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The fifth consecutive year of LeapFest begins soon with LeapFest 5 and will bring audiences "what’s next" in Chicago theatre. The five new plays will all be performed at the Stage Left Theatre at 3408 N. Sheffield in Chicago and promise to be entertaining, compelling stories about our world today.
LeapFest is an annual series of emerging plays with socio-political themes, presented as workshop productions in rotating repertory. The festival is the culmination of Downstage Left, a multi-tiered development program with the goal to cultivate and support new and emerging voices and inspire playwrights to address the political and social issues of our day. The festival name stems from the Downstage Left logo, which features a frog, and encourages playwrights to "take the leap" from development to production.
LeapFest's first four years have seen three of the featured plays receive the Jeff Award for Best New Work, and ten of the plays go on to world premieres in Chicago.
This years plays include the following:
Alice in War
by Steven Bogart
directed by Gregory Gerhard
Performances: Thursday 6/5 at 7:30 PM, Friday 6/13 at 7:30 PM, Wednesday 6/18 at 7:30 PM
Young Alice discovers a bizarre and mysterious war zone and other mysterious surprises on the other side of her basement wall. A curious play about finding hope when war is all you know.
The Fisherman
by Jayme McGhan
directed by Drew Martin
Performances: Friday 6/6 at 7:30 PM, Thursday 6/12 at 7:30 PM, Saturday 6/21 at 2:00 PM
After being forced out of his job and pension, an aging airplane mechanic takes decisive and alarming measures against the top rung of the corporate ladder. His niece, a police officer, is forced to confront her culpable uncle on the bank of the Minnesota River.
Here's Where It's Safe by M.E.H. Lewis
directed by Kevin Heckman
Performances: Sunday 6/8 at 2:00 PM, Saturday 6/14 at 7:30 PM, Friday 6/20 at 7:30 PM
After being forced out of his job and pension, an aging airplane mechanic takes decisive and alarming measures against the top rung of the corporate ladder. His niece, a police officer, is forced to confront her culpable uncle on the bank of the Minnesota River.
Iowa Akhbar
by Aaron Carter
directed by Erica Weiss
Performances: Saturday 6/7 at 7:30 PM, Sunday 6/15 at 2:00 PM, Thursday 6/19 at 7:30 PM
The occupation comes to the heartland. Sheriff Isaiah Tanner protects his isolated Iowa town by collaborating with the enemy. Isaiah's wife is killed, and amid the terror and fear of an occupation, he struggles to be a good father to his step-daughter Ruby. As Ruby is drawn into a local resistance movement, Isaiah must find a way to save both his town and his daughter.
Safe House
by Lydia Stryk
directed by Laura Blegen
Performances: Sunday 6/8 at 7:30 PM, Sunday 6/15 at 7:30 PM, Saturday 6/21 at 7:30 PM
Secrets, lies and illicit rendezvous swirl in a deadly triangle composed of an Intelligence officer, his wife, and a so-called cultural attaché. In the dark underbelly of our political reality, nothing is at it seems, no one is safe, and the survival of the planet hangs in the balance.
The festival begins with this kick-off evening on Tuesday, June 3 at T's Bar & Restaurant (5025 N. Clark Street) and will feature scenes from each of the LeapFest plays and introductions of the playwrights, directors and casts. Admission is free to the kick-off and a portion of the food and drink proceeds will benefit the artists of LeapFest5.
To purchase tickets to plays call the Stage Left box office at 773-883-8830 or visit www.stagelefttheatre.com. You can purchase a "LeapPASS" which includes all five LeapFest plays for only $25 or purchase tickets to any single play for $12.