REVIEW: Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble Presents Rachel Bublitz's "Funny Like an Abortion" MARCH 10 - MARCH 30, 2025

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CHICAGO DANZTHEATRE ENSEMBLE PRESENTS THE CHICAGO PREMIERE OF 

FUNNY, LIKE AN ABORTION

MARCH 10 - MARCH 30, 2025 

GUEST REVIEW

By Barbara Belcore

How to Make Abortion Funny

Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

I drove right past the theater address not realizing the performance of Rachel Bublitz's "Funny Like an Abortion" would take place in a church theater. Greeters guided me upstairs where chairs sat in rows in front of a stage set up as a slightly cluttered apartment that could be any vintage Chicago flat. The rest of the multipurpose room was staggered with facts about abortion history and key points in the history of reproductive rights. The audience was wonderfully diverse and the title of the play alone is fair warning of the darkly provocative and wholly political nature of the content.

(L to R): Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade” and Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

As the lights went down, A solo actress runs around the stage, talking to her home smart device, decorating for a party, inspiring laughs from the audience. A knock on the door signals one of several well placed opportunities for the performers to break character; This time to present a disclaimer directly to the audience NOT to try anything they see on stage at home. We then meet Monroe and Jade, two quirky best friends gathering to address an unwanted pregnancy in an all-too-real near future where it becomes clear that choice is not a word one can say out loud. 

(L to R): Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe” and Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

The characters are well written in a way any close friendship pair can relate to: Monroe, the quirky, free spirit who makes light of even the most morbid of topics, and Jade, the serious, career-focused rule-follower who needs a little help loosening up. The actresses had tremendous chemistry and clearly enjoyed playing their well rehearsed roles making it seem like a closing performance as opposed to opening night. The dialogue is both risky and compelling, allowing for laughter in the face of discomfort. 

(L to R): Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade” and Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

(L to R): Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe” and Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

The playwright did her research! As a midwife I found the topic both urgent and relevant. The facts were accurate and managed to be both grim and silly at the same time. Even the ending, which was true physical comedy genius, taught important lessons while leaving the finality gently up to interpretation. I strongly recommend anyone, regardless of your affiliation, go see this clever and thought provoking play.

Barbara is a Chicago-area home birth midwife, maker, theater enthusiast, avid reader, and mom of two quirky, creative teens. She is currently snuggling three cats who are perpetually convinced that they have never been fed. 

(L to R): Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe” and Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble (CDE),  located at 1650 W. Foster Ave, in collaboration with Fat Theater Project will present Funny Like an Abortion March 10 - 30. Monday, March 10 at 7:30 p.m. will be the one preview performance with the press opening Tuesday, March 11, at 7:30 p.m. Written by Rachel Bublitz and directed by Eileen Tull, Funny, Like an Abortion, a Chicago premiere, takes place Fridays through Sundays at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are pay-what-you-can with a suggested donation of $30. NOTE: Doors will open at 7 p.m. for each performance as there will be a gallery exhibition that comments on the social aspects of the femme experience focusing on the rights of women and femmes that are now under attack.  A timeline of women’s history milestones will also be displayed. For additional information on participants and to purchase tickets visit DanzTheatre.org (https://www.danztheatre.org/funny-like-an-abortion.html).

(L to R): Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade” and Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

Set in a future America where even saying the word “abortion” is a crime, Monroe has just discovered that she is unexpectedly and unwantedly pregnant. She invites her best friend, Jade, over for a surprise abortion party in this darkly funny, devastatingly prescient play by Rachel Bublitz. Eileen Tull directs this searing Chicago premiere, co-produced by Chicago Danztheatre and Fat Theater Project.  

(L to R): Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade” and Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

The cast of Funny Like an Abortion includes Bianca Thompson (she/they, Monroe) and Saniafaith (she/her, Jade), Kit Kelly (they/them, Monroe - understudy) and Erin Feldmen (she/her, Jade - understudy). The production team includes Ellyzabeth Adler (she/her, CDE founder and producer), Eileen Tull (she/her, director and producer), Naomi Flores (she/they, CDE community engagement director), Gail Gallagher (she/her, sound designer), Joshua Paul Weckesser (he/him, lighting designer), Christine Marie (she/her, puppet designer), Taylor Owen (he/him, stage manager), Mary Moore (she/her, props designer), Shellie DiSalvo (they/she, assistant director) and Davon Suttles (they, them choreography)

ABOUT FAT THEATRE PROJECT

Founded in 2022 by Eileen Tull, Fat Theater Project seeks to tell stories by/about/for/with fat artists. Sometimes the company creates plays about living in a fat body. Sometimes they do plays that are about people with all bodies. Their work is imaginative, compassionate, and bold. Fat Theater Project strives to pay artists for their work while also keeping art accessible for audiences. 

