Goodman Theatre to Present Virtual Readings of THE SECRETARIES and TOKENS OF PROMISE

Goodman Theatre announces two Future Labs FREE virtual readings for February and March-The Secretaries by Omer Abbas Salem, directed by Audrey Francis and Tokens of Promise by Ada A., directed by Sydney Chatman.

In addition, Layalina by Martin Yousif Zebari, which was directed by Azar Kazemi and appeared last month as Future Labs' inaugural virtual reading, is available for streaming FREE through February 17. Future Labs develops works authored and directed by Black, Indigenous, Latinx, AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander), SWANA (South West Asian/North African) and other artists of color; the series is curated by Quenna L. Barrett (Associate Director of Education and Engagement), Jonathan L. Green (Literary and New Works Manager), Ken-Matt Martin (Associate Producer) and a Goodman Staff Evaluation Team composed of individuals of intersectional identities in areas across the theater.

The Goodman is grateful for the generosity of its New Work sponsors, including: Pritzker Pucker Family Foundation and the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Major Support of New Work; Ruth D. and Ken M. Davee New Works Fund, Major Support of New Play Development; The Glasser and Rosenthal Family, Mayer Brown LLP, and Shaw Family Supporting Organization, Support of New Work.

The Secretaries is set in 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.

In Tokens of Promise, there's only one open "diversity" analyst position at a start-up. And the minorities must duke it out to access the sweet privilege of employment. A wicked satire about the modern-day job search and scarcity mentality, Ada A.'s new play exposes the inherent competition in employment that leads to forsaking our humanity out of necessity and survival.

In Layalina, newly wed Layal plans a future with her family as they prepare to immigrate to the U.S. from Baghdad in 2003. Living just outside of Chicago 18 years later, Layal's life and responsibilities look unimaginably different from what she had envisioned two decades before. Martin Yousif Zebari's play examines how families maintain their love in the midst of turbulent global and social change.

Designed primarily for Chicago-based writers who have not had a play produced at the Goodman, Future Labs will feature up to nine workshops and presentations this season. Selected projects receive rehearsal time, artistic, dramaturgical and casting support and an optional free public reading. This new development series is the latest effort among the Goodman's programs that support living writers and develop new plays-including New Stages, Playwrights Unit and more than two dozen individual artist commissions.

The virtual readings of The Secretaries (February 27 at 7pm) and Tokens of Promise (March 20 at 7pm) are free, but registration is required; visit GoodmanTheatre.org/TheSecretaries and GoodmanTheatre.org/Token. Layalina streams February 11-17; visit GoodmanTheatre.org/Layalina.

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