Victory Gardens Theater presents two Ignite Chicago readings in December 2021. Tokens of Promise, by Ada A. and directed by Sydney Chatman, on Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 3pm in partnership with ABJ Community Services/ABJ Arts, located at Trinity Episcopal Church, 125 E. 26th St, Chicago, and The Bottoming Process, by Nicholas Pilapil and directed by Hutch Pimentel, on Friday, December 10, 2021 at 7pm, in the Richard Christiansen Theater at Victory Gardens, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave in Chicago.
Tokens of Promise and The Bottoming Process are the second and third Ignite Chicago readings this season, presented as part of The Ignition New Play Program. Tickets are FREE but very limited and must be reserved through the box office at 773.871.3000 or online at www.victorygardens.org.
In Tokens of Promise, there’s only one open “diversity” position at this start-up, and the White Corporate Boss Guy is ready to watch the minorities duke it out for the sweet, sweet privilege of employment. Ada A.'s wicked satire about modern-day job search and employment culture offers a scathing rebuttal of the working world—and the cost of surviving within it.
In The Bottoming Process, two writers meet at WeWork and fall in love—or something like it. One is a famed novelist, and the other is a nobody who's mostly funny on Twitter. One is nearing middle age, and the other is flailing through their twenties. One is White, and the other is definitely Not. As they mate, date, and cohabitate, they'll grapple with issues of race, sex, power, and the model minority myth, all to find out who's really on top.
Artistic Director Ken-Matt Martin comments, “Through the new play development process, Victory Gardens is offering additional resources and opportunities for Ignite Chicago playwrights. One important element of this program is giving several playwrights the opportunity to develop their work in a community of their choice, thereby making free work accessible to audiences across the city. The reading of Ada A.’s Tokens of Promise will be held at ABJ Community Services, one of our Neighborhood Arts Collective-Chicago partners, as we continue to expand our partnership.”
Ignite Chicago is part of The Ignition New Play Program (formerly the Ignition Festival of New Plays), and is sponsored by The Pritzker Foundation and The Pritzker Pucker Family Foundation. The Ignition New Play Program consists of two events for the 2021/22 season: the Ignite Chicago reading series, offering six free readings of new works between October 2021 and July 2022, and the 20/50 Festival in June 2022, featuring three new works by playwrights over 50, staged by VG Directors Inclusion Initiative Fellows. Ignite Chicago readings will take place throughout the season, both at Victory Gardens’ home in Lincoln Park, the Biograph Theater, and at partner locations throughout the city, to bring new plays into Chicago’s many communities.
Remaining 2021-2022 Ignite Chicago readings include:
December 4, 2021: Tokens of Promise by Ada A.
December 10, 2021: The Bottoming Process by Nicholas Pilapil
February 2022: exercise your demons: a play on the trauma of a gay male body by Gage Tarlton
April 2022: Primary Trust by Eboni Booth
July 2022: Nancy by Rhiana Yazzie
All readings are free to attend, but reservations will be required, as capacity for each reading is limited. Registration for Ignition New Play Program events will be available at victorygardens.org approximately one month before each event.
Victory Gardens Theater 2021/22 Mainstage Season
The Victory Gardens Theater 2021/22 Mainstage Season includes Queen of the Night by travis tate, directed by Ken-Matt Martin, January 29 - March 13, 2022; the World Premiere of In Every Generation by Ali Viterbi, directed by Devon de Mayo, April 2 - May 1, 2022; and the Regional Premiere of cullud wattah by Erika Dickerson-Despenza, directed by Lili-Anne Brown, June 11 - July 17, 2022.
Flex Passes to the 2021/22 Season are currently on sale at victorygardens.org or by phone at 773.871.3000, and offer 20% savings over single ticket prices. Single tickets will go on sale later this fall, and range from $29-$62.
For complete details on the 2021/2022 Season and artists, Flex Passes, and the Ignition New Play Program, please visit victorygardens.org.
Victory Gardens Theater receives major funding from Allstate Insurance, Alphawood Foundation, Crown Family Philanthropies, Exelon Corporation, Illinois Arts Council, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, Prince Charitable Trusts, The Pritzker Foundation, and The Shubert Foundation.
Victory Gardens also receives support from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events, Coffman Law Offices, Conant Family Foundation, Golden Country Oriental Food, Goldman Sachs, a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, Mayer Brown LLP, The Charles H. and Bertha L. Boothroyd Foundation, and The Charles and M.R. Shapiro Foundation.
Victory Gardens Theater COVID-19 Attendance Policy
To protect the health of all who attend Victory Gardens productions, the following policies are in place for all in-person events for the 2021/22 Season: All audience members must be masked for the duration of their visit. Masks will be available for purchase onsite if needed. All audience members must provide proof of full COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test from within the last 72 hours, along with a valid photo ID, prior to entry to the theater. These policies follow state and local guidelines for safe operation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
About Victory Gardens Theater
Under the leadership of Artistic Director Ken-Matt Martin and Acting Managing Director Roxanna Conner, Victory Gardens is dedicated to artistic excellence while creating a vital, contemporary American Theater that is accessible and relevant to all people through productions of challenging new plays and musicals. Victory Gardens Theater is committed to the development, production and support of new plays, which has been the mission of the theater since its founding, set forth by Dennis Začek, Marcelle McVay, and the original founders of Victory Gardens Theater, and continued by former Artistic Director Chay Yew.
Victory Gardens Theater is a leader in developing and producing new theater work and cultivating an inclusive Chicago theater community. Victory Gardens’ core strengths are nurturing and producing dynamic and inspiring new plays, reflecting the diversity of our city’s and nation’s culture through engaging diverse communities, and, in partnership with Chicago Public Schools, bringing art and culture to our city’s active student population.
Since its founding in 1974, the company has produced more world premieres than any other Chicago theater, a commitment recognized nationally when Victory Gardens received the 2001 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. Located in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, Victory Gardens Biograph Theater includes the Začek-McVay Theater, a state-of-the-art 259-seat mainstage, and the 109-seat studio theater on the second floor, named the Richard Christiansen Theater.
For more information about Victory Gardens, visit www.victorygardens.org. Follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/victorygardens, Twitter @VictoryGardens, and Instagram @victorygardenstheater.