Friday, December 20, 2019

Auditions Announced for Much Ado About Nothing

We are now accepting submissions to audition for Ghostlight Ensemble’s upcoming immersive production of Much Ado About Nothing to be performed in an Albany Park home, where audience members may move amongst the action as all the drama and comedy unfolds around them. The production will be directed by Producing Director Holly Robison.

Audition Dates:
Auditions: Wednesday January 15 and & Thursday, January 16, 2020: 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Callbacks: Saturday, January 18, 2020: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Chicago’s north side.

Location will be provided when audition slot is assigned.

What to Prepare: 
Sides will be forwarded with audition slot.

Tech/Performance Dates: 
 Performance Dates will be Friday and Saturn evenings and Sunday matinees, April 24 to May 17, 2020, with a possible extension. Tech will be April 18–23, 2020. Rehearsals will begin early-mid March on weekday evenings and weekend days. Rehearsals will be scheduled according to cast availability.

Stipend:
Small stipend.

Character Description: 
Looking to cast all roles, ages ranging from early 20s to 70s. Seeking a strong ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes. Some roles may be double cast and/or considered for gender fluid casting. Please see character breakdown below.


  • BEATRICE, pleasant spirited lady 
  •  HERO, Beatrice’s younger cousin 
  •  LEONATO, Governor of Messina – Hero’s father and Beatrice’s uncle 
  •  MARGARET, waiting gentlewoman to Hero 
  • URSULA, waiting gentlewoman to Hero 
  •  BENEDICK, a gentleman from Padua 
  •  DON PEDRO, Prince of Aragon 
  •  CLAUDIO, a young lord from Florence 
  •  BALTHASAR, servant/singer 
  •  DON JOHN, Don Pedro’s brother 
  •  BORACHIO, Don John’s comrade 
  •  CONRADE, Don John’s comrade 
  •  DOGBERRY, Master Constable in Messina 
  •  VERGES, Dogberry’s deputy 
  •  GEORGE SEACOAL, leader of the Watch 
  •  FIRST WATCHMAN 
  •  SECOND WATCHMAN 
  •  FRIAR FRANCIS 
  •  MESSENGER(s)

Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com, and she will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment if we'd like to see you. Please indicate any time restrictions you have for the audition period in your email.

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Mark your calendar for Chicago Theatre Week

Mark your calendar for Chicago Theatre Week: February 13-23, 2020!

Ghostlight is proud to be part of Chicago Theatre Week in 2020, and excited to be able to offer children’s programming as part of this city-wide event to bring affordable performance to residents and visitors alike.

Chicago Theatre Week tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, January 14, 2020, at ChicagoTheatreWeek.com. Tickets for many of the city's largest theatres are only $30 and at storefront theatres only $15 (or less!).

Chicago Theatre Week is an annual celebration of the rich tradition of theatre going in Chicago during which visitors and residents can access value-priced tickets.

As a program of the League of Chicago Theatres, in partnership with Choose Chicago, Chicago Theatre Week is heading into its eighth year and will take place February 13-23, 2020. More than 100 theatre productions are expected to participate in neighborhoods throughout the city and suburbs.

Learn more at Choose Chicago.

Plays announced for February's Make/Believe Festival

Ghostlight announces the scripts that will be performed as part of the Make/Believe, a short play festival for young audiences, scheduled for February 22 and 23, 2020, at Laugh Out Loud Theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago.

The plays, geared towards children 12 and under, all have one unifying feature – strong female characters.

Selected scripts are:

  • Asherella by Lori Taylor 
  • Ava's First Escape Room by Kim Z. Dale 
  • Epic Tales From the Land of Melanin originally devised by Guadalís Del Carmen, Mariana Green, Brandi Lee, Maya Mackrandilal, Enid Muñoz, Alyssa Vera Ramos, Deanalís Resto, Ana Velazquez and Teresa Zoríc with FEMelanin 
  • Little Red Reboot by Sonya Sobieski 
  • The Queen of Cocoa Puffs and the Cap'n Crunch King by Corey Pajka 
  • Scaredy Friends by Carolyn Minor 
  • Snow White, Who Is Also Called Becky, No Rebecca...and the Frog Prince by Jack Helbig and Margaret Helbig 
  • Stinky Bird by Seth Freeman

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Auditions Announced for Live Movie Reading Series and Make/Believe short play festival

Ghostlight Ensemble announces joint auditions for the first quarter of its Live Movie Reading Series and for its young audiences play festival, Make/Believe. Actors may audition for one of both of the programs. Please state which program you wish to audition for in your submission. Actors may be considered for multiple short plays and multiple movies.

The Live Movie Reading Series is a low-key and fun, staged reading of some of our favorite movies. These readings are fundraisers for local nonprofits. Past recipients have included Common Pantry, Girl Forward and New Leash on Life, among others.

Make/Believe is part of our Nightlight young audiences series and is a curated festival of short plays by playwrights from around the country. The plays, geared towards children 12 and under, all have one unifying feature – strong female characters.

There is no pay for any of these shows.

Character Descriptions 
Seeking a strong ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes that is representative of the city in which we live.

For the Live Movie Reading series, we're looking for actors who love these movies and who can also read. Those are literally the only requirements. Please note that we prefer a greater diversity in our casts for these movies than the original directors did and that the genders of our actors do not always match those of the actors in the films.

