A picture is worth 1,000 words but what about a song? 35MM is a beautiful collection of stories told through song. Each song is inspired by and coupled with a photo to create a unique moment captured onstage. this stunning, and often overlooked, multimedia musical will delight you with gorgeous music, brilliant storytelling, and a cast that is ready to knock your socks off!

SHOW History

35mm: A Musical Exhibition made its world premiere at Galapagos Art Space in Brooklyn, New York on March 12, 2012. Directed by Jeremy Bloom, the production featured Alex Brightman, Ben Crawford, Jay Armstrong Johnson, Lindsay Mendez and Betsy Wolfe. The original cast recording, from Ghostlight Records, was released on August 14, 2012.

Music & Lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver
Based on photographs by Matthew Murphy
PRoduced by special arrangement with concord theatricals

Marking the end of our year long virtual residency, Three Brothers Theatre presents six staged readings of new full length plays from six brilliant playwrights on August 3rd and 4th in Waukegan, IL as part of our Waukegan Theater Festival. All readings will take place at our original location at 115 N Genesee Street. See one or see all six shows! Check out our lineup below:

AUGUST 3RD

SATURDAY at 10:30AM

Tethered by Ron Anahaw, directed by Liv McDaniel
A living room play for the non-living. Vincent has ghosts tethered to him, but he doesn’t know it. These ghosts fight for control of Vincent, but the dynamic is disrupted when Vincent’s mother passes and sees the influence they have over her son.

SATURDAY at 1PM

Enduring Jest by Zach Barr, directed by AJ Schwartz
A loose adaptation of the novel “Infinite Jest,” with one catch: the playwright hasn’t read it. Built solely out of verbatim text from interviews with people who have actually read the book, this play reconstructs David Foster Wallace’s story, as best as its readers are able to do so themselves. An investigation of how our passions define us – and the often impossible task of explaining those passions to others.

SATURDAY at 4PM

Chuan & Eve by Lyra Nalan, directed by Joel Willison
In a desperate bid to help his schizophrenic mother, a young immigrant forms an unexpected bond with a seemingly perfect therapist, only to uncover a shocking truth that challenges his understanding of trust, empathy, and the very nature of therapy itself.

SATURDAY at 7PM

End of the Day, Ep 1 by Adrienne Dawes, directed by Mack Finley
Tud, Myleigh, and Lancelot are perhaps the only surviving contestants of a British reality dating show broadcast during a massive extinction event. Isolated from the outside world, they dance between denial and acceptance, searching for love and meaning in a pointless, absurd existence. Inspired by absurdist theatre, Sims 4, and Love Island UK, “End of the Day” is an eight-play cycle that examines the unique anxieties, uncertainties, and frustrations of trying to find love in the “coronial age.”

AUGUST 4TH

SUNDAY at 12PM

The Final Séance of Madame LeFay by Chase Wheaton-Werle, directed by Eileen Tull
On October 31, 1896, for her last seance ever, Madame Allisandre LeFay would pull a feat more impossible than speaking to the dead. She summons the New York City’s most ardent medium-defrauder Elton Rochester to the stage with this proposal: before the session is done, one would be converted or the other debunked.

SUNDAY at 3:30PM

HypergaMater by Marjorie Muller, directed by Ramona Rotten
“If you are doomed to mother him emotionally, he must father you financially.” This is the motto of Alanna Aberdeen’s protege program through which she teaches women the art of snagging geriatric billionaires to secure the lifestyle they deserve. However, when she chooses skeptic Robin Rigby to join her program, both women become disillusioned with the lives (and men) they’ve chosen and the world literally begins to crumble until they are forced to ask an age-old question. Is the grass really greener on the other side? Or, worse, is there no grass anywhere at all?

l-Theory collective dance presents the platinum experience

Experience the thrill and indulge in the world of dance as we sparkle and dazzle with The Platinum Experience! This electrifying show features breathtaking choreography and stunning performances by the dancers of L-Theory Collective Dance. Stay afterwards for an exclusive Q&A session with the talented performers.

 Enjoy an unforgettable night taking in the beauty, passion, and excitement of dance!

Concluding our main season at Stage 221, we've got Spies! Gags! Hitchcock References!

Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have The 39 Steps, a fast-paced whodunit for anyone who loves the magic of theatre! This two-time Tony and Drama Desk Award-winning treat is packed with nonstop laughs, over 150 zany characters (played by a ridiculously talented cast of four), an onstage plane crash, handcuffs, missing fingers, and some good old-fashioned romance!

A hilarious spoof about the misadventures of five nuns trying to manage a fundraiser. Sadly, the rest of the sisterhood died from botulism after eating vichyssoise prepared by Sister Julia Child of God. Thus, the remaining nuns – ballet-loving Sister Leo, street-wise Sister Robert Anne, befuddled Sister Mary Amnesia, the Mother Superior Sister Regina, and mistress of the novices Sister Mary Hubert – stage a talent show in order to raise the money to bury their dearly departed.

