ILLEGAL USE OF HANDS

Performance Info

Previews Aug. 31-Sept. 2, Opens Sept. 6, through Sept. 30
Thursdays and Fridays @ 8pm
Saturdays @ 5pm & 8pm
Sundays @ 2:30pm

at Victory Gardens Biograph Theater,
2433 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago

Box Office

Call (773) 871-3000
$19-$39.

Town Halls

We offer free post-show events:
Sept. 9: Meet the Company of “Illegal Use of Hands”
Sept. 16: “In the Locker Room–with Jim Rose”
Sept. 23: “Memory & Mythology in Sports Psychology”
Sept. 30: “A Conversation with Playwright, James Still”

Synopsis

In a small town where buzzards feast on a dead Chevy and the local Wal-Mart hires only college graduates, three men wait out the night in the company of a high school football trophy they have rescued from obscurity. It’s a story about revenge, glory, and being a man—if only the characters could agree on what they can’t remember.

Artists

Cast: (in alphabetical order): Howie Johnson, Steve Key*, and Dennis Zacek*

click here

Production: James Still* (playwright), Sandy Shinner (director), Grant Sabin (scenic), Charlie Cooper (lights), Samantha C. Jones* (costumes), Lindsay Jones* (sound), Eileen Rozycki (props), Jaclyn Holsey* (stage management), and Kelli Marino* (dramaturg).
*American Blues Theater Ensemble and Artistic Affiliates,

Outreach

Producing Artistic Director note

In 1985, American Blues Theater’s Founding Ensemble members produced our inaugural world premiere, starring Dennis Zacek, about the working person’s struggle. Twenty-seven years later, we still find this subject timeless and poignant. You witness examples of the competition and anxiety in offices, homes, and farms throughout the United States. This fight plays out in stadiums and entertainment venues as well.

Attend any American high school football game this fall. You’ll hear the crunch of the players’ helmets, the brass section of the pep band, and the rhythmic claps of acrobatic cheerleaders. You’ll see bleachers filled with students, parents, and teachers as diverse as their community. You will feel their zealous loyalty. You’ll be inspired by their fight to gain a few yards toward a first down. You might even find yourself yelling in unison with the crowd at a referee’s bad call.

Many of these sensations can be found within your favorite Ensemble theater too. You’ll root for your local artists season after season, applaud their merit and skill, and talk about critics’ fate-making judgments.

Like the characters in James Still’s dark comedy Illegal Use of Hands, we all remember the wins in our heads—the losses in our hearts. We proudly present a world premiere from one of ABT’s players to the American theater canon. This script addresses the question of identity—who are you when the field lights go dark?

We welcome you—our home is yours.
–Wendy Whiteside