One Day More!

I am very excited to announce that we have received a matching grant from an anonymous donor. This donor will match dollar for dollar up to $750, which at this point, will pretty much get us our goal.

 

BUT...the gifts have to be done through the online campaign and must be made BEFORE deadline which is today, December 31!

 

Please get your parents, grammy, aunts & uncles, career supporters, and daddy and mammy warbucks all to chip in.

 

The should go to this link: Under A Rainbow Flag

 

Explain to them that their gift will now count DOUBLE.

 

Thanks for your help with this.

Make sure you vote for Pride Films and Plays Artistic Ensemble Members 
Michelle McKenzie-Voigt and David Besky in the acting categories for the Broadway World Chicago Awards. 

And make sure you vote for PFP's Artistic Associate John Nasca in the Costume Design Category!

The voting ends on Saturday!

Spread the word... "Pay What You Can" tickets are available for 'At The Flash' today at 3:30 at Center on Halsted. Tickets will be on sale 30 minutes prior to the 3:30 show. We know you will appreciate this Jeff Recommended show!

New location, same great show! 

I am very excited to announce the full cast of Under A Rainbow Flag, the new musical by Leo Schwartz opening in March, with musical direction by Robert Ollis. 
Top row (l to r) James Nedrud, Nicholas Stockwell*, Kyrie Anderson, Sam Button-Harrison, and Jordan Phelps. Second row (l to r) Donterrio Johnson, Bobby Arnold, David Besky*, Kevin Webb*, and Kris Hyland*.

You will not want to miss this show! For more details go here. 

Twenty per cent there!  

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/273206

Please help support this new musical project!

A show written and performed by Beth Richards, PFP Ensemble Member

at Right Brain Project.

December 7 - 16
Fridays - Sundays at 8:00pm

Suggested Donation:$15 Adults
$10 Students/Industry Professionals

Presented at:
The RBP Rorschach4001 N. Ravenswood
Chicago, IL 60613
At the intersection of Irving Park and Ravenswood, on the northeast side of the Metra tracks, just off the Irving Park Brown Line stop.

The Right Brain Project is proud to showcase guest artist Beth Richards' sharply witty solo work in a limited run at the RBP Rorschach!

Everyone is familiar with the phrase "the elephant in the room." Everyone has ignored an elephant at some point in their life. Welcome to My Living Room is the story of one family's elephants.

Writer and performer Beth Richards' solo work explores the role and havoc that unaddressed issues have had in the lives of her mother, father, and herself. Beth dons her and her parents' identities to delve into how each struggled to conform to a perceived set of cultural expectations. Cultural norms of gender, sexuality, health, class, and education are explored for the ways those conflicts helped shape the individual personalities in this family. The audience is taken on a darkly humorous journey through their efforts to hide, contort, or distort themselves to avoid the ever-present elephants. Combining text and movement elements, Beth shares honest portrayals of her parents' efforts to escape or ignore their difficulties. In doing so, she holds a mirror up to her attempts to reconcile with her own elephants.

Beth Richards is a native of the western suburbs of Chicago. She is a graduate of Antioch College Yellow Springs, OH. In the process of earning her BA in theatre, she re-imagined her vision of what theatre could accomplish and encompass. The most important of these experiences were with her first brush with Samuel Beckett and internships at Performance Space 122 and The Wooster Group in New York. Yet more important are her relationships with Antioch faculty members Karen Gundersen and Louise Smith. Beth has worked in a variety of theaters in a variety of technical capacities, and as a performer is a newly-minted ensemble member with Pride Films & Plays. She is ecstatic to be working with the RBP on the expansion of Welcome to My Living Room. This play was originally presented at the Antioch Area Theater Yellow Springs, OH in December 2004 and directed by Louise Smith.

Want to know what is happening backstage during rehearsals for Beautiful Thing?  Then follow Robert Hilliard's blog. I know you enjoy getting to hear about the show coming together. 

Hey students of all kinds.... Get two-for-one tickets with a student ID - high school, college, grad school - for performances of the Jeff Recommended show 'At The Flash' at Center On Halsted. This offer is good on Friday, November 30 and S

aturday December 1 only! You will really enjoy the 90 minute show! To reserve email pfptickets@gmail.com with your name and number of tickets, and pay at the door. Don't miss this great opportunity! www.attheflash.com.

Final Three Weeks. Get your tickets here.

Don't miss Pride Films and Plays 

Artistic Ensemble Member Kelli Walker in 

Prop Thtr's hit show The Feast!

