2021-22 at Pegasus

Pegasus Theatre Chicago’s 2021-22 season offers fully, staged and recorded virtual production that continue to mine new voices beginning with the 35th Young Playwrights Festival. Young Playwrights Festival kicked off the season with the Virtual Final Round Celebration on September 6.

35th YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL

Jan 6-Feb 6, 2022 | Streaming Virtually and On-Demand in Your Home or School

Pegasus presents this professional production of winning plays from the annual playwriting competition for Chicago high-school-age scribes. Three one-act plays will be showcased in tandem. The second oldest such festival in the country, this annual tradition regularly receives over 500 submissions from students throughout the area. From those, the winning playwrights are chosen to join with professional artists to workshop and stage their scripts.

Be sure to witness the startling and fresh results while enjoying an evening of theater from tomorrow’s stars in the comfort of your home!

All Tickets: Gen Admission: $25 | Students: $15
Group and school matinee pricing available!

2017-18 SEASON

PEGASUS THEATRE CHICAGO ANNOUNCES ITS 2017 – 2018 SEASON, “LEGACIES”

Pegasus Theatre Chicago’s 2017-18 Season offers productions that explore the Civil Rights era from a timeless story of a girl raised by a community of southern women after losing her mother to tragedy, to four new additions from local young playwrights, to a world premiere about a perilous journey from the south. This season honors America’s tumultuous and triumphant journeys while reminding us the lessons we still must learn.

Shakin’ The Mess Outta Misery

by Shay Youngblood | November 8-December 10th | Chicago Dramatists

Youngblood’s story of a young black girl’s coming of age during the turbulent 1960s \ kicks off the season. “Daughter,” shares being raised in the south by a community of women after losing her mother as a child. She then becomes a child again as the women embody her memories of growing up–recalling the rituals, the faith healings, the stories told and the lessons about survival, healing, deep faith and mystery. Pegasus Artistic Director Ilesa Duncan originally directed this hit play nearly two decades ago at Chicago Theater Company. The Chicago Tribune said, “…even though the backdrop of racism is omnipresent, this is an optimistic play that celebrates the power of the human spirit.”

31st Annual Young Playwrights Festival

January 4-28, 2018 | Chicago Dramatists

The season continues with full production of winning plays from the annual playwriting competition for high-school-age scribes in Chicago. Four one-act plays will be showcased as part of Pegasus’ main stage season. The second oldest such festival in the country, this annual tradition regularly receives over 500 submissions from students throughout the area. From those, the winning playwrights are chosen to join with professional artists to workshop and stage their scripts.

This year’s Young Playwrights Festival includes:

Bullet With Butterfly Wings, student playwright: Maday Favela, Whitney M. Young Magnet High School, teacher: Elizabeth Danesh

Monster, student playwright: Mairi Glynn, Von Steuben High School, teacher: Margaret Sullivan

Decision Day, student playwright: Abigail Henkin, Lane Tech College Prep, teacher: Brian Telles

Pencils and Pens, student playwright: Aaron Powdermaker, Lane Tech College Prep, teacher: Kirsten Hanson.

Be sure to witness the amazing results and enjoy an evening of theater from tomorrow’s theater stars.

The Green Book

By Calvin A. Ramsey | March 1-April 1, 2018 | Chicago Dramatists
A co-production with ShPIeL Performing Identity

Written by the award-winning co-author of “Ruth and the Green Book,” the play is an homage to the historical travel book and centers on the Davis’, an African-American family who open their home to black travelers in the south during Jim Crow/segregation and activism. The play is also an investigation of the impact of civil rights on contemporary American issues. Inspired by Victor Hugo Green’s historical “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” the setting takes place during a weekend when the Davis’ are celebrating the arrival of Dr. W.E.B. DuBois for a lecture. The appearance of a white visitor, who turns out to be a Jewish Holocaust survivor, sets off a chain of events that shows that racism and anti-Semitism cannot be ignored.

All Tickets: $18-30
Group and student pricing available!

