Plays are "living literature" that they manifest fully only when they are performed in front of a live audience. That's why they can't develop in a vacuum. The playwright putting words on the page is only the beginning of the process. Until those words are read out loud the play will not break its shell.

At Chicago Dramatists, we know about readings. We do them. Lots of them. In every different flavor. And we do them well.

For over 30 years, our Saturday Series has presented Chicago theatre lovers with a chance to see plays in progress and to contribute to their development by offering solicited feedback to the playwrights. Some of those plays are personal works-in-progress by our resident and Network playwrights; others grow out our workshops—like our Deadline Workshop for Network and Resident playwrights or our 10-Minute Workshop, which is open to the general public.

We also do private table readings for our Resident playwrights and offer the chance for our Network playwrights to participate in the First Draft Series, a special program on Tuesday nights where they can hear their work read by and for their peers.

Any way you slice it, Chicago Dramatists owns an awfully big chunk of the American play-reading pie. So take at look at the list on the right or peruse our general calendar for a longer-term view, and join us for a piece. (It won't break your diet, trust us.)