For Make/Believe, actors with previous experience working with children will receive preference in scheduling. All actors must have a love of good stories, a sense of fun and an imagination to rival any 5-year-old. Most of the pieces in this festival involve some level of interaction with the audience, so actors must be comfortable interacting with children and their guardians.

Time Commitment
Live Movie Reading Series:
In general, the live movie reading series involves an initial gathering to watch the movie that is being performed and two rehearsals. There is no tech. All performances take place at 7:30 p.m. on Mondays at Carbon Arc Bar and Board (located at the Davis movie theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago).

Performance dates and movies are as follows:

  • January 27, 2020: 10 Things I Hate About You 
  • February 17, 2020: Charlie's Angels (2000 version) 
  •  March 23, 2020: Back To The Future

Make/Believe Festival:
Directors will set rehearsal dates and times around actor availability. These are 15-minute (or less) pieces and should require a minimal number of rehearsals.

Tech is scheduled from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 15, 2020. Specific time slots will be scheduled for each piece and actors are not expected to be there all day.

Performance times are: Saturday, February 22, 2020 Sunday, February 23, 2020

All pieces will be performed both days. Performances start at 2 p.m. and will be held at Laugh Out Loud Theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago.

Materials To Prepare
Actors auditioning for the Live Movie Reading series are asked to prepare a monologue from their favorite movie, no longer than 1 minute. These monologues do not need to be memorized (as the performances are read and not memorized), but must be acted and staged to the best of your ability.

Actors auditioning for Make/Believe will be given sides to read. Please note that you will be in consideration for all the scripts in the festival, even if you are only reading sides for one particular piece.

The audition date is January 11, 2020, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago.

Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com, and she will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment. Please indicate any time restrictions you have for the audition period in your email.

Monday, December 16, 2019

Thanks to everyone who attended the Holiday Cabernet



The second annual Holiday Cabernet was an amazing night of festive fun and holiday spirits!

We were blown away by the talent on display in the performances and in our vendor area, and by the reception from the standing-room only crowd that attended. Thank you to all of our wonderful performers, vendors, donors and patrons. You really filled us with holiday cheer(s)!

We’re already looking forward to next year. You can find out more about all the acts you saw, including how to book them for your events, here.

Special thanks to all our generous donors including, Revolution Brewing, Trader Joe’s, Spacca Napoli, Dovetail Brewery, Himmels Chicago, Twisted Hippo and Jerry’s Sandwiches.

If you missed out on all the holiday fun, but still want to give us a little present you can do so via the PayPal Giving Fund. Learn more about what your donations can do for us.

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Up Next: Holiday Cabernet



The Holiday Cabernet is back for a second year! On Saturday, Dec. 14, enjoy an evening of holiday classics (or not-so-classics) by favorite G.E.T. performers, emerging artists and surprise guests in a cabaret-style setting with a host who may or may not be toasted.

This year's host is the fabulous Ann Marie Carrothers, an award-winning singer, comedian, digital educator and filmmaker. Performers include: Chris Petty, Hugh Dis, Improvised Jane Austen, J. Rohr, Jacob Mayfield, Jeanette Green, Labyrinth Arts, Terra Mysterium and The Holidudes.

For year two, we've also added a holiday vendor area so you can do some holiday shopping in addition to indulging in the holiday cheer. Ticket price includes light food and drinks (including our signature cocktail, The Ghostlight).

G.E.T. into the holiday spirits and join us for a night of song, dance, theatre, good cheer and revelry at Vagabond School of the Arts. G.E.T. yule holiday fun on!

Details 
Where: Vagabond School of the Arts (4001 N Ravenswood Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60613) 
When: Saturday, December 14, 2019 
What time: 8 p.m. 

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

Giving Tuesday: Why Theatre Matters

As your inbox and social media has surely notified you by now, today is GivingTuesday — a global generosity movement that unleashes the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and their world.

 As we approach the end of 2019, we felt Giving Tuesday was the appropriate time to look back, not just at the year that was, but way back to what made us who we are today. We, the Ensemble, want to share with you our personal stories of why theatre matters to us and, in turn, to others.

 We know this time of year you are bombarded with requests from very worthy organizations and some of them are literally saving lives on a day-to-day basis, but theatre can also sometimes make a life or death difference in a person's life. Here’s how. 

Giving Tuesday is a chance to talk about our values and why we care so much about the work that we do. Thank for listening, for caring and for Giving.

Monday, December 2, 2019

Ghostlight welcomes three new associate ensemble members


Actors Kayla White, Alina Taber and Justin Broom have joined Ghostlight as associate ensemble members. All three have been seen in Ghostlight productions this season.

Kayla was first seen in our Nightlight production of The Princess Without Pots in 2017 and most recently was in our live reading Must Eat TV 3.

Alina, who is also a film actress and musician, recently starred as Helen O’Neill in our staged reading of The Thirteenth Chair.

Justin was also in The Thirteenth Chair, taking on the role of Trent. In addition, he has lent his talents to our live readings of Reality Bites and Must Eat TV 3.

 Full bios of all our artists can be found on the About Us: The Ensemble page of our website.