Provenance

The Papers of Nicholas A. Patricca are one of the founding archives of the Chicago Theater Collection. After having received an initial donation of scripts from 1987, Special Collections has received regular transfers of script and production materials. The most recent donation was in 1999, and consisted of extensive research and script materials from his collaborative work on the bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, If the Radiance of a Thousand Suns. The work was produced at Bailiwick Repertory in the summer of 1995.

Access

The Papers of Nicholas A. Patricca are available to the public for research in the Special Collections and Preservation Division Reading Room on the 9th floor of the Chicago Public Library’s Harold Washington Library Center, 400 South State Street, Chicago, Illinois, 60605. The collection does not circulate and photoreproduction services are limited since copyright of the intellectual content of the collection remains with the playwright. First time patrons to Special Collections must present photo identification and complete a Reader Registration Form. Telephone inquiries on this collection and other Special Collections holdings can be directed to 312-747-4875.

Biographical Note

Dr. Nicholas A. Patricca has been writing for the theater since 1980, when his first play The Examen was produced at the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago. Since that time, he has written, published and produced several full-length dramatic works, one-acts and dramatic monologues and poems, including An Uncertain Hour, The Fifth Sun, The Lemon Tree and Gardinia’s ‘n’ Blum. Many of his shorter pieces have been performed as dramatic monologues and have been featured in a variety of literary magazines.

Dr. Patricca is a founding member of the Chicago Alliance for Playwrights, an active member of the Dramatists Guild, a member of the Writers-in-Prison Committee, and coordinator of the Chicago Network for Justice and Peace. He is also one of the artistic directors of Chicago New Plays, a collective service organization dedicated to the development of playwrights working in Chicago theater. He was Playwright-in-Residence at the Commons Theatre in Chicago (1985) and currently holds that position at Victory Gardens Theater. Dr. Patricca is also currently an Artistic Associate at Bailiwick Repertory. His activities are not confined to the U.S., however: he is a lecturer at the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico, and has lectured in Mexico and more recently (1998) in the Philippines.

In addition to playwriting, Dr. Patricca teaches at the college and university level. He holds a Ph.D. in Philosophical Theology from the University of Chicago (1972). From 1977-1981, he chaired the Department of Religious Studies at Mundelein College and was Associate Professor of Religious Studies there from 1976-1991. He is currently Professor Emeritus of Theatre and an Associate Member of the Graduate Faculty of the Institute for Pastoral Studies at Loyola University Chicago.

Dr. Patricca has lectured extensively on theater, writing and theology. He has won several awards and grants including the Illinois Arts Council Special Assistance Grant, the Chicago Artists Abroad Award, the Cunningham Prize for Playwriting from The Theatre School at DePaul University (1992-1993), a Joseph Jefferson Citation (1996), and an "After Dark" Award for Best Ensemble Work in 1995.

Scope and Content

The Papers of Nicholas A. Patricca are arranged alphabetically by play title, with production materials following the scripts. Videotapes in the Chicago Theater Videotape Collection bring alive two of Dr. Patricca’s plays and also give the researcher the words of the playwright himself through interviews conducted in the late 1980s.

Further research on plays written by Dr. Patricca can be found in the Bailiwick Repertory,  Commons Theater, Organic Theater, and Victory Gardens Theater collections. Several of his published plays can also be found in the Chicago Public Library’s Literature and Language Division and may be checked-out by holders of Chicago Public Library cards.

To allow for alphabetical interfiling of plays, the folders in this collection are not numbered. Please specify the box number,  play title and  folder title when requesting materials. See Special Collections Reading Room Reference Staff for further assistance, if needed.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I: Biographical
This series consists of resumes, general newspaper clippings and correspondence about Nichoals A. Patricca.

Series II: Scripts and Productions
The plays and productions in this collection are arranged alphabetically and include multiple versions of typescripts but also research and production information.

Box and Folder Inventory

BOX 1

Series 1: Biographical Biography

• Resumes, bios., professional summaries, etc.
• CAIP/USIS Artists’ Exchange to the Philippines, Nov.-Dec. 1998
• SEE ALSO: Chicago Theater Videotape Collection #2.1 (interview)
• SEE ALSO: Chicago Theater Videotape Collection #2.4 (interview)
• SEE ALSO: Chicago Theater Videotape Collection #2.11 (interview)

Correspondence

• Incoming
• Outgoing

General

• Promotional material from readings, etc.

