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ABOUT THE PLAY Two years after the death of his beloved wife, Edgar Allan Poe grapples with love and madness in this wildly innovative theatre experience. This unique performance leads audience members through historic Cheney Mansion’s gilded halls with a different tale of terror in every room*. Follow the ghost of Virginia Poe as she stirs up memories from beyond the grave, or follow Edgar as he winds his way from “The Telltale Heart” to “The Pit and the Pendulum”. Lonely ghosts, mad murderers and memories are around every corner in this autumn’s most unexpected haunted house.

YOUR EXPERIENCE To best inform your experience we would like to share that the show is composed of six scenes, each taking place in a different room. Four of the scenes are on the main floor and easily accessible. The two middle scenes “The Tale Tell Heart”, and “The Pit and the Pendulum” are located on the 2nd and 3rd floors.

There are handrails on each of the staircases, but as stairs can be uncomfortable for many folks, we have an accessibility room that will be set up on the main floor in which patrons can view those two internal scenes on a monitor. This is also a great option for those who may not be comfortable in dark and close spaces as “The Pit” can be a dark and scary place! It is our goal that every audience member enjoys The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe.

Please help us best prepare an exceptional experience for you. After purchasing tickets, please feel free to email our Managing Director, Jhenai@oakparkfestival.com to let us know how many people in your party would like to use our accessibility room (first floor) during the upstairs portions of the show.

SEATING There will be seating in each room for every patron attending the show. Each scene is roughly 15-20 minutes in length and we would prefer all guests to be seated for their comfort and to best enjoy the performance.

LATE SEATING POLICY Patrons arriving after curtain time will be miss the first scene of the play, but will be able to join the show at the first transition.

REFUNDS: There will be no refunds for this production.

DATES

OCTOBER 24 – NOVEMBER 17

Thursday & Friday (8pm) | Saturday (1pm) | Sunday (3pm)

PLUS A SPECIAL HALLOWEEN PERFORMANCE ON OCTOBER 31 AT 5PM

90 minutes with no intermission

TICKETS

General admission $35 | Seniors $28 | Students $15
Previews: $20

(valid student ID must be presented at box-office to claim student tix)

Questions: Call our Box office (708) 300-9396

VENUE

Cheney Mansion

220 NORTH EUCLID AVENUE
OAK PARK, IL 60302

VENUE

Cheney Mansion

220 NORTH EUCLID AVENUE
OAK PARK, IL 60302

Directions: Nestled in the Frank Lloyd Wright Historic District in Oak Park, Cheney Mansion is conveniently located 9 miles directly west from downtown Chicago, and minutes from the Eisenhower Expressway.

From Chicago: Take the Eisenhower Expressway (IL-290) West and exit at Austin Avenue, north. Turn right (north) on Austin and drive for 1.3 miles to Lake Street. Turn left (west) on Lake Street. Drive approximately 1 mile to Euclid Avenue. Turn right (north) on Euclid Avenue. Cheney Mansion is on the right at 220 North Euclid.

From the Western Suburbs: Take the Eisenhower Expressway (IL-290) East and exit at Harlem Avenue, north. Turn left (north) on Harlem and drive for approximately 1 mile to Lake Street. Turn right (east) on Lake Street. Drive approximately 1/2 mile to Euclid Avenue. Turn left (north) on Euclid Avenue. Cheney Mansion is on the right at 220 North Euclid.

SEATING There will be seating in each room for every patron attending the show. Each scene is roughly 15-20 minutes in length and we would prefer all guests to be seated for their comfort and to best enjoy the performance.

LATE SEATING POLICY Patrons arriving after curtain time will be miss the first scene of the play, but will be able to join the show at the first transition.

YOUR EXPERIENCE To best inform your experience we would like to share that the show is composed of six scenes, each taking place in a different room. Four of the scenes are on the main floor and easily accessible. The two middle scenes “The Tale Tell Heart”, and “The Pit and the Pendulum” are located on the 2nd and 3rd floors.

There are handrails on each of the staircases, but as stairs can be uncomfortable for many folks, we have an accessibility room that will be set up on the main floor in which patrons can view those two internal scenes on a monitor. This is also a great option for those who may not be comfortable in dark and close spaces as “The Pit” can be a dark and scary place! It is our goal that every audience member enjoys The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe.

