Pink Umbrella Theater Co.’s “Sharing Our Stories”
Milwaukee’s Pink Umbrella Theater Co. has something special for Disability Awareness Month. As part of their program, “Sharing Our Stories,” Pink Umbrella is making filmed versions of its original productions available for viewing for anyone who wants to see them!
Here is the official announcement from Pink Umbrella:
During the month of October, we are making our entire catalog of shows FREE to access!
Revisit our stories as told by Disabled Actors and Artists.
We are changing the narrative by changing the narrator.
Request the entire catalog, or pick and choose what seasons you want to watch. After requesting the catalog, a document containing links to the digital recordings will be sent to you.
While accessing the digital recordings of our shows are free, a donation of any amount is greatly appreciated in order for us to continue creating accessible theater for all.
Shows by Year
· 2021 Season - "Scavengers", "Jerome", "All In Your Head", and "Shine!"
· 2022 Season - "Shine! Remount" and "Bigger Top"
· 2023 Season - "Bizarre Intrusive Thoughts - Staged Reading" and "Kaleidoscope"
· 2024 Season - "Bizarre Intrusive Thoughts", "Portraits", and "A Christmas Carol"
· 2025 Season - "Heard Mentality", "Our Mothers Are Not Refrigerators", "Shimmer", and "It's About Time"
All of these plays are by people with disabilities and/or present disabilities in original and innovative dramatic manners. Some are fully produced plays, some are staged readings. Scavengers is an interactive play about animals and friendship. Jerome is a staged reading of a television series. All In Your Head is a young woman’s coming-of-age story. Bigger Top is a sensory friendly and immersive production. Bizarre Intrusive Thoughts covers OCD and the attendant anxiety. Kalidoscope is a musical that views the hero’s journey from a different perspective. Portraits is a musical about a man trying to run a camera business by himself. A Christmas Carol is a special holiday show. Heard Mentality looks at hearing impairment, hearing aids, and a first date. Shimmer is a fantasy about a tree child, eight senses, and unique ways of processing the world. It’s About Time is a play/musical/variety show exploring various kinds of time and how different people experience it.
And finally, there’s my own play, Our Mothers Are Not Refrigerators, the story of four very different people with autism who attend a support group meeting, share their stories, and build surprising connections.
So please, check out these original productions, and if you like what you see, write to Pink Umbrella (admin@pinkumbrellatheater.org) and tell them what you liked about these plays, and if you’d like to see them performed again in the future. Thanks!
–Chris Chan
Chris Chan’s book Sherlock Poems was published on June 30th! He is also the author of the CWA Dagger Long Listed The Autistic Sleuth, written with the professional guidance of his mother Dr. Patricia Meyer Chan, and he has also written the Agatha and Anthony-nominated book on the Columbo killers, Some of My Best Friends Are Murderers! He is the author of the Funderburke and Kaiming novels Ghosting My Friend and She Ruined Our Lives and Well-Behaved Children Seldom Make History, released by Level Best Books. He is also the author of the comedic novels Sherlock’s Secretary and Nessie’s Nemesis, published by MX Publishing, as was his anthology Of Course He Pushed Him and Other Sherlock Holmes Stories Volumes 1 & 2. His Agatha-nominated book Murder Most Grotesque: The Comedic Crime Fiction of Joyce Porter was published by Level Best Books. His first non-fiction book, Sherlock & Irene: The Secret Truth Behind “A Scandal in Bohemia” is available for sale at Amazon.com and the MX Publishing website, as well as at Book Depository (with free worldwide shipping there). It is also available in a Kindleedition.
