items tagged with Lincoln Park

“I think it came from going to church,” says area actor Pat Flaherty of his childhood interest in theatre. “Because I’d go to church, and I’d see this guy who was holding everybody’s interest through the whole service. It was very dramatic – they’d light the candles and ring the bells and everything – and for a while I thought I wanted to be a priest because of that.

“It turned out I just wanted to be on stage.”

Genesius Guild's Richard III is not what I expected. I sat down for Sunday night's Lincoln Park performance anticipating a well-done, respectfully somber production - something along the lines of a group oration with limited movement. What I saw instead was a dynamic show filled with remarkable performances and clever staging, and delivered with proper respect for the material.
Read More About Crowning Achievement: "Richard III," At Lincoln Park Through July 25...

I arrived at Genesius Guild's Friday-night performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream 10 minutes prior to the start of the show. What would otherwise be adequate arrival time for most of the Guild's performances proved a problem for this one - I could not find a seat. Other than a few spots on the not-comfortable-enough-for-more-than-two-hours bleachers, the seats were filled. With patrons already staking out spots on the surrounding lawn, I was forced to return to my car, grab a lawn chair, and jockey for a position to best view the night's performance.
Read More About Puckishness: "A Midsummer Night’S Dream," At Lincoln Park Through July 11...

If you're familiar with local theatre, you're likely familiar with the work of Michael King, whose area credits include performances for the Playcrafters Barn Theatre, the Prenzie Players, the Harrison Hilltop Theatre, (the now-defunct) Ghostlight Theatre, the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse, and - in numerous productions over the past five years - Rock Island's classical-theatre organization Genesius Guild.

Yet as King explains (with a laugh), if you've seen him anywhere on stage, you've likely seen him at his best.

"I suck at real life," says King, who turns 40 on July 7. "I do. You know, I make appointments and I miss 'em, I'm late with bills ... . Everything. But on stage, I'm able to be me.
Read More About King/Richard: Michael King Directs And Stars In Genesius Guild’S "Richard III," July 17 Through 25...