2024
Tell Me You’re Dying (or the trial of millicent bonhomme)
By C.A. Johnson
Dramaturgy by Otis Ramsey-Zoe
June 28-30
When five individuals unite in their weekly support group, they forge a sanctuary of care and companionship despite the apocalypse currently plaguing their world. Characterized by discussions of illness and mortality, grandiose philosophical speeches, spirited swearing, and the undeniable physical urge for human connection and family, Tell Me You’re Dying compels us to question not only if we can change but if we have time to do so while the world appears to be ending.
Celebrating Sixty-Five Years of the Ladies Journal of Cambridge, Massachusetts!
By Anna Ziegler
Directed by David Auburn
July 18-20
A time-shifting exploration of the life of a women’s magazine – why it starts, why it ends, and whether very much at all has changed for women over the course of the last 65 years. From underestimated faculty wives at Harvard in the 1950s who long to break free of their societal roles to modern-day midwestern office workers still wishing for more, Celebrating Sixty-Five-Years of the Ladies Journal of Cambridge Massachusetts! is a sharply funny and poignant play about the progress of feminism and whether it’s ever possible (or indeed desirable) to have it all.
falcon girls
By Hilary Bettis
Directed by Lily Wolf
Dramaturgy by Liz Frankel
August 16-17
This is a true story. It’s the 90s in rural Falcon, Colorado. Six teenage girls on the FFA horse judging team are determined to make it to nationals come hell or high water. But to do that, they must grapple with jealousy, rivalries, sex, Jesus, AOL chat rooms, impossible expectations, and rumors of a serial killer. Hilary Bettis’s falcon girls is an achingly funny and brutally honest coming-of-age memoir––and a love letter to the girls she grew up with and the horses who saved their lives.
2023
Proximity
By Harrison David Rivers
July 8–9
Newly divorced and sheltering at home with her two children, Ezra hasn’t been touched by another adult in eight months. When she’s introduced to Irie, a charismatic fellow single parent, at a virtual PTA meeting, their immediate attraction causes Ezra to reconsider the limits of her Covid-bubble.
Equity Guest Actors: Kalyne Coleman, Lori Laing
Conservatory Actors: Cole Taylor, Colby Muhammad
If you are interested in checking out some of Harrison’s other new, but as of yet, unpublished plays, check out the links below:
These scripts are for personal use only and may not be distributed or copied without permission from the playwright.
Cannabis Passover
By Sofya Levitsky-Weitz
July 28–29
A somewhat dysfunctional, multi-generational family of Reform Jews congregates at a rented beach house to celebrate Passover, planning to light up more than just the Seder candles. As the generations share stories, debate about social justice issues, and try not to burn the food, they veer off-script from the Haggadah… and strange things begin to reveal themselves. On this night, right now, what does it mean to repair the world?
Equity Guest Artists: Jill Abramovitz, Maddie Corman, Marc Kudisch, Richard Topol
Conservatory Artists: Edoardo Benzoni, Karen Killeen, Fiona Maguire, Anna Roman, Daniel Velez, Olivia Songer
The Bleeding Class
By Chisa Hutchinson
Aug. 19–20
The world is under attack by a deadly plague and Sugar, a Dominican-American escort from the Bronx might just be the key to saving all of humanity. When Sugar visits the reserved Black doctor, Dr. Wesley Pennington, the two are suddenly forced to team up and move into a hastily built research compound owned by a faceless pharmaceutical giant. Power dynamics shift constantly in this highly theatrical allegorical tale, presciently written before the Covid-19 pandemic. The Bleeding Class challenges us to ask ourselves what we are willing to sacrifice, who we are willing to trust, and if we are willing to love.
Equity Guest Artists: Danaya Esperanza, Tramell Tillman, Steven Rishard, Myrna Cabello
Conservatory Artists: Colby Muhammad
Design Fellows: Brandi Alexander, Rin Menge, André Segar, Belle Alatorre
2022
FLOWERS OF HAWAII
By Lee Cataluna
June 22-24
“We understand what it’s like to raise kids who turn out nothing like we intended.”