Pegasus 2016-17 Season

Pegasus Theatre Chicago’s 2016-17 Season offers productions that range from an exciting adaptation of a beloved novel about a young man who reverse migrates and embarks on a journey of discovery, to four new additions from local young playwrights, to a new work about a perilous journey from the south. This season promises to honor the epic journey in us all.

Rutherford’s Travels

November 2-December 4th | Chicago Dramatists

This season Pegasus brings the world premiere adaptation of Charles Johnson’s  MIDDLE PASSAGE  to the stage. Told through Rutherford Calhoun’s 1830’s log entries, a newly freed Illinois youth seeks fortune in New Orleans. He soon stows away on an outbound rigger to escape debtors. But The Republic isn’t just any ship. It’s a slave ship and it’s headed to Africa.

Rutherford’s Travels connects to contemporary issues as the protagonist is an educated, but fatherless youth.  Though seeking independence, Calhoun gets trapped in gangster life. His journey aboard a slave ship forces him to confront history and his own inner demons.  This is a perfect show for book clubs, history lovers, maritime buffs, and adventure seekers of all ages.

30th Young Playwrights Festival

January 4-29, 2017 | Chicago Dramatists

The 2016-17 season continues with full production of winning plays from the annual playwriting competition for high-school-age scribes in Chicago. Four one-act plays will be hand-picked and showcased as part of Pegasus’ main stage season. The second oldest such festival in the country, this annual tradition regularly receives over 500 submissions from students throughout the area. From those, the winning playwrights are chosen to join with professional artists to workshop and stage their scripts. Be sure to witness the amazing results and enjoy an evening of theater from tomorrow’s theater stars. Group and student pricing available. Tickets are on sale now!

MUSE 2017

July 13-23, 2017 | Chicago Dramatists

Rounding out its 2017 season, Pegasus Theatre celebrates new works, new artists and new voices with its annual series of theatrical readings, panels and performances featuring female artists intersecting ideas, visions, and artistic excellence.

This year’s MUSE,  Femmes Noires de la Resistance, focuses on black women holding their own power.  MUSE 2017 will feature storytelling duo In The Spirit, spoken word artists Surviving The Mic and HerStory, as well as musician L11, and theatrical performances by Quenna Barrett, Tasia Jones, and excerpts from the plays of Marsha Estell, Loy Webb and Tsehaye Hébert. Pegasus will also present excerpts from the upcoming 2018 Season!

Tickets: $10 per performance; Festival Pass available.

 

Garden Party Fundraiser

Join Pegasus Theatre for a Garden Party Fundraiser for our upcoming world premiere of Rutherford’s Travels (adapted from MacArthur Fellow Charles Johnson’s award-winning novel Middle Passage), Saturday, June 11th from 6:00 – 8:00PM in Evanston, IL.  Get the link to the event when you purchase your ticket.

This riveting tale, set in 1830 and told through Rutherford’s journal, follows the RT_Graphic Only_Apr29newly freed Illinois youth who has migrated south to New Orleans seeking fortune. In an attempt to escape debtors and avoid marriage, he stows away on an outbound rigger. But The Republic is not just any ship.  It is a slave ship—and it’s headed to Africa. Of Middle Passage, the Chicago Tribune said, “Long after we’d stopped believing in the great American novel, along comes a spellbinding adventure story that may be just that.”

Your donation supports the world premiere production set for November 2-December 4th!

How your donation will make a difference:
  • $100 will support the production team
  • $500 will support costumes and props
  • $1,000 ensures we can build amazing scenic and sound experiences
  • $5,000 will allow us to hire AEA (union) actors!

Click the link below to RSVP via electronic payment, call 773.878.8864 to pay via phone, or mail your check by June 8th to: Pegasus Theatre Chicago, 1105 W. Chicago Avenue, Ste. 202, Chicago, IL  60642.

Pegasus and special guest Dr. Charles Johnson look forward to seeing you at the June 11th Garden Party.

Pegasus 2016 Season

pegasus-2015-16season-square

RUTHERFORD’S TRAVELS

STAGED READINGS with Music | Adapted by David Barr, III and Ilesa Duncan

April 15 – 17 2016 Open Session, Readings & More!

