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100 DAYS, April 30 to May 4
THEATER EVENT. Staged reading of short works exploring the dynamic interplay of characters impacted by the unfolding political landscape. Six actors participate in this new project which hopes to inspire dialogue.
- Apr 30, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 01, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 02, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 03, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 04, 2025 3:00 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available
AN ITTY-BITTY QUEER CABARET, April 28
THEATER EVENT. An Itty-Bitty Queer Cabaret! Get ready for a delightful evening of music, laughter, and festive fun featuring talented performers like Kevin Wood, Don’t miss this chance to enjoy a fabulous night out while supporting Open Space Arts’ exciting 2025 season. Tickets: $25
- Apr 28, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available
BEST OF FEST MID-LENGTH FILMS, April 16 to 29
STREAMING FILM EVENT! Films include ARTISTS AT THE EDGE and SUNFLOWERS AT NIGHT.
- Wed, Apr 16, 2025 12:00am CST
(Virtual)Tickets Available
BEST OF FEST SHORTS, April 9 to 22
STREAMING FILM EVENT! Films include MASC FOR MASC (USA), PLAID SKIRTS (USA), REGRET (Iran), SONDESH (Bangladesh), TAMPON (Mexico), THE EXPIRATION OF PROMISES (USA), and BLACK PENDULUM (France).
- Wed, Apr 09, 2025 12:00am CST
(Virtual)Tickets Available
BREAKING THE CODE
THEATER EVENT. BREAKING THE CODE, Hugh Whitemore’s powerful 1986 drama about Alan Turing, the brilliant mathematician who pioneered modern computing and played a pivotal role in World War II by deciphering the German Enigma code. BREAKING THE CODE intertwines Turing’s groundbreaking achievements with his personal struggles, particularly his persecution for homosexuality — a factor that led to his tragic demise. The play offers a profound exploration of the man behind the genius, highlighting the societal injustices he faced and his enduring legacy in the fields of cryptography and computer science.
- Apr 25, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available
CHERUB, April 29
LIVE FILM SCREENING! Join us for the Chicago premiere of CHERUB at Facets on April 29. This gentle character study has almost no dialogue. Rather, writer/director Devin Shears observes what to some is an ordinary life. But that life changes when Harvey makes a discovery at his local porn store.
- Apr 29, 2025 7:00 pm
FacetsTickets Available
IT'S ALWAYS BEEN ME, April 30 to May 6
STREAMING FILM EVENT! Max and Bastian are both between childhood and adolescence. Max was born a girl, but has come out as a transgender boy. And Bastian, born a boy, feels more like a girl. They are both faced with the choice of whether to start on hormones to end their puberty. But can you trust themselves when everything is constantly changing? Max and Bastian are surrounded by friends and family who do everything they can to understand them and help them to whatever they decide in Julie Bezerra Madsen’s equally empathetic film, which follows them through a period in life when everyone is changing – some of us just change a bit more than others.
- Wed, Apr 30, 2025 12:00am CST
(Virtual)Tickets Available
It's been ten years since everyone died, March 21 to April 6
THEATER EVENT. EXTENDED TO APRIL 19! Open Space Arts today announced that it will stage the world premiere of “it’s been ten years since everyone died. a play about final girls,” a dark comedy/horror play about three survivors of an attempted attack by a group of cold-blooded killers. In this play by New York City based playwright Cesario Tirado Ortiz (they/he), three young people who were hunted down by the killers and against all odds survived, are forcibly reunited at a therapeutical retreat for women, to cope with their collective trauma. After a rainstorm prevents them from leaving the retreat, they find themselves again threatened by an unseen killer. This examination of the slasher final girl trope asks the question: Does all trauma affect us equally, and can we truly heal together?
- Apr 04, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - Apr 05, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - Apr 06, 2025 2:00 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - Apr 11, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - Apr 12, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available 3 more showtimes
NOCTURNAL ADMISSIONS
THEATER EVENT. The readings series will conclude with a staged reading of NOCTURNAL ADMISSIONS, a thrilling and provocative screenplay by Christian Reda, winner of the 2025 Queer Expression Writing Contest for Stage and Screen. This gripping romantic melodrama blends crime, suspense, and forbidden love in a story that challenges power and prejudice. Joe Kowalski, a 20-year veteran of the LAPD, is assigned to protect Hector “Angel” Cruz, a young Latino hustler and the sole witness to the murder of a married senatorial candidate he was hired to escort for the evening. As Joe fights to keep Angel safe, the last thing he expects is to fall in love.
- May 10, 2025 7:30 pm
FacetsTickets Available
SCANDALOUS BOY
THEATER EVENT! In the 21st Century, the statue of the Ancient Roman God, Antinous, comes to life to reclaim his place in history. He is not just the ‘shameless and scandalous boy’ that Christian historians dismissed him as, and he’s learnt a lot about life standing on his pedestal for 2,000 years. He begins to tell us about his mortal life and conjures up the characters from his story. We discover that, as a boy, he was chosen to be trained as an eromenos, a companion to an older man, and, as he grew into manhood, he survived by selling his body to Roman soldiers. Renowned for his beauty, he finds himself, at the age of 16, the lover of none other than the 50-year-old Hadrian, the Emperor of Rome. His life becomes one of great wealth and luxury, but he soon realises his continued prosperity is entirely dependent on his youth and beauty, and time is ticking on both. What’s more, he needs to deal with Sabina, Hadrian’s politically manipulative wife, and with Lucius, Hadrian’s former lover who jealously guards Hadrian’s heart. To make things even more complex, Antinous meets a young man, Marcellus, with whom he falls in love, and Hadrian is falling in love with Antinous. Events begin to spiral out of control, but can Antinous use his intellect, rather than just his beauty, to survive?
- May 23, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 24, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 25, 2025 6:00 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 30, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available - May 31, 2025 7:30 pm
Open Space ArtsTickets Available 4 more showtimes
WARM FILM, April 23 to May 6
STREAMING FILM EVENT! Two young actors are exploring the topic of representation of LGBTI people through the history of Yugoslav cinema and social circumstances that have resulted in different treatment of these characters.
- Wed, Apr 23, 2025 12:00am CST
(Virtual)Tickets Available
Showing All 11 Events
About Open Space Arts / Queer Expression Film and Theater Fest
The QUEER EXPRESSION FILM AND THEATER FEST showcases powerful LGBTQ+ storytelling through five exciting components:
- Full productions of bold and innovative plays.
- Staged readings of classic and new plays.
- Staged readings of winners from our QUEER EXPRESSION WRITING CONTEST FOR STAGE AND SCREEN.
- In-person screenings of feature films at FACETS in Chicago.
- A virtual selection of short and mid-length films, available for streaming anywhere.
Learn more about our programs at openspacearts.org.
Become an OSA member for just $10 per month and enjoy exclusive perks—free access tickets to all short and mid-length contest films and staged readings, plus discounted tickets for feature films and fully staged plays.