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Jackalope Theatre Company is proud to present the world premiere of Andy Warhol Presents: The Cocaine Play, written and directed by Terry Guest, May 28 - July 6,at the Broadway Armory Park, 5917 N Broadway St. The total running time, including two intermissions, is two hours and 30 minutes. Preview performances are Thursday, May 28, Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 31 at 2 p.m. The performance schedule is Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. with no Friday or Saturday evening performances on July 3 and July 4. Tickets are $15 - $45 with student and Edgewater resident discounts available. Subscription and single tickets are now available at JackalopeTheatre.org or call/text the box office at 773.340.2543.

Andy Warhol Presents: The Cocaine Play is set in New York City where Andy Warhol (no, not that Andy Warhol) is stuck. He hasn’t finished a painting in years and has no new ideas. When a mysterious actress named Marilyn Monroe (no, not that Marilyn Monroe) stumbles into his life, she sends him down an epic path of madness, murder, betrayal and the desperate pursuit of fame, sex and beauty. Andy Warhol presents: The Cocaine Play is a 100% fake story about 100% real people that spans three decades and asks how far one is willing to go for the chance at superstardom. 

The cast of Andy Warhol Presents: The Cocaine Play includes William Anthony Sebastian Rose II (he/him, Andy Warhol); David Michael Dowd (he/him, Michael Brown); Alexis Ward (she/her, Marilyn Monroe) and Jasmine “Jazzy” Cheri Rush (she/her, Edie Sedgwick).  

The creative team for Andy Warhol Presents: The Cocaine Play includes Terry Guest (he/him, playwright and director); Ayanna Bria Bakari (she/her, associate director and wigs designer); Sydney Lynne Thomas (she/her, scenic designer); Madeleine Shows (costume designer); Spencer Diaz Tootle (she/her, props designer); Levi Wilkins (he/him, lighting designer); Ethan Korvne (he/him, composer and sound designer); E Tylkowski (they/them, technical director); Stephanie Mattos (she/her, fight and firearms coordinator); Kirsten Baity (they/them, intimacy coordinator); Corey Bradberry (he/him, production manager); Sam Burkett (she/they, stage manager); AJ Links, CSA (she/her, casting director); Monét Felton (they/theirs, artistic producer); Hudson Therriault (any/all, accessibility manager); Amira Danan (she/her, development director), Karina Patel (she/her, new works manager) and Kaiser Ahmed (he/him, artistic director).

ABOUT TERRY GUEST, PLAYWRIGHT/DIRECTOR

Terry Guest is a three-time Jeff Award-winning playwright, actor, director and teaching artist. Works include: At The Wake of a Dead Drag Queen, OAK, The Magnolia Ballet (Jeff Awards for Production and Performance in a short run), A Ghost in Satin (Williamstown Theater Festival), Marie Antionette and the Magical Negroes (Three Jeff Awards including New Work, Director and Ensemble), Nightbirds, The Madness of Mary Todd (Goodman Playwrights Unit commission) and Milo Imagines the World. As an actor Guest has worked at regional theaters including Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf, Alliance Theatre, About Face Theatre and Actors Express.

ABOUT JACKALOPE THEATRE

Jackalope Theatre Company expands the definition of American Identity by engaging with communities to produce works that celebrate diverse perspectives. Jackalope is a premier home for new and exciting Off-Loop Theatre based in Chicago's Edgewater and Rogers Park neighborhoods. They are committed to cultivating new voices that contribute to an expanding American culture and mythology. Each season, Jackalope produces full-length plays, new play development programming and provides free classes in partnership with the Chicago Park District.

Jackalope Theatre Company is proud to present the world premiere of Andy Warhol Presents: The Cocaine Play, written and directed by Terry Guest, May 28 - July 6,at the Broadway Armory Park, 5917 N Broadway St. The total running time, including two intermissions, is two hours and 30 minutes. Preview performances are Thursday, May 28, Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 31 at 2 p.m. with the press opening Tuesday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m. The performance schedule is Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. with no Friday or Saturday evening performances on July 3 and July 4. Tickets are $15 - $45 with student and Edgewater resident discounts available. Subscription and single tickets are now available at JackalopeTheatre.org or call/text the box office at 773.340.2543.

