INCUBATOR Series: LiveWire Chicago Theatre
Character Development
by Joshua Aaron Weinstein, director of Lower Debt
Now my hates been turned off from my job
I’ve been laid off oh what am I gonna do
Well is the shape I’m in cause of my dark skin?
Well I know that can’t be true.
Since we are all down here together gotta work to make it better
Well that’s for what its worth.
But you know the rules are bent
When you have to pay your rent
Just to live on Earth
We’re talkin’ about Justice
- Victor Wooten, Justice
How do a group of citizens end up living off the grid in a tent city? Encampments are popping up everday in the news and it is disturbing whether it is a large group residing or just one (as we discover from this article in today’s Daily Herald).
Our goal for this weekend was to uncover the back stories of the residents in the tent city established in “Lower Debt.” We learned that Wendell has committed a crime against the wrong organization and has become a refugee along with her sister Val, who has her addiction hindering her from making a living, and Val’s husband, Claude, who stinks of booze and whose temper is too short for the world. They come clear across the country, on the run and in need of a safe place to lay. Luckily, Claude’s cousin Damon patrols the area of the empty lot in which they come to lay, but there is always a price to be paid even when family is involved.
Hot Topic, Hot Links
by Joshua Aaron Weinstein, director of Lower Debt
“One holds property only by the courtesy of those who do not seize it.” - Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
“Lower Debt” takes place in the here and now, present day America. With the current economic crisis and its residual effects touching us all, “Debt” intends to mirror this place in time and tell the story of a group of citizens who have no other place to live except in a tent or on the ground atop a vacant lot beneath the scorching sun out west. The collective of artists involved in the workshop were tasked with an assignment over the past couple days to bring in stories, articles, music, pictures, videos, etc., to expand the conversation that the characters in the play spark. We’ll continue to bring in resources over the course of the process. Below are some of the links we’ve gathered together that aims to inspire and guide us as we sprinkle texture and add depth to the piece.
AP Article:
In hard times, tent cities rise across the country
NY Times Article:
Aware of the Homeless? Well, You Could Say That
Time Article from 1975:
Chicago Public Radio Story:
Homeless in Chicago: Calling a Patch of Grass ‘Home’
Documentary Clip:
Poem:
Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes
Additional resources can be found at the LiveWire blog
“Lower Debt” Workshop Day #1
by Joshua Aaron Weinstein, director of Lower Debt and Executive Director of LiveWire Chicago Theatre
“He that dies pays all debts.” - The Tempest (3.2)
Welcome! LiveWire Chicago Theatre is extremely grateful for the opportunity to workshop “Lower Debt,” a new play in development by Joshua Aaron Weinstein here at the Chicago DCA Theater. Below are a few pics from our first day and already the conversation is flowing…
...And the community is growing together. Check back here often over the next couple weeks as we offer a behind the scenes look at the process of melding our collective mind around this piece.
More pics of our first day can also be found on our LiveWire blog.
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