Z Space Presents The Second Annual Problematic Play Festival

Z Space presents its second annual Problematic Play Festival, a staged reading series. The festival presents ambitious and provocative plays that have been rejected by other theaters or could otherwise be seen as too "problematic" to produce.

The 2019 festival focuses on comedy, with two pieces that use humor to tackle the seemingly taboo.

Each staged reading will include post-show discussions with the audience and playwright, facilitated by local director and arts educator Radhika Rao. The discussions will engage with the question, "What makes a play too problematic to produce?"

Says Rao, "Last year's event was the most creative staged reading space I had experienced- it included ways for the audience to have cathartic responses and critical reactions during and after the play. Just the act of the audience ascending up from the house and onto the stage to talk about problematic ideas brought up by the plays infused the space with a dynamism rarely seen in a theater."

Audiences will also be invited to respond to the plays as they see fit (with positive reinforcement or by throwing tomatoes against a wall).

Through an open submission process, Z Space received 270 submissions (all accompanied by numerous rejection letters) from playwrights all over the country. Three groups of readers evaluated the plays and the steering committee selected two to stage.

Throughout the process, Z Space is asking what it means for a work to be deemed problematic. Are these scripts "problematic" because they break some kind of universal rule, or have we personally deemed them problematic due to our own explicit or implicit biases around certain cultural, social, or political issues? Are there certain lines that playwrights simply cannot cross? Is there some work that simply should not be done? These are some of the questions Z Space is interested in exploring.

Rao says, "I can't wait to be in community again, this time to laugh, and talk, and dive into the problematic! Throw a fit, shout out a 'hell yeah,' or sit there with your arms crossed- but come here ready to engage!"

The two plays are:

Three Fat Sisters

Written and directed by Morgan Gould

Dramaturgy by Vanessa Flores

Wednesday, October 2, 7:30 pm

Ginger and Margot and Anna are three fat sisters. Except now, perhaps, Anna might have recently discovered she is not fat. This savage revenge comedy written by an actual fat person asks, "How many calories are in a pint of my sister's blood?" and "Are there any cheetos left?"

Mediocre Heterosexual Sex

Written by Madison Wetzell

Directed by Maya Herbsman

Friday, October 4, 7:30 pm

Four hours after getting dumped by her girlfriend, Erin takes to Tinder to try men for the first time. She ends up meeting Aaron, who is only too happy to indulge her submissive fantasies. To make sense of her deeply ambivalent experience, Erin seeks the advice of Violet and Jeremy, a couple in a dominant/submissive relationship and the only straight people she knows. A vexed exploration of gender, power, and kink.

The 2019 steering committee includes Abigail Pañares, Radhika Rao, Rebecca Struch, Stephanie Wilborn, Jake Jeppson, Rose Oser, and Shafer Mazow. The festival is produced by Associate Artistic Director Rose Oser.

$15 general admission. Tickets at zspace.org/problematic

Call 415-626-0453 or email boxoffice@zspace.org for ticketing questions or assistance

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