The Niceties
Play by Eleanor Burgess • Directed by Will Casey
Monday, November 16, 2026
Playreaders Series
After more than a decade, Citadel Theatre is bringing playreadings back to the stage with the launch of our Playreaders Series - a completely free series celebrating exceptional plays that deserve a larger spotlight.
The series is dedicated to the underdogs of the theatre world: beautifully written plays that may have narrowly missed major awards or simply never received the attention they warranted. Through intimate readings led by talented actors and directors, we hope to give these works a new life and invite audiences into meaningful conversations.
Summary
Our inaugural reading is The Niceties by Eleanor Burgess, directed by Will Casey, produced by Scott Shallenbarger, and starring Catherine Marcroft and Sabrina Edwards. Set in a liberal arts college, the play follows Zoe, a Black student, and her white professor as a discussion about a paper on slavery’s impact on the American Revolution erupts into a charged debate about race, history and power.
As the United States commemorates its 250th anniversary in 2026, The Niceties offers a timely opportunity to revisit the nation's history, examine the stories we tell about its founding and consider how those stories continue to shape our present.
Join us at Citadel Theatre for this one-night-only, entirely free playreading, followed by a post-show talkback with the cast and director.
Duration: 2 hours
Show Time
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The play will conclude with a post-show talkback with the cast and director.
About the Playwright
Eleanor Burgess’ plays include The Niceties, Wife of a Salesman, Start Down, Chill, Sparks Fly Upward and Galilee, 34. Her work has been produced at theaters across the United States, including Manhattan Theatre Club, South Coast Rep, Geffen Playhouse, McCarter Theatre Center, Huntington Theatre Company, Writers Theatre, Milwaukee Rep, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, Geva Theatre Center, InterAct Theatre, Portland Stage, the Alliance Theatre and the Contemporary American Theatre Festival, as well as the Finborough Theatre in London. She has developed work at Playwrights Horizons, the New Group and The Ensemble Studio Theatre, and been a member of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages, Page 73's writers' group Interstate 73, The Civilians’ R&D Group, and New York Theatre Workshop’s 2050 Fellowship. She has also written for film and television, including work on Perry Mason for HBO, WeCrashed for Apple TV+ and Interview With The Vampire for AMC, and screenplays for Bad Robot, Amblin and Anonymous Content. Originally from Massachusetts, she studied history at Yale College and Dramatic Writing at NYU/Tisch.
Seating Map
Citadel Theatre offers ADA seating in Row C.
To make ADA arrangements, please contact us
FAQs
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When you buy tickets online, you'll choose your seats from Citadel's seating chart as part of checkout. If you get stuck at any point, call the box office at 847-735-8554 ext. 1 and we'll walk you through it.
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Citadel's Mainstage productions are held at 300 S Waukegan Road, Lake Forest, IL 60045
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Tickets to this playreading are completely FREE. Just reserve a seat at the link above, as seating is limited.
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No, this is a new Playreaders season. It will not be a full-scale play, but an intimate playreading for free on one-night-only.