Network Events
Wipeout at B Street Theatre
Wipeout
By Aurora Real De Asua
March 20, 2024 – April 7, 2024
Three retired best friends. One hotrod surf instructor. The currents of the Pacific Ocean. What could possibly go wrong? Set on surfboards in Santa Cruz, Wipeout is a poignant comedy about friendship and the unpredictable tides of life.
Funny, Like An Abortion at Cleveland Public Theatre
Funny, Like An Abortion
By Rachel Bublitz
March 20, 2024 – April 7, 2024
Set in a future America where even saying the word “abortion” is a crime, this play is about loyalty, friendship, and value of freedom.
Kairos at East West Players
Kairos
By Lisa Sanaye Dring
April 4 – 28, 2024
Kairos is the story of two people falling in love during a tectonic shift in society. Their nascent relationship is tested by the advent of Prometheus, a procedure that grants immortality to a select few. What happens to commitment, meaning and care when linear time breaks open? At once both a dystopian science-fiction play and a dark-comedy love story, Kairos is a deeply sensitive investigation of two humans whose ideal “happily-ever-after” is terrifyingly outpaced by relentless technological and societal upheaval.
Backwards Forwards Back at Centenary Stage Company
Backwards Forwards Back
By Jacqueline Goldfinger
April 4 – 14, 2024
War changes a person forever. When a soldier returns from Afghanistan carrying the ghosts of their tour, they face the decision to seek help for their PTSD. This electric, one-person play explores the transformative power of virtual reality therapy and the journey toward healing and finding strength in vulnerability.
The Last Yiddish Speaker at InterAct Theatre Company
The Last Yiddish Speaker
By Deborah Zoe Laufer
March 29, 2024 – April 21, 2024
In the years following a successful January 6th insurrection, a white supremacist regime has come into power. Paul and his teenage daughter, Sarah, live under the radar in a small town upstate as Christian-passing, despite being Jews who fled New York City. When an ancient Yiddish-speaking woman arrives on their doorstep, Paul and Sarah are forced to decide between fleeing again or fighting for their faith, their heritage and their identity.
Backwards Forwards Back at Unicorn Theatre
Backwards Forwards Back
By Jacqueline Goldfinger
March 20, 2024 – April 7, 2024
War changes a person forever. When a soldier returns from Afghanistan carrying the ghosts of their tour, they face the decision to seek help for their PTSD. This electric, one-person play explores the transformative power of virtual reality therapy and the journey toward healing and finding strength in vulnerability.
Wipeout at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble
Wipeout
By Aurora Real de Asua
February 29, 2024 - March 30, 2024
Now Extended Thru April 14, 2024!
Three retired best friends. One hotrod surf instructor. The currents of the Pacific Ocean. What could possibly go wrong? Set on surfboards, Wipeout is a poignant comedy about friendship, grief, and the unpredictable tides of life.
Wipeout tells the story of three women staring down the mouth of 70, friends for decades, who throw themselves into their first-ever surfing lesson with the help of a young instructor. As the women learn how to paddle and navigate the currents of the Pacific Ocean, they also learn how to navigate their friendships, their fears, and just how hard it can be to let it all go.
Kairos at Know Theatre
Kairos
By Lisa Sanaye Dring
at Know Theatre of Cincinnati
February 16, 2024 - March 3, 2024
Their story starts as a meet-cute rom-com … and then the whole world changes.
Gina and David’s budding relationship is tested by the advent of a groundbreaking medical procedure that extends lives indefinitely, granting immortality to a chosen few.
As they navigate the initial rush of falling in love, they must also grapple with the question: what happens to love, commitment, and care when mortality is removed from the equation?
This riveting world premiere from Lisa Sanaye Dring (director of 2020’s Alabaster), directed by Rebecca Wear (Mongrel, 2022), is a deeply sensitive investigation of two humans and the idea of “happily-ever-after.”
RIFT, or White Lies at Luna Stage
RIFT, or White Lies
By Gabriel Jason Dean
at Luna Stage
February 8, 2024 - March 3, 2024
Two brothers--one a progressive novelist, the other a convicted murderer and high-ranking member of a white supremacist prison gang–are united through their traumatic childhood. Now adults, these men navigate the edges of their brotherly bond. Are they truly so different? Is it possible to love someone whose beliefs you hate? RIFT is a story of estrangement, ideological divide, and the fight to change our world.
The Messenger at Palm Beach Dramaworks
The Messenger
Written by Jenny Connell Davis
at Palm Beach Dramaworks
December 8, 2023 - December 24, 2023
A meditation on the connections between past, present, and future, and on the choice between speaking up and speaking out regardless of the consequences or remaining silent for the sake of self-preservation. Inspired by the life of Hungarian Holocaust survivor Georgia Gabor, the play interweaves her story with that of a young American woman facing racial discrimination in this country in 2020.
