Goodman Theatre Honors Leaders On "Walkway of Stars"

On Monday, June 29, Goodman Theatre Outgoing Board Chairman Shawn M. Donnelley and Artistic Director Robert Falls were honored with stars bearing their names as part of the Goodman's "Walkway of Stars." The stars were presented in appreciation and gratitude for their achievements and service to the theater, and commemorated Donnelley's leadership gift of $1 million to Goodman Theatre's endowment. A ribbon cutting and unveiling of the two stars followed brief remarks by Executive Director Roche Schulfer during an afternoon ceremony on the theater's black granite entryway beneath the 73-foot Goodman marquee at 170 North Dearborn Street. Present were members of the Goodman's Board of Trustees as well as friends of the theater, including: Chairman-Elect Patricia Cox; Goodman Resident Artistic Associate Henry Godinez; Academy Award-nominated playwright José Rivera; Goodman Trustees Sherry Barrat of Northern Trust, Ruth Ann Gillis of Exelon Corporation, Vikki Hood of Kirkland & Ellis; Goodman Scenemakers Council members Shannon Kinsella and Cheryl McPhilimy; Premiere Society Donors Robert Kohl and Clark Pellett; and classics scholar Dr. Christopher Kelly, Donnelley's husband.

"In recognition of the incredible leadership that Shawn Donnelley and Robert Falls have provided, and their unparalleled dedication to the cultural life of this city," said Executive Director Roche Schulfer, "it is an honor to celebrate and recognize them on our 'Walkway of Stars.'"

Shawn M. Donnelley, the youngest trustee ever selected to lead the board of Chicago's oldest and largest not-for-profit theater, concludes her two-year term as Chairman at the end of the fiscal year on August 31. She is President of Strategic Giving, a firm providing consultation on philanthropy. The former head of political affairs for R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company, the world's largest commercial printer, Donnelley placed second in a field of eleven primary candidates running for nomination to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2000. She serves on the Auxiliary Board of the Art Institute of Chicago, Heartland Literary Society, Loyola University New Orleans and the Visiting Committee of the University of Chicago Divinity School and three private foundations. Her commitment to Chicago's nonprofit community was recognized by Oprah Winfrey's Angel Network and by Today's Chicago Woman magazine, which named Donnelley one of "100 Women Making a Difference in Chicago" and, in 2007, she was selected as the Outstanding Individual Philanthropist by the Association of Fundraising Professionals. She received a B.A. from Loyola University New Orleans and an M.A. in political communication from Emerson College. A Florida native, Donnelley now resides in Chicago and Cambridge, England.

Robert Falls, now in his 23rd season as the Goodman's Artistic Director, most recently directed King Lear—a smash sensation that premiered in Chicago in 2006—at Washington, D.C.'s Shakespeare Theatre Company to rave reviews. Earlier this year, his acclaimed production of Desire Under the Elms transferred to Broadway from the Goodman, where it was the centerpiece of the theater's A Global Exploration: Eugene O'Neill in the 21st Century, curated by Falls. He is the recipient of Tony Awards for his Broadway transfer productions of Long Day's Journey into Night (2003) and Death of a Salesman (1999), both starring his longtime friend and collaborator Brian Dennehy; an OBIE Award for his off-Broadway production of suburbia; the League of Chicago Theatre's 2003 Artistic Leadership Award; and numerous other awards during his 30-year career as one of Chicago's preeminent directors. Falls also accepted the 1992 Special Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre on behalf of the Goodman. He is a past board president of the Theatre Communications Group, past artistic director of Northwestern University's graduate directing program, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Lake Forest College. He also received the Illinois Arts Council's 1999 Governor's Award for outstanding contributions by an individual artist, and was named by Chicago magazine as one of its "Chicagoans of the Year" in 2001. He has been recognized by American Theatre as one of this country's most important and influential theater artists.

Named the country's Best Regional Theatre by Time magazine (2003), Goodman Theatre is a leader in the American theater, internationally recognized for its artists, productions and educational programs since its founding in 1925. Artistic Director Robert Falls and Executive Director Roche Schulfer's forward-thinking leadership has earned the Goodman unparalleled artistic distinction, garnered hundreds of awards—including the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre (1992) and Pulitzer Prizes for Ruined by Lynn Nottage and Glengarry GLen Ross by David Mamet—and moved dozens of plays from Chicago to stages in New York and abroad. Central to its commitment to the reinvestigation of classics and development of new plays and artists is the Goodman's Artistic Collective, including Brian Dennehy, Frank Galati, Henry Godinez, Chuck Smith, ReGina Taylor and Mary Zimmerman. The largest not-for-profit theater in Chicago, the Goodman moved in 2000 into a brand new state-of-the-art complex which houses two principal theaters: the 856-seat Albert Ivar Goodman Theatre and the 400-seat flexible Owen Bruner Goodman Theatre. Board Chairman is Shawn M. Donnelley and Karen Pigott is president of the Women's Board. American Airlines is the Exclusive Airline of Goodman Theatre.

Currently playing in Goodman Theatre's 2008/2009 season is the final play of the season—Boleros for the Disenchanted by José Rivera, directed by Henry Godinez (through July 26, in the Albert Theatre).

The upcoming 2009/2010 season includes Animal Crackers, book by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind, music and lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, directed by Henry Wishcamper (September 18 – October 25); Brian Dennehy in the Broadway-bound double-bill of Hughie by Eugene O'Neill, directed by Robert Falls and Krapp's Last Tape by Samuel Beckett, directed by Jennifer Tarver (January 16 – February 21, 2010); the world premiere of A True History of the Johnstown Flood by Rebecca Gilman, directed by Robert Falls (March 13 – April 18, 2010); The Good Negro by Tracey Scott Wilson, directed by Chuck Smith (May 1 – June 6, 2010); The Sins of Sor Juana by Karen Zacarías, directed by Henry Godinez (June 19 – July 25, 2010) which launches the Goodman's 5th Latino Theater Festival (offerings TBA). Offerings in the Owen Theatre include Stoop Stories written and performed by Dael Orlandersmith (September 12 – October 11); High Holidays by Alan Gross, directed by Steven Robman (October 31 – November 29); and The Long Red Road by Brett C. Leonard, directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman (February 13 – March 14, 2010).