The Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department, located at 72 E. 11th Street in Chicago’s South Loop, will host a day of free performances on Friday, May 13, as part of Columbia College Chicago‘s 16th annual Manifest Urban Arts Festival. The Theatre Center will showcase performances by students in the Acting, Musical Theatre Performance, and Comedy Writing & Performance BA and BFA programs. In addition, there will be an exhibition of work by students in the Theatre Design, Theatre Technology, and Theatre Directing BA and BFA programs.
Curated and managed by more than 1,000 Columbia students, Manifest features dozens of performances, gallery exhibitions, fashion shows, and literary readings by undergraduate and graduate students completing their final semester. All events are free and open to the public. For a complete Manifest schedule, click here.
The Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department has simultaneous events taking place in all four of its performance venues: the ground-floor Getz Theatre and Classic Studio Theatre, the lower-level Sheldon Patinkin Studio Theatre, and the fourth-floor Studio 404. The schedule includes:
Will Power — Classic Studio Theatre, 10:30-11:45 AM: Advanced acting students perform works by William Shakespeare under the direction of professor Caroline Latta.
Senior Showcase — Acting/Musical Theatre — Getz Theatre, 1-2:15 PM: Seniors from the Acting and Musical Theatre Performance programs perform scenes and songs.
Theatrical Designer, Director, and Technician Gallery — Studio 404, 1-4 PM: Experience the creations of the Theatre Department’s talented design, theatre technology, and directing students. Works include set models, renderings, costumes, lighting, installations, and interactive process projects.
Two Chairs and a Light Bulb — Sheldon Patinkin Studio Theatre, 1-3 PM: World premieres of 11 student-written plays, all of them less than eight minutes long and having sets consisting of no more than two chairs.
Stand-up Comedy Show — Classic Studio Theatre, 1:30-2:30 PM. Featuring students from the Comedy Writing & Performance program.
The Drowsy Chaperone — Highlights — Getz Theatre, 2:30-3:15 PM: Excerpts from the Theatre Department’s fall 2015 mainstage musical The Drowsy Chaperone, directed by faculty member Michael Ryczek, with choreography by faculty member Christie Kerr and musical direction by faculty member Phil Caldwell.
Manifest is a college-wide event that begins on May 13 with a kick-off spectacle and performance at noon at 9th Street and Wabash, including hundreds of student performers in medieval costumes, giant puppets, live music, and balloon drops. There will be more than 40 musical performances throughout the day, ranging from pop/rock bands to DJs, blues, jazz, folk, and gospel ensembles, as well as family-friendly activities including a zip-line, screen-printing, foam sword-fighting, and human-sized board games. Student dancers will perform across hip-hop, African, jazz, tap, musical theatre, and contemporary styles. Fifteen student films, including animation, documentary, experimental, and narrative forms, will receive their premiere screenings. Fashion business students are opening a pop-up shop to sell student-designed clothing, while fashion design students will host and live-stream runway shows in Columbia’s Sculpture Garden at 11th Street and Wabash.
Headlining the festival’s main stage is former Columbia College student and acclaimed musical artist Sir the Baptist, born William James Strokes, a native of Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood. The vocal group ConSoul, winners of the 2016 Biggest Mouth competition, will open for Strokes. For a complete Manifest schedule, click here.
