Actors, designers, technicians, staff, and supporters gathered at TimeLine Theatre for the first rehearsal of Black Sunday, a startling new look at, as described by playwright Dolores Díaz, “a dust storm so massive, so great, nobody had ever seen anything like it before.” Performances are May 8 – June 29, 2024. Press opening is Wednesday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m.
On Sunday, April 14, the cast was at TimeLine in rehearsals, on the 89th anniversary of the very day the play’s namesake, a massive dust storm 200 miles wide, a mile high, and traveling 65 miles per hour, strafed across the Great Plains after years of drought had already plunged its residents into depression, poverty, and despair. Read the National Weather Service’s full account, including maps and photos, at weather.gov.
Archival photo of a dust storm approaching Spearman, Texas, April 14, 1935, via Monthly Weather Review, Vol. 63, April 1935, p. 148., public domain, Wikimedia Commons.
Even as far away as Chicago, scientists estimated the storm’s high winds dumped 12 million pounds of dirt on the city. The Chicago Tribune reported hundreds of trees downed and a great inconvenience for “housewives who had finished the spring cleaning.”
And decades later, just last year, on May 1, 2023, a thick dust storm engulfed part of U.S. Interstate 55, Illinois’ main thoroughfare between St. Louis and Chicago. Drivers slammed on their brakes but car after car collided, leaving seven dead and the mangled remains of 72 vehicles lining both sides of the highway. The cause? NBC5 Chicago reported the tragedy was due to "excessive winds blowing dirt from farm fields across the highway leading to zero visibility."
Today, there are an estimated 250 million climate change refugees. By 2050, that number is expected to be 1.2 billion, a startling reminder that the winds of climate change continue to blow.
“I was inspired to write Black Sunday because the Dust Bowl is one of the worst man-made ecological disasters in history,” said Díaz. “The way we think about it is through Steinbeck and cinema, but I wanted to rethink our cultural touch points with this narrative. In addition to the issue of climate change, who was left out of this story? How can we reincorporate them?”
Playwright Dolores Díaz (left) and director Helen Young (right) at the first rehearsal of TimeLine’s world premiere drama Black Sunday. Credit: Jenny Lynn Christofferson
TimeLine Theatre Company Members Mechelle Moe (Ma) and David Parkes (Pa) at the first rehearsal of Black Sunday.
Black Sunday cast members (from left) Christopher Alvarenga (Jésus), Vic Kuligoski (Jim) and Angela Morris (Sunny).
(left) Gathered cast, production team, staff, company members, and supporters at TimeLine Theatre's first rehearsal of Black Sunday; (right) TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers. Photos by Jenny Lynn Christoffersen.
BLACK SUNDAY: A STORY INSPIRED BY HISTORY THAT CONNECTS WITH TODAY’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL ISSUES
(from left): A storm approaching Stratford, Texas in 1935, credit George Everett Marsh Jr.; and a dust storm approaching Spearman, Texas, credit National Archives and Records Administration. Both public domain images via Wikimedia Commons.
Step back to April 1935 in the dust storm-riddled plains of Texas, where a family is struggling to keep their farm afloat amidst a mounting series of environmental disasters. As Jesús, a new field worker, arrives in their midst, stubborn Pa refuses to believe his land is no longer viable, young Sunny dreams of a new life in bountiful California, and Ma starts having mysterious visions of the future. It’s a startling look at conflicts surrounding climate change, race, and gender in the days leading up to an infamous dust storm known as Black Sunday.
“Black Sunday embodies TimeLine’s mission—illuminating aspects of history often untold, while drawing haunting parallels to critical issues of today,” said TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers. “Black Sunday is the fourth world premiere to emerge from our Playwright’s Collective, and witnessing the play’s evolution the past four years, Dolores has demonstrated indefatigable passion, evocative storytelling, fierce intellect, and propensity for collaboration. I’m confident Black Sunday will make as notable an impact as the acclaimed plays which preceded it.”
(from left): Black Sunday playwright Dolores Díaz, director Helen Young, and the cast of Black Sunday: TimeLine Company Members Mechelle Moe (Ma) and David Parkes (Pa), and Christopher Alvarenga (Jésus), Vic Kuligoski (Jim), and Angela Morris (Sunny).
The cast of Black Sunday features TimeLine Company Members Mechelle Moe (she/her) as Ma and David Parkes (he/him) as Pa, with Christopher Alvarenga (he/him) as Jésus, Vic Kuligoski (he/him) as Jim, and Angela Morris (she/her) as Sunny.
Helen Young, who staged TimeLine’s acclaimed Chicago premieres of The Chinese Lady and What the Constitution Means to Me, is director, stepping in for Sandra Marquez who withdrew from the production for personal reasons.
