(top, l to r) Amy Kasper,  JoAnn Birt 
(bottom, l to r) Martin Diaz-Valdes, Halle Hoffman and Angela Oliver

AstonRep Theatre Company has announced casting for its Chicago premiere of Sarah Treem’s drama “When We Were Young and Unafraid,” directed by Co-Artistic Director Sara Pavlak McGuire.

The cast includes AstonRep company member Amy Kasper with JoAnn Birt, Martin Diaz-Valdes, Halle Hoffman and Angela Oliver.

The production team to date includes: Jeremiah Barr (scenic, props and make-up design), kClare McKellaston (costume, hair and wig design), Liz Cooper (lighting design), Robert Tobin (sound design), Claire Yearman (intimacy design), Sara Pavlak McGuire (casting director) and Melanie Kulas (stage manager).

In the early 1970s, before Roe v. Wade, before the Violence Against Women Act, Agnes has turned her quiet bed and breakfast into one of the few spots where victims of domestic violence can seek refuge. But to Agnes’s dismay, her latest runaway, Mary Anne, is beginning to influence Agnes’s college-bound daughter Penny. As the drums of a feminist revolution grow louder outside of Agnes’s tiny world, Agnes is forced to confront her own presumptions about the women she’s spent her life trying to help.

“Treem’s gripping drama speaks to the power of women fighting for each other. When that happens, indeed they can spark a revolution,” said Director Sara Pavlak McGuire. “At the same time this play provides a cautionary tale for today’s woman of how close she may be to battling an oppression that this generation has not yet seen. And so we hope it provokes today’s woman to continue to fight; quietly or loudly, but she must still fight. We are honored to present the story of these four women and are thrilled to premiere it here in Chicago.”

When We Were Young and Unafraid will play April 9 – May 10, 2020 at AstonRep’s new home, The Edge Theater, 5451 N. Broadway St. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at astonrep.com or by calling (773) 828-9129.