Second Site is proud to announce its 2026 projects. In spring, The Beauty Project, an immersive theatrical event featuring short plays and beauty demonstrations will have performances in Ravenswood and Bronzeville, March 28 - April 4. The collective has also made available digitally, Site Lines, an anthology of its original plays written for non-traditional spaces is available at SecondSite.org.
“Our performances are unique in that we allow for spaces to be explored through many lenses at once. And so not only will audiences experience pieces by multiple writers in the same show, but attendees will also have a choice in how they experience the performance. Whether they decide to stand closer to the actors, or decide they’d like to experience one piece over another, we take their point of view into account as well,” said Second Site Community Director Jenni Lamb. Second Site Associate Artist Damon Krometis added, “every audience member brings a different set of connections and memories to a site. Every site has its own spirit.”
Marika Mashburn and Tiffany Yvonne Cox in The Great Anthology. Photo by Chad Eschman.
Site Lines anthology
Curated by Erin Lekovic
Website Design by Chad Eschman
Available now at SecondSite.org
FREE
Site Lines is a digital anthology that showcases original plays created for non-traditional spaces throughout Chicago. Audiences will digitally visit bedrooms, basements, salons and museums, as well as receive essays that provide insight into their collaborative creative process.
The anthology is organized into four chapters, each focused on a different location where Second Site has created work over the past decade.
- Chapter 1 features Night Lights, an intimate evening of plays that took place in a bedroom in Lincoln Square in Winter 2013.
- Chapter 2 features XV, an immersive production where audiences met in a church basement in Ravenswood for a fictional 15-year high school reunion in Winter 2016.
- Chapter 3 features A Night With You, an evening of theatre at The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center from Fall 2024.
- Chapter 4 features plays-in-progress from the collective’s most recent production, The Beauty Project. These scripts and essays are inspired by salon and beauty culture for an upcoming production in Spring 2026.
Site Lines is published digitally on Second Site's website and available free of charge, with an option to download individual plays for reading or educational purposes.
Curator and Editor Erin Lekovic said, “I wanted to create Site Lines to celebrate and preserve the vibrant, collaborative work our collective has done over the years. I hope it inspires fellow artists to think about space and theatrical performance in new ways.”
For more information, visit their website www.second-site.org
The Beauty Project
March 28 - April 4
Written by Kirsten Baity, Rachel DuBose, Jenni Lamb and Kylie Ramirez
Directed by Kezia Waters
Full Creative Team To Be Announced
Saturday and Sunday, March 28 and 29 at 7 p.m. (Ravenswood)
Freyja Salon (4955 N Damen Ave, Chicago, IL 60625)
Saturday, April 4 at 6:30 p.m. (Bronzeville)
Fourtune House (4410 S Cottage Grove Ave.)
Tickets go on sale on March 1
The Beauty Project is an immersive theatrical experience that blends live performance and beauty demonstrations in a spa atmosphere. The project explores ways to disentangle our ideas of beauty and self-care from “the industry,”
After six years of development, The Beauty Project is receiving a full production with three performances across various spaces. These seemingly small issues of outward beauty speak to the big issues of our identities, belonging, and quality of life. This performance is made possible with contributions from 3Arts and individual donors as part of a 3AP (3Arts Projects) campaign.
Co-Producer and Writer Rachel DuBose said,” We’re bringing four playwrights together from various backgrounds to engage in how we disentangle ourselves from the beauty industry through 10-minute plays in two very different settings. But most importantly, we’re excited to bring more care and connection to our process, artists, and audience by setting the intention and enjoying the process.
ABOUT SECOND SITE
Founded in 2023 by Jenni Lamb, Second Site is a collective that creates writer-driven work using a process first developed by Living Room Playmakers. This collective of storytellers creates work that is site-inspired, highly collaborative, and focused on an inclusive artistic community, while honoring each individual writer’s voice. With creators based in Chicago, LA and New York and other areas around the country, their work explores new audience contracts, allowing attendees to make choices about how they experience performances based on their own preferences, identities, and lived experiences.
Their flagship show in 2023, Wants & Needs, took place at two retail stores, District and Ponnopozz (when both were located at Damen and Lawrence). As part of this immersive theatrical event, audience members were divided into two groups, guided through live performances, and encouraged to listen to short plays (accessible via QR codes) while shopping.
The Second Site Collective also includes: Nathaniel Andrew, Kirsten Baity, Jonathan Baude, Jo Cattell, Rachel DuBose, Chad Eschman, Austin Heller, Jeffrey Hunter, Julieanne Jigour, Damon Krometis, Kris Lantzy, Erin Lekovic, Art Paz, Kylie Ramirez, Jessy Lauren Smith, Tony Werner and Kasey Waas.