Susan Chase's MOTHER'S DAY to Return to The United Solo Festival

The United Solo Festival will host the return of Susan Chase's solo play Mother's Day, before Chase begins a tour of New England, culminating in performances in Worcester, MA, the hometown of both Chase and her mother. The 90-minute multi-media piece uses spoken word, music, dance, photography, and film to celebrate the women who made us. The play won the "Best Physical Theater" award of the Spring 2025 United Solo Festival.

Chase began writing the play in 2024 as a simple memoir of her mother, who spent her final years in a dementia facility, and died of covid in 2020. However, the play blossomed into an homage to ALL mothers - from historical figures to ordinary women in our own lives. "I have been very moved by the response of audiences," Chase says. "I have performed for high school students and for nursing home residents. Mother's Day really seems to resonate across all generations. As one audience member said, 'Well . . . everybody has a mother'."

As Mother's Day begins its second year of life, Chase is focused on a new vision for the play. "In November I take the play to Worcester, MA where both my mother and I grew up," she says. "The play will have a unique resonance there. All the film clips in the play are archetypal - a mommy bouncing her toddler in a wading pool is universal. But the audience in Worcester will recognize that pool, in that park where the film clip was made."

Chase is planning a series of events to engage the entire community in a celebration of mothers. "We will have memoir writing workshops and participants will share recollections and photos of their mothers and grandmothers. The photos will then be displayed in an art gallery, open to the public."

Creative Team:
Susan Chase, Playwright and Performer
Sydney Smith, Multimedia Designer and Technical Director

Justin Solonynka, Original Arrangements and Accompaniment