Top: Saniafaith (she/her) as “Jade”

Bottom: Bianca Thompson (she/they) as “Monroe”

Photo by Anthony Robert La Penna Photography

ABOUT CHICAGO DANZTHEATRE ENSEMBLE 

Founded in 2001, Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble (CDE) is Chicago’s only multidisciplinary arts organization dedicated to social justice and socially conscious work that builds community through the arts “one voice, one story, one person at a time.” CDE’s mission is to engage, inspire, and challenge the community, both onstage and in the classroom, through innovative and collaborative multidisciplinary storytelling to illuminate aspects of social issues. We do this in the genre of Tanztheatre, "which unites all art media to achieve an all-embracing, radical change in humankind.” Through our school-based art and performance programs, CDE helps students in Chicago schools explore their own creativity, supporting their social and emotional learning. CDE provides a physical and emotional space where community conversation and cultural change can happen.

For our performance series, CDE is dedicated to creating performances that blend together dance, theatre and visual art to tell stories about the human condition. We give an artistic voice to those who are not always heard.

Dedicated since our founding to diverse casting of age, body type and ethnicity

Consistently listed as a “Top Theater and Dance Performance to See” 

by New City and Chicago Reader

Unique collaborations with the Veterans Art Museum, Poetry Center Chicago, Cantigny Museum, Neighborhood Writing Alliance, Voice of the City and numerous dance and theater companies

MacArthur Award Grantee for International Collaborations.  

Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble is supported by The Illinois Arts Council, a state agency; Bayless Family Foundation, The Saints Foundation,The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation; Innovation 80; Farny Wurlitzer Foundation; Mardi Gras Fund and the annual support of individual donors.

 

Casting Announced for Broken Nose Theatre's AFTER THE BLAST - May 13 – June 11, 2022

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 Broken Nose Theatre

Announces Casting for Chicago Premiere of

AFTER THE BLAST

Written by Zoe Kazan

Directed by Ensemble Member JD Caudill

May 13 – June 11, 2022 at The Den Theatre

 

PHOTO CREDIT: The cast of Broken Nose Theatre’s Chicago premiere of After The Blast includes (top, l to r) Kim Boler, Ruben Carrazana and Teresa Kuruvilla (bottom, l to r) Arielle Leverett, David W. Lipschutz and Ana Ortiz-Monasterio Draa.

Broken Nose Theatre, one of Chicago’s premier Pay-What-You-Can theatre companies, is pleased to announce casting for its Chicago premiere of Zoe Kazan’s smart and incisive sci-fi drama After The Blast, directed by ensemble member JD Caudill.

The cast includes ensemble members Kim Boler*, Teresa Kuruvilla* and Arielle Leverett* with Ruben Carrazana, David W. Lipschutz and Ana Ortiz-Monasterio Draa.

After The Blast, will play May 13 – June 11, 2022 at BNT’s resident home, The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets are currently available at brokennosetheatre.com and thedentheatre.com. Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre performances are “Pay-What-You-Can,” allowing patrons to set their own price. I'll be out for the press performance May 15th, so check back then for my full review. 

Generations after a global disaster has driven humankind into underground cities, partners Anna and Oliver are hoping to have a child – even though Anna's struggles with depression may prevent them from gaining the government approval needed to become parents. But when Oliver brings home a small robot – a new companion they name "Arthur" – their lives are changed forever. Zoe Kazan's smart and incisive play asks, "When the future seems bleak, how do we form bonds and build lives in the face of uncertainty?"

BNT Artistic Director E.M. Davis and Managing Director Rose Hamill comment, "Our ensemble immediately took to this story when we read it two years ago – but after everything we've all been through in that intervening time, what playwright Zoe Kazan has to say about isolation, connection through technology, climate change and pursuing parenthood in an uncertain future has only deepened our appreciation for this excellent play. Bringing puppetry to the BNT stage for the very first time to depict our protagonist's robotic companion, ensemble member JD Caudill and the fantastic production team will bring to life this story that begs the question, 'When outside circumstances have driven us underground and apart, how far will we go to maintain the well-being of our closest loved ones?’” 

The production team includes Therese Ritchie* (scenic design), Jessica Van Winkle (costume design), Cat Davis* (lighting design), Rae Delali (sound design), Andrew "AJ" Morley (props design), Jabberwocky Marionettes (puppet design), Jen Mickleson (intimacy consultant), Rose Hamill* (production manager), Evan Sposato (technical director), Adriana Rodriguez (stage manager) and Jacob Shaffer (assistant stage manager).

 

COVID guidelines: In the interest of keeping patrons and staff safe, and in accordance with the League of Chicago Theatres, The Den will continue to require proof of vaccination to attend any event for the indefinite future. While masking is no longer required, The Den strongly encourages patrons to continue wearing a mask when not eating or drinking. For the most current information on The Den’s COVID guidelines, visit thedentheatre.com/covid19-policy.

 

Cast (in alphabetical order): Kim Boler* (Anna), Ruben Carrazana (Oliver), Teresa Kuruvilla* (Carrie), Arielle Leverett* (Arthur, Sam), David W. Lipschutz (Patrick, Lowes) and Ana Ortiz-Monasterio Draa (Margarita).

