It’s been a big year for Chicago’s Collaboraction Theatre Company, capped by last week’s Emmy nomination for The Lost Story of Emmett Till: Trial in the Delta, Collaboraction’s documentary tele-play co-produced with NBC5 Chicago.
Celebrate and support the powerful change Collaboraction creates through theater, social justice and innovative productions like Trial in the Delta at the company’s annual Utopian Ball, Saturday, November 5 at 6 p.m. at Venue West, 221 N. Paulina St. in West Town.
This year’s annual celebration includes a cocktail hour, table serve dinner, performances by Collaboraction artists, a live band, awards, a raffle, dancing, and more.
Tickets are $250 or $2,500 for a table of 10 - an investment in Collaboraction’s work on the south and west sides of Chicago, its vibrant youth programming, and its mission to incite change and unite Chicago through art. To purchase tickets and for more information, visit collaboraction.org.
Step inside The Utopian Ball
Every year, Collaboraction’s annual Utopian Ball begins with a traditional Libation Ritual to cleanse the room and unite everyone’s hearts, minds and souls, followed by a cocktail hour and a seated, three-course meal.
Carla Stillwell, Collaboraction Producer and Cultural Historian of Black Joy, is this year’s host. The Light, Collaboraction’s youth artist/activist ensemble, will shine brightly on stage throughout the night. Collaboraction’s house band, The Wild Onion, will play live, with appearances and surprise performances by Collaboraction company members and artists.
The CollaborActivist Dance Line at last year's Utopian Ball.
Dr. Marcus Robinson is Co-Chair of Collaboraction's 2022 Utopian Ball.
Collaboraction's The Light youth ensemble debuting at the 2021 Utopian Ball.
Collaboraction Artistic Director Anthony Moseley at last year's Utopian Ball.
Collaboraction's 2021 Utopian Ball, emceed by NBC5 Chicago's LeeAnn Trotter.
Photos by Joel Maisonet.
“The Utopian Ball is the time to reflect on and lift up Collaboraction’s successes this past year,” said Dr. Marcus Robinson, Co-Director, Enrich Chicago. Robinson is Co-Chair of the 2022 Utopian Ball with David Cherry, Senior VP, the All Stars Project of Chicago.
“Initiatives like introducing theater that heals with Moonset Sunrise celebrations last summer on Navy Pier, welcoming a new Light cohort with shows at Kidzapalooza and the Silver Room Block Party, staging our 7th PEACEBOOK Festival in Chicago’s Austin community, and winning awards at film festival for virtual programs like Encounter Englewood and Oh, Colonizers.”
Speaking of awards, Collaboraction’s 2022 Ourhaus Award will be given to restauranteur Robert Gomez and his wife, Beth, for their sustaining support of Collaboraction’s work. Collaboraction’s 2022 Artist Award will go to longtime company member, producer and educator, Sarah Swift.
Collaboraction’s 2022 Ourhaus Award will be given to (from left) restauranteur Robert Gomez and his wife, Beth, for their support of Collaboraction’s work. The company's 2022 Artist Award will go to longtime company member, producer and educator, Sarah Swift.
Guests will also get in on the ground floor of Collaboraction’s next major undertaking - a fully staged live production of Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till, running February 9-19, 2023 at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center.
The original NBC5 Chicago/Collaboraction tele-play, The Lost Story of Emmett Till: Trial in the Delta, was filmed in one day in February 2022 at NBC’s Chicago studio. This month, Trial in the Delta was nominated for a Chicago/Midwest Emmy Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for Outstanding Achievement in "Human Interest - Long Form.”
The NBC Chicago/Collaboraction co-production The Lost Story of Emmett Till:
Trial in the Delta is now Emmy-nominated. Watch the trailer.
