Production team announced for Hack/Slash

Blood, violence, that crazy bat with the nails — it doesn't all just make itself. To get a show like Hack/Slash ready for the stage takes an immense amount of behind the scenes work.

To do so, production manager Letitia Guillaud* has gathered together her own team of monster slayers AND monster makers. The production team for Hack/Slash is:

Director:                                 Brad Gunter*
Stage Manager:                     John Wefler
Violence Designer:                Barbara Seifert
Violence Assistant:                Christopher DeNardo
Costume Designer:                Carrie Campana*
Sound Designer:                    Keith Gatchel*
Lighting Designer:                  Chris Corwin
Projection Designer:              Jay Gish
Props and Blood Designer:    Mel Gill
Graphic Designer:                  Mike Wozniak
Marketing:                              Maria Burnham*

* Denotes a Strangeloop Theatre Company Member.

Hack/Slash is a co-production of Strangeloop Theatre and CIC Theater. The adaptation of the cult horror comic book series by Tim Seeley follows the story of horror victim survivor Cassie Hack who, together with her disfigured sidekick Vlad, travels the country (and sometimes the underworld) fighting evil slashers who refuse to just lay down and die even after being burned, impaled and shot 20 times.

Hack/Slash opens Friday, September 12, and runs through Saturday, November 1, on Friday and Saturday nights at 8 p.m. Please note, there is no performance on Friday, September 19. The performances will be held at CIC Theater (1422 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago, IL 60613). Tickets are $15 and are available in advance through Brown Paper Tickets or at the door.

More information about the cast and show are available here.

More details are also available at strangelooptheatre.org and at cictheater.com

Strangeloop, CIC bring you horror with a dose of humor thisHalloween season

 This fall Strangeloop Theatre, in a co-production with CIC Theater, is bringing the horror comedy series Hack/Slash by Chicago artist and writer Tim Seeley from the 2D comic book page to a 3D Chicago stage.

"This production will appeal to hardcore fans of the comic book series, while still being accessible to theatre-goers coming in with little to no knowledge of Hack/Slash or Tim Seeley," said Brad Gunter, Hack/Slash director and co-artistic director of Strangeloop Theatre. "It promises to be a bloody good time — pun totally intended — for everyone who joins us."

Hack/Slash is the story of horror victim survivor Cassie Hack who, together with her disfigured sidekick Vlad, travels the country (and sometimes the underworld) fighting evil slashers who refuse to just lay down and die even after being burned, impaled and shot 20 times.

Seeley is best known as co-creator of Hack/Slash and Revival, and for his work on G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, New Exiles and G.I. Joe vs. Transformers. He also currently co-writes the weekly series Batman: Eternal for DC Comics.

This is the second time Hack/Slash has sliced its way onto the Chicago stage. The first production, which featured a different script, was produced by New Millennium Theatre Company in 2005. Both productions were done in conjunction with creator Tim Seeley.

"It's great to see Hack/Slash brought to life again," Seeley said. "I'm excited for the fans to see it and to have it introduced to a new audience."

For the Strangeloop/CIC version, Seeley's original comic book scripts were used as a basis for dialogue and action. This production pulls from several storylines giving fans and newcomers alike a glimpse into Cassie's history, the mayhem that made her what she is and, of course, plenty of slashers.

The cast of Hack/Slash is: Jean E. Burr as Cassie Hack; Tim Lee as Vlad; Miona Lee as Emily Cristy and Erika Napoletano, Christopher Prchal, Pete Navi, Richard John McLain, John Rohr, Melissa Nelson, Kara Charlton and Renee Lynn Jackson as the ensemble.

Hack/Slash opens Friday, September 12, and runs through Saturday, November 1, on Friday and Saturday nights at 8 p.m. Please note, there is no performance on Friday, September 19. The performances will be held at CIC Theater (1422 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago, IL 60613). Tickets are $15 and are available in advance through Brown Paper Tickets or at the door.

More details are available at strangelooptheatre.org and at cictheater.com

Loopshop 7: iLove

We're previewing all seven of the plays featured in Loopshop 7.

Today we check out the last play in our lineup, iLove by Strangeloop Company Member Maria Burnham:

A woman is attacked on the train platform and has her iPhone stolen. Pushed down the stairs in the process, she wakes up in the hospital with a man by her side claiming to be her boyfriend, but whom she does not recognize.

Directed by Jessica Kent, iLove stars Company Member Carrie Campana as Penny, Nick Johnson as Martin and Sara Cordon as Karen Montgomery.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features a mix of short, original plays and scenes from full scripts in development — all from local playwrights.

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, 2014, at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets.

Loopshop 7: The Safety of Lies

We're previewing all seven of the plays featured in Loopshop 7.

Today we get a glimpse of The Safety of Lies by Kyle Martin:

All the signs are there —veiled barbs, half truths, outright lies — a husband and wife both believe the other is cheating on them. And on this night, they stop pretending and find out they're both right...