 *Denotes Broken Nose Theatre ensemble members

Understudies: Taylor B. Hill, Julie Mitre, Christian Siebert, Faiz Siddique and Carlos Wagener-Sobrero.

 

Location: The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago

Dates: Previews: Friday, May 13 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, May 14 at 7:30 pm

Press Opening: Sunday, May 15 at 3 pm

Opening: Monday, May 16 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Thursday, May 19 – Saturday, June 11, 2011

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm

Industry night: Monday, May 30 at 7:30 pm

Understudy night: Wednesday, June 8 at 7:30 pm

Tickets: Pay-what-you-can. Tickets are currently available at brokennosetheatre.com and thedentheatre.com.

About the Artists

Zoe Kazan’s (Playwright) first full-length play, Absalom, was performed at the Actor’s Theatre of Louisville as a part of the 2009 Humana Festival, and is now available through Dramatists Play Service. Her second play, This Thing of Darkness, was commissioned by Manhattan Theatre Club. As an actress, Zoe has appeared on Broadway in A Behanding in Spokane, Come Back Little Sheba and The Seagull, which garnered her a Drama Desk Award nomination. Her Off-Broadway acting credits include Angels in America (parts 1 and 2); The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, starring Cynthia Nixon; Things We Want; and 100 Saints You Should Know (Drama Desk and Lucille Lortel nominations). Her film work includes Revolutionary Road; The Private Lives of Pippa Lee; Me and Orson Welles; It’s Complicated; HappyThankYouMorePlease; Meek’s Cutoff; and The Exploding Girl (Best Actress, Tribeca Film Festival). Zoe received a BA from Yale University.

JD Caudill (Director) is a queer director, literary manager and music director whose recent direction includes Southern Comfort (Pride Films and Plays); Bechdel Fests 4-6 + 8, Book of Shadows (Broken Nose Theatre), and other plays at The New Coordinates, Haven, The Runaways Lab Theatre, New American Folk Theatre, Hobo Junction, 20% Theatre, Paragon Theatre, Otherworld Theatre, Arc Theatre, 16th Street Theatre, Stage Left, The Syndicates and Red Theater. They are a proud ensemble member of Hell in a Handbag, where they have music directed countless shows, and literary manager at Broken Nose Theatre.

About Broken Nose Theatre

Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT was the 2018 recipient of the Emerging Theater Award, presented by the League of Chicago Theatres and Broadway in Chicago. The company has produced and developed 30 full-length plays (including 12 Chicago or world premieres) and over 60 new short plays through our annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit brokennosetheatre.com. 

 

PAY WHAT YOU CAN: WORLD PREMIERE OF STRANGE HEART BEATING VIA CLOUDGATE THEATRE AT THE FRONTIER JULY 9 – JULY 28, 2019

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CLOUDGATE THEATRE ANNOUNCES THE WORLD PREMIERE OF 

STRANGE HEART BEATING, 

JULY 9 – JULY 28 AT THE FRONTIER

A Dark Fantastical Look at the Rural Midwest and the Prejudices that Lie Beneath 

Written by Cloudgate Theatre Artistic Director and Kennedy Center’s 

Paula Vogel Playwriting Award Recipient Kristin Idaszak 

and Directed by Addie Gorlin

Cloudgate Theatre announces the world premiere of Strange Heart Beating, July 9 – July 27, at The Frontier, 1106 W. Thorndale. This mystery-inspired play is written by Cloudgate Artistic Director Kristin Idaszak and directed by Addie Gorlin. Previews are Tuesday, July 9, Thursday, July 11 and Friday, July 12 at 7:30 p.m. Press are invited to attend either of the following opening dates: Saturday, July 13 at 7:30 p.m. or Sunday, July 14 at 5 p.m. Performance times are Mondays and, Thursdays – Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 5 p.m. 

(L to R) Jyreika Guest (Teeny), Leah Raidt (Lena), Brandon Rodriguez (Ramon) 

and Stephanie Shum (Lake)

Ticket are “Pay What You Want” in advance; ticket prices range from $5 - $45. Cloudgate also offers an open door policy the day of performances that provides free tickets at the door, based on availability. Tickets are available at CloudgateTheatre.com.

A world premiere, Strange Heart Beating is a darkly fantastical look at the rural Midwest, the murky nature of justice, and the prejudices that lie just beneath the surface. Teeny and Lena grew up together in a rural midwestern town, dreaming of leaving for the big city. But now Teeny is the town sheriff and Lena is a newly single mother. When the body of Lena’s daughter is found near the lake outside of town, their friendship is stretched to the breaking point.  But Teeny’s investigation raises more questions than it answers: Have girls been going missing for years? Why are the loons acting so strange? What is the town hiding? Strange Heart Beating is a play about holding vigil, bearing witness, and unburying the truth.

The cast for A Strange Heart Beating includes: Jyreika Guest (Teeny), Leah Raidt (Lena), Brandon Rodriguez (Ramon) and Stephanie Shum (Lake).

