Halcyon Theatre’s DREAMS OF THE PENNY GODS opens March 24

23 Mar Halcyon Theatre’s DREAMS OF THE PENNY GODS opens March 24

Halcyon Theatre’s “Dreams of the Penny Gods”

DREAMS OF THE PENNY GODS

By Callie Kimball

Directed by Jennifer Adams

Previews March 24 – March 30; Play Runs Through May 1

Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm; Sundays at 6pm. (No performance Easter, March 27)

DREAMS OF THE PENNY GODS is the last production of a fruitful 10th season for Halcyon Theatre.  Judging by the last two Halcyon Theatre productions I’ve seen, it is sure to be a fascinating & fun story with top-notch acting. The setting of this play is a makeshift living area in a storage facility near Biddeford, Maine, in the summer of 2011. That means that Halcyon’s set decoration and lighting are sure to be innovative.

The story is about Bug, just your average 13-year-old girl who happens to have been born into a criminal family that’s hiding out. So naturally, she’s transforms herself into a high priestess who’s trying to raise the dead. On this particular summer day, her incantations seem to work, setting off an acceleration of events ending in a rough Armageddon that launches her into the world.

The director of “Dreams of the Penny Gods,” Jennifer Adams, told Buzz On Stage’s Matthew Roe that the family depicted in this play “is as far from the idyllic notion of a quaint seaside as you can get.”  She adds that the play “asks the question ‘Can someone from a family of monsters ever escape?’ And if they escape, where do they run to?’'”  The play’s racially inclusive cast members are Denise Hoeflich, Shadana Patterson, Ted James, Robert N. Isaac, and Semaj Miller, as well as Caity-Shea Violette in the lead role.

Jennifer (Jenn) Adams, Director

Jenn Adams is very active as the Co-Founder with Halcyon Theatre.  She has been a director, actor, playwright, singer, and currently serves as Director of Education and Community Engagement for Halcyon.  She’s received a MacDowell Fellowship, a Playwrights’ Center Core Apprenticeship, the Clauder Gold Prize, a Ludwig Vogelstein grant, and the Rita & Burton Goldberg Playwriting Award two years in a row.  She says she is thrilled to be working with “Dreams of the Penny Gods” playwright Callie Kimball, a resident of Maine, Adams’s home state.

Caity-Shea Violette, Lead Actor

Halcyon Theatre company member Caity-Shae Violette is a playwright and actor who takes the lead as Bug in the current production of “Dreams of the Penny Gods.” She also serves as Halcyon’s Director of Access and Special Programs. Based in Chicago, her work has been seen in such cities as Washington D.C., Las Vegas, Minneapolis, NYC, Denver and Chicago. Violette was awarded the National Partners of the American Theatre Playwriting Excellence Award in 2012, and has received numerous other important, national prizes and recognitions for her work as both an actor and a playwright.  Caity-Shea is a graduate of the St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists and the University of Minnesota- Duluth, where she earned her BFA in Theatre with an emphasis in Acting. Caity-Shea is passionate about sharing the stories of women, particularly survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, by creating new work for the stage and page. Outside of the theatrical community, she is a nationally certified Yoga instructor, a cat rescue enthusiast, and the Manager of Marketing and Communications at Thresholds, an organization that provides healthcare and housing for persons with mental illness.  To learn more about Caity-Shae Violette, read Halcyon Theatre’s blog:  https://halcyontheatre.org/blog/caitysheaviolette/2014/06/spotlight-artist-caity-shea-violette

Callie Kimball, Playwright

Callie Kimball’s work returns to Chicago after the 2013 debut of May 39th at Halcyon Theatre’s Alcyone Festival. Following Kimball’s MFA Thesis Production at Hunter College in 2012, “Dreams of the Penny Gods” was first brought to life at New York’s acclaimed Lark Play Development Center in 2013. Halcyon Theatre is proud to be the first to take this enthralling script from workshop to stage.  Kimball earned her MFA at Hunter College. Her plays have been produced and developed all across the United States.  She’s been awarded a MacDowell Fellowship and was an O’Neill National Playwrights Conference semifinalist. She splits her time between New York and her home in Maine, where she teaches.

About Halcyon Theatre

Halcyon Theatre is fiercely committed to making the stage as diverse as the city of Chicago. Dedicated to presenting new voices from inadequately represented communities, Halcyon works to recast classic works in order to showcase contemporary relevance.  Based in the Albany Park neighborhood, Halcyon Theatre was formed in 2006 to connect people, transform borders and ascend toward a more just union. The theatre’s artistic philosophy is driven by the continuing belief that at every point of human history where there has been an explosion of artistic creativity, it has happened when different cultures and traditions have met and learned from each other. Halcyon’s work includes productions as well as providing platforms—including Compass Lab as well as writing workshops & new play labs—for artists to grow and reach their full potential.

–Molly Jones, Northwest Arts Connection, March 2016

DREAMS OF THE PENNY GODS runs March 24-May 1, 2016

Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm; Sundays at 6pm. (No performance Easter, March 27)

Halcyon Theatre’s official address is 3255 W. Wilson (Christ Lutheran Church), but use the building’s side entrance at 4551 N. Spaulding when you come to see the play.

Two ways to see a performance:

1) First come, first served, no-cost admission: Halcyon holds a significant number of seats for no-cost admission on a first come, first served basis for each performance. To access these seats, provide your contact information at our box office. (The box office opens one hour prior to the show). Seating begins 30 minutes before show time and is open. There are no assigned seats.

2) Guaranteed admission: $20 Tickets can be purchased online: https://halcyontheatre.tixato.com/buy

Seating begins 30 minutes before show time and is open. There are no assigned seats.

For more information or to make a donation visit: https://halcyontheatre.org/pennygods