No need for travel this February, when you can enjoy a virtual encore performance of FUEGO by L-Theory Collective Dance. For $25, you'll have access to the streaming performance of Fuego from February 17th to 18th, 2024. This encore will include a L-Theory Collective Dance T-shirt!

THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields!

We're kicking 2024 off with a show that will have our easiest tech week yet! Welcome to opening night of the Cornley University Drama Society’s newest production, The Murder at Haversham Manor, where things are quickly going from bad to utterly disastrous. This 1920s whodunit has everything you never wanted in a show—an unconscious leading lady, a corpse that can’t play dead, and actors who trip over everything (including their lines). Nevertheless, the accident-prone thespians battle against all odds to make it through to their final curtain call, with hilarious consequences! Part Monty Python, part Sherlock Holmes, this Olivier Award–winning comedy is a global phenomenon that’s guaranteed to leave you aching with laughter!

This winter, you won't want to miss our new holiday hit! Snowed in at the airport during their holiday travel, a group of frustrated and misplaced travelers find some festive fun when they discover a karaoke machine!

It is Christmas Eve and Alex, a young Jewish man, who is waiting to board his flight at Sioux Gateway Airport. meets Brooklynn, a young woman. She starts up a conversation with Alex, telling him anabsurd story about a lady on her last flight, named Karen, who was telling a story about her ex-husband, who left her for the nanny, and then left the nanny for a one-night stand. Alex tells a story about a lady on his last flight, named Karyn, who brought a ukulele on the flight. As they talk, the two ladies, who are the ex-wives, see each other.

An arguing couple, named Nate and Vanessa, enter the gate and bicker at each other. Henry, who has a frozen but defrosting turkey, comes to the gate. Alex’s grandmother, Dot, returns to the gate from the bathroom. They are traveling together to Vermont to visit Burlington’s largest or tallest landmarks.

A gate agent appears and announces a delay of one hour. The passengers pause and freeze as two Narrators set the scene. When they are done, all of the passengers unfreeze and begin to complain to the gate agent. To appease the angry passengers, the gate agent brings out a karaoke machine to help pass the time.

As passengers take turns singing karaoke songs, they start to enjoy themselves and have fun…but will the flight ever take off?

This show carries an R rated for strong language.

Performances

december 1st at 7:30pm

December 2nd at 2pm & 7:30pm

December 8th at 7:30pm

december 9th at 7:30pm

december 15th at 7:30pm

December 16th at 2pm & 7:30pm

Join us this fall for this spooky adaptation of the Washington Irving classic! Brought to you by a grant from the Waukegan Arts Council!

In the quaint village of Sleepy Hollow, stories of wonder and strangeness surround the legend of a mighty headless Hessian. When the humble schoolteacher Ichabod Crane vies for the hand of the beautiful Katrina Van Tassel, the townsfolk might protest, but it is ultimately the Horseman who will decide Ichabod's fate.

Wauke-Con 2023! Waukegan’s Annual Comic Book Convention!

In honor of Ray Bradbury, we put together a comic con in his hometown of Waukegan, IL, a place he immortalized in numerous works, including Something Wicked This Way Comes and Dandelion Wine. Whenever he referred to a place called Green Town, IL, he was thinking of Waukegan. A comic book convention is perfect tribute to the life-long fan. He not only attended the very first San Diego Comic Con in 1970 and went to each one following until his death, he also attended the World Science Fiction Convention in 1939, generally considered the first science fiction convention. He was all of 19 and still just dreaming about becoming a great writer, a dream that has come to pass. We hope you can join us for the next Wauke-Con, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1. Proceeds to benefit Three Bros. Theatre.

The Waukegan Comedy Jam is a passion project for Kristin Carnes who grew up in the city and graduated from East High School in 1985. She began doing stand-up comedy in Boston a few years ago performing throughout New England. After participating in a number of comedy festivals around the country, she realized this would be a great addition to Downtown Waukegan’s burgeoning arts scene.

After returning to Waukegan for a visit, Kristin connected with Waukegan Main Street, Three Brothers, and the City of Waukegan and thus the Waukegan Comedy Jam was born.

This years jam will be on September 29th and 30th. The 29th will feature headliner Amy Sumpter and includes Kadeem Fuller, Denise Medina, Ryan Webb, and Dr. Jackie Linn.

The 30th will feature headliner Jarrell Scott Barnes with Eric Mitchell, Mike Atcherson, Luise Noe, and Natalie Wickman.

Both nights will be hosted by local legends Mark Bon and Kristin Carnes!