Martin Zimmerman News

Pivot Arts launches a new celebration of innovative theater, music and dance in unique and often historic spaces from June 6 – 22, 2013 throughout Chicago's Uptown and Edgewater neighborhoods. The inaugural PIVOT MULTI-ARTS FESTIVAL answers the City's call for a reinvigorated Uptown Entertainment District by uniting artists, businesses and local organizations around multidisciplinary “pop-up” performances occurring in a former Vaudeville Theater, an at-one-time Charlie Chaplin film studio and other historic spaces throughout these communities. Tickets are now on sale, with a range of free events and no more than $15 per event. To purchase tickets, and for complete festival information, visit www.pivotarts.org/festival or call 773-609-0782.

The NATIONAL NEW PLAY NETWORK (NNPN), the country's alliance of non- profit theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays, proudly announces that the 2013 Smith Prize Commission, which carries an Award of $5,000, has been awarded to Martyna Majok for her untitled play. Majok's proposed play is inspired by Slavoj Žižek's Violence, which examines capitalism and our treatment of people. Awarded annually to a proposal for a play that focuses on American politics, The Smith Prize is funded by a gift from screenwriter, novelist and playwright Timothy Jay Smith and a number of other socially-conscious donors.

Teatro Vista, Chicago's largest non-profit Equity Latino theater company, announced today the initial line-up for its 2013-14 season, the company's first as a participant in Victory Gardens Theater's new Resident Theater Program.

Pivot Arts launches a new celebration of innovative theater, music and dance in unique and often historic spaces from June 6 - 22, 2013 throughout Chicago's Uptown and Edgewater neighborhoods. The inaugural PIVOT MULTI-ARTS FESTIVAL answers the City's call for a reinvigorated Uptown Entertainment District by uniting artists, businesses and local organizations around multidisciplinary "pop-up" performances occurring in a former Vaudeville Theater, an at-one-time Charlie Chaplin film studio and other historic spaces throughout these communities. Tickets are now on sale, with a range of free events and no more than $15 per event. To purchase tickets, and for complete festival information, visit www.pivotarts.org/festival or call 773-609-0782.

Pivot Arts launches a new celebration of innovative theater, music and dance in unique and often historic spaces from June 6 - 22, 2013 throughout Chicago's Uptown and Edgewater neighborhoods. The inaugural PIVOT MULTI-ARTS FESTIVAL answers the City's call for a reinvigorated Uptown Entertainment District by uniting artists, businesses and local organizations around multidisciplinary "pop-up" performances occurring in a former Vaudeville Theater, an at-one-time Charlie Chaplin film studio and other historic spaces throughout these communities.

Red Tape Theatre has announced that starting in January 2013, Brooke Allen will become their first playwright in residence as part of the newly revised Fresh Eyes Project. Formed in 2005, the Fresh Eyes Project has been a bold, new workshop process designed to create and develop plays that are innovative in form and subject. Over the years, it has assisted in the development of such projects as Caitlin Parish's A Twist of Water, Aaron Weissman's Egg & Alfie, Martin Zimmerman's Making of a Modern Folk Hero and Martyna Majok's Mouse in a Jar, which went on to be a Jeff Award winning production for Red Tape Theatre in 2009.

Goodman Theatre announces four Chicago-based writers for its third season of the Playwrights Unit-a year-long residency program designed to support and develop new works. The appointed playwrights include Greg Allen, founding director of The Neo-Futurists and the creator of Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind (30 Plays in 60 Minutes); Alice Austen, resident playwright at Chicago Dramatists and a member of Shanghai Low Theatricals; Ike Holter, founding member and resident writer of The Inconvenience and author of Hit the Wall; and Christopher Oscar Peña, whose play however long the night premiered at London's Old Vic. A partnership with Chicago Dramatists, the Playwrights Unit meets twice per month with members of the Goodman's artistic team to discuss their plays-in-progress and provide feedback for one another. The program includes readings of the playwrights' works-in-progress at Chicago Dramatists in early 2013, and culminates in June 2013 staged readings of their completed works at the Goodman. Playwrights Unit alumni include Philip Dawkins, Nambi E. Kelley, Elaine Romero and Martin Zimmerman (2011/2012 Season), and Seth Bockley, Lisa Dillman, Laura Jacqmin and Rohina Malik (2010/2011 Season).

Full casting and creative team is set for force/collision's world premiere of Shape by Erik Ehn. A play regarding Black vaudeville and the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, Shape will play tonight, September 20- October 6 at Atlas Performing Arts Center's Sprenger Theatre before moving to La MaMa ETC in November where it will play in repertory with 16 other plays by Ehn called Soulographie: Our Genocides. Creative team includes playwright Erik Ehn (The Saint Plays, Maria Kizito), director John Moletress (2011 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre as co-founder of Factory 449; 2012 Mayor's Arts Award finalist), set designer Collin Ranney (2012 Helen Hayes Award nominee), lighting designer Ariel J. Benjamin, Movement/Choreographer Ilana Faye Silverstein and sound designer Derek Knoderer. The cast includes force/collision ensemble members Dane Figueroa Edidi, Frank Britton, Karin Rosnizeck, Joshua Sticklin and guest actors Dexter Hamlett, Manu H. Kumasi, S. Lewis Feemster, Julia Smith, Alex Witherow and Luci Murphy.

