Tickets for this 2-night only event at the Mercury Theater are free, but donations will be accepted to benefit Ignite the Spirit, a charity supporting Chicago emergency responders
TimeLine Theatre Company announces that it will present two free readings of The Guys by Anne Nelson, directed by TimeLine Associate Artist Louis Contey, as part of its ongoing TimePieces Play Reading series, to commemorate the 10th Anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Performances of The Guys will be Sunday, September 11 at 7 p.m. and Monday, September 12 at 7 p.m. at the Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. Both performances will include a brief post-show discussion featuring Chicago firefighters who went to Ground Zero in the aftermath of 9/11 to aid in rescue and recovery efforts.
Tickets to attend the readings are free, but donations will be accepted, with all proceeds to directly benefit Ignite the Spirit, a non-profit organization founded in 2003 that provides assistance to Chicago's emergency responders in times of hardship.
Seating is limited and reservations are strongly recommended. To reserve tickets, call the TimeLine Theatre Box Office at 773.281.8463 x6 or visit timelinetheatre.com .
Based on a true story, The Guys is about the effects of the collapse of the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11, 2001. Less than two weeks after the attacks, New Yorkers are still in shock. One of them, an editor named Joan, receives an unexpected phone call on behalf of Nick, a fire captain who has lost most of his men and needs help preparing an unprecedented number of eulogies. The two spend a long afternoon together recalling the fallen men, their virtues and foibles, and fashioning stories into memorials of words. Making their way through an emotional landscape of grief, they draw on humor, tango, the appreciation of craft in all its forms, and the enduring bonds of common humanity. This powerful and widely acclaimed play debuted off-Broadway on December 4, 2001, and has since been presented in 48 states and around the world.
The Guys will feature acclaimed Chicago actors and Steppenwolf Theatre Company Ensemble members Francis Guinan as Nick and Ora Jones as Joan.
The Guys will take place at the Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. Lot parking is available at Blaine School ˝ block north of the theater, for $10. Valet parking is provided at the entrance to the theater for $12. For more information about directions, parking and dining at the Mercury Theater, please visit mercurytheaterchicago.com .
"We are honored to work with Ignite the Spirit and its co-founders Rich Pinskey and Ken Soo for the 10th Anniversary of 9/11," TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers said. "We believe that this partnership is a great opportunity to make an impact — not just through a stirring evening of theatre and remembrance but also by being able to financially improve the lives of everyday heroes in our community. These two evenings are sure to be a powerful and moving event that is not to be missed."
TimePieces is TimeLine's ongoing series of presentations designed to extend the company's mission beyond the four subscription series productions offered each season. The series offers audiences a chance to hear new or rarely produced plays inspired by history that connect with today's social and political issues. Each play reading is free (donations are accepted) and includes a brief post-show discussion to give the audience a chance to reflect on the piece and the themes and issues it presents.
About Ignite the Spirit
Founded in 2003 by Chicago firefighters, Ignite the Spirit is a not-for-profit organization with no paid employees that benefits the city's emergency responders — including emergency medical technicians, paramedics and firemen — and their families. Thousands of people across the United States volunteer and respond to emergencies for the sole reward of being able to help someone when they cannot help themselves. These heroes are sometimes in need of help themselves. Full-time Chicago firefighters established Ignite the Spirit for the men and women who are emergency responders. Money raised through events and sales of merchandise is used to help emergency responders in times of hardship. For more information, please visit ignitethespirit.org .
About TimeLine Theatre
Founded in April 1997, TimeLine Theatre Company's mission is to present stories inspired by history that connect with today's social and political issues. During its first 14 seasons, TimeLine has presented 46 productions, including seven world premieres and 13 Chicago premieres. Recipient of the 2006 Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence and the 2009 Richard Goodman Strategic Planning Award from the Association for Strategic Planning, TimeLine has received 43 Jeff Awards, including an award for Outstanding Production eight times.