The production team includes: Kristin Idaszak, playwright; Addie Gorlin, director; Elena Gonzalez Molina, assistant director; Tara Branham*, casting director; Tanuja Jagernauth*, dramaturg; Lila Gilbert*, production manager; Angela McIlvain, scenic designer; Anna Wooden*, costume designer; Kaili Story, lighting designer; Averi Paulsen, sound designer; Jay Epps, stage manager; Dominic DiGiovanni*, technical director; and Shane Kelly (producer). * Indicates Cloudgate Artistic Associate


ABOUT KRISTIN IDASZAK, playwright

Kristin Idaszak is a playwright, dramaturg, and Cloudgate’s artistic director. A two-time Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellow, Idaszak has received the Kennedy Center’s Paula Vogel Playwriting Award and the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award. Her play, Another Jungle, (Relentless Award Honorable Mention) received its world premiere with Cloudgate Theatre and The Syndicate in April 2018. She was the Shank Playwright in Residence at the Goodman Theatre and a member of the 2017-2018 Goodman Playwrights Unit. She has received commissions from EST/The Sloan Foundation, Cleveland Play House, and Shakespeare Festival St. Louis. Her work has been produced or developed by the Goodman Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, Pasadena Playhouse, Ensemble Studio Theatre, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Renaissance Theaterworks, The Drama League, and WildClaw, among others. Idaszak is also a resident playwright at Chicago Dramatists and adjunct faculty at The Theatre School at DePaul University. Previously, Idaszak served as associate artistic director/literary manager of Caffeine Theatre and associate artistic director of Collaboraction. 

ABOUT ADDIE GORLIN, director

Addie Gorlin hails from Minneapolis and is a director, educator and aspiring artistic director invested in the regional theater movement. Her most recent directing credits include Next to Normal (Brown University undergrad mainstage), Good Person of Szechwan, Eurydice, Twelfth Night, and Streetcar Named Desire (Brown/Trinity), Charm and According to Coyote (Mixed Blood Theatre), Laramie Project (Children’s Theater), I and You (Phoenix Theater), and Five Tries (Cutting Ball Theatre). Gorlin has developed new work at The Playwrights Center, The Lark, Mixed Blood, Riverside Theater, Ivoryton Playhouse, Brown University, and has served as assistant director at The Guthrie, The Public, and Trinity Rep among various others. Fellowships include Artistic Management and Directing at the Cutting Ball Theater and the National New Play Network (NNPN) Producer-in-Residence grant through which she apprenticed in artistic direction at Mixed Blood Theatre. While not in school and freelance directing, Gorlin stays actively engaged in civic theater practice, is a member of the NNPN's Affiliated Artist Council and strategic planning committee and continues to teach: she holds a credential as a 6-12th grade English and Drama teacher which she obtained via Teach for America. B.A. Dartmouth College. M.F.A. candidate Brown/Trinity 2019.

ABOUT CLOUDGATE THEATRE
Cloudgate Theatre produces fiercely theatrical new plays from a queer feminist lens. Prioritizing sustainability and harm reduction, Cloudgate focuses on human-centered artistic practices. It believes that caring for and listening to the artists they work with engenders vibrant, dynamic experiences for its audiences. With each production, the company starts by asking how best to serve the needs of its collaborators and to take its audience on a uniquely theatrical journey.

Cloudgate Theatre creates theatre and performance that challenge the norms of American theatre through intersectional queer feminist narratives. It believes that the theatre is the place to imagine a more liveable world, and work to make it real. The company seeks to create theatrical experiences that foster community, question authority, and offer meaning.

3 Nights Only: Pay What You Can Tickets for Broken Nose Theatre's Bechdel Fest 6

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

 

Three Performances Only!

Broken Nose Theatre Announces Line-Up for

BECHDEL FEST 6: REVOLUTION

July 29, 30 & 31, 2018 

at Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre

Parts of Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series

I'll definitely be out to see BECHDEL FEST 6: REVOLUTION. Here at ChiIL Live Shows we're all about works of film and theatre that pass the "Bechdel Test" and can't wait to see Broken Nose Theatre's annual festival of new short plays. With pay what you can ticket prices, nobody's excluded for a thin wallet or empty bank account. Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre is one of our favorite new venues and an excellent place to catch a show. Don't miss this!

Broken Nose Theatre, recipient of the 2018 Broadway In Chicago Emerging Theatre Award, is pleased to announce the full line-up for BECHDEL FEST 6: REVOLUTION, the company’s annual festival of new short plays featuring an ensemble of female-identifying and non-binary actors talking about things other than men. Presented as part of Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series, BECHDEL FEST will play three performances only July 29, 30 & 31, 2018 at Steppenwolf’s 1700 Theatre, 1700 N. Halsted St. in Chicago. Tickets for all BNT productions are available on a “pay-what-you-can” basis, allowing patrons to set their own price and ensuring theatre remains economically accessible for all audiences. Suggested price is $25. Tickets are currently available at www.steppenwolf.org or by calling (312) 335-1650.

