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Read the press release here.

'The Mars Assignment' Tackles Depression Stigma At Wicker Park Theater

By Alisa Hauser | October 27, 2016 12:40pm
 A new play, "The Mars Assignment," tackles depression and its many stigmas.
"The Mars Assignment" at Collaboraction Theatre
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WICKER PARK — Aiming to shed light on depression, the play "The Mars Assignment" showcases people who're quietly dealing with a mental health challenge battled by more than 19 million Americans.

Written by Ronan Marra and co-created by Elsa Hiltner, "The Mars Assignment" opened last Thursday and runs through Nov. 20 at Collaboraction's Pentagon Theatre, in the Flat Iron Arts Building,
1579 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Wicker Park.

According to a news release, the play "will shine a light on the presence of depression in contemporary society and the stigmas that continue to keep our friends and loved ones from seeking treatment for their mental illness."

Hiltner said that she and Marra set out to create a show that showed realistic characters living with depression and avoided the "stigmatizing tropes of suicide and addiction."

JAMA Internal Medicine recently published survey results that found less than a third of people who said they were depressed had been treated for the symptoms, Hiltner said.

Performances run at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and at 3 p.m. Sunday through Nov. 20.  Additional Industry Night performances are at 7:30 p.m. November 7 and 14, both Mondays. Tickets are $20 to $30; $10 to $15 for students, educators and industry.

This Saturday's show and the Nov. 12 performance will also include a post-play "talkback" with representatives from the the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), which has a local chapter in West Town.

For tickets, visit collaboraction.org or call (312) 226-9633.

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