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Chicago Storefront Theatres Join Forces for National New Play Network Rolling Premiere of ‘Other Paths To God’

Perceptions Theatre and Coalescence Theatre Project bring award-winning playwright Kelundra Smith’s darkly comic drama
about five Black women healthcare workers to Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood.

The women behind ‘Other Paths To God’, an National New Play Network rolling premiere coming to Chicago (left to right) directed by Myesha-Tiara (Perceptions Theatre), written by Kelundra Smith (Atlanta-based playwright), and produced by India Nicole Burton (Coaleascene Theatre Project).

(September 22, 2026 - Chicago, IL.) - Perceptions Theatre has partnered with Coalescence Theatre Project to develop and showcase new plays by more artistically diverse voices on Chicago’s storefront theatre stages. ‘Other Paths To God’ written by Kelundra Smith, a playwright returning to Chicago after her successful run of The Wash (2025) at eta Creative Arts Foundation. The play is directed by Myesha-Tiara, an award-winning director and founder of Perceptions Theatre in South Shore, and produced by India Nicole Burton, the new associate artistic director of Coalescence Theatre Project.

‘Other Paths To God’ runs Nov 5-Nov 15; Thursdays-Saturdays, 7:30pm; Sundays, 2pm; at Definition Theatre in Hyde Park (1160 E. 55th Street). 

In this NNPN Rolling World Premiere, there are five nurses, $3 million, and one crazy scandal.

The ICU nurses at Morey Medical Center don’t need another complication, but when money goes missing and fingers point in their direction, everyone’s on their worst and most outrageous behavior.

This wild ride through the lives of five resilient women in healthcare is funny, poignant, and just the right amount of scandalous, while revealing that the path to healing and redemption is never a straight line.

Playwright Kelundra Smith, is the award-winning writer of The Wash, which debuted at Synchronicity and Impact Theatres and also appeared for a short run at ETA Creative Arts Foundation in 2025. It will be her second time working with Perceptions Theatre which was named “Best Storefront Theatre On A Mission” by Chicago Magazine in 2023. Coalescence Theatre Project, a Bloomington-Normal-based company with recent productions in Chicago, joins the collaboration as the producing company for this play. Its associate artistic director, India Nicole Burton, wrote ‘Panther Women: An Army For The Liberation’ which was presented by Perceptions Theatre and directed by its founder, Myesha-Tiara.  

“It is inherently important that we share our own stories as Black women, artists, and the various roles we have taken on in the history of our society,” says Myesha-Tiara. 

‘Other Paths To God’ was commissioned by the Horizon Theatre Company in Atlanta, Georgia as a part of their project called Black Women Speak (BWS). The initiative was intended to get 9 new plays by Black playwrights produced all over the country. ‘Other Paths To God’ is the second of those plays to be funded this year. The play will be presented as a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere by the National New Play Network, an alliance of professional theaters that collaborate in innovative ways to develop, produce, and extend the life of new plays. Burton has been a recipient of the NNPN Producer in Residence program and is currently an associate member of the NNPN Midwest network.

Smith’s connection to Chicago runs deep where her father was born and where many of her relatives and friends live. “Chicago is a city that I consider to be a second home," says Smith. “I was curious as a writer how front line workers being regarded as heroes was manifesting in their actual lived experience in the workplace and this project healed aspects of my relationship to labor and work as a Black woman.” Smith’s desire with this project was to take a deeper look at the healthcare system inspired by the fact that some of her relatives work as nurses and administrators.

For this group of ICU nurses at an Atlanta public hospital, their craziest day at work is about to get even crazier. Renee's just returned from leave under secretive circumstances, Coleen's a breath away from divorce, Rel wants a baby, Kai's digging herself out of wedding debt after being left at the altar, and supervisor Amy's caught up in a mystery over missing money. This wild ride through the lives of five resilient women in healthcare is funny, poignant, and just the right amount of scandalous, while revealing that the path to healing and redemption is never a straight line.

