July 3-27, 2008
(in order of appearance)

THE NEAR EAST by Alex Lewin An American archaeologist teams up with an Arab activist to unearth "Mother of Books," the oldest scripture, from its resting place in the desert between Mecca and Medina. But their controversial mission affects a number of other characters, including a secretly gay Arab radical, a British spy, and the ghost of a precocious 13-year-old boy. 7/3 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/5 8:15pm   buy tickets

BOX AMERICANA by Jason Grote Follow Kelly, a perky and passionate cheerleader for Wal-Mart, and Danae, a devoted mother escaping a violent past, as they seek the "promised land" of retail abundance. Sam Walton, wandering the earth as a spirit of late capitalism, haunts them as they try to make their lives in the epicenter of Sprawlville, USA. 7/4 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/6 5:15pm   buy tickets

SMUDGE by Rachel Axler When a young couple's first child doesn't turn out as expected, they're forced to revise their notions about what constitutes a life, and to figure out - in their own, specific ways - how to be parents. A very, very, very dark comedy. 7/10 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/12 8:15pm   buy tickets

MAGNOLIA by Regina Taylor Winter, 1963: The schools, stores and real estate markets of Atlanta are beginning to desegregate. A white landowner returns from Paris to find her family's estate on the brink of ruin. A successful businessman, and the descendent the estate's former slaves, has a plan: turn the land into subdivisions and sell it to the white families fleeing the city. Tensions build as an estranged family reunited tries to save their beloved land - magnolia trees and all. A collaboration with Chicago's Goodman Theatre. 7/11 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/13 5:15pm   buy tickets

THUNDER ABOVE, DEEPS BELOW by A. Rey Pamatmat Three homeless friends - a Filipina-American with a hidden past, a Filipina transsexual, and a Puerto Rican hustler - struggle on the Chicago streets to scrounge up enough cash to bus it to San Francisco before the winter cold hits. But when a bearded man on a quest, a mystery man in sunglasses, a wealthy john, and a doughnut shop's spell-casting assistant manager put their hopes and friendships to the test, will the trio be able to spare some change? 7/17 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/20 8:15pm   buy tickets

ITALIAN SOJOURN by Neena Beber An American exchange student goes on the lam in Italy after the murder of her roommate. Escaping arrest, she traverses the Italian landscape, experiencing its beauty and its sorrows. A chance encounter with the victim's brother causes her to reexamine her ideas about fate, free will, guilt and freedom. Very loosely based on a current true crime case, Italian Sojourn explores the passions of youth and the seductions of foreign lands. 7/18 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/20 5:15pm   buy tickets

THE LEGEND OF MINNIE WILLET by Ann Marie Healy Ladies everywhere doing all sorts of strange things: taking and being taken, passing on and being passed up, falling in love and falling apart. What begins as a rollicking winter season of sexual abandonment ends with a chilling blood wedding for the legendary Minnie Willet: town maverick, town eccentric and, ultimately, town martyr. 7/24 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/26 8:15pm   buy tickets

WITHOUT YOU by Ursula Rani Sarma All Simon ever really wanted was to have someone to love...but you should be careful what you wish for. Without You looks at the wonder and chaos of love and asks how much you are willing to sacrifice for it. The Irish Project at the O'Neill. 7/25 8:15pm   buy tickets 7/27 5:15pm   buy tickets

Tickets purchased online will be available at the box office prior to the performance. Enjoy the show!