SEASON 32 | 2020

Below is a list of the Virtual Programming that started after the gathering restrictions in March, 2020. If you enjoy our online offerings, please consider a donation in lieu of a ticket. Your support will help us come back strong when we are cleared to reopen The VORTEX.

Yours in Solidarity -

Melissa Vogt
Managing Director

The VORTEX presents a rebroadcast of
Wild Horses by Allison Gregory.

March 19th, at 8pm CST.

The VORTEX presents
Dillon Yruegas and Melissa Vogt talk theatre

LIVE ON FRIDAY, MARCH 20TH, AT 8PM CST

The VORTEX presents
Rudy Ramirez Does Astrology Personality Analysis

Saturday, March 21st, at 8pm CST

The VORTEX presents
Ethos’ Pythia Dust

SUNDAY, MARCH 22ND, AT 8PM CST

Virtual Yoga with Olivia Jimenez

EVERY WEDNESDAY THROUGH APRIL 29TH, AT 6:30PM CST

A rebroadcast of Sing Muse

Thursday, March 26th, at 8pm CST

Ask Tia Chancla, with Eva McQuade

FRIDAY, MARCH 27TH, AT 8PM CST

You can ask her anything, but beware the flying wisdom of her righteous CHANCLA! www.facebook.com/VORTEXrep/

Drunk Steel Magnolias
with Rudy Ramirez, Jennifer Coy Jennings, and Andreá Smith

SATURDAY, MARCH 28TH, AT 8PM CST

A rebroadcast of Changelings
with special pre-show premiere of 2 new plays

Sunday, March 29th, at 7:30pm CST

Featuring Changelings by Reina Hardy (filmed 2015 by Magic Spoon Productions). Directed by Rudy Ramirez. Our pre-show play premieres are by Reina Hardy and Sarah Saltwick.

Ask Tia Chancla - Return of the Chancla!
w/ Eva McQuade

Wednesday, April 1 8pm CST

She’s Baaaaaaack. Ask Tia Chancla w/ Eva McQuade! She’s the shero we need in the world right now, coming through the interwebs and straight into your living room with the power of the CHANCLA. Eva channels the ultimate Tia who is here for you with a Big Red Margarita and some chancla justice.

Streaming live on our Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/VORTEXrep/
We will embed the live video on this page as soon as it’s up. To participate in chat, you have to visit on Facebook.

Last: An Extinction Comedy

Thursday, April 2 8pm CST

A rebroadcast of Last: An Extinction Comedy, Conceived and Directed by Rudy Ramirez, devised by the ensemble. Centuries from now, a troupe of tired and really hungry comedians roam the crumbling remains of human civilization performing sketches about extinction. Taking the names of surviving animal species like Trash Panda and Cockroach, they bring humor to a world on the gallows and remind us that a story of extinction is also a story of survival— Mad Max meets the Muppets!

bala.fruta./bullet.fruit. preview and workshop questions
w/ Jesús I. Valles

Friday, April 3 8pm CST

A new show in development about bullets and the ghosts they leave behind, even when they kill nobody. Tune in live to hear what's new with the show and talk to Jesus about his creative process.

Malum Malus Burlesque
w/ Blaise Ricin

Saturday, April 4 8pm CST

The conjurers of Austin's newest immersive burlesque and dance collective preview some of the work they have been preparing. It's also Blaise's Saturn Return, so be prepared for a surprise or two...he may have some tricks up his sleeve. ;)

Pink Sun,
w/ a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays

Sunday, April 5 7:30pm CST

A rebroadcast of Pink Sun. Written by ethos. Directed by Bonnie Cullum. Starring Chad Salvata and Melissa Vogt. Have you ever considered what watching a pageant play from an alien species might be like...on acid? This is the closest experience you'll ever get. Dance party! Featuring a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays from Rudy Ramirez’s CoviDecameron project- a piece by Krysta Gonzales starring Gricelda Silva and Laura J. Khalil and a piece by Katherine Catmull starring Madison Palomo.

