fire work

The VORTEX opens fire work on Saturday, September 5, a new dystopian comedy by Mary Glen Fredrick. It runs through September 26, and since it's a world premiere, this is one of the first times the play is being staged anywhere.

Fredrick describes fire work as a contemporarily old-timey, tragicomic heist play about labor, exploitation and our addiction to capitalism. It follows Eleanor and Bartholomew, who work at a glass factory by day and set off fireworks by night, until a new labor bill and a group of revolutionaries force them to decide how much they're willing to sacrifice to preserve the life that's slowly killing them. It's part of a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, which means it's being staged in three cities at once: here in Austin, at The Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City, and at Theatre Alliance in Washington DC. The script was a National New Play Network Selection and a Eugene O'Neill Theater Center Finalist in 2024.

Fredrick is a New York actor, writer and video editor who writes genre-bending dark comedies that dance with the absurd and the dystopian. Her play Annie was named The Pitch KC's Best Theatre of 2025 and The San Francisco Chronicle's Best Theatre of 2023, and it earned eleven B. Iden Payne Award nominations and five wins. For fire work, she's working with director Bonnie Cullum, with Jason Amato on production design, Johann Solo on sound, Cecelia Sanchez on costumes, and Ivy Vidal on hair and makeup.

There are a few specific dates to keep in mind: an ASL-interpreted performance on Saturday, September 12, at 8 PM; a live-streamed show on Thursday, September 17, at 8 PM CT; and an industry night on Wednesday, September 23, at 8 PM. Otherwise, it runs from September 5 through September 26 at The VORTEX.