The Feast is a political satire and family drama set on Thanksgiving in the midst of the 2009 healthcare debate. It tells the story of Vincent Baker, a wealthy insurance magnate whose holiday gathering in the exurbs is shaken up by a harassing policy holder avenging a denied medical claim. Beset by family conflicts and crises of conscience, the Bakers are ultimately forced to confront the sordid underbelly of their wealth and reexamine their crumbling conception of the American Dream. 

The play was selected for the National New Play Network’s fall Showcase in Philadelphia, and was a recent semi-finalist for both the Stanley Drama Award and the Smith Prize.

Click here to purchase tickets

or call 773-539-7838 to make a reservation

RSVP to the Facebook event here

Raising money for new theatrical ventures is always a challenge. Here is the link to the campaign for our exciting and important new musical 'Under A Rainbow Flag' which will open this spring. Please support this project, and send this information to others who you think will do the same. And isn't the song - by Leo Schwartz - a great love song?

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/273206?a=232786

The musical tells the true story of Jon Phillips, picture here, and  the men he meets while serving in World War II. 

Tickets for people working in the film and theater industry are available for the 7:30 performance of At The Flash on Wednesday, 11/28 at Center on Halsted's Hoover-Leppen Theater.  To request tickets, send an email to pfptickets@gmail.com with your name, the number of tickets, and INDUSTRY in the subject line.  Tickets will be held for cash payment at the door. 

PFP has rehearsal space available in a very convenient spot on Wilson at Clark, just east of Clark Bus, and just west of Wilson Red Line Stop. $30 for four hour evening or weekend rehearsal, $25 for four hours during weekdays. Time available in November/December. 

For more information email Pridefilmsandplays@gmail.com. 

Please support our new production of "Under A Rainbow Flag." I love  this ballad by Leo Schwartz, the composer of the musical. The pictures in the video are historical shots taken of or by Jon Phillips, whose true story is told in this musical.  

To learn more about the project, and support it, please go here. 

Thanks to everyone who auditioned for our new musical Under A Rainbow Flag over the last two nights! The work was excellent, and we look forward to a great production. 

Also thanks to our Artistic Ensemble team who did such a good job of organizing and running the auditions... .Michelle McKenzie-Voigt, John Nasca, Val Heckman, Kelli Walker, and Kyra Morris. 

Thanks team!

Ensemble Member Sean-Edward Hall in
Peter and Paul In The Land Of Nod

PETER AND PAUL IN THE LAND OF NOD is a recently found lost gem from operetta great, Franz Lehar. It tells the story of 2 boys who have been fostered by the shoe cobbler Master Kneipp and his wife. Unfortunately, Kneipp is more interested in drinking that being a father or a cobbler and the boys decide to run away. The spirits Shlendrianus (the spirit of laziness) and Laborosa (the spirit of goodness and industry) make a bet that each can win over the boys. 

Soon Peter and Paul find themselves in the land of Nod. A land where no one works their body nor the mind and eats until they can eat no more. They run into its crazy King Schlampaprius, who imprisons anyone he wishes on a whim. Realizing getting everything you wish for isn't as great as they once thought, the escape the land before they can be imprisoned themselves. 

This is one of the only English translations of the German classic for the WHOLE family, translated by Chicago Folks operetta's own Gerald Frantzen, Alison Kelly and Hersh Glagov. It boasts of a chamber orchestra, professional ballet dancers, a cast of 40 children and rounded out with professional actors and singers. 

Here is the link to their website: www.chicagofolksoperetta.org and here is a link to their facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chicago-Folks-Operetta/107008286014309?fref=ts

At The Flash had a great opening last night and is Jeff Recommended. Get your tickets now!

Tonight is the night the fun begins!

Get your tickets here now!

There are still audition slots available for the musical Under A Rainbow Flag. Auditions start on Sunday. Find information on it here. 

PFP Artistic Ensemble Member 

Michelle McKenzie-Voigt is featured in Company 

at Brightside Theater in Naperville. 

Get your tickets here. 

Pride Films and Plays is doing a dress rehearsal on Saturday night, November 10 at 7 pm at Center on Halsted, 3656 N Halsted, of the new play At the Flash. 

We are looking for 2 or 3 volunteers to help that evening - arrive about 6:15 to make sure the performance space is ready, pass out programs, and get people into the theater. 

This will be a working rehearsal, so the show may stop and start a bit (it is 80 minutes long) and there will be a talk back after the performance. 

If you are interested email pridefilmsandplays@gmail.com with your name, phone, and Saturday Volunteer in the subject line. 

Thanks!

For more information about the show visitwww.pridefilmsandplays.com or www.attheflash.com. 

