REVIEW: Collaboraction For Social Change 6th Annual PeaceBook Festival 2021

 ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

Guest Review 

By Cath Hellmann

I admit that I wasn’t quite sure what to expect at the PeaceBook Festival held at the lovely Kehrein Center for the Arts in the Austin neighborhood. But it was a delightful evening filled with loads of talent and positive vibes. 

The first half of the program featured six local films created during the shutdown. Because their social justice mission, even during a pandemic, “doesn’t stop,” according to Artistic Director Anthony Moseley, who is a delightful host. 

A Letter to My Younger Self by Ada Cheng addresses racism against Asians and how students choose “not to make a scene” when confronted with hurtful comments about the coronavirus. They accept rudeness of strangers rather than rock the boat. “Silence can be a strength but it isn’t always a virtue.” Ms. Cheng reminds her younger self to “be the troublemaker.” 

Essential?...”Tengo que trabajar/I have to work” by Jasmin Cardenas is a moving tribute to struggling essential workers and how they fared during the pandemic. One Spanish-speaking woman is a street vendor who loses three months of business during the shutdown. Another Latina from Back of the Yards lost many of her clients from her cleaning business. People tried to help when there were stories in the news about how Hispanics were hit the hardest by the pandemic. A young African-American man copes with trying to find work.  

Cardenas was in the audience and gave feedback on how all three of her subjects are doing currently. The vendor came down with Covid and is recuperating. The other two have been, thankfully, working again. It was very inspiring to have the filmmaker present to give us an update on these courageous individuals. 

Brother! Blackbird by Vernon D. Gooden and Back to Me by Darling Shear both feature stunning dancing and visuals. Gooden was especially amazing in his outside dancing under the el tracks and on a city street corner. 

I Am North Lawndale by Willie Round featured several everyday heroes in his neighborhood. There is a restaurant owner who donates  back to her community and wasn’t looted during the riots that affected other businesses. There is a woman who has fresh produce that she contributes to others in a food desert.   

Oh, Colonizers! is a wonderfully witty film written by Carla Stillwell about racism. The commercials feature a beverage called “Drink of Audacity” and a phone company with a lot of nerve called “Confederate Cellular.” There was also a game show like the “Dating Game” where the American bachelor post Civil War must choose between: Reconciliation, Emancipation, and Capitalism. Hmmm...what do you think our young country chose?? Ms. Stillwell has script #2 ready to film if she gets the funding raised. I’d love to see another episode.  

The second half of the show featured poetry/spoken word, music,  and an awesome band with a wonderful percussion section and xylophone. The big name of the evening was Broadway star Karen Olivo who goes by K.O. because “nobody wants to be a ‘Karen’ these days.” ;-) I was soooo  hoping to hear her sing, since she originated the role of Vanessa in In the Heights and won a Tony for West Side Story. But tonight was a time for thought-provoking monologues. 

Molly Brennan is a force of nature with her very commanding presence on stage. She played a ukulele peace song. She’s mesmerizing. 

Abad Viquez is a charmer who goes by “Shorty A.” He arrived on stage in his motorized wheelchair. Abad told his background of being born with a disability and his parents being told he would not walk, talk, or live to see his first birthday. Shorty A is now a graduate from Senn High School, an aspiring actor, and a winner in the August Wilson Monologue Competition. A theater program, and his very encouraging teacher, kept him looking forward. 

The most powerful performance, imho, was Anthony Wolf talking about his mother and his admiration of the Jackson Five. Wolf is a painter and an incredible dancer. He also tragically lost his mother, who was murdered five days after Christmas, by one of her johns. She was able to get her hands on $5k from another john to take her son to see Michael Jackson himself. Very moving story of love, devotion, and great dance moves! 

Well, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I loved my evening at the 6th Annual PeaceBook Festival 2021. My date even bought me a Collaboraction t-shirt! I look forward to more in the future.  

Cath Hellmann is a teacher, mom of three, theater lover, good troublemaker, and teller of tales, most of them true. 

Saturday, October 2 at the  Kehrein Center for the Performing Arts 5628 W. Washington Blvd.  in Chicago's Austin neighborhood

KAREN OLIVO RETURNS TO THE STAGE WITH COLLABORACTION AT PEACBOOK ON OCTOBER 2 AT KEHREIN CENTER FOR THE ARTS IN CHICAGO’S AUSTIN COMMUNITY

Actor, activist and Tony Award-winner Karen Olivo has been added to the line-up of Collaboraction’s 6th annual Peacebook Festival on Saturday, October 2 at the Kehrein Center for the Arts in Chicago’s Austin community.

