Curious Theatre Branch continues its 35th anniversary season with a world premiere from Founding Co-Artistic Director Jenny Magnus, The Good, March 29 - April 21, at Chicago Dramatists, 798 N. Aberdeen Street. The Good is a new work created and performed by Magnus and directed with Stefan Brün, the opening night is Friday, March 29 at 8 p.m. The regular performance schedule is Fridays and Saturdays at 8;00 p.m. and Sundays, April 7 and 14 at 3 p.m. The current running time is 50 minutes.Tickets are priced on a “pay what you can” scale, with a suggested price of $20 and are available at CuriousTheatreBranch.com.
What is good? How are we supposed to be good and interesting? Is the pressure to be good, to be proper, to not hurt others, to not transgress, actually a way to hold one down? Can someone be not good but in tiny ways no one might notice? And what about the word, “virtue”? Loosely dubbing off Marcus Aurelius’ “Meditations,” Jenny Magnus sings her way through this dilemma, as she has been doing for 30 years. She is asking, is not being good the same as being bad?
The Good is a solo performance with Jenny Magnus (she/her).
The creative team includes Stefan Brün (he/him, director); Jeffrey Bivens (he,him, video), Marlana May Carlson (she/her, stage management); Ralph Loza (they/them, music mixing and mastering, sound consultation) and Meghann Wilkinson (she/her, movement consultation).
COMING UP FROM CURIOUS THEATRE BRANCH
The 35th Annual Rhinoceros Theater Festival
May 31 - June 30
Multiple Venues
Tickets: Pay What You Can, suggested price is $20
Following up on June 2023’s festival, in a new form in which four venues presented 60 shows of all new work, ranging from veteran theatermakers to first-time makers, all pay what you can and all self-produced and supported, publicized and hosted by Rhinofest: 2024. The 35th edition will allow Curious and participants to refine this new form and continue Chicago’s longest running new works festival. Submissions are currently open through February 28 and applications are available here.
Programs, dates and locations are subject to change.
ABOUT JENNY MAGNUS, PLAYWRIGHT AND PERFORMER
Jenny Magnus (she/her) is a composer, writer, performer, musician, director and teacher who is a founding co-artistic director of the Curious Theater Branch, an all-original theater company, now in its 35th year, author/creator of plays that have been produced at Steppenwolf Theater, at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, at the former Lunar Cabaret, the Prop Thtr and on tour throughout America and Europe.
ABOUT STEFAN BRÜN, DIRECTOR
Stefan Brün (he/him) is an ensemble member with Curious Theatre Branch where he has directed many shows including Waiting for Godot, Clumsy Sublime, The Eviller Twin, Power Brechtdown and others. He is also executive director of Prop Thtr. He co-founded the company with Scott Vehill in 1981 and has also directed plays and related performing art events and television in the United States and Germany. He has continuously designed stage-lighting and been a performer on stage and film. Together with Prop Thtr, from 1998 on, Brün took part in the founding and development of the National New Play Network, of which Prop Thtr is a charter core member. Serving as artistic director for most of Prop’s 15 year residency on Elston Avenue, he directed many productions including the long running Chicago hit, HIzzoner, written by and starring Neil Giuntoli. He currently leads Prop’s new “Leadership Team Pilot Program.”
ABOUT CURIOUS THEATRE BRANCH
Curious Theatre Branch is dedicated to the creation of new plays and performances and to the production of its annual Rhinoceros Theater Festival. Curious aims to promote innovative works of the imagination in the performing arts from a broad and inclusive spectrum of artists and are also devoted to mentoring programs that engage emerging artists as a way to enrich and expand our artistic community. Curious is committed to creating and producing new plays and performances in a collaborative manner, encouraging our members as artists to share decision making and responsibilities, while expanding their skills as writers, actors, designers, directors and arts administrators. Curious also is committed to the idea that a pay what you can pricing policy is sustainable and will suffice over the long term as an economic model.