Series II: Scripts and Productions The Decline of the West (A Brief One-Act Play). 1982.

Unmarked script

Review: LionHeart Gay Theatre production, May 30-June 2, 1982

The Defiant Muse. 1996.

• Script; excerpt from Governor’s Award, Illinois Arts Council, Sept. 13, 1996

Dream Machine (A Farce in One Act). 1985.

• Unmarked script
• Promotional material: Deja Vu Coffeehouse, Feb. 6-March 15, [1986]
• Promotional material, review: LionHeart Gay Theatre, "Cafe 
• Homophobe," Dec. 5-14, 1985
• Review for the Organic Lab Theatre, Summer Shorts Festival Production, July-August, 1986
• SEE ALSO: Organic Theater Collection

The Examen. 1980.

• Unmarked script, labeled "Production Text"
• Promotional material, reviews for the Victory Gardens Theater production, May 30-July 6, 1980
• SEE ALSO: Victory Gardens Theater Collection

Father (Performance Poem). 1984.

• One-page monologue marked with performance information
• Published text, San Miguel Writer, vol. 3, June 1990; with notes on performances

The Fifth Sun. 1984.

• Unmarked script, labeled "Victory Gardens Theater Production Text"
• Program, promotional material, clippings for the production at Victory Gardens Theater, September 26-November 4, 1984
• SEE ALSO: Victory Gardens Theater Collection
• SEE ALSO: Pat Hart Collection (costumes)
• Program, promotional material, reviews for the Group Theatre Company production in Seattle, Washington, March 13-April 6, 1986
• Program for the Spaulding University production in Louisville, Kentucky, n.d.
• Program and review for the College Theatre, Birmingham-Southern College production, n.d.

Frankie and Nikki (Dramatic Monologues). 1987.

• Frankie: Unmarked monologue
• Published text for Frankie and Nikki, The Sun, issue 165, August 1989.
• Published text for Frankie and On the Northeast Corner of Belmont and Sheffield Facing South, San Miguel Review 1989
• Program, with text for Frankie and other poems (in Italian and English) for "Riari 78," in Rome, March 1990.

Gardenia’s ‘n’ Blum (Una Commedia Italiana). 1986.

• Unmarked script, labeled "Victory Gardens/Body Politic Production Text, Draft"
• Program, promotional material, reviews for the Victory Gardens Theater, Play
• Expo production, June 5-July 19, 1987
• SEE ALSO: Victory Gardens Theater Collection

Hail Mary I (A Dramatic Monologue). 1986.

• Unmarked text, with performance information
• Reviews for the Organic Lab Theater, Summer Shorts Festival production, July 1986
• SEE ALSO: Organic Theater Collection
• SEE ALSO: Chicago Theater Videotape Collection #1.19

Hail Mary II. 1987.

• Unmarked text.
• Reviews for the Organic Lab Theater, Summer Shorts Festival production, July 1987
• SEE ALSO: Organic Theater Collection

Homeboy (A Ten-Minute One-Act Play for One Male Actor). 1990.

• Unmarked text, with promotional materials from Club Lower Links: Crimes of Reckless Youth: A Series (Boys Behind Bars)—Post-Structuralist Punk Performance Poetry featuring Nicholas A. Patricca.

The Idea of Chaos (Life, Sex, Death and Order) at Key West. 1990.

• Published text, Lamia Ink, The Poets Theatre Issue, Spring 1990.