Collaboraction has long been a favorite of ours for social justice theatre and community based work. My son, Dugan, a Northwestern theatre undergrad, interned with their After School Matters teens the summer before last, crafting two original productions based on students' works. Prior to that, he attended the program for two years in high school. 

Collaboraction asks the hard questions with thought provoking theatre, and unflinching looks at our city and beyond. Check out their excellent Peacebook Fest lineup. We'll be out today to recap the event, one of our top weekend picks. Don't miss this. 

5:30 pm Film Screenings Oh, Colonizers  A Masterpiece Theatre styled satire hosted by self-proclaimed Cultural Historian of Black Joy Carla Stillwell.  Peacebook Short Films By Ada Cheng, Darling Squire, Jasmin Cardenas,  Vernon D. Gooden and Willie Round 7:30 p.m.  Live "Gifts of Peace" solos  created and performed by:  Karen Olivo Tony Award-nominee as Satine in Moulin Rouge. Karen declined to return to Moulin Rogue and commercial theater after what they felt was the theater community's lack of meaningful response to the allegations against Broadway producer Scott Rudin. The are also a Tony Award-winner as Anita in West Side Story, and Karen originated the role of Vanessa in In the Heights. Abad Visquez A 19-year-old Senn High School graduate, born with sacral agenesis, who placed first in Chicago's qualifying rounds of the 2019 August Wilson Monologue Competition and won third place in the national championship in New York City. Ada Cheng The Chicago storyteller, solo artist, show producer, educator, facilitator, and speaker based in Chicago, and a frequent, favorite Collaboraction solo performer. David Flores The activist, artist, storyteller and Humboldt Park native, currently enrolled at the Art Institute of Chicago. Anthony Wolf A native of Chicago's west side, a dancer, painter and writer whose career has led to him work with Jay Leno, the Chicago Bulls, Puff Daddy, Eve, Oprah Winfrey and many more. Marvin Tate A multidisciplinary artist, performer and educator, active in the Chicago music scene since 1993, and collaborator with the likes of Leroy Bach, Theaster Gates Jr. and the Black Monks of Mississippi. Molly Brennan The Chicago actor, artist, agitator, activist and accomplice. Brennan has performed at Steppenwolf, Goodman, Lookingglass, Lyric Opera, Second City, American Theatre Company, The Fly Honey Show and others. Olivo will be one of the seven Gifts of Peace solo artists sharing their perspectives on peace with Collaboraction’s audience, live and in-person.    Tickets to see Olivo live at Peacebook on Saturday, October 2 are $5-$35. Performances start at 5:30 p.m. The Kehrein Center for the Arts is located at 5628 W. Washington Blvd. in Austin. Go to collaboraction.org to purchase tickets.  ​​Karen Olivo (she/they) is a multi-hyphenate living/working on the ancestral lands of the Ho-Chunk Nation in Madison, WI. She is most widely known for their acting work that spans the last 25 years on Broadway and TV. In the Spring of 2020, Olivo co-founded the non-for-profit organization, AFECT- Artists for Economic Transparency (afectchange.org), in an effort to educate the industry and promote discussion regarding entertainment industry structures and how they can be altered to better support underserved communities. “Building a better industry is more important than putting money in my pockets,” Olivo said.    Olivo’s most recent theatrical work is for playing “Satine” in Moulin Rouge, The Musical for which they received their second Tony Award nomination. Olivo is also recognized for their Tony Award-winning performance as “Anita” in the acclaimed 2009 Broadway revival of West Side Story, a role for which she also earned Drama Desk, Drama League, Outer Critics Circle, and Astaire Award nominations. Some of their Broadway theater credits include originating the role of “Vanessa” in the Tony Award-winning musical, In the Heights (2008 Astaire Award), starring as “Faith” in the Broadway production of Brooklyn the Musical, and in Jonathan Larson’s Pulitzer- and Tony Award-winning musical, Rent. Olivo is familiar to Chicago audiences, too, having portrayed Angelica Schuyler in the Chicago production of Hamilton from 2016 to 2017.  