March 1st, 2023
So this is a new experience for me – I just finished a draft of my new play Your Romeo, about the tempestuous relationship between superstar Shakespearean actor Charlotte Cushman and porto-feminist writer Matilda “Max” Hays, and immediately had a scrappy new theatre collective here in Chicago snatch it up for development. That is DEFINITELY not how it usually goes! I’m feeling very lucky at the moment, and can’t wait to share a reading of it with you Saturday March 25th. Tickets are free, but it’s a tiny venue, so reserving spots in advance is encouraged! Hope to see you there!
December 20th, 2022
Last week I had an absolute dream of a private reading of my play Cercle Hermaphroditos in New York City, spearheaded by the Breaking The Binary Theatre Festival. Directed by and starring the incomparable L Morgan Lee, it was hands-down one of the most lovely and inspiring groups of folks I’ve had the pleasure to work with. Just an incredible cast and leadership team. It’s the first time I’ve heard the play in-person since 2019, and finally hearing it back up to pace with no virtual platform lag in such finely wrought performances was a thrill. BTB founder George Strus has created an amazingly warm, supportive space for artists. I felt truly taken care of on this project in a way that I rarely find. If you have a chance to work with them, jump at it! And here’s hoping this isn’t the last time the smiling folks below get together to work on this play!
November 4th, 2022
I kept forgetting to post this, but no longer! Here’s a lovely chat me and my amazing collaborators Theo Motzenbacker and Dean Grosbard had with Quinn from the All the Genders podcast, focused on my play Cercle Hermaphroditos. There’s some other exciting stuff going on around the play that I’ll hopefully be able to officially announce soon! Stay tuned!
https://allthegenders.com/?p=194
September 21, 2022
I’m off on a new adventure – I just settled into a 3 month artist’s residency with the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation in Taos, New Mexico. I have both a play and a musical – each mid-process – that I’m hoping to finish in my time here. I’ve also been meeting some other lovely artists, working in several different disciplines. It promises to be a really fruitful rejuvenating time. Here’s my cute little casita I’m living and working in:
June 4th, 2022
This coming Tuesday, I’m jumping into a two week workshop for my play And Certain Women with the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, under the direction of the incredible Chika Ike! We worked together on a reading of my play Sunset Artists of the American West in 2018, and I’m so excited to be back in a rehearsal room working with her on this new one! You can check out her previous work here:
April 16th, 2022
Lately I’ve realized that I don’t really have much video of my past work up on my website, so here’s a trailer for a 45 minute workshop production of my musical Osgood Rex that we did ages ago. Still available for world premiere of the full version! For all its wackadoodle-ness, it’s a script that’s a lot more personal than it may look, and is still very close to my heart. Would love to revisit it again:
Trailer by the incomparable Beth Ashby!
shualee cook 