The 12th (!!!) Annual SKALD Storytelling Week has arrived.
Monday at 10AM – Amanda Rountree conducts a two-hour storytelling workshop for kids at the Cultural Center (5th Floor, Washington Room)
Tuesday at 6PM – 9PM – Don Hall and Amanda Rountree work with adults to inspire creativity and add structure to your stories and give you a chance to share some with the participants. We’ll also encourage those that attend to contact and sign up for the various storytelling nights throughout the regular week that have sprouted up throughout the city.
Friday at 7:30PM – DCA Studio Theater – MAELSTROM! Six improvising SKALDs spin tales based on your suggestions and you vote who walks away with $150.00!
Saturday at 3:00PM – DCA Studio Theater – KidSKALD!! This one is FREE to the public.
Featuring:
Seth Steinberg – age 11
Annabelle Gross – age 10
Madyson Hersh – age 8
Talia Levy – age 13
Maggie Maher – age 11
Adam Rothschild – age 14
Carly Merdinger – age 10
Kelly Olvany – age 10
Annie Roge – age 17
Elita Ernsteen – age 11
Stephanie Reedy – age 11
Melanie Neilann – age 11
Saturday at 7:30PM – DCA Studio Theater – SKALD 12! Ten stories, one winner and a spectacular night out!
SKALD 12: The Twelfth Annual SKALD Storytelling Competition has had our annual auditions and we are ready for the contestants to jump into the ring (actually a stage in the heart of downtown Chicago) and battle it out for bragging rights and cash!
Six skalds tell three stories apiece based on the suggestions from the audience. Then that same audience evaluates the results and crowns one the winner!
Featuring
Regan Davis
Audery Smith
Craig Rennick
Jess Jones
Tom Herman
and
Fuzzy Gerdes
February 11 through March 6, 2011
Fridays, Saturdays, & Sundays at 7:00 p.m.
Tickets are $15.00 Friday/Saturday, $10 on Sundays
Viaduct Theater Studio
3111 North Western Avenue
(773) 296-6024 for tickets
WNEP Theater is freakin’ proud to present the reprisal of 2000′s hit improvised documentary “Postmortem” at the Viaduct Theater Studio in February and March of 2011.
“Postmortem” is a 75-minute improvised documentary based upon an actual obituary taken from the Chicago Tribune on the day of the show. The cast of ten then presents scenes and monologues that take us through that person’s life from birth to death.
In 2000, ImprovReview.com said that “Postmortem” was “A startling and well-staged trip to a possible afterlife…moving and emotionally satisfying…” and the Chicago Reader mentioned that “…the talented cast shows off their skills…conveying wit and drama in a truly human manner…a comment on America’s history as wellas that of the individual…”
Steampunk 585 is incubating – slowly – but sometime next year it will morph into an original piece of theater inspired by Anthony Burgess’ A Clockwork Orange. It is slated for production by WNEP Theater AFTER Postmortem and will be developed and executed through a process of collaboration between actors, designers, and me, the director. In true dadaist fashion, we will break the story down and then build it back up, bit by bit, into a minimalist production that will draw upon the central idea of Grotowski’s Poor Theater — that the only ingredient essential to theater is the relationship between actor and audience. In the vein of Artaud’s Theater of Cruelty, one of its goals will be to elicit a visceral reaction from its audience by forcing it to tap into the darker areas of its psyche.
This thing is my brainchild. Anyone who knows or has ever worked closely with me knows that my brain doesn’t exactly function in a way that most people would consider normal. After watching a number of my short films at last month’s Frequency, an audience member approached me and told me they felt like somebody had opened up their head and taken a piss in it. Of course, I took that as a compliment.
The point is, don’t expect Steampunk 585 to give you an evening of wholesome, family entertainment. If you’re looking for such an evening, go see a Neil Simon play.
So. . .
Confused? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. I wish I could hold you and tell you that everything will be o.k., but the truth is I need someone to do that for me. This is kind of a big deal for me.
And with that, I leave you with the following images:
By the way, in case you’re wondering, 585 is the wavelength on the electromagnetic spectrum for the color orange.
A banjo ukulele. The world’s smallest harmonica. An award for “Religious Excellence.” Stickers. A spelling bee. British pop music. Guitars. Patti Smith. Amanda Rountree inciting a riot. An iPad. A manifesto. Beer. Cookies. Mr. Steve. Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass.
Two months in, and WNEP’s Frequency is already shaping up to be one of the best ways to spend a Saturday night. If you haven’t made it out, what’s stopping you? The FREE admission? The FREE drinks? The FREE snacks? The smorgasbord of performances? The “anything goes” atmosphere? The opportunity to hang out with the coolest damn theater artists in the city of Chicago, in Transistor, the coolest damn STORE in the city of Chicago?
Here are some photos of some of the things you missed this past Saturday:
You feel about 25% cooler now, right? Give or take? Well, you’re not there yet. There’s still room for improvement. Swing by Transistor on Saturday, December 18th (and any other day up until then), and that percentage will increase. The moment you walk through those doors, people will want to talk to you. You will instantly be cool.
WNEP Theater Presents: Frequency at Transistor, an open-ended invitation to the WNEP wavelength. On the third Saturday of every month, starting at 8pm, the WNEPeeps host a free live theater event showcasing performers of every kind. Anyone is welcome, be they actor, storyteller, musician, comedian, improviser, magician, puppeteer, juggler, filmmaker, dancer, or. . . well, you get the idea.
Transistor is located in the heart of Andersonville, at 5045 North Clark. Equal parts art gallery, CD & record shop, specialty audio electronics boutique, performance space, and more, it is without a doubt one of the hippest, most unique new establishments in the city of Chicago, and is easily accessible by bus, train, and car.
The next Frequency will be on Saturday, December 18th, as mentioned above, and will feature the talents of Ramsen Isaac, Thea Christine, Don Hall, Rebecca Langguth, Shiow-Jiau Yung, Dave Goss, Steve Lund, Matt Ulrich, Amanda Rountree, and more. We’ll have free drinks and snacks on hand, but as always, feel free to bring your own.
If you’re interested in performing, in December or any other month, email Dave Goss, WNEP’s Managing Director, at dave at wneptheater dot org.
If you’re not interested in performing, at least come on out and let us show you a good time. Seriously, what have you got to lose?
Hope to see you there.
Until then, check out these clips from last Saturday’s event. Be warned, though: the one at the bottom is NOT SAFE FOR WORK. Unless you work with us. By the way, there may be more of these to come, so stay tuned.
POSTMORTEM
