Contact: Julie McBratney

Communications Manager

847-864-8445, ext. 30

EVANSTON PLAYWRIGHT EXPOSES ISSUES OF

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN WORLD PREMIERE OF SPARE CHANGE

EVANSTON, IL, September 27, 2007 - Mia McCullough is an award-winning Evanston playwright with productions at Stage Left, Steppenwolf and Chicago Dramatists. She has also served as a domestic violence crisis line volunteer for the YWCA Evanston/North Shore for the last five years, and her play Spare Change, which opened at Stage Left on September 25, was inspired by her experience answering the crisis line phone.

After college, when Mia was first making her way as a writer and was looking for other ways to supplement her income, she saw an ad seeking crisis-line workers. “I was actually quite terrified at the prospect of dealing with people in crisis,” admits Mia. “What if I couldn’t handle it? At the same time, I was drawn to the challenge and wanted to do something that would make a difference.”

Her experience on the hotline sharpened her sense that there are social service workers, people whose job it is to help people in need, and then there are the rest of us, who often feel helpless in the face of strangers in crisis. The concept for Spare Change grew out of just such a helpless experience.

“I answered a crisis line call from a man who was troubled because he had encountered a woman on the El who was clearly in need of help. He was afraid for her, for what was happening or could happen to her, and for some reason he thought she might be living at a shelter, so he called to talk. He didn't quite know why he was calling, but he felt like he should have been able to help her, and he couldn't. Spare Change is really about that intersection between comfortable urbanites and those they seek to help.”

Stage Left is sponsoring a benefit performance of Spare Change for the YWCA on Sunday, October 14 at 3 pm. Following the show, Mia McCullough will be joined by Director Ann Filmer, the cast and YWCA staff for a discussion with the audience, followed by a wine and cheese reception. If you are interested in attending the benefit, please contact the YWCA Evanston/North Shore at 847-864-8445. Tickets are $50.

The Shelter is just one of the many services the YWCA Evanston/North Shore provides for women in abusive relationships. The YWCA operates a 24-hour crisis line, provides walk-in and bilingual counseling services for non-residential clients, and operates transitional housing and court advocacy programs to help women move through the continuum out of violence affecting their lives. For more information, contact the YWCA at 847-864-8445.

Spare Change will run from September 25 through November 3 at Stage Left Theatre at 3408 North Sheffield in Chicago.