Jedi, Sith, and droids gather for special performances, cosplay meetups, film screenings, book signings, and more
CHICAGO, Illinois (April 13, 2023) – In honor of Star Wars Day, Otherworld Theatre Company today jumped into hyperdrive in announcing a weekend-long celebration of one of the most iconic fandoms in history. Beginning May the Fourth, Jedi, Sith, and droids alike will awaken the Force with an extravaganza featuring special performances of Otherworld shows, podcasts, and a cosplay meet-up filled with more lightsabers, speeders, and Wookies than you can count. Tickets ($10 - $80) are available for individual events, single-day passes, or for the whole weekend.
“This holiday is yours, where we all share with you the hope that this day brings us closer to freedom and to harmony and to peace,” said Princess Leia in the not-exactly-beloved “Star Wars Holiday Special” (1978). “No matter how different we appear, we’re all the same in our struggles against the powers of evil and darkness.”
The full Star Wars Day Weekend Celebration schedule includes:
Thursday May 4: May the Fourth Be With You
A special Star Wars Day performance of “TRADE FEDERATION, Or, Let’s Explore Globalization Through the STAR WARS Prequels”
A young experimental playwright named Andy Boyd pitches George Lucas his screenplay for a new Star Wars film. The concept: a prequel to the prequels that fleshes out the economic and social implications of the mysterious Trade Federation. Andy’s script is a full-on Marxist allegory where The Trade Federation is The International Monetary Fund, the Gungans are the Zapatistas, and the Jedi are an international community reluctant to push for any real structural change – the UN, basically. Lucas thinks the movie sounds really boring and unceremoniously kicks Andy out of his office. Then things really get weird.
7 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
STAR WARS Comedy Special
Hosted by Brandon Drap & David Feinberg
Join us for a night of intergalactic laughs and Jedi jokes! Featuring hilarious stand-up comedians and improv wizards, dress up as your favorite Star Wars character for an unforgettable evening.
9 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Friday May 5: The Fifth Awakens
“TRADE FEDERATION, Or, Let’s Explore Globalization Through the STAR WARS Prequels”
7 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
“LOST REALMS”
Each week, LOST REALMS visits a different genre of sci-fi and fantasy, transforming audience suggestions into an entirely original full-length musical packed with comedy, drama, otherworldly spectacle, and epic melodies, featuring live music from in-house band The Lost Band. This week’s theme: Star Wars!
10 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Saturday May 6: Revenge of the Sixth
Podcast Taping: “Big T and Lil t: A Star Wars Podcast”
Join a father (@tizzzzod) and son as they explore a Galaxy, Far, Far Away. Part of the @wstrmedia family.
11:30 a.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Book Signing: STAR WARS MULTIVERSE, with author Carmelo Esterrich
Drawing from a full range of Star Wars media, including comics, children’s books, fan films, and television shows like Clone Wars and The Mandalorian, Columbia College Chicago professor Carmelo Esterrich explores how these stories set in a galaxy far far away reflect issues that hit closer to home. He examines what they have to say about political oppression, authoritarianism, colonialism, discrimination, xenophobia, and perpetual war. Yet he also investigates subtler ways in which the personal is political within the multiverse, including its articulations of gender and sexuality, its cultural hierarchies of language use, and its complex relationships between humans, droids and myriad species. This book demonstrates that the Star Wars multiverse is not just a stage for thrilling interstellar battles, but also an exciting space for interpretation and discovery.
12 noon in the Bradbury Theatre
Film Screening: THE FORCE WITHIN US 10th Anniversary Screening
“The Force Within Us,” the sequel to the highly acclaimed documentary “The Force Among Us,” takes us deeper into the Star Wars experience than just the obsession of collectibles and costuming. Filmmaker Cris Macht takes you on a journey revealing that Star Wars is more than just another Sci-Fi film to watch or convention to attend. This documentary exposes personal connections that are developed through the sagas' good vs. evil storyline. Also featured are thought provoking stories from Star Wars celebrities and how being a part of the phenomenon has changed their lives. Familiar Star Wars locations like Death Valley (Tatooine) and the Redwood Forest (Endor) add to the deep, emotional journey that is “The Force Within Us.”
1 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Podcast Taping: “Machtails from the Cantina”
Cris Macht hosts this fun and informative talk show about all things Star Wars.
2:45 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Podcast Taping: “LOOSE CANON: A Star Wars Podcast”
Why aren’t droids allowed in Mos Eisley Cantina? How does hyperspace travel work? What’s so special about Endor? The Star Wars Loose Canon podcast answers these questions and many more. We’re just three dudes with a breadth of Star Wars knowledge and severe penchants for snark. Come for the bad puns, stay for the petulant Emperor impressions with host Chris Higgins.
3:30 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Podcast Taping: “Muffed Movies Presents: THE PHANTOM MENACE”
Muffed Movies is a comedy podcast where the hosts re-enact your favorite films using only their memories, a menagerie of funny voices, and some tiny notes. The hosts play every character and improvise all the dialogue. It's bonkers, it's nostalgic, and it does wonders for your complexion. This time, hosts Mark Soloff & Dave Stecco tackle “The Phantom Menace.”
4:30 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
“TRADE FEDERATION, Or, Let’s Explore Globalization Through the STAR WARS Prequels”
7 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
MANDO MASHUP Cosplay Meet-Up
Wear your best Star Wars cosplay and take advantage of our professional photography onsite!
9 p.m. throughout the theatre
THE STARSHIP EDSEL STAR WARS SPECIAL
In this weekly farce, the Federation starship Edsel, largely regarded as a failure in ship design, is considered a dumping ground for crew members who were too disruptive or incompetent for front-line service but couldn’t be discharged. With its malfunctioning technology and semi-functional crew, the Edsel now remains parked above the vacation planet Atlantis where it hosts vapid and overbearing VIPs and forever doomed to boldly give tours of an authentic Federation starship. In this special episode, the crew of the Edsel visit the new Star Wars Theme Park on Atlantis.
10 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Sunday May 7: The Two Suns Day of Tatooine
“TRADE FEDERATION, Or, Let’s Explore Globalization Through the STAR WARS Prequels”
2 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Shadowport Adventures: Hutt Prison Break, a Star Wars RPG Live-Action Improv Game
Presented in collaboration with The Emporium for the Wayward Gamer
A Scoundrel, Hired Gun, Tech and Mystery Explorer have been captured by Vorgo the Hutt and are currently imprisoned on his ship. They are on their way to compete in some deadly Hutt sport games. Can the group work together to escape a fate worse than death and the grip of the Hutt? Can they get off the Hutt’s ship in time?
4 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
PORTAL-PROV! The Improv Strikes Back
Each week, PORTAL-PROV! transports audiences to a different genre-informed world of comedy. Like Star Trek? We'll beam you there! Want to go back in time? Hop in our DeLoran! On the run from the Terminator? Come with us if you want to live! The show is improvised on the spot by our performers along with input from the nerdiest, geekiest, most fun audiences in Chicago. This week’s theme: Star Wars!
7 p.m. in the Bradbury Theatre
Tickets to Otherworld Theatre’s Star Wars Day Weekend Celebration are available on the theatre’s website at www.otherworldtheatre.org, with full weekend passes priced at $80; Saturday Day Passes at $50; and Sunday Day Passes at $25. Individual tickets to podcast tapings and to the screening of “The Force Within Us” are available for $10 each, and guests can pre-purchase “Star Wars Multiverse” to be autographed at the book signing for $18, or bring their own copy with them. Individual tickets to TRADE FEDERATION are $20 each throughout the weekend.
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