All the works in BNT’s perennial feminist festival are inspired by the famous Bechdel-Wallace Test. Created by cartoonist Alison Bechdel, the test asks whether a work of entertainment features at least two women in conversation about something other than a man. Since the fest's first iteration in 2013, Broken Nose has worked with some of the most exciting voices in the Chicago theater landscape on over 40 stories that, by design, do not revolve around men. This year's lineup includes both female-identifying and non-binary characters.



The full line-up for BECHDEL FEST 6: REVOLUTION includes: 

EVERY OTHER TUESDAY
Written by Elise Marie Davis* | Directed by Spenser Davis*

A suburban book club is on track to reserve a booth at their neighborhood's annual Community Cookout –until the cookout sponsors realize the book club focuses exclusively on lesbian erotica.

FOR THE CULTURE
Written by Michael Allen Harris+ | Directed by Martin Hanna*

The Society - a secret spy organization founded, funded, organized, and run by black women - is about to send their most skilled agent on a brand new mission: a covert infiltration with the potential to change the world.

GOLDSTAR
Written by Cleo Shine | Directed by JD Caudill^

A shy highschooler decides to reveal her true self to her girlfriend, even if it risks changing everything.

HOLY INAPPROPRIATE
Written by Allison L. Fradkin | Directed by Kim Boler^

A devout mother and her three daughters seem perfectly comfortable within the confines of the restrictive "Christian Patriarchy Movement."  That is, until sex education gets unexpectedly added to their home-schooled curriculum.

NO, JENNIFER
Written by Nancy Garcia Loza | Directed by Laura Baker

Two Mexican-American friends struggle with the ups and downs of seeking help, dealing with trauma – and setting boundaries with their hard-to-ignore families.

OCCUPY GAMBIER
Written by Beth Hyland | Directed by Brian Balcom

As the "Occupy Wallstreet" protests rage on the East Coast in 2011, several college students strive to be part of the movement... on their tiny liberal arts campus in Gambier, Ohio.

PORCH PROBLEMS
Written by Kristi Parker-Barnhart | Directed by Julia Skeggs

Two neighbors. One shared back porch. This means war.

PROM REBEL
Written by Loy Webb | Directed by Deanna Reed Foster

On the eve of her high school prom, a young woman decides to break the rules in her own special way.

TAKING A (ONE-NIGHT) STAND
Written by Benjamin Brownson* | Directed by Adrienne Matzen

Two strangers find their night of casual fun unexpectedly lengthened when a neighborhood riot erupts around them.

* BNT Company member       ^ BNT Artistic associate           + BNT Resident Playwright



About Broken Nose Theatre:

Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT has produced and developed 11 full-length plays (including 8 Chicago or World Premieres) and over 40 new womencentric short plays through our annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit www.brokennosetheatre.com.

About Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series:

LookOut is Steppenwolf’s performance series that presents the work of artists and companies across genre and form, emerging artists and performance legends, quintessential Chicago companies and young aspiring ensembles, familiar Steppenwolf faces and new friends. steppenwolf.org/lookout

OPENING: THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION Via Broken Nose Theatre at The Den Theatre June 1 – 30, 2018

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

 Broken Nose Theatre Presents

THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION

A New Play by Sam Chanse

Directed by Company Member Jen Poulin

June 1 – 30, 2018 at The Den Theatre

Broken Nose Theatre, recipient of the 2018 Broadway In Chicago Emerging Theatre Award, is pleased to continue its 2018 Season with Sam Chanse’s contemplative new drama THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION, directed by company member Jen Poulin*, playing June 1 – 30, 2018 at The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. 

ChiIL Live Shows will be ChiILin' at Chi, IL's Den Theatre on June 4, for Broken Nose Theatre's press opening of THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION. Check back soon for my full review. 

Tickets are currently available at brokennosetheatre.com. Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre productions are available on a “pay-what-you-can” basis, allowing patrons to set their own price and ensuring theatre remains economically accessible for all audiences. 

THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION will feature company member Echaka Agba* and artistic associate Aria Szalai-Raymond+ with Richard Costes.

While taking refuge from a social media firestorm on a last-minute camping trip, Mel and Arjun encounter Georgia, a solitary young woman studying the impact of climate change on the imperiled Joshua Tree. At the crossroads of creation and obliteration, lovers and strangers in the Mojave Desert explore what it means to survive in a relationship – and a world – on the brink of extinction.

“We are living in turbulent and uncertain times, not only as a country but on a global scale, and even as individuals,” comments Artistic Director Benjamin Brownson. “When the whole world seems ready to burn, how do you connect with strangers, lovers and your fellow human beings? In a time when we have a President tweeting nuclear threats and teenagers building mass movements via Facebook, will social media destroy the planet or save us all? How do we stay focused on love, family and the ties that bind us to one another when our success, our security, our very survival as a species is under threat by a whole host of forces seemingly out of our control? Opportunities of Extinction explores these and other questions without offering any easy answers, and we couldn't be more pleased with the stellar cast and team who will be bringing this world premiere production to life.”