Please help us best prepare an exceptional experience for you. After purchasing tickets, please feel free to email our Managing Director, Jhenai@oakparkfestival.com to let us know how many people in your party would like to use our accessibility room (first floor) during the upstairs portions of the show.

THE CAST

Christian Gray (Edgar Allan Poe) happily returns to OPFT, where he played Tom Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie and assistant directed Of Mice and Men. He recently played George Bernard Shaw in By George at ShawChicago, where he is an ensemble member, appearing in over 30 shows. He is also an Artistic Associate of First Folio Theatre, where he has appeared in over 20 productions, including Edgar Allan Poe in The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe. He has performed with over 20 Chicago area companies, including Court Theatre, Remy Bumppo, and Writers’ Theatre. Regional credits include Clarence Brown Theatre (TN), Fort Worth Shakespeare (TX), and Pennsylvania Stage Company. Film credits include Plastic (FPPI Films: Best Supporting Actor Award), Reclamation (NTG Productions), Day 1 (Skibo Films: numerous awards including Best Feature). Television credits include Chicago P.D. (NBC), The Blackwood Prophecies (Joe and Joe Media), and commercials for Stein Garden and Gifts, Horseshoe Casino, and Sprint/Nextel. Love to Lydia!

Erica Bittner (Virginia/Rowena) is thrilled to return to The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe, where she was previously seen in the same role at First Folio Theatre in both 2018 and 2012. She is an Artistic Associate at Oak Park Festival Theatre, where she has appeared in I & You, You Can’t Take It With You, A Dickens Carol (2017 & 2018), Pygmalion, and Love’s Labours Lost. Other Chicago credits include: Noises Off (Windy City Playhouse); Bad Jews (Theatre Wit/North Shore/Royal George); A Christmas Carol (Drury Lane); Richard III: No Beast So Fierce (Oracle Theatre); Dead Man Walking (Piven Theatre); and productions with Redmoon Theater, Music Theatre Works, One Year Chekhov, GreatWorks, Chicago Dramatists, Victory Gardens, and Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Regional: King Charles III (Cardinal Stage). International: The Two Noble Kinsmen (RADA) and Momentary Opera (Redmoon). Television: The Chi (Showtime – recurring), Chicago Fire (NBC), Soundtrack (Netflix), American Greed (CNBC). Erica holds a BFA from the Chicago College of Performing Arts and a certificate from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She’s represented by Gray Talent Group. www.ericabittner.com

Kyle Curry (Madman) is excited to be returning to Oak Park Festival Theatre. Previously he was seen in Pygmalion (Freddy) and Taming of the Shrew (Curtis). He has worked around Chicago for such companies as Steppenwolf (We are Proud to Present..), Theatre Wit (Admissions), Boho (Three Days of Rain), Remy Bumppo (Pygmalion), Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (Macbeth, Dunsinane, Shakespeare’s Greatest Hits, and Romeo and Juliet), and others. Regionally, Kyle has worked for various companies including: Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, NextAct, Utah Shakespeare, Houston Shakespeare, Festival 56, Virginia Shakespeare, Kentucky Shakespeare, and Stages Repertory. Kyle holds an MFA from the University of Houston Professional Actor Training Program and is represented by Gray Talent.

Dave Skavarla (Prisoner) is a Chicago native, an actor, and a comedian, and has studied at Columbia College Chicago, The Second City, Annoyance, and Vagabond School of the Arts.

With OPFT, Dave appeared in ROBIN HOOD, RICHARD III, and is so grateful to have gotten to play Lenny in OF MICE AND MEN. Dave is also grateful to have played Prospero in THE TEMPEST at City Lit, Henry II in THE LION IN WINTER and Edward III in THE SCULLERY MAID, both with Idle Muse, and Bluto in NEW ADVENTURES OF POPEYE with The Factory Theatre, and to have performed with Lifeline, Mary-Arrchie, The Hypocrites, PTE, Three Cat, Strawdog, Zombie Army Productions, Open Eye, Asylum, Careening, Big Game, Backstage, Caffeine, and Shaw Chicago.

