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Show Listing
5 Times 10 - A Collection of 10 Minute Plays
Citadel Theatre Company - Lake Forest, Illinois
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage
A smorgasboard of 10 minute plays to make you laugh, to make you cry, to make you cheer.
A.D.
Riverrun Theatre Company - Madison, Indiana
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage
She is women, hear them roar. Attention deficits, afternoon delights, American dreams, artistic differences, anxiety disorders, antic dispositions...how do we separate the information from the noise? One woman will try to answer that question…if she can even hear the question… Riverrun Theatre presents "A.D.," starring Annie Huey, written by David J. Loehr, directed by Jim Stark
And Ya Don't Stop, a Hip Hop Play
Presented at the Temple Gallery, 1749 S. Halsted
Nicole Kearney Productions - Indianapolis, Indiana
And Ya Don’t Stop, a hip hop play finds a trio at the crossroads when a record label only wants one of them – Supreme, the emcee. Bitter, under contract and estranged from his crew, Supreme unwillingly goes on a journey guided by the messenger and the elements of hip hop to help him return to his hip hop roots.
Annee Pocalypse
Hubris Productions - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage
A facetious adult graphic novel brought to life. This is pure unadulterated and collaborative camp. With the music you love reinterpreted by Jinx Titanic we follow Lil’ Whor’n Annee as she searches for the perfect threesome in a zombie filled electrifying Sarah Palin run post apocalyptic future. Whew!
The Bad Arm - Confessions of a Dodgy Irish Dancer
Maire Clerkin - Los Angeles, California
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
Uproarious play by Máire Clerkin, directed by Dan O’Connor. If you thought all Irish dancers were curly- haired cutie-pies, meet a scowling misfit from London in this outrageous antidote to Riverdance. Arriving hotfoot from Best Of series at the Hollywood Fringe Festival, Clerkin kicks arse in this laugh-till-you-cry- comedy. Critic’s Pick, BACKSTAGE
Believe in Nothing, Mock Everything
Les Enfants Terribles - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Simone's Bar, 960 W. 18th St.
Les Enfants Terribles presents an exploration of love and devotion! Les Enfants are not convinced that love is all you need and hope to expose audiences to their own opinion through song, games, and the always present “what will happen next?” atmosphere.
Breaking Down in America
Patrick Devine - Burbank, California
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
Pat Devine said, "the hell with it." Then, to show that he meant it, he bought a beat up Cadillac for $500 and drove it (as far as he could) across America. This show, complete with video and photos from the trip, is the story of what happened.
Bridges
Patchwork Woman Performance - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
Bridges is a woman-centered program of dance theatre including solos and small group works. The program stitches individual creative responses into a quilted performance experience. Drawing on the strength of its diverse cast, Bridges expresses a multiplicity of womens’ experiences using a range of performance styles to tell our stories.
Cabinalysis...or, Build Your Own Damn Cabin!
2nd Story, Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Simone's Bar, 960 W. 18th St.
When a middle-aged psychiatrist must find a way to salvage his crumbling relationships with his teenage kids, he devises a plan for them to build a replica of Thoreau's cabin together in their suburban backyard. Builder's Block, adolescent rebellion, and other natural disasters threaten to shatter his dream in this contemporary comedy about parenthood, creativity, and what it costs to live your unlived life.
Christmas in Bakersfield
Les Kurkendaal - West Hollywood, California
Presented at Simone's Bar, 960 W. 18th St.
This is crazy! Les meets Mike. When Mike takes Les home to meet his very conservative, right wing republican family, he realizes that he forgot to tell them one very important detail, that Les is African American. Oops ! This show puts the fun in dysfunctional.
Columbine & Roses
Shakura World Theatre - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
In Columbine, Colorado, ridicule caused two boys to turn against their fellow students in violence. A desperate cry. This multi-media piece is a chant ritual enhanced by strings and tribal drums and includes scripted scenes, movement and video-art. Intertwined with the deconstructed events in Columbine is the juxtaposition of Mayan myths related to primal dominance and sacrifice.