The cast of Black Sunday features TimeLine Company Members Mechelle Moe (she/her) as Ma and David Parkes (he/him) as Pa, with Christopher Alvarenga (he/him) as Jésus, Vic Kuligoski (he/him) as Jim, and Angela Morris (she/her) as Sunny.
The Black Sunday production team includes Joe Schermoly (Scenic Designer, he/him), Christine Pascual (Costume Designer, she/her), Conchita Avitia (Lighting Designer, she/her/ella), Saskia Bakker (Properties Designer, she/her), Anthony Churchill (Projections Designer, he/him), Forrest Gregor (Sound Designer, he/him), Kristina Fluty (Intimacy Director, she/her), J. Isabel Salazar (Literary Dramaturg, they/them), Bryar Barborka (Production Dramaturg, they/them), Dina Spoerl (Dramaturgical Display Designer, she/her), and Alden Vasquez (Stage Manager, he/him). Understudies are Connor Green (Jim, he/him), Christopher Hainsworth (Pa, he/him), Lauren Grace Thompson (Sunny, she/her), Richie Villafuerte (Jésus, he/him), and India Whiteside (Ma, she/her).
Black Sunday is the fourth world premiere play developed through TimeLine Theatre’s Playwrights Collective, the same new play program that brought forth TimeLine’s debut productions of Tyla Abercrumbie’s Relentless (Jeff Award, Outstanding New Work), Will Allan’s Campaigns, Inc. and Brett Neveu’s To Catch a Fish. The Collective was launched in 2013 to support Chicago-based playwrights in residence and create new work centered on TimeLine’s mission.
Black Sunday also marks the bookend to a chapter of TimeLine Theatre’s growth. After 25 amazing years at the company’s longtime home at 615 W. Wellington Avenue in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, Black Sunday will be the final production presented in that space, leading toward the company’s exciting new era.
Last month, TimeLine announced plans for a thrilling 28th season, including producing partnerships with three of Chicago’s preeminent performing arts organizations in 2024-25, as a bridge toward opening its future home at 5035 N. Broadway Avenue in Uptown.
BLACK SUNDAY PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Previews start May 8, 2024: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, May 8–10 at 8 p.m.; Saturday, May 11 at 4 p.m.; Sunday, May 12 at 2 p.m.; and Tuesday, May 14 at 7:30 p.m. Press Opening is Wednesday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m. Opening Night is Thursday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m. Regular performances continue through June 29: Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.; Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 p.m., plus two added matinees: Thursdays, June 20 and June 27 at 2 p.m. Exceptions: No 4 p.m. show on Saturday, May 18; and no performance on Wednesday, June 19.
BUYING TICKETS
Single tickets to Black Sunday are now on sale, priced $35–$67. For tickets and information, visit timelinetheatre.com or call the TimeLine Box Office at (773) 281-8463 x6.
Preview tickets are $35. Single tickets to regular performances are $52 (all evening performances) and $67 (all matinee performances). Student discount is 35% off regular price with valid ID. TimeLine is also a member of TCG’s Blue Star Theatre Program and is offering $25 tickets to U.S. military personnel, veterans, first responders, and their spouses and family.
Ticket buyers ages 18-35 may join TimeLine’s free MyLine program to obtain access to discounted tickets, special events and more. Discounted rates for groups of 10 or more are also available. Visit timelinetheatre.com/discounts for more about available discounts.
LOCATION/TRANSPORTATION/PARKING
Black Sunday will take place at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, near the corner of Wellington and Broadway, inside Chabad East Lakeview, the former Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ building. TimeLine is served by multiple CTA trains and buses. There are multiple paid parking options nearby, plus limited free and metered street parking. Visit timelinetheatre.com/timeline-theatre for details and available discounts.
DISCUSSIONS
Post-Show Discussions: A brief, informal post-show discussion hosted by a TimeLine Company Member and featuring the dramaturg and members of the production team on Wednesday, May 22; Sunday, June 2; Wednesday, June 5; and after the 2 p.m. performance on Thursday, June 20.
Pre-Show Discussions: Starting one hour before the performance, a 25-minute introductory conversation hosted by a TimeLine Company Member and the dramaturg on Thursday, May 30, and Sunday, June 9.
Company Member Discussion: A post-show discussion with the collaborative team of artists who choose TimeLine’s programming and guide the company’s mission on Sunday, June 16.
Sunday Scholars Panel Discussion: A one-hour panel discussion featuring experts on the themes and issues of the play alongside a member of the production team in a moderated discussion, following the performance on Sunday, June 23.
All discussions are free and open to the public.
ACCESSIBILITY
Distanced Performance: The Friday, May 24 performance will have a capacity cap and seating chart so that patrons can sit with additional space between parties. Anyone is welcome to attend the Distanced Performance, but due to very limited capacity, we ask that immunocompromised patrons be given the first chance to reserve. Masks required.
