Young People’s Theatre of Chicago

presents

LAST STOP ON MARKET STREET

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Randy White – Artistic Director
randy@yptchi.org  • 773 404 7336 (o) • 812 272 4511 (c)

CHICAGO – Following the joyous season-launching production of Junie B. Jones and the Chicago Premiere of the new TYA Diary of Anne Frank, the Young People’s Theatre of Chicago concludes its sophomore season in May with the second-ever Chicago production of the hip-hop, soul, gospel, Motown-infused musical adaptation of the Newberry Award-winning Last Stop on Market Street. 

Adapted by Cheryl L. West from Matt de la Peña’s best-selling picture book, Last Stop’s glorious score is by Paris Ray Dozier and his father Lamont Dozier, writer of Motown hits like “How Sweet It Is” and “You Can’t Hurry Love.”

Last Stop runs May 11-June 2 at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue. 

For tickets or info, visit www.yptchi.org  or call the Greenhouse Theater Center Box Office @  773 404 7336.

THE STORY
Six-year-old CJ and his unflappable Nana embark on an extraordinary bus ride all the way to the very last stop on Market Street. At every turn, CJ discovers that things in the big city are not what they seem. Throughout, CJ find friendship, joy, and understanding in the most unexpected of places. 

Deemed an “artistic tour de force,” (Kirkus Reviews), Matt de la Peña’s New York Times bestselling picture book was named Best Children’s Book of 2015 by the Wall Street Journal and was awarded the Caldecott Honor, the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, and 2015’s Newberry Medal, the most prestigious prize in children’s literature. Matt de la Peña was the first Hispanic American author to win the Newberry Medal. 

THE PLAY
The stage adaptation is by Cheryl L. West, an accomplished and award-winning playwright whose work has appeared on Broadway and at theatre across the country, Composers Lamont and Paris Dozier draw on many styles, including Motown, hip hop, R&B, soul, gospel, and jazz. Co-composer Paris Ray Dozier has written songs for Disney Music Group’s Hollywood Records and Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels’ Above Average Productions, among others. Father and co-composer Lamont Dozier is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and one of the most prolific songwriters and composers of the late 20th century. As part of the songwriting and producing team Holland-Dozier-Holland, Dozier played an integral role in creating the sounds of artists such as The Supremes, The Four Tops, and Martha and the Vandellas. He co-wrote and produced 14 Billboard No. 1 hits in the U.S. 

The musical was co-developed by Chicago Children’s Theatre and the  Children Theatre Company in Minneapolis. YPT is proud to present the second-ever Chicago production of Last Stop on Market Street.

LAST STOP ON MARKET STREET

MAY 11 – JUNE 2, 2023

by Matt de la Peña, Illustrated by Christian Robinson
Adapted for the stage by Cheryl L. West
Music and lyrics by Lamont Dozier & Paris Ray Dozier

Directed by Randy White and Tuesdai B. Perry
Choreographed by Tuesdai B. Perry
Set Design by Shayna Patel
Costume Design by Janelle Smith
Lighting Design by Kevin Rechner 

Last Stop on Market Street is best enjoyed by everyone 4+. 

Tickets: $25 / $19 (under 12)
www.yptchi.org / 773 404 7336
@ The Greenhouse Theater Center
2257 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago

PERFORMANCES

• Saturday, May 11 @ 10:00am (Preview) & 1:30pm (Opening)
• Saturdays @ 11:00am & 1:30pm
• Sundays @ 1:30pm

CREATIVE TEAM
Matt de la Peña(author)is the New York Times bestselling, Newbery Medal-winning author of seven young adult novels (including Mexican WhiteBoy, We Were Here and Superman: Dawnbreaker) and six picture books (including Milo Imagines the World and Last Stop on Market Street). In 2016 he was awarded the NCTE Intellectual Freedom Award. Matt received his MFA in creative writing from San Diego State University and his BA from the University of the Pacific where he attended school on a full basketball scholarship. In 2019 Matt was given an honorary doctorate from UOP. de la Peña currently lives in Southern California. He teaches creative writing and visits schools and colleges throughout the country.

