Stage Left's Annual Downstage Left New Work Festival, May 14 – 30, 2004
Chicago, IL -
Stage Left Theatre proudly presents the world premiere of LEAPFEST 1, a Downstage Left festival showcasing six new socio-political works by Chicago playwrights from May 14 – 30, 2004. A short discussion will follow each show, which will assist the playwrights in developing their plays for possible production in 2004/05 and 2005/06 seasons at theatres locally and nationally. The festival name stems from the Downstage Left logo, which features a frog encouraging playwrights to “take the leap” with their ideas for new socio-political theatre.
THE FESTIVAL INCLUDES:
The Lost Sheep by Joseph Fedorko, directed by Eric C. Reda, 5/14 @ 7:30 PM, & 5/23 @ 2 PM.
This play dramatizes true incidents surrounding the explosive and prophetic charges of sexual abuse that a former seminarian named Steven Cook leveled against the then-Archbishop of Chicago, Joseph Cardinal Bernardin -- a journey that leads both men through life-and-death fears, church politics, media scrutiny and a final reconciliation that neither man could have anticipated.
Somebody Foreign by Douglas Post, directed by Terry McCabe, 5/15 @ 2 PM, & 5/21 @ 7:30 PM.
This drama about a woman whose sister and brother-in-law are brutally murdered in their North Shore town home and who, because of her affiliation with certain human rights groups in Northern Ireland, becomes the target of an investigation by the FBI, the local police and the media.
The Vow by Tom Patrick, directed by SLT Managing Director Kevin Heckman, 5/15 @ 7:30 PM, & 5/29 @ 2 PM.
Jihad. Holy War. Crusade. The year is 1291. At the end of the last crusade, three men flee a burning city. Each has sworn to take the cross, to fight the infidel and to ascend to the presence of God. Now faced with defeat, each man must decide to uphold his vow or to return to a home barely remembered.
Arrangement for Two Violas by Susan Lieberman, directed by Ann Filmer, 5/16 @ 2 PM, & 5/28 @ 7:30 PM.
This piece tells the story of Peter Dray, a country doctor who devotes himself only to his patients in a small Wisconsin town in 1938. Single and without family, he cherishes his close friendship with Nan and Karl Schuler, publishers of the local newspaper. When Karl’s worsening emphysema leads Peter to consult with Henry Meegan, a famous specialist in Milwaukee, Peter discovers love for the first time. The illicit affair between the two doctors, both amateur violists, blossoms – and then threatens to destroy the very foundation of their lives. “Arrangement for Two Violas” examines homosexuality as it was viewed in the 1930's and draws parallels to today.
Out Among the Dragons by Dan Noonan, directed by Sarah Whitney, 5/22 @ 7:30 PM, & 5/30 @ 2 PM.
This play tells the story of a hemophiliac who meets a young gay man and an enigmatic young woman at an HIV clinic where reality and hilarity ensue as they pursue their dreams. “Out Among the Dragons” explores how the mode of HIV transmission can affect the way people with HIV are viewed.
The (W)hole Thing by John Green, directed by Chad Eric Bergman, 5/22 @ 2 PM, & 5/29 @ 7:30 PM.
This piece is a rude, crude, geopolitical farce for the rude, crude times in which we flounder. When the Sandonians (sand people) attack Corncopia (water people), bringing their mighty tower to the ground, the men immediately prepare for war while three women notice the divine light emanating from the hole in the ground where the tower stood.
Call the Stage Left Box Office at 773-883-8830 for tickets.
Admission: $12 for the first play seen – with the purchase of this ticket, a LeapFest pass will be issued which, when displayed for subsequent shows, will give a $9 ticket for the second show seen, a $7 ticket for the third show, a $5 ticket for the fourth show, and free admission for the fifth and subsequent shows attended.
Stage Left Theatre
3408 N Sheffield Ave
THE FESTIVAL INCLUDES:
The Lost Sheep by Joseph Fedorko, directed by Eric C. Reda, 5/14 @ 7:30 PM, & 5/23 @ 2 PM.
This play dramatizes true incidents surrounding the explosive and prophetic charges of sexual abuse that a former seminarian named Steven Cook leveled against the then-Archbishop of Chicago, Joseph Cardinal Bernardin -- a journey that leads both men through life-and-death fears, church politics, media scrutiny and a final reconciliation that neither man could have anticipated.
Somebody Foreign by Douglas Post, directed by Terry McCabe, 5/15 @ 2 PM, & 5/21 @ 7:30 PM.
This drama about a woman whose sister and brother-in-law are brutally murdered in their North Shore town home and who, because of her affiliation with certain human rights groups in Northern Ireland, becomes the target of an investigation by the FBI, the local police and the media.
The Vow by Tom Patrick, directed by SLT Managing Director Kevin Heckman, 5/15 @ 7:30 PM, & 5/29 @ 2 PM.
Jihad. Holy War. Crusade. The year is 1291. At the end of the last crusade, three men flee a burning city. Each has sworn to take the cross, to fight the infidel and to ascend to the presence of God. Now faced with defeat, each man must decide to uphold his vow or to return to a home barely remembered.
Arrangement for Two Violas by Susan Lieberman, directed by Ann Filmer, 5/16 @ 2 PM, & 5/28 @ 7:30 PM.
This piece tells the story of Peter Dray, a country doctor who devotes himself only to his patients in a small Wisconsin town in 1938. Single and without family, he cherishes his close friendship with Nan and Karl Schuler, publishers of the local newspaper. When Karl’s worsening emphysema leads Peter to consult with Henry Meegan, a famous specialist in Milwaukee, Peter discovers love for the first time. The illicit affair between the two doctors, both amateur violists, blossoms – and then threatens to destroy the very foundation of their lives. “Arrangement for Two Violas” examines homosexuality as it was viewed in the 1930's and draws parallels to today.
Out Among the Dragons by Dan Noonan, directed by Sarah Whitney, 5/22 @ 7:30 PM, & 5/30 @ 2 PM.
This play tells the story of a hemophiliac who meets a young gay man and an enigmatic young woman at an HIV clinic where reality and hilarity ensue as they pursue their dreams. “Out Among the Dragons” explores how the mode of HIV transmission can affect the way people with HIV are viewed.
The (W)hole Thing by John Green, directed by Chad Eric Bergman, 5/22 @ 2 PM, & 5/29 @ 7:30 PM.
This piece is a rude, crude, geopolitical farce for the rude, crude times in which we flounder. When the Sandonians (sand people) attack Corncopia (water people), bringing their mighty tower to the ground, the men immediately prepare for war while three women notice the divine light emanating from the hole in the ground where the tower stood.
Call the Stage Left Box Office at 773-883-8830 for tickets.
Admission: $12 for the first play seen – with the purchase of this ticket, a LeapFest pass will be issued which, when displayed for subsequent shows, will give a $9 ticket for the second show seen, a $7 ticket for the third show, a $5 ticket for the fourth show, and free admission for the fifth and subsequent shows attended.
Stage Left Theatre
3408 N Sheffield Ave
