CHICAGO: About Face Theatre has announced its 25th anniversary season, which will begin a new partnership with Rebuild Foundation to highlight original commissioned performances from Black LGBTQ+ artists. The partnership will culminate with a production of a new play about the resilience of the LGBTQ+ community in the face of hatred.

“I’m deeply inspired by the remarkable artists and projects in our 25th anniversary season”, said Megan Carney, AFT artistic director, in a statement. “Our mission to advance dialogue about gender and sexuality takes many forms and we are constantly evolving. By creating new work online and in person, these bold storytellers are not only reflecting the times, they are expanding the reach of everything we do as theatre makers.”

The season will begin with Kickback (begins streaming Dec. 11), conceived and directed by associate artistic director Mikael Burke, a virtual festival of original plays and performances around the intersection of queerness and Blackness. The virtual festival will continue to be available to stream throughout the 2020-21 season.

Next up will be Power in Pride at Home, written and performed by Aimy Tien, Angelíca Grace, Dionne Addai, Nico Quinn, and Vic Wynter. This video series, adapted from AFT’s touring production of Power in Pride, uses stories of gender and sexuality to encourage conversations with students, educators, and community members. Artistic associate Lexi Saunders will direct.

The season will conclude with Laced, by Samantha Mueller, about three twenty-something bartenders as they gather to grieve and process the events of the night before, which saw their queer bar vandalized. Dates and location for this production are still to be announced. Saunders will direct.

About Face Theatre is a Chicago-based company founded in 1995 that focuses on innovative theatre that advances the national conversation about sexual and gender identity.