THE DREAM OF THE BURNING BOY Plays Profiles Theatre, Now thru 4/14

Profiles Theatre continues its 2012-2013 Season with the Midwest Premiere of The Dream of Burning Boy by West Read, directed by Artistic Director Joe Jahraus. The production, which was postponed due to a cast health matter, will continue performances tonight, March 7, 2013. Press is welcome to attend the new opening night performance on Sunday, March 10, 2013 at 7:00pm. The production runs through April 14, 2013 at Profiles Theatre's Alley Stage, 4147 N. Broadway.

Since the sudden death of his favorite student, high-school teacher Larry Morrow has been falling asleep at his desk and dreaming. Steve, the school's guidance counselor, hangs inspirational posters designed to help everyone "process their emotions" while the student's sister and friends find little solace in their schoolwork. The Dream of the Burning Boy is a bittersweet story of choices made, opportunities lost, and finding the strength to move on.

The Dream of the Burning Boy received its World premiere in March 2011 as part of Roundabout Underground, Roundabout Theatre's initiative to nurture new plays by emerging writers. Playwright David West Read, a native of Toronto, currently resides as a Lila Acheson Wallace Playwriting Fellow at The Juilliard School, and a recent graduate of the MFA program in Dramatic Writing at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. The Dream of the Burning Boy was developed at the 2010 National Playwrights Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. Mr. Read currently works on a commission for South Coast Repertory.

Directed by Profiles Co-Artistic Director Joe Jahraus, the cast of The Dream of the Burning Boy features Co-Artistic Director Darrell W. Cox as Larry and Profiles ensemble member Eric Burgher as Steve. Also featured are guest artists Marilyn Bass, Sarah Chalcroft, Joel Collins, Vic Kuligoski and Alaina Stacey.

"The Dream of the Burning Boy was my first fully-produced play in New York, and I am thrilled to be making my Midwest premiere with the same play just two years later," says playwright David West Read. "Profiles Theatre has been home to many great plays and playwrights in recent years, and with this company at the helm, I am confident that my work is in very good hands."

The designers are Shaun Renfro (set), Mike Durst (lights), Jeffrey Levin (sound and original music), and Raquel Adorno (costumes). Jessica Winn is the stage manager and Harmony France serves as assistant director.

The Dream of the Burning Boy is the fourth production of Profiles Theatre's 24th season.The final show of the season, the World premiere of Resident Artist Neil LaBute's revised stage version of In the Company of Men, opens May 16, 2013 at Profiles newest venue, The Main Stage.

Tickets for The Dream of the Burning Boy are $35 for Thursdays, $40 for Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are available by phone, (773) 549-1815, or online, www.profilestheatre.org. Performances are Thursdays and Fridays at 8:00pm, Saturdays at 5:00pm and 8:00pm and Sundays at 7:00pm.

David West READ (Playwright) is a New York-based playwright and screenwriter. His romantic comedy The Performers received its World premiere on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre in the fall of 2012, starring Henry Winkler, Alicia Silverstone, Cheyenne Jackson, and Ari Graynor. In addition to The Dream of the Burning Boy (O'Neill Theater Conference, Roundabout Underground; John Gassner Award nomination, Drama League Award nomination), David's other plays include The Dark Pines(Cape Cod Theatre Project) and Happy Face (Pacific Playwrights Conference). He has been commissioned to write plays for Roundabout Theatre Company, Burnt Umber Productions (both upcoming), and South Coast Repertory, as well as screenplays for B-Spoke Entertainment and Bunce Media. David is a graduate of the Lila Acheson Wallace Playwrights Program at The Juilliard School and the MFA program in Dramatic Writing at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, and a native of Toronto, Canada.

JOE JAHRAUS (Director) is the founder and Co-Artistic Director of Profiles Theatre. He most recently directed Profiles' Midwest Premiere of Sweet and Sad by Richard Nelson and the American Premiere of In a Forest, Dark and Deep by Neil LaBute. Previously, he directed the World Premiere of Assisted Living by Deirdre O'Connor, the Midwest Premiere of Fifty Words by Michael Weller, the World Premiere of Kid Sister by Will Kern, and the Midwest Premieres of Jailbait by Deirdre O'Connor, The Mercy Seat by Neil LaBute, Great Falls by Lee Blessing and The Thugs by Adam Bock. Joe also directed the Midwest Premieres of Neil LaBute's In a Dark Dark House, Some Girl(s) and Fat Pig, for which he received a Jeff Award Nomination for Outstanding Director. Other directing credits for Profiles include the American Premiere of Apple by Vern Thiessen, the award-winning Midwest Premiere of Blackbird by Adam Rapp, Babylon Gardens by Timothy Mason, The Water Engine and Sexual Perversity in Chicago by David Mamet, and the award-winning Midwest Premiere of Carnal Knowledge by Jules Fieffer, among others.

MARILYN BASS (Chelsea) is making her first appearance at Profiles Theatre. She was most recently seen in Voices in the Dark at Fury Theatre Company and Wolf at Brikenbrak Theatre Project. Marilyn received her training at Piven Theatre Workshop, the Actors Training Center and Profiles Theatre's Advanced Scene Study Intensive. Marilyn will soon be appearing in a BMO Harris Bank commercial and will be reprising her role in a film adaptation of Voices in the Dark shooting this Spring. Marilyn is a freshman theatre major at Loyola University Chicago and is represented by Grossman & Jack Talent.