Olivo is also recognized for her many television appearances including a series regular, recurring and guest-starring roles on “Harry’s Law”, “The Good Wife,” “Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior,” “Chase,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Conviction,” and “Law & Order.” As an educator Olivo has worked at Northwestern University, NYU-Tisch, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as working as a visual artist, writer, and vocalist. Their 1st solo album LEAVE was released in 2018. COLLABORACTION’S 6TH PEACEBOOK FESTIVAL, FEATURING FILMS AND LIVE GIFTS OF PEACE SOLOS BY CHICAGO ARTISTS/ACTIVISTS OCTOBER 2 AT AUSTIN’S KERHEIN ARTS CENTER A festival of films and solo performances sharing personal perspectives on peace featuring Peacemakers Karen Olivo, Ameena Matthews, Marvin Tate, Ada Cheng, Molly Brennan and more, music by Joyful Soundz, debut of Carla Stillwell’s short film Oh, Colonizers, a response to January 6 Each Peacebook event will present a selection of world premiere Gifts of Peace Solos created and performed live and in-person by a diverse line-up of leading Chicago peace visionaries. Gifts of Peace soloists on October 2 in Austin are Abad Viquez, Ada Cheng, Anthony Wolf, David Flores, Karen Olivo, Marvin Tate, and Molly Brennan.   A collection of short films all produced by Collaboraction since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic precedes the solo works each night.  The evening will conclude with a Crucial Conservation between the artists and audience about how to increase the peace in Chicago.    “This unique moment in history is an open door to new ideas and actions around cultivating peace in Chicago and we are honored to be able to share these gifts of critical voices and perspectives on Peace,” said Collaboraction Artistic Director Anthony Moseley.    Tickets, $5-$35, are on sale now. Go to collaboraction.org for tickets, the full line-up, artist bios, show descriptions and artist information.  Note: Masks will be required at all times, and proof of vaccination is required. Or, in order to not limit access to the great majority of these communities based on their vaccination hesitancy, a negative Covid PCR test within 48 hours of performance time, or a negative six-hour hour rapid antigen test, will also be accepted. Visit collaboraction.org for updates to Collaboraction's Covid policies. Saturday, October 2 Kehrein Center for the Arts, 5628 W Washington Blvd., in Austin 5:30 p.m. Film Screening    Oh, Colonizers by Carla Stillwell Oh, Colonizers is a Masterpiece Theatre styled satire hosted by self-proclaimed Cultural Historian of Black Joy Carla Stillwell. Oh, Colonizers unpacks the way white people throughout America’s history have spread "oppression mayonnaise" over countless Black and Brown people. In this episode, we look at the period after the Civil War when America had a choice between emancipation, reconciliation and capitalism. With the help of a metaphorical World Colonization game show and KAREN inspired commercials, Oh, Colonizers connects the dots between capitalism and the insurrection of January 6, 2021 with historical accuracy and enough comedy to help the medicine go down. Peacebook Films by Ada Cheng, Darling Squire, Jasmin Cardenas, Vernon D. Gooden and Willie Round Short films from Collaboraction's 2020 Peacebook Fest include (left) Essential?...Tengo que trabajar/I have to work by Jasmin Cardenas and (right) This is North Lawndale by and featuring Willie “Prince Roc” Round.   Live Music by Joyful SoundZ, led by Joy Smith, the Englewood percussionist, teaching artist and Tru Chat podcast host, featured in Collaboraction’s Encounter Englewood. Joy Smith performed at Collaboraction's 25th Anniversary Moonset Sunrise gala in June.  7:30 p.m. Gifts of Peace Solos Abad Viquez, a 19-year-old Senn High School graduate and budding theater actor, born with sacral agenesis, who placed first in the Chicago qualifying rounds of the August Wilson Monologue Competition in 2019 and won third place in the national championship in New York City.   Ada Cheng, the Chicago storyteller, solo artist, show producer, educator, facilitator, and speaker based in Chicago, and a frequent, favorite Collaboraction solo performer. Anthony Wolf grew up on the west side of Chicago and is a dancer, painter and writer whose career has led to him work with Jay Leno, the Chicago Bulls, Puff Daddy, Eve, Oprah Winfrey and many more.  