This engaging 60-minute tour gave audiences the inside scoop on the theater’s impressive architecture, the technical aspects that bring our shows to life, and the wide spectrum of roles backstage.
SEP 23–OCT 19, 2025
Lead Production Sponsor
SEP 23–OCT 19, 2025
Created and Directed by Q Brothers Collective (GQ, JQ, JAX and POS)
Development in collaboration with Edward Hall and Ericka Ratcliff
Based on Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar
The Jentes Family Courtyard Theater
Rome Sweet Rome
Created and Directed by Q Brothers Collective (GQ, JQ, JAX and POS)
Development in collaboration with Edward Hall and Ericka Ratcliff
Based on Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar
The Jentes Family Courtyard Theater
Run Time: 80 minutes
Audience Notice: Contains explicit language and bawdy humor. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely intentional.
Lead Production Sponsor
“Rome Sweet Rome is my favorite of all the Q shows…All in all, it’s kind of a blast”
–Chicago Tribune
“If ever there was a time to revisit Julius Caesar, it’s now.”
–Chicago Reader
“Delivers 80 minutes of adrenaline-pumping entertainment that’s both captivating and creative.”
–Let’s Play Theatrical Reviews
Can we get a “Hail Caesar”?! Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it only takes a moment for the balance of power—and the bread basket—to crumble. In this wild and satirical “add-rap-tation” of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar from Chicago’s own Q Brothers Collective, the charismatic tyrant Caesar rules over his realm with an iron fist and a string of increasingly ludicrous executive orders. When delicious carbs are officially kiboshed, Brutus, Cassius, and the Senator crew decide the madness must end. Set to the electrifying beats of ’90s hip hop and New Jack Swing, razor-sharp wit collides with revolutionary rhythm, proving that political power struggles never go out of style. This is Shakespeare that bumps, breathes, and breaks boundaries.
OCT 5 Audio Description
OCT 8 Open Captioning
OCT 10 ASL Interpretation
Run Time: 80 minutes
Audience Notice: Contains explicit language and bawdy humor. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely intentional.
Lead Production Sponsor
OCT 5 Audio Description
OCT 8 Open Captioning
OCT 10 ASL Interpretation
OCT 5 Audio Description
OCT 8 Open Captioning
OCT 10 ASL Interpretation
Slide 1 of 10
Video: Trailer
Video: Political Satire & 90s Hip Hop
Video: Q Brothers Talk Hip Hop & Shakespeare
Video: Audience Response
Video: What is an “Add-Rap-Tation?”
Gallery: On Stage
Video: Artistic Director Edward Hall
Gallery: First Look
Video: Working With Q Brothers
Video: Announcing Rome Sweet Rome (2025)
Video: Trailer
Video: Political Satire & 90s Hip Hop
Video: Q Brothers Talk Hip Hop & Shakespeare
Video: Audience Response
Video: What is an “Add-Rap-Tation?”
Gallery: On Stage
Slide 1 of 26
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Production photos from Rome Sweet Rome, playing through October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Video: Artistic Director Edward Hall
Gallery: First Look
Slide 1 of 9
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
First Look photos from the production of Rome Sweet Rome, playing September 23 to October 19 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
Video: Working With Q Brothers
Video: Announcing Rome Sweet Rome (2025)
“The atmosphere is warm, the staging sharp and there’s a bright kind of wit to the whole shebang, which knows not to outstayeth its welcome, praise Caesar.”
–Chicago Tribune
“Fast moving, never-ending ball of energy that has the audience laughing, clapping, rapping and cheering. Shakespeare would be proud!”
–WGN Radio
“Ebullient singing voices, wonderful choreography, clever stagecraft.”
–Around The Town
“A nonstop party – but the big ethical questions still manage to land.”
–Chicago Stage & Screen
“Ebullient singing voices, wonderful choreography, clever stagecraft.”
–Around The Town
“A nonstop party – but the big ethical questions still manage to land.”
