The Collective to Stage 'Other Familiars'

Submitted by Concordia University Chicago.

The Collective, Concordia University Chicago’s theater production company, is proud to present “Other Familiars” by Scott T. Barsotti. The play, directed by Jason Narvy, was commissioned by CUC as part of their ongoing relationship with Chicago Dramatists.

Performances will take place Oct. 1-3 and 8-10 at 7:30 p.m., and Oct. 4 and 11 at 2 p.m., at Madison Street Theatre, 1010 Madison St., Oak Park, IL. Each year, a new play by one of Chicago Dramatists’ resident playwrights is workshopped and produced by The Collective (formerly the Artists of Concordia Theatre).

In the play, Ruby, a witch, is losing her familiar, or animal spirit, to a consumptive sickness. Before she can even begin the grieving process for her dying friend, she is pressured to find a new spirit guide to replace him. Meanwhile, Ruby and her sisters were just assigned an urgent errand by their superior goddess, Hecate: meddling in the affairs of an ambitious Scottish general. While murder and treason shake all of Scotland, Ruby’s concerns become more deeply personal. Unable to cope without her familiar, Ruby accepts a perilous quest to obtain the ingredients for a spell to save its life.

Scott T. Barsotti is a Chicago playwright originally from Pittsburgh, PA. He is a resident playwright at Chicago Dramatists, a company member of WildClaw Theatre and a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.

Jason Narvy is Chair of the Department of Theater at CUC. Between 1993 and 1999, he portrayed the role of the comic villain “Skull” in over 300 episodes of Fox television’s “Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers” and its spinoffs. Narvy is now a Chicago-based actor and director of theater.

General admission tickets to “Other Familiars” are $15, with discounts available for seniors, students and CUC alumni. Tickets can be purchased online atCUCOtherFamiliars.brownpapertickets.com, or by cash or check at the door.