The 2025 season promises to be our best and most ambitious yet. We’ll continue our mission to build community, promote healing, and foster human connection. We believe live, in-person theatre is needed now more than ever! This season, we’ll tell stories using every style, genre, and method at our disposal—puppets, Shakespeare, masks, live music, contemporary realism, Greek drama, and more—all brought together to create visually stunning, thought-provoking performances that unite us all.

To make it all possible, we’re calling on supporters like you to keep the lights on and the curtains up. With your contribution of $25, $50, $100, or even $500, you’ll help us deliver a season filled with enchanting, challenging, and transformative theatre experiences for audiences across the city and beyond.

While we receive support from the City of Chicago, DePaul University, and ticket sales, it’s the contributions from people like you that make our work truly impactful. Your support helps us reach our $5,000 goal, allowing us to bring five unique productions to life:

Infernal: A Clown’s Journey Into Hell conceived and written by company member Charlotte Markle (May/June 2025). In this new conception of the Italian classic, INFERNO, Dante dons a red nose and clowns his way through every level of hell! In search of love, moral clarity, and the perfect physical comedy bit, Dante enlists the help of a chorus of demon clowns. Virgil (the ringmaster of all ringmasters) gudes him to the lowest levels of hilarity.
Philoctetes by Sophocles (touring throughout 2025) - This play is part of our House of Love and War (HOWL) program, bringing classical drama to Chicago's combat veterans. Philoctetes, abandoned by his company, is left alone until Odysseus returns to seek his help. We’ll tour VFW Halls and veterans' facilities, with post-show discussions to help veterans process the play’s themes and deepen civilian understanding about the Veterans’ life experience.
Prick by Laurie Flanigan Hegge (September/October 2025) - The Scottish witch hunts—sanctioned by the state, driven by the church, fueled by hysteria. Women bore the terror, many “strangled to death and burnt to ashes.” Inspired by the Witches of Scotland campaign, Prick reclaims their story, blending magic and memory, fact and fiction. Featuring haunting puppets by Madeline Helling.
Prospero’s Black Box by Jeff Mills - This solo performance humorously connects Shakespeare’s Prospero with AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton as they confront the power—and danger—of Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality. In reality, Hinton resigned from Google, warning of AI’s risks. At the end of the Tempest, Prospero resigns his power and surrenders his magic. In this interactive show, a human clown tackles the “black box” mystery, with the audience actively shaping the story.
House of Circe Incubator - This development incubator program presents new, original, unfinished work conceived and created by Proboscis Company members in immersive performance spaces. This process allows us to cultivate new work by showcasing theatrical fragments to audiences, helping us discover what resonates and has impact.

Join our community and become part of something extraordinary. Help us make an impact through art. Make a contribution today and be a vital part of our journey to create unforgettable theatre!

2025 Season Annual Fund Launch

By Proboscis Theatre Company

2025 Season Annual Fund Launch

Proboscis Theatre's Annual Fund Launch for the 2025 Season