CHICAGO ( April 7, 2016 ) — About Face Theatre is pleased to continue its 20th Anniversary Season with the Chicago premiere of the dark comedy THE SECRETARIES by The Five Lesbian Brothers aka Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy, Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey and Tony® Award winner Lisa Kron ( Fun Home ). Directed by Bonnie Metzgar, THE SECRETARIES will play May 6 — June 12, 2016 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.aboutfacetheatre.org, by calling ( 773 ) 975-8150 or in person at Theater Wit Box Office. The press opening is Thursday, May 12 at 7:30 pm.
The Secretaries features AFT Artistic Associate Kelli Simpkins with Erin Barlow, Meghan Reardon, Sadieh Rifai and Lauren Sivak.
Patty Johnson lands the job of her dreams at the Cooney Lumber Mill in Big Bone, Oregon. But it's a comic nightmare when she discovers — amidst slim fast shakes, celibacy pacts and hotel rendezvous ( with Magic Fingers, of course! ) — that her secretarial pool are chainsaw-wielding lumberjack killers! Equal parts humor, horror and satire, The Secretaries is Twin Peaks meets The Stepford Wives in a smart, campy ( and bloody! ) comedy.
The production team for The Secretaries includes William Boles ( scenic design ), Mieka van der Ploeg ( costume design ), Rebecca Levy ( lighting design ), Miles Polaski ( sound design ) and Helen Lattyak ( stage manager ).
DETAILS:
Title: The Secretaries
Written by: The Five Lesbian Brothers ( Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy, Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey and Lisa Kron )
Directed by: Bonnie Metzgar
Cast: AFT Artistic Associate Kelli Simpkins ( Susan ) with Erin Barlow ( Patty ), Meghan Reardon ( Ashley ) Sadieh Rifai ( Peaches ) and Lauren Sivak ( Dawn/Buzz ).
Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, May 6 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, May 7 at 7:30 pm, Sunday, May 8 at 3 pm and Wednesday, May 11 at 7:30 pm
Press opening: Thursday, May 12 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Friday, May 13 — Sunday, June 12, 2016
Curtain Times: Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Tickets: Previews: $20 adults, $10 students and seniors. Regular run: $35 adults, $20 students and seniors. Discounts available for groups of 10 or more. Tickets are currently available at www.aboutfacetheatre.org, by calling ( 773 ) 975-8150 or in person at Theater Wit Box Office.
Biographies:
The Five Lesbian Brothers ( Playwrights ) are Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy, Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey and Tony® Award-winner Lisa Kron ( Fun Home ). They create provocative lesbian theater for the masses through the fine feminist art of collaboration. The Brothers came together as a theater company in 1989 after performing together in various other combinations at the OBIE Award-winning WOW Cafe Theatre. Their repertoire includes four full-length plays, Voyage to Lesbos, Brave Smiles, The Secretaries and Brides of the Moon, as well as numerous event-specific showstopping acts. The Brother's plays have been produced Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway and beyond by New York Theatre Workshop, The Joseph Papp Public Theatre, the WOW Cafe Theatre, Downtown Art Company, Performance Space 122, Dixon Place, La Mama, the Kitchen and the Whitney Museum of American Art at Phillip Morris. They have toured to London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Houston, Columbus, Seattle, Philadelphia, Boston and the deep woods of Michigan. Their plays have also been produced by other companies throughout the U.S. and, believe it or not, in Zagreb, Croatia.
Bonnie Metzgar ( Director ) is a playwright, director, dramaturg and producer. Recent directing credits include Let Me Down Easy at American Theater Company and Walk Across America for Mother Earth by Taylor Mac for Garage Rep at Steppenwolf. Currently, Metzgar is the interim Artistic Director at American Theater Company and is on the National Advisory Committee for Howlround. She served as Artistic Director of About Face from 2008-2013 where she directed numerous shows including The Pride and The Homosexuals at Victory Gardens. Previously, Metzgar produced the 365 Festival with Suzan-Lori Parks and was Associate Producer at the Public Theater where she founded Joe's Pub. She is a proud alum of the 2015 Goodman Theater Playwrights unit and received her MFA from University of Iowa Playwrights Workshop.
About Face Theatre creates exceptional, innovative, and adventurous plays to advance the national dialogue on sexual and gender identity, and to challenge and entertain audiences in Chicago, across the country, and around the world.