The production team for THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION includes: Devon Green+ (scenic and props design), Martin Hanna* (costume design), Cat Davis (lighting design), Eric Backus (original music and sound design), Therese Ritchie (asst. scenic and props design), David Weiss* (dramaturg), Rose Hamill* (production manager) and Jackie Marschke (stage manager).

* Denotes BNT company member
+ Denotes BNT artistic associate

Location: The Den Theatre (2A), 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago
Dates: Previews: Friday, June 1 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, June 2 at 7:30 pm
Opening: Sunday, June 3 at 3 pm

Regular Run: Thursday, June 7 – Saturday, June 30, 2018
Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Industry Night: Monday, June 11 at 7:30 pm
Understudy Night: Wednesday, June 20 at 7:30 pm
Tickets: Pay-what-you-can. Tickets are currently available at brokennosetheatre.com. 

About the Artists

Sam Chanse’s (Playwright) plays include The Opportunities of Extinction, The Other Instinct, Fruiting Bodies and Lydia’s Funeral Video. A former Sundance/Ucross Playwright Fellow, MacDowell Fellow, Playwrights Realm Writing Fellow and Rita Goldberg Playwrights’ Workshop Fellow at The Lark, she has also received residencies from Djerassi, Tofte Lake Center and SPACE at Ryder Farm. Her work has been recognized by The Kilroys, and commissions include Ensemble Studio Theatre/Sloan, Ma-Yi/the Flea, Second Generation, Leviathan Lab and the San Francisco Arts Commission. Her first solo play, Lydia’s Funeral Video, is published by Kaya Press. She is a resident playwright at New Dramatists, and a member of the Ma-Yi Writers Lab and Ars Nova’s Play Group. www.samchanse.com. 

Jen Poulin (Director) is a director and dramaturg based in Chicago. She serves as Development Director for Broken Nose Theatre, and artistic associate at No Stakes Theater Project. Recent directing credits include Gidion’s Knot (Habakkuk Theatre), Faith in a Fallen World, Above the Ceiling, (readings, Chicago Dramatists), What of the Night? (AD, Stage Left Theatre), The You You Hear, Yet To Be (Bechdel Fest, Broken Nose Theatre) and Fragile Filigree Love (The Future is Female festival). Jen has worn many hats since receiving her Theatre Studies BFA from University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign: educator, box-office assistant, blood mopper, script mistress, producer and performer.



About Broken Nose Theatre

Broken Nose Theatre is a Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT has produced and developed 11 full-length plays (including 8 Chicago or World Premieres) and over 40 new womencentric short plays through our annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. For more information, please visit brokennosetheatre.com.

SEASON ANNOUNCED: Exciting Things are Afoot For Broken Nose Theatre

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Broken Nose Theatre Announces 

Full 2018 Line-Up:

World Premiere!

KINGDOM

By Resident Playwright Michael Allen Harris

Directed by Kanome Jones

World Premiere!

THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION

By Sam Chanse

Directed by Company Member Jen Poulin

BECHDEL FEST 6

BNT’s Perennial Feminist Play Festival

World Premiere!

PLAINCLOTHES 

Written and Directed by Company Member Spenser Davis

New Residency at The Den Theatre

Broken Nose Theatre is pleased to announce a full line-up for 2018, featuring three world premiere productions for the Chicago stage – to be presented at its new resident home, The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. 

This spring, BNT presents the kitchen-sink comedy KINGDOM by resident playwright Michael Allen Harris, directed by Kanome Jones. The new play about an all-LGBTQ African American family in Orlando will feature BNT company member Johnard Washington and artistic associates Watson Swift and RjW Mays, and was originally developed through BNT’s The Paper Trail initiative.

Next summer, BNT presents the world premiere of Sam Chanse’s contemplative drama THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION, directed by company member Jen Poulin. The new play about exploring life and love in the face of the inevitable will feature BNT company member Echaka Agba and artistic associate Aria Szalai-Raymond.

Summer 2018 will also include BECHDEL FEST 6, BNT’s annual feminist festival, featuring a full slate of new short plays with all female-identifying casts. Playwrights, directors and casting will be announced in 2018.

Broken Nose closes the calendar year with the world premiere dark comedy PLAINCLOTHES, developed with much of the team behind BNT’s runaway 2017 hit At The Table. Written and directed by company member Spenser Davis, who helmed At The Table, the play examines biases and blind spots through the lens of a loss prevention team. PLAINCLOTHES will feature company members Echaka Agba, Elise Spoerlein, Johnard Washington and David Weiss – all of whom appeared in At The Table – along with company member Martin Hanna and artistic associates RjW Mays, Kim Boler, Adam Soule and Rob Koon, and will be developed by BNT and the ensemble.