Virtual Yoga with Olivia Jimenez

EVERY WEDNESDAY THROUGH APRIL 29TH, AT 6:30PM CST

Privacy Settings, A Promethean Tale

THURSDAY, APRIL 9 8PM CST

Conceived and Directed by Dr. Heather Barfield. Devised by the Ensemble. Presented by The VORTEX. What would you do if you had to choose between privacy and security? Who holds the master key to open the back door to your private life? Hackers and lawyers, government agencies and law enforcement, data miners and marketing executives, identity thieves and credit bureaus--all are interested in who you are, what you reveal, and what you believe is secure. Privacy Settings: A Promethean Tale is an ensemble-devised interpretation of the Ancient Greek play Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus and based loosely on the actions and punishments of contemporary whistle-blowers, advocates for digital privacy rights and perversions of American civil liberties. Privacy Settings offered a “surveillance fun house” with opportunities for unique interactive experiences.

Happy Hour with Avery Moore

FRIDAY, APRIL 10 7PM CST

join us on the Butterfly Bar instagram page for happy hour with Avery Moore! In addition to being one of our beloved bartenders, Avery is a hilariously talented stand up comic, voted Best of Austin's Stand Up Comics in 2018 by the Austin Chronicle. You can tip her out directly during the broadcast, and she's going to be sharing what she gets with the bar staff because she's an amazing human. Hope you can join us for drinks and hijinks!

Ask Tia Chancla Episode 3 - Chanclas Unite!
w/ Eva McQuade
Special Guests: Olivia Jimenez, Martinique Duchene-Phillips,
Marina DeYoe-Pedraza, Julie Moore

SATURDAY, APRIL 11 8PM CST

Featuring Eva McQuade as Tia Chancla with her guests Tia Leti, Tia Guerra, Titi Paulina, and Kay Nice. She’s the shero we need in the world right now, coming through the interwebs and straight into your living room with the power of the CHANCLA. Eva channels the ultimate Tia who is here for you with a Big Red Margarita and some chancla justice.

The Deluge,
w/ a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays

SUNDAY, APRIL 12 7:30PM CST

A broadcast of The Deluge. Written by Kirk Smith. Directed by Bonnie Cullum. Featuring Matthew Patterson and Eryn Gettys. Live music played by Michael Werst, Ken Burchenal, and Amy-Lou Werst a trio on violin, guitar, and cello. The rain comes down. It falls over the entire earth: in the fields, the olive groves, on animals, and through cracks in the small, raw wooden room that is the center of existence for what may be the only two people alive. They are friends, lovers, spouses, and soon to be parents. But they are moving in opposite directions, more and more, coming apart as the rain comes down. Winner of the B. Iden Payne Award for Outstanding Score. Also featuring a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays from Rudy Ramirez’s CoviDecameron Project- a piece by Jacqueline Goldfinger starring Dillon Yruegas and Jax Jackson, and a piece by Kevin Moxley featuring Kelsey Mazak.

Virtual Yoga with Olivia Jimenez

EVERY WEDNESDAY THROUGH APRIL 29TH, AT 6:30PM CST

SYT’s Tartuffe

Thursday, April 16 8pm CST

Directed by Katherine Wilkinson. What happens when hypocrisy is rewarded and lies become the language of power? When fallacy is the status quo and history keeps repeating itself, how do we change our world? Using dance, chess, and biting comedy, the SYT ensemble transforms Tartuffe’s challenge into a fast-paced, unpredictable game. When truth is brought upon a society riddled with lies, who will come out on top? The ensemble worked passionately and physically together all summer in the investigation of truth, power, piety, and self-revelation in our modern world.

