Shakespeare 400 Chicago's
Culinary Complete Works
Headlines exclusive grand cru EVENT
at Bon Appétit presents Chicago Gourmet
Celebrated Chicago chefs interpret Shakespeare, September 24 & 25
Chicago—August 29, 2016—Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) partners with Bon Appétit presents Chicago Gourmet to create an unprecedented and exclusive Grand Cru experience in honor of the yearlong Shakespeare 400 Chicago festival marking 400 years of Shakespeare’s legacy. Headlining the event is the Culinary Complete Works, a yearlong initiative in which 38 of Chicago’s most talented chefs interpret Shakespeare’s 38 plays in their restaurants throughout 2016. This complete culinary tour of the Bard’s plays is curated by Alpana Singh, star restaurateur and tastemaker in Chicago’s world-renowned food scene, and CST Creative Producer Rick Boynton. A selection of participating Culinary Complete Works chefs will present their Shakespeare title-inspired dishes alongside artful representations of Shakespeare's most famous scenes and symbols in this premier “event within the event” on Saturday, September 24 and Sunday, September 25, 2:00pm–4:00pm, on the Harris Theater rooftop overlooking Millennium Park.
The annual Bon Appétit presents Chicago Gourmet, a celebration of food and wine in Millennium Park, is one of the nation's most anticipated culinary events. The ultimate weekend for food lovers is filled with tasting from the City’s best restaurants, wineries, spirit purveyors, and breweries, as well as live cooking demos and seminars from top chefs. Now in its ninth year, the event ushers in its first-ever theme “Food is Art!” and names its first Host Chef Rick Bayless, James Beard Award-winning chef of the Frontera Restaurants group and Culinary Complete Works chef in 2016. Bayless is set to channel A Midsummer Night’s Dream with a special tasting menu at his Michelin-starred Topolobampo in October. Joining Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Shakespeare 400 Chicago in partnering with this year’s event are EXPO Chicago and the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Grand Cru is the ultimate in culinary indulgence, complete with tastings of elite wines from around the world curated by Master Sommelier Serafin Alvarado. Dotting the event landscape will be actors embodying iconic characters from Shakespeare’s canon—attired in lavish costumes and wigs by CST’s award-winning designers. The Culinary Complete Works chefs featured include:
Saturday, September 24, 2016
- Sarah Grueneberg, Monteverde – The Comedy of Errors
- Perry Hendrix, avec – The Tempest
- John Manion, La Sirena Clandestina – Othello
- Tony Priolo, Piccolo Sogno – Troilus and Cressida
- Bruce Sherman, North Pond – Much Ado About Nothing
Sunday, September 25, 2016
- Tanya Baker, The Boarding House – The Taming of the Shrew
- Phillip Foss, EL Ideas – Macbeth
- Danny Grant, Maple & Ash – Pericles
- Ryan McCaskey, Acadia – The Winter’s Tale
- Tom Van Lente, Lucille – Henry IV, Part 1
Each of the 38 Culinary Complete Works chefs imaginatively translates one of Shakespeare’s plays into a featured dish, menu or event at their restaurant for varying lengths of time throughout the year. Showcasing the vibrant restaurant scene that makes Chicago an international dining destination, Culinary Complete Works features restaurants ranging from James Beard Award-winning and Michelin-starred fine dining to hidden neighborhood gems, span ethnic cuisines of all varieties and explore the sweet and savory—at every price point.
Culinary Complete Works is only one facet of the yearlong Shakespeare 400 Chicago festival, which commemorates the playwright’s 400-year legacy through the world’s great theater, dance, literature, music, exhibits and cinema in 850 events across the city’s leading cultural institutions.
More information on Culinary Complete Works at www.shakespeare400chicago.com/culinary.
Select tickets for Bon Appétit presents Chicago Gourmet are still available at www.chicagogourmet.org.
ABOUT CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER
Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) is a leading international theater company and the recipient of the Regional Theatre Tony Award®. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Barbara Gaines and Executive Director Criss Henderson, CST is dedicated to creating extraordinary production of classics, new works and family programming; to unlocking Shakespeare’s work for educators and students; and to serving as Chicago’s cultural ambassador through its World’s Stage Series. Through a year-round season encompassing more than 650 performances, CST attracts 225,000 audience members annually. One in four of its audience members is under eighteen years old, and today its education programs have impacted the learning of over one million students. CST is proud to take an active role in empowering the next generation of literate, engaged cultural champions and creative minds. During 2016, CST has spearheaded the Shakespeare 400 Chicago festival in addition to announcing the creation of an innovative performance venue, The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare. www.chicagoshakes.com
ABOUT SHAKESPEARE 400 CHICAGO
Shakespeare 400 Chicago is a yearlong international arts festival in 2016 celebrating the vibrancy, relevance and reach of Shakespeare as the world commemorates the four hundred years since the playwright’s death in 1616. Spearheaded by Chicago Shakespeare Theater, the festival unites 60 of the city’s world-class institutions, and welcomes scores of leading artists from nations around the world including Australia, India, Mexico, the United Kingdom and beyond. Events spanning theater, opera, music, dance—even cuisine—celebrate, interpret and reimagine Shakespeare’s work. Shakespeare 400 Chicago will engage more than 500,000 Chicagoans and visitors to our City through 850 events. With leading support from the Julius Frankel Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Pritzker Military Museum & Library, this quadricentennial celebration is the world’s largest and most comprehensive celebration of Shakespeare’s enduring legacy. www.shakespeare400chicago.com
ABOUT BON APPÉTIT PRESENTS CHICAGO GOURMET
Now in its ninth year, Chicago Gourmet, the nation’s premier culinary experience aimed at promoting Chicago’s world-class culinary community, takes place September 23-25, 2016. It was created by the Illinois Restaurant Association to celebrate and honor both Chicago’s culinary achievements and the creative vision of the chefs, Master Sommeliers, and wine-, spirit-, and beer-makers who participate. It also spotlights Chicago as an international culinary destination via its unparalleled epicurean talent. Chicago Gourmet would not be possible without the support of title sponsor Bon Appétit magazine and presenting sponsor Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, LLC. www.chicagogourmet.org
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