatricals), Scott Cummins (actor, director) and James Denton (Desperate Housewives). Strawdog supports Mookie Jam, a Chicago-based, not-for-profit organization created to assist artists living with multiple sclerosis - www.mookiejam.org.

These productions, plus ongoing late night offerings, are presented at Strawdog's space in the heart of Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood, 3829 N. Broadway Street. The neighborhood has limited paid parking and is easily accessible by public transportation (via the Red Line Sheridan stop, plus 36-Broadway, 80-Irving Park, and 151-Sheridan buses).

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