Wouldn’t it be great if we were given a simply written book to tell us how to succeed in whatever it is we wanted to pursue so long as its easy steps were followed? Supposing we were unqualified and the book taught us how to beat the system in ten or so easy steps? Well, such would be the case in Marriott Theatre’s latest production How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.

In this latest Marriott musical, we are taken to the “Madmen” era of the early 1960’s, thrust back into a day when women in the business world were either secretaries or sex objects – or both - and men lacking professional skills could save their jobs simply by reaching out to the brotherhood of man, even getting women to join in their argument. We’ve all heard the phrase “fake it ‘til you make it” and in some ways everyone adheres to such advice conscious of the fact or not, meaning we can all relate. In How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, based on Shepherd Mead’s 1952 book of the same name, we get a highly exaggerated example of such a philosophy as well as a humorous satire of a sexist corporate structure.     

In the heart of fast-paced New York City we find window washer J. Pierrepont Finch. He immediately shows a strong desire to become something bigger – someone important. Taking a break, he reads from a book in his hands, “How to Succeed in Business”. The audience hears what he is reading – shortcuts and tricks to quickly climb the ladder in a company. One of the first steps is to “find a company big enough where no one knows what the other employees are doing”. Finch may lack the qualifications to be a business professional but has no shortage of enthusiasm or ambition. Thanks to the book’s instructions, Finch “unwittingly” bumps into the right people and quickly lands himself a job in the mailroom of a large New York company. Referring to the book as often as possible, Finch butters up important decision makers in his path and, as the book predicts, is unceasingly promoted to higher positions. When Finch first arrives at the company he is met by Rosemary, a secretary, who has eyes for the young, determined newbie. Though her advances are obvious, Finch is dismissive having his eyes firmly fixed on succeeding within the company. Naturally, his plan does not proceed without a few hiccups along the way, the book always nearby for reference on what to do in such situations. As the quick-witted newly hired employee tries to climb to the next level, company owner Biggley’s nephew Frump (who was reluctantly hired by the big boss in the first place), jealous of the attention the newcomer is getting, always finds himself scheming to bring Finch down.        

Seinfeld fans are reminded of George Costanza who cheats the system at work to always appear busy by acting annoyed at all times, continuously saying “five minutes” if someone asks for your time, keeping unkempt piles of paperwork on your desk, always having a document in hand while walking and sighing loud enough for fellow employees to hear to seem stressed. 

Ari Butler admirably takes on the role of fast talking J.P. Finch, creating a likeable go-getter that we can back as he sidesteps company protocol to better his success. Gifted with fine acting chops and a pleasant voice that holds it own, Butler is exciting to watch from the musical’s opening number “How to Succeed”. Due to Butler’s energy-filled personality and charismatic nature that he injects into the character, we can easily overlook the fact that Finch is really just a transparent status-seeking kid who, rather than working hard, wants to cut all the corners he can in order to leapfrog those who really deserve it. We still like him – and the cast is filled with goodies. Jeff Award winner Alex Goodrich, who many may remember from his leading role as “Buddy” in Elf, takes his role as Biggly’s envious nephew and knocks it out of the park garnering most of the show’s biggest laughs. Terry Hamilton as Biggley is also a delight, perhaps making his biggest splash in the duet he shares with Finch “Grand Old Ivy” to which Finch of course is lying about his alma mater to appease his superior. And while a talented and hard-working ensemble is pivotal in moving the story along in a most entertaining fashion, Jessica Naimy naturally seizes audience attention as Rosemary who is constantly vying for Finch’s attention. The striking young starlet who has in the past landed a Broadway role in Honeymoon in Vegas and has hit the road for a national tour of South Pacific, is genuinely funny as she sings and dances her way into everyone’s hearts. In the now obviously sardonic number “How to Keep His Dinner Warm” near the show’s beginning (not so sure that was the case at the show’s inception in 1967), Naimy clearly lays the groundwork for a strong performance to come.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying has several big song and dance numbers that come with a large amount of pizzazz and lines that will probably be stuck in one’s head for a while afterwards. A light comedy that can’t be taken seriously with lots of laughs and snappy numbers, Marriott’s latest production is a fine escape from life’s rigmarole if just for a night, as the early 1960’s are nicely recreated helping us lose ourselves in an charming story that comes with fine acting performances.     

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying is being performed at Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire through October 16th. For tickets and/or more show information, visit www.MarriottTheatre.com.