5 Directors, 5 Plays - An O! Staged Series
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2021 OSF Reading Series

53% Of (w)holeness King Margaret Red Bike Emilia
53% Of (w)holeness King Margaret Red Bike Emilia

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Immerse yourself in the visions of some of OSF’s beloved directors with these free and live readings of a surprisingly diverse selection of plays — from an imaginative solo work featuring an 11-year-old wrestling with the American dream to a brand-new play diving into the history and mythology of Shakespeare’s oft-misunderstood heroine Margaret.

Our five-part weekly series features plays chosen and directed by OSF Artistic Director Nataki Garrett, Assistant Producer Derek Kolluri, Festival Producer Donya K. Washington, Associate Artistic Director Evren Odcikin, and Artistic Associate Raphael Massie, and runs every Wednesday evening through July 28.

Streaming Details:

The plays in 5 Directors, 5 Plays stream for free on OSF’s O! streaming platform. These script-in-hand performances will be performed live and won’t be available as video-on-demand after the scheduled performance.

Registration is required. Make sure to mark your calendar!

53% Of
By Steph Del Rosso 
Nataki GarrettDirected by Nataki Garrett

Wednesday, June 30, 5:30 pm Pacific time  

In Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and Brooklyn, New York, three groups of like-minded people try to find their place in the current political landscape. Separated by age, geography, class, culture, and values, each group believes their side has the answers to fixing a deeply divided nation. Inspired by the finding that 53% of white women voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 Presidential election, 53% Of is a humorous, even-handed, and strikingly honest examination of Americans on both sides of the debate about what will truly make America great again. Approximate running time: 90 minutes.
(w)holeness
By Liliana Padilla 
Derek KolluriDirected by Derek Kolluri 

Wednesday, July 7, 5:30 pm Pacific time

The support group for sex addicts meets every Monday in the little seaside town of Pescadero, California. But where is Dr. Jurgensen, the therapist who’s supposed to lead the group? And is Dr. Jurgensen’s earnest intern who’s left to lead it in over her head? When Matt shows up, any illusion of a “safe space” shatters and the group must confront difficult truths and unexpected points of connection in a comedy about addiction, identity, and sex. (w)holeness  asks the question: “Am I too damaged to be loved?” Approximate running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes.
King Margaret
By Tira Palmquist
Donya K. WashingtonDirected by Donya K. Washington

Wednesday, July 14, 5:30 pm Pacific time  

We all think we know the story of Margaret through Shakespeare’s history cycle. But was she really a “ruthless queen,” a “she-wolf of France?” Tira Palmquist’s King Margaret challenges that narrative and brings in the stories of the real Margaret, known for being quick, bright, capable, and strong-willed—her only faults being that she was fifteen, and French, and female. Approximate running time: 2 hours, 45 minutes.
Red Bike
By Caridad Svich
Evren OdcikinDirected by Evren Odcikin

Performed in English and Spanish 

Wednesday, July 21, 5:30 pm Pacific time  

What kind of future will you have living in these here United States? Remember when you were eleven years old and you had a bike, one that made you dream about a world bigger than the one in which you live? This is that memory. Except it is now. This solo work by Caridad Svich, a Lifetime Achievement OBIE recipient, uplifts American vernacular to heights of poetry and playfully and imaginatively challenges our preconceived notions of the American dream. Approximate running time: 80 minutes.  
Emilia
By Morgan Lloyd Malcolm
Raphael MassieDirected by Raphael Massie

Wednesday, July 28, 5:30 pm Pacific time  

Four hundred years ago, Emilia Bassano wanted her voice to be heard. It wasn’t. Could she have been the “Dark Lady” of Shakespeare’s sonnets? What of her own poetry? Why was her story erased from history? Morgan Lloyd Malcolm’s playful play brings an unapologetically feminist take on Shakespeare’s legacy. Approximate running time: 2 hours, 45 minutes.

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