Strangeloop gets all Dolled up for Fight Night: X this Friday!

This Friday at the Mayne Stage in Rogers Park, Strangeloop brings it darkly humorous tale of violent sex and silicone to Nothing Special Production's Fight Night: X.


A collector of sex dolls brings his new acquisition home, but too late finds out she isn't quite like the rest. With the help of her glassy-eyed sisters, she exacts her revenge on the man who would keep her on a shelf.  

Doll, written and directed by Company Member Maria Burnham, stars Artistic Associates Jean E. Burr and Miona Lee, as well as guest artists Grace DeSant and Nora Lise Ulrey as the Dolls and Mark Edward Penzien as the collector. The piece is co-directed by Artistic Associate John Morrison. Violence is designed by Artistic Associate Justin Martin Fill. The fight captain is Mark Edward Penzien.


Fight Night is a one-night, violent cabaret celebrating the art of stage combat through original storytelling and violence design. Fight Night: X is a night of theatrical violence. No theme, no rules, just fights. 

The event takes place on Friday, September 4. Music by Barker begins at 8 p.m. Fights begin at 8:30 p.m. 
Tickets are $15 online, and $18 at the door. Purchasing in advance is highly recommended as this show always sells out.

Strangeloop returns to Fight Night in September

Strangeloop is excited to once again be part of Nothing Special Productions' Fight Night!

This go round, the 10th installment of the evening of short plays and punches, Strangeloop brings you Doll, written and directed by Company Member Maria Burnham, co-directed by Artistic Associate John Morrison. Violence is designed by Artistic Associate Justin Martin Fill. The fight captain is Mark Edward Penzien.

A collector of sex dolls brings his new acquisition home, but too late finds out she isn't quite like the rest. With the help of her glassy-eyed sisters, she exacts her revenge on the man who would keep her on a shelf. Doll stars Artistic Associates Jean E. Burr and Miona Lee, as well as guest artists Grace DeSant and Nora Lise Ulrey as the Dolls and Mark Edward Penzien as the collector. 

Fight Night is a one-night, violent cabaret celebrating the art of stage combat through original storytelling and violence design.

Fight Night: X challenges eight Chicago theater companies to each create a 10-minute play focusing on violence. No theme, no rules, just fights. The event takes place at 8 p.m. Friday, September 4, 2015, at the Mayne Stage in Rogers Park.

In addition to Strangeloop and Nothing Special, other companies are: Babes With Blades, Honest Theatre, Live Action Theatre, Otherworld Theatre Company, Reutan Collective and Robert Frosty.

Tickets are $15 online, and $18 at the door.

Loopshop 8: All The World's An IKEA

To get you in the mood for Loopshop 8 — which happens next week at The Charnel House in Logan Square — we've been sharing some short teasers about all five of our featured plays here and on Facebook. (Like us if you haven't already.)

Our last play is All The World's An IKEA by Strangeloop Company Member Maria Burnham.

The intricate comedy and drama of a relationship unfolds in the unintentionally theatrical setting that is a "living in" display at an IKEA, fueled by cinnamon rolls and environmentally sustainable wood.

Directed by Strangeloop Associate Member John Morrison, All The World's An IKEA stars Strangeloop's Jean E. Burr as Liyah and Mark Lancaster as Andy.

Loopshop is Chicago-based Strangeloop Theatre's annual short play and new works series. This year's production features original short plays on topics ranging from Swedish furniture to time travel. 

Performances for Loopshop 8 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 27, and Tuesday, July 28, 2015, at The Charnel House, 3421 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 and are available at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets. 

Loopshop 8 Bio: John Morrison

John Morrison (Director, All The World's An IKEA) has worked as a director in Chicago for close to ten years. He is a proud member of the Bruised Orange Theater Company. He is an associate artist of Strangeloop where he assisted on Thinking Caps and directed last year's Loopshop play Spake. Favorite directing credits include Shuttle To Home, Autumn Leaves, Wyrd Sisters, The Bugaboo Room, Daddy Long Legs, Determination, The Nebraska Project, Geeks Vs. Zombies and Heft. jmorrisondirect.com

Casting announced for Loopshop 8

Casting is complete for Loopshop 8 and we've packed a lot of amazing talent into these bit-sized plays.

Check back next week for a more detailed look at each piece, but in the meantime let this wet your appetite.

