Celebration of Authors is sponsored by WINTRUST BANK
Purchase Tickets!
It’s both our annual gala AND a family-friendly, interactive festival!
Silent Auction! Games! Food + Drinks! Open Bar for adult guests! 360 Photo Booth! And of course, LIVE performances of stories written by our students for the 2024/25 School Year!
Attire: Fancy Schmancy where you can come Fancy – dressed to the nines in your best attire. Or you can come Schmancy – with a silly hat or funny outfit that expresses YOU!
You can bid on our amazing Silent Auction Prizes at the event, or remotely from anywhere! Silent Auction items include: A Trip to Mexico with Vidanta Resorts, A Sailing Excursion, An At-Home Dungeons & Dragons Session, Dining Packages, Sports Tickets, Theatre Tickets, and MORE! Stay tuned for a preview and get those bids ready!
This is the most affordable & most FUN Gala in town!
Tickets include food, drinks, a show, and activities for all ages!
Adult Regular Priced Tickets —$75
Youth Regular Price Tickets, ages 4 to 15 —$50
Children 3 years of age and under can attend for FREE
Mary Winn Heider is the author of over 30 books for kids, including THE LOSERS AT THE CENTER OF THE GALAXY, THE UNICORNS WHO SAVED CHRISTMAS, and THE STUPENDOUS SWITCHEROO series, which she co-created with Chad Sell. Mary Winn’s very first novel, THE MORTIFICATION OF FOVEA MUNSON, was based on her time working in a real life cadaver lab, and now that it’s a musical. In a School Library Journal column a few years ago, Betsy Bird wrote, “In an era of information overload, Mary Winn Heider is the author who will lead us through the pandemonium into the light.” Mary Winn’s books have been on state lists, appeared on Bank Street Best Books, received Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection status, been long-listed for the Edgar Award, and landed on Indies Introduce and Indie Next lists.But before all of that, Mary Winn was a company member with Playmakers Lab, where she spent a decade pretending to be a chicken, an astronaut, and a princess, and sometimes, all three at once.
This event is a fundraiser to support PML’s outstanding creative writing programming in partnership with Chicago Public Schools. 100% of the tickets proceeds will support PML classes! For 28 years PlayMakers Laboratory has served Chicago Public School students by providing a creative writing residency program aimed primarily at elementary schools. Our company of over 60 teaching artists utilize creative drama and storytelling to promote literacy and self esteem during our in-school residencies and park district programming. Each year, our programs serve more than 4,000 young people across Chicago. In our 6 week writing residencies, a whopping 88% of students improve writing scores by at least one level over the course of our residencies. Plus, 100% of classroom teachers report that our program supports their student’s writing and improves confidence and self-esteem.
By Ellen, 4th Grade, Peirce International School
Once I wanted to print a coloring sheet out on the computer. So I went to ask my Dad and he said “yes.” So I went to the computer and I picked a page, chose a size and pressed print. The printer made some weird noises and started shooting out paper! After shooting 20 pieces out I was scared. Some paper it printed the sheet and it was good. Two days later I went to print another image and it did the exact same thing again – except it shot out more. Me and my Dad are still trying to figure out what is wrong with it so I do not have any answers right now so THE END.
By Ingrid D, 4th Grade, Little Village Academy
Setting: Castle
Prince: Hello princess where do you live?
Princess: Hello prince. I live in a castle. Where do you live?
Prince: I live in a castle too.
Princess: That’s awesome.
Prince: Do you want to go to my castle.
Princess: I love to but I have to tell my mom who is the queen and also my dad who is the king.
Prince: Okay I will wait for you.
(Talks to her parents)
Princess: Guess what
Prince: What
Princess: my parents said yes but I have to be careful.
Prince: I will protect you. Want to go out for dinner tonight.
Princess: I will love to.
Prince: I will pick you up at 6:00 okay.
Princess: Okay.
Prince: Would you like to be my wife?
Princess: I am so sorry but I am already marry and I have 2 girls. I am so sorry. I have to go.
Prince: Okay ☹
The End.
By Enrique, Loyola Park After School Program
One day a boy name Willy but he never like to share but some came to him and said you share or have no mouth. But he never listen to his Mom who said “can I get some of your chips” but he said “no.” The next day he look at himself he saw that he had no mouth. He was cry. Then he start to share and the next day he got his mouth and start to share more. THE END.
By Michael and Alexis, 4th Grade, McPherson Elementary
Setting: In the Pool in the Day
Characters: Floor, Water
F: uhh water (worried)
W: Yah
F: I need to use the Bathroom! (Scared)
W: What do you mean (worried)
F: I mean that I about to pee (worried)
W: Well just go and use it (clam)
F: but I can’t go anywhere (scared)
W: What! (angry)
F: uh water I just used it. (Super duper scared)
W: NOOOOOOOOOO! (Super Angry)
F: I’m so sorry
W: Really you just peed on me (turning red)
The End.