ERIC BURGHER (Steve) was most recently seen in Profiles' Midwest Premiere of Sweet and Sad by Richard Nelson, as well as Profiles' Midwest Premiere of Bachelorette by Leslye Headland. Prior to that he appeared in Profiles' Midwest Premiere of A Behanding in Spokane by Martin McDonagh, for which he received a Jeff Award Nomination for Supporting Actor. Eric also appeared in the World Premiere of A Beautiful Spell by Greg Kalleres, with Rare Terra Theatre at the Royal George. Other appearances at Profiles include Jailbait, Fat Pig, Graceland, This is How It Goes, Body Awareness, Kid Sister, "Land of the Dead" as part of Profiles' Midwest Premiere of LaBute shorts, Things We Said Today, autobahn, The Glory of Living, The Radiant Abyss and Noise. Eric is an Adjunct Faculty member at Columbia College Chicago where he teaches acting.
SARAH CHALCROFT (Andrea) is making both her Profiles Theatre and Chicago debut having recently relocated from London. Her UK credits include Purgatorio at The Chocolate Factory; 4:48 Psychosis for Stonecrabs Theatre; Queen Margaret, The Merchant of Venice, Lear, Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, Measure for Measure, The Tempest and As You Like It for Bard in the Botanics, Glagsow; R & J and Infinite Variety for Cumbernauld Theatre, Scotland; Hedda Gabler with Theatre Babel; Blind Mouth Singing and Transmissions for Birmingham Rep; Vivienne Grout's Adventure In Another Metropolis for Sparkledark Theatre which toured venues around Scotland and appeared in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival; The Vagina Monologues for Cottiers Theatre; Love's Labour's Lost, Twelfth Night, Hamlet and As You Like It for British Touring Shakespeare. She also appeared in Taggart, for Scottish Television. Sarah is a member of Actors Equity.

JOEL COLLINS (Kyle) is making his Profiles debut. His past credits include Woyzeck at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Xanadu with the District Theatre, and the World premiere of Honor at Columbia College Chicago. Joel is a BFA theatre performance major at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

DARRELL W. COX (Larry) is Co-Artistic Director of Profiles Theatre where he most recently appeared in the Midwest Premiere of Sweet and Sad by Richard Nelson and the American Premiere of In a Forest Dark and Deep by Neil LaBute. Darrell received his fourth Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role for his performance as Joe Cooper in Profiles' production of Killer Joe by Tracy Letts. He has appeared at Steppenwolf in the World Premiere of Men of Tortuga (where he originated the role of Taggart), the Midwest Premiere of Orange Flower Water (which traveled to the Galway Arts Festival), and the World Premiere of Wendall Greene. He has also been seen at the Goodman in The Shawl and Home as part of the David Mamet Festival, American Theatre Company's Speed the Plow and Oleanna as part of the Mamet Repertory, as well as Jim Jones in the Midwest Premiere of The People's Temple, and the World Premiere of Martin Furey's Shot at TimeLine, among others. In addition to Killer Joe, Darrell received Joseph Jefferson Awards for Principal Actor for his work in Profiles' productions of Blackbird, Some Voices, and Eye of God. He has also received two After Dark Awards for Outstanding Performance for Profiles' productions of Popcorn, and Carnal Knowledge.

VIC KULIGOSKI (Dane) returns to Profiles after appearing in their World premiere production of Graceland by Ellen Fairey. Vic is from the Chicago area and attends Columbia College Chicago majoring in theatre. Most recently, he has performed at Columbia College in their production of Columbinus and Spotlight Theatre's production of Talk Radio. This past summer, Vic appeared in the independent film, Maydays.

ALAINA STACEY (Rachel) is joining Profiles Theatre for her first professional production. She is a senior at Whitney Young High School and has been participating in theater since her freshman year, appearing in productions of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Women and Wallace, Jugger's Rain, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood, as well as working backstage for several school productions. Outside of theater Alaina is a singer/songwriter involved with many groups around the city, performing at various venues such as Schuba's Tavern and Uncommon Ground.

Profiles Theatre, founded in 1988 by Artistic Director Joe Jahraus, joined shortly thereafter by Artistic Director Darrell W. Cox, was formed as an actor-driven theatre ensemble dedicated to creating provocative and emotionally truthful productions. Passionate about shaping an original vision for new works, they focused on performing World, American and Midwest premieres as well as rarely performed plays. Critically acclaimed hits, such as BLACKBIRD, FAT PIG, GRACELAND and the multiple Jeff Award-winning KILLER JOE, established Profiles as a destination for challenging and edgy theatre. Their unique collaboration with playwright Neil LaBute led the ensemble to perform an entire season of his plays in 2007-2008. Now a Resident Artist at Profiles, LaBute remains an unequivocal artistic influence on the ensemble.

After performing at 4147 North Broadway for more than two decades, Profiles acquired an adjacent theatre at 4139 North Broadway in 2012. Profiles' new theatre, The Main Stage, with its larger seating capacity, increased performance space and higher ceilings, accommodates more ambitious and technically demanding productions. Their long-time venue, renamed The Alley Stage, continues as the home for plays strengthened by a more intimate staging. Driven by an undiminished appetite for creating honest and resonant theatre, Profiles still seeks to present work that illuminates the determination and resiliency of the human spirit.

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