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Chicago hip hop sensations the Q Brothers Collective heat up the holiday season with

Q Brothers Christmas Carol

Wildly entertaining 80-minute “ad-rap-tation” of Charles Dickens’ classic in limited engagement November 29–December 23, 2019

 

Chicago—September 12, 2019—Chicago Shakespeare Theater announces today the highly anticipated return of the raucous and irreverent holiday tradition Q Brothers Christmas Carol to The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare, in a limited engagement November 29–December 23, 2019. Created and performed by Chicago hip hop sensations the Q Brothers Collective (GQ, JQ, Jax, and Pos) and developed with Creative Producer Rick Boynton, this wildly entertaining reinterpretation of the Charles Dickens classic mashes up hip hop with contemporary musical styles ranging from reggae and dancehall music, to dubstep and epic rock ballads—all underscored with beats spun live at the turntables by DJ Clay.

While the temperatures drop outside, the festive party atmosphere in The Yard will be heating up with the non-stop energy of this 80-minute hip hop musical. Fully decked out in the holiday spirit, the Theater is strewn with more than two miles of twinkling lights—bringing joy and wonder to even the most cantankerous Scrooge.

With a cult following of fans in Chicago and beyond, the internationally acclaimed Q Brothers Collective fuses hip hop and theater—adapting classic stories with a wholly original style of performance that has been energizing audiences for more than two decades. Hailed by MTV as “nothing short of brilliant,” they are regular fixtures at music festivals like Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits. The Q Brothers pioneered the “ad-RAP-tation” concept with their Off-Broadway hit The Bomb-itty of Errors in 1999. Their award-winning collaborations with Chicago Shakespeare Creative Producer Rick Boynton include Othello: The Remix—which premiered at Shakespeare’s Globe and toured to sold-out houses in London, Australia, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, and Off-Broadway in NYC—and Funk It Up About Nothin’, which garnered the Jeff Award for Outstanding Ensemble and the Dress Circle Award for Best Musical Production at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland.

Q Brothers Christmas Carol features the members of the Q Brothers Collective portraying all of the roles in the timeless story: GQ (Scrooge), JQ (Marley / Belle / Present / Lil’ Tim), Jax (Fred / Dick Wilkins / Mama Cratchit), and Pos (Bob Cratchit / Past / Martha Cratchit).

Joining directors GQ and JQ on the creative team are Scenic and Costume Designer Scott Davis, Lighting Designer Jesse Klug, Sound Designer Christopher M. LaPorte, and original Wig and Make-up Designer Melissa Veal, with Choreography by Anacron. Developed with Rick Boynton, Q Brothers Christmas Carol is written by GQ, JQ, Jax, and Pos with music by JQ. A Chicago Shakespeare production, Q Brothers Christmas Carol is presented by CST and Richard Jordan Productions.

For more information, visit www.chicagoshakes.com/qchristmas or engage on social at #QChristmas.

Chicago Shakespeare strives to make its facility and performances accessible to all patrons through its Access Shakespeare programs. Accessible performances for Q Brothers Christmas Carol include:

  • Audio-described Performance – Sunday, December 1, 2019 at 3:00 p.m.
    A program that enables patrons who are blind or have low vision to more fully experience live performances by providing spoken narration of a play’s key visual elements.
  • Open-captioned Performance – Thursday, December 19, 2019 at 7:45 p.m.
    A text display of the words and sounds heard during a play, synced live with the action onstage.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater presents Q Brothers Christmas Carol, November 29–December 23, 2019 in The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare. Single tickets ($32-$56) are on sale now. Special discounts will be available for groups of 10 or more. For more information, contact Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s Box Office at 312.595.5600 or visit the Theater’s website at www.chicagoshakes.com.

ABOUT CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER
Under the leadership of Artistic Director Barbara Gaines and Executive Director Criss Henderson, Chicago Shakespeare has redefined what a great American Shakespeare theater can be—a company that defies theatrical category. This Regional Tony Award-winning theater’s year-round season features as many as twenty productions and 650 performances—including plays, musicals, world premieres, family programming, and presentations from around the globe. Chicago Shakespeare is the city’s leading presenter of international work, and has toured its own productions across five continents. The Theater’s nationally acclaimed arts in literacy programs support the work of teachers, and bring Shakespeare to life on stage for tens of thousands of students annually. Each summer, the company tours a free professional production to neighborhood parks across Chicago. In 2017 the Theater unveiled The Yard, which, together with the Jentes Family Courtyard Theater and the Thoma Theater Upstairs, positions Chicago Shakespeare as Chicago’s most versatile performing arts center.

 

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Hannah Kennedy
Director of Communications
hkennedy@chicagoshakes.com

Emma Perrin
Public Relations & Digital Media Manager
eperrin@chicagoshakes.com
Chicago Shakespeare Theater
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312.667.4957

Cathy Taylor
cathy@cathytaylorpr.com
Cathy Taylor Public Relations
773.564.9564

Chicago Shakespeare Theater
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800 East Grand Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611

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