Erasing the Distance to Kick Off 10th Anniversary Season with WILL YOU STAND UP?, 3/29-31

Erasing the Distance (ETD) is proud to announce the opening production of our 2015 season: WILL YOU STAND UP?, directed by ETD Founder/Artistic Director Brighid O'Shaughnessy.

Whether victim, perpetrator or witness, acts of violence leave no one unharmed. In WILL YOU STAND UP?, five men and women find their voices, confront their pasts, and challenge their communities to action in this fierce and visceral production about the various effects of violence on mental health.

WILL YOU STAND UP? March 29, 30 & 31 at 7:30pm
Hoover-Leppen Theatre ~ Center on Halsted ~ 3656 N. Halsted, 3rd Floor ~ Chicago, IL
Adapted by: Brenda Barrie*, Patricia Curtis, Brighid O'Shaughnessy* and Craig C. Thompson* Directed by: Brighid O'Shaughnessy*
Performed by: Brenda Barrie*+, Bryan Bosque, Ronnel Taylor, Craig C. Thompson* and Penelope Walker+ Stage Manager: Kit Ryan Lighting Designer: Becca Jeffords *ETD Company Member +Actors Equity Member
TICKETS: $15 in advance, $20 at door, $10 for students/seniors/groups of 10+/industry.
To purchase tickets, visit www.willyoustandup.brownpapertickets.com.
For more information, email event@erasingthedistance.org.

WILL YOU STAND UP? made its world premiere at Vittum Theater in December 2011 before being re-staged at Center on Halsted in November 2012. Each story featured in WILL YOU STAND UP? was collected from real people via audio recorded interviews. The stories were then transcribed, edited and shaped into theatrical monologues, which are then performed by professional actors.

The stories featured in WILL YOU STAND UP? are:

• Lawrence (played by Ronnel Taylor) -- struggles with sobriety and anger issues after years of alcoholism that drove him to live on the streets.
• Penelope (played by Brenda Barrie) -- details her experience with intimate partner violence and how she escaped the relationship.
• Brian (played by Craig C. Thompson) -- grapples with post-traumatic stress disorder as he confronts the person that sexually molested him as a child.
• Ryan (played by Bryan Bosque) -- discusses how his father's alcoholism, gambling addiction and domestic violence affected him both during his youth and as a grown man today.
• KOKUMO (played by Penelope Walker) -- a transgender woman powerfully coming to terms with years of trauma from repeated sexual, physical and emotional abuse.

In addition to the three public performances at Center on Halsted, WILL YOU STAND UP? is also touring to Malcolm X College on March 19 and Daley College in mid-April.

Several violence prevention agencies will be present at each performance of WILL YOU STAND UP? to offer resources and support to audience members, as well as present active ways audience members can get involved in direct service or advocacy opportunities.

Founded in 2005 by Brighid O'Shaughnessy, Erasing the Distance (ETD) uses the power of performance to disarm stigma, spark dialogue, educate, and promote healing surrounding issues of mental health. ETD collects true stories from people whose lives have been impacted by mental health issues. We sculpt the stories into theatrical pieces for the stage, which are then performed by professional actors. Every performance is followed by a moderated, interactive dialogue with the audience that addresses the themes they have just seen.

This year marks ETD's 10th anniversary. In the last ten years, ETD has reached over 50,000 audience members through public performances and touring and education programs. For more information about us, visit www.erasingthedistance.org.