The Secretaries
Saturday, February 27 at 7pm CST
By Omer Abbas Salem, Directed by Audrey Francis
Berlin, 1944: four women in Aryan drag vie to be the Führer’s personal secretary as he heads into a bunker with his girlfriend. It’s a rough time to be a German, but this is a chance to search for greater importance in a national capacity. Omer Abbas Salem’s fearsome, absurd new work examines complicity and the lies we tell ourselves as we mistake self-interest and supremacy for patriotism.
Please make a reservation to view this performance. After completing your reservation, you will receive an E-ticket with details about how to stream the live reading. It will be available to watch at 7pm CST on February 27 only.
Current runtime: 1 hr 50 min, including one 10-min intermission.
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Omer Abbas Salem / Playwright
Omer Abbas Salem is a Chicago actor, playwright, and activist. As an actor, Abbas has worked with Steep Theatre, The House Theatre, Jackalope Theatre, The New Colony, Silk Road Rising, Bailiwick, Griffin Theatre, Eclipse Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Atlantic Theater, and Roundabout Theater. As a playwright, he has been produced by the Actors Theatre of Louisville, The New Colony, Jackalope Theatre, Theatre Viscera, Means of Production, National Queer Theater, Definition Theatre, and Steppenwolf Theatre. His play Mosque4Mosque is Steppenwolf Theatre's SCOUT Program's 20/21 development. His play Being Julia Roberts was commissioned by Jackalope Theatre for their 20/21 New Frontier Series. The Secretaries is also a semi-finalist in Definition Theatre's 20/21 Amplify Commission. He was an Actors Theatre of Louisville acting apprentice (17/18) and is also a proud ensemble member of The New Colony and Steep Theatre. More at www.omerabbassalem.com
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Audrey Francis / Director
Audrey Francis is an actor, director, and teaching artist. She is an ensemble member at Steppenwolf Theatre and co-founder of Black Box Acting. Theatre credits include Dance Nation, The Doppelgänger, You Got Older, The Fundamentals, Between Riverside and Crazy, and The Herd (Steppenwolf Theatre); Witch (Writers Theatre); Kill Floor (American Theatre Company); and Talking Pictures (Goodman Theatre). Television credits include Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, and Empire. Film credits include indie films, Knives and Skin, Signature Move, Medal of Victory, and the upcoming feature, Later Days. Recent directing credits include Plano (First Floor Theatre) and The Invisible Hand (Steep Theatre). Audrey also works as an acting coach for NBC, Fox, FX, and Showtime.
CAST
ECHAKA AGBA - HANNAH
EMJOY GAVINO - HELGA
SARAH PRICE - HELENA
TINA MUÑOZ PANDYA - HENRIETTA
MOLLY BRENNAN - STAGE DIRECTIONS READER
SPONSORS
