This casual evening will present three 20-minute cuttings of new plays from Trademark Theater’s newest class of commissioned artists. A mixture of songs, scenes, and visuals, The In The Works Showcase gives audiences a peek behind the curtain of several new works in their earliest stages in development while hearing directly from the playwrights, composers, and theater-makers themselves about the creative process as they’ve developed their plays over the past year. The presentation will conclude with a post-event meet-and-greet with the artists.

Featured works will include:

PANSY

Created and Performed by Max Wojtanowicz
With Music by Michael Gruber 
Directed by Nikki Swoboda

The early 20th century was an extraordinarily hostile time for queer people, but an underground cabaret movement known as "the Pansy Craze" gave voice to courageous performers like Gene Malin, Karyl Norman, and Bruz Fletcher. Inspired by these crusaders and their incredible artistry, Pansy imagines one such cabaret singer holding court for an audience of Hollywood stars as America enters World War II. A celebration of queer artistry, creativity, and resilience, Pansy is a story about singing out when the world demands your silence.

LOCUST

Book by Emma Lai
Music and Lyrics by Hannah Bakke 
Directed by Tyler Michaels King

Seven strangers meet in an abandoned town on their way to their different destinations as a dust storm approaches. Inspired by the actual physiological and behavioral transformation that grasshoppers undergo in times of food scarcity, LOCUST is a folk musical about how people, homes, and destinations can change and transform.

THE FEBRUARY PLAY

By Vinecia Coleman
Directed by Marcela Michelle

When the director of a production of A RAISIN IN THE SUN mysteriously dies, the cast and crew must work together to escape the haunted theater or face their own tragic end.