In 2018, BNT will also provide institutional support to two outside playwrights through The Paper Trail – its new play development program. Next year’s plays include PEG by Liam Fitzgerald, about a couple who negotiate their kinks in anticipation of an impending shipment of sex toys; and EXPOSURE by Cynthia Hines, in which a former army photographer combats the ghosts of war that followed her home to the South Side of Chicago.

As it enters its sixth season, Broken Nose recently welcomed 13 new artists to its ranks. New company members include Echaka Agba, Rose Hamill, Martin Hanna and Johnard Washington and new artistic associates include Kim Boler, JD Caudill, Devon Green, Ada Grey, Rob Koon, RjW Mays, Adam Soule and Watson Swift.

“It’s been an exciting year for Broken Nose, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to spend the next one continuing to develop and produce timely new work, and to be able to work with so many talented BNT artists and collaborators. These world premieres range from Florida’s tourist capital to the desolation of the Mojave desert to downtown Chicago, yet despite their geography they remind us, sometimes warmly, sometimes starkly, of the things that matter most: love, human connection and survival.”

Tickets for all Broken Nose Theatre productions are available on a “pay-what-you-can” basis, allowing patrons to set their own price and ensuring theatre remains economically accessible for all audiences. Tickets for all productions will go on sale at a later date. For additional information, visit brokennosetheatre.com. 

Broken Nose Theatre’s Full 2018 Line-Up Includes:

March 2 – March 31, 2018 
KINGDOM – World Premiere!
By BNT resident playwright Michael Allen Harris
Directed by Kanome Jones
Featuring BNT company member Johnard Washington and artistic associates Watson Swift and RjW Mays.

When the state of Florida legalizes same sex marriage, Arthur and Henry (his partner of fifty years) come to terms with their differing opinions on the necessity of becoming husbands, even as their son Alexander finds himself wading through some rough new waters of his own. KINGDOM is the story of an entirely-LGBTQ African American family that lives in the near-literal shadow of Orlando’s magical kingdom, as they struggle to create a life together that captures a little bit of that same magic.

KINGDOM was developed in conjunction with The Paper Trail, BNT’s new play development program.

June 2 – June 30, 2018
THE OPPORTUNITIES OF EXTINCTION
By Sam Chanse
Directed by BNT company member Jen Poulin
Featuring BNT company member Echaka Agba and artistic associate Aria Szalai-Raymond.

A couple flees to the Mojave Desert in the wake of a social media firestorm. A young woman obsessively studies the oncoming impact of climate change. As the world heats up, tensions rise and the political becomes indistinguishable from the environmental, these three find one another in the shadow of the endangered Joshua tree, wondering how long they have before everything falls apart. 

Summer 2018
BECHDEL FEST 6

BNT’s perennial favorite feminist festival returns! As with the last five iterations, BECHDEL FEST 6 will feature an all female-identifying cast performing new short plays written and directed by some of our favorite artists, and all passing the famous Bechdel Test. Created by cartoonist Alison Bechdel, the Bechdel Test asks whether a work of entertainment features at least two women in conversation about something other than a man. Playwrights, directors and casting to be announced in 2018.

October  20 – November 17, 2018
PLAINCLOTHES – World Premiere!
Written and directed by BNT company member Spenser Davis
Featuring BNT company members Echaka Agba, Elise Spoerlein, Martin Hanna, Johnard Washington and David Weiss and artistic associates RjW Mays, Kim Boler, Adam Soule and Rob Koon.

After an incident with a shoplifter ends with half their team either fired or in the hospital, the loss prevention department of a downtown Chicago retail store comes under harsh investigation from corporate. Their manager’s suggestion: “Start catching more white people. At least until they stop looking at the numbers.” When a group of supposed Good Guys have a blind spot that lands them on the chopping block, who holds themselves accountable and who decides to give the higher-ups a taste of the trenches? In the style of BNT’s 2017 hit At The Table, PLAINCLOTHES will be developed alongside its pre-cast ensemble.

Additional casting for the season will be announced at a later date.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Broken Nose Theatre’s 2018 playwrights and directors (left to right) Kanome Jones, Michael Allen Harris, Jen Poulin, Sam Chanse and Spenser Davis.

