THE REDISCOVERY READINGS
Amplifying voices of the women who shaped American Theater
SEPTEMBER 2024 – FEBRUARY 2025
In our 2024-25 season, CSC will shine a light on American women who were writing the classics of the early 20th Century but whose legacies have been muted by time. Join us for four playreadings that will take you from 1900 through the 1950s, all leading up to CSC’s much-anticipated production of Wine in the Wilderness by Alice Childress, in which the women of the 1960s have their say!
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THE REDISCOVERY READINGS
Amplifying voices of the women who shaped American Theater
THE MEMBER OF THE WEDDING
Written by Carson McCullers
Directed by Francesca Sabel
Monday, December 2, 2024 at 7pm
Can a person fall in love with a wedding? Frankie Adams just might be the first. In a small Southern town in 1945, 12-year-old Frankie has had little else to thrill her, mostly relying on a push-pull relationship with her kid cousin to keep herself entertained. As Frankie begins to yearn for something more, her closest companion, housekeeper Berenice, strives to give this friendless child an understanding of the reality of the world around her, and the larger challenges that face people outside her own front yard.
Adapted by McCullers from her own hit novel, The Member of the Wedding premiered on Broadway in 1950 and ran for over 500 performances.
TRIFLES AND OTHER PLAYS: AN EVENING OF SHORTS
Directed by Cristina Angeles
Monday, October 21, 2024 at 7pm
TRIFLES by Susan Glaspell
Trifles is a thrillingly taut mystery from the mind of Susan Glaspell (The Verge). First performed in 1916, the play brings us behind the scenes of a murder investigation, when the women waiting patiently in the kitchen may have better view of the truth than the men in charge. The short play form was particularly popular among writers and audiences in the early decades of the 20th century, and this evening will explore several titles from great female writers of the genre.
CAST: Camila Canó-Flaviá, Javier David, Jamie Ann Romero, Lori Vega, and Luis Vega.
FLORENCE by Alice Childress
Few blend politics and heart as well as Alice Childress. Through subtle language and unscrupulous assumptions, Florence paints a vivid picture of the white northern erasure of Black dreams, worth, and humanity. While Mama awaits the train to New York City, planning to bring her actress daughter back home, she runs into a white passenger with a jaded attitude on the entertainment industry. Though seeming to offer connections and help, it becomes clear that this white actress thinks nothing of Mama’s daughter’s prospects – and Mama has to decide if she’ll support or deny her daughter’s dreams.
CAST: Francis Benhamou, Patrice Johnson, Ciara Monique, Jamie Ann Romero, and Lori Vega.
SOLDADERA by Josefina Niggli
Soldadera is a war-time story about the choices women must make when fighting for their rights. The play follows a group of Mexican women revolutionaries as they navigate loss, honor, and loyalty. Expansive in its exploration of violent oppression and the trauma women experience during war, Niggli’s isolated, single-location drama remains nonetheless focused on the relationships of the women and their communities. In our ever-tense political climate, this insight into the human and destructive sides of revolution feels as relevant today as in 1936.
CAST: Francis Benhamou, Camila Canó-Flaviá, Alma Cuervo, Javier David, Zuleyma Guevara, Ciara Monique, Jamie Ann Romero, Lori Vega, and Luis Vega.
MISS LULU BETT
Written by Zona Gale
Monday, September 23, 2024 at 7pm
It’s 1920, and Miss Lulu Bett, an unmarried woman in her thirties, has resigned herself to a life with few options and no joy. She is grateful to have been taken into the home of her married sister, Ina, even though Ina’s family, especially husband Deacon, treat her like their servant. Cooking and cleaning all day, Lulu has given up on having a life of her own, until the arrival of Deacon’s brother throws her safe existence for a loop. Ninian speaks his mind, takes action, and just might sweep Lulu off her tired feet, if only she’ll let him. But when secrets from the past come back to haunt the family, Lulu will be forced to decide where her loyalties lie – with her sister, her man, or most difficult of all, with herself.
Miss Lulu Bett won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1921, making Zona Gale the first female playwright ever to receive the honor.
CAST: Anna Chlumsky, Steven Boyer, Ella Stiller, Manu Narayan, Marcus Gladney Jr., Nneka Okafor, Reese Bogin, Sam Gravitte, Barbara Walsh, Ria Meer. Stage Manager: Madison Lane.
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Member Price: $50 (savings of $30)
Includes one discounted ticket per membership for all four readings this season.
One discounted ticket per membership at $12.50 each (original price $20).