Driving the Body Back
Swanderwoman Productions - Ames, Iowa
Presented at the Dream Theatre, 556 W. 18th St.
The vault opens upon bootleggers, rumrunners, butchers, tenders of dogs and the tender hearted as a young woman learns of the vigorous lives and deaths of her Irish–Immigrant family while driving her mother’s body home for burial. Staged from the critically acclaimed poetry of Mary Swander.
Drunk with Hope in Chicago
What's a Girl to Do Productions - Washington, D.C.
Presented at the EP Theater, 1820 S. Halsted
What’s a nice girl like you NOT drinking in a place like this?” Handron discards clichéd portrayals of recovery in her portrayal of over 20 female alcoholics stemming from her thesis research on the subject, comparing face-to-face to online meetings.
Empanada for a Dream
Juan Villa - New York City, New York
Presented at the EP Theater, 1820 S. Halsted
1990's. The Lower East Side of NYC. The Yankees go from chumps to champs. Koch, Dinkins and Giuliani all wizz by and Hip hop will be born out of poverty. Welcome to the Loaisaida. Consider yourself an outsider, a tourist, a blanquito or just plain 'ol lucky. Either way, it's a trip down empanada memory lane.
Exhausted Paint: The Death of Van Gogh
Opium, Fireworks and Lead - St. Paul, Minnesota
Presented at Simone's Bar, 960 W. 18th St.
Van Gogh, alienation, wine! What more do you need? A tender play about harshness, “Exhausted Paint” explores Vincent van Gogh’s desperate struggle to mean something in a world that devalues art and its artists, forever asking the question: Why does humanity devalue what humanizes us?
Finding Eleusis
Terra Mysterium - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Chicago Art Department, 1837 S. Halsted
In the dark heart of the earth, a single pomegranate seed burns like a star, and a Goddess is born. Terra Mysterium presents this apotheosis in Finding Eleusis, a contemporary drama illuminating the ancient story of Golden-Haired Demeter and her beloved daughter Persephone, Queen of the Underworld.
The Fugitives
La Rinascita - Valparaiso, Indiana
Presented at the Dream Theatre, 556 W. 18th St.
A mute Orestes and disturbed Elektra grapple with ghost and memory in a wasteland of dreams. 6000 years on the run. One terrible choice. La Rinascita’s The Fugitives “will make your heart pump harder and the sweat bead on your forehead.”
Get Rich Cheating
Jeff Kreisler & Up Top Productions - Long Island City, New York
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
Wanna get rich? Colbert meets Tony Robbins in this wealth-building seminar exposing the proven path to obscene wealth - ethics be damned. Based on the bestselling book. Everyone's cheating: Why not you? "You'll be laughing all the way to the bank" - Rachel Maddow. "Very funny" - Terry Jones (Monty Python)
Grind: The Musical
Theater Undeclared - Burnsville, Minnesota
Presented at the Dream Theatre, 556 W. 18th St.
A neighborhood coffee shop serves as a haven for all types of people, from hardworking baristas, to homeless evangelists to aspiring musicians. "Grind" uses slam poetry, shadow puppetry and lots of music to explore what happens when a shop like this is due for demolition.
Inner Cartography
Megan Rhyme - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
Expect to have your mind blown in this dance work by scientifically curious choreographer Megan Rhyme, in collaboration with neuroscientist Miriam Sach. Dancers become neurons and molecules, the stage transforms into the space inside your brain, and the process of learning becomes illuminated from the inside and out.
Knee Jerk
The Consortium Project - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Dream Theatre, 556 W. 18th St.
YOU COULD DIE RIGHT NOW! In a society that tip-toes around dangerous behavior to avoid its mortality, come visit the underbelly of that world that everyone ignores: The reality that, at any moment, the most trivial actions and most immediate, instinctive reactions can lead to our end.
Kraigslist
BITE Theatre - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Presented at the Dream Theatre, 556 W. 18th St.