Joan Nahid (Ligeia) is an Iranian Chicago based actor, writer and voice artist. She moved to U.S in 2014 to pursue her career in acting and playwriting. Her Chicago credits include the roles of Ligeia in The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe at First Folio Theatre, Fifty/another man in The Locketeerat Trap Door Theatre, Angustias in The House Of Bernarda Alba at Saint Sebastian Players, Hazim in The Malta Play at Artemisia Theatre and many other productions with On the spot theatre Company, One Year Chekhov, Theatre Y, Second City and Saltbox theatre Company. Outside of U.S Joan has also appeared in Miss Julie, A Doll’s house and Life x 3,in Samandarian academy of Tehran.She holds a M.F.A in theatre and dramatic literature and a B.S in Industrial Engineering from Tehran University. She is also a graduate of Second City acting lab Conservatory in Chicago. Joan is going to play the role of Eugenia In “Tango” by Slawomir Mrozek in the upcoming production of Trap Door Theatre. www.joannahid.com

Dina Monk (Policeman/Angelo) is delighted to work with OPFT for the first time. She just returned from a three-month tour of Books in Brooks, an abbreviated version of As You Like It with Montana Shakes! Recent Chicago credits include Southern Gothic (Windy City Playhouse), One-Minute Play Festival (The Den Theatre), She Kills Monsters (The Cuckoo’s Theater Project), Coriolanus (Commission Theatre), Groundswell (Prop Thtr), and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (First Folio Theatre). Regional credits include Love’s Labour’s Lost and The Winter’s Tale with the Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival. She holds a BFA from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and is a teaching artist at Infinity Arts Academy. www.dinamonk.com

Kevin Tre’Von Patterson (Fortunato/Monk) is extremely excited to be returning to OPFT. He was recently seen in “Between Riverside and Crazy” (Redtwist Theatre) Other credits of his include Michigan Shakespeare Festival 18’ season, “Not about Nightingales”(Raven Theatre), “Rutherfords Travels” (Pegasus Theatre), “The Marvin Gaye Story” (Black Ensemble Theatre), and the Jeff award wining (Best Ensemble) production of “Direct from Death Row: The Scottsboro Boys” (Raven Theatre). Television credits include “Chicago P.D (NBC), “Mindhunter” (Netflix), “Empire”(FOX) and The Redline (CBS). Kevin would like to thank his friends and family for the endless support. He is represented by the amazing team of Big Mouth Talent.

Sarah Rachel Schol (Luciana) is thrilled to make her Oak Park debut. Chicago credits: The Doppelganger (Steppenwolf); The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe (First Folio); The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (Eclipse); Machinal (Greenhouse); Fefu and Her Friends (Halcyon Theatre); Miss Major Cushman (Greenhouse and Water Street Studios); New Country (Fair Trade Productions); and Eden in Silence (Links Hall). From 2006-2015 Sarah was a company member of EgoPo Classic Theater, a Philadelphia-based theater devoted to Viewpoints training and the reinvention of classic texts for new audiences. With EgoPo she performed over a dozen works, including Marat/Sade (Simonne), Not I (Mouth), Spring Awakening (Martha/Frau Bergman), Woyzeck (Margaret), and Gint (Older Woman). Sarah worked with many other companies in the Philadelphia area, including the Walnut Street Theatre, Delaware Theater Company, Arden Theatre Company, Passage Theater Company, Brat Productions, Luna Theater Company, and the Philadelphia Fringe Arts Festival. Sarah is proudly represented by DDO Artists Agency.

Jillian Patterson (Helena/Ensemble) Jillian is an actor-singer-dancer originally from California, making her debut with Oak Park Festival Theatre! Chicago credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream (The Shakespeare Project), Cymbeline (Strawdog Theatre), The Roaring Ones (Rhinofest), Variations on a Theme (Piven Theatre Lab), and Gold Medal Pills (DDADIS Festival). Regional work includes Peter and the Starcatcher (PCPA), My Fair Lady (PCPA), and Christmas Is Here Again (PCPA), among others. Jillian holds an Artistic Associate position at Quicksilver Shakespeare Theatre. Education: Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts Class of 2015. Love to Chad and Piper.

Drew Straub (Soldier/Ensemble) is making is OPFT debut in Poe. Born and raised in Saint Louis, Drew is a recent graduate from Northwestern University’s Theatre program. He is beyond excited to be in his first post-graduation show and would like to thank all his family and friends for constant support and love.

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