Thank you for an inspiring Re/Generation Studio!
Re/Generation Studio is About Face Theatre’s invitation to build the future of queer theatre together. This welcoming series of public workshops is shaped as a collective dreaming space for connecting with each other, learning about new plays, world-building, and exploring new production models.
All workshops are free and open to the public.
View the 2023-2024 Re/Generation Studio schedule below.
Meet the staff, workshop artists, and reading performers in our Re/Generation Studio online playbill.
Thursday, Nov 30 @ 5:30pm
Kick off Re/Generation Studio in style! AFT Artistic Director Megan Carney and Re/Generation Studio Artistic Producer Catherine Miller will present their thoughts on building community and charting the future of queer theatre. Meet series artists and other Chicago theatre creatives in an informal setting before workshops and events begin. Refreshments will be provided! (1 hour)
Thursday, Nov 30 @ 7:00pm
Wondering what questions to ask when an audition call says there will be nudity in the show? Looking to build confidence in performing intimate material? In this workshop for performers, intimacy choreographer Courtney Abbott will offer exercises and facilitated discussion for actors who want to learn more about performing intimacy, along with techniques for maintaining and repairing personal boundaries through auditions, rehearsals, and the performance run. (2 hours)
Friday, Dec 1 @ 5:30pm
Welcome to S.L.A.Y, a place to build community with like-minded creatives. This session will include ice breakers, snacks, and immaculate vibes. Choose how you want to engage: try your luck at our trivia game, join us for a chat about the weekend’s upcoming reading, or just relax and meet someone new. (1 hour)
Friday, Dec 1 @ 7:00pm
In A Home Education, two homeschooled teenage girls in the early 2010s try to navigate their newfound relationship with each other and with themselves. Join us for this highly interactive play reading and workshop exploring the world of this new work. (2 hours)
Saturday, Dec 2 @ 11:00am
Part 1: That Hits Different. An introduction to creative and dynamic staging for directors, performers, and community builders. (2 hours)
Saturday, Dec 2 @ 3:00pm
All the world’s a stage, and you’re the only one on it! Join Will Wilhelm, co-creator and performer of Gender Play, or what you Will, for a hands-on workshop where participants will explore creating solo work. We’ll investigate storytelling elements such as relationship with the audience, utilizing archetypes to create character, and finding the universal through the personal. Come prepared with an anecdote to share from your own life or an existing story you’d like to retell through your own lens. (2 hours)
Thursday, Dec 7 @ 5:30pm
Find your next creative collaborator via a fun activity designed to facilitate conversation around your artistic needs and interests. We’ll also still have games, a chat about the weekend’s reading, and a chance to win a prize via trivia. You don’t want to miss it! (1 hour)
Thursday, Dec 7 @ 7:00pm
Quyen Tran is an lgbtq+ public speaker who has been performing as her drag king alter ego, Jayden Jamison for 18+ years. In those 18+, Jayden has performed nationally and internationally; earned a national title as Mr. Gay United States Male Illusionist 2016; has a drag documentary, Kings, Queens and In Betweens; and has taught over 56 new drag kings through his drag king workshops. But what makes Jayden’s accomplishments more remarkable is the unlikely path Quyen took from being a Vietnamese refugee to the stage. It’s these life experiences that Quyen draws on to bring Jayden to life while connecting the themes of intersectionality, racism, masculinity, sexual orientation, and gender identity. It’s the belief that through art, we can change our communities for the better. (2 hours)
Friday, Dec 8 @ 7:00pm
In Why Are Graham Crackers Hard?, Ryan finds themself out of work, homeless, and crashing with her childhood friend Becca. When Ryan’s sister Anne brings her nieces to town for an unexpected visit, Becca comes along for the ride and, in the midst of the chaos, reveals her affections for Ryan. Affections everyone else has known for years… except for Ryan. As their worlds continue to spiral out of control and Anne decides to leave her daughters for good, Ryan must come to terms with their choices and become the adult they never planned to be. Join us for this highly interactive play reading and workshop exploring the world of this new work. (3 hours)
Saturday, Dec 9 @ 11:00am
Part 2: Building Care into Action. Participants learn how to mindfully create work containing sensitive content. (2 hours)
Saturday, Dec 9 @ 3:00pm
Directing new plays is one of the best ways for emerging directors to make connections, gain exposure, and practice their craft, but before any new play is ready for an audience, it goes through a development process. From responding to early drafts to rehearsing readings and workshops, the director’s role in the development process is unique, and this workshop aims to give emerging directors the tools to be effective collaborators in this work. You will learn strategies for setting workshop goals, how to best engage with the work and facilitate feedback, and how to organize and direct a successful play reading, all while serving as the champion and shepherd of your playwright and their work. (2 hours)
Thursday, Dec 14 @ 5:30pm
Gather with About Face Theatre and Re/Generation Studio leadership and artists to compare notes from the previous weeks and look to the future of queer theatre. Mingle with series artists and other Chicago theatre creatives in an informal setting to discuss what we’ve discovered through this workshop series. Refreshments will be provided! (1 hour)
Thursday, Dec 14 @ 7:00pm
Want to learn about writing for oneself from two of the most self-absorbed playwrights in Chicago? This is the workshop for you! We’ll have two sessions of presenting work, receiving feedback, and asking questions. This is not a class for offering opinions but one for sharing art, sharing supportive thoughts, and leaving with a better idea of where you’d like to go. (2 hours)
Friday, Dec 15 @ 5:30pm
We’ll be joined by special guest Emilio Williams, the playwright of this weekend’s reading, Yūgen. You’ll get a sneak peak at the script and the chance to weigh in on the play’s content. Snacks and games included! (1 hour)
Friday, Dec 15 @ 7:00pm
In Yūgen, Dan is a middle-aged-cis-white-queen teaching theater studies at an elite university in Chicago. Karin is his non-binary, Asian grad student. And Vanessa is the Black diversity, inclusion and equity officer caught in the crossfire between these two bigger than life queer folx. Can the discord among queer activists be sublimated by humor and a timeless aesthetic reconciliation? Join us for a highly interactive reading and workshop for this new play which explores the beauty and frustration of intergenerational queer dynamics. (2 hours)
Saturday, Dec 16 @ 11:00am
Part 3: Activism & Theatre. Participants learn how devising can be used to address cultural issues and shape contemporary storytelling. With special guest theatre artist and cultural strategist Alyssa Vera Ramos. (2 hours)
Saturday, Dec 16 @ 3:00pm
Want to learn about writing for oneself from two of the most self-absorbed playwrights in Chicago? This is the workshop for you! We’ll have two sessions of presenting work, receiving feedback, and asking questions. This is not a class for offering opinions but one for sharing art, sharing supportive thoughts, and leaving with a better idea of where you’d like to go. Note: This workshop is distinct from the one earlier in the weekend. You may may attend either or both, if you wish. (2 hours)
About Face first premiered Re/Generation Studio in February 2023. It was envisioned as a space for reconnecting and re-imagining after the social and creative isolation of the pandemic. The first iteration of Re/Generation Studio included five play readings and workshops, featuring a wide variety of playwrights, directors, actors, and audience members. The overwhelmingly positive response to these workshops proved that Chicago’s creative communities are eager for a chance to rebuild community bonds and engage in collective dreaming and creating.
About Face Theatre has a long history of building community and engaging with our audiences through touring shows, educational workshops, and play readings. AFT’s education programs first started in 1999 with About Face Youth Theatre. Re/Generation Studio is part of the company’s continuing evolution to respond to the needs of its community to advance LGBTQ+ equity.