In this dark adventurous comedy that divided Milwaukee both audiences and critics alike, a lonely middle aged couple kidnap a homeless woman’s child in an attempt to save their marriage.
The Lonely Visitors
RE/Dance - Stevens Point, Wisconsin
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
The Lonely Visitors is an investigation of the trials and desires of the heart. This dance theater work explores a melancholy terrain and the tender balance between people. A work for 9 performers, it explodes with powerful dancing and striking imagery that draws the audience member into its delicate environment.
Machito Pichon
Piel Morena Contemporary Dance - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
This contemporary dance work deals with the stereotypical behaviors of machismo, thus being exaggerated aggressiveness, intransigence in male-to-male interpersonal relationships, arrogance and sexual aggression in male-tofemale relationships. The work is performed by women portraying men in an effort to unmask the machista’s true selves and to illustrate the women’s unprecedented strength.
The Meeting
Backe Productions - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage
Samuel Beckett is brought back to life and given a gig writing for The Office.
Moliere Than Thou
Timothy Mooney Repertory Theatre - Prospect Heights, Illinois
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage
Moliere lives! Abandoned by his cast, Moliere must keep his audience satisfied while working through some of the funniest monologues of all time. He employs audience to play out the Tartuffe seduction scene, or the Doctor examination scene, clambers across their laps, all the while spouting dizzying rhymes
Mulatto Child - Voices From the Margins
Paul Diem - Kingsville, Maryland
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
Black=Gangsta. Chicano=Illegal Immigrant. Gay= Queen. Homeless=Lazy. Prostitute=Loves Sex. How about you? Do you like the way you're represented? Join in the conversation... laugh at the ridiculous construction.
The Parenticide Club
Lincoln Square Theatre - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Chicago Art Department, 1837 S. Halsted
A dark comedy about a club you definitely don’t want your children to join. Inspired by the stories of Ambrose Bierce. Featuring Elana Elyse, Dan Hickey, Vince Mahler and David Skvarla.
The Playdaters
And Giggles Productions - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage
Two guys, hundreds of girls, one complicated scoring system. Spencer and Erwin exploit a dating website to play a game of dares and pranks on unsuspecting singles. Spencer eventually falls in love with a one-dimensional character, and Erwin, thwarting Spencer, finds that he can manipulate the world of a romantic comedy in astounding ways.
Please Love Me, High School Boyfriend
Weber & Einstein - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Chicago Art Department, 1837 S. Halsted
Like lightning in the wilderness, Chicago's Weber and Einstein present their first written show Please Love Me, High School Boyfriend. Through a series of inter-woven two-person scenes, bits, and songs the duo explore deep down inside everyone just wants somebody to love them. Sweet and twisted, this hour-long show feels like what would happen if Shirley Temple was thrown into the ghetto and forced to hustle in an attempt to earn America's respect.
The Ripettes Burlesque in ... Peter Panties: A Neverland
Ripettes Burlesque - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Simone's Bar, 960 W. 18th St.
The Ripettes Burlesque is happy to bring their sexy mix of theater, comedy, dance & general naughtiness to Fringe with their production of Peter Panties: A Neverland Burlesque! See sexy pirates, pixies, lost girls & naughty boys in a rousing and randy burlesque interpretation of this classic fairy tail. Who knew growing up could be so sexy? Xoxo!
Rambo: The Missing Years
Howard Petrick - San Franciso, California
Presented at the Chicago Art Department, 1837 S. Halsted
Threats of treason charges! Phone calls from the Pentagon! In this hilarious autobiographical solo performance, Petrick brings a cast of characters to life as he recounts his misadventures as a young antiwar GI who asserts his right to organize his fellow soldiers against the Vietnam war.
The Roast of Piglet
Alan Brouilette - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
Are your childhood memories are too pristine? Need them soiled beyond recovery? Or do you just want to feel like a disgusting immoral person? If you've ever wanted to see something that'll make you want to fill every opening of your head with bleach, we're here for you.