PFP rents a small rehearsal space on Clark and Wilson, and from time to time it is available for rent. It is perfect for readings and smaller shows, and is available in blocks of three or fours hours - 9:30 to 1:30, 2 to 6, and 6 - 10. Rehearsal rates start at $10 per hour. Send an email to pridefilmsandplays@gmail.com to find our more. Please put REHEARSAL SPACE in the subject line. 

FB Friends of PFP are invited to attend a free, open dress rehearsal of At The Flash this Saturday night at 7 at Center on Halsted. To get a ticket or two, LIKE this message. Or send an email to pfptickets@gmail.com. The show is terrific, and David just needs to have one run through with a small audience before next weekend's performances.

Pride Films and Plays invites leaders and members of GSA groups to attend performances of At The Flash. Find more information here. 

I hope you caught the audition notice for the musical Under A Rainbow Flag by Leo Schwartz. 

Get your Groupon offer for our season subscription today! You don't want to miss a moment of At the Flash, Beautiful Thing, or Under A Rainbow Flag!

Check out PFP ensemble member Cyra K. Polizzi in Raven Theatre's Tales of the Twinkling Twilight through November 25th. 

Cyra can also be seen this coming week in Stockyard's Theatre Project's Play for Keeps staged readings of new works in progress, and in short films screening in Madison, WI (The Fox in the Snow), Indianapolis, IN (Tuesday Night Make-Out), and Madrid, Spain (Allison, My Love).

Congratulations to Jim Piazza! His screenplay A Friend of Dorothy's was named the winner of the 2012 Great Gay Screenplay Contest. Find more information here. 

Here is Tiffany Nasca's great poster for our upcoming 20th Anniversary Production of Beautiful Thing. 

Congratulations to director Chuck Berglund, screenwriter Jim Piazza, and a fine cast on a very successful opening night performance of A Friend of Dorothy's!

Join us for more screenplay and film activity this weekend!

Here is information on our panelists this weekend at Center on Halsted. Won't you join us for these free events?

"The Evolution of LGBT Cinema"

Saturday, October 20. 5:00pm

Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St, Chicago

Free and open to the public

A panel discussion with Tracy Baim, Dr. Kevin John Bozelka, Richard Knight, Jr, and David Zak about the history of LGBT cinema, from early experimental work to contemporary films.

"Making LGBT Films in a Changing World"

Sunday, October 21. 4:00pm

Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St, Chicago

Free and open to the public

A panel discussion with independent filmmakers Alex Bohs, Wendy Jo Carlton, Mary F. Morten, Richard Paro, and moderator Cyra K. Polizzi about funding, production, and distribution for LGBT films, and the impact of shifting cultural attitudes and technology.

Panelist/Moderator Bios:

Tracy Baim is publisher and executive editor at Windy City Media Group, a co-founder of Windy City Times (1985), an author, and a film producer. She started in Chicago gay journalism in 1984 at GayLife newspaper, one month after graduating with a news-editorial degree from Drake University. Baim was executive producer of Hannah Free, starring Sharon Gless, and Scrooge & Marley, a gay Christmas Carol. Her many honors include induction into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame, a CrainÍs Chicago Business 40 Under 40 leader, and the Community Media Workshop's Studs Terkel Award.

Alex Bohs is a writer/director/editor whose short film Half won the audience award at the 2012 Indie Boots Film Festival. His other short films include Writer's Block, Fish in the Sea, and That Four-Letter Word, as well as the upcoming films Finding Franklin, A Difficult Year, and Mum. Alex is currently enrolled in the film/video program at Columbia College Chicago with a concentration in directing. www.alexbohs.com

Dr. Kevin John Bozelka, PhD, has taught media studies at DePaul University and Austin College. His criticism has appeared in the Village Voice, Popmatters, MTV.com, Dallas-Morning News, and Chicago Reader. His essays cover The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the Gen X reception of Empire Records, the representation of lesbians in Bollywood cinema, and the films of gay sexploitation director Andy Milligan. Last August, he programmed an evening of early queer avant-garde shorts for Chicago Filmmakers. He is currently working on a book titled The Musical Mode: Rock, Recordings, and the Hollywood Musical.

