Individual tickets to the public readings of the plays listed below.
The Vast In-Between
By Laura Eason
Cate becomes obsessed with the man down the street who is exposed for having maintained two families in two different cities for years. Then her own marriage becomes strained when her unemployed husband refuses to compromise in his job search, and she finds herself being drawn into her own possible double life. A candid look at relationships and marriage in today’s troubled economy.
The Vast In-Between was workshopped at the New Works Festival at Perry Mansfield Camp in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It is a Denver Center Commission.
Just Like Us
by Karen Zacarias
Based on the book by Helen Thorpe
Based on Helen Thorpe’s bestselling book, Karen Zacarias’ play follows four Latina girls in Denver, two who are documented and two who are not, through their final year of high school through college and into the world. Their close-knit friendships begin to unravel when opportunities begin to open or close for each girl according to her immigration status. When a political firestorm arises in the wake of the shooting of a policeman, their situations are thrown into even bolder relief. This play grapples with some essential questions: Who is an American? Who gets to live in America? What happens when we don’t agree?
Just Like Us was recently workshopped by the Denver Center in Los Angeles. It is a Denver Center commission.
Commission and reading of
Just Like Us sponsored by Ralph and Trish Nagel. Additional Support for this project provided by the Colorado Trust Directed Contributions Program/Dr. Patricia Baca.
Black Odyssey
By Marcus Gardley
Playwright Marcus Gardley magically re-casts Homer’s Odysseus as a Black soldier returning home from a harrowing tour in the Gulf War. The great Greek archetypes reverberate with new world African-American culture as Gardley fuses modern reality with ancient myth in this gripping new play.
Black Odyssey is a Denver Center commission.
The Most Deserving
By Catherine Trieschmann
Tasked with awarding $20,000 to a deserving and needy local artist who “demonstrates an underrepresented American voice,” a small town arts council in Ellis County, Kansas comically erupts into chaos. Should the award go to a high school teacher/photographer of modest talent or to the self-taught African-American artist who creates controversial religious figures out of trash.
The Most Deserving is a satirical, insightful look at how the arts collide with politics, self-interest, taste, relationships, egos and gossip.
The Legend of Georgia McBride
By Matthew Lopez
He's young, he's broke, his landlord's knocking at the door, and he's just found out his wife is going to have a baby. To make matters even more desperate, Casey is fired from his gig as an Elvis impersonator in a run-down, small town Florida bar. When the bar owner brings in a B-level drag show to replace his act, Casey finds that he has a whole lot to learn about show business―and himself. A joyous, bawdy comedy with a ton of music and a great big heart, from one of the most-produced playwrights of the year.