AVAILABLE TO TOUR

RAVE REVIEWS FROM CHICAGO CRITICS! 

"...a smart. vivid and often surprising one-woman show ...performed with skill, fervor and intelligence by Lori Adams...a work of impressive sweep, as was the life of its subject ...on the evidence of the excerpts laced throughout Ludlam's script - and brought to life with impressive clarity by Adams --you may very well want to head out and find a copy of the complete work...." (Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times)

"... Adams, with a fine command of island dialects and an eye to distinct and individualized personalities ... the superlative craftsmanship rendered manifest in this Stockyards Theatre Project production ... "  (Mary Shen Barnidge - Windy City Times)

"Adams brings intelligence and class to the piece...Lauren M. Lowell's period-perfect dress... (Kelly Kleiman, Chicago Reader)

More reviews here...

POSTER DESIGN by Mike Mahle, University Marketing and Communications  Photography by Jerry Dellinger

Shame the Devil!  An Audience with Fanny Kemble is a one-woman tour de force about nineteenth-century British actress, author, abolitionist, wife and mother. This production is a collaboration by the faculty in the School of Theatre at Illinois State University.

Lori Adams not only captivates audiences with her portrayal of Fanny Kemble, but also gives voice to ten other characters as Fanny’s story unfolds on and off the stage in England and America.  Anne Ludlum’s engaging script, based on Kemble’s prolific autobiographical writings, follows Fanny’s life from her glorious acting debut in London and subsequent tour of America to her exit from the stage to marry an American slaveholder, Mr. Pierce Butler. 

This production was designed and built to tour to theatres, colleges and organizations.  This play will appeal to anyone interested in history, women's issues, sociology, African-American history and theatre.