Captioned Performances: Open-captioned performances with a text display of words and sounds heard during performances are Friday, June 14, and Saturday, June 15 at 4 p.m.
Audio-Described Performance: On Friday, June 21, the performance will feature narration about visual elements of the production around the dialogue, available for individual patrons via headphones.
TimeLine Theatre is accessible to people with disabilities. Two wheelchair lifts provide access from street level to the theatre space and to lower-level restrooms. Audience members using wheelchairs or who need to avoid stairs, and others with special seating or accessibility needs, should contact the TimeLine Box Office in advance to confirm arrangements.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
While masking is no longer required at most performances, TimeLine supports an individual’s choice to mask and will continue to make good quality masks available upon request. Protocols are subject to change based on current public health recommendations; for the most current information, visit timelinetheatre.com/health-and-safety.
TIMELINE THEATRE’S 2024-25 SEASON
TimeLine Theatre Company’s landmark 28th season will involve producing partnerships with three of the city’s most preeminent arts institutions—Court Theatre, The Theatre School at DePaul University, and Writers Theatre—plus the internationally acclaimed company the american vicarious—as it invites audiences to travel across Chicagoland to enjoy three unique and extraordinary theatrical experiences in Hyde Park, Lincoln Park, and Glencoe.
TimeLine Theatre’s three-play 2024-25 subscription season includes:
- The groundbreaking musical about family, faith, and love, Falsettos, with music and lyrics by William Finn, book by William Finn and James Lapine, produced in partnership with Court Theatre and directed by TimeLine Associate Artistic Director Nick Bowling;
- The Chicago premiere of the american vicarious’ Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley, adapted and directed by Christopher McElroen, an immersive reenactment of one of history’s most infamous debates on the occasion of its 60th anniversary, presented in partnership with The Theatre School at DePaul University;
- And the world premiere of a searing Chicago-set story of family, legacy, and survival at all costs, Dhaba on Devon Avenue, by Madhuri Shekar, directed Chay Yew, produced in partnership with Writers Theatre.
This remarkable season marks the launch of TimeLine’s next era. The company will depart its longtime home on Wellington Avenue in Lakeview East this summer, moving to a temporary administrative base closer to Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood as it continues the process toward establishing its future home at 5035 N. Broadway Avenue.
Save on regular ticket prices, enjoy impressive flexibility, and join the journey of TimeLine’s 2024-25 season with a TimeLine FlexPass. Four options, priced from $103 to $232, are now on sale. For more information and to purchase, call (773) 281-8463 x6 or visit timelinetheatre.com.
ABOUT TIMELINE THEATRE COMPANY
TimeLine Theatre Company, recipient of the prestigious 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, was founded in April 1997 with a mission to present stories inspired by history that connect with today's social and political issues. Currently celebrating its 27th season, TimeLine has presented 90 productions, including 13 world premieres and 41 Chicago premieres, and launched the Living History Education Program and TimeLine South summer arts program, which bring the company's mission to life for students in Chicago Public Schools and beyond. Recipient of the Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence and the Richard Goodman Strategic Planning Award from the Association for Strategic Planning, TimeLine has received 60 Jeff Awards, including an award for Outstanding Production 11 times.
The company has long been bursting at the seams of its current leased home located at 615 W. Wellington Avenue in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood, where the theatre has been in residence since 1999. The company is currently working to develop its new home, located at 5035 North Broadway in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood. Plans feature an intimate black box theater seating up to 250 audience members, expanded area for the immersive lobby experiences that are a TimeLine hallmark, new opportunities for education and engagement, room to allow audience members to arrive early and stay late for theatergoing experiences that extend far beyond the stage, and more.
TimeLine is led by Artistic Director PJ Powers, Executive Director Mica Cole, and Board President John Sterling. TimeLine Company members are Tyla Abercrumbie, Will Allan, Nick Bowling, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Behzad Dabu, Charles Andrew Gardner, Lara Goetsch, Juliet Hart, Anish Jethmalani, Mildred Marie Langford, Mechelle Moe, David Parkes, Ron OJ Parson, PJ Powers, and Maren Robinson.
Major corporate, government and foundation donors providing season support via TimeLine’s Annual Fund include Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation, Bayless Family Foundation, CIBC U.S., Crown Family Philanthropies, Joseph & Bessie Feinberg Foundation, Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Polk Bros. Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and Van Dam Charitable Foundation. TimeLine also acknowledges the support of a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events and a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.
For more information, visit timelinetheatre.com or Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram (@TimeLineTheatre on all platforms).