Show Dates:

Thursdays-Saturdays, 7pm (house opens), 7:30pm (show starts)

Saturdays, 2:30pm and 7pm (house opens), 7:30pm (show starts)

Sundays, 1:30pm (house opens), 2pm (show starts)

Special Events/Programming:

Oct 10th or 17th: Actor Meet & Greet with invited guests and students, 2:30pm

Nov 7th: Industry Night 

Nov 12th: Blackout Night 

Talkbacks (for Sunday shows after matinees 20-30mins total for each):

Nov 8th: Director, Playwright and Actors, after show

Nov 1st: Nurse Discussion doesn't have to be the final Sunday; it can occur during the rehearsal process. 2:30pm

Venue Address

Definition Theatre

1160 E. 55th Street 

Ticket Link

https://cur8.com/17326/project/141774 

Cast Members:

Autumn Nicole/RENEE, Jacki Hydock/COLEEN, Blake Dupree/NURSE REL, Brea Weston/KAI, Whitney Pipes/AMY, Felisha McNeal/MRS.SHORTER, K.C. McNeil/RADIO VO, Lauryn Tillman/ AMY US, Destiney Hadden/ KAI US, Robert Charles/NURSE REL US

Production Team Members:

Kelundra Smith/Playwright, Myesha-Tiara/Director & Producing Artistic Director of

Perceptions Theatre, Jerluane "Jae" Jenkins/AD, Props Assistant & Producing Executive

Director of Perceptions Theatre, Lauren Littlejohn/Stage Manager, Davauhn Rose/ASM, Levi Wilkins/Set Design & Lighting Design, Aaron Harris Woodstein/ Sound Design, William Huges/Technical Director, Sawaan Tiwari/Costumes, Kwame Lilly/Social Media, Jabari Khaliq/Videographer & Photographer

PRESS ASSETS & MEDIA

Production Team Bios & Headshots (link)

Cast Headshots (link)

Show Posters (link)

Rehearsal Photos (link)

For all press assets, please credit “Courtesy of Perceptions Theatre”

Social Media: @perceptionstheatre @coalescencetheatre @nationalnewplaynetwork (Instagram)

About Coalescence Theatre Project: 

Originally started in Bloomington, Illinois, Coalescence Theatre Project, exists as an educational outreach program to expand interest in theatre, encourage new talent, and amplify underrepresented voices. Their logo—an abstract representation of the genetic tree of life—reminds us that we all come from one common Ancestor . The company focuses on unheard stories, offering a place where the silent and the underrepresented have a voice. With a commitment to serving diverse communities, Coalescence produces work by LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, and women playwrights, while also fostering discovery, play, and learning. In April 2023, the company produced Panther Women: An Army for the Liberation by India Nicole Burton, directed by Myesha-Tiara. Coalescence Theatre Project won an American Association  of Community Theatres Award in 2019.

About Perceptions Theatre

Perceptions Theatre is a Chicago-based storefront theatre company committed to amplifying diverse voices and creating opportunities for emerging artists, with a particular focus on stories that reflect the experiences and perspectives of Black communities and other historically underrepresented voices. Through new play development, theatrical productions, education, and artist training, Perceptions Theatre works to eliminate prejudice and discrimination by presenting stories that encourage audiences to see cultures and communities in their full complexity.

Based in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood, Perceptions Theatre serves as both a producing theatre and an educational and artistic training ground for the next generation of theatre professionals. The company provides emerging artists with resources including performance and technical training, headshots, self-taping support, resume development, workshops, and opportunities to build professional experience and expand their casting and creative networks.

Named “Best Storefront Theatre on a Mission” by Chicago Magazine in 2023, Perceptions Theatre continues to develop bold new work while creating meaningful pathways for artists to tell their own stories on Chicago stages.

About National New Play Network

National New Play Network (NNPN) is an alliance of professional nonprofit theaters that collaborates to develop, produce, and extend the life of new plays and support the artists who create them. Through innovative programs and partnerships, NNPN provides playwrights, directors, producers, and theaters with resources and opportunities to bring new work to audiences across the country.

NNPN’s Rolling World Premiere program enables multiple member theaters to collaboratively produce a new play, giving the work a broader life while supporting artists through different stages of development and production. Other Paths To God is being presented as a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, continuing the organization’s commitment to fostering new voices and expanding the reach of contemporary American theatre.