This extended Hawaii family has a wealth of personalities including sexy grandmothers, delinquent grandkids, gender-fluid cousins, abusive wives, addict uncles, and more. They clash, they break, they mend, they eat, and they love each other. Lee Cataluna dishes up a unique play filled with heartbreak and humor and a dash of authentic Hawaiiana.
THROUGH THE EYES OF HOLLY GERMAINE
By Y York
July 20-22
“Marty said when I help the birds it will change people’s impression of my shallowness.”
On the Canary Islands in the spring of 1986, an oil spill changes everything. In this enticing new eco-drama by Y York, a rising movie star’s vacation becomes an environmental rescue mission, a long-lost love triangle re-emerges as a quadrangle, and buried family secrets are washed ashore for all to see. Romantic, funny, and deadly serious, the truth will emerge Through the Eyes of Holly Germaine.
BLACK LIKE ME, adapted from the memoir by John Howard Griffin
By Monty Cole
July 23-24
“Like shipwrecked people, we huddled together in a warmth and courtesy that was equal parts pure and pathetic.”
In 1961, white journalist John Howard Griffin medically darkened his skin to “pass” as Black. With the goal of investigating race, Griffin traveled the segregated South for three weeks and published his experiences in a series of journal entries. Black Like Me revisits Griffin’s memoir through the response of modern-day characters. This innovative noir docu-drama examines the fine line between allyship and appropriation and asks how we can transform into the people we truly want to be.
2021
REBECCA OXACA LAYS DOWN A BUNT
By Kristoffer Diaz
August 18
In this modern day five-door farce, the overarching theme is to find, express, and celebrate your true calling in life. The action takes place in a renovated hotel, The Hotelman Arms, in Chicago, where the motto is, “No privacy is the new privacy.” The cast features a wide range of idiosyncratic roles including the title bunter who just wants to have fun, a mystery writer working on her next bestseller, a blogger trying to capture the next big thing, various members of the hotel staff who are either trying to hide or make love to the guests, and baseball executives that are vying to sign Rebecca to a major league deal. The pace is fast and furious.
TAILBONE
By Juliette Carrillo
August 16
Tailbone follows a woman named Anabelle who is determined to take her next relationship in baby steps, but when her new beau gets flooded out of his apartment, she’s quick to suggest he stay with her.
2019
HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN
By E. M. Lewis
Directed by Emilie Beck
July 18–20
While grappling with her recent cancer diagnosis, a travel writer meets a frustrated Japanese architect, a homeless girl who lives under a weeping willow tree, and a tattoo artist who doesn’t want to use his gift. How the Light Gets Inis a poetic and quirky romantic comedy about four lonely people who find each other when one of them falls apart.
ON THE EXHALE
By Martín Zimmerman
Directed by Patrick Walsh (CTC Directing Fellow alum)
An Actor/Director Workshop
August 14–18
When the tragedy of mass shootings hits home, one mother finds herself inexplicably drawn to the weapon that changed her life forever. On the Exhale is a powerful solo performance featuring CTC alumna Claire Karpen, directed by CTC alumnus Patrick Walsh.
AGENT 355
Music, Lyrics and Book by Preston Max Allen
Book and Dramaturgy by Jessica Kahkoska
Directed by Estefanía Fadul
August 15–18
True story: during the Revolutionary War, an unidentified female spy helped George Washington and his army to victory. Today, a contemporary all-female band is determined to figure out who she was. In the New Play Workshop’s first musical, Agent 355 explores the loyalty, heritage, and courage of six real Revolutionary women whose stories, sacrifices, and secrets shaped the nation.
2018
UNTITLED RUSSIA PLAY
By Lauren Yee
July 30– August 1
Two young Russian men try to find their way after the fall of communism. An absurd comedy about art, love and advertising in the dawn of capitalism.
JUMP
By Charly Evon Simpson
August 2– August 4
After a death in the family, Fay finds unexpected solace on a bridge. A poetic drama about family, loss and the kindness of strangers.
