Behind the ‘Line

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The Limits of Humanity

A History of the American Freak Show This was a marvelous diversion. I’ve always adored carnivals and freak shows. – Atung as Andrew Jackson, The Chinese Lady While Afong Moy may have been the first Asian woman to immigrate to the United States, she was far from the first “exotic” body to tour rural America on display. Indeed, after P.T. Barnum popularized the freak show in the mid-19th century, exhibits of “human oddities” continued to enthrall rural ...
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An interview with playwright Lloyd Suh

As rehearsals were gearing up for The Chinese Lady, dramaturg Yiwen Wu (YW) posed a few questions to New York-based playwright Lloyd Suh (LS) about the reverence he has for Afong Moy, the value of interrogating social constructs, and how he thinks about his connections ...
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Mica Cole named new Executive Director

We’re thrilled to announce that TimeLine has named Mica Cole as the company’s new Executive Director! Effective May 16, Mica will become the co-equal leader of TimeLine alongside PJ Powers as Artistic Director, guiding the company’s strategic and financial direction, Board and staff development, productions, ...
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New Executive Director search launched

TimeLine has officially launched our national search for a new Executive Director, tapping Chicago-based Arts Consulting Group (ACG) to lead the recruitment effort. TimeLine’s Board, Company and staff will participate in ACG’s search for a new executive leader, who will become the co-equal leader of ...
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A new phase for TimeLine’s new home

IT’S TIME! Our new home project is ready for its next phase, and we’re so excited to share a peek behind the curtain at everything we’ve been working on. HGA design rendering showing future street exterior view of TimeLine’s new home at 5035 N. Broadway ...
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Leadership Transition: An interview with Elizabeth Auman

TimeLine’s Managing Director Elizabeth K. Auman. As our new home project moves into its next phases, and in recognition of the complex path ahead, today TimeLine announced that Managing Director Elizabeth K. Auman will be transitioning her responsibilities away from day-to-day management of the company in order to focus exclusively on that project. That means we’ll be conducting a search for a new executive leader who will partner with Artistic Director PJ Powers in managing ...
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TimeLine South: Spotlight on our Teaching Artists!

For the past four summers, Living History’s TimeLine South has offered an ensemble of teenagers a safe space for self-expression, creativity, and ensemble building on the south side of Chicago. Through this six-week summer arts program, students engage in advocacy and community building through art ...
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Engaging the Community

TimeLine’s Living History Teaching Artists have an icebreaker that they love to play with new groups of people. They call the game, “Where my people from” and provide a series of prompts that a single person can say to the group:  Where my people from, ...
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Juneteenth: A Historic Holiday

The oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States, Juneteenth (June 19) became a United States federal holiday on June 17, 2021. Juneteenth marks the day when enslavement finally ended in America, when Black people who were enslaved learned about ...
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The Chinese Lady: Take Action

But if we take the time to really look at each other. To really look at each other. Then we might see, through all that vastness and variance, something true and real and wonderful.  — The Chinese Lady Transformation takes time and requires purposeful and ...
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