UT & TAPS
Greater Chicago
Greater Chicago (Recordings)
Do you have events you would like to include or advertise for in next month’s newsletter? Email UTheaterNewsletter@gmail.com to submit items—and be sure to note any UT members participating!
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Play Reading List | Selections by Brandon Zang
Community play reading lists are a chance for UT members to select and showcase some of their favorite plays for everyone to enjoy. We hope that you will take some time to read the scripts that interest you!
Really Old, Like Forty-Five by Tamsin Oglesby (ISBN-13: 978-1840029826)
 Science fiction theater is often overlooked as a genre, but Tamsin Oglesby’s take on how society views the elderly proves dystopian fiction to be an effective vehicle for analyzing human relationships. The story is told from the perspectives of two groups of people: a three generation family trying (and failing) to understand each other and debating whether to send their oldest members to an ominous government-sponsored “Ark,” and a group of strikingly unsympathetic government officials who plan and implement “solutions” to deal with the country’s massive elderly population. The dialogue is witty, sarcastic, and biting, capturing the base human desire to escape aging. The text deals with dark themes by painting a painfully realistic world in which old people become yet another problem that needs to be solved.
Songs of the Dragons Flying to Heaven by Young Jean Lee (ISBN-13: 978-1559363266, full e-text available from UChicago Library, recording available on playwright’s website)
 Not enough words can describe the flurry of emotions I feel whenever I read or watch Young Jean Lee’s Songs of the Dragons Flying to Heaven. Though I am admittedly not the biggest fan of avant garde theater, this play manages to make me burst out with laughter, seethe with anger, and furrow my brows from the sheer incredulousness of the story, all within the range of a few lines. The otherwise disjointed narrative is held together firmly by Lee’s incredible sincerity and honesty as she reflects on her identity as an Asian-American by focusing on the most difficult-to-talk-about things that come with being a minority in a white society. It took me two readings and multiple viewings of the play (a recording of which can be found on Young Jean Lee’s website) to truly grasp all the nuances, and I still can’t say I fully understand the text; but I can say that this play is undoubtedly one of my favorite pieces of theater of all time.
The New Canadian Curling Club by Mark Crawford (ISBN-13: 978-1927922538)
 The problem with being constantly seen as an inclusive multicultural country with one of the best qualities of life means that people tend to overlook the very real problems and racism that is engrained in Canadian society. In his play, Mark Crawford takes a close look at the intricacies of Canada’s “cultural mosaic,” discusses the meaning of being Canadian, and brings to the light troubles faced by immigrants and refugees, all within the setting of a recreational curling team. At face value, The New Canadian Curling Club can be read as a lighthearted, feel-good, and overly simplified take on Canadian multiculturalism; but dig a little deeper, and you will find a profound discourse that gently questions the merit of Canada’s international status as a welcoming immigrant country.
A Very Very Very Dark Matter by Martin McDonagh (ISBN-13: 978-0571346912, full e-text available through UChicago subscription to Drama Online)
 Like all of Martin McDonagh’s plays, A Very Very Very Dark Matter is super edgy; that being said, like all of McDonagh’s plays, it’s edgy for a good reason (usually). The play presents a history in which famous writers like Hans Christian Anderson and Charles Dickens plagiarize their iconic works off Congolese pygmy women who are imprisoned in their houses. Beyond McDonagh’s signature dark humor, the script features heavy political undertones about Western history’s tendency to monumentalize problematic white men and appropriate narratives and traditions from other cultures. The play refuses to shy away from portraying the cruel and unjust nature of Western colonialism and forces the audience to deal with, as the title suggests, the extremely dark reality of colonial history.
Would you like to submit some of your favorite plays for a future newsletter? Email UTheaterNewsletter@gmail.com with 3-5 titles and a description of why you have chosen and/or love each. Each list must feature at least one work showcasing an underrepresented playwright or narrative (you may decide what matches this criterion).
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Committee held a special election last month to fill a vacant position, and we have welcomed Allegra Hatem to Committee!
Programming Subcommittees
After the success of the smaller-scale Monologue Festival, Committee is beginning to explore options for another smaller cabaret-type event next quarter.
We are also considering mid- and large-scale programming options for future quarters, and we have discussed plans to support and fund at least one full work in the next year--either through seeking student proposals or by selecting a show as a Committee for other students to join. We are planning to seek proposals for a directed staged reading next quarter as a mid-sized offering, and we are also looking ahead for proposals of a fully virtually designed and staged show. This larger-scale production would begin its process in the winter and perform in the spring. If we are not able to find proposers for these works, Committee will propose plays and assemble teams.
Committee understands there may be many questions and unknowns about student proposals that are a barrier to work: we would love to individually discuss current options with anyone interested in proposing. Pro Staff has identified many viable avenues of support for work, including (but not limited to): shipping costumes and equipment to performers, helping design virtual backgrounds, advising on virtual performance techniques, funding for digital resources, and more. If you are interested in either of these opportunities or to help you further explore potential options for your performances, you are always encouraged to reach out to any member of Committee or to come to a Committee meeting!
Newsletter Subcommittee
Per the recently passed open subcommittee bylaw, we are seeking a community member to join the Newsletter subcommittee for winter quarter! If you are passionate about communication and community building, this is an opportunity to work with Committee on a monthly basis to help grow the publication. We are especially interested in people who would love generating new content ideas and having some graphic design or newsletter distribution experience is a plus! Any interested applicants should email UTheaterNewsletter@gmail.com for more information. We may extend more opportunities to join the subcommittee in the future if this one-quarter trial run is successful.
Be on the lookout for our next publication around December 1!
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Court Theater: 
