The Accidental Shakespeare Company's Alchemy Punk Tempest

• • 3ARTS MATCH
  • 102% contributed

The Accidental Shakespeare Company is a new classical theater company in Chicago, aiming to kick off its season with a mainstage show of "The Tempest."

About This Project

The Accidental Shakespeare Company is a new classical theater company in Chicago. The Accidentals want to bring a high level of dramaturgy and acting skills to an affordable storefront theater space. We are raising money for our first mainstage show, The Tempest. We are raising the funds to cover the production costs so that we can maintain a very affordable ticket price for all.

The Tempest is a show about magic and most productions make the show about the magical stuff, the spectacle and the show. We like spectacle as much as anybody, but what makes our show unique is that we put the magic into the context it would have had in the early 17^th century. Our design team has invented what we call “Alchemy Punk”: like Cyberpunk or Steampunk, but powered by wind and magic. So-called magicians, astrologers and alchemists were just discovering elementary physics, chemistry, astronomy, and navigation. Do not be confused by all the talk of spirits. Scholars of the natural world studied the supernatural with the same intensity. Fairies and elves and witches were believed to be every bit as much a part of the natural world as Mendel’s peas or Galileo’s stars. Furthermore, Christendom had been in flames for a century over issues of faith. Their culture, like ours, hovers on the brink of overwhelming change, and not all of those changes were good.

It is very important to us to raise the entire cost of the production so that people who cannot afford the high ticket prices of many Chicago theaters will be able to come to our show. To achieve this goal, we need to raise $3,000 to cover these costs. Fortunately for us, 3Arts will match a third of our funding goal to ensure our success. So, with your help and the support of 3Arts we can bring this production to life.

The Tempest touches on issues with such contemporary resonance that legislators in Arizona have banned the teaching of it in the public school system. They think the play is provocative. They are right.

Thank yous

Contribute any amount or choose from the levels below.

• $25
  2 tickets to the show, acknowledgement in the program ($0.00 is tax deductible.)
• $50
  Everything above plus a signed cast photo ($0.00 is tax deductible.)
• $100
  Everything above plus an Invitation to the cast party ($0.00 is tax deductible.)
• $250
  Everything above plus a hand-crocheted Shakespeare character doll by artist and company member Cat Cefalu (limited number) ($0.00 is tax deductible.)
• $500
  Tarot card reading from Angeli Primlani, the Director of The Tempest (can be done online), 1 handmade Globe paper weight by artist and company member Margaretta Tobias (limited number), invitation to the cast party, signed cast photo, 2 tickets ($0.00 is tax deductible.)
• $1000
  Scale model of the Globe theater by artist and company member, Margaretta Tobias (limited number), invitation to the cast party, signed cast photo, 2 tickets ($0.00 is tax deductible.)

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Angeli Primlani

Primlani is a writer, performer, theatrical technician and producer who has been working in the arts, activism, and journalism since the early 1990s.  She has written two historical novels and a book of short stories.  She is currently working on …

View Angeli Primlani's profile

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• Thank you to the following for contributing to 3Arts with the recommendation that we support this project.

  • Catherine Cefalu

  • Tom Kessler

  • Michael Shappe

  • Saroj Primlani

  • Abigail Kraft

  • Allison Smith

  • amrita dhaliwal

  • Ravi Venugopal

  • Mary Anne Mohanraj

  • harper reed

  • Hallie Palladino

  • Kara DeCarlo

  • Margaretta Tobias

  • Christine Krumsee

  • Elisabeth Scott

  • Sarah Laue

  • Jessica Woodard

  • Anne Karsten

  • Rachel Ries

  • Tekki Lomnicki

  • Terrence A. Tobias

  • margaret geever

  • Mark Becker

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