About the Artists
Michael Allen Harris (Playwright, Kingdom) As a writer, Michael has collaborated with Chicago Theatre companies such as Broken Nose Theatre, Jackalope Theatre, Arc Theatre, Stage 773, Fine Print Theatre, Chicago Home Theater Festival and The New Colony. His play Rocky Road received its world premiere at the New Studio Theatre of Columbia College Chicago and was directed by Chicago actor/playwright/director Tom Mula. It was the first production featured in the Main Stage season that was authored by an alumnus. His play The Velvet Tabernacle was featured in a development series on behalf of Fine Print Theatre. One of his most recent plays, Kingdom, was nourished in a season-long development on behalf of Broken Nose Theatre, and received a staged reading at the Richard Christiansen theatre space of Victory Gardens in June 2016. In the fall of 2017, his play Punk receive its world premiere on behalf of The New Colony, where he recently became an ensemble member. In December of 2016, Michael became the first Resident Playwright of Broken Nose Theatre. His other plays include Ascension. Short plays include: The Woman Who Stared into The Eyes of the Red Horseman, House of Samurai, They Let Him Bleed, Project Agatha (a collaboration project based on Regina Taylor’s play Stop. Reset.) and Bind. As an actor, he has worked with numerous Chicago theaters such as Adventure Stage, Eclipse Theatre, Gift Theatre, Teatro Vista, The-Massive, Stone Soup Theatre Project, Infusion Theatre, Broken Nose Theatre and Cold Basement Dramatics. He is an artistic ensemble member of Eclipse Theatre Company. Michael is currently pursuing his MFA in Dramatic Writing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Kanome Jones (Director, Kingdom) has been performing and working in Chicago for over five years. She works with several theater companies here in the city, wearing different hats for each one. She is the Casting Director for Strawdog Theatre Company and the Associate Producer for Midsommer Flight. She also works with Stage Left Theatre and Waltzing Mechanics as an ensemble member. In the past, Kanomé has worked with Broken Nose Theatre as a performer in their first Bechdel Fest and as a director in their second iteration. She has also directed an installment of EL Stories with the Waltzing Mechanics.  Other recent performance credits include Building the Wall and The Firestorm (Stage Left Theatre), understudy in The Book Club Play (16th Street Theatre) Twelfth Night (Midsommer Flight) and Titus Andronicus (Babes with Blades Theatre Company). She is proud alumni of the Professional Training Company at Actors Theatre of Louisville and BFA graduate of Missouri State University. 

Sam Chanse’s (Playwright, The Opportunities of Extinction) plays include The Opportunities of Extinction, The Other Instinct, Fruiting Bodies and Lydia’s Funeral Video. A former
Sundance/Ucross Playwright Fellow, MacDowell Fellow, Playwrights Realm Writing Fellow and Rita Goldberg Playwrights’ Workshop Fellow at The Lark, she has also received residencies from Djerassi, Tofte Lake Center and SPACE at Ryder Farm. Her work has been recognized by The Kilroys, and commissions include Ensemble Studio Theatre/Sloan, Ma-Yi/the Flea, Second Generation, Leviathan Lab and the San Francisco Arts Commission. Her first solo play, Lydia’s Funeral Video, is published by Kaya Press. She is a resident playwright at New Dramatists, and a member of the Ma-Yi Writers Lab and Ars Nova’s Play Group. www.samchanse.com. 

Jen Poulin (Director, The Opportunities of Extinction) is a Chicago based director and dramaturg, whose recent projects include The River Bride with Halcyon (dramaturg) and What of the Night? with Stage Left and Cor Theatre (assistant director). She previously served as Interim Grants Manager and Artistic Programs Apprentice at American Theater Company and Associate Artistic Director of BackStage Theatre Company. She has worn many hats since earning her Theatre Studies BFA from University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign: educator, box office assistant, blood mopper, script mistress, stage and production manager, producer and performer. But her heart belongs to directing, especially new work. As a play reader, she’s worked with Stage Left Theatre, Artemisia Theatre and Kitchen Dog Theater. Her stage management and directing credits span many fine Chicago companies, including Adventure Stage Chicago, Strawdog Theatre Company, Steep Theatre Company, Mary Arrchie Theatre Company and WildClaw Theatre. She is also an Artistic Associate with No Stakes Theater Project.

Spenser Davis (Director/Playwright, Plainclothes) is a company member of Broken Nose Theatre, where he has directed From White Plains, A Phase, Bechdel Fest and At The Table, for which he received the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Director – Play. It won three other Jeff Awards including Best Production, and was given a twice-extended summer remount. Other directing credits include Bachelorette at Level 11; FitzFest and Kafkapalooza at First Floor; numerous editions of the One Minute Play Festival; the forthcoming Lametown at The Factory Theater; as well as work with Strawdog, Otherworld, Mary-Arrchie and Pride Films and Plays. Assistant directing credits include Pilgrim’s Progress and 3C at A Red Orchid, as well as Divine Sister at Hell in a Handbag. As a playwright, he was a finalist for the Actor Theater of Louisville’s Heideman Award, and his first full-length play Merge, about the rise and fall of the video game company Atari, closed The New Colony’s eighth season. He is also an ensemble member of The Factory Theater and has worked around town as an actor. Plainclothes is his second play.


BROKEN NOSE THEATRE is Chicago’s premiere Pay-What-You-Can theatre company. Founded in 2012, BNT has produced and developed 10 full length plays (including 7 Chicago or World Premieres) and over 40 new womencentric short plays through our annual Bechdel Fest. We strive to spark conversation, cultivate empathy, and amplify underrepresented voices, and are committed to making new, exciting and relevant theatre that is economically accessible to all audiences. 
For more information, please visit brokennosetheatre.com.