A Theater in the Dark announces its newest audio play – BIO-DAD, by Chicago actor and playwright Julian “joolz” Stroop. This new play is a story of a young person whose journey to understand their late father takes them across galaxies and leads them to a greater understanding of themself as well as their family. Stroop says “Bio-Dad is an audio play for anyone who’s ever felt like an alien in their own life.” The recording will be released online for purchase on June 10, following a free listening party at the second-floor event space in Mrs. Murphy’s Irish Pub and Bistro at 3905 N. Lincoln Avenue in Chicago on June 9. The party will begin with a cocktail hour hosted by the playwright from 5 to 6 pm and listeners are invited to bring their coloring books and favorite doodle items for a listening party from 6 to 8 pm. Admission is free of charge and the bar and restaurant will be open for business, offering food and drink for purchase.
Playwright Julian “joolz” Stroop (they/them/theirs) is a Chicago-based actor who appeared in A Theater in the Dark’s A MATTER OF RED HERRINGS. Greg Garrison, who authored that noir mystery pastiche, will direct BIO-DAD. The cast will include Eli Banks, Jen Diaz, Kayla Higbee, Bianca Phipps, Christin Prince, Alexander Slade, and James Whitson. BIO-DAD will be streaming and available for purchase at http://www.atheaterinthedark.com/biodad beginning June 10, 2023; and is available for pre-order now.
A Theater in the Dark has been producing audio plays for five years. Their inaugural production was Mack Gordon’s original noir mystery THREE STORIES UP, performed in person during Fall 2019. They followed that live play with several streaming productions during the pandemic shutdown, beginning with their first production of A WAR OF THE WORLDS in fall 2020, a reprise engagement of the Wells story in fall 2021; and new productions of A CHRISTMAS CAROL IN THE DARK in December 2020 and A WHITE WHALE OR MOBY DICK in spring 2021. That adaptation of the Herman Melville novel won the top prize of the Critic's Choice Award at the 2021 Atlanta Fringe Festival. Their 2022- 2023 season included the productions A MATTER OF RED HERRINGS, A MURDER IN THE COURT OF XANADU, and WHITE CITY: AN AUDIBLE EXHIBITION ON H.H. HOLMES, MURDERER. In fall 2023, Glessner House hosted A Theater in the Dark’s series of sold-out immersive staged readings of Rick Kinnebrew’s THE WHITE CITY.
The recording of BIO-DAD is now available for online pre-orders, and will be available to stream for $14.99 at https://www.atheaterinthedark.com beginning June 10.
LISTING INFORMATION
A Theater in the Dark presents
BIO-DAD
An audio play by Julian “joolz” stroop
Directed by Greg Garrison
Recorded performance available to stream beginning June 10, 2024
Live listening kickoff party Sunday, June 9, 2024
Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro (upstairs space)
3905 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago IL 60613
Sunday, June 9, 2024
Doors Open/Cocktail Hour at 5pm
Listening Party 6-8pm
Admission Free / Bar & Restaurant Open for Business
http://www.atheaterinthedark.com/biodad
Known affectionately as “Kid,” our main character stumbles across a radio show made by their late biological father. The question of “Who was my father” cascades into meeting old friends, enemies, and recordings of the man himself through his Sci-Fi Radio Epic “Stranded Under Twin Blood Moons.” Combining the characters of this Space Adventure with the often unflattering recordings of their father blends into a complicated portrait of who Kid’s ‘Bio-Dad’ really was. Learning the virtues and flaws of the people Kid looks up to most lead them to develop their own project, and through the complicated process of discovery, find their passion along the way.
BIOS