Wm. B. Sullivan Realty & Co.
RAVINIA
"A Great time in a
Wonderful Place" SJC
Adopt a Pet, Come for a Visit
CAGIS Archaeological
Consulting Services
The
Ascension of Carlotta
by Will Dunne
Directed by Ann Filmer
April 4 – May 4, 2008
Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at
7:30 PM and Sundays at 2:30 PM
This new theater, under the careful eye of the talented director Ann Filmer could have a very bright future, if plays follow with the class and quality of the one we just witnessed. The new
venue is in the nether world below the ground in Berwyn, and
it seats an intimate number of 49 patrons.
The seats are new and elevated so that small area has plenty of
good views. The lights, sound system, and decor are plain and
functional. It is a nice little theater.
I was delighted by the lighting, scene transformations, and
the top drawer show chosen to open this season at the 16th Street Theater. The plot is far from pedestrian and not some
existential relic without form. This is a quirky, quaint, and
contemplative production with plenty of turns, irony and
humor to keep you wanting more. Janna Sobel as the local
Berwyn resident, Alice Kowalski (aka Carlotta) is a lively and
gifted young woman in her effervescent portrayal of a local
who proudly states her desire to be "Happy helping people
get what they want in life"--by managing a 711 convenient
store. The SunTimes devotee in disguise turns out to be her
lover and Motel 6 gets a shout out from the night of joy.
The relationship is roller coaster of misunderstandings,
common in many species with different arrangements of
xy or xx chromosomes. Romeo and Carlotta have youth,
vigor, and plenty of desire to keep them searching each
bend in the plot. Romeo is played by Desmin Borges and
his character is a bit eccentric to put it mildly. Instead of
a fetish for blondes, brunettes, or redheads, this young turk
has a thing for potential robbery. He has not replaced
robbery for women, it is only a little imaginery spice for a
dream of Freudian nature perhaps to be like Dad...a criminal.
It might be a little reminescent of a mix of Harold and Maude
meets What's Up Tiger Lilly. Anna Kurtz as Tammy and
Galen Murphy-Hoffman as Joey are both delights in their
characters brought to the stage.
This is a truly great play with wonderful acting, writing and direction. The price is a bargain and there is free parking
across the street and down the block a bit (west of the
theater on the north side of the street).
DIRECTOR
Ann Filmer
CAST
Janna Sobel ....................................Alice Kowalski (aka Carlotta)
Desmin Borges ...............................Romeo
Anna Kurtz .....................................Tammy
Galen Murphy-Hoffman ................Joey
DESIGNERS
Gintare Jaloveckaite
Tom Haigh
Mac Vaughey
Ian Zywica
STAGE MANAGER
Jennifer Aparicio
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Vaun Monroe
Tickets: $16 Buy Online Now
Group discount for 8(+) For info on group tickets call (708) 795-6704
Alice Kowalski works at a 7-11. Romeo Brown’s dream is to rob a 7-11. Drunk on love during the last springtime of the 20th century, they travel the land of Berwyn seeing if two people from two different planets can be both armed and engaged.
“It’s like Romeo and Juliet but in Berwyn…”
The Ascension of Carlotta premieres April 4
BERWYN, IL FEBRUARY 28, 2008 16th Street Theater premieres Will Dunne’s
The Ascension of Carlotta directed by Artistic Director Ann
Filmer at
the Berwyn Cultural Center April 4 – May 4, 2008 with a press
opening
of Thursday, April 10 at 7:30 PM.
Alice Kowalski works at a 7-11. Romeo
Brown’s dream is to rob a 7-11. Drunk on love during the last
springtime of the 20th century, they travel
the land of Berwyn seeing if two people from two different planets can
be both armed and engaged.
Will Dunne is an award-winning
playwright whose works have
been staged internationally in three languages. He is a Resident
Playwright at Chicago Dramatists and one of only five playwrights to be
selected three consecutive times for the U.S. National Playwrights
Conference under the Artistic Direction of Lloyd Richards. Dunne
is a 2008 16th Street Theater playwright-in-residence along
with Arlene Malinowski and Tanya Saracho.
The Ascension of Carlotta
is only the second play to
perform in
the Berwyn Cultural Center, following Teatro Luna’s highly recommended
hit MACHOS which sold out its entire run in just a few weeks.
