SEASON 24
From the creators of The Laramie Project
the people's temple
written by Leigh Fondakowski with Greg Pierotti, Stephen Wangh and Margo Hall
directed by Leigh Fondakowski
Chicago Premiere
September 4 - September 28
Sponsored by Bryan Cave
1978. Jonestown, Guyana. An interracial religious group, led by their charismatic leader Jim Jones, flee America to the remote jungles of South America to build a utopian community. From the creators of The Laramie Project come this uplifting and mesmerizing production combining actual interviews with survivors and family members and live gospel music to tell the untold stories of a community that dreamed of a better life, and its shocking demise. One of the largest Ensemble projects in American Theater Company history, The People’s Temple will premiere new material from recent interviews for the 30th Anniversary of Jonestown.
From one of the hottest playwrights in America
celebrity row
written by Itamar Moses
directed by David Cromer
Chicago Premiere
October 16 - November 9
Fact: For a time in the late 1990's, Colorado Supermax, the most secure prison in America, housed in neighboring cells, Latin Kings Leader Luis Felipe, WTC Bomber Ramzi Yousef, Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, and Oklahoma City Bomber Timothy McVeigh.
Fiction: When a young lawyer defends the civil liberties of one of the country's most notorious criminals, her idealism stands face to face with a criminal genius who, along with his neighbors, has a plan of his own. Combining the suspense of Silence of the Lambs with the political savvy of Season 23's blockbuster, Speech & Debate, Itamar Moses, one of America's hottest playwrights, and David Cromer, critically acclaimed director of The Adding Machine (Next Theatre) and Our Town (The Hypocrites), explore issues of homeland security and individual freedoms in one of the most dazzling cliffhangers in modern drama.
In its sixth wonderful year
it's a wonderful life: the radio play
adapted from the film by Frank Capra
directed by Marty Higginbotham
December 4 - December 28
Sponsored by Emerald Nuts from Diamond Foods Inc.
The Chicago Holiday tradition is back! The classic story based on the Frank Capra masterpiece is lovingly performed as a period radio play complete with commercial breaks and live Foley sound effects. ATC's celebrated Ensemble brings the town of Bedford Falls to life, with free milk and cookies after every performance! In addition to our mainstage production, a second company will tour the Chicago suburbs. Don't miss out on the perfect holiday show for the entire family.
American classic repertory
topdog/underdog and true west
a collaboration between American Theater Company and Congo Square Theatre Company
January 15 - March 8
American Theater Company and Congo Square Theatre Company team up to present one of Chicago's most intriguing theatrical projects. Artistic Directors Derrick Sanders and PJ Paparelli engage their Ensembles in two of America's most visceral plays about sibling rivalry. In addition to the plays alternating nightly, the actors playing the brothers will switch between productions. Audiences can see four versions of each play on one set at ATC.
true west written by Sam Shepard Sam Shepard's most produced play tells the story of two brothers: Austin, an ambitious Hollywood screenwriter working on a potential million-dollar deal and Lee, a vagabond thief with a compulsion for six-packs and toasters, face off for control while venting demons from their dysfunctional past. |
topdog/underdog written by Suzan-Lori Parks Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece explores two brothers: Lincoln, ex-"3-card" player, now legitimate entertainer, and Booth, a petty thief who wants to learn his brother's game, struggle to make a new life that will finally lead them out of poverty. |
from the writers of Urinetown
yeast nation (the triumph of life)
music and lyrics by Mark Hollmann
book and lyrics by Greg Kotis
directed by artistic director PJ Paparelli
Chicago Premiere
April 9 - May 17
in partnership with the Field Museum
The Tony Award-winning creators of the Broadway hit Urinetown return home to Chicago to premiere the strangest story ever to be musicalized. The year is 3,000,458,000 B.C., and the Earth's first life forms, salt-eating yeasts (yes, yeasts), float in the brine of the primordial soup, under the rule of a single-minded tyrant. As resources deplete and fear prevails, the faith of one single-celled dreamer changes their society forever, and out of chaos and destruction a new world emerges. Combining 80's rock with a touch of disco, Yeast Nation can't help but be one of the most non-political and amusing evenings of musical theater in America. Here come the Yeasts!