Next February, Trial in the Delta will return in vivid docu-drama style, with the audience co-mingled “in the courtroom” alongside actors portraying the boy’s mother, family members, and witnesses for the defense and prosecution. The result will be a powerful, immersive reenactment of what actually occurred in that 1955 rural Mississippi courtroom, site of one of the most monumental injustices of the U.S. legal system in the 20th century.
Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till is co-adapted by G. Riley Mills and Willie Round, and directed by Anthony Moseley and Dana N. Anderson. Tickets are $30-$55 and are on-sale now at collaboraction.org.
Email info@collaboraction.org for information on student and group rates, and private event performances.
The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center is located at 740 E. 56th Place in Chicago’s Hyde Park community.
The original Collaboraction/NBC5 Chicago co-production of The Lost Story of Emmett Till: Trial in the Delta is still streaming on Peacock, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and free to watch on NBCChicago.com and the NBC5 Chicago app.
The host committee for Collaboraction’s Utopian Ball (at press time) includes Andrew Balderson, Balderson & Company; Alexis Booth (Google); David Cherry, All Stars Project; Sandra Delgado, Collaboraction company member, creator of La Havana Madrid and The Sandra Delgado Experience; Justin Frick, AV Chicago; Elsa Hiltner, Lawyers for the Creative Arts; Darlene Jackson, Collaboraction Board President and the First Lady of Chicago House Music; Linda Karn; Dana and Rick LaChapelle, LaChapelle Family Foundation; Paul Levy, Bridgeport Arts Center/Rockwell on the River; Jay McAllister, Paragon Tech; Pat Merryweather, Rotary Club of Naperville; and Matt Woodburn and Sarah Neukom, ESP Presents. The Utopian Ball is sponsored by AV Chicago, Ethos Event Collective, the Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation and the Marc and Jeanne Malnati Foundation.
For more information, visit collaboraction.org, follow the company on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or YouTube.
Want to spark social change in Chicago and beyond?
Becoming a CollaborActivist member not only supports Collaboraction’s work, which hires hundreds of artists to create social change work, but also offers access to community and content to support your growth as an agent of social change.
CollaborActivist memberships provide exclusive access to the Co-Lab, a digital portal at collaboraction.org which allows members to create a profile, connect with other members, attend virtual workshops and meet-ups, and screen members-only video content with more than 40 videos. Sign up to be a CollaborActivist for as little as $1/month at collaboraction.org/memberships.
About Collaboraction: Changing the map and removing barriers within the theater industry
Collaboraction is a 25-year-old, ethno-diverse company that uses theater and performance to incite social change on Chicago’s most critical issues. Collaboraction produces live and digital performances, anti-racism workshops, and youth programs that incite change and grow equity in Chicago.
Since its founding in 1996, Collaboraction has pushed artistic boundaries working with more than 4,000 artists to bring over 100 productions and events to more than 150,000 unique audience members, and has inspired measurable positive change on social justice in Chicago and beyond.
Collaboraction’s work includes Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till, SKETCHBOOK, PEACEBOOK, Moonset Sunrise, The Light Youth Ensemble, Crime Scene, Forgotten Future and Gender Breakdown. In addition to live performances, community building and video production, the company centers and presents its work in Chicago neighborhoods historically overlooked like Englewood, Austin and Lawndale.
In 2022, Collaboraction was one of the first theaters in the U.S. to be certified by On Our Team, a national trade organization advocating for pay equity and transparency in the live theater industry.
Collaboraction, under the leadership of Artistic Director Anthony Moseley, has been honored for innovation and inclusivity with the Foster Innovation Award from Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Multi-Racial Unity Award from the First Unitarian Church-Chicago, a Stand For the Arts Award from Comcast and OvationTV, and an Otto Award from New York’s Castillo Theatre.
Collaboraction is supported by the Chicago Community Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, Illinois Humanities, Paul M. Angell Foundation, Marc and Jeanne Malnati Family Foundation, Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation, the Bayless Family Foundation, Spreading Hearts, AV Chicago, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.
For more information, visit collaboraction.org, or follow the company on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok or YouTube.