THE AMISH PROJECT
By Jessica Dickey
August 19-21
A fictional investigation of the real life Nickel Mines school shooting, this riveting one-woman show explores the Amish community’s concept of radical forgiveness. Performed by CTC Conservatory alumna Kathryn Metzger, The Amish Project portrays two communities shattered by a mass shooting, and the journey to healing.
2017
DAN CODY’S YACHT
By Anthony Giardina
June 9-10
Chautauqua Theater Company is pleased to announce an unorthodox addition to its 2017 repertoire — on June 9 and 10, the company welcomes playwright Anthony Giardina and director Doug Hughes to Bratton Theater for a “New Play Workshop: Pre-season” staged reading of Dan Cody’s Yacht. Its stop at Chautauqua represents a significant step for CTC and Chautauqua toward the long-term goal of more off-season offerings.
BIRTHDAY CANDLES
By Noah Haidle
August 1-4
Birthday Candles follows Ernestine Ashworth on a magical 100-year journey from her 17th birthday through her 117th. This quirky and clever play invites us into questions of identity, family and legacy. Birthday Candles was commissioned by Detroit Public Theatre and will premiere there this fall.
BUILDING THE WALL
By Robert Schenkkan
August 2-5
Written by the Pulitzer and Tony winning playwright Robert Schenkkan, Building The Wall is a tense, immediate drama that brings a human element to what could happen when inflamatory rhetoric transforms into policy. Not to be missed!
2016
TINY HOUSES
By Chelsea Marcantel
July 14-16
Bohdi is a hypnotherapist. Jevne is a YouTube artist. Ollie sells haunted dolls online. Cath just left her job to move to Oregon with her boyfriend. And they are all building a house together in the back yard. In a world where bigger is always better, can tiny really be happy? Or is this a recipe for disaster? A comedy about what happens when the world shrinks.
THE GLOW OVERHEAD
By Nick Gandiello
August 3-5
Maryanne and Allan Dempsey’s son disappeared in a deep cave dive many years ago and now a young and ambitious diver wants to retrieve his remains at great personal risk. This achingly beautiful play investigates the depth of loss when we unexpectedly lose someone we love and what might arise after they are gone.
2015
THE ENGINE OF OUR RUIN
By Jason Wells
July 17-18
A routine trade agreement nearly escalates into a declaration of war when a team of American diplomats meets with delegates from an unnamed Arab nation and diplomacy is –literally–lost in translation. A mischievously sharp-tongued comedy of misinformation and misunderstanding.
AFTERLOVE
By David West Read
August 5-7
A troubled young doctor, struggling with the loss of a patient, finds unexpected tenderness when he’s visited by an enchanting female ghost. A funny and poignant look at the afterlife of love.
2014
DAIRYLAND
By Heidi Armbruster
July 10-12
Allie, a food writer in NYC, is determined to find authenticity in a world of internet dating, baby shower crafting, and journalistic in-fighting. But when she takes on the local food movement she finds herself on the wrong side of an epic food fight. Allie escapes the city for her father’s dairy farm. Will a dairy cow named Patches leave Allie with a taste of the authenticity she craves?
THE GUADALUPE
By Carol Carpenter
July 31–August 2
On the first night of the annual harvest, the Northrip-Valle family farm becomes the target of a cartel territory war. But why? As gunmen surround the farmhouse in the dark hours of night, secrets unravel and politics collide as the family strategizes their escape.
2013
DARK RADIO
By Colin McKenna
Something is wrong in Ron’s suburban neighborhood, but he’s the only person in the family who seems to notice. Streets are deserted and cell phones are dead. The only communication Ron is receiving is from a single radio station, buried deep in the AM dial.
TRANSIT
By Kait Kerrigan
A small-town newscaster seizes her opportunity for a big break when an unidentified Muslim woman jumps in front of a commuter train on the one-year anniversary of a major terrorist attack. Delving into the haunted life of the train’s conductor, his ailing mother and his hapless colleague, Transit explores the power of faith in the face of fear – and of fear in the face of faith.