Chicago Playworks opens its 1998-99 season of plays for families and young audiences with STEAL AWAY HOME, by Aurand Harris based on the novel by Jane Kristof, October 6 - December 5, 1998, at DePaul University's Merle Reskin Theatre, 60 E. Balbo Drive, Chicago. The play is directed by Patrice Egleston, with musical direction by Shawn Wallace, scenic design by Kurt Boetcher, costume design by Heather Lindsten, lighting design by Karen Schell and sound design by Jeffrey Webb.

For information and to purchase tickets, call the Box Office at (312) 922-1999.

In Steal Away Home, young Obadiah and Amos flee a South Carolina plantation and are sent north by their mother on the Underground Railroad. On a journey of hope and faith, they travel 500 miles to meet their father, a Freedman living in Pennsylvania. The boys are aided along their way by a cast of characters who guide them to freedom with spiritual and folk songs. "Music is heard throughout the play and creates a wide range of moods," says director Patrice Egleston. "It symbolizes faith and the driving force behind the Underground Railroad’s ride to freedom."

Steal Away Home marks the beginning of The Theatre School’s year-long celebration of DePaul University’s Centennial, as Chicago Playworks presents a season of stories about America’s children. Young people in each of the plays this year remind us all how the dreams and imaginations of our youth have shaped our lives. The Theatre School faculty and staff dedicate the Centennial Playworks season to Dr. Bella Itkin, professor emeritus of the school and past artistic director of Chicago Playworks.

Founded as the Goodman Children's Theatre in 1925, Chicago Playworks is the city's oldest continuously operating children's theatre and the recipient of the Illinois Theatre Association’s 1997 Children’s Theatre Award. Its productions have been the first theatre experience for generations of Chicagoans. More than 35,000 young people attend productions at the Merle Reskin Theatre each year. David L. Avcollie, Professor of Acting at The Theatre School, is Artistic Director of Chicago Playworks.

Performances of Steal Away Home are Tuesday and Thursday at 10 a.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m., October 6 - December 5, 1998. A special Holiday Week features additional performances at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, December 2, and Friday, December 4.

PLEASE NOTE: There will be no performances on Saturday, October 24; Tuesday, November 10; Thursday, November 12; Thursday, November 19; Saturday, November 21; Tuesday, November 24; Thursday, November 26 and Saturday, November 28. Performances take place at DePaul University's Merle Reskin Theatre, 60 E. Balbo Drive, Chicago. Discount parking is available with coupons from the Box Office.

INTERPRETED PERFORMANCES: Performances on Tuesday, October 27 at 10 a.m. and Saturday, October 31 at 2 p.m. will be American Sign Language interpreted by Sign On Stage. Interpreted performances are supported by a grant from Dr. Richard Meister and the Executive Office of Academic Affairs at DePaul University. For information about interpreted performances, call TTY: (773) 325-7975.

Ticket prices are $6; $2 for children 18 months and younger. Group rates are available for 15 or more people. Seniors (over 60), Corporate Partners, DePaul employees and alumni, and college students receive a discount on regular prices. Dinner Offers are available at the Chicago Hilton and Towers Pavilion Restaurant through the Theatre Box Office: $20.00 for adults; $11.00 for children age 12 and younger.

SPECIAL EVENT: An Ice Cream Social and post-show discussion with the cast follows the performance on Saturday, October 17, at the Chicago Hilton and Towers. Tickets to this event are $2.50 and are available through the Theatre Box Office: (312) 922-1999.

Director PATRICE EGLESTON is an Associate Professor of Movement at The Theatre School. She received her M.F.A. in Performance with a Movement emphasis from Southern Methodist University. Ms. Egleston is an authorized teacher of the somatic education technique called Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement® and has also trained extensively in period movement (dancing, behavior and movement signatures of past cultures), the Alexander Technique of self-use, and stage combat. She has directed several productions at The Theatre School, including Bridge to Terabithia, Our Country’s Good, Dancing at Lughnasa, Epson Downs, The Gut Girls and Living Together. In the last 10 years, Ms. Egleston has directed and choreographed dances, movement and combat for more than 30 productions at a variety of theatres, including the Dallas Theatre Center, Stage #1, New Arts Theatre and Moving Target Theatre, all in Dallas, and at the Virginia Shakespeare Festival, the Texas Shakespeare Festival and Fort Worth Shakespeare in the Park.

Further information about Steal Away Home and The Theatre School is available via the Internet on The Theatre School's Website, located at http://theatreschool.depaul.edu .

The Theatre School is a member of the Illinois Arts Alliance, Illinois Alliance for Arts Education, American Alliance for Theatre and Education, Illinois Theatre Association and the League of Chicago Theatres.