If you live, more specifically, on the North Side of Chicago.
And if you live, to be exact, on the North Shore – and you have any appreciation for great musicianship, classic film comedy, and an adult cocktail — then there is only one place to be with your loved one this weekend.
On Sunday at 6:00 PM, you must be at Studio5 in Evanston to hear Maestro Larry Schanker play live scores to 3 film shorts by the great silent comedians Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd.
Larry Schanker, the pianist for every “Mee-Ow Show” I performed in at Northwestern University in the late 1970s — and The Practical Theatre Company’s first musical director — is back in Evanston on April 30th. Larry’s an even better improvisational musician than he was back in the day.
And folks, back then, he was the best.
For Silent Comedy Night, Larry harkens back to the time before films had their own soundtracks, as Maestro Schanker will play Studio5’s 1927 Steinway grand piano LIVE to accompany three silent shorts by the great silent film comedians, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd.
Larry Schanker has received multiple Jefferson Award nominations for a variety of Chicago theatrical productions, including A Christmas Carol at The Goodman Theatre. Studio5 audiences will remember his work accompanying Tom Mula at Studio5 in Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol.
I’ll be joined by my fellow Practical Theatre ensemble members Dana Olsen and Victoria Zielinski as hosts for the evening. We’ll tell you some things about these three legendary silent films stars — and our brilliant friend Larry — that you may not know.
The music, and the fun, will be worth the trip to Evanston!
THE PRACTICAL THEATRE ANNOUNCES ITS RESIDENCYAT STUDIO5 IN EVANSTON, FROM MARCH THROUGH JUNE 2023.
THE PTC TO PRESENT A SLATE OF FILMS, READINGS, MUSIC — AND THEIR TRADEMARK IMPROVISATIONAL COMEDY REVUES.
Nearly four decades after leaving our beloved storefront theatre on Howard Street (The John Lennon Auditorium) in 1985, The Practical Theatre Company is re-establishing an ongoing presence in Evanston with a residency at Studio5 — where we recently sold out the limited run of our comedy hit, Vic & Paul & Dana’s Post Pandemic Revue.
The PTC@Studio5 residency will feature a variety of shows, hosted and performed by PTC members and guest artists drawn from Chicago’s theatre and music communities — and beyond.
There’s no better place to enjoy a show with your friends than the Studio5 Cabaret, which has comfortable seating, state of the art sound and lights, and acres of free parking!
Operated by Bea and Steve Rashid, Studio5 is located at 1934 Dempster Street in Evanston. (On the southwest corner of Dempster & Dodge, adjacent to Dance Center Evanston.)For tickets go to: https://www.studio5.dance/calendar
It’s time again for classic improvisational sketch comedy! Time to get out of the house and gather in a comfortable cabaret with fellow human beings for a memorable evening of laughter, music, and adult beverages.
The Practical Theatre returns to the Chicago area with the latest in a series of hit holiday shows, Vic & Paul & Dana’s Post-Pandemic Revue, starring writer-actors Victoria Zielinski, Dana Olsen, and PTC co-founder, Paul Barrosse.
Photo by Bradford Rogne Photography
Great, groovy music is provided by PTC musical director and Studio5 impresario Steve Rashid and his Studio5 All-Stars: Rockin’ Ronny Crawford on drums, Jim Cox on bass, and Don Stiernberg on every stringed instrument known to man.
Vic & Paul & Dana’s Post-Pandemic Revue is a smart comedy cocktail, mixing sex, music, variety and vaudeville — while stirring in everything from marriage to quarantine to cancel culture, conspiracy, climate change, Olympian gods, William Shakespeare, Rod McKuen, Looney Tunes — and the fragility of major appliances. It’s an intoxicating comic combination!
There’s no better place to enjoy a comedy revue with your favorite friends than Evanston’s own Studio5, which has a cash bar, comfortable, socially distanced seating, state of the art sound and lights, and acres of free parking.
PROOF OF VACCINE REQUIRED: All Studio5 attendees will be required to show an ID and proof of a COVID vaccine. Photos of CDC cards are acceptable provided they are legible. Studio5 will be following local masking guidance at the time of performances. Tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable. Please be certain you can and are willing to comply with our policies prior to making your purchase.
Seating is intentionally limited to accommodate social distancing.
This Friday, March 26th, my wife Victoria and I will join the cast of “Into The Mist” as the husband and wife vaudeville duo, Morty & Mitzi. For the past few months, we’ve been playing the roles of Dorothy Parker and Ernest Hemingway — but that was a pre-recorded performance. Morty & Mitzi will be serving up the jokes LIVE.
Drop by our dressing room this Friday if you’re in need of a few good laughs.
If you haven’t checked out “Into The Mist”, don’t miss it. My wife Victoria and me performed in a variety of ways over the year — but this is truly the most unique venue we’ve every played. It’s like find your way through an old hotel to experience a door-to-door, interactive variety show. Actually, it’s hard to describe. Go “Into the Mist” yourself and have fun back in 1927!
Paul's Voyage of Discovery & Etc. 