About this show
Elena is a seemingly average cleaning gal until she runs into the man who turned her life upside down. He leaves her no choice but to quit cleaning the boxing bag and to start punching it. She finds out what kind of fighter she really is... in and out of the ring. Don't miss a chance to see this workshop world premier of The Knockout.
From Ilse Zacharias Rivera
This is a tale about heartbreak—pero, like funny? The show began as a short film in 2019 from a very vivid dream I had after hearing about devastating events in my home town of Brownsville, Texas, a border town. I was heartbroken to hear about the lack of compassion for families of under-represented communities.
I was taught to take the high road, and I believe I always will, but for just a moment I wondered....what if I didn't?
As I explored this question, the piece naturally morphed into a solo performance followed by more iterations through several readings. My hope is that folks will laugh, dance and shed a couple tears but most importantly, I hope everyone leaves with a greater sense of empathy and the utmost certainty that love is the greatest power we possess—and with it, we truly are unstoppable.
This show is dedicated to Myrna Salazar: a fighter, a mentor and a dear friend. ¡Adelante!
About Ilse Zacharias
Ilse Zacharias Rivera (eel-SEH) is a Chicago based bilingual Mexican-Canadian actress and writer.
Indeed you have to squint to see past her brightness
— Chicago Theatre Review
Selected as one of this year's Chicago Dramatists M.E.H. Scholars, Ilse has been working in the industry professionally for over 10 years—from Steppenwolf to Teatro Vista to the Destinos Festival Finale in Mexico City. She makes her writing debut with The Knockout, a one-woman show, as part of Steppenwolf’s LookOut Series. She is currently working on several theatre and film projects—stay tuned. Television credits include The Exorcist (FOX) and Chicago PD (NBC). For more information please visit www.ilsezachariasrivera.com
About Director Fawn Johnstin
Fawn is a Chicagoland native and has been working in the industry professionally for over 15 years. She made her theatre debut at Steppenwolf Theater, as one of the original cast members of August: Osage County. She is a graduate from Sanford Mesiner’s The Neighborhood Playhouse Conservatory in NYC, where she continued to reside and work on various projects for ten years. While in NYC, she was a proud member of F.A.B. (for, about, by) Women Theater Company, which is affiliated with The Barrow Group. In Chicago, she's had the pleasure of working with Glass Apple Theatre Company where she is currently the dramaturg for their upcoming play. This will mark her directing debut bringing her career full circle. She's excited for the projects on the horizon and feels especially lucky to be working on this play with her best friend.
Running Time
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