Melanie Daniels (Tracy Repep) is attacked by birds when her curiousity gets the best of her in Hell in a Handbag's production of The Birds written by David Cerda and Pauline Pang adapted from the Evan Hunter screenplay directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
PLEASE USE PHOTO CREDIT PROVIDED
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hell in a Handbag Productions invites you to witness the sheer stabbing shock of
The Birds
by David Cerda & Pauline Pang
Directed by Scott Bradley
The Coach House at Berger Park
6205 N. Sheridan Rd. (Sheridan & Granville), Chicago, IL
Opens: Saturday, Oct. 6, 7:30 PM
Runs until Nov. 17: Wed. - Sat., 7:30 PM
Admission: Wed. & Thurs. $15, Fri. & Sat. $25
Special Benefit Performance for the ROAR Foundation
Thursday, October 11th
Admission: $50
Includes cameo appearances by Tippi Hedren and Veronica Cartwright, stars of the original film, as well as a pre-show reception and post-show Q&A.
The ROAR Foundation supports the Shambala Preserve, Tippi’s sanctuary for exotic animals.
Saturday, Oct. 27 - A Hitchcock Halloween. See the show, then join us afterwards at The Spot, 4437 N. Broadway, for open bar, a Hitchcock-character costume contest, and a live performance by The Joans. Tickets are $35 show & party, $25 show-only and $15 party-only.
High-resolution press photos and parking information available soon at
www.handbagproductions.org.
Tickets available Sept. 5 online at
www.brownpapertickets.com or call 1-800-838-3006
For additional information call the Handbag hotline @ 312/409-4357
Chicago, IL – Welcome to Bodega Bay, a sleepy little town just north of San Francisco, where the residents are securely nested away from the chaos of the city – until Melanie Daniels arrives with a pair of lovebirds and a sense of privilege.
Meet Tippi Hedren; a beautiful young model given the opportunity of a lifetime. The legendary director Alfred Hitchcock has handpicked her to star in his newest film, The Birds, his latest thriller about a series of bird attacks that coincide with the arrival of a beautiful blonde stranger. Tippi would soon discover the birds would be the least of her worries, for things aren’t going quite as she expected. There’s Peggy Robertson, Mr. Hitchcock’s rigid assistant who seems to be going out of her way to make things unpleasant for Tippi, and that pesky Camille Paglia, her psychiatrist who appears at the strangest times, not to mention the cast. Sure, Rod Taylor and Jessica Tandy are nice enough, but there’s something odd about that little girl, Veronica Cartwright, and Suzanne Pleshette, too, for that matter. On top of all that, Mr. Hitchcock’s interest in her seems to go far beyond that of a professional manner.
The Birds, written by David Cerda and Pauline Pang and directed by Scott Bradley is part parody and part dark deconstruction of the classic Alfred Hitchcock film. Further inspiration comes from the British Film Institute essay on The Birds penned by the always-controversial American social critic, Camille Paglia.
The Birds takes you behind the scenes and inside the mind of actress Tippi Hedren, played by Seattle actress and Handbag alumni Tracy Repep (POSEIDON! An Upside-Down Musical). Handbag newcomer Deanna Boyd is Jessica Tandy/“Lydia Brenner”, the mother with serious abandonment issues; Adrienne Smith (Caged Dames) is Peggy Robertson, the devoted assistant to “Hitch”; Sam Brown (Midnight Circus) is Mike, the stagehand stuck in the middle; Cheryl Snodgrass (Caged Dames) is Mrs. Bundy, the dismissive ornithologist; and A Red Orchid Theatre’s Doug Vickers (The Twilight Gallery) rounds off the list as the reappearing actor.
Handbag ensemble members in the show include Merrie Greenfield (SCARRIE-The Musical) as Camille Paglia, the time traveling mole; Ed Jones (Rudolph, The Red-Hosed Reindeer) as Veronica Cartwright/“Cathy Brenner”, the big little girl; Derek Czaplewski (Caged Dames) as the dashing Rod Taylor/“Mitch Brenner”; BC Kalz (Caged Dames) as “Helen”, the sassy Tides Restaurant waitress; and David Cerda as Suzanne Pleshette/“Annie Hayworth”, the jilted school teacher.
As producer, Cerda has assembled an impressive creative team to help bring his The Birds-vision to life, led by director Scott Bradley. Bradley directed Handbag’s 2006 hit musical Caged Dames and the highly successful Summer Camp series. "I was drawn to The Birds for its unique ability to convey both pathos and bathos in its storytelling -- a balancing act of the ridiculously heartbreaking and the heartbreakingly ridiculous, and often within the same moment," says Bradley. "We've managed to put together an incredible cast and production team, and I believe it’s that very quality that excited all of us about the project."
The team of designers includes Rob Peck (Cleveland Playhouse), lighting designer Josh Weckesser (Dance Chicago), Bill Morey (Porchlight Music Theatre) on costumes, Miles Polaski (Collaboraction) in charge of sound design, and The Hypocrites’ Sean Graney as design consultant.
“I’m excited to be kicking off both our fifth year as a company and first ‘official’ full season with The Birds,” says Cerda. “The Los Angeles production in 2006 (produced by TheSpyAnts) really inspired me to revisit the piece and do some things I wasn’t able to do when the show was originally produced. Like anything worthwhile, it’s exhilarating and a bit scary. The fact that the film’s original star and subject of this adaptation, Tippi Hedren, has given us her endorsement and blessing is even more gratifying.”
“I absolutely loved the The Birds,” says Tippi Hedren, who, in addition to attending the original Chicago production, helped support the critically-acclaimed Los Angeles production. Hedren and will be doing a cameo performance in The Birds on Saturday, October 12, to benefit The ROAR Foundation, which supports the Shambala Preserve, a refuge for exotic cats that are abused or abandoned. The show will feature a pre-show reception with Tippi, and a post-show discussion about The Birds with the cast and Tippi.
The Birds is simultaneously ridiculous and disturbing, and the venue, on Lake Michigan, adds an extra environmental dimension to this unique theatrical experience. You won’t want to miss The Birds.
Hell in a Handbag Productions is a Chicago-based not-for-profit 501C (3) corporation dedicated to the preservation and exploration of pop culture and camp theatrical stylings.
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