BOX 2

If the Radiance of a Thousand Suns: The Hiroshima Project, by Nicholas A. Patricca, Anne V. McGravie, Dwight Okita, and David Zak. 1994-1997.
General

• Copyright and trademark information
• Correspondence with David Cortright, President of the Fourth Freedom Forum
• Correspondence with Martin Harwit, former Director of the National Air and Space Museum (Enola Gay exhibit), 1995-1997
• Correspondence with Dramatic Publishing regarding publication of the play, 1997
• Manuscript notebooks belonging to Nick Patricca
• Research
• The A-Bomb Story: Theory Becomes Reality
• Biographical Sketches
• The Bomb and Man’s Consciousness, by W. H. Auden
• Enola Gay Perspectives (http://www.glue.umd.edu/~enola)
• Miscellaneous articles and information
• The Scientists: Their Views 20 Years Later, by William L. Laurence
• Newspaper clippings on the canceled Smithsonian Enola Gay exhibit
• Script for the Smithsonian Enola Gay exhibit (1 of 3)
• Script for the Smithsonian Enola Gay exhibit (2 of 3)
• Script for the Smithsonian Enola Gay exhibit (3 of 3)
• Terms, glossary

BOX 3

If the Radiance of a Thousand Suns: The Hiroshima Project, cont.
Scripts and scores

• Score notes
• Score (copy 1)
• Score (copy 2)
• Script notes
• Unmarked script, This is Not My Life by Dwight Okita and Chuck Larkin; labeled "Draft: 5-20-95"
• Script, marked with light cues; labeled "Merged Master Text / 4 July 1995 / &n.p."
• Script rewrites, Anne McGravie; labeled "Merged Master Copy / 12 June 95"
• Script rewrites, Dwight Okita; labeled "Merged Master Copy 6/18/95", with correspondence
• Script; labeled "Merged Master Copy 6/12/95", with blocking
• Script; labeled "Final Master Copy 7/04/95" and "Opening Night Text 16 July 95"
• Script; labeled "Production Text 16 July 1995"
• Script; labeled "Production Text 16 July 1995"
• Script; labeled "Final Master Copy October 95"
• Script; labeled "Final Master Copy October 95" and "Sue’s Comments"
• Script; labeled "Final Master Copy February 1997", with McGravie (?) comments
• Script; labeled "Final Master Copy February 1997", with Okita comments
• Script; labeled "Final Master Copy February 1997", with Zak (?) comments

BOX 4

If the Radiance of a Thousand Suns: The Hiroshima Project, cont.
World Premiere, Bailiwick Repertory, July 16-August 20, 1995. Directed by David Zak, costumes by Michael Alan Stein, lighting design by Robert Dalleska, and original music and sound design by Joe Cerqua.
Production Information

• Production photographs
• Program, promotional material, reviews and clippings
• Royalties and production rights
• SEE ALSO: Bailiwick Repertory Collection

The Lemon Tree (An Unfinished Play in One Act). 1987.

• Unmarked production text for Randolph Street Gallery performance, October 9, 1987.
• Unmarked script; labeled "Revised Version"
• Unmarked script; labeled "Lionheart Production Text, September 1988, Theatre Building, Chicago", with program and promotional material

The Little Star of Great Courage (A Christmas Story). 1983. [La Pequeña Estrella de Gran Valor.]

• Unmarked script; labeled "Produced December 1983, Shown on Mexican Cable Vision, December 24, 1983"
• Program (in Spanish) for the Centro Cultural "El Nigromante" production in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, December 16, 1983
• Photographs for the Centro Cultural "El Nigromante" production in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, December 16, 1983

Oh, Holy Allen Ginsberg: Oh, Holy Shit Sweet Jesus Tantric Buddha Dharma Road (A Full-Length Serio-Comedy in Two Acts). 1994.

• Unmarked script; labeled "Version 4.00"
• Program, reviews for the Bailiwick Repertory, Pride Performance Series 93 production, May 31-June 1993
• SEE ALSO: Bailiwick Repertory Collection

The Pursuit of Happiness. 1985

• Unmarked script; labeled "Winter 1985"
• Press release, reviews for the Organic Lab Theater production, February 20-March 16, 1986
• SEE ALSO: Organic Theater Collection

Richard (Dramatic Monologue). 1987.

• Text marked with line changes; labeled "Randolph Street Gallery Production Text"

Testosterone, Amino Acids, and a Whole Lot More: A Closet (Smallish) Drama. 1989.

• Unmarked text published in Outlines, vol. 3, no. 6, November 1989

An Uncertain Hour (A Full-Length Play in Two Acts). 1994.

• Unmarked text; labeled "Version 6.2"
• Programs, reviews and correspondence for the Bailiwick Repertory production, May 23-June 26, 1994