TUTA Theatre is pleased to present the world premiere adaptation of HEDDA GABLER: A Play with Live Music, adapted and directed by Artistic Director Jacqueline Stone, with original music and music direction by Wain Parham, based on the play by Henrik Ibsen. Featuring TUTA company member Lauren Demerath in the title role of Hedda, HEDDA GABLER will play February 25 – March 29, 2020 at Strawdog Theatre Company, 1802 W. Berenice Ave. in Chicago. Full casting will be announced shortly. Tickets go on sale Sunday, December 1 at www.tutatheatre.org. The press opening is Thursday, February 27, 2020 at 7:30 pm.
In TUTA Theatre’s HEDDA GABLER, the past and present collide, modern music and classical text intersect, in ways that reinvent the tale we think we know. In a time of rapidly shifting social and sexual paradigms, no work rings with more unflinching insight than that of the great Norwegian writer. Ibsen rose to prominence in large part through his refusal to follow the rules; writing plays for thinkers, for citizens, for people willing to question the moral compass of the universe.
In this new adaptation, Stone explores a reimagined take on Hedda’s point of view – backing Hedda with a three-piece live band. Using TUTA’s unique approach to ensemble, music and design, this reinvented HEDDA GABLER brings Ibsen into conversation with our own era of secrets, corruption and the fight for freedom without compromise, and all the while the band plays on...
The production team includes Martin Andrew (scenic design), Rachel Sypniewski (costume design), Keith Parham (lighting design), Joe Court (sound design), dramaturgy by Milan Pribisic (dramaturg) Jamal Howard (casting director) Becky Warner (stage manager).
PRODUCTION DETAILS:
Title: HEDDA GABLER: A Play with Live Music
Adapted and directed by: Artistic Director Jacqueline Stone
Original music and music direction by Wain Parham
Based on the play by Henrik Ibsen
Cast: Lauren Demerath as Hedda. Full casting to be announced shortly.
Location: Strawdog Theatre Company, 1802 W. Berenice Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Tuesday, February 25 at 7:30 pm and Wednesday, February 26 at 7:30 pm
Press opening Thursday, February 27 at 7:30 pm
Regular run: Friday, February 28 – Sunday, March 29, 2020
Curtain times: Thursday, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm.
Tickets: Previews $20. Regular run $25 - $40. All reservations must be claimed no later than 15 minutes before a performance or they will be released. Tickets go on sale Sunday, December 1 at www.tutatheatre.org.
About the Artists
Jacqueline Stone (Adapter/Director) is a co-founder and the Artistic Director of TUTA. Her TUTA directing credits include the Chicago and New York premieres (59E59 Theaters) of Adam Rapp's The Edge of Our Bodies, the world premiere of The Anyway Cabaret (an animal cabaret) and the U.S. premiere of The Silent Language. Her TUTA performance credits include Fulton Street Sessions, Baal, The Wedding (1996, 2010, 2011), Uncle Vanya (2008, 2009), A Still Life In Color, The Birds, The Sweet Little Prince, Alice and The Hour. n addition to TUTA, Stone is the Artistic Director of Emerald City Theatre Company, Chicago's largest professional theatre serving young audiences. Other Chicago directing credits include Strawdog Theatre, Chicago Dramatists, Broadway In Chicago, Piven Theatre, The Second City, Akvavit Theatre, Step Up Productions, 20% Theatre Company, You & Me Productions and DCASE.
Wain Parham (Original Music, Music Direction) is an actor, classical singer, composer and voice instructor in the greater Chicago area. His performance experience includes solo or principal roles in Pagliacci, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Amahl and The Night Visitors, La Comica Del Cielo, Winterreise, Bach’s St. John Passion, and Mozart’s Requiem, to name a few. He has provided music direction and composition for TUTA’s Anyway Cabaret, The Jewels, The Silent Language, Fulton Street Sessions, The Wedding and TRACKS. He is a member of Chicago’s exceptionally talented all-male Acapella group The Rookery. He has also lent his musical skills and talents to other Chicago theatre and film projects such as Love in The Middle Ages, BRE production’s horror films Run and Fate, as well as various instrumental ensembles.
Lauren Demerath (Hedda) earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Since graduating, she has become a proud company member of TUTA Theatre Chicago and The Saltbox Theatre Collective; she is also represented by Lori Lins Limited. When Lauren is not acting, she enjoys singing jazz, folk and soul music, learning to play the standup bass, and working on an album of original songs. Some of Lauren’s past performances include: Factory Theatre’s Factory Zone, Saltbox Theatre Collective’s Talking With (Actress), Prop Theatre’s Beth In July (Beth), TUTA’s Gentle (Lukerya), TUTA’s The Jewels (Ensemble and Maiden) TUTA’s The Anyway Cabaret (Ensemble), First Folio Theatre’s production of Cymbeline (ensemble), The Towle Theatre’s A Fabulous 50’s Christmas (ensemble) and Just Passing By Theatre Company’s productions of The Glass Menagerie (Laura) and Cabaret (Sally).
About TUTA Theatre Chicago
TUTA was established in 1995 in Washington, D.C. by co-founders Zeljko and Natasha Djukic, who brought a unique sense of artistic expression from their European homeland. In 2002, they relocated the company to Chicago. In the ensuing decade, TUTA has presented numerous U.S. premieres of foreign plays from France, Russia, Austria and Serbia. TUTA has produced seven world premieres, eight U.S. premieres, four Midwest premieres and a number of modern re-imagining of classics. TUTA's productions have been listed on Chicago critics' 'Best of the Year' list seven times in the past ten years, and have been produced nationally (in LA and Off-Broadway in NYC) and internationally (in Serbia with the National Theatre in Belgrade). During the 2018-2019 season, TUTA produced the U.S. premiere of RADIO CULTURE, by Maxim Dosko for a six-month run.