2015 was one of The Brown Paper Box Co.'s most exciting years yet.

Who am I kidding? It was our most exciting year! Plain and simple.

Artistic Associate Stephanie Rohr directed the timely revival of Theresa Rebeck's Spike Heels at Rivendell Theatre, followed by co-cordinating Spring Forward, Fail Back with our newest Artistic Associate Jenna Schoppe, a 2-night cabaret of love gone awry at Uncommon Ground.

Come Summer, our first Jeff Award eligible production, [title of show], opened to rave reviews, sold out houses, and - thrillingly - a Jeff Recommendation. I reunited with Artistic Associate T.J. Anderson who musical directed A New Brain - and we couldn't be more proud of it!

Co-founding member Michelle Kritselis stepped down as Marketing Director to focus on her little bundle of joy with her husband, Tim. With this change, long-time Associate Nick Shoda stepped into the Executive side of things as our new Marketing Director.

This all lead up to our 5-year anniversary bash at the Hideout. Reunited casts of all 4 musicals, The Moxie Sisters (featuring Associates Stephanie, Jenna, T.J. & Justin), and local singer-songwriter Jess Godwin headlined the event, marking a huge milestone for little ol' us.

Now we are looking ahead to 2016, when in March, we'll present Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, directed by guest artist Lavina Jadhwani. We open March 4 at the Greenhouse Theater & hope to see you there.

One busy year. 5 years behind us. Many more to come. And it's all thanks to YOU. Without your support, love, enthusiasm, and 'likes' on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram, we wouldn't be able to continue producing the stripped down & focused work we do.

On behalf of Anna, Nick, and the entire Brown Paper Box Co. team - see you in 2016!

M. William Panek

P.S. I've included some personal favorite pictures from the last year. Enjoy!

"Wool socks." - Anna Schutz
"The opportunity to be a part of the Chicago theatre community." - Damian Wille
"Collaborators & supporters willing to help us tell our story." - M. William Panek
"Working from home on cold, snowy days, La Croix, and the fact that I'll get to meet my kid this week!" - Michelle Kritselis ... and 'that kid' happens to be the beautiful Vivian Dawn born 12/1/15.
"Good people in my life. #basic" - Sarah Sapperstein
"Family, health, and sweatpants." - Nick Shoda
"I'm thankful for friend and family. And Sondheim." - Stephanie Rohr
"Being surrounded by friends, family, and freaking brilliant artists!" - Zev Steinberg
"Everyone working/fighting to end systemic racism in the US, everyone working/fighting to dismantle the patriarchy worldwide, theatre, Hamilton, & all my cool people at BPBCo." - Danny Spagnuolo
"My dad being alive. We thought we lost him twice in August. He is not only alive, but he is getting better each and every day. In fact, he got to leave the rehab center for Thanksgiving to come to a family get-together." - David Lipschutz

[title of show] is making the end of year "Best of" lists! 

If your company offers a matching donation program and you're looking for an end-of-year non-profit 501(c)(3) for you & them to support before the New Year, please consider The Brown Paper Box Co. Email us at contact@brownpaperbox.org with any questions or simply donate with the PayPal button at the bottom of our website: www.brownpaperbox.org. Thanks for your consideration and happy holidays!