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Lily Balsen and Evan Cleaver in "In Love and Warcraft," the 2014 Alliance/Kendeda Competition winner. (Photo by Greg Mooney)

Halcyon Theatre Announces a Season of Otherworldly Plays by Women

The small Chicago theatre, newly affiliated with Actors Equity, plans an ambitious slate of new plays by Madhuri Shekar, Charise Castro Smith and Callie Kimball.

CHICAGO: Halcyon Theatre has announced its 10th season, including 1 world premiere and 2 Chicago premieres. All the plays are by female playwrights, and all feature young female protagonists living, at least in part, in otherworldly or fantastical realms.

It begins with the August–September run of Madhuri Shekar’s In Love and Warcraft, which follows a gamer girl, college senior and confirmed virgin who makes cash on the side writing love letters for people who’ve screwed up their relationships. Tlaloc Rivas directs.

Then, in January–February, 2016, Charise Castro Smith’s Estrella Cruz [the junkyard queen] tells the story of a mother and daughter, an impregnation by the “lord of the underworld” and a fantasy life involving Bette Davis.

Finally, in March–April, 2016, Callie Kimball’s Dreams of the Penny Gods follows 13-year-old Bug, scion of a crime family hiding out in a storage facility who has developed supernatural powers. It will be directed by cofounder and company member Jennifer Adams.

Halcyon Theatre was formed in 2006 to “connect people, transform our borders and ascend toward a more just union,” according to a statement.

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