DIGI-SLAM!
An online, in your living room poetry slam

Friday, April 17 8pm CST

Featuring poets from Austin, Albuquerque, Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit, and more! Our lineup includes: Women of the World Poetry Slam ‘20 Finalist Clarity Levine, Women of the World Poetry Slam ‘19 finalist Gigi Bella G, Individual World Poetry Slam 18’ and Rustbelt ‘19 Finalist Ephraim Nehemiah, Individual of the World Poetry Slam ‘17 and Rustbelt ‘19 Finalist Damien McClendon, Rustbelt ‘19 Finalist Akeem Rollins, Finalist for the 2017 Button Poetry Chapbook Competition and four year PinkDoor Fellow Siaara Freeman, Bree Shanee, and more! MC’d by poet Drewzymandias; come and enjoy a social distance - quarantine friendly night of poetry!

Bonnie’s Birthday Readings and Rituals

Saturday, April 18 8pm CST

VORTEX Producing Artistic Director Bonnie Cullum was born on April 18, 1961 in San Antonio, Texas, daughter of Susan Estelle Kelso and Jim Cullum.  For her pandemic birthday celebration, Bonnie is offering an online ritual and play readings.  The readings feature 2 new plays by Susan Kelso. Miriam (May im) tells the story of one of the visionary leaders of the Exodus, sister of Moses and Aaron. Featuring Miriam Yucht Rubin with Sandie Donzica and Olivia Jimenez. The 2nd play, Eshun, centers on the true story 14th-15th century Japanese woman who defied expectations and became a Zen Monk. Featuring kt shorb. Around these 2 plays, Bonnie Cullum creates sacred space, honors the ancestors including her late father, Jim Cullum, sings songs to help us open to our highest selves and stir us to social justice and action.

Get comfy. Bring your own cocktail or birthday cake and join us for Bonnie’s Birthday Readings and Rituals.

WATER,
w/ a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays

Sunday, April 19 7:30pm CST

Directed by Bonnie Cullum. VORTEX artists flood the stage with a pool of water and a shimmering waterfall. The actors dance through water -- relishing life force, swimming the depths, honoring Water in many forms, and engaging the audience in a visceral journey of cleansing, healing, and heart. Also featuring a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays from Rudy Ramirez’s CoviDecameron Project- with pieces by Roxanne Schroeder-Arce and Rory Leahy, featuring the acting talents of Ellie McBride, Lowell Bartholomee, Genevieve Schroeder-Arce, Robert Faires and Jennifer Jennings.

Virtual Yoga with Olivia Jimenez

Final Wednesday, April 29th at 6:30pm CST

About Olivia:

I am a bilingual (English/Spanish) Austin native with over 1,500 hours of training in various styles of yoga and yoga therapy (using the tools of yoga to address chronic and acute conditions, returning the system to balance). I have worked with people of all ages and stages of life, from elementary aged kids to incarcerated mothers. No matter who I'm working with, I believe that keeping a sense of humor is imperative- after all, laughter is the best medicine. My background as a storyteller comes through in my teaching, with my classes sometimes described as "storytime yoga."

Styles I teach:
Hatha, Flow/Vinyasa, Gentle, Restorative, Prenatal, Children, Pranayama (breathwork), Meditation, Stress Management

VORTEX Membership Launch Announcement

Wednesday April 22nd, 8pm

Join us for the announcement of our new Membership Program! Perks that you can use right now,
plus the great feeling of helping out The VORTEX and our artists.

Atlantis: A Puppet Opera

Thursday, April 23 8pm CST

Written by Chad Salvata. Directed by Bonnie Cullum. In the fantastic world of Atlantis, Queen Solstra and Prince Helios utilize their mighty battleship Invinctus as they seek world domination. They harvest the Eye of the last Kracken to control its Red Energy, but their greed and thirst for revenge lead to the inevitable destruction of their civilization. Filmed in 2018 by Magic Spoon Productions.

