A Red Orchid Theatre Announces 2018-2019 Season; Regional Premiere of SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS and More

A Red Orchid Theatre announces its 26th Season, including the Chicago premieres of Small Mouth Sounds by Bess Wohl, directed by Ensemble Member Shade Murray, and featuring Ensemble Members Jennifer Engstrom and Larry Grimm, and Fulfillment Center by Abe Koogler, directed by Jess McLeod, and featuring Ensemble Members Steve Haggard and Natalie West. The 2018-2019 Season will conclude with The Killing Game by Eugene Ionesco, directed by Ensemble Member Dado, featuring Ensemble Members Lance Baker, Mierka Girten and Doug Vickers, with design by Ensemble Member Mike Durst.

"How do we address any of life's questions when words fail us? Or when the words being used are so damn mean?" asks Artistic Director Kirsten Fitzgerald. "I find myself emotionally confused these days. Alternately inspired to fight loud and hard and then to withdraw. Space to simply BE is scarcer and scarcer. Comfort and ease are incredibly hard to find. Connection thinner and thinner. These artists and stories give me hope. To have Bess Wohl, Abe Koogler and Jess McLeod in the room for the first time is both thrilling and an honor. Old friends like Eugene Ionesco, Dado and Shade Murray bring inspiration and joy. Let's play!"

A Red Orchid Theatre's 2018-2019 Season includes:

The Chicago Premiere of

SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS

By Bess Wohl

Directed by Ensemble Member Shade Murray

Featuring Ensemble Members Jennifer Engstrom & Larry Grimm

October 18-December 9, 2018

Previews: October 18-27, 2018

Press Performances: Saturday, October 27 at 3pm & 7:30pm

Opening: Sunday, October 28, 2018 at 7pm

Red Night: Friday, November 2, 2018 at 7:30pm

Six urbanites take their troubles to the woods and attempt to work them out at a secluded spiritual retreat. Attendees may not speak for the entire week, clothing is optional at the lake, and beware of bears. The isolating silence collides with the human ache to connect. How do we address life's biggest questions when words fail us? A Chicago premiere that is at once strange and compassionate, awkward and graceful, silly and profound.

The Chicago Premiere of

FULFILLMENT CENTER

By Abe Koogler

Directed by Jess McLeod

Featuring Ensemble Members Steve Haggard & Natalie West

January 31-March 24, 2019

Previews: January 31-February 9, 2019

Press Performances: Saturday, February 9 at 3pm & 7:30pm

Opening: Sunday, February 10, 2019 at 7pm

Red Night: Friday, February 15, 2019 at 7:30pm

In the New Mexico desert, a down-on-her-luck folk singer takes a job at a giant retailer's shipping center. Her young manager struggles to connect with his newly relocated girlfriend. A drifter living at a local campground dangerously links them all. Four lonely lives come together in the search for fulfillment in this raw, surprising and funny

Chicago premiere.

THE KILLING GAME

By Eugene Ionesco

Directed by Ensemble Member Dado

Featuring Ensemble Members Lance Baker, Mierka Girten & Doug Vickers

Design by Ensemble Member Mike Durst

May 2-June 23, 2019

Previews: May 2-11, 2019

Press Performances: Saturday, May 11 at 3pm & 7:30pm

Opening: Sunday, May 12, 2019 at 7pm

Red Night: Friday May 17, 2019 at 7:30pm

A town is beset by plague and the bodies are piling up along with moral accusations, political implications and medical speculations. We peer into households and down many streets as people search for any logic to the ceaseless barrage of death. One of Ionesco's last plays, The Killing Game is a piercing and frighteningly funny look at how the function of language and the panic surrounding social crisis sends a community into a chaotic state of paranoia, hypocrisy and opportunism.

Ticket Information

A Red Orchid continues the FLASHPASS. As always, FLASHPASS holders get reserved seats, ticket and date flexibility, no-fee ticket exchanges, discounts for friends & family tickets, and early access to events such as readings, panel discussions, and more. The Three-show FLASHPASS is $90 and includes one ticket to each of the 3 shows in our 26th Season, excluding Press Opening and Red Nights. The Three-show Red Night FLASHPASS is $150 and includes a ticket to each of the 3 show's Red Night Opening and post-show receptions with the cast and creative team. The Preview FLASHPASS is $60 and includes one ticket to a preview performance of each of the 3 shows in our 26th season.

FLASHPASSes may be purchased from the Box Office at 1531 N. Wells Street, Monday through Friday from 12pm to 5pm, by telephone during office hours by dialing (312) 943-8722, or online at www.aredorchidtheatre.org. Individual tickets will go on sale at a later date.

With our 26th season of ambitious and powerful storytelling, we continue to champion A Red Orchid Theatre's Red League, which is a gift $1k or more, and the Founders Circle, which is a gift of $5k or more annually for a three-year pledge. These donors represent a community of our most committed and impactful cultural investors. Every profound and shocking moment on our stage is made possible through their critical annual contributions. Their philanthropic leadership fosters the development of raw and relevant work, creates a platform for our talented ensemble to reach new audiences, and ensures that A Red Orchid Theatre remains a source for honest, compassionate, and aesthetically rigorous theatre.

About A Red Orchid

A Red Orchid Theatre has served as an artistic focal point in the heart of the Old Town community of Chicago since 1993 and was honored with a 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Over the past 25 years, its Resident Ensemble has welcomed into its fold an impressive array of award-winning theatre artists with the firm belief that live theatre is the greatest sustenance for the human spirit. A Red Orchid is well known and highly acclaimed for its fearless approach to performance and design in the service of unflinchingly intimate stories. In addition to its professional season, the company is also committed to a Youth Project and hosts The Incubator (providing artists with space and time to explore new work, new forms and new artistic collaborations).

A Red Orchid Theatre is: Lance Baker, Kamal Angelo Bolden, Dado, Mike Durst, Jennifer Engstrom, Kirsten Fitzgerald, Joseph Fosco, Steve Haggard, Mierka Girten, Larry Grimm, Karen Kawa, Karen Kessler, Danny McCarthy, Shade Murray, Brett Neveu, Michael Shannon, Guy Van Swearingen, Doug Vickers and Natalie West.

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