Announced for the 2011-2012 15th Anniversary Season:
A WALK IN THE WOODS by Lee Blessing, directed by Nick Bowling,
August 18 — November 20, 2011, presented at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont
Chicago premiere of THE PITMEN PAINTERS by Lee Hall, directed by BJ Jones,
September 6 — December 4, 2011
Chicago premiere of ENRON by Lucy Prebble, directed by Rachel Rockwell,
January 17 — April 15, 2012
World premiere of MY KIND OF TOWN by John Conroy, directed by Nick Bowling,
May 1 — July 29, 2012
TimeLine is led by Artistic Director PJ Powers and Managing Director Elizabeth K. Auman. Company members are Nick Bowling, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Lara Goetsch, Juliet Hart, David Parkes, PJ Powers and Benjamin Thiem. TimeLine is a member of the League of Chicago Theatres, Theatre Communications Group and the Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce. For more information, visit timelinetheatre.com .
Biographies
Louis Contey is an Associate Artist at TimeLine. He received a Non-Equity Jeff Award for Outstanding Direction of Awake and Sing! and a Non-Equity Jeff Award nomination for It's All True, both at TimeLine. Other TimeLine productions include Frost/Nixon, A House With No Walls, The General from America and Copenhagen. He has directed more than 60 plays, among them Requiem for a Heavyweight, A View from the Bridge, A Streetcar Named Desire, All My Sons, Rocket to the Moon, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Judgment at Nuremberg and Meet John Doe. He is an 11-time Jeff Award nominee and has received seven Non-Equity Jeff Awards. Contey has worked at The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Theatre at the Center, Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Shattered Globe Theatre, Provision Theatre, Eclipse Theatre and American Theater Company, among others. He received his M.F.A. in directing from The Theatre School at DePaul University, where he is currently an adjunct instructor.
Francis Guinan has been a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company Ensemble since 1979, where he has appeared in Endgame, American Buffalo, Fake, Art, Kafka on the Shore, The Seafarer, August: Osage County, The Crucible, The Diary of Anne Frank, Love Song, Cherry Orchard, Mizlansky/Zilinsky or Schmucks, The Libertine, Skylight and The Grapes of Wrath, among many others. Other Chicago credits include The Seagull at the Goodman, A Guide for the Perplexed at Victory Gardens Theatre, Do The Hustle at Writers' Theatre and Inherit the Wind at Northlight Theatre. His Broadway credits include August: Osage County (Pulitzer Prize, Tony Award for Best Production), The Grapes of Wrath (Tony Award for Best Production), As Is and And a Nightingale Sang. His off-Broadway credits include True West, Balm in Gilead and Landscape of the Body. In Los Angeles, Guinan has appeared in The Weir and God's Man in Texas at Geffen Playhouse; Space and Stuff Happens at Mark Taper Forum; 1776 at Reprise Theatre Company; and The Great Tennessee Monkey Trial at L.A. Theatre Works. His films credits include The Last Airbender, Low Tide, Typing, Constantine, Path to War, Speed 2 and Hannibal. His television credits include Grey's Anatomy, Eerie, Indiana, The Mighty Jungle and many others.
Ora Jones recently appeared at Chicago Shakespeare in The Madness of George III, in addition to other credits there including Romeo and Juliet, Twelfth Night, A Flea in Her Ear (After Dark Award); The Merry Wives of Windsor, Pericles and Macbeth. She has been a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company Ensemble since 2007, where her credits include Middletown, The Brother/Sister Plays, The Violet Hour (Jeff Award nomination), Carter's Way (Jeff Award nomination), The Unmentionables (Black Theater Alliance Award nomination), The Crucible and Morningstar. Other Chicago credits include Animal Crackers at Goodman Theatre, My Fair Lady and The Misanthrope at Court and Our Town at Writers' Theatre (After Dark Award). Film and television credits include The Weatherman, Stranger than Fiction, Save the Last Dance, Were the World Mine and the ABC pilot Matadors.