David Flores, the activist, artist, storyteller and Humboldt Park native, currently enrolled at the Art Institute of Chicago.   Karen Olivo, Tony Award-winner for West Side Story, Tony Award nominee for Moulin Rouge! The Musical, and theater educator and activist, co-founder, AFECT-Artists for Economic Transparency   Marvin Tate, a multidisciplinary artist, performer and educator, active in the Chicago music scene since 1993, and collaborator with the likes of Leroy Bach, Theaster Gates Jr. and the Black Monks of Mississippi.  Molly Brennan, the Chicago actor, artist, agitator, activist and accomplice. Brennan has performed at Steppenwolf, Goodman, Lookingglass, Lyric Opera, Second City, American Theatre Company, The Fly Honey Show and others. All Gifts of Peace Solos will be captured by a multi-camera live video team directed by award winning filmmaker Marquis Simmons for future release on Collaboraction’s Together Network. Want to spark social change in Chicago and beyond?  Become a CollaborActivist!  Join the company’s new member program that supports digital workshops and live programs, helps pay artists equitably, and provides a brave space for diverse voices who create transformative performances on critical social issues. CollaborActivists receive exclusive invitations to monthly social events (virtual and in-person), free or discounted tickets, special swag, and updates on Collaboraction’s community impact. Become a CollaborActivist for as little as $1 a month at collaboraction.org/collaboractivist.  For more information, visit collaboraction.org, follow the company on Twitter, Facebook,  Instagram or YouTube, or call (312) 226-9633. About Collaboraction Collaboraction, Chicago’s theater for social change, collaborates with a diverse community of Chicagoans, artists and community activists to create original theatrical and virtual experiences that cultivate dialogue and action around the world’s most critical social issues.  Since the company’s founding in 1996, Collaboraction has pushed artistic boundaries working with more than 4,000 artists to bring over 100 productions and events to more than 150,000 unique audience members, and has inspired measurable positive change on social justice in Chicago and beyond. Collaboraction’s work includes Sketchbook, Peacebook, Crime Scene, Forgotten Future and Gender Breakdown.    Collaboraction has been acknowledged for innovation and inclusivity by using theater as a tool for social change with numerous awards including, most recently, a 2020 Foster Innovation Award from Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the 2020 Multi-Racial Unity Award from the First Unitarian Church-Chicago, a 2018 Stand For the Arts Award from Comcast & OvationTV, and an Otto Award from New York’s Castillo Theatre.   In August 2021, Collaboraction returned to live performances by debuting The Light, a new ensemble of six high-achieving Chicago youth artists and activists who performed at Douglass Park in North Lawndale, LaFollette Park in Austin, and Hamilton Park in Englewood as part of the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks. Visit collaboraction.org/the-lIght to see where The Light will perform next in 2021-22.  Meanwhile, Collaboraction’s Together Network presents exclusive virtual content like Becoming, a live web show for anyone looking to be active anti-racists (first Tuesday of every month at 6 p.m. CT), and Crucial Connections, a live, interactive talk show that brings social justice warriors, artists and community residents together for crucial conversations (third Thursday of every month, 8 p.m. CT). Learn more at collaboraction.org/together-network. Collaboraction continues to use the theater at Kennedy-King College in Englewood as its mainstage producing home. Meanwhile, the company has initiated a search for its next home for live performances, community building and video production, exploring Chicago neighborhoods historically overlooked like Englewood, Austin and Lawndale. Collaboraction is supported by The Chicago Community Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events, Illinois Humanities, Paul M. Angell Foundation, Marc & Jeanne Malnati Family Foundation, Joseph & Bessie Feinberg Foundation, and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.  For more, visit collaboraction.org.

