GreatWorks producing director Matt O'Brien brings 20 years of professional producing experience to GreatWorks, with shows produced at major arts festival throughout the US and Europe. Click here for Matt's online bio.

GreatWorks began as the outreach programming arm of Irish Repertory of Chicago, Chicago's professional Irish theatre company. Recognizing that the rapid growth of the educational program was becoming more than could be managed as a "part-time" aspect of the parent company, artistic director Matt O'Brien stepped back from Irish Rep in 2005 to focus full-time on building GreatWorks into Chicago's premiere provider of literature and history based plays for young audiences. In the three years since, we've grown to include a line-up of eight productions and an annual average audience of nearly 40,000 Illinois students.

GreatWorks' philosophy is to work smart and to work creatively. We never play down to our audiences, choosing instead to challenge your students to play at the top of their game. The actors and directors of our shows can also be seen working at some of the largest professional theatres in the city, bringing the same dedication and professionalism to your school as they do to their "night jobs."

While we're based in Chicago, regional bookings in downstate Illinois and southern Wisconsin are available. If you're outside of the Chicago metro region and interested in booking a GreatWorks show, please contact us for a quote on your booking.