Tickets are On Sale for CELEBRATION OF AUTHORS 2026 on June 27!

A banner that reads, Celebration of Authors. Saturday June 27.

CELEBRATION OF AUTHORS 2026!

SATURDAY, JUNE 27 from 12:30PM – 3:30PM CDT

At The NATIONAL MUSEUM OF MEXICAN ART

Sponsored by WINTRUST BANK & FORWARD SPACE

    It’s both our annual gala AND a family-friendly, interactive festival!
Buy Tickets Now!

 

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 2025/26 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!

EARLY BIRD Adult Tickets (available through 5/31)—$50
EARLY BIRD Youth Tickets, ages 4 to 15 (available through 5/31)—$35
Adult Regular Tickets —$75
Youth Regular Tickets, ages 4 to 15 —$50
Children 3 years of age and under can attend for FREE

Because PlayMakers’ students rock, they typically go on to do exciting things. Every year, we use our banquet to honor a special alum. This year’s Annual Storyteller of the Year Award goes to Isabella Wilhemy Sanchez. Isabella is a special effects make up designer, and former PlayMakers Laboratory student!!!


Isabella Wilhelmy Sanchez has been in the performing arts ever since she was a student at Play Makers Laboratory. She graduated as a theater major from Lincoln Park High School and has been working in the Chicago Indie film scene working on shorts like The Crossing 2020, Perfectly Sane 2025, Wild Party 2025 and I Only Sleep When The Room Is Pitch Black 2025. Isabella has worked under Chicago based makeup artist Anthony Kosar learning more of the makeup profession and learning skills like laying beards and applying prosthetics to create characters/monsters. Isabella’s passion for story telling was nurtured by the teaching artists at PML and is thrilled to join us at the Celebration of Authors gala to share more of her journey, and to celebrate creatives of all ages in Chicago.

Buy Tickets Now!


Can’t attend our party? We’ll miss you! Consider donating to support arts education in Chicago. Thank you!

Additional Information:

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 29 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 utilizes 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.

Celebration of Authors is sponsored in part by

Wintrust Bank
wintrust1
Forward Space
forwardspace

PlayMakers Laboratory is sponsored in part by

The Chicago Community Trust,
Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events,
The Crown Family Philanthropies,
The Field Foundation,
The Illinois Arts Council
The Mardi Gras Fund,
The Paul M. Angell Foundation,
The Polk Bros Foundation,
The Siragusa Family Foundation,
And generous Individuals like you!

The National Museum of Mexican Art has a ramp and is accessible to wheelchairs, both manual and electric. PML staff are not able to assist patrons transferring to or from a wheelchair, theatre seat or vehicle. Service animals are permitted. At this time there is not a planned usage of audio descriptions, Open Captioning, or for ASL interpreters to be in attendance. For any additional accessibility information or requests, please email admin@playmakerslab.org.

Untitled (Beach)

By Lynda H., 4th Grade, Chalmers
That's Weird, Grandma

On a hot sunny day I went to the beach with my mom. At the beach it was all super stars and the stars didn’t talk to me, so I went up to Hannah Montana and I said “hi” and she said the same, but that wasn’t really Hannah Montana it was a monster. I knew it was a monster because he pulled of his wig and mask. So he pick me up and I call my mom then she came to kick his butt and after that we went home and I tell my sister and brother all about it. The name of the stars was Lil Wayne, Justin Beiber, Sonny With a Chance and Chris Brown.

The Shopping Habit

By Kayla R., 3rd Grade, Trumbull
That's Weird, Grandma

Once there were two girls who loved to go shopping on the weekend and after school. They also loved to go and get their hair did and by diamonds. Every time they saw a new phone commercial they’ll go by it. If they were going to her grand mother’s house they’d leave there fancy clothing at home and come on over get a book and hop on the couch and read. Then one day they’d tell their grandmother we both have shopping problem. Their grandmother say it’s ok you don’t have to hide yourself. O right I have almost the same thing that’s why I have book to keep me from the store to shop for clothing. They both said I love you grandma. By there grandmother to them.

Two Grampas in Paris

By Kendall M. , 3rd Grade, New Sullivan
That's Weird, Grandma

My name is Kendall. My Grampas are twins. They live in a old house. They did everything together. They even take pictures together. And they even eat stuff together. They lived in Paris. And they have two bathrooms, and two bedrooms. The End.

Flowerhead and his three wives

By Terron, 4th Grade, Dewey School
That's Weird, Grandma

One day a man name Andrae he had a wife she put a curse on him every time he say something bad he will grow flowers. So he did not know so he keep saying bad stuff. The next day his head felt heavy he look in the mirror in there was flowers.  He smiled so he stopped acting bad at the mouth. So the wife Nikyla Stigler got a curse on her in never knowing he went with Alex an curse her. So they grew a tree.

UNTITLED (GARDEN LADY)

By Deon G., 3rd Grade, Reavis
That's Weird, Grandma

At first it was a lady
she just got thruw gardening.
then the next morning she
had called a man to come
pick her up. Then she got in
his car his cat was tan and
big. She got in the Back then
he drove her all around to
do every one’s gardening.
The End

I Remember

By Serenity, Harold Washington School
True Stories That's Weird, Grandma

I remember when I was 7 years old I went to my dads house. When got there he was watching Full House. I hated that show when I was young, so one day he took me to the mall so I could get some new shoes, clothes, and toys. I played with the toys, tried on my shoes and put on a new pair of clothes, then I said, “Daddy, I am so bored can we go to Auntie’s house.” “Yeah why not” he said. So we went over there in the car and stopped in front of the house and went inside. “Hi” I said to my cousins, “what’s been going on?” “Oh nothing,” they said, then they saw my bag. “What’s inside?” “Oh nothing just some junk my dad bought me” I said.  My dad looked over at me and said, “Excuse me, what did you just say?” I said, “Oops.” “If this is junk maybe I should take it back to the store or maybe I should give it to a shelter,” Daddy said, but when he said that I said, “I have to tell you, don’t you know that show Full House. I hate that show it just makes you dumber and dumber.”  After that it was a very bad time in my life.

Dialogue - Suspense Thriller

By BJ, Loyola Park
Dialogues That's Weird, Grandma

Characters:
John F. Kennedy
Whopper Jr. (JFK’s Friend)
Setting:
Burger King in Washington, DC

JFK enters a Burger King with Secret Service.
JFK: O my goodness which should I choose? Whopper or Whopper Jr?
WJ: John! John! Pick me! We need to talk.
JFK: I’ll have a whopper with onions. So what do you want to talk about
WJ: I don’t think you should go to Dallas - I have a bad feeling about this trip.
(they are off to the 1.5 million $ plane)
JFK: The whopper is good. I have to go. I feel you.
(they arrive in Dallas & get in the Rolls Royce)
WJ: John, be careful out there. I don’t want to have to go back to Washington without you.
JFK: I promised Bush that I would be here.
(JFK is in the car, 25 miles away, waving to the people. 5 minutes later somebody shoots him and the car rushes to the hospital. Actors play the heart machine.)
JFK (Cont’d) Take care of the country. Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.
(and about 3:00 he die)
WJ: John! John, come back! (with anger) I told you this would happen. (Police take WJ away, with determination) I will find the killer if it’s the last thing I do.
(the police eat the Whopper. The End)