By Imani, 6th Grade, Erie Charter School
One day a man named billy Bod was the most famous trumpet 60s player ever. One day his trumpet Broke! It snapped in half because he Blew it to hard! So then he saw this really ugly lady that had a long witch nose. He said do you have a trumpet I can have? She said “Yes” he paid 50 g’s and he got it when it was his Big concert the trumpet glew and misshaped itself when ever he played he started playing terrible and he got kicked out of the studio! Then he went to his wife and she said I’m leaving you! He cried and cried until he was 110 years old he died of heart stroke and then he was getting good at the thing he knew best playing the trumpet! And people can still hear the music till this day. The End.
By Injil, 5th Grade, Dixon Elementary School
It was a cold night. Rained poured puddles and sleet slid off ceilings from yesterday. I wonder with a sad sorrow sulking voice, “Do igloos imitate iguanas or impress ice?” I wandered off in my mind, sad as a shrew on a Sunday with no sunflower seeds. I was wearing a bashful baby blue, crying operas of sad body language. Tears fumbled down my posters of people’s postured and pasteurized face. All left was gloom, sadder than a dog caught destroying and damaging D-Rose sneakers. Captain Crunch was Captain Crud. Cocoa Puffs were Blank Puffs. And Fruit Loops was Gloom Rings. My piano weeped and guitar wined and trombone whimpered. I was a sad moon, wanting to shine but no sun reflection to do so. Drowned in doom and gloom, no life in my room, stale hay on my broom, sad depressed mushrooms, string and yarn too bummed to be loomed. Soon, the daylight and flowers began to bloom. My piano sang, my guitar talked soothingly, and my trombone whistled. The moon peeked from the sky, & the sun brought it out. Life listened and learned, and lived lively for life in my room. Shame shimmed on. The End.
By Josh, Sadie, Clair, Cherokee Elementary
Midday, on a glacier, Josh, Sadie, Clair, and Mary, 4 dolphins were one big happy family. They lived on top of the glacier and loved to ice skate, ski, and belly flop on the ice. It was the middle of global warming on a hot day and the family was fat from eating too much food. They went to belly flop onto their glacier, but the ice was melted from the heat and they all fell through. It made them scared. They were worried they wouldn’t get out. Josh said, “With all this worrying, I’m getting hungry!” Sadie said, “We can’t get food because we can’t get out of this hole, and you eat too much!” For a long time, they sat there and worried about their lives. But a shark smelled the dolphins and bit through the glacier into the hole. Mary said “Get out of here you beast, we have food to eat!” and kicked the shark. The shark drowned and they swam out the hole the shark made. They had a big feast of tiger shark as Josh gnawed through its guts. The End.
By Angelo, 4th Grade, McPherson Elementary
Once upon a time I had a bugatti. It cost $1,000,000,000 I was so rich! My bugatti was blue, my favorite color! One day I went to drive around people said WOW! What a nice car a kid said I was really happy for his compliment. He even told me have a good day sir. I was amazed for his respectful kid! The End. Then one day I got into a car incident I WAS SO ANGRY! ALL THAT money for nothing! The real end.
By Michelle, Chalmers School of Excellence
One day I got a pink phone because my dad said if I get all A B on my report card I get a phone. So my dad buy me a phone. Then one day I went with my friends lil mama, duk duk, and Tamika and we were playing tag and when I were running from my friend lil mama my phone drop out my coat and it break and it crack like boom boom. Then I told my dad what had happened and I told him when I told him I feel scared because I thought that he was to be like a bear mad at me because he spent 300 dollars a lot of money. But he was not mad at me he told me he was going to buy me a new phone. I were very happy like someone that got a lot of money. Then I went back and playing with my friends lil mama, duk duk, and Tamika. The End.
By Ava, Julia, Preston, Caitlin, 4th Grade, Cherokee Elementary
Once upon a time, there was a girl named Lily who wanted a red panda stuffed animal. She was at the store and her parents were shopping for tennis balls for their tennis tournament. She saw the red panda stuffed animal & asked her parents for it. They said “You don’t need another, you already have too many.” “You can have one of the tennis balls we are getting.” She throws it on the ground because she was so mad. It bounces and breaks a light. She storms off. She goes into the parking lot and gets lost. She sees a sign for a red panda in another store. She finds two $5 bills in the street and uses it to buy the stuffed panda. Her parents find her and yell at her for going behind their back. Then they return it. They say they didn’t buy it for her because they’re saving for a flight for the tennis tournament. A week later at the tennis tournament in Florida, her parents win! They use some of their prize money to get Lilly the panda. She is so excited that she faints. The End.