Baba's House

Friday, April 24 8pm CST

Hello, my little chickadees! It's me, your neighbor Baba Yaga. Like you, I find myself stuck in quarantine in my chicken hut, Petyr. What can I say, I'm an elder and it's a germy, germy world out there. Together we can make it through these dark times! Join me for an evening of storytelling, shadow puppetry, poppet making, and conversation. I will heat up my samovar and you can sit with me in my inner sanctum. Bring some fabric (like felt or an old t-shirt), some scissors, and a needle and thread (or stapler or glue if that's your thing) if you want to make a poppet with me. You'll also want to find some things to stick in your poppet that have meaning to you. If you are not at all crafty and still want to participate, a ziploc bag will do in a pinch, or even some fabric you can tie into a little bag. You do you, boo boo.

A Virtual Play Reading of In The Upper Room

Saturday, April 25 8pm CST

By Beaufield Berry. Directed by Jeremy Rashad Brown. In the Upper Room introduces the Berrys, a multi-generational Black family living under one roof, in the 1970’s. The center of the family sphere is a controlling and mysterious matriarch named Rose, who has indoctrinated fear into every member of the house. Whose past and stories don’t add up. And who may be hiding dark secrets. This is a play woven with story-telling, Black love, the occult, family secrets, sisterhood and the ties that bind us all.

Storm Still,
w/ a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays

Sunday, April 26 7:30pm CST

A rebroadcast of Storm Still. By Gabrielle Reisman. Directed by Rudy Ramirez. Filmed in 2017 by Magic Spoon Productions. Three daughters gather in the backyard at dusk following the death of their father. As they divide up his belongings, they remember a game they used to play-- a game about an old king who broke his kingdom apart while he was still alive, who lost his mind to age, grief and recrimination, and whose daughters turned against one another. Plus Week 4 of The CoviDecameron Project, created by Rudy Ramirez. 2 new short plays created for the digital world, based on Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron.

The Mikado: Reclaimed

THURSDAY, APRIL 30TH 8PM CDT

This new adaptation flips the Gilbert and Sullivan classic on its head, presenting an (almost) all-Asian American cast performing a devised theatre piece with select musical numbers from the (in)famous operetta. Set in an internment camp in the near future, internees seek humanity amidst racism, corruption, and xenophobia. Queer love stories mingle with examinations of yellowface and conflict as we reinvent the well-known characters of Yum-Yum, Nanki-poo, and Ko-Ko. In a political climate of over-crowded immigrant detention centers, calls for “Muslim Bans,” and the largest refugee crisis in decades, The Mikado: Reclaimed explores human resilience and liberation in the face of real and metaphorical confinement. Filmed by Magic Spoon Productions.

(Un)Rooted by Corps Multiple

FRIDAY, MAY 1ST 8PM CDT

(UN)ROOTED is a performance opening a discussion on humanity’s deep, inherent need for belonging, roots, pairs, and reaches into our roots with struggle, entanglement, or rejection, in order to find peace within ourselves. Moving bodies, sounds, text, and lights respond using the techniques of free improvisation to engage performers and audience into a spontaneous exchange. Composed of three pieces that last 15-30 minutes each.

Virtual Play Reading - The Merry Wives of Windsor

SATURDAY MAY 2ND 8PM CDT

The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare, with an all womxn cast. Directed by Eva McQuade. Falstaff decides to fix his financial woe by seducing the wives of two wealthy merchants. The wives find he sent them identical letters and take revenge by playing tricks on Falstaff when he comes calling. Featuring Alexandra Russo, Julie Wright, Julie Moore, Giselle Marie Muñoz, Jacquelyn Lies, Melissa Vogt, Emily Rankin, and Annabel Guevara.