Scenes of a Love Like Nature
The Hollow Tree - Decatur, Illinois
Presented at the EP Theater, 1820 S. Halsted
In a weekly podcast, Dr. Dinah Hansard promotes her unconventional views on sex and monogamy. If sex is a need, like hunger, is it healthy to stick to one food group till death do us part? But is it worth the implications of letting the love of her life explore his sexual taste buds?
Silken Veils
Pantea Productions - Stevenson Ranch, California
Presented at the EP Theater, 1820 S. Halsted
Silken Veils combines Rumi poetry, marionettes, table-top puppets, live performance and animation. This turbulent, sometimes humorous tale, follows Darya, an Iranian born American citizen as she struggles with love in the US while reliving her childhood in Iran during the Revolution of 1979 and the Iran/Iraq war.
Single Girl in a Gay Man's World
Terri Cyrmes - Tampa, Florida
Presented at the Temple Gallery, 1749 S. Halsted
Single Girl in A Gay Man's World is the classic story of a girl finding her way. Mixed with some laughter and tears, a splash of musical theatre, and whole bunch of gay. Shaken and served straight up.
Skinny Dipping - Not Your Mama's One Woman Show!
Shanna Shrum - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Temple Gallery, 1749 S. Halsted
Chicago based, nationally touring, 8% performance artist Shanna Shrum uses improv, script, cabaret and a whole lotta wigs to break through, strip down and jump into the pool of acceptance.
The Steve Show
Jason Economus - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
You think Conan O'Brien had it bad gettin kicked off The Tonight Show, check out Steve Shubert and his big break into the world of late night entertainment and his immediate downfall. Think a vaudevillian carwreck painted by Jackson Pollack!
sweet, half-darkness
Genesis Ensemble - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Edinburgh Stage, 2003 S. Halsted
Lucy is on the verge of turning thirty, and her life is not what she expected it to be. Suddenly she has an unconventional opportunity to start over. Will she take it? And is the decision hers alone to make? Through ensemble-devised performance, Genesis Ensemble explores the question: How do we create the life we desire?
The Talking Cure Presents: It's All in Your Head
The Talking Cure - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
It’s All In Your Head is a twisted sketch comedy at its best from The Talking Cure. When an ancient spirit messenger begins talking to you in your head, you best listen! But make sure you understand what it wants before you agree to anything first. Also magical trees exist, some of them are just nicer than others.
The Texas Chainsaw Musical
New Millenium Theatre Company - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the EP Theater, 1820 S. Halsted
"The most purely horrifying horror movie ever made" is brought to the Chicago Fringe stage in all its ghastly glory. Witness Leatherface sing his heart out (or that of a hapless traveler) ! See Sally harmonize for her life! Live music by The Family Band!
Touch My App
Tiberius Productions - Ypsilanti, Michigan
Presented at the Chicago Art Department, 1837 S. Halsted
Touch My App has everything! CANDY EVERYWHERE!! A creative look at America from the childish, strange, and daffy minds of Tommy Simon, Andy Orscheln, and Lorenzo Toia!! BE THERE!!
Uncovering the Mirrors
Rebecca Kling - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at the Temple Gallery, 1749 S. Halsted
Follow Rebecca Kling's travels from her first explorations of gender at six years old, to the Bar Mitzvah that gendered her as a "man," from the hormones coursing through her blood, to a future fragile as glass. Described by TimeOut Chicago as performing with “raw honesty and graceful body movements" and by Centerstage Chicago as "a burgeoning Chicago talent."
Unintended Structures
The Anatomy Collective - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Adelaide Stage, 1832 S. Halsted
The Anatomy Collective takes on the idea of "here" by exploring ideas of place, the science of space and the environment both organic and constructed in their latest collaboration exploring the transformative.
What To Expect
Steve O'Connell - Chicago, Illinois
Presented at Casa Aztlan, 1831 S. Racine
Steve is married. Steve is ready. Steve... has no idea. Come relive nine months in the life of Steve and watch him learn what to do, what to say, and what to expect. Is anyone ready to have a baby?