–Chicago Stage & Screen
Artists
Slide 1 of 15
JQ
JQ (aka Jeffrey Qaiyum) is an Emmy-winning composer and creator from Chicago. He is a co-founder of Q Brothers, internationally known for their hip hop adaptations of the classics, including Othello: The Remix, Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Much Ado), Dress The Part (Two Gents), Q Brothers Christmas Carol, ms. estrada (Lysistrata), Long Way Home (The Odyssey), and more. He creates the score for Hulu/FX’s The Bear. Q Brothers also performs annually at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits. He recently recently remixed “Sweet Home Chicago” for the Chicago Cubs and Delmark Records, with longtime collaborator, Johnny Iguana. JQ has received several awards, including Best Lyrics for Othello: The Remix at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and a BMI Streaming Media Award for his scoring work on The Bear.
JAX
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Q Brothers Christmas Carol, Othello: The Remix (Jeff Award – Best Ensemble), Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Jeff Award- Best Ensemble), Short Shakespeare! The Comedy of Errors. CHICAGO: Welcome to Arroyo’s (World Premiere – American Theater Company); Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde (BoHo Theatre). REGIONAL: The Merchant of Venice (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival); The Comedy of Errors, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, The Taming of the Shrew (Riverside Theatre Shakespeare Festival); The Crucible, A Christmas Carol, Lady Windermere’s Fan (Milwaukee Repertory Theater); I Hate Hamlet (New Court Theatre). OFF- BROADWAY: Othello: The Remix (The New York Times Critics’ Pick – Westside Theatre). INTERNATIONAL: Othello: The Remix (Shakespeare’s Globe, London, Germany, Edinburgh, South Korea, Sydney, Poland, Melbourne, UAE, Auckland); Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Edinburgh, Australia, London) Jackson is a member of The Rap Pack.
POS
aka POSTELL PRINGLE
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Othello The Remix, Q Brothers Christmas Carol, Funk It Up About Nothin’. CHICAGO: The Matchmaker (Goodman Theatre); Long Way Home (Chicago Children’s Choir). BROADWAY: Goodnight, Oscar (Belasco Theater); A Free Man of Color (Lincoln Center Theater). OFF BROADWAY: Othello: The Remix (Westside Theatre); The Misanthrope & Tartuffe (Moliere In The Park); LINDA (Manhattan Theater Club); The Urban Retreat (The Public Theater/New York Stage and Film); The Seven (New York Theatre Workshop); Song for New York (Mabou Mines); Exposure (Eugene O’Neill Theater Center); Hoodoo Love (Cherry Lane Theatre). Romeo & Juliet (Lucille Lortel Theater). REGIONAL: Two Trains Running, The Hot Wing King (Hartford Stage); The Hot Wing King (Baltimore Center Stage); OUR DAUGHTERS, LIKE PILLARS (Huntington Theatre); The Seven (La Jolla Playhouse); Broke-ology (Kansas City Repertory Theatre); King Hedley II (American Stage). FILM: 30 Miles from Nowhere (Amazon Prime); Unknown Soldier; 14085; The Hudson Tribes. TELEVISION: Rescue Me (FX); Unforgettable (CBS); Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC). COMPOSITION/PLAYWRITING: Q Brothers Christmas Carol; Long Way Home; I Heart Juliet; ms. estrada, Rome Sweet Rome, Last Stop On Market Street and STEP KIDS. EDUCATION: BA in theater, Bates College; Conservatory training, RADA (London, England). AWARDS: Joseph Jefferson Awards for Best Ensemble (multiple years). Pos is also a podcast producer, host and music director of LOC Mixtape, Roasting Vegetables, The Fatherly Podcast. posLuv.com @posLuv
Janyce Caraballo
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Shakespeare in the Parks The Hero Within. CHICAGO: Little Women, Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley (Northlight Theatre); A Christmas Carol (Drury Lane); Romeo and Juliet, Hope: Part 2 of a Mexican Trilogy (Teatro Vista); Seussical (Marriott); Suddenly, Last Summer (Raven Theatre); Hot Pink (New American Folk Theatre); The Full Monty (Theo Ubique); Little Women (First Folio Theatre). REGIONAL: Door Shakespeare, Peninsula Players, Indiana Repertory Theatre, American Players Theatre, TheatreSquared. FILM: Exes of Christmas Past. TELEVISION: Chicago PD (NBC).