On September 22, following force/collision's 8:00pm performance of the world premiere of Shape by Erik Ehn, there will be a talkback featuring the playwright (Maria Kizito, The Saint Plays), Daphne Brooks ("Bodies in Dissent: Spectacular Performances of Race and Freedom"), Randy Gener (American Theatre Magazine, Critical Stages) and John Moletress (Founding Director, force/collision). The discussion will begin approximately at 9:10pm in the Sprenger Theatre at Atlas Performing Arts Center located at 1333 H Street NE in Washington, D.C. The audience will have a chance to ask questions of the panelists regarding the production of Shape and their work. Tickets for the production of Shape may be purchased through the Atlas box office at 202-399-7993 or atlasarts.org.

Full casting and creative team is set for force/collision's world premiere of Shape by Erik Ehn. A play regarding Black vaudeville and the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, Shape will play September 20- October 6 at Atlas Performing Arts Center's Sprenger Theatre before moving to La MaMa ETC in November where it will play in repertory with 16 other plays by Ehn called Soulographie: Our Genocides. Creative team includes playwright Erik Ehn (The Saint Plays, Maria Kizito), director John Moletress (2011 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre as co-founder of Factory 449; 2012 Mayor's Arts Award finalist), set designer Collin Ranney (2012 Helen Hayes Award nominee), lighting designer Ariel J. Benjamin, Movement/Choreographer Ilana Faye Silverstein and sound designer Derek Knoderer. The cast includes force/collision ensemble members Dane Figueroa Edidi, Frank Britton, Karin Rosnizeck, Joshua Sticklin and guest actors Dexter Hamlett, Manu H. Kumasi, S. Lewis Feemster, Julia Smith, Alex Witherow and Luci Murphy.

Victory Gardens Theater Artistic Director Chay Yew and Executive Director Jan Kallish announce the new plays selected for the company's 2012 IGNITION Festival. The selected plays are: Seven Spots on the Sun by Martin Zimmerman; The Shotgun Message by A. Rey Pamatmat; Samsara by Lauren Yee; Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and Dr. Ali Goes Native by Yussef El Guindi. VG Playwrights Ensemble Member Marcus Gardley will join the selected group as a Playwright-in-Residence. Gardley will spend his time researching and drafting his upcoming play Chicago is Burning.

Victory Gardens Theater Artistic Director Chay Yew and Executive Director Jan Kallish announce the new plays selected for the company's 2012 IGNITION Festival. The selected plays are: Seven Spots on the Sun by Martin Zimmerman; The Shotgun Message by A. Rey Pamatmat; Samsara by Lauren Yee; Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and The Curious Walk of the Salamander by Kirsten Greenidge. VG Playwrights Ensemble Member Marcus Gardley will join the selected group as a Playwright-in-Residence. Gardley will spend his time researching and drafting his upcoming play Chicago is Burning.

The NATIONAL NEW PLAY NETWORK (NNPN), the country's alliance of non-profit theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays, has announced the winner of the 2012 Smith Prize for a new play on American political themes: George Brant's Grounded, the powerful, surprising story of an F-16 pilot who gets "repurposed" to fly drones following her unexpected pregnancy. In addition to upcoming development stints with the New Harmony Project and the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Grounded will receive a staged reading at NNPN's Annual Conference at Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City, Mo., tonight June 8, directed by Artistic Director Cynthia Levin.

The NATIONAL NEW PLAY NETWORK (NNPN), the country's alliance of non-profit theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays, has announced the winner of the 2012 Smith Prize for a new play on American political themes: George Brant's Grounded, the powerful, surprising story of an F-16 pilot who gets "repurposed" to fly drones following her unexpected pregnancy. In addition to upcoming development stints with the New Harmony Project and the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Grounded will receive a staged reading at NNPN's Annual Conference at Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City, MO on June 8, directed by Artistic Director Cynthia Levin.

Icicle Creek Center for the Arts today announced two new plays that will be presented in August 2012 as part of its renowned program, the Icicle Creek Theatre Festival (ICTF).

The new Washinton D.C.-based arts collective force/collision has two upcoming shows, THE NAUTICAL YARDS from tonight, April 26 through April 29 and SHAPE Septemeber 20 to October 6 in D.C. and then in New York at La Mama ETC November 10-18.

After sold-out performances last season, Victory Gardens announces The Second Annual Chicago One-Minute Play Festival, in partnership with the New York-based One Minute Play Festival (OMPF), to benefit the Fresh Squeezed series. The event will be held in the Zacek-McVay Theater at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater on April 15 and 16, 2012, at 7:30pm.

After sold-out performances last season, Victory Gardens announces The Second Annual Chicago One-Minute Play Festival, in partnership with the New York-based One Minute Play Festival (OMPF), to benefit the Fresh Squeezed series. The event will be held in the Zacek-McVay Theater at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater on April 15 and 16, 2012, at 7:30pm.