• All the World’s An Ikea, written by Maria Burnham and directed by John Morrison,  crams massive relationship issues into a tiny "Living In 377 Sq. Ft." display space.  
• Birthday, written by Jeff Bouthiette and directed by Emmi Hilger, shows us the unexpected struggles of a lesbian couple trying to adopt. 
• Get Back, written by Keith Gatchel and directed by Spenser Davis, tells the story of two boys determined to make a potato-powered time machine that will let them right a playground wrong.
• Here’s My Card, written by Paul Tinsley and directed by Breahan Pautsch, warns us not to talk to strangers at bus stops.
• Pity & Guilt, written by L.M. Frank and directed by Maria Burnham, follows a married couple struggling to leave their past marriages behind.

Actors for these pieces include: Jean E. Burr, Alison Dornheggen, Linsey Falls, Justin Fill, Joe Giovannetti, Caitlin Jackson, Mark Lancaster, Christopher Paul Mueller, Taylor Raye and Gage Wallace.

Performances for Loopshop 8 will be at 8 p.m. on Monday, July 27, and Tuesday, July 28, 2015, at The Charnel House, 3421 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago. Tickets for the show are $10 at the door or online at Brown Paper Tickets.

Strangeloop welcomes three new Artistic Associates

Strangeloop Theatre is thrilled to announce the addition of three new Artistic Associates to our company. All three are veterans of past Strangeloop productions.

The new members are:

Jean E. Burr is originally from Greensboro, North Carolina, but moved to Chicago in the midst of the 2013 polar vortex. Although always in pursuit of theatrical endeavors, she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington with a major in Film Studies and a minor in Japanese. She is an actress, singer, and dancer, but she also enjoys costuming and set design/construction. You can find her under the alias Harley Darling, performing with burlesque companies like Gorilla Tango, Vaudezilla! and Plan 9. When not performing or solving problems at her muggle job (customer service), Jean loves superheroes, her cat, mozzarella sticks and trying to live every day like she's Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road.

Justin Fill is extremely excited to be joining Strangeloop Theatre Company. Justin studied acting and digital storytelling at Ball State University, and is a member of the Society of American Fight Directors. Chicago credits include Theatre-Hikes and Forget Me Not Theatre. Justin's focuses are theatrical violence, music and integrating and interpreting technology into stage and film. When not immersed in the world of Theatre, Justin is a part of the pet-care industry, a courier and yogi in training. If you have time for an epic story, ask him about his WVO-powered RV.

John Morrison has worked as a director in Chicago for close to ten years. He is a proud member of the Bruised Orange Theater Company. He is an associate artist of Strangeloop where he assisted on Thinking Caps and directed last year's Loopshop play Spake. Favorite directing credits include Shuttle To Home, Autumn Leaves, Wyrd Sisters, The Bugaboo Room, Daddy Long Legs, Determination, The Nebraska Project, Geeks Vs. Zombies and Heft. jmorrisondirect.com


Currently, there are nine Company Members and three Associate Company Members in Strangeloop.

Scripts, directors announced for Loopshop 8

Loopshop 8 kicks off Strangeloop's eighth season this July with an array of bite-sized plays on topics ranging from Swedish furniture to time travel. Scripts and directors have been selected and casting is underway.

The annual series, which showcases short plays or scenes from full-length scripts in development, is set for 8 p.m. on Monday, July 27, and Tuesday, July 28, at the Charnel House in Logan Square.

The selected pieces are:

• All the World's An Ikea written by Maria Burnham and directed by John Morrison
• Birthday written by Jeff Bouthiette and directed by Emmi Hilger 
• Get Back written by Keith Gatchel and directed by Spenser Davis 
• Here's My Card written by Paul Tinsley and directed by Breahan Pautsch 
• Pity & Guilt written by L.M. Frank and directed by Maria Burnham

Tickets for Loopshop 8 are $10 and on sale now at Brown Paper Tickets. Check back here soon for casts and summaries of each piece!

Thinking Caps Bio: John Morrison

John Morrison (Assistant Director)is a proud member of the Bruised Orange Theater Company. Favorite directing credits include Autumn Leaves, Wyrd Sisters, The Bugaboo Room, Daddy Long Legs, Determination, The Nebraska Project, Geeks Vs. Zombies, and Heft. More about John is available at jmorrisondirect.com.

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. 

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.