Danielle Davis
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Corduroy, Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet, Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks productions of DREAM and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. CHICAGO: Antigone (Court Theatre); Clyde’s, The Music Man (Goodman Theatre); Holiday Inn (Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination– Performer in a Supporting Role), A Christmas Carol (Drury Lane Theatre); BLKS (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); Fun Home (Victory Gardens Theater); An Octoroon (Definition Theatre); Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre, Rivendell Theatre Ensemble. REGIONAL: How to Catch Creation (Geva Theatre). TELEVISION: The Chi, Shameless (Showtime); Chicago PD (NBC); Empire (FOX); Sense8, Easy (Netflix).
Victor Musoni
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Q Brothers Christmas Carol. CHICAGO: America V2.1, Are you Ready to Smash White Things, No child (Definition Theatre); La Havana Madrid (Teatro Vista/Collaboraction Theatre Company); Fun Harmless War Machine (The New Coordinates); PYG: Or the Misedumacation of Dorian Belle, Blood at the Root (Jackalope Theatre Company); Columbinus (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); The Toilet, How We Got On (Haven Chicago); Luck of the Irish, The Q Brother’s Rome Sweet Rome (UIC). REGIONAL: Goodman Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, Steppenwolf, St. Louis Shakespeare, Flint Rep, Congo Square, Victory Gardens and Definition Theatre Company. FILM: 6×9, WHOLE (Monty Cole). TELEVISION: 61st Street (AMC/BBC); Chicago Med (NBC). WEB SERIES/MUSIC VIDEO: Brujos (OTV); Young Lost Love, Sinner (StripMall Prods.). CHOREOGRAPHY: Death of Chuck Brown at American Players Theater, Maybe by Daniel Kryi, Olney Theatre Center, Definition and Flint Rep. Musoni is an ensemble member of Definition Theatre and Congo Square Theatre Company, and represented by Paonessa Talent Agency.
Cage Sebastian Pierre
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Co-Creative Facilitator of Shakespeare in the Parks DREAM!, 3-Time Host of Shakes SLAM!, Q Brother’s Christmas Carol, Romeo and Juliet, Posner and Teller Macbeth, Short Shakespeare! Romeo and Juliet, Short Shakespeare! Macbeth, Short Shakespeare! A Midsummer Night‘s Dream. CHICAGO: Antigone (Court Theatre); Kill, Move, Paradise, Too Heavy for Your Pocket (Timeline Theatre); A Moon for the Misbegotten (Writers’ Theatre). REGIONAL: Earthquakes in London (Guthrie Theatre); Pericles, King Lear, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Comedy of Errors, Eurydice, Cyrano de Bergerac (American Players Theatre); My Children! My Africa!, A Raisin in the Sun (Park Square Theatre); Slab (Square Product Theatre). TELEVISION: Chicago PD (NBC); Empire (Fox). EDUCATION: MA in design for social impact, Paris College of Art; BFA in theatre, University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theatre BFA Actor Training Program. Pierre is a recent addition to the Q Brothers’ Collective. He is also a Program Director of Berridge Programs located in Brix, Normandie, France.
Maya Vinice Prentiss
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Comedy of Errors, Romeo and Juliet CHICAGO: Clyde’s, How to Catch Creation, School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play (Goodman Theatre); Marie Antoinette and the Magical Negroes (The Story Theatre) Eclipsed (Pegasus Theatre Company); An Octoroon, An Educated Guess (Definition Theatre Company). REGIONAL: School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play (TheatreSquared); As You Like It, Pride and Prejudice (Illinois Shakespeare Festival); Q Brothers Christmas Carol (St. Louis Shakespeare) FILM: Jade, Nya Does Nothing, PLENUM. TELEVISION: The Chi (Showtime), Donut Boyz (Pilot) FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY: Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Timeline Theatre, Babes with Blades Theatre Co., Definition Theatre, Raven Theatre, Remy Bumppo, The Story Theatre, The Impostors Theatre. INTIMACY DIRECTION: Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Raven Theatre, Remy Bumppo, Pegasus Theatre, Shattered Globe Theatre DIALECT COACHING: Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, The House Theatre. EDUCATION: BFA in Drama, Spelman College; MFA in Acting, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. AWARDS: Jeff Award- Best Fight Choreography (Ethiopianamerica), Best Ensemble (Marie Antoinette). Maya Vinice Prentiss is an SAFD Certified Actor-Combatant, Fight Choreographer, and Dialect Coach.