LEAR,
w/ a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays

SUNDAY, MAY 3RD 7:30PM CDT

A rebroadcast of Lear. Directed by Rudy Ramirez. Starring Jennifer Underwood as Lear. In an age when women hold more power and in a time when the media turns the private into the public a mother divides her empire among her daughters. As her world crumbles and her family turns its back on her, can she face the storm and find love, forgiveness, and peace? The VORTEX re-imagines William Shakespeare's King Lear as a female leader for the modern world, where globalization blurs the line between governments and corporations and names like Clinton, Palin, Thatcher, Stewart, Wintour, and Winfrey have inspired admiration, contempt and controversy. Also featuring 2 new plays from week 6 of The CoviDecameron Project. Conceived and Directed by Rudy Ramirez. This week features work by Reina Hardy and Jelisa Jay Robinson, starring Sarah Danko, Kera Wright, and Jeremy Rashad Brown.

Tia Chancla Returns

Wednesday, May 6th 8pm CDT

Tia Chancla returns! Ask her anything, but beware the wisdom of her flying CHANCLA! Join us for a night of big red margaritas and some Tia wisdom.

Creative Community Development Panel

THURSDAY, MAY 7TH 8PM CDT

Led by Olivia Jimenez (Austin, TX). Olivia is an Enterprise Rose Fellow at Foundation Communities, and Director of Programming at ixplore Lab, as well as an artistic company member with The VORTEX. As a community-engaged artists and yoga therapist, working with Foundation Communities is an exciting opportunity to merge Olivia’s passions for arts, health, and her community. She looks forward to learning more about using community-engaged arts practice as a way to activate spaces, empower community members, and cultivate health and well-being. This type of project has the potential to deepen the work happening in her community, but also to serve as a model for what is possible in low-income communities when community engagement, wellness and arts are integrated into the design process. Participating on the panel are Carol Zou (Los Angeles, CA) and Yuko Okabe (Salem, MA). Carol Zou is an artist, writer, educator, and cultural organizer who has worked for over a decade on the relationship between arts, culture, community, and activism. Her work has spanned various collaborative modes with: Yarn Bombing Los Angeles, Michelada Think Tank, Trans.lation Vickery Meadow, Asian Arts Initiative, U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, Imagining America, American Monument, and now Little Tokyo Service Center. She believes that we are most free when we help others get free. Yuko Okabe received a BFA with Honors in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design. She has been recognized by the Creative Quarterly 50, Society of Illustrators LA, and 3x3 International Magazine; shown her work at the RISD Illustration Triennial; and received the RISD Maharam STEAM Fellowship and RISD Leadership and Community Engagement Fellowship.

Haircut: Quarantine Edition

FRIDAY, MAY 8TH 8PM CDT

We’ve all been there. Staring down the barrel of a pair of clippers and wondering, “What’s the worst that could happen?” Tonight’s the night we find out. Christine Hoang is going to cut her husband’s hair LIVE on our virtual channel.

Making Mom’s Eggrolls w/ Christine Hoang

SATURDAY MAY 9TH 8PM CDT

In anticipation of Mother's Day, Christine Hoang walks you through making her mother’s eggrolls. A time for storytelling, memories, and a favorite family recipe.

Heartland,
w/ a pre-show premiere of 2 new short plays

SUNDAY, MAY 10TH 7:30PM CDT

A broadcast of Heartland. Directed by Rudy Ramirez. Starring Kareem Badr, Kacey Samiee, and Lowell Bartholomee. Dr. Harold Banks, a retired University of Nebraska professor of Comparative Literature and Afghan Studies, is reeling after his adopted daughter Getee is killed by the Taliban while teaching children outside of Kabul. When Afghan refugee Nazrullah arrives at his door carrying Getee's prized books, the two men form an unlikely bond. Heartland draws a line from the “Cold War” to the “War on Terror” and demands that we reckon with the consequences of defending an American Empire. Set in both Maidan Shar, Afghanistan and Omaha, Nebraska, and inspired by true events, Heartland is a story of healing, grace, and connection. This is a one-time streaming event, there will be no archive for this stream. Also featuring 2 new plays from week 7 of The CoviDecameron Project, directed by Rudy Ramirez.