Production of Jade Heart April 30, 2010

CHICAGO—Chicago Dramatists, 1105 W. Chicago Avenue, is proud present the world premiere of Jade Heart, the spellbinding new play by Senior Network Playwright Will Cooper.. The production, previewing April 22, opening April 30 and running through May 30, will be directed by Chicago Dramatists’ Artistic Director Russ Tutterow.

Abandoned as an infant on a pile of vegetables, a Chinese girl is adopted by an unmarried American woman and grows up in a white, middle-class American home with only half a jade heart as a clue to her identity. In this dramatic piece, Jade McCullough questions whether she is Chinese, American, or Chinese-American? Through dreams and memories, Jade seeks to find out why she was denied the life she was born to, and how she can become fully herself. Jade Heart poses the ageless question: "Who am I?"

The play explores not only the personal journey of its title character, but the affects of China’s one-child policy, established in 1979 to limit population growth. Fines, pressure to abort, and even forced sterilizations accompany second or subsequent pregnancies. This rule has caused a disdain for female infants and the preference for sons over daughters, as sons carry on the family name, work the farms, and take care of elderly parents, while girls marry and move away.