POETRY IS PRODUCTIONS presents the world premieres of “Medea” by
Catherine Theis and “Phaedra, Released.” by Robert Eric Shoemaker.
Press opening is May 27 at 6:00 pm at The Comfort Station in Logan Square.
The Poetry Is Theatre festival runs from May 27 through June 11 at The Comfort Station, 2579 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL.
Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 6-8 PM, 5.27.16 – 6.11.16.
For more information, please email [email protected].
Tickets are $10 for a guaranteed seat. Standing room and blanket seating is free.
Please note that performances will be cancelled in the event of bad weather. We will do our best to notify ticket holders in advance of the show, should it be called off one night.
Picnic Rulez:
1. Alcohol is not permitted on the Comfort Station lawn.
2. If you create trash, throw it in the appropriate bin when leaving the lawn. Food is permitted on the lawn, provided you clean up after yourself.
3. Feel free to camp out with blankets and lawn chairs of your own. Limited quantities will be available to paying attendees.
4. Please sit in the appropriate section based on your ticket purchase. Paying audience members are invited to sit closer to the stage. The rest of the lawn is for free tickets.
5. Lean in, turn off your devices, and maintain a quiet volume for the duration of the performances.
ABOUT the PLAYS
Set in the mountains of Montana, “MEDEA” is a twenty-first century retelling of the Euripidean tragedy. This innovative production includes sonorous soundscapes, voice dialogues sul telefono, as well as traditional scenes. But ultimately, language breaks down. It destroys us. When the Milky Way introduces herself as a vital character, we imagine her as a troupe of dancers, a true moving constellation. An amateur photographer, Medea’s photographs expose key moments from her life. The play’s final catastrophes—the poisoned fall of lovers, the flames—reach toward the inevitable harnessing of Fate’s invisible forces. Starlight will be needed on stage just as much as stage light. Remember “MEDEA” calls for Bach, a chorus of flames speaking in brightest voice, it calls to burn down its own theatre doors, it calls for a deranged refinement of the senses.
In the original play “PHAEDRA, RELEASED.” Shoemaker turns the myth of Phaedra, classical wife of Theseus and would-be-lover of Hippolytus, into a family portrait gone wrong. Having been imprisoned in her own castle keep with her family for months, Phaedra (rechristened Luce) is beginning to crack. Her daughter deserts her to take the crown; her husband is nowhere to be found; Max is starting to suspect her of more than maternal affection; and her nurse is pushing the boundaries of discretion. Through poetical voices and visceral action, PHAEDRA, RELEASED. returns to the roots of tragedy to find out what “love” really is: a wild animal, capable of infinite destruction, or a passion meant to be embraced with both arms. Luce and her band of misfits encounter themselves and one another in battle, at table, and in the rain in this not-to-be-missed retelling of the classic.
The Poetry Is Theatre festival brings together innovative poets and Chicago artistic teams to produce a theatrical event unlike any other- “a picnic under the stars.” Set with the backdrop of The Comfort Station, the festival on the lawn invites attendees to bring a blanket, a picnic basket, and their poetry ears to indulge in lingual decadence for an evening.
Poetry Is Productions has produced PLATH/HUGHES and BERNARDA ALBA AND HER HOUSE, both acclaimed for their originality and execution. This spring’s production of WILDE’S SALOMÉ was favored for its innovative staging of the touchy subject of gender and sexuality. The Poetry Is Theatre festival features the work of accomplished Chicago artists, including Joshua Brewer of Rum and Coke, and Przemyslaw Bosak, composer for TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA at Strawdog and BERNARDA ALBA AND HER HOUSE.