A Red Orchid Theatre is an Equity

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

company located in the Old Town district of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, founded in 1993 by

Michael Shannon Michael Corbett Shannon (born August 7, 1974) is an American actor, producer, musician, and theater director. He is an off beat actor known for his on-screen versatility, performing in both comedies and dramas. He became known for his frequent ...

, Guy Van Swearingen IV, and Lawrence Grimm. Kirsten Fitzgerald, a long-time ensemble member, has helmed the company as Artistic Director since 2008.

Notable productions

Notable productions include a revival of

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American actor, playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose career spanned half a century. He won 10 Obie Awards for writing and directing, the most by any write ...

's '' Simpatico'', Eugène Ionesco's '' The Killer'', and John Ford's ''

'Tis Pity She's a Whore ''Tis Pity She's a Whore'' (original spelling: ''Tis Pitty Shee's a Who'' 'ore'') is a tragedy written by John Ford. It was first performed or between 1629 and 1633, by Queen Henrietta's Men at the Cockpit Theatre. The play was first publ ...

''. Notable world premieres include

Tracy Letts Tracy S. Letts (born July 4, 1965) is an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He started his career at the Steppenwolf Theatre before making his Broadway debut as a playwright for '' August: Osage County'' (2007), for which he received ...

' '' Bug'' and Craig Wright's ''Mistakes Were Made''. A Red Orchid is also known for an experimental 1996 production of

Arthur Kopit Arthur Lee Kopit (' Koenig; May 10, 1937 – April 2, 2021) was an American playwright. He was a two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist for '' Indians'' and '' Wings''. He was also nominated for three Tony Awards: Best Play for ''Indians'' (1970) a ...

's ''The Questioning of Nick'' starring Nick Offerman,

, and Guy Van Swearingen that was performed three times in succession with the actors switching roles each time. In the summer of 2014, the company took its premiere production of ''The Opponent'' by ensemble member Brett Neveu to New York's 59E59 Theaters with the original cast (ensemble members Guy Van Swearingen and Kamal Angelo Bolden), director (ensemble member Karen Kessler) and designers (Joey Wade, Myron Elliott, Joe Court, John Tovar and ensemble member Mike Durst). In Fall 2017, McCarter Theatre Center presented A Red Orchid's 2013 production of '' Simpatico''. This production featured much of the original cast and crew including

Ensemble members

A Red Orchid Theatre's artistic ensemble is composed of actors, designers, directors, and playwrights.

Awards and nominations

MacArthur Award

In 2016, A Red Orchid Theatre became the recipient of the

MacArthur Foundation The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a private foundation that makes grants and impact investments to support non-profit organizations in approximately 50 countries around the world. It has an endowment of $7.0 billion and p ...

's MacArthur Award for Creative & Effective Institutions. This MacArthur Award included a $200,000 grant to be used to "establish a cash reserve and implement its audience development plan that includes new marketing and audience engagement strategies."

Joseph Jefferson Awards

The company has received many

Joseph Jefferson Award The Joseph Jefferson Award, more commonly known informally as the Jeff Award, is given for theatre arts produced in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are named in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson, a 19th-century American theater sta ...

s, the highest awards honoring Chicago theatre.

Non-Equity

Equity

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Red Orchid Theatre Theatre companies in Chicago Theatres in Chicago 1993 establishments in Illinois