Before Annie Russell became a news editor at WBEZ by day and stand-up comedian by night, she was a college student who wanted to make a real statement with a one-act play. Russell describes the work as a cross between the film Garden State and an episode of Law & Order: SVU, a revelatory piece about date rape. Years later, she found the play buried on her hard drive. It wasn’t quite as profound as she remembered.
The only stipulation is that performers have to be accomplished in some field now so that it takes the sting out of making fun of their earlier work. That doesn’t necessarily mean the work they show has to be related to what they’re doing now—even though this inaugural lineup is made up of all comedians, the work presented ranges from performance art to video to a photo series. The goal is to remind performers and audience members alike that if you have a piece of youthful writing or visual art that you’re ashamed of, you’re not alone.
Thu 3/14, 7 PM, Transistor, 5224 N. Clark, facebook.com/freshmanchicago. F