Pegasus presents this sneak peak readings. A spellbinding tale based on the beloved book MIDDLE PASSAGE. Told through Rutherford Calhoun’s 1830s log entries, The newly freed Illinois youth has migrated south to New Orleans seeking fortune, where he stows away on an outbound rigger to escape debtors. But The Republic isn’t just any ship. It’s a slave ship and it’s headed to Africa!  From an open rehearsal on April 15, to a staged reading and discussion, there are several opportunities to engage!  Join us for a special reception where you can meet Dr. Charles Johnson, MacArthur Fellow & author of MIDDLE PASSAGE.  The adventure begins…

Get Reading Tickets Here:
Tickets: Regular $12 | Students $10

April 16, 6:00PM Special Event:
Reception with Dr. Charles Johnson, Author of MIDDLE PASSAGE, National Book Award Winner & MacArthur Genius
Click for Event Tickets $25-$300* – Includes the 7:30PM Reading
*Be A Production Donor:
$25 – Stowaway – Reception, Staged Reading
$50 – Shipmate -Above plus Name in Program
$75 – Deckhand – Above plus Advanced ticket to Fall Production
$100 – Boatswain – Above plus guest at a rehearsal in October 2016
$300 – Captain  – Above plus Private Event with Johnson, stage adaptors and cast

MUSE 2016: MIGRATIONS & JOURNEYS

March 25–April 10 2016

Pegasus’ annual MUSE Festival features music, poetry, dance and discussion inspired by the Great Migration Centennial celebration.

Featuring:
CLASSIC BLACK: Southern Roots & Urban Migrations – Zahra Baker, Mwata Bowden, Shanta Nurullah and Avreeayl Ra. The group will share memories, stories and music connected to the Great Migration and life in Chicago.

QUEEN’S DOMAIN: Two nights of poetry, dance and music celebrating women of color. Curated and hosted by L11

DISCUSSION: Join us for two fascinating panels on history, legacy, diversity, and collaboration curated and moderated by playwright/producer Reginald Edmund and actor/educator Ashley Honoré!

FOR HER AS A PIANO

September 30–November 1 2015 | by Nambi E. Kelley | directed by Ilesa Duncan | produced in association with The Goodman Theatre and Chicago Dramatists

Kelley’s new play is the story of one woman’s journey to unravel a history that she’s never been told. Through music, memory and magic, FOR HER AS A PIANO traces the lives of three generations of women, and how they are interconnected across time, space, and remembrance.

Nambi has penned plays for Steppenwolf, Goodman Theatre, and Court Theatre, American Blues, Lincoln Center in New York, and internationally. Most recently, her adaptation of Native Son was presented to critical acclaim at Court Theatre with American Blues Theatre (co-production) and was the highest grossing production in Court Theatre’s 60 year history. Native Son is also on the Kilroy’s List 2015, in the top 7 % of new plays by female and trans* authors nominated by literary managers, directors, and other artists polled across the country. Kelley recently returned to Singapore to perform in her co-adaptation of The Book of Living and Dying that was published in an anthology of plays in Singapore in 2014, and is working on several commissions with productions slated in 2016. Nambi is also a professional actress, most recently closing the critically acclaimed Two Trains Running at the Goodman Theatre, and has been seen on television in Person of Interest, Madam Secretary, Elementary, and Chicago PD. Nambi guest lectures at Lake Forest College, University of Illinois at Chicago, has a BFA from The Theatre School at DePaul University, and an MFA in interdisciplinary arts from Goddard College.  www.nambikelley.com

29th YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL

January 2016 | Chicago Dramatists

Pegasus Theatre’ will present the season production resulting from its annual playwriting competition for high-school-age scribes in Chicago. Three to four one-act plays will be hand-picked and showcased in a full production as part of Pegasus’ main stage season. The second oldest such festival in the country, this annual tradition regularly receives over 500 submissions from students throughout the area. From those, the winning playwrights are chosen to join with professional artists to workshop and stage their scripts. Be sure to witness the amazing results and enjoy an evening of theater from tomorrow’s theater stars. Plays will be selected by September 2015.