Sort of.

Directed by Strangeloop Associate Memeber Tim Lee, The Safety of Lies stars Laura Deger as Jan and Sean Goldrick as Tom.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features a mix of short, original plays and scenes from full scripts in development — all from local playwrights.

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, 2014, at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets.

Loopshop 7: Kidney Katie

We're previewing all seven of the plays featured in Loopshop 7.

Today we cut into Kidney Katie by Strangeloop Company Member Keith Gatchel:

A girl seduces a guy and lures him into the bathroom when her mom suddenly shows up to document her "first time." Starting work at the family business is never easy, especially when your parents are looking over your shoulder the whole time.

Directed by Strangeloop Company Memeber Holly Robison, Kidney Katie stars Melissa Fricke as Katie, Pat Parks as Melanie and Sean Thomas as Ben.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features a mix of short, original plays and scenes from full scripts in development — all from local playwrights.

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, 2014, at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets.

Loopshop 7: The Higher Up

We're previewing all seven of the plays featured in Loopshop 7.

Today we sneak a look at The Higher Up by B. Walker Sampson:

An office worker in Manhattan, or possibly New Siberia, sees something she never thought she'd see at the water cooler and then gets cornered by a nosy coworker once back at her desk, who is filled with questions about her water drinking habits, what happened at the water cooler and — most ominously — what her previous job experience was.

The Loopshop performance of The Higher Up is an excerpt from a full-length play by Sampson, a New York-based playwright. Directed by Zack Florent, The Higher Up stars Grace DeSant as Lemple and Zach Bundy as Bolen.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features a mix of short, original plays and scenes from full scripts in development — all from local playwrights.

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, 2014, at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets.

Loopshop 7: Spake

We're previewing all seven of the plays featured in Loopshop 7.

Today we get a peek into Spake by David L. Williams:

A student at Cornell University is the only surviving speaker of a Russian oral language called Ujide after his entire extended family is killed at the funeral of his great-great-grandfather in Siberia when their church collapses. The only people he has left to turn to are an ex-girlfriend and a soon-to-be ex-professor at Cornell who specializes in dead languages.

The Loopshop performance of Spake is an excerpt from a full-length play by Williams, a Pennsylvania-based playwright. Directed by John Morrison, Spake stars Cristiana Barbatelli as Jessica, Michelle Pretorius as Ann and Matthew Dealy as Nicholas.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features a mix of short, original plays and scenes from full scripts in development — all from local playwrights. 

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, 2014, at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets. 

Stalkers and Superheroines and Siberia. Oh My! (a.k.a. Loopshop 7: Therise of bite-sized theater!)

To get y'all ready for Loopshop 7 — which happens at the end of July at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, — we'll be sharing some short teasers about all six of our featured plays here and on Facebook. (Like us if you haven't already.)

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, 2014, at Chemically Imbalanced Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets.

First up is Aqua Woman.

Living at home with your mother as a grown woman is hard enough, but when you're having trouble finding a paying gig as a superheroine and your mom is pressuring you to joint the League of Extradinary Evil and your perfect sister is dashing all over town kicking butt as Dr. Fabulous's sidekick...sigh, there are just some days when nothing seems to go right.

Written by Megan Mackie and directed by Chad Wise, Aqua Woman stars Jean E. Burr as Rhiannon and Shawna Tucker as Emma.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features a mix of short, original plays and scenes from full scripts in development — all from local playwrights. 

Get ready for Loopshop 2014!

Strangeloop Theatre kicks off its 7th Season with Loopshop 2014, the company's annual workshop series, featuring six new works from up-and-coming playwrights, each performed both nights of this two-night-only run.

Enjoy a great mix of performances blended from short plays and scenes from full scripts in development. Loopshop highlights new works ranging from the ridiculous to the deadly serious. Join us as we delve into these pieces and become a part of the play development process!

Featured plays:

• "iLove" by Maria Burnham (Directed by Jessica Kent)
• "Kidney Katie" by Keith Gatchel (Directed by Holly Robison)
• "The Safety of Lies" by Kyle Martin (Directed by Tim Lee)
• "Aqua Woman" by Megan Mackie (Directed by Chad Wise)
• "Higher Up" by B. Walker Sampson (Directed by Zack Florent)
• "Spake" by David L. Williams (Directed by John Morrison)

Performances for Loopshop will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28 & Tuesday, July 29, 2014 at Chemically Imbalanced Comedy Theatre, 1422 West Irving Park Road, Chicago, IL. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or at Brown Paper Tickets.

Save the Date: Loopshop 7

Strangeloop's annual short play and new works series returns this summer to Chemically Imbalanced Theatre and will kick off our seventh season of pursuing the undiscovered.

Performances for Loopshop 7 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 28, and Tuesday, July 29, at Chemically Imbalanced Comedy Theatre, 1422 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets for the show will be available at the door or online.

More details coming soon, but put the dates in your calendars.