Boy

TimeLine’s Chicago premiere production of BOY by Anna Ziegler, directed by Damon Kiely, running through March 18, 2018 at TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago.

A moving and poignant story, inspired by true events, about a search for personal identity and acceptance. In the 1960s, a surgical accident causes a well-intentioned doctor to convince the parents of twin boys to raise one as a girl. Two decades later, the repercussions of that choice continue to unfold, as those involved struggle to connect with each other and themselves, stuck between their hope for the future and their uncertainty about the past. BOY explores the beauty of finding love, the complexity of gender identity, and the consequences of the choices we make for those we love.

Previously featured in 2014 as part of the company’s TimePieces play reading series, TimeLine is proud to stage the Chicago premiere of BOY, an “insightful, gut-wrenching, and beautiful play” that is “dazzlingly, deliciously alive from start to finish” (Talkin’ Broadway).

Playwright Anna Ziegler is an award-winning playwright whose credits include PHOTOGRAPH 51 (produced in the West End starring Nicole Kidman), ACTUALLY and THE LAST MATCH. The Outer Critics Circle nominated her play BOY for the 2016 John Gassner Award.

Boy is inspired by the true story of David Reimer and the decisions about his gender identity that his parents and Dr. John Money made during David’s childhood. Raised as a girl, David was forced into an identity he didn’t choose, and that never fit who he knew himself to be.

Anna acknowledges that her initial way into writing this play was as a mother, pondering the countless ways in which parents can harm their beloved children’s lives, even with the best intentions or with the best information readily available. Decisions made at even a very young age can profoundly alter not only a child’s image, but their ability to live as their most authentic self.

January 18 – March 18, 2018 (previews 1/10 – 1/17)

Featuring Theo Germaine, Emily Marso, David Parkes+, Mechelle Moe+, and Stef Tovar*