Jonathan Shaboo
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: Uncle Vanya (The New Theatre Project) The Band’s Visit (Writers Theatre) Layalina (Goodman Theatre) BROADWAY TOURING: The Kite Runner (1st National) INTERNATIONAL: Julie: After Strindberg (Untold Wants Theatre Company) The Ministry of Mundane Mysteries (Outside The March) The Winter of 88’ (Nowadays Theatre) Evil Dead: The Musical, We Will Rock You (Starvox Entertainment) COMEDY: Touring Company, Education Company, House Company, The Bob Curry Fellowship (The Second City Toronto) The NBC Breakout Festival (The Second City Chicago) EDUCATION: The School at Steppenwolf 2019
Bri Sudia
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Rome Sweet Rome is Bri’s 9th show at CST. Favorites include Road Show, Pericles and Emma. CHICAGO: Always, Patsy Cline (Drury Lane); Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (Writers Theatre); A Christmas Carol, Wonderful Town (Goodman Theatre); Sweeney Todd (Paramount Theatre); Oslo (TimeLine Theatre). BROADWAY: Ellie Greenwich in A Beautiful Noise: the Neil Diamond Musical (Original Broadway Cast). EDUCATION: MFA in Acting, University of Illinois and a degree in Sign Language Interpreting.
Madeline Baird
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: The 39 Steps (Drury Lane Theatre); Beau Jest (Oil Lamp); The American Girls Revue (American Girl Place); High School Musical (Emerald City); Number the Stars (Apple Tree). FILM: Gary Screams for You (short). TELEVISION: Shining Girls (Apple TV+). EDUCATION: BFA in acting, The Theatre School at DePaul University.
Trey DeLuna
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: Cinderella (Marriott Theatre); A Chorus Line (Drury Lane Theatre); Sons of Hollywood (Windy City Playhouse); Mr Burns, A Post-Electric Play (Theater Wit). TOUR: Kevin J in Come From Away. REGIONAL: Kevin J in Come From Away (The Muny); Legacy of Light (McCarter Theatre); Murder on the Orient Express (Beef & Boards Theatre). EDUCATION: BFA in theatre, Millikin University.
Theo Gyra
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: Inherit the Wind (Goodman Theatre); The Listeners (Lyric Opera of Chicago); The Sex Talk I Never Had (Avalanche Theatre). REGIONAL: Escape to Margaritaville, Anything Goes, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Murder on the Orient Express (Woodstock Playhouse); Othello (Interlochen Shakespeare Festival). EDUCATION: Northwestern University, Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Interlochen Arts Academy. @theogyra
Elexis Selmon
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley (Buffalo Theatre Ensemble). REGIONAL: Jaja’s African Hair Braiding (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati); Hello Dolly (The Carnegie Theatre); The Spongebob Musical (The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati). REGIONAL TOUR: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival); Hamlet (Cincinnati Shakespeare Company). EDUCATION: BA in theatre, Loyola University New Orleans; BS in psychology, Loyola University New Orleans.
Curtis Bannister
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: The Color Purple (Goodman Theatre); MASS (Ravinia/Chicago Symphony Orchestra); Big River (Mercury Theatre, Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination- Actor in a Leading Role); The Pajama Game (Theatre at the Center); Parade (Writers Theatre); Ragtime (Music Theatre Works). OFF BROADWAY: Sweeney Todd. REGIONAL: 12 Angry Men: A New Musical, Intimate Apparel, Inherit the Wind (Asolo Rep); Candide (The Philadelphia Orchestra/Baltimore Symphony); Sweeney Todd, Saturday Night Fever, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Miss Saigon (The REV); The Gospel at Colonus (Skylight Music Theatre); Ain’t Misbehavin (Olney Theater/The National Players). FILM: The Conductor (Tribeca Film Festival). TELEVISION: Chicago Fire (NBC); Dickinson (Apple TV); Survival of the Thickest (Netflix); MASS (PBS). AWARDS: Drama League Nominee- Best Concert Performance, AEA Sturtevant Award- Excellence in Musical Theatre. Bannister is a concert partner of Heather Headley (Indianapolis Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Goodman Theatre).
