The Chicago Shakespeare Theater at Navy Pier launches it’s new Big in Belgium—Chicago series of three acclaimed theatrical events representing the next wave of boundary-pushing European theater this week. Featured productions of the series will include a sweeping tribute to 2,500 years of oration, an engaging examination of free will—and the manipulation of it—in political elections, and a chilling look at tragedy and terror through the eyes of children.
Launching Big in Belgium—Chicago is BigMouth (Sept. 12–22), a tour-de-force solo performance by Valentijn Dhaenens, produced by leading Belgian company SKaGeN. Equipped with nine microphones, his voice, and indefatigable energy, Dhaenens weaves together some of the most revered speeches in history—from sermons and eulogies to declarations of war and love, from the likes of Socrates, Muhammad Ali, General Patton, Osama bin Laden, and more.
Audiences are instantaneously transported across the millennia by Dhaenens’ virtuosic performance, illuminating the tricks of rhetoric that have remained unchanged since the dawn of language. BigMouth was the sell-out hit of the 2012 and 2014 Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, and has since played to great acclaim in major festivals worldwide.
All three Big in Belgium—Chicago productions will be performed in English in the theater Upstairs at Chicago Shakespeare. Single tickets ($38–$56) are on sale now. Save $5 per ticket when you book 2 or more Big in Belgium shows together. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s Box Office at 312.595.5600 or visit the Theater’s website at www.chicagoshakes.com.