30 Neo-Futurist Plays from
​"TOO MUCH LIGHT MAKES THE BABY GO BLIND"
30 Plays in 60 Minutes
October 14, 15, 21 & 22, 2016  -  7:30pm (Doors open at 6:30)
Black Box Theater - Wildcat Hall

CAST
Cameron Cafer
Analisa Chavez-Munoz
Sarahy Colorado
Josie Cummings
Cade Dennis
Hannah Hiszczynskyj
Jenna Lenherr
Danny Madsen*
James Nioce*
Braden Purcell*
Trevor Schoenhofer*
Karina Short
Jared Weil*

CREW
Nick D'Attilio*
Brock Harrison
Isabel Hudgins
Xavier Hudgins
Carly Johnson
Lizeth Ruiz
Alexa Scheer
Hannah Spellman
Addie Sutton

* indicates member of Hayden Thespian Troupe #7275

ABOUT THE SHOW

Having opened in 1988 and still playing today as the longest-running show in Chicago history, "Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind" is an ensemble experiment in presenting "30 Plays in 60 Minutes." Each two-minute play is performed in random order with an interactive audience. An onstage 60-minute timer keeps everyone honest. 

The show is the work of the Neo-Futurism movement, a variant of the Italian Futurism movement and reflects their aesthetic of non-illusory theater, where, as they describe it, "all of our plays are 'set' on the stage in front of the audience. All of our 'characters' are ourselves... We do not aim to 'suspend the audience's disbelief' but to create a world where the stage is a continuation of daily life".

Tickets are only available on the day of performance. Patrons begin to line up one hour before curtain time and receive a token that guarantees them a ticket. The ticket price for the show is random, with a fixed number ($4) being added to the roll of a six-sided die for each person. Upon payment, a member of the cast shouts "What's your name?" at the audience member and then gives him or her a name tag. Audience members are given a "menu" of play titles, and plays are selected by audience members shouting their number, with the first number heard being the play performed. 

As part of the tradition, when a particular evening sells out, the cast will order pizza from a local restaurant, allowing the audience to shout out suggested toppings. Pizza is ordered and the entire audience can share at the end of the performance.​