Janna Sobel from San Francisco makes her
Chicago debut in the title role Carlotta (aka Alice Kowalski).
Sobel was a part of the play’s development in the Bay Area. Desmin
Borges plays Romeo, with Anna Kurtz as Alice’s friend Tammy
and Galen Murphy-Hoffman as Joey. The design team
includes Ian Zywica (scenic design), Mac Vaughey (lighting), Tom Haigh
(sound) and Gintare Jaloveckaite (costumes). Stage manager is
Jennifer Aparacio. The play is directed by Ann Filmer.
WHAT:
THE ASCENSION OF CARLOTTA, Presented by 16th Street Theater Berwyn’s first professional equity theater.
WHERE:
Berwyn Cultural Center, 6420 16th Street, Berwyn
WHEN:
April 4 – May 4, 2008
Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 PM, Sundays at 2:30 PM
Previews: April 4 & 5 at 7:30 PM (no show Sunday April 6)
Press Opening: Thursday, April 10 at 7:30 PM
WHO:
WRITTEN BY: Will Dunne
DIRECTED BY: Ann Filmer
PERFORMED BY: Desmin Borges, Anna Kurtz, Galen
Murphy-Hoffman,
Janna Sobel
HOW MUCH?
GENERAL: $16 GROUPS OF 8+: $12
TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
Tickets now on sale.
Online at http://www.16thstreettheater.org
By Phone 24 hours thru Brown Paper Tickets at 1-800-838-3006
In Person at North Berwyn Park District, 1619 Wesley Ave, Berwyn, IL 60402
For More Information, call (708) 795-6704
Please visit www.16thstreettheater.org
16th STREET THEATER is Berwyn’s first professional equity theater under the artistic direction of Ann Filmer. 2008 marks its first season.
The BERWYN CULTURAL CENTER, a North Berwyn
Park District managed facility, is dedicated to providing the highest
quality and range of cultural arts programs, classes, workshops,
events, and exhibitions providing opportunities for Berwyn residents
and area artists. The center will provide year-round programs
engaging participants of all ages in visual, performing, literary,
martial and media arts and 16th Street Theater’s professional
productions. The BCC also will serve as an incubator for emerging
artists, artisans, writers, performers and musicians to develop and
present new works. The center is dedicated to enhancing the
quality of life and sustainability of our local communities by
advancing appreciation for the beauty of cultural diversity.
"The soul of a society may be mirrored most by those who live on its fringes. My plays tend to focus on loners, eccentrics, petty crooks, and other small-time rebels. They are the canaries in the coal mine who measure fate for all of us. As a playwright, I love to find out who they really are and how they're doing – and to accomplish this in a way that is both funny and serious at the same time."
WILL DUNNE is an internationally honored playwright now living in the Chicago area. Since 2005, his plays The Ascension of Carlotta, Deep Gardens, and The Interpreter have received staged readings at Chicago Dramatists where he is a Resident Playwright. Deep Gardens was later produced at Chicago's Second City (2006). Good Morning, Romeo (which inspired Carlotta) is a 2007 finalist for the Heideman Award at the Actors Theatre of Louisville. Moonrise was a 2000 Heideman finalist.
Mr. Dunne's plays were selected three times for the U.S. National Playwrights Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center under the Artistic Direction
of Lloyd Richards. How I Became an Interesting Person (1998), Love and Drowning (1997), and Hotel Desperado (1996) were each one of ten plays chosen annually from 1,500 submissions nationwide.
Interesting Person went on to receive the 1998 Charles MacArthur Fellowship founded by Helen Hayes for outstanding comedy and was later presented at the Australian National Playwrights Conference in New South Wales (1999) and the National Theatre of Istria in Croatia (2000). Hotel Desperado was presented by the Moscow Theatre Union at the Russian National Playwrights Conference (1997). West coast productions of his work – Eleventh Hour, I Married a Werewolf, Between Quakes, and The Bridge – have earned four
Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, two DramaLogue Playwriting Awards, and a Best-of-Year mention from the San Francisco Examiner.
His book The Dramatic Writer's Companion: Tools to Develop Characters, Cause Scenes, and Build Stories will be published by the University of Chicago Press in 2009.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago
published by Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc.