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Three women are in front of you in the checkout line at the grocery store. Odds are excellent that one of them has had an abortion.

You’re sitting in the bleachers at your kid’s soccer game, chatting with three women in the next row. Odds are, one of them has had an abortion.

You’re helping yourself to tuna casserole at a church potluck. Three women are setting out tea and punch at the next table. Odds are, one of them has had an abortion.

You never guessed? Of course not. Few women ever discuss their abortions, even with their intimate friends. Because abortion – an experience shared by one in three American women – is the last great taboo, a secret millions of women carry in silence.

One in 3 breaks the silence. The original play, written by three established Dallas women writers and produced by Project X, will have its official world premiere at the Green Zone near the Dallas Design District on Jan. 22, 2009, following a preview on Jan. 21. It will run through Jan. 31.

One in 3 tells the sometimes wrenching, often surprising, and even occasionally humorous stories of a group of women who have virtually nothing in common except the need to confront this most complex and personal of decisions.

“It’s about the courage, compassion, anger, love, grief, relief, defiance, and ambivalence of individual women facing a decision others often want to make for them, but only they can make for themselves,” said Gretchen Dyer, one of the authors. Ms. Dyer is a board member of the Texas Equal Access (TEA) Fund, which will receive the proceeds from the inaugural run of One in 3.

Raphael Parry, a Project X founder, said he chose to direct One in 3 because Project X is dedicated to producing original works that burst the bounds of conventional theater. In addition, he said, “the success of taboo-breaking works such as The Vagina Monologues and The Laramie Project reflect a widespread hunger for plays that speak our truths and touch the deepest parts of our lives.”

One in 3 takes chances in more than its subject matter, incorporating film and other non-traditional elements for an experience designed to provoke, entertain, enlighten, and perhaps even heal.  Some performances will be followed by talk-backs with the artists and activists.  The play’s website, www.onein3.org, will also invite women to post their stories online.

Dates/Times/Location/Prices
January 21- 31, 2009 *
Wednesday – Saturday
8:00 p.m.
Project X Studio at the Green Zone
161 Riveredge – Dallas, TX 75207
*Note that January 21st is a preview performance

Prices: $20 adults, Wednesday’s are Pay What You Can.
Call 214-421-2400 or visit www.onein3.org.

The Dallas premiere is only the beginning for One in 3.  The National Network of Abortions Funds plans to sponsor a national tour of the play to major cities across the U.S.  The rights to the script, scenery, and film will be released to the Network, which will also make them available for translation into other languages and for independent productions in other cities.  With this expanded platform, One in 3 has the potential to generate a new national dialogue around abortion, shifting the conversation from the political controversy to the personal reality.

About the Authors

Gretchen Dyer is a documentary and feature film screenwriter whose film, Late Bloomers, was featured at the Sundance Film Festival, released theatrically in the U.S. and foreign markets, and broadcast on HBO Cinemax.  She is a board member of the TEA Fund.

Victoria Loe Hicks is a playwright and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist.  Her plays Jill’s War and Truth Be Told premiered in Dallas.

Merritt Tierce is a writer published in Southwest Review and featured by WordSpace.  She is a board member of the TEA Fund.

About the Producers

Project X: TheatreDanceMusicFilm (PX) is a non-profit corporation founded in 2001 by acclaimed director, producer and actor Raphael Parry. Mr. Parry founded Project X with the desire to create a unique venue for eclectic programming and educational and community outreach services. The mission of Project X is to revitalize North Texas’ cultural landscape by creating and presenting diverse art forms through innovative collaborations of theatre, dance, music, film and beyond.  PX has presented a diverse array of intimate performances, workshops and gallery exhibits and has hosted such artists and companies as performance artist Laurie