Audience as jury in ECC’s courtroom drama ‘Defamation’ Oct. 15

Submitted by ECC

“Defamation,” a courtroom drama coming to Elgin Community College, will offer the audience an opportunity to determine the final outcome. The play will be held at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15, in the Building G Spartan Auditorium on the college’s Spartan Drive Campus, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin. The event is free and open to the public.

“Defamation” is a twist on the he-said-she-said story. It features African-American businesswoman Regina Wade, the owner of a small design firm on Chicago’s south side, who brings a civil defamation suit against Arthur Golden, a real estate developer from Chicago’s north suburbs. Wade claims Golden ruined her reputation and her business by accusing her of stealing his heirloom watch during a business meeting.

During the course of the trial, lawyers on both sides elicit testimony regarding segregated neighborhoods and private club memberships, racial and religious discrimination, and the hardships and privileges of class. It will be up to the audience/jury to openly untangle all of the evidence in order to reach a verdict.

“My hope is that people become aware of the preconceived notions and implicit biases we harbor every day and then empathize with others more often, thereby combating prevailing trends,” says “Defamation” playwright Todd Logan. “Making the audience the jury and then inviting the ‘jury’ to dialogue with me and the cast after a verdict is reached provides a forum to start exactly that process.”

For information, contact the Student Life Office at (847) 214-7425.