Topdog/Underdog at Historic Shorter AME

Curious Theatre Company will launch its 29th season with Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece Topdog/Underdog, directed by Steven Sapp and featuring Curious Artistic Company Member Cajardo Lindsey as Lincoln and Rakeem Lawrence as Booth.

Topdog/Underdog runs August 29 through September 20, 2026, with previews August 27-28, at Cleo Parker Robinson Dance's Historic Shorter AME Building, located at 119 Park Ave W., Denver, CO 80205.

The production marks both the opening of Curious Theatre Company's 29th season and the company's first production in residence with Cleo Parker Robinson Dance while Curious's longtime home at 1080 Acoma Street undergoes renovation.

Written by Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks, Topdog/Underdog is a fierce, funny, and deeply human story about two brothers navigating the weight of family history and the uncertainty of the future.

Brothers Lincoln and Booth share a cramped apartment and a complicated past. Abandoned by their parents and shaped by years of struggle, each is searching for stability, purpose, and a sense of control over his life. Lincoln has left behind his past as a skilled hustler, while Booth dreams of mastering the same card game that once defined his brother's life. As they navigate work, relationships, and long-standing resentments, old rivalries begin to resurface.

What unfolds is a powerful examination of family, survival, identity, and the bonds that connect us even when they threaten to pull us apart.

"Topdog/Underdog is a play that asks us to look closely at the stories we inherit and the roles we're asked to play," said Artistic Director Jada Suzanne Dixon. "It's thrilling, heartbreaking, funny, and deeply compassionate. As the first production in our Season 29 exploration of the question 'Who are we to each other?', it feels like the perfect way to begin this next chapter."

The production will be directed by Steven Sapp, an acclaimed theatre artist, actor, writer, and co-founder of the internationally celebrated theater collective UNIVERSES. His work has been recognized for its innovative blend of theater, music, poetry, and social commentary and he was recently named a Drama League Directors Project Recipient.

Topdog/Underdog opens a season centered on stories of identity, memory, belonging, responsibility, and the ways we care for one another. The production also marks the beginning of a new partnership between Curious Theatre Company and Cleo Parker Robinson Dance, one of Denver's most respected cultural institutions.

PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Topdog/Underdog
By Suzan-Lori Parks
Directed by Steven Sapp

Preview Performances: August 27-28, 2026
Run: August 29 - September 20, 2026

Location:
Historic Shorter AME Building
In residence with Cleo Parker Robinson Dance
119 Park Ave W.
Denver, CO 80205

Tickets and information are available at www.curioustheatre.org.