Collaboraction Presents 11 Plays in THE DECADES PROJECT, Beg. Tonight

Wicker Park's historic Flat Iron Arts Building - home to over 30 artist studios, six small businesses, a Bank of America branch, and Collaboraction Theatre Company - turns 100 years old this year.

To celebrate, Collaboraction is putting together a two-night-only performance event featuring 11 original short plays, each based on a specific decade of the Flat Iron's existence. The project is titled The Decades Project: Celebrating 100 Years of the Flat Iron Arts Building and takes place today, June 21 and the 22nd in Collaboraction's Room 300 Theater on the 3rd floor of the Flat Iron.

The Decades Project began with a Facebook post by Collaboraction artistic and executive director Anthony Moseley. On March 5, Moseley shared a historic photo of the Milwaukee/Damen/North intersection that is now home to the building, and asked his Facebook friends what he should do to celebrate the centennial:

The post received more than 80 comments, many of them from playwrights with whom Moseley had previously worked. The result was a fully crowd-sourced idea for a showcase of new plays based on the decades of the building's existence. In the following weeks, Moseley enlisted 11 playwrights in the project and assigned each a decade. Each will create an original script of 10 minutes or less, and all 11 will be performed, in order, on June 21 and 22.

The Decades Project -- Plays by Decade

1910s - written by Emily Schwartz, directed by Jess McLeod

1920s - written by Tanya Saracho, directed by Alice De Cuhna

1930s - written by Ronan Marra, directed by Brigitte Ditmars

1940s - written by Randall Colburn, directed by Josh Weinstein

1950s - written by Martin Zimmerman, directed by Rebecca Stevens

1960s - written and directed by Stephen Ptacek

1970s - written by Paul Stovall, directed by Taylor Bailey

1980s - written by Brett Neveu, directed by Lance Baker

1990s - written by Laura Jacqmin, directed by Nathan Green

2000s - written by Ike Holter, directed by Dav Yendler

2010s - written and directed by Anthony Moseley

Several other Flat Iron artists will be holding their own special events celebrating the anniversary as well, and the annual Now You See It/Now You Don't mural event will be on view throughout.

On Friday, June 21 the party, including live music and visual art, will begin at 10 pm, and Saturday June 22 at 8 pm. Tickets are $25, or $15 with student ID. Purchasers of Collaboraction's. SKETCHBOOK Festival Pass will gain free entry to The Decades Project. For tickets and info, visit www.collaboraction.org.

Collaboraction is a Chicago-based arts organization of collaborative theater and experience makers focused on becoming a national leader of contemporary theater. By incorporating innovative artists and interdisciplinary collaboration, Collaboraction audiences are sure to experience groundbreaking theatrical and arts-based events.

Anthony Moseley serves as the Founding Executive and Artistic Director of Collaboraction, where he has produced over 50 productions, 12 SKETCHBOOK Festivals and over 250 events since the company's founding in 1999. In 2000 Moseley co-founded the annual SKETCHBOOK Festival, which was lauded by Kerry Reid of the Chicago Reader as "the premiere short play festival in the Midwest." Under Moseley's direction, SKETCHBOOK has produced 158 world premiere short plays in a mixed media environment with music and visual art and last year the 12th annualSKETCHBOOK Reincarnate (sketchbook12.org) expanded to include five programs of works between seven and 60 minutes. Moseley's Collaboraction directing credits include the world premieres of Crime Scene: A Chicago Anthology, El Grito Del Bronx (a co-production with Teatro Vista in association with the Goodman Theatre), The Pull Toy (and His Pasian), and Heroes and Villains; Chicago premieres of dark play or stories for boys by Carlos Murrillo, Be a Good Little Widow by Bekah Brunstetter, Refuge (2000 Jeff Citation nomination for Best Direction),The Cosmonaut's Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union,Trueblinka and Guinea Pig Solo; as well as Mud, To Kill a Mockingbird, and numerous world premiere short plays for the SKETCHBOOK Festival.

For more information, visit www.collaboraction.org.

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