Shattered Globe Presents THE GROWN-UP - Chicago Premiere!

On the heels of its critically-acclaimed, sold-out production of The Rose Tattoo, Shattered Globe Theatre is pleased to conclude its 2014-15 season with the Chicago premiere of Jordan Harrison’s hilarious kick in the heart, THE GROWN-UP, directed by Krissy Vanderwarker, playing April 9 – May 23, 2015 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago. Shattered Globe will stage the second ever production of Harrison’s new play, which debuted last year at Actors Theatre of Louisville’s Humana Festival. Tickets for THE GROWN-UP are available at www.theaterwit.org, in person at the Theater Wit Box Office or by calling (773) 975-8150.

THE GROWN-UP features Shattered Globe Ensemble Members Christina Gorman, Kevin Viol, Ben Werling and Joseph Wiens with Bryan Bosque and Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel.

Kai is a ten-year-old boy at his grandfather’s knee listening to a story of a magic doorknob. Jump 15 years into the future to his doomed television “pitch” in LA. Jump in time again to a wedding reception. Is it his? Has Kai run into powerful magic or has he just realized the breakneck speed of an ordinary life and what he might have missed? The Grown-Up is funny and honest tale about living in the moment.

“Shattered Globe is especially proud to produce the second production of Jordan’s play, The Grown-Up, which premiered last spring at the Humana Festival,” comments Producing Artistic Director Sandy Shinner. “I have admired Jordan’s work since I read his early script, The Museum Play, which he developed during his Jerome Fellowship. This season, Shattered Globe is looking at themes of re-discovering love, re-inventing oneself, and re-emerging from loss, and The Grown-Up continues to explore the possibility of such new beginnings. SGT also welcomes Krissy Vanderwarker to direct this funny and touching Ensemble production.”

“The Grown-Up is such a beautiful, funny and heartfelt reminder that we only get one spin at life” adds director Krissy Vanderwarker. “As one of the play’s characters says, ‘Every day, someone crumples your sheet of paper, and every night you try to get it smooth again. We’ll never be done, but that’s the balance we strike between innocence and experience. That’s the effort that will make us human.’”

The production team for THE GROWN-UP includes Grant Sabin (set designer), Sarah Jo White (costume designer), Michael Rourke (lighting designer), Christopher Kriz (sound designer), Vivian Knouse (props designer), Amanda Rozmiarek (technical director), Judy Anderson (production manager) and Razor Wintercastle and Seymour (stage managers).

PRODUCTION DETAILS:

Title: THE GROWN-UP

Playwright: Jordan Harrison

Director: Krissy Vanderwarker

Cast: Shattered Globe Ensemble Members Christina Gorman (Actor B), Kevin Viol (Actor A), Ben Werling (Actor C) and Joseph Wiens (Actor E) with Bryan Bosque (Actor F) and Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel (Actor D).

Location: Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave, Chicago

Dates: Previews: Thursday, April 9 at 8 pm, Friday, April 10 at 8 pm, Saturday, April 11 at 8 pm and Sunday, April 12 at 3 pm

Regular run: Thursday, April 16 – Saturday, May 23, 2015

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will be an added performance on Saturday, May 23 at 3 pm.

Tickets: Previews: $20. Regular Run: $33. Discounts: “Under 30” $20, students $15, seniors $25 and industry $15 on Thursdays. Tickets are available at www.theaterwit.org, in person at the Theater Wit Box Office or by calling (773) 975-8150.

About the Playwright:

Jordan Harrison’s new play Marjorie Prime had its world premiere at the Mark Taper Forum and will have its New York premiere this fall at Playwrights Horizons. His play Maple and Vine premiered in the Humana Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville and went on to productions at American Conservatory Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, and City Theatre, among others. Harrison’s other Humana Festival premieres include last season’s The Grown-Up, Act a Lady, Kid-Simple and Fit for Feet. His other plays include Doris to Darlene (Playwrights Horizons), Amazons and Their Men (Clubbed Thumb), Finn in the Underworld (Berkeley Rep), Futura (Portland Center Stage) and a children’s musical, The Flea and the Professor (Arden Theatre). Harrison is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Hodder Fellowship, the Kesselring Prize, the Roe Green Award from Cleveland Play House, the Heideman Award, the Loewe Award for Musical Theater, Jerome and McKnight Fellowships, a NYSCA grant, and a NEA/TCG residency. A graduate of the Brown University M.F.A. program, Harrison is an alumnus of New Dramatists. Harrison currently writes for the Netflix original series, “Orange is the New Black.”

About the Director:

Krissy Vanderwarker is a freelance director and the Co-Artistic Director of Dog & Pony Theatre Co. where her directing credits include: Breach, Counterfeiters, The Dinner Party Project, God’s Ear, As Told by the Vivian Girls, Mr. Marmalade, Ape, Osama the Hero, Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake) and As Much As You Can. For Pavement Group, Vanderwarker directed Harry & The Thief, named one of the ‘Top 10 Shows of 2013’ by Time Out Chicago. Other professional directing credits include: Bethany (First Look Festival/Steppenwolf), As Fat As You Can (Next Theatre), CLEAR and What Once We Felt (About Face Theatre) and As Much As You Can (Hendel Productions West). She is developing a new performance experience called Ghost Army with support from residencies with The Orchard Project, In the Works and High Concept Labs. Vanderwarker graduated with her MFA in Directing from The Theatre School at DePaul University.

Shattered Globe Theatre (Sandy Shinner, Producing Artistic Director; Doug McDade, Managing Director) was born in a storefront space on Halsted Street in 1991. Since then, SGT has produced more than 60 plays, including nine American and world premieres, and garnered an impressive 42 Jeff Awards and 97 Jeff Award nominations, as well as the acclaim of critics and audiences alike. Shattered Globe is an ensemble driven theater whose mission is to create an intimate, visceral theater experience that challenges the perspective of audience and artist alike through passionate storytelling. Shattered Globe is inspired by the diversity of our city and committed to making the theater available to all audiences. Through initiatives such as the Protégé Program, Shattered Globe creates a space which allows emerging artists to grow and share in the ensemble experience. For more information on Shattered Globe Theatre, please visit www.shatteredglobe.org.

Shattered Globe Theatre is partially supported and funded by generous grants from The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Illinois Arts Council, The Field Foundation of Illinois, The Blum-Kovler Family Foundation, The Robert J. & Loretta W. Cooney Family Foundation, the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, the Shulman-Rochambeau Charitable Foundation, and Arts Work Fund.