Heller Shorts 2019: “Now and Ten”

August 22, 23, 24 & 25 at 7:30PM
August 25 at 2:00PM
Lynn Riggs Theater, Dennis R. Neill Equality Center
621 E. 4th St.

We’re celebrating the tenth anniversary of Shorts by staging 10 short plays: a collection of world-premieres and some favorites from the past decade of Shorts.

"Ars Longa, Vita Ferris” by David Blakely (originally seen in 2014); directed by Jarrod Kopp
”The Moon is My Neighbor” by Shadia Dahlal (originally seen in 2018); directed by Michelle Collum
”Patsy’s Suitcase” by Kelley Childers Friedberg (2019 World Premiere); directed by Jenny Clyde
”A Tale of Distraction” by Camie Hayes and R. Channing Reynolds (2019 World Premiere); directed by Karlena Riggs
”Death by Tiger” by Dan Hitzman (2019 World Premiere); directed by Angela Mclaughlin
"Tacky” by Nick Lutke and George Romero (originally seen in 2015); directed by Roderick Hudson
”Three Went Down” by Andrew Nichols (2019 World Premiere); directed by Audie Pritchett
”It’s Not Hard” by Karlena Riggs (2019 World Premiere); directed by Machele Miller-Dill
”Two Lies and the Truth?” by Archer C. Williams (originally seen in 2017); directed by Luke Thompson
”Jumper” by Michael Wright (originally seen in 2011); directed by Kia Hightower

The Nostalgia Will Eat Itself

written by John Fisher
directed by Nick Lutke

Jan. 17, 18, 24, 25, 31 & Feb. 1 at 8PM
Nightingale Theater, 1416 E. 4th St.

The Nostalgia Will Eat Itself by John Fisher is the inaugural Heller Launchpad production. This production is being self-produced by Nick Lutke, Thomas Hunt, and Luke Thompson under their “Write That Down Productions” label, with assistance from Heller Theatre Company and Midwestern Theater Troupe. Nostalgia will star Thomas Hunt, Kara Bellavia, John Cruncleton III, and Ben Despain. Nick Lutke will direct, with Luke Thompson stage managing and co-directing the filmed portions.

The Nostalgia Will Eat Itself follows a Tinder date between a young man who rose to quasi-fame playing video games on YouTube and a young woman whose interest in gaming is tempered by the industry’s sexist attitudes. Both of them harbor secrets and, before the night ends, blood will spill. Tulsa native (and current Chicago resident) John Fisher blends traditional horror elements with the horrors of online dating and toxic masculinity in this reflection on nostalgia, misogyny, and fame in a post-GamerGate world.

Return to Past Shows

The Deaths of Sybil Bolton

from the book by Dennis P. McAuliffe, Jr.
adapted for the stage and directed by David Blakely

November 1 & 2, 8 & 9 at 7:30PM
November 9 & 10 at 2:00PM
Lynn Riggs Theater, Dennis R. Neill Equality Center
621 E. 4th St.

HTC Playwright-in-Residence Emeritus David Blakely returns to recount a shocking true-life piece of Oklahoma history: the Osage Reign of Terror. Based on Dennis P. McAuliffe, Jr.’s 1990 nonfiction book The Deaths of Sybil Bolton, Blakely’s adaptation depicts a journalist uncovering lies, cover-ups, and murder on his quest for the truth: what exactly happened to his grandmother during the systematic reign of terror that killed an estimated 60-plus wealthy, full-blood Osage Native Americans in the 1920s? Blakely expands his four-time TATE-winning* one-act play Four Ways to Die into a full-length true-crime story from Oklahoma’s past, with an intimate look at how trauma, legacies, and lies are inherited.

The Deaths of Sybil Bolton marks the latest Heller Theatre Company production that magnifies the voices of the marginalized through powerful and well-written works.