Highly Recommended! “The adventurous Runcible Theatre Company, which specializes in offbeat English fare rarely tackled by larger troupes here, delivers a crisp and compelling rendition of Joe Penhall's chilling yet hilarious dark comedy”
“Penhall's peek down the rabbit hole of the government-subsidized health system tackles issues ranging from the mysteries of mental illness to white privilege, racism, and career-conscious power games. The actors in Andrew Root's intimate staging in the Royal George Theatre's Gallery studio deliver Penhall's sardonically sharp-edged dialogue with impeccable precision.” – Albert Williams, Chicago Reader
“Penhall's peek down the rabbit hole of the government-subsidized health system tackles issues ranging from the mysteries of mental illness to white privilege, racism, and career-conscious power games. The actors in Andrew Root's intimate staging in the Royal George Theatre's Gallery studio deliver Penhall's sardonically sharp-edged dialogue with impeccable precision.” – Albert Williams, Chicago Reader
"Penhall’s play still stands up as a blistering — and often quite funny — snapshot of how social safety nets fail to catch those whose experiences in a racist world don’t match up with artificial norms"
"(Nathaniel) Andrew is particularly hypnotic as Christopher - (he) plays it exceedingly well. We believe that he’s both deeply affected by real fear of a world that treats him as a damaged “other” on the basis of race, and that he has also created monsters in his mind that may not have anything to do with his daily life." - Kerry Reid, Chicago Tribune
"(Nathaniel) Andrew is particularly hypnotic as Christopher - (he) plays it exceedingly well. We believe that he’s both deeply affected by real fear of a world that treats him as a damaged “other” on the basis of race, and that he has also created monsters in his mind that may not have anything to do with his daily life." - Kerry Reid, Chicago Tribune
The Play
In a London psychiatric hospital, an enigmatic patient called Christopher claims to be the son of an African dictator - a story that becomes unnervingly plausible. In this psychological thriller, BLUE/ORANGE is an incendiary tale of race, madness and a Darwinian power struggle between two doctors, entrusted with a man’s life.
Andrew Root directs this award winning play by British playwright Joe Penhall.
Andrew Root directs this award winning play by British playwright Joe Penhall.
THE CAST
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Nathaniel Andrew (Christopher) returns to Runcible Theatre Company. His most recent credits include: Wounds to the Face (Runcible Theatre Company); Ohio State Murders (Dandelion Theatre); Beautiful Autistic (Chicago Dramatist). Film credits include Sarah McMillan’s Nerds Incognito and Claire Carre’s Embers. Nathaniel graduated from The Academy at Black Box Acting.
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Stephen Fedo (Dr Robert Smith) returns to Runcible Theatre Company, having previously appeared in A Number and Scenes from an Execution. Other recent credits include Hamlet (Midsommer Flight), The Wild Duck (Halcyon Theatre), Ivanov (Piven Theatre). A Christmas Carol (Dream Theatre), and Red Hamlet (Red Theater Chicago). In addition to his acting credits, he adapted and directed Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse as well as Gogol’s Nose and Overcoat for Piven, where he also adapted short stories by Chekhov, Singer,Malamud, and others for several productions directed by Joyce Piven. He adapted Jane Austen’s Emma for Reverie Theatre and translated and directed Hofmannsthal’s Elektra for Rogue Theater. He also practices law.
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Owen Hickle-Edwards (Dr Bruce Flaherty)returns to Runcible Theatre Company, where credits include Peter Scott-Fowler in After the Dance, and Bernard 1/Bernard 2/Michael Black in A Number. Most recently he worked with Remybumpo and Silk Road Rising on their production of Great Expectations, and in a staged reading of fellow cast member Stephen Fedo's adaptation of To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf as part of Piven Theatre's Lab Series. Owen hails from North Carolina where other theatre credits include: The Aliens by Annie Baker; Arcadia by Tom Stoppard; and The Pillowman by Martin McDonough. Owen received his BA from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington where he studied acting and playwrighting.
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PRODUCTION TEAM
Andrew Root (Director)
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Previously for Runcible Andrew directed Wounds to the Face, After the Dance, Sweet Phoebe and Scenes from an Execution. Originally from Houston Texas, Andrew studied and lived in the UK for eight years. As an actor he has worked extensively with companies in Scotland and England. Highlights include Poor Boy in association with National Theatre of Scotland, The Citizens Theatre and Vanishing Point.Directing credits include 10K for Profiles Theatre, (Vices and Virtues). AD for Smoking in the Boys Room, Rosemary Branch Theatre and Theatre 503 London. Andrew completed a Directing Traineeship with StoneCrabs Theatre Company in London, and holds a BA from The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
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Katie Bachert (Stage Manager)
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Katie is making her Runcible Theatre Company debut working on BLUE/ORANGE. Other Chicago area credits include Hog’sBelly at Gorilla Tango with A Dead Whale Producutions. Katie recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Technical Theatre from Columbia College Chicago where her other credits include Wait Until Dark, and The Baltimore Waltz.
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Becca Venable (Technical and Lighting Design)
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Becca returns to Runcible Theatre Company, where her credits include: After the Dance, and Wounds to the Face. Some of Becca’s other Chicago credits include A Year With Frog and Toad (Chicago Children’s Theatre), Little Red Cyrano (Red Theatre Chicago), Life’s a Dream (University of Illinois at Chicago), Weekend Comedy (Oil Lamp Theater), Dying City (The Comrades), American Hero (First Floor Theater), Sweet (Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre), and Gender Breakdown (Collaboraction Theatre Company). Other credits include The Nutcracker (Ballet Lubbock), Beauty and the Beast (Lubbock Moonlight Musicals), Reckless (Eastern New Mexico University),and The Country Wife (Texas Tech University).
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Kailee Tomasic (Set Design)
Kailee is excited to be designing with Runcible again after designing After the Dance and Wounds to the Face. Since graduating from Ball State University in 2013, she has been designing in Chicago with several companies. Some of these companies include Step Up Productions, Haven Theatre, The Plagiarists, Congo Square, Black Button Eyes Theatre Co., and Pride Films and Plays. She greatly enjoys working with everyone and hopes to continue designing with them in the future.
Blake Jojo Burke (Costume Design)
Jojo returns to Runcible Theatre Company, where her credits include: After The Dance. Other Chicago credits include: The Snow Queen (Piccolo Theatre); Properties Design: Firebirds Take The Field and Winter (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble), Giggle Giggle Quack (Lifeline Theatre); Regional Costume and Properties Design credits include work with: Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Center, Chataqua Theatre Company, The Monomoy Theatre, 5th Street Players, and Southern Illinois University. Jojo received a BFA in Theatrical Design & Production from East Carolina University in Greenville, NC.
Joe Palermo (Sound Design)
Joe is a Chicago based freelance Sound Designer, and a Part Time Faculty Member at Loyola University of Chicago, Production Staff at the Chicago Fringe Festival, Resident Audio Engineer at The Edge Theatre, and Resident Lead Technical Liaison at The Chicago Council On Global Affairs. He would also like to remind you that in the final moments between Kylo Ren and Han Solo, it would have been epic if Han had said "I love you" and Kylo would have replied with "I know" before stabbing Han Solo and sending him to his death. It would have been a beautiful bookend to what is arguably Han Solo's most memorable line, and was truly a missed opportunity.
