World premiere of the play Summer Underground, set in a near-future Austin addressing environmental and class issues, performed by the Summer Youth Theatre ensemble.
The VORTEX is hosting the world premiere of Summer Underground starting Friday, July 24, and running through August 1. It's written by Austin playwright Marissa Castañón-Hernández, directed by Blaise Ricin, and performed by the Summer Youth Theatre ensemble.
The play is set in a near-future Austin gripped by oppressive heat and water scarcity, where environmental and class lines determine who gets water and who gets shelter. It's a world that feels uncomfortably close to home, and the production is styled with a graphic novel flair. Castañón-Hernández is a UT Austin MFA graduate who took first place in the 2023 Miranda Voces Latinx National Playwriting Competition with On the Eastside, and Summer Underground arrives at The VORTEX as a favorite from the venue's 2023 Green New Theatre Symposium, where Ricin directed its staged reading.
The production is put on by Summer Youth Theatre (SYT), an award-winning, intensive, tuition-free program at The VORTEX that's been running for 34 years. It launched in 1991 under Producing Artistic Director Bonnie Cullum, who co-founded The VORTEX in 1988 and was inducted into the Austin Arts Hall of Fame in 2009. The Austin Chronicle once called it "Best Theatre for Kids That Treats Kids Like Grownups," and this production continues that tradition, putting a youth ensemble in charge of a play that doesn't shy away from heavy themes.
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Summer Underground opens July 24 and runs through August 1 at The VORTEX.
