The Neo-Futurists’ Remember the Alamo, which opened March 4 and plays through April 27, delves into the personal experiences of the cast who explore the complexity of their Latinx identities in America through a historical (and incredibly physical/hysterical) reenactment of Remember the Alamo.
Those familiar with The Neo-Futurists are aware of their meta-theatrical style, honest narratives and personal takes that have defined them for the past 30 years and Remember the Alamo is especially timely and poignant.
Remember the Alamo
March 4–April 27, 2019
Created by Neo-Futurist Ensemble Member Nick Hart
Directed by Neo-Futurist Artistic Director Kurt Chiang
Tickets: $10-$25
Schedule: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.
In this new production created by Neo-Futurist Ensemble Member Nick Hart and directed by Artistic Director Kurt Chiang, the cast takes over The Neo-Futurist Theater, refuses to leave and obstructs all production in the theater until the audience and actors recreate the Battle of the Alamo in its entirety—through the inevitable “death” of the audience.
Mixing personal stories and historical fact, Hart and the cast breach complex questions around race, Latinx identities, and the border wall. Remember the Alamo is inspired by the grand American tradition of historical reenactment with the meta-theatrical style, honest narratives and personal takes that have defined The Neo-Futurists for 30 years.
Tickets for the world premiere Remember the Alamo at The Neo-Futurist Theater (5153 N. Ashland Avenue) are on sale now and range from $10-$25. For more information or to purchase tickets, visitneofuturists.org/remember-the-alamo.
Remember the Alamo is the 2017-18 commission from The Neo-Futurists’ new works residency program, Neo-Lab, which launched with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Over the past three decades, The Neo-Futurists have created more than 10,500 plays within their flagship late-night event (now known as The Infinite Wrench) and more than 65 full-length mainstage productions incorporating their signature non-illusory, interactive style of performance.
ARTIST BIOS
Brenda Arellano is a performer and devisor based out of Oakland, CA. She was an ensemble member of The Neo-Futurists in Chicago, as well as with The San Francisco Neo-Futurists. She is an alumnus of Barrel of Monkeys, and has performed with Chicago Children’s Theater, The House Theater, Teatro Vista, and the monthly live lit event, Paper Machete. Recent credits in the Bay Area include Berkeley Repertory Theater’s Ground Floor Summer Lab (2016 and 2018), as well as performing as a hospital clown for Medical Clown Project.
Hal Baum is a writer/performer born and raised in the city of Chicago. He previously performed with The Neo-Futurists in The Arrow Drops Anchor and The Arrow Cleans House. Follow him on Instagram (@halbaum) or hear his music at halbaum.bandcamp.com.
Nancy Casas is a company member with Barrel of Monkeys, teaching in Chicago Public Schools and performing in That’s Weird, Grandma. This is her first production with The Neo-Futurists.
Mitchell Chapman is a regular technician for The Neo-Futurists. Recent credits include Tedium/Other Sensations (Asst. Production Manager), Empty Threats (Stage Manager), and regular runs in the long-running show, The Infinite Wrench.
Kurt Chiang is Artistic Director & Ensemble Member with The Neo-Futurists. As a Neo-Futurist, he has written over 300 two-minute plays since joining the company in 2008, and is the creator of the Prime Time show Analog (2013), and the recurring live-reading-and-editing show The Arrow, in collaboration with Lily Mooney. Previous credits at The Neo-Futurists: Saturn Returns (writer/performer), The Neo-Futurists: Body (co-editor), Haymaker (director), BEER! The Musical (performer), Burning Bluebeard (choreographer & installation artist), and The Fool (Returns To His Chair) (writer/performer). He is a Company Member of Barrel of Monkeys and has performed in That’s Weird, Grandma. Kurt is a 2017 3Arts Make a Wave grantee.
Nick Hart graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a BA in theatre in 2010. He has been an ensemble member with The Neo-Futurists since 2014, where he has written and performed more than 150 short plays and is currently a writer and performer in their signature late-night production The Infinite Wrench. Hart is also a proud member of Barrel of Monkeys and has regularly performed in their show That’s Weird, Grandma since 2011. Remember the Alamo is his first world premiere mainstage production at The Neo-Futurist Theater this spring.
Steven Edward Mosqueda is a Los Angeles native but considers Chicago home since 1990. He is a Neo-Futurist alum and a founding member of The Drinking & Writing Theater, exploring the connection between creativity and alcohol since 2002.
ABOUT THE NEO-FUTURIST THEATER
Celebrating its 30th Anniversary this season, The Neo-Futurist Theater is a collective of writer-director-performers who create theater that is a fusion of sport, poetry and living newspaper. The company has created more than 10,500 plays to date within its flagship late-night event (now known as The Infinite Wrench) and more than 65 full-length mainstage productions incorporating its signature non-illusory, interactive style of performance. From humble beginnings launching the first late-night theater production in Chicago, The Neo-Futurist Theater created what became the city’s longest-running show and has grown to become one of the most highly regarded experimental theater companies in the United States, with sister companies in San Francisco and New York. For more information, visit www.neofuturists.org.
The Neo-Futurist Theater is partially supported by grants from Alphawood Foundation Chicago, Arts Work Fund, The Chicago Community Foundation, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The Illinois Arts Council Agency, The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, and The National Endowment for the Arts.