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Created by Iris Sowlat and Allison Fradkin in 2019, Violet Surprise Theatre is a queer DIY theatre company with the mission to produce theatre that represents women, especially highlighting queer women.
Violet Surprise debuted in August 2019 with Violet Surprise: Fem-slash Fest, a festival of short plays that queered the cannon, profiled in this Chicago Tribune article.. Their latest show is Hysterical Fest, which is now streaming. HystericalFest
In partnership with producers Paula Kamen and Terri Lynne Hudson with a generous grant from the City of Evanston
For centuries, a way to diagnose a woman (or person of a historically marginalized gender) for hysteria is if they were dramatic and seeking attention about their otherwise invisible illness. In this short comedy festival, we are turning the tables, embracing the forbidden, literally "acting out." Comedy reflects the absurdity of our experiences, and theater provides a way to literally relieve isolation, build community, and confront stigma. This festival features ten short plays that show the experiences of women with a full range of invisible disabilities. Purchase a recording of the festival with ASL and captioned options available here through November 28. |
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The Revolutionists by Lauren Gunderson
What if four very different women with different approaches to revolution found themselves together in 1793? The Revolutionists is a startlingly relevant play about four historical women who lived boldly in France during the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror. Both hilarious and brutal, this witty period dramedy is especially relatable in today’s political climate. This grand comedy is about violence, legacy, art, activism, feminism, chosen sisters, and how we actually change the world.
Dates and Venues: This play toured to 20 venues in Chicago and the suburbs, reaching as far north as Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Check out this Google doc for the full list of dates, venues, and ticket links:
What if four very different women with different approaches to revolution found themselves together in 1793? The Revolutionists is a startlingly relevant play about four historical women who lived boldly in France during the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror. Both hilarious and brutal, this witty period dramedy is especially relatable in today’s political climate. This grand comedy is about violence, legacy, art, activism, feminism, chosen sisters, and how we actually change the world.
Dates and Venues: This play toured to 20 venues in Chicago and the suburbs, reaching as far north as Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Check out this Google doc for the full list of dates, venues, and ticket links:
Sapphisticated Histories
Violet Surprise Theatre presents six short new plays about women who refine, define, and redefine the expression "out with the old." Sapph-isticated Histories: Women Across Time honors the formidable fortitude of our foremothers, both factual figures from history and fictional figures of our playwrights' own creation. There's no time like the present to celebrate queer women from the past, and when it comes to validating our voices, Violet Surprise is no shrinking violet. We believe that respectful, realistic representation is not only valuable - it's vital.
The Icon Project
From January to August of 2021, Iris Sowlat led the creation of the new play The Icon Project, collaboratively devised/written by Sowlat and an ensemble of seven other actors/writers/devisors. This play is still in development.
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SapphFest
SapphFest is Violet Surprise Theatre's quarterly virtual variety show over Zoom featuring solo performances by queer women and non-binary performance artists and short plays. SapphFest often includes a potpourri of stand-up comedy, personal storytelling, original music, dance, clown, short experimental film, and other performance art. SapphFest had seven installments during the COVID-19 pandemic, from May 2020 to June 2021.
Lez Beaus
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Fem-slash Fest
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