Joe Disbrow
Associate Sound Designer
Brian Elston
Assistant Lighting Designer
Karina Patel
Script Supervisor/Dramaturgy
Joe Disbrow
Associate Sound Designer
Brian Elston
Assistant Lighting Designer
Karina Patel
Script Supervisor/Dramaturgy
GQ
GQ co-created, co-directed, and starred in the original productions of Othello: The Remix (Westside Theater off-Broadway NY Times Critic’s Pick / The Globe Theatre, London / Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Dress The Part (SFSTL), Q Gents (OSF/ISF), Q Brothers Christmas Carol (CST), and Funk It Up About Nothin’ (CST). G also co-wrote and starred in the Off Broadway smash hit The Bomb-itty of Errors. Along with his brother and the other Bomb-itty guys, G wrote and starred in a hip-hop/sketch comedy TV show, Scratch and Burn (MTV). G’s screen credits include the movies Drumline, Taxi, I Think I Love My Wife, What’s The Worst That Could Happen (w/ John Leguizamo), and Werner Herzog’s Rescue Dawn, among others. He wrote, directed and starred in the film Just Another Story (Showtime, Tribeca Film Fest), has had prominent roles in Chicago PD (NBC), Boston Public (Fox), Numbers (CBS), and co-starred in the one-hour drama Johnny Zero (Fox), and John Herzfeld’s pilot, S.I.S (Sony). G produces electronic music under the moniker Javid Music Party. He is a member of the Chicago-based comedic hip hop group known as The Rap Pack. Originally from Chicago, he received his BFA from the Experimental Theatre Wing of Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. @gthepeople
JQ
JQ (aka Jeffrey Qaiyum) is an Emmy-winning composer and creator from Chicago. He is a co-founder of Q Brothers, internationally known for their hip hop adaptations of the classics, including Othello: The Remix, Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Much Ado), Dress The Part (Two Gents), Q Brothers Christmas Carol, ms. estrada (Lysistrata), Long Way Home (The Odyssey), and more. He creates the score for Hulu/FX’s The Bear. Q Brothers also performs annually at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits. He recently recently remixed “Sweet Home Chicago” for the Chicago Cubs and Delmark Records, with longtime collaborator, Johnny Iguana. JQ has received several awards, including Best Lyrics for Othello: The Remix at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and a BMI Streaming Media Award for his scoring work on The Bear.
JAX
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Q Brothers Christmas Carol, Othello: The Remix (Jeff Award – Best Ensemble), Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Jeff Award- Best Ensemble), Short Shakespeare! The Comedy of Errors. CHICAGO: Welcome to Arroyo’s (World Premiere – American Theater Company); Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde (BoHo Theatre). REGIONAL: The Merchant of Venice (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival); The Comedy of Errors, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, The Taming of the Shrew (Riverside Theatre Shakespeare Festival); The Crucible, A Christmas Carol, Lady Windermere’s Fan (Milwaukee Repertory Theater); I Hate Hamlet (New Court Theatre). OFF- BROADWAY: Othello: The Remix (The New York Times Critics’ Pick – Westside Theatre). INTERNATIONAL: Othello: The Remix (Shakespeare’s Globe, London, Germany, Edinburgh, South Korea, Sydney, Poland, Melbourne, UAE, Auckland); Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Edinburgh, Australia, London) Jackson is a member of The Rap Pack.
