JEFFERSON PARK — At the opening of the Ed Paschke Art Center in Jefferson Park last week, Michael Patrick Thornton couldn’t help but laugh.
Thornton, who founded Jefferson Park’s Gift Theatre in 2005, said it was somewhat surreal to be surrounded by civic luminaries singing the praises of the Far Northwest Side and the arts renaissance that has boosted hopes of reversing decades of economic decline and filling long-empty storefronts.
“We are the original pioneers out here,” said Thornton, a native of Jefferson Park and the theater’s artistic director. “No one gave us the time of day.”
The Gift Theatre Sunday unveiled the plays its 22-actor ensemble will bring to life during the 2015 season, and celebrated its 10th anniversary with a party at Fischman’s Liquors, 4780 N. Milwaukee Ave., down the street from its 40-seat theater in the heart of the Jefferson Park Business District.
Thornton and William Nedved founded the Gift Theatre at 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave. after meeting at the University of Iowa in an effort to bring the joy of drama to “underserved, underrepresented and undernourished” communities, Thornton said.
“If you wanted to experience the theater, you had to drive far away and pay a pretty penny,” Thornton said of growing up in Jefferson Park.
Children growing up in Jefferson Park today will have a much different experience, with an effort to transform the area into an arts and culture mecca well underway, Thornton said.
Thornton said he was still in shock that the Ed Paschke Art Center had transformed the building at 5415 W. Higgins Ave., which is next to the mechanic where his family used to take their car when it broke down.
“I remember looking out of the windows of the Jefferson Park fieldhouse at the weird strip of parking lot along side that building and wondering if that was all Jefferson Park had to offer me,” Thornton said. “It has been great to see this area be rebooted.”
Thornton, who is a graduate of St. Patrick High School, has starred in three movies and had a recurring role on the ABC drama “Private Practice” as well as a role on Fox’s “The Chicago Code.”
Thornton, who suffered a stroke in 2003 that left him confined to a wheelchair, will next star at the Gift Theatre in William Shakespeare’s “Othello,” directed by Jonathan Berry with Kareem Bandealy.
While working to recover, Thornton, who will play Iago, used one of the famous schemer’s monologues to build back his vocal endurance.
“This play has been part of my life for a long time,” Thornton said, adding that he was thrilled to perform one of Shakespeare's play for the first time at the Gift Theatre.
“Othello” tells the tragic story of the title character, who is ultimately destroyed by Iago — and his own debilitating jealousy.
“The play feeds on secrets and whispers and glances,” Thornton said. “The Gift Theatre is a very small, intimate space. The actors won’t have to shout their lines, which will serve the play well.”
Opening night for “Othello” is July 17. The performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and at 2:30 p.m. Sundays through Aug. 31. Tickets are $20-$35 and are available at thegifttheatre.org or at 773-283-7071.
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