by Wendy A. Schmidt
directed by Eileen Tull
Orville and Wilbur Wright, the Wright Brothers, have arrived in present-day Ostrich, Indiana, to build an airstrip. The people are overjoyed! Can technological progress finally get Ostrich off the ground?
featuring
Jorge Salas, Shellie DiSalvo, Ellen Adalaide, and Jonathan Crabtree
with Pete Wood and Donaldson Cardenas as Orville and Wilbur Wright
Join us for this site-specific, immersive production inside the historic North Mansion at Berger Park, where the rooms of the first floor will be transformed into a tacky bed and breakfast called The Ostrich Feather, and other auspicious locales. The audience will sit in close proximity with the actors and move with them to different settings. See our accessibility note below.
Chuck, a farmer, and his sister, the proprietor of The Ostrich Feather, must grapple with tradeoffs in the effort to do what’s best for the place they love in this dark comedy about the human cost of invention hitched to capitalism.
All performance times are 7 pm. There is one preview Thursday, May 1. Opening Night is Friday, May 2, and Press Opening is Saturday, May 3. Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, with one industry performance on Monday, May 12.
Stage Management: Sallie Anne Young
Understudies: Paul Kaufmann (Chuck and Orville), Debra FitzGerald (Incandescence and Gidgitomy, etc.), and Ted Dayton (Wilbur and Hasty, etc.)
Props and Set Decoration: Mary Aurora Moore
Costumes: Annie A.
Assistant Director: Daniel “Taz” Stahlnecker
Assistant Stage Manager: Lou McNaughton
Graphic Design: Wendy Schmidt
Photography: Steven Townshend – Distant Era
Videography: Josh Sparks and Kirsten Byers – microbird productions
Publicity: SHOUT Marketing and Media Relations
Accessibility Note: The only entrance is via one set of stairs. The audience will move six to ten times throughout the performance. Chairs will be provided in each setting, with the exception of two five-minute scenes. Our friendly guides will take care of you every step of the way!
Buying Tickets: To purchase tickets you’ll need to set up an account with Chicago Park District, which is only slightly convoluted. Here’s how:
- bit.ly/the-ostrich-tix
- Find your date. The dates are listed by day of the week. (Sort by Date Range to make it easier.) Click Enroll Now by your date.
- Log in and pay if you already have a Chicago Park District account. DONE.
OR - Create an account. If you don’t have an account, click Enroll Now and then Join. You’ll be asked to fill out a longish form (it’s also used to enroll in classes), and click on a confirmation email to activate your account. Once that’s done, start over with Step 1.
co-produced by
The Terror Cottas
Chicago Park District
Help us get this production off the ground by donating to the cause!