Get your copy of our March calendar HERE!
The Catalyst Ranch mascot has been transformed into William “Pogo” Shakespeare for this month’s calendar page. He’s not too happy about being bald but “Thou shall be dealing with it still, good sir.” My inspiration for the March illustration came from our talented staff. There are three Catalyst Ranch employees in particular who have some impressive projects in the works or just recently past.
John B. Leen, Operations Manager, was recently cast in Vitalist Theatre’s The Ghost is Here, produced at the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs’ Storefront Theatre. I had the pleasure of seeing John in this show and he brought a variety of characters to life including my favorite, a mutton-headed politician.
Kōbō Abe’s rarely-produced 1957 play, The Ghost is Here, examines the impact of war upon a culture and a nation. Set in the ruins of post-World War II Japan, at a moment in history when the nation was forced to redefine itself, the play uses original music, stylized song and dance, and a multicultural cast to bring Abe’s story to life. As Japan’s people reinvent themselves in the midst of monumental challenges, The Ghost is Here echoes throughout modern day America.
John can be seen upcoming in a staged reading of The Quiet Man, a story made famous by the 1952 John Wayne film.
Danny Bernardo, Social Media Strategist and HR Manager, is currently in rehearsal for the upcoming show Re-Spiced: A Silk Road Cabaret. Silk Road Rising (formerly known as Silk Road Theatre Project.) Silk Road Rising creates live theatre and online videos that tell stories through primarily Asian American and Middle Eastern American lenses. In representing communities that intersect and overlap, they are advancing a polycultural worldview.
Inspired by a desire to de-construct language, debunk meanings, and decode messages, Re-Spiced conjures a musical and literary labyrinth of Asian and Middle Eastern images through American and British lenses. With its predominately Asian American cast, Re-Spiced seeks to explore the West’s musical and literary interpretations of the East. The show runs from April 4th to May 6th.
Taree Chadwick, Administrative Assistant, is Stage Manager for The Gift Theatre Company’s production of Absolute Hell. As Stage Manager, Taree is Director Sheldon Patinkin’s right hand gal responsible for fluid scheduling and communication between designers, director and actors.
So what is Absolute Hell? London, one month after World War II has ended. An important election on the horizon…Welcome to the members-only club “La Vie En Rose” and its colorful cast of bohemian lovers, losers, soldiers, and dreamers who prepare to repair both country & self. Absolute Hell was nearly lost forever until a rediscovery led to a revival & inclusion in The Royal National Theatre’s “Top 100 Plays of The Twentieth Century.” The U.S. premiere comes to The Gift in an ensemble-packed production. The show runs through April 29th.