Biographies
Dolores Díaz (Playwright) is a Chicago-based Chicana playwright originally from the border city of Laredo, Texas. In fall of 2022, Stage Left Theatre produced Man of the People at Chicago Dramatists; it was recommended by the Chicago Tribune as a top event in November. In fall of 2021, the Goodman Theatre produced Zulema in partnership with Sones de México, the Chicago Park District, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA), and the National Museum of Mexican Art—the show toured the Chicago Parks District with a finale in Millennium Park. Her play Black Sunday received its first public readings as part of TimeLine’s First Draft Playwrights Collective Festival in December 2021. Díaz also is a resident at Chicago Dramatists and has developed and produced work with a diverse array of companies. She has taught students at Columbia College Chicago, Texas Tech University, Northwestern University, and various Chicago public schools. She is a graduate of Northwestern University’s MFA Program in Writing for the Screen and Stage and serves as a Dramatists Guild Representative for the Chicago Region.
Helen Young (Director) returns to TimeLine, where she directed the acclaimed hit productions of Heidi Schreck’s What the Constitution Means to Me and Lloyd Suh’s The Chinese Lady. At TimeLine, she also directed the online event Setting the Stage: The Chinese Lady — Building a Bridge Toward Asian Visibility, the TimePieces readings of The Chinese Lady and The Paper Dreams of Harry Chin, and served as Associate Director of The Audience and Assistant Dramaturg of Chimerica. Selected directing credits: The Great Leap (Farmers Alley Theatre), Peerless (The Theatre School at DePaul), American Hwangap (Jeff Recommended, Halcyon/A-Squared), Tea (Jeff Recommended, Prologue Theatre), Wild Boar (Silk Road Rising). Other directing credits: Remy Bumppo, Lifeline Theatre, Strawdog Theatre, Artistic Home, Chicago Dramatist, Token Theatre, Goodman Theatre. Upcoming: Heart Sellers by Lloyd Suh (Northlight Theatre).
Mechelle Moe (Ma) is a Company Member at TimeLine, where her credits include directing The Lifespan of a Fact, Rutherford and Son, Cardboard Piano, and In the Next Room or the vibrator play. She also has appeared on stage in many TimeLine productions, including Boy, The Apple Family Plays, My Kind of Town, The Front Page, The Children’s Hour, Not Enough Air, and Paradise Lost. Other directing credits include Milk Like Sugar, The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love Suicide, and columbinus. Moe is a Jeff Award recipient for Actress in Principal Role for her performance in Machinal (The Hypocrites) and received a Jeff Award nomination for Actress in Principal Role for Stage Door (Griffin). She is an artistic associate of Griffin Theater. Moe graduated with honors from the University of Illinois Chicago with both a bachelor’s degree in Theater as well as Anthropology.
David Parkes’ (Pa) introduction to TimeLine was being cast in Gaslight, the company’s third production, and the first in TimeLine’s longtime home at 615 W. Wellington Avenue. Parkes became a TimeLine Company Member in 2003. His TimeLine credits include Campaigns, Inc., Oslo, Boy, The Apple Family Plays, Blood and Gifts, My Kind of Town, A Walk in the Woods, Not Enough Air, Trumbo, Widowers’ Houses, The General from America, Harmless, A Man for All Seasons, Pravda, The Lion in Winter, Hannah and Martin (After Dark Award); Awake and Sing!, The Crucible (Joseph Jefferson Citation nomination and an After Dark Award), Halcyon Days, and Not About Nightingales (Non-Equity Jeff Award, Supporting Actor).
Christopher Alvarenga (Jésus) is an accomplished film and television actor making his professional theatre debut at TimeLine. Originally from Plano, Texas, his past credits include The Conners, NCIS, Better Call Saul, S.W.A.T., Queen of the South, Little America, and most recently the New York Latino Film Festival winner, At the Gates.
Vic Kuligoski (Jim) is thrilled to be making his TimeLine Theatre debut. His most recent credits include Skunk and Badger and Cat’s Cradle at Lifeline Theatre, which was Jeff Award-nominated for Ensemble. Other local credits include Seagulls (Oak Park Festival Theatre); The Kelly Girls, Last Night In Karaoke Town and May The Road Rise Up (The Factory Theater); Christmas at Pemberley (Northlight), and Cloud 9 (Eclipse). Film and television credits include Aaron Sorkin's The Trial of The Chicago 7 on Netflix, Felix Pinero's Adjunto and Night Sky on Amazon Prime, Matt Everett’s independent short film You Can Go Home Whenever You Want, and Jennifer Reeder’s feature film Perpetrator, on Shudder.
Angela Morris (Sunny) is thrilled to make her TimeLine debut. Chicago credits include Rebecca Gilman's Twilight Bowl (Jeff Award nomination – Ensemble) and Ah! Wilderness (Goodman), The Lady from the Sea (Court), Hang Man (The Gift), The Hamlet Project (The Collective), and Horatio (A Beautiful Fight). Regional credits include The Comedy of Errors (John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts). Television and film credits include Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, Shining Girls, A Social Contract, Never Not Yours, and Two in the Bush: A Love Story.