Chicago is a musical that explores our fascination with celebrity and public-fame-at-any-price. Set in Chicago of the early 1930's, it tells the story of Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly, two “sensational jazz babies”, who murder their faithless lovers and go on to fame and fortune as Vaudeville Stars.
Chicago was originally produced in 1975 but its messages are still potent and serve as a chilling reminder that we live in a society where fame, money, celebrity and media attention matter most. The musical challenges us to consider a world where murder is acceptable if the cash pay-off is big enough. If the fan mail and gifts pour in from all over the world. If the public is gullible enough to confuse cheap theatrics for common justice.
Chicago is structured as a series of Vaudeville acts -- each piece of the story is presented as though the people and the events are nothing more than entertainment, a metaphor so powerful that the lines between morality and obscenity become increasingly blurred as the musical goes along.
There is considerable humour in this biting satire -- Billy Flynn, the great legal-beagle, who mocks the judicial system by playing it against itself; Matron Mama Morton, the prison warden whose love of money is exceeded only by her love of money; Mary Sunshine, the pop journalist whose maudlin self-serving style makes victims out of killers; and a wide array of liars, cheaters and sycophants -- a world of people who are out for themselves.
This may sound dark for a musical, but the team of Kander and Ebb, the creators of Cabaret and Kiss of the Spider Woman, are experts at taking strong themes and developing a musical with integrity, power and purpose as well as solid entertainment.
Hold Me
The "It" Couple
Mr. Cellophane
The Dirty Bum
Razzle Dazzle
Staircase
Got a Scoup
Ladies
Roxie
Cicero
Talk of the Town
Fall 1995 Production
By Fred Ebb, Bob Fosse, & John Kander
Directed by: Joel Greenberg
Performances: November 22-25, 1995
Venue: Theatre of the Arts, Modern Languages Building
Cast
Mona - Danielle Ament
Conchita Hernandez - Stephanie Arango
Sergeant Fogarty - Stephen Bailey
Harry - Dave Brown
Annie - Kristen Burke
Liz - Shari Deamude
Amos Hart - Jim DiGioia
Aaron - Jason Finucan
Billy Flynn - Tim Gentle
Velma Kelly - Sharon Kelly
Roxie Hart - Krista Little
Fred Casely - Ryan Tayze MacKenzie
June - Allison Oleszkowicz
Martin Harrison - Anand Rajaram
Mary Sunshine - Andrea Renaud
Court Clerk - Jonathan Schlegal
Master of Ceremonies - Calvin Sweers
Go-to-Hell Kitty - Tara Terrick
Matron Mama Morton - Susan Tschirhart
Band
Trumpet – Jonathan Crespo, Tara White
Saxophone – Tim Snyder, Toby Ley
Trombone – Trevor Dix
Bass – Graham Kidd
Percussion – Mark Inneo
Synthesizer – Robert Reinhart
Piano – Peter de Sousa
Production
Director/Choreographer – Joel Greenberg
Music Director – Peter de Sousa
Set Design – William Chesney
Costume Design – Jocelyne Sobeski
Lighting Design – Graham Frampton
Production Stage Manager/Sound Design – Tim Jackson
Assistant Stage Managers – Elizabeth Barrett, R. Carrey, Danna Evans, Robin Feick
Assistant Director – Jennifer Clark
Assistant Production Manager – Laurie Hindson
Assistant Technical Director – Calvin Sweers
Dance Captain – Andrea Renaud
Assistant Dance Captain – Kristen Burke, Krista Little
Production Assistant – Justin Sharratt
Head of Lighting – Michael Haltrecht
Lighting Operators – Jonathan Dietrich, Catherine Seeback
Lighting Assistant/ Props Crew – Kristine Mahler
Lighting Assistant – Tina Robinson
Head of Sound/ Sound Board Operator – Rocco Zingarelli
Sound Assistant/ Set Crew – Tom Leslie
Sound Crew – Kevin Price
Head of Set Construction - Tigger McCullough
Set Crew – Sandy Burke, Christian Johnson, Michelle de Pestel, Ryan Tyndall, Sean Vivian
Head of Properties – Linda Patton
Props Assistant – Claudine Albreish, Rhonda Gilson, Ruth Kelly, Angela Marshall, Marlene Sutton
Head of Wardrobe – Amanda Ray
Wardrobe Assistant – Katrina Ballantine, Lucina Favarin
Dressers – Gemma Doorly, Stacey Schat
Head of Scenic Painting – Teresa Dunat
Scenic Painting/ Make-up Assistant – Filipina Bienkowska
Scenic Painting – Teresa Bruinsma, Tanya Williams
Publicity – Joyce Hahn
Publicity Assistant/ Program Design – Joan Charlebois
Assistant House Manager/ Publicity – Mary Hartnett
House Manager – Sean Vivian
Technical Director, Drama Dept. – Scott Spidell
Special Thanks
Theatre Sheridan
Adam Stewart, Theatre Sheridan
Theatre Aquarius
Stratford Festival
Zehr’s
Helen Hornyak
Lisa Coulson
Helen Zdriluk, Burlington Central High School
Adam Qualter, Wilfrid Laurier University
Mrs. Deborah Feick