The Berlin Diaries at Theatre Lab
The Berlin Diaries
Written by Andrea Stolowitz
at Theatre Lab
November 18, 2023 - December 10, 2023
The great-grandfather of Oregon Book Award-winning playwright Andrea Stolowitz kept a journal for his descendants after escaping to New York City in 1939 as a German Jew. Following the complicated lure of genealogy, Stolowitz goes back to Berlin to bring the story of her unknown ancestors out of the archives into the light. The record keeps as many secrets as it shares; how do people become verschollen, lost, like library books?
After joining us with this play for the 2018 Playwright’s Forum, award-winning playwright, Andrea Stolowitz returns to The Lab for a full production! In this complex, contemporary drama about the search for home, fragmented heritage and Jewish diaspora, two performers scintillate between characters and locations at the border of reality and memory and the intersection of national history and private lives.
Snow Fever at B Street Theatre
Snow Fever
Written by Robert Caisley
at B Street Theatre
November 15, 2023 - December 24, 2023
They’re running low on food, the toilet’s busted, and the jukebox is on the fritz. But come hell or high snowfall, a small band of co-workers and malcontents are determined to make this Christmas at The Wet Whistle (a backwater Montana bar) nothing like the last. Will everything work out? Will everything fall apart? Only determination and karaoke can save this holiday party!
Funny, Like an Abortion at Mile Square Theatre
Funny, Like an Abortion
Written by Rachel Bublitz
at Mile Square Theatre
October 18, 2023 - November 12, 2023
Monroe finds herself knocked up, and since abortions are illegal in the United States, she throws a surprise abortion party with her best friend Jade. Monroe prepares over twenty at home abortion options for them to sort through, neither will walk away until they select the best of all of these terrible options. But that’s not all! Come on down for juggling, a tap-dancing number, and a horrific view at what our future may hold. A comedic two-hander in one scene.
Welcome to Matteson! at New Jersey Repertory Company
WELCOME TO MATTESON!
written by Inda Craig-Galván
directed by Dawn Monique Williams
A suburban couple hosts a welcome-to-the-neighborhood dinner party for their new neighbors — a couple recently relocated from Cabrini Green, Chicago's roughest housing project — and it's anything but welcoming. A dark comedy about reverse gentrification and how we deal with the "other" when the other looks just like us. Written by Inda Craig-Galván and directed by Dawn Monique Williams.
Welcome to Matteson! at Congo Square Theatre
WELCOME TO MATTESON!
Written by Inda Craig-Galván
Directed by Congo Square Theatre Artistic Director Ericka Ratcliff
Congo Square Theatre
A dark comedy by Inda Craig-Galván, WELCOME TO MATTESON! follows two Black couples over the course of a dinner party; one couple has lived in the Chicago suburb of Matteson for years, the other has just moved in after being forcibly relocated from the Cabrini-Green housing projects. A uniquely Chicago story, the play explores universal themes of gentrification, housing justice, and inter-class relationships.
AMERICAN FAST at InterAct Theatre
American Fast
by Kareem Fahmy
at InterAct Theatre
June 2-25, 2023
Directed by Seth Rozin with Zaina Dana
A college basketball sensation is set to compete on the biggest stage, the women’s college basketball tournament. But this year’s competition coincides directly with Ramadan, and the brash and ambitious star player must reconcile her competitive fire with her family’s faith. What does it mean to be Muslim in an increasingly secular America?
AMERICAN FAST at City Theatre
American Fast
by Kareem Fahmy
at City Theatre
April 29 - May 21, 2023
College basketball superstar Khady is about to carry her team through the NCAA Women’s Championships, but when March Madness coincides with Ramadan, Khady lies to her devout mother about holding her fast. When her mother goes public with the story of Khady’s devotion to both Ramadan and basketball, Khady finds herself the heroine of young Muslim women. Kareem Fahmy’s world premiere production questions family, faith, and what it means to win at all costs.
CAN I TOUCH IT? at Cleveland Public Theatre
can i touch it?
Written by Francisca Da Silveira
Directed by India Nicole Burton
at Cleveland Public Theatre
April 20, 2023 - May 13, 2023
Shay Solomon’s got a lot going on between trying to find funding for her daughter to go to college, trying not to fire an opinionated rogue employee who happens to be her niece, and dealing with the white banker who’s trying to touch her hair—that is, her Black beauty supply store which is on the brink of foreclosure in the midst of ongoing neighborhood gentrification.
can i touch it? takes an often-humorous look at the politics of the Black hair care industry while prompting a dialogue about the inequities that entrepreneurs face within a community on the verge of forced change.
REFUGE at Theatre Lab
Refuge
co-created by Satya Jnani Chávez & Andrew Rosendorf, Translations by Mari Meza-Burgos
at Theatre Lab
Previews: April 6 & 7, 2023
Run: April 8-23, 2023
Original music, artistic puppetry, and magical realism allow this bilingual tale to tackle the immigration crisis through a beautiful, unique lens. Chronicling the harrowing journey of one young Honduran girl as she crosses the US border into the inhospitable, barren land of Texas, Refuge is an exploration of empathy and of America – who we are and who we say we are.
