Next Forge:  May 19th, 2019

We return to Esquina a week early this month!  Join us for art by Harvey Hayes at 6:30, with music by Emma Grace starting at 7.  Our staged reading this month is a western family drama, Blood and Water by Andy Mayo.

 Harvey Hayes - Visual Artist

Harvey Hayes (he/him, they/them) is a Chicago-based queer trans artist from Southeastern Massachusetts.  He has worked in a number of mediums including painting, ceramics, writing, and new media, using these media to grapple with trans queerness, spirituality, and abstraction.  Harvey has shown at spaces including Sullivan Galleries, Chicago Zine Fest, and Long Island City Arts Open, and has curated at the Leather Archives &  Museum

Andy Mayo - Playwright

Andy Mayo spent 40 years working in corporate America and has no theatrical education beyond evening classes, and volunteering at a regional theatre. Before selling out to corporate capitalism to support his family, he was a newspaper reporter at two metro dailies. His one-man show Wish Upon A Star, intimate reflections of Walt Disney, has been produced at regional theatres and he self-produced Confess and Conspire at the off-off-Broadway Manhattan Repertory Theatre. At Chicago Dramatists’ First Draft series, two finished plays have had readings: Lyndon Agonistes, with Will Dunne moderating, and Blood and Water, with MT Cozzola moderating.

Emma Grace - Musician

Emma Grace is a proud actor, singer-songwriter, and ukulele player thriving in Chicago, IL. She has a fiery spirit and a mad passion for breaking hearts with her voice and primary instrument, the Baritone Ukulele. She has graced several Chicago stages in just two years, such as The Drifter, Uncommon Ground, The Robey, Second City, The Factory Theatre, The Mexican Museum of Modern Art, The Den Theatre, and many more.   Emma's vocals blossom with visceral emotion and strums her ukulele fiercely, which will leave you feeling empowered and your heart full.   All songs are a journey through Emma Grace's experience with queerness, heartbreak, feminism, and empowerment.   Emma Grace will be releasing her first album, Peach Tree, worldwide this May.
The Forge is open to artists of all experience levels, with a specific goal to grow and foster new work by talented and under-produced young artists. We accept applications on a rolling basis from any artists who would like to be featured.  If you would like to apply to be featured in The Forge, click here.

Forge Info

Doors open at 6:30pm, with refreshments and a signature tea cocktail available for purchase as you peruse the visual art and take in live music.  At 7:30pm a reading of Blood and Water will begin, followed by a short talk back.  The Forge is, as always, free and open to the public. The Forge is hosted at Esquina Chicago, at 4602 N Western Ave, near the Western Brown line.

There are a few stairs at the entrance of Esquina, if accessability is an issue for you please email us at theforge@nomadsartcollective.org and we will work with you to make sure you can attend!
NoMads Art Collective is a Chicago-based theatre company