Wendy Jo Carlton directed her first feature, Hannah Free, starring Emmy-winner Sharon Gless, in 2009. Carlton was the recipient of the Navona Fellowship from the University of Illinois Chicago, where she earned a graduate degree in film/new media. Carlton's second feature, Jamie and Jessie are Not Together, has won several awards and is receiving lovely reviews. Film critic Roger Ebert gave this film about unrequited love a 3 Star Review. Wendy Jo is currently directing Easy Abby, a queer RomCom web series, about a chronic seducer struggling with anxiety disorders and athletes foot. www.jamieandjessie.com

Richard Knight, Jr. has been the film critic for Windy City Times since 2004. He has written about film for the Chicago Tribune, the LA Times, and other publications. Two collections of his film reviews, Knight at the Movies, have been published with a third coming this December. He is also the founder of the Queer Film Society. His first film, Scrooge & Marley, a modern day, gay variation on A Christmas Carol, premieres in Chicago on November 29th at Music Box Theatre and will be released across the country in December.

Mary F. Morten is a filmmaker and activist committed to social change though video and film development. She is the president of Morten Group, a consulting firm specializing in social change through skills development, public policy and advocacy. Mary has served as producer/director for several films covering national policy initiatives, women's rights and youth development. She is currently in pre-production for her next documentary, Miss Gay Black America, about the art of female impersonation, highlighting the life of Terri Livingston. www.wokeupblack.com

Richard Paro is an award-winning independent filmmaker and theatre director. For over a decade, his feature-length and short films have been screening at independent, international, LGBTQ, and women's film festivals. Much of his work emphasizes coalition-building. Always excited to share his favorite movies, theatre and music with new audiences, he has worked in programming for years, currently through his company Mudgeonsoul Productions and Indie Boots Film Festival. www.mudgeonsoul.org

Cyra K. Polizzi graduated from UW-Madison in Acting, Gender Studies, and Environmental Studies. Primarily a stage actor, she can also be found directing, writing and filmmaking, as well as curating. Her DIY feature documentary and short films have screened in conferences, classrooms, and festivals around the world. In addition, she works part-time in film exhibition with a national art house chain. Affiliations include Pride Films and Plays, Indie Boots Film Festival, Full Voice, Mudgeonsoul Productions, and Stockyards Theatre. www.cyrakpolizzi.com

David Zak is Executive Director of Pride Films and Plays. He served as Artistic Director of Bailiwick Repertory in Chicago from 1982-2009. In 2010, he directed the London premiere of The Irish Curse, and in 2011 directed A Doll's House and Fanta Stick in Seoul. He has received Chicago's Jeff Recommendations and Awards, Jeff Citations for Best New Work and for Bailiwick's range of diverse programming, and After Dark Awards. His play The Hiroshima Project has been performed around the world. He teaches gender studies for the Chicago Center of Urban Life and Culture.

Check out PFP Ensemble Members Nick Stockwell and Nelson Rodriguez in the 20% Theater Company Production of The Rover!

A story about love triangles, revenge, and political satire centered on the mystical Carnivale, Aphra Behn's The Rover is 20%'s first foray into a period and historical piece.   When a rakish naval captain, Willmore, falls in love with a young woman, Hellena, as she is about to be sent off to a convent by her brother complications arise when Angellica Bianca falls in love with Willmore and swears revenge on him for his betrayal.  Meanwhile, Hellena's sister Florinda attempts to marry her true love, Colonel Belvile, rather than the man her brother has selected and Blunt is convinced that a girl has fallen in love with him but is humiliated when she turns out to be a prostitute and a thief.

Performances begin October 25 at the Great New Rivendell Theater Space on Ridge.  Find tickets and more information here. 

Sunday, October 7 is the first rehearsal for the world premiere of At The Flash by Sean Chandler and David Leeper.  Make sure you book your tickets early for this fierce and funny show!

The panel is set for the Sunday afternoon talk during Gay Film Weekend at Center on Halsted's Hoover-Leppen Theater. The panel will feature a discussion about about funding, production, and distribution for LGBT films, and the impact of shifting cultural attitudes and technology.

The panelists are Alex Bohs, Wendy Jo Carlton, Mary Morten, Richard Paro. The moderator is Cyra K. Polizzi. 

The panel is at 4:00 on Sunday, October 21, and is free. It is part of Gay Film Weekend sponsored by Pride Films and Plays. 

Tickets for At The Flash are now on sale.  

Get discounted tickets for groups of 10 here. 

Casting for Beautiful Thing

John Nasca this week announced the for the 20th Anniversary production of Beautiful Thing. They are:
Sandra: Michelle McKenzie-Voigt
Jamie: Robert Hilliard
Ste: Charlie Wein
Tony: Patrick Rybarczyk
Leah: Kiah McKirnan
John commented  It is an honor to direct this talented group of actors.

Performances of Beautiful Thing beginning with previews begin January 17 at Luna Central Theatre, 3914 N Clark Street.  Purchase advance tickets here:
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/274035