POS
aka POSTELL PRINGLE
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Othello The Remix, Q Brothers Christmas Carol, Funk It Up About Nothin’. CHICAGO: The Matchmaker (Goodman Theatre); Long Way Home (Chicago Children’s Choir). BROADWAY: Goodnight, Oscar (Belasco Theater); A Free Man of Color (Lincoln Center Theater). OFF BROADWAY: Othello: The Remix (Westside Theatre); The Misanthrope & Tartuffe (Moliere In The Park); LINDA (Manhattan Theater Club); The Urban Retreat (The Public Theater/New York Stage and Film); The Seven (New York Theatre Workshop); Song for New York (Mabou Mines); Exposure (Eugene O’Neill Theater Center); Hoodoo Love (Cherry Lane Theatre). Romeo & Juliet (Lucille Lortel Theater). REGIONAL: Two Trains Running, The Hot Wing King (Hartford Stage); The Hot Wing King (Baltimore Center Stage); OUR DAUGHTERS, LIKE PILLARS (Huntington Theatre); The Seven (La Jolla Playhouse); Broke-ology (Kansas City Repertory Theatre); King Hedley II (American Stage). FILM: 30 Miles from Nowhere (Amazon Prime); Unknown Soldier; 14085; The Hudson Tribes. TELEVISION: Rescue Me (FX); Unforgettable (CBS); Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC). COMPOSITION/PLAYWRITING: Q Brothers Christmas Carol; Long Way Home; I Heart Juliet; ms. estrada, Rome Sweet Rome, Last Stop On Market Street and STEP KIDS. EDUCATION: BA in theater, Bates College; Conservatory training, RADA (London, England). AWARDS: Joseph Jefferson Awards for Best Ensemble (multiple years). Pos is also a podcast producer, host and music director of LOC Mixtape, Roasting Vegetables, The Fatherly Podcast. posLuv.com @posLuv
Tanji Harper
Tanji Harper is a Chicago Native, proud to be from and still residing on the south side of the city. Ms. Harper was technically trained by the Joseph Holmes Chicago Dance Theater, Chicago Dance Medium, Homer Bryant, Joel Hall, and is a four-year alumnus of The Chicago Academy of the Arts. After high school she started dancing for both R&B and Hip-Hop mainstream music acts; resume includes Twista, Sparkle, Do or Die, and Avant from 1997-1999. Choreography credits include movement direction West Side Story (Renegade Theater); Ellen Bond (House Theater); Down in the Delta (Lifeline Theater); 1776 (Marriott Theater); Notes From The Field, Legally Blonde (Loyola University); Rent (Columbia College); Dontrell Who Kissed the Sea, Shakin The Mess Outta Misery (Pegasus Theatre); That’s What Friends Are For (Black Ensemble Theater). Over the last 25 years Tanji Harper has contributed to the curriculum, implemented programming, and partnered with the Chicago Park District, Chicago Public Schools, After School Matters, The Happiness Club, Redmoon Theater, ChiArts Summer Dance Camp, Dance Chicago, The American Rhythm Center, The Taste of Chicago, Broadway in Chicago, Young Chicago Authors, Storycatchers Theatre, Cabinet of Curiosity, Lollapalooza, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and The White House Easter Egg Roll during the Obama administration. Harper was the artistic director at the Happiness Club and piloted dance programs that grew into 4 different Hi-def dance Ensemble apprenticeships through After School Matters. She also created Blu Rhythm Chicago which has a crew that performs and conducts workshops, and the Collective which performs on a professional level. Harper teaches beginner level Hip-Hop classes at Visceral Dance Center and The Academy of Movement and Music, an adjunct professor at Harold Washington College and Loyola University, and she is a master at engaging every level of artists.
Collette Pollard
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: Titanic, Beehive, The Music Man, Gypsy and The Sound of Music (Marriott Theatre); Always Patsy Cline (Drury Lane Theatre); Inherit the Wind, Fannie, Roe, The Wolves, The Happiest Song Plays Last, Fish Men and Stoop Stories (Goodman Theatre); Dennis Watkins’ The Magic Parlour (in partnership with Goodman Theatre and Petterino’s); Describe the Night, HIR, Between Riverside and Crazy (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); The Lehman Trilogy (Timeline Theatre) where she is an artistic associate. REGIONAL: Sense and Sensibility, Hannah and the Dread Gazebo, Great Expectations (Oregon Shakespeare Theatre); Toni Stone (Huntington Theatre); Little Women (Seattle Rep/Milwaukee Rep); What the Constitution Means To Me, Steel Magnolias, Eclipsed, The Chinese Lady (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre); The Legend of Georgia McBride (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre/Arizona Theatre Company); Holmes and Watson (Kansas City Repertory Theatre); Angry, Raucous & Shamelessly Gorgeous (Hartford Stage/Alliance Theatre). Pollard is the recipient of several Joseph Jefferson Awards and is an Associate Professor of Design at the School of Theatre and Music at UIC.