EDEN PRAIRIE, 1971 at Butterfly Effect Theatre of Colorado
Eden Prairie, 1971
by Mat Smart
Butterfly Effect Theatre of Colorado
April 6-29 at the Dairy Arts Center
Opening Night: Saturday, April 8
In Mat Smart’s Eden Prairie, 1971, two young people reconnect on the historic night of the Apollo 15 moon landing, in spite of a world that conspires to keep them apart. When a young draft dodger steals back home to Minnesota to deliver an unusual message to a former high school classmate, both discover more about who they are and what they believe. Join BETC for this love story set in the heart of America.
BACKWARDS FORWARDS BACK at Urbanite Theatre
Backwards Forwards Back
by Jacqueline Goldfinger
Directed by Brendan Ragan
March 24 - April 23, 2023
When a soldier returns from war carrying the ghosts of his tour, he’s faced with a sobering decision: address his alarming PTSD with Virtual Reality therapy, or risk losing access to his family forever. Can this new technology re-calibrate the brains and bodies of wounded soldiers?
This electric, vivid, one-man drama studies the power of healing and finding strength in vulnerability.
REFUGE at Unicorn Theatre Company
Co-created by Satya Jnani Chavez and Andrew Rosendorf
Translation by Marialuisa Burgos
With an original score and dynamic puppetry, this bilingual production follows a teenage migrant’s journey across the difficult and mystical desert on their quest to find a new life in America.
MAN AND MOON at Oregon Contemporary Theater
by SIENA MARILYN LEDGER
Aaron is a transitioning man, and Luna is a 12-year-old girl with a deep passion for outer space. Together in the lobby of an oncology unit, they learn how to wait as they navigate their changing bodies and circumstances within the expanse. This tale of unlikely friendship proves that the universe can offer beauty and meaning in the smallest of interactions.
"I would highly recommend Man and Moon to any discerning theatre lover who is looking for a play they can discuss and ponder afterwards." —UTBA
AMERICAN FAST at Artists Repertory Theatre
January 3 - January 29, 2023
Portland Center Stage: Ellyn Bye Studio
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by Kareem Fahmy
directed by Chip Miller
An ART commission and launch of the Rolling World Premiere, American Fast centers on a top-ranked college basketball star leading her team into the Final Four. Khady Salama, a 21-year-old college basketball sensation, is set to compete in March Madness, which this year falls during Ramadan. Her religious mother expects her to fast—even on game days. As the tournament unfolds, Khady becomes a role model for young Muslim women everywhere, except she’s lying about fasting. Winning at all costs will force Khady to grapple with her faith and confront some uncomfortable truths about who she’s meant to be.
MAN AND MOON at 16th Street Theater
by Siena Marilyn Ledger
Aaron, a transitioning man, meets Luna, a twelve-year-old girl with a deep passion for outer space, in the waiting room of a hospital’s Oncology Unit. Together they learn how to wait, navigating each their own changing bodies and lives as they fit within the context of space and time.
Man And Moon is co-produced by 16th Street Theater NFP and Dragonfly Theatre Company as part of a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere. Other Partner Theaters are Good Company Theatre (Utah) and Oregon Contemporary Theatre (Oregon).
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EDEN PRAIRIE: 1971 at New Jersey Repertory Company
Written by Mat Smart
Directed by Evan Bergman
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As war churns in Vietnam, night falls over the tranquil hills and creeks of a small Midwestern town, and a young woman hears a tap at her window. On the same night Apollo 15 makes its lunar landing, a young draft-dodger steals home to Eden Prairie, after a 300-mile trek from Canada. He risks arrest to deliver an important message to his childhood friend, Rachel. Both are caught between duty to the ones they love and their own futures. In a moment of national tension that mirrors our own, the young man must defend his choices and grapple with the sacrifices he has made. Mat Smart's stark, passionate drama skillfully questions our notions of bravery and responsibility. Due to the adult nature of the play no one under 16 will be admitted.
THE MAGNOLIA BALLET - PART 1 at Williamston Theatre
The Magnolia Ballet - Part 1 by Terry Guest at Williamston Theatre
A National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere
A co-production with Plowshares Theatre in Detroit
Ezekiel is a Black teenager with a secret. Every day he finds himself haunted by ghosts, ghosts that have plagued men in Georgia for generations, ghosts of racism, homophobia, and toxic masculinity. Ghosts that show up in the other men in his life, including his emotionally distant father. But when Ezekiel discovers a trove of forbidden love letters among his late grandfather’s belongings, he has a realization: perhaps the only way to exorcise these multi-generational ghosts is to burn everything to the ground. The Magnolia Ballet Part 1 is a Southern Gothic fable that melds high drama, dance, poetry, and spectacle to explore masculinity, racism, and the love between a queer kid and his father.