press release
CHICAGO – Dream Theatre Company will continue its 2003/2004 season with the world premiere production of Ismene written by Chicago playwright and ensemble member Jeremy Menekseoglu. The show runs Friday, January 9th through Saturday January 31st at The Journeymen Theatre in Holy Covenant Church, 925 W. Diversey Avenue, Chicago. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. The press opening will be Thursday, January 8th at 8:00pm. Tickets are $15. To reserve tickets or press comps please call 773-865-4486.
Eleven months after the death of Antigone and the madness of King Creon, all is still not well in the city of Thebes. When a chorus of thousands appear outside the bedroom window of Ismene, the only surviving member of the tragic house of Oedipus, and blame her for their own miserable lives, she is unjustly banished far away to a school for unruly girls. It is within this school’s dark and irreverent walls that the true nature of prophecy is revealed, and the final act of the tragedy of Oedipus and his children unfolds.
Ismene is the most recent of many projects in Dream Theatre Company’s rich five-year history. A recent addition to Chicago’s vibrant theater community, Dream Theatre is committed to producing original, invigorating theatre. Ismene is directed by Mia Kuziko, and features the ensemble cast of Caroline Treadwell, Rebecca Lincoln, Kyle Carroll, Tory Leigh, Tanya Kim, and Jeremy Menekseoglu.
Dream Theatre Company: From its inspired beginnings in 1998 at the famed Moscow Art Theatre, Dream Theatre Company has produced works in Russia, New York, and throughout the United States. From Moscow to Manhattan, and now to Chicago, Dream Theatre members have produced powerful, vivid, and sometimes frightening works. Recent Chicago productions include: SISTER 121, ANNA, IN THE DARKNESS and THE HAPPINESS OF SCHIZOPHRENIA, RIO, and DREAM AND FURY. From daring comedies and romance to the darkest corners of the human condition, Dream Theatre is committed to breaking down the barriers between actor and audience, reviving a long-forgotten theatrical tradition. The audience are never merely spectators, but instead are actively invited into the dream world of the play where possibilities are endless, nothing is out-of-bounds, and the fourth wall does not exist. Ismene will continue this exciting tradition.
Jeremy Menekseoglu has written over thirty-five plays. Of these, over twenty have been successfully produced throughout the United States and also abroad, in Russia. Kerry Reid, a critic from the Chicago Reader, described SISTER 121 as “If Ayn Rand had scripted a snuff film, it might have turned out a bit like (his) new play.” Nina Metz from the Chicago Tribune wrote that his play ANNA, IN THE DARKNESS was “a chilling experience- you feel like you’re stuck in that dang living room with her, exposed and susceptible to the lurking danger outside.” Jeremy's plays have been performed in Chicago at The Journeymen Theatre, The Side Studio, The Artistic Home, Experimental Theatre Chicago, The Deadwood Theatre Company, the Abbie Hoffman Festival and the Bucktown Arts Festival. He holds Masters' degrees from both the Moscow Art Theatre and Carnegie Mellon University.
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