Jos N. Banks
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Debut. CHICAGO: Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Drury Lane Theatre, Paramount Theatre, The Second City, About Face Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Writers Theatre, Congo Square, Definition Theatre. REGIONAL: Yale, Arena Stage, The Muny, McCarter Theatre Center, Goodspeed. Performance credits include the international tours of Kinky Boots, Hair, and The Color Purple; Ocean in The Chi, Dr. Greg Martinson in Work in Progress (Showtime). AWARDS: Four-time nominee for “Best Costume Designer” at the Black Theater Alliance Awards. Banks is an Artistic Associate with About Face Theatre in Chicago, IL and was afforded the company’s first ever costume designer residency. He is a multi- award winning Visual/ Performing Arts Artist, Costume Designer, Teaching Artist & LGBTQ+ trailblazer. www.FearlessJos.com @JosNBanks
Jesse Klug
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: A Q-Brothers Christmas Carol, Othello the Remix, Cadre, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination), Pericles (Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination), Cyrano De Bergerac, Murder for Two. CHICAGO: Goodman Theatre, Marriott Theater, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Paramount, Lookingglass, Victory Gardens, Court Theatre, Northlight, Writers Theatre. OFF BROADWAY: The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity (Lortel, Hewes Award nominations), The Screwtape Letters (Off-Broadway and National Tour), Romulus, The Hunchback Variations. REGIONAL: Milwaukee Rep, Indiana Rep, Arizona Theatre Company, Geffen Playhouse, The Old Globe, Asolo, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Portland Center Stage. INTERNATIONAL: Edinburgh Fringe Festival, INFANT, Market Theatre of South Africa, Sydney Fringe Festival, as well as other on five different continents. Klug is a Chicago Joseph Jefferson Award winner and twenty-four-time nominee. JesseKlug.com
Stephen Ptacek
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Q Brothers Christmas Carol, Nell Gwynn, The Tempest (assistant to Ray Nardelli), Little Mermaid (assistant to Josh Horvath), Seussical (assistant to James Savage). CHICAGO: Mies Julie (Victory Gardens); Long Way Home (Q Brothers w/ Chicago Children’s Choir); The Skin of Our Teeth (Remy Bumpo); The Pride, The Flowers, Stupid Kids, The Young Ladies Of… (About Face); How We Got On (Haven); Killer Angels (Lifeline); Breach, Roadkill Confidential, Dead Letter Office, The Twins Would Like To Say, God’s Ear, As Told By The Vivian Girls (Dog & Pony); Faster (Side Project). ST. LOUIS: Romeo & Zooliet, Christmas Carol the Remix (St Louis Shakespeare) EDUCATION: BA in english and theatre arts, University of Iowa. AWARDS: Non-Equity Joseph Jefferson Awards for Sound Design in 2008, 2014, and 2017; Nicholas Meyer Scholarship for Playwriting 2005.
Jeffrey “JQ” Qaiyum
JQ (aka Jeffrey Qaiyum) is an Emmy-winning composer and creator from Chicago. He is a co-founder of Q Brothers, internationally known for their hip hop adaptations of the classics, including Othello: The Remix, Funk It Up About Nothin’ (Much Ado), Dress The Part (Two Gents), Q Brothers Christmas Carol, ms. estrada (Lysistrata), Long Way Home (The Odyssey), and more. He creates the score for Hulu/FX’s The Bear. Q Brothers also performs annually at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits. He recently recently remixed “Sweet Home Chicago” for the Chicago Cubs and Delmark Records, with longtime collaborator, Johnny Iguana. JQ has received several awards, including Best Lyrics for Othello: The Remix at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and a BMI Streaming Media Award for his scoring work on The Bear.
