Open Space Arts has announced it will stage the Chicago Premiere of THE SWALLOW - the internationally acclaimed drama by Spanish playwright Guillem Clua, author of the comedy SMILEY, which Open Space Arts produced from June 3 to July 19 this year. In this two-character 90-minute play, a voice lesson becomes a profound experience for the music teacher and her adult student. As they work together on a song, what initially seems like a simple musical exchange becomes something more personal, more complicated, and more revealing.
THE SWALLOW (originally titled LA GOLONDRINA) premiered in London in 2018. It was produced in Madrid the following year, with Carmen Maura, the star of seven films directed by the legendary Pedro Almodovar, as the music teacher. THE SWALLOW has also been staged in Athens, Rome, Washington, DC, and New York City. The Open Space Arts production will open on Friday, September 11, at 7:30 pm, and play Fridays through Sundays through September 27. All performances are in Open Space Arts’ hyper-intimate 25-seat theatre at 1411 W. Wilson Ave., Chicago.
Open Space Arts’ production of THE SWALLOW will be directed by Laine Rogers, whose credits include work with a wide swath of Chicago theatre companies, including MadKap Productions, Piven Theatre, Raven Theatre, Concert Opera of Greater Chicago, Pride Arts, Actors Training Center, Muskegon Civic Theatre, and DePaul University. Her cast will include Chicago veteran actress Michelle McKenzie-Voight as the teacher, Emily, and Jim Nally, a recent transplant to Chicago from Cleveland, as Ray. The production team is Dorothy Sargent (Stage Manager), Rick Paul (Set Designer), Dominique Favre (Costume Designer), Sean Smyth (Lighting and Sound Designer), and Mark Forbis (Original Music).
Left - right: Michelle McKenzie-Voight, Jim Nally, Laine Rogers.
SMILEY author Guillem Clua is one of Spain’s most widely produced contemporary playwrights. His work has been staged internationally and translated into multiple languages. His plays, including SMILEY and THE SWALLOW, are known for their emotional intelligence, wit, and insight into the complexities of human connection. While SMILEY has become a global audience favorite, it has had only limited exposure in the United States, with select Spanish-language productions in New York and Miami. Open Space Arts’ production introduces this internationally celebrated work to Chicago audiences, offering a fresh opportunity to experience one of the most engaging contemporary queer love stories to emerge from the European stage.
Tickets for THE SWALLOW are $30.00 ($25.00 for students and seniors) and are on sale now at www.openspacearts.org.
LISTING INFORMATION
THE SWALLOW
By Guillem Clua
English Translation by Tim Gutteridge
Directed by Laine Rogers
September 11–27, 2026
Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 PM, Sundays at 3:00 PM
Open Space Arts, 1411 W. Wilson Ave., Chicago
Tickets $30.00 general admission, $25.00 students and seniors. On sale now at https://www.openspacearts.org
THE SWALLOW is set during a private singing lesson between a choral director and a new student. As they work together on a song, what initially seems like a simple musical exchange becomes something more personal, more complicated, and more revealing.
With humor, tension, and emotional precision, the play explores grief, memory, family, faith, identity, and the stories people tell in order to survive. Music becomes both a refuge and a doorway, allowing two strangers to move toward truths that have been difficult to face. THE SWALLOW is a powerful theatrical encounter about loss, compassion, and the possibility of connection when people are willing to listen.
BIOS
Laine Rogers (Director) is a Chicago-based theatre artist whose work includes directing, assistant directing, stage management, dramaturgy, design, marketing, and production. She holds a BFA in Theatre Arts from The Theatre School at DePaul University, and her credits include work with MadKap Productions, Piven Theatre, Raven Theatre, Concert Opera of Greater Chicago, PrideArts Center, Actors Training Center, Muskegon Civic Theatre, and DePaul University. She has worked on productions including A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, BOY GETS GIRL, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, PRIVATE LIVES, TOP GIRLS, LOVE AND INFORMATION, and L’ITALIANA IN ALGERI.
Guillem Clua (Playwright) is from Barcelona, Spain and is considered one of the most innovative voices in the Spanish theater scene and part of a new generation of playwrights born in the seventies who are transforming the Catalan stage with their plays. Critics have described his work as multidisciplinary, eclectic, and very much concerned with narrative structure and plot. Storytelling is at the heart of his style, which combines elements of comedy, thriller and melodrama, a vibrant rhythm, and the unabashed influence of other media, such as television and cinema.
Michelle McKenzie-Voigt (Emily) Off-Broadway/Chicago: GUS AND ALICE (Theatre 31). Chicago: A NEW BRAIN, BEAUTIFUL THING, THE CHILDREN’S HOUR, THE BOY FROM OZ (Pride Arts); BILLY ELLIOT (Porchlight); GYPSY (Harper Ensemble Theatre); MAME, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, GUYS AND DOLLS (Music Theater Works). Regional: STEEL MAGNOLIAS, THE FULL MONTY, CHURCH BASEMENT LADIES 2 (Timber Lake Playhouse). 2019 Chicago Musical Theater Festival Award (Best Supporting Performer). Deep gratitude for the past and red grapes to Ron. Thanks to Laine, David, and Jim.
Jim Nally (Ray) trained at Green Shirt Studios, previously performed with Black Sheep Improv (Ohio University). This production is his Chicago theatrical debut. When not onstage, Jim works as a men’s clothier. He enjoys sewing, hiking, and any 4 am bar with a dance floor.
OPEN SPACE ARTS, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, is dedicated to combating homophobia and transphobia through the transformative power of creativity and cultural expression. Our mission is to foster inclusivity, promote understanding, and empower marginalized communities by utilizing various artistic mediums to challenge discriminatory beliefs and attitudes. OSA has won some of the top honors in the Joseph Jefferson Awards for work produced in the past two years. 2025 honors included Production of a Play – Short Run (COCK), Direction of a Play – Short Run (Michael D. Graham - LIGHT SWITCH), Performer in a Principal Role – Short Run (Philip Andrew Monnett – LIGHT SWITCH), and Performer in a Supporting Role – Short Run (Sonya Robinson – COCK). The company was recognized in 2026 for Performer in a Principal Role – Short Run (Andrew Kain Miller – MR. PARKER) and Performer in a Supporting Role – Short Run (Josh Odor – GANGSTA BABY). Additionally, Open Space Arts has produced SUNSETS: TWO ACTS ON A BEACH, ROSENBERG, MASSAGE THERAPY, MERCY KILLING, MR. PARKER, “it’s been ten years since everyone died. a play about final girls,” SCANDALOUS BOY, GANGSTA BABY, DORIAN and THE KRAMER PROJECT in live performances. OSA also produces the Queer Expressions Film Fest, a hybrid fest of streaming and in-person events. Open Space Arts is led by David Zak.