Victory Gardens Theater facts for kids
VG Biograph in 2018
|
|
 Victory Gardens Theater
Location in Illinois
Victory Gardens Theater
Location in the United States
|
|
| Address | 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue |
|---|---|
| Location | Chicago, IL 60614 |
| Coordinates | 41°55′35″N 87°39′00″W / 41.9263801°N 87.6498738°W |
| Seating type | Reserved seating |
| Opened | 1974 |
Victory Gardens Theater is a special theater company in Chicago, Illinois. It focuses on creating and showing brand new plays and helping new writers. Eight artists from Chicago started the company in 1974. They each put in $1,000 to begin a theater outside the main downtown area. One of them, Stuart Gordon, even gave them a light board from his other theater group. The very first play they showed was The Velvet Rose on October 9, 1974.
Contents
Early Days: Clark Street Theater (1974)
The theater company first started in a building at 3730 N. Clark Street in Chicago. This building used to be a social club for Swedish people. Their second play was a country-western musical called The Magnolia Club. This show was a big hit for the new company! Marcelle McVay became the first managing director, helping to run the theater.
In 1975, a director named Dennis Začek put on a play called The Caretaker. This was the start of a long partnership. Začek later became the artistic director in 1977. Many important people started working with Victory Gardens during this time. These included actor William L. Petersen, Marcelle McVay, director Sandy Shinner, and playwrights Steve Carter and Jeffrey Sweet. Marcelle McVay, who married Dennis Začek, later became the managing director. Sandy Shinner also became an associate artistic director.
Moving to the Body Politic Theater (1981)
In 1981, a play called Ties by Jeffrey Sweet became very popular. It was so successful that it moved to a bigger space downstairs at the Body Politic Theater. This new location was at 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue. When Ties finished its run, this downstairs area became the new home for Victory Gardens. In 1995, the Body Politic Theater closed down. Victory Gardens then bought the entire building.
In 1989, Dennis Začek directed a play by James Sherman called Beau Jest. This play became so popular that it moved to New York City. It was then performed hundreds of times all over the world! In 2008, James Sherman even made a movie version of the play.
In 1996, the Victory Gardens Playwrights Ensemble was formed. This was a special group of different playwrights who worked together. It was quite rare for a theater company to have such a group. The first members included Steve Carter, James Sherman, Claudia Allen, Dean Corrin, Lonnie Carter, Gloria Bond Clunie, John Logan, Nicholas Patricca, Douglas Post, Charles Smith, Jeffrey Sweet, and Kristine Thatcher.
On June 3, 2001, Victory Gardens received a very important award. They won the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. This made them one of only five Chicago theater companies to win this honor. The other four were the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, and Lookingglass Theatre Company.
New Home at the Biograph Theatre (2006)
In 2006, Victory Gardens spent $11.8 million to make a big change. They renovated and opened the historic Biograph Theater as their new home. This theater is located at 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue. The Biograph is famous for a historical event involving a well-known figure, John Dillinger. The theater opened with a party hosted by William L. Petersen. He had played Dillinger in a play at Victory Gardens earlier in his career.
The old building at 2257 N. Lincoln was renamed the Victory Gardens Greenhouse. It is now mostly rented out to other non-profit theater groups. These groups include Shattered Globe and Remy Bumppo Theatre Company. In 2008, the Victory Gardens Greenhouse was sold. It is now known as the Greenhouse Theater Center.
In 2010, Victory Gardens named a studio space inside the Biograph Theater the Richard Christiansen Theatre. This was to honor Richard Christiansen. He was a longtime theater critic for the Chicago Tribune newspaper. He also wrote a book about theater.
Playwrights Ensemble Alumni
The Victory Gardens Playwrights Ensemble has had many talented writers over the years. Here are some of the past members:
- Luis Alfaro
- Claudia Allen
- Lonnie Carter
- Steve Carter
- Gloria Bond Clunie
- Dean Corrin
- Nilo Cruz
- Philip Dawkins
- Marcus Gardley
- Ike Holter
- Samuel D. Hunter
- Naomi Iizuka
- Joel Drake Johnson
- John Logan
- Nicholas Patricca
- Douglas Post
- Tanya Saracho
- Laura Schellhardt
- James Sherman
- Charles Smith
- Jeffrey Sweet
- Kristine Thatcher
National Artistic Advisory Board
Victory Gardens has a special group of national theater artists. These artists serve as advisors and ambassadors for the theater. This board includes:
- Luis Alfaro
- Nilo Cruz
- Eve Ensler
- David Henry Hwang
- Tony Kushner
- John Logan
- Craig Lucas
- Sandra Oh
- Suzan-Lori Parks
- Jose Rivera
- Anika Noni Rose
- Sarah Ruhl
- Jeanine Tesori
- Paula Vogel
- George C. Wolfe
- B.D. Wong
See also