Christian Robinson (illustrator) is an illustrator, author, animator and designer based in Oakland. He was born in Los Angeles and grew up in a small one-bedroom apartment with his brother, two cousins, aunt and grandmother. Drawing became a way to make space for himself and to create the kind of world he wanted to see. He studied animation at the California Institute of the Arts and would later work with the Sesame Workshop and Pixar Animation Studios before becoming an illustrator of books for children. The Christian Robinson for Target collection, released in August 2021, includes more than 70 items across home and apparel for kids and baby. 

Robinson’s books include the #1 New York Times bestseller Last Stop on Market Street and the #1 New York Times bestseller The Bench, written by Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex. His solo projects include Another, which was named a New York Times Best Illustrated Book of 2019, and the New York Times bestseller You Matter. His latest collaboration with Matt de la Peña, Milo Imagines The World, received six starred reviews and was a #1 Indie Bestseller and a New York TImes bestseller.

Cheryl L. West (playwright) Her plays include, FANNIE: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer, Last Stop on Market Street, Shout Sister Shout, Akeelah and the Bee, Pullman Porter Blues, and Jar the Floor. Her plays have been produced in England, off-Broadway, on Broadway (Play On!) and in numerous regional theaters around the country, including Seattle Rep, Arena Stage, Old Globe, The Goodman, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Minneapolis Children’s Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Chicago Children’s Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Indiana Rep, Manhattan Theatre Club, Second Stage, etc. She has written TV and film projects at Disney, Paramount, MTV Films, Showtime, TNT, HBO, CBS, BET and is the Webby- nominated writer for the original web series Diary of a Single Mom.

Lamont Dozier (composer) has written and provided over 54 #1 hits for The Supremes, Four Tops, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, and a host of others crediting Lamont as one of the the primary Architechts of the Motown Sound. He is an inductee in the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Tuesdai B. Perry (co-director / choreographer) is delighted to make a stop here at YPTChi!  She actively works as a director, choreographer, dance coach, performer, educator, and teaching artist, teaching dance, voice, theatre, and more all over the Chicagoland and surrounding suburbs.  She holds a BA in Directing and Writing from Western Illinois University.  Previous YPTC credits: Knuffle Bunny; Peabody.

Randy White (co-director) was founding artistic director of Cardinal Stage Company in Bloomington, IN. where he inaugurated the extraordinarily successful “Cardinal for Kids” series. In NYC, Randy directed the off-Broadway/national tour of the TYA musical Max and Ruby, the 15-month run of Glen Berger’s Underneath the Lintel, assisted on Disney’s The Lion King, and was resident director at New Dramatists. Regionally, Randy has directed at Shakespeare Santa Cruz, Portland Center Stage, Actors Theatre of Louisville, etc. As an educator, Randy has directed and/or taught at Yale, Penn, IU, University of Minn/Guthrie, Fordham, and NYU Tisch. 

In Chicago, Randy has directed numerous shows and was nominated for an Equity Jeff award for his critically acclaimed production of Midsummer (A Play with Songs). He also directed YPT’s inaugural production of Knuffle Bunny, the world premieres of Peabody (the Science Musical) and Dory Fantasmagory, the sold-out run of Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, Junie B. Jones, and the Chicago premiere of the new one-act Diary of Anne Frank. Randy holds an MFA in directing from the University of Alberta in his native Canada.

THE YOUNG PEOPLE’S THEATER OF CHICAGO

The Young People’s Theatre of Chicago is a professional children’s theatre company offering Theater for Young Audience (TYA) productions and performance/education opportunities for children of all ages and backgrounds.

Housed in the historic Greenhouse Theater Center in Lincoln Park, YPT launched in the fall of 2021 with Mo Willems’ Knuffle Bunny. YPT inaugural 3-play 2022-2023 season included Peabody, a world premiere S.T.E.M.-themed musical for gradeschoolers, a sold-out run of Mo Willems’ Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, and the world premiere adaptation of the wildly popular Dory Fantasmagory. YPT’s sophomore season included Junie B. Jones, the Musical and the inaugural ‘Tweens & Teens Series production of The Diary of Anne Frank.

Artist director White noted that “the company is excited to partner with community organizations, parents, impassioned educators, and local business leaders to make it possible for local children of all ages and backgrounds to experience and participate in a wide range of transformative theatrical experiences!” He added that these “include established children’s  classics, commissioned new works by celebrated American playwrights, and extraordinary performance and educational opportunities.”