ONE-DAY MARATHON OF ALL 24 PEACEBOOK WORKS, OCTOBER 7 AT THE CHOP SHOP

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

CHICAGO’S SOCIAL ISSUE-DRIVEN THEATER ANNOUNCES ONE-DAY MARATHON OF ALL 24 PEACEBOOK WORKS,

OCTOBER 7 AT THE CHOP SHOP

Sunday, October 7, Collaboraction will reunite all 200+ Chicago artists involved in the creation of this year’s PEACEBOOK Festival for a one-day-only, marathon celebration showing of all 24 world premiere works about peace at The Chop Shop, 2033 W. North Avenue in Bucktown. 

The eight works from Hamilton Park plus the 16 that already premiered this month at PEACEBOOK Austin and PEACEBOOK Hermosa will be “re-mixed” into three one-hour programs starting at 3 p.m., 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.

The PEACEBOOK fall finale includes a free community meal between performances, peace panels and special guests. Tickets to each program are $30/$15 for artists, students, educators and veterans, or $50/$25 for an all access pass to all three shows.

Pay What You Can admission is also available for standing room only.

Visit collaboraction.org/peacebook2018, email boxoffice@collaboraction.org or call Collaboraction, (312) 226-9633, for the program line-ups and more information.

Collaboraction's 2017 PEACEBOOK Festival company members
PEACEBOOK is presented by Collaboraction, Chicago’s social issue-driven contemporary theater. For the latest updates, visit collaboraction.org or follow the company on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

Peacebook 2018 Trailer

Watch excerpts from the 24 "chapters" that make up Collaboraction's 2018 PEACEBOOK.

About PEACEBOOK

“The 24 ‘chapters’ in this year’s third annual PEACEBOOK, chosen from more than 200 submissions, unite over 200 artists, from household names to neighborhood peace activists, all intent on creating real connections with Chicagoans in communities around the city,” said Anthony Moseley, PEACEBOOK Festival Director and Artistic Director of Collaboraction. “We encourage Chicagoans to be active, come to Englewood, discover new neighborhoods and hear new stories. In doing so, we will see our similarities and connections to one another. Only then we can start working together to dismantle oppression and cultivate peace and equity.”

Other Chicago artists and activists who created works of seven minutes or less for this year’s PEACEBOOK include Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre, Amy “The Hope Dealer” Williams, Bril Barrett of M.A.D.D. Rhythm, and Sir Taylor of Example Setters Youth Poetry. Collaborators also include Wu Tang Clan and Chicago artist Amanda Williams, who gave Collaboraction permission to showcase her recent Color(ed) Theory project as part of this year’s set design and marketing graphics.

Collaboraction’s third annual PEACEBOOK Festival kicked off September 7 and 8 at La Follette Park in Chicago’s Austin community. Hermosa’s Kelvyn Park was the second stop on the PEACEBOOK tour. All three PEACEBOOK host sites – La Follette Park, Kelvyn Park and Hamilton Park - are familiar terrain for Collaboraction after more than five years of embedding its artists in each community to create and present devised, hyperlocal works about peace via the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks event series.


About Collaboraction


Collaboraction (collaboraction.org), Chicago’s social contemporary theater, collaborates with a diverse community of Chicagoans, artists and community activists to create original theatrical experiences that push artistic boundaries and explore critical social issues. Since the company’s founding in 1996, Collaboraction has worked with more than 3,000 artists to bring more than 60 productions and events to more than 150,000 audience members.

Collaboraction Artistic Director Anthony Moseley (left) and Managing Director Dr. Marcus Robinson (right.)

Collaboraction is led by Artistic Director Anthony Moseley, Managing Director Dr. Marcus Robinson, a company of 20 talented Chicago theater artists, and a dedicated staff and board of directors. The company’s vision is to utilize theater to cultivate dialogue and action around our most critical social issues throughout Chicago.

For the past five years, Collaboraction has partnered with the Chicago Park District through their Night Out in the Parks program, returning each year to cultivate relationships and theater in Englewood, Austin and Hermosa through the Crime Scene, PEACEBOOK and Encounter tours. Production highlights also include its series of Crime Scene productions responding to Chicago’s crime epidemic; Sarah Moeller’s Forgotten Future: The Education Project; 15 years of the SKETCHBOOK Festival; the Chicago premiere of 1001 by Jason Grote; the world premiere of Jon by George Saunders and directed by Seth Bockley; and The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow: an instant message with excitable music by Rolin Jones.

Collaboraction also maintains an active Collaboraction For-Hire division, which creates custom special event design for private, corporate and civic clients, including the Art Institute, the City of Chicago and many more.

Collaboraction is supported by The Chicago Community Trust, The Joyce Foundation, The Field Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, DCASE and the Wicker Park & Bucktown SSA #33 Chamber of Commerce. This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

For more, visit collaboraction.org, follow the company on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Tumblr, or call the Collaboraction box office, (312) 226-9633.

About the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks program

Collaboraction’s PEACEBOOK Festival is presented as part of the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks series, supported by Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Arts programming in neighborhoods across the city advances the goals of the Chicago Park District and the Chicago Cultural Plan. Now in its sixth year, the 2018 Night Out in the Parks series will host over 1,000 cultural events and programs at more than 250 neighborhood parks throughout the city, making community parks a safe haven and hubs of activity. Projects will vary from traditional performances and concerts, to movies, peace rallies, community workshops, nature based programs, dance pieces, festivals and more. The Chicago Park District has partnered with more than 100 arts and community organizations to expand and produce this successful initiative.