The House Theatre Presents North American Premiere Of THE TRAGEDY OF KING CHRISTOPHE At Chopin Theatre

The House Theatre of Chicago continues its 20th season, the first led by new artistic director Lanise Antoine Shelley under the theme "The House Reimagined," with the North American premiere of The Tragedy of King Christophe, the true story of the rise and fall of the first King of Haiti, April 22-May 29, 2022 at the Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St., Chicago. Press opening is Sunday, May 1, 2022 at 7:30 p.m.

Written in 1963 by West Indian playwright and poet, Aimé Césaire, translated from French by Paul Breslin and Rachel Ney, The Tragedy of King Christophe is set in a period of upheaval after the Haitian Revolution of 1804. It follows the true story of Henri Christophe, a general in Jean-Jacques Dessalines' army who was elected president but, in 1811, chose to declare himself king.

Sound familiar?

As history repeats itself, both in the U.S. and Haiti, director Lanise Antoine Shelley's bold staging of The Tragedy of King Christophe exposes the tragedy of one man's transformation from a charismatic leader fighting against the oppression of his people to his unfortunate unraveling. Audiences can look forward to an unabashed homage to the changing of guards, in an all-new production that casts a bright light on Haitian and world history, past and present, through an elegant prism of epic storytelling, vibrant dance and Haitian music.

The cast for The Tragedy of King Christophe features Christian Bufford (Petoin), Jyreika Guest (Metellus), Chris Khoshaba (Franco de Medina), Keith Illidge (Magny), Matthew Lolar (Hugonin), Gabrielle Lott-Rogers (Commentator), William Anthony Sebastian Rose II (Christophe) and Leslie Ann Sheppard (Madame Christophe).

The production team (at press time) is Lanise Antoine Shelley, director; Mariama Pouye, Assistant Director; Michelle Lilly, scenic design; Izumi Inaba, costume design; Jessica Neill, lighting design; Joshua Schmidt, sound design and composition; Sadira Muhammad, choreographer; Maya Vinice Prentiss, dramaturg and dialect coach; Gaspard Louis, linguistic consultant; and, Dr. Reginald Dewight Patterson, cultural anthropologist.

The Tragedy of King Christophe will debut in the Chopin Theatre Upstairs Mainstage, 1543 W. Division St., in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood. Previews start April 22, 2022. Press opening is Sunday, May 1at 7:30 p.m. Performances run through May 29. Show times are Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 3 p.m. Runtime is 1 hour and 35 minutes, no intermission.

Tickets, $20-$50, are on sale now at thehousetheatre.com. Groups of 10 or more can save up to 20 percent by emailing boxoffice@thehousetheatre.com. For more information, visit thehousetheatre.com or follow The House on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

All audience members attending live performances must wear a mask and provide proof of vaccination upon entry. The House and its performers, backstage crew, and staff are likewise complying with vaccination requirements and testing protocols to further ensure the safety of all guests and company members. Please visit thehousetheatre.com/health-and-safety for more information, or email boxoffice@thehousetheatre.com for more information.

To post a comment, you must register and login.