Get a sneak peak at Hack/Slash: Preview performances are Friday,Saturday

Two preview performance of Strangeloop Theatre and CIC Theater co-production Hack/Slash are set for Friday, Sept. 5 and Saturday, Sept. 6 at 8 p.m. Discount tickets are available now at Brown Paper Tickets.

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.

The performaces are at CIC Theater, 1422 W. Irving Park Road in Chicago.

Thinking Caps Recap

We had a great reception for Thinking Caps at the Greenhouse Theater Center on Tuesday evening. Thank you to everyone who came out and gave their feedback. We're looking forward to the next step in the development process for this script by Company Member Keith Gatchel.

Thinking Caps explores the upsides and downsides of virtual reality technology in the near future as seen through the lives of Charles and Maggie Cusick. The play is set in the near future in places both real and imaginary, in a time when the internet is all but dead and people communicate via telepathy and interact socially in a type of virtual reality known as the Headnet.

The staged reading was directed by Co-Artistic Director Letitia Guillaud. The cast was as follows:

• Charles                   Michael Houghton Wagman
• Maggie                    Maria Burnham
• Kim Ayers               Holly Robison
• David Scrab            Justin Cornwell
• Actor                       Nick Vidal
• Actress                    Patricia Tinsley
• Headnet Voice        Letitia Guillaud

The staged reading was produced as part of the Trellis reading series, Greenhouse's artist development program that showcases plays from playwrights who aren’t otherwise able to find a space for their work to be seen.

Put on your Thinking Caps and join us at the Greenhouse Theater Center

The near future. Websites and the internet are dead. Telepathy and Headsites are the new reality. Everyone who is anyone has a Thinking Cap and they live in a semi-virtual, semi-real world where imagination is the key to success.

But how far is too far when it comes to technology?

Thinking Caps, an original play by Strangeloop Company Member Keith Gatchel, explores the upsides and downsides of virtual reality technology in the near future.

The play will be presented tonight, September 2, as part of the Greenhouse Theater Center's Trellis staged reading series. The reading is free and open to the public. Thinking Caps starts at 7 p.m. at the Greenhouse Theater Complex, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The theater is located near the Fullerton red line el stop and the #8 bus stop at the Halsted Street, Lincoln Avenue and Fullerton Avenue intersection. Free parking is available in the garage at 2316 N. Lincoln Ave.

The play was originally part of Strangeloop Theatre's short play and development series Loopshop.

The staged reading is directed by Strangeloop Co-Artistic Director Letitia Guillaud. The cast includes Michael Houghton Wagman, Maria Burnham, Justin Cornwell, Holly Robison, Nick Vidal and Patricia Tinsley.

The Trellis reading series is Greenhouse's artist development program that showcases plays from playwrights that aren’t otherwise able to find a space for their work to be seen.

Come enjoy half price drinks at the Greenhouse bar, and help support new works by coming to the readings and giving your feedback!

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.