What to Send Up When It Goes Down at Lookingglass Theatre Company

Congo Square Theatre Company, one of the nations premier African American ensemble theater companies, presents What to Send Up When It Goes Down in residence at Lookingglass Theatre Company's historic Water Tower Water Works theater, 821 N Michigan Ave. What to Send Up When It Goes Down will be performed September 24 - October 16, 2022, Wednesday Saturday evenings at 7 p.m., with matinees Saturday and Sunday at 2p.m. Official opening night is September 29. All tickets are $35 and can be purchased at lookingglasstheatre.org/event/what-to-send-up-when-it-goes-down.Designed to help Black communities heal from American racialized violence, What to Send Up When It Goes Down is a vital theatrical work. It is a participatory, shapeshifting experience intent on creating space for collective catharsis, cleansing and healing. The performance unfolds as a series of vignettes which employ a variety of forms including parody, song, movement, and facilitated dialogue. Breaking the fourth wall, cast members enact the script differently in each performance as members of the audience are invited not only to behold the piece as spectators, but to become part of the current that holds the story together.Throughout the run of What to Send Up When It Goes Down, Congo Square will debut The Celebration of Healing Initiative, a program that provides audiences with a curated space for individual and community healing. Celebration of Healing events are free and open to all audience members.Celebration of Healing programming(All take place at Lookingglass Theatre) Saturday, October 1, 5p.m. (between performances)Healing our BodyA facilitated restorative yoga and meditation session Saturday, October 8, 5p.m. (between Performances)Talk Forward: Healing our CommunitiesPanel discussion on practical steps for racial restorative justice as a means of community healing and development Sunday, October 9, 4:30p.m. (post-show)Talk Forward: Healing in the WorkplacePost-performance conversation around IDEAJ efforts in community and workplaces