Bob Mason
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: 150 plus productions over 24 years, including 35 plays in Shakespeare’s canon under current Artistic Director Edward Hall and Founding Artistic Director Barbara Gaines. Also at CST: nine productions of Stephen Sondheim musicals under the direction of Gary Griffin. CHICAGO: Bounce, Light in the Piazza (Goodman Theatre); REGIONAL: SIX (CST, American Repertory Theater–Artios Award, Ordway Center, The Citadel); Ride the Cyclone (CST, Fifth Avenue Theatre/A Contemporary Theater, Alliance Theatre); OFF-BROADWAY: Ride the Cyclone (MCC); Rose Rage: Henry VI, Parts 1, 2 and 3, directed by Artistic Director Edward Hall (The Duke on 42nd Street); Marionette Macbeth (New Victory); BROADWAY: SIX, The Notebook; INTERNATIONAL: The Lord of the Rings: A Musical Tale (Auckland, NZ); Pacific Overtures (Donmar Warehouse–Olivier Award, Outstanding Musical); Henry IV, Parts One and Two (RSC). Prior to casting, Mason enjoyed a career as a Joseph Jefferson Award-winning actor and singer and has been a visiting educator at Northwestern University and multiple college programs across the country.
Rita Vreeland
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Short Shakespeare! A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakes In The City: A Midsummer Night’s Dream. CHICAGO: The Little Mermaid, A Christmas Carol (Drury Lane Theatre); Titanique, Ernest Shackleton Loves Me (Porchlight Music Theatre); The Luckiest and Prodigal Daughter (Raven Theatre); Mercury Theatre, Victory Gardens, Route 66 Theatre Company, Theatre at the Center, Northlight Theatre in Skokie. INTERNATIONAL: The Galway International Arts festival in Galway, Ireland. TOURS: three years of The Polar Express Train Ride. Vreeland has been a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association since 2001.
Danny Fender
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Circus Abyssinia, Sunny Afternoon, Avaaz, Pericles, Henry V, Short Shakespeare! Romeo and Juliet, Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks. CHICAGO: Two Trains Running, The Lady from the Sea, The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice, The Mousetrap, Oedipus Rex, King Hedley II (Court Theatre); The Steadfast Tin Soldier (Lookingglass Theatre Company); The Music Man, Ah, Wilderness! (Goodman Theatre); Revolution (A Red Orchid Theatre); new play workshops for Steppenwolf Theatre Company; author events for Chicago Humanities Festival. NEW YORK: Black Swan (workshop). TOUR: Hamilton (Philip Company Tour). EDUCATION: The Theatre School at DePaul University, Interlochen Arts Academy. Fender is one of the owners of The Understudy Coffee and Books, a theatre bookstore and specialty coffee shop located in Andersonville. The Understudy was featured in the New York Times’ 36 Hours in Chicago and voted Chicago Reader’s Best Coffee Shop in Chicago for 2023 and 2024.
Victor Musoni
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE: Q Brothers Christmas Carol. CHICAGO: America V2.1, Are you Ready to Smash White Things, No child (Definition Theatre); La Havana Madrid (Teatro Vista/Collaboraction Theatre Company); Fun Harmless War Machine (The New Coordinates); PYG: Or the Misedumacation of Dorian Belle, Blood at the Root (Jackalope Theatre Company); Columbinus (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); The Toilet, How We Got On (Haven Chicago); Luck of the Irish, The Q Brother’s Rome Sweet Rome (UIC). REGIONAL: Goodman Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, Steppenwolf, St. Louis Shakespeare, Flint Rep, Congo Square, Victory Gardens and Definition Theatre Company. FILM: 6×9, WHOLE (Monty Cole). TELEVISION: 61st Street (AMC/BBC); Chicago Med (NBC). WEB SERIES/MUSIC VIDEO: Brujos (OTV); Young Lost Love, Sinner (StripMall Prods.). CHOREOGRAPHY: Death of Chuck Brown at American Players Theater, Maybe by Daniel Kryi, Olney Theatre Center, Definition and Flint Rep. Musoni is an ensemble member of Definition Theatre and Congo Square Theatre Company, and represented by Paonessa Talent Agency.
Spotlight
Backstage Tour on OCT 1
Jam with our Spotify Playlist
Get in the mood with this playlist featuring the music of Public Enemy, The Notorious B.I.G., Michael Jackson, and more electrifying beats of ’90s hip hop and New Jack Swing,
Get to know Q Brothers Collective
GQ, JQ, JAX & POS have been energizing audiences for two decades with their wholly original “add-rap-tations” fusing hip hop and theater.
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