About this Event
Dramatic Reading: CIRCA Pintig – Stories of Nurses II
July 30, 2026
6:00-8:00pm
Doors at 5:45pm
Free and open to the public
About the Lecture:
This session will be the second of two, where the regional Filipino theater company, CIRCA Pintig, will be collecting and developing stories from current and retired nurses to create a series of monologues and short plays. The ongoing project will feature company members enacting selected stories for an evening of live performance.
CIRCA-Pintig's roots trace back to the early 1980s when their founders, newly arrived from the Philippines, found support and inspiration in the immigrant communities of Chicago. Born from the experiences of political refugees and economic migrants, the organization embodies the resilience, creativity, and communal spirit of immigrant communities. The name "Pintig," meaning "heartbeat" or "pulse" in Filipino, reflects their commitment to keeping the vibrant pulse of immigrant cultures alive and strong in America's multicultural landscape. For over three decades, CIRCA-Pintig has been dedicated to empowering immigrant communities, honoring our founders' experiences, and paying forward the gifts of life and love that sustained them in their early years.
Giovanni Ortega (Dramatist Guild, SDC, AEA, SAG-AFTRA) has been working professionally for over a decade as a proponent of the performing arts as a multidisciplinary artist and educator. Playwright credits: The Butterfly of Chula Vista (San Diego Rep commission); Sama Sama: Solidarity in the Fields, Criers for Hire and Allos – the Story of Carlos Bulosan (East West Players commissioned production). Criers for Hire has been performed in Chicago, Sydney and San Francisco. ALLOS has toured Chicago, Honolulu, Austria, Uganda (Kampala Theatre Festival), Oregon Shakespeare Festival, San Francisco and Singapore. Director credits include: Nicky, a modernized adaptation of Chekhov’s Ivanov, We Are Nothing Without Hantu Hantu (Hollywood Fringe) Halo Halo (Third Culture Theatre), Angel from Manila (Echo Theater), Lena Passes (Pasadena Playhouse) Scrimmage (East West Players), The Hotel Play (A.D., Center Theatre Group/ Playwrights’ Arena), La Madre de Todos los Exilios (La Casa Tercer Acto, Bogotá), Cabaret, Spring Awakening – The Musical, Urinetown. In Singapore, Giovanni directed The Body Series, Evolution, Kabaret Singapura and worked with Poetry Festival Singapore to create Benches and Palindromes (Theatre) followed by Belonging, Atlas and Nomads (Films). As a performer, he starred in San-San Onglatco’s film Zenaida (AFI Film Festival )and Dreams, A Musical at the Hawaii Theater. Additional credits: President Marcos in Imelda, The Musical (East West Players), Romance of Magno Rubio (Inside the Ford – LA Weekly award nomination), Dogeaters, The Refugee Hotel (Center Theatre Group) and Conjunto. For more information: www.giovanniortega.com
R.J. Silva is a writer and creative producer. Born and raised in Manila, he moved to America at 13 years old and has lived in Phoenix, Orlando, and Chicago. Starting with CIRCA Pintig in 2013 during his years at Loyola University Chicago, he graduated with a BA in Theatre and worked in the themed entertainment industry as a producer for Walt Disney Imagineering. Now back in Chicago, he is the producing associate for CIRCA Pintig, assisting in planning and productions, and has performed for CIRCA Pintig in ‘ALLOS: The Story of Carlos Bulosan’ and ‘Daryo’s All-American Diner.’ Outside of CIRCA Pintig, RJ is a co-founder and producer of The Ampliverse, a multimedia channel that celebrates pop culture without the toxicity of exclusivity through podcasts and writing. RJ is also a writer for the screen and stage. RJ-Silva.com
This project is partially supported by a CityArts grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.
The International Museum of Surgical Science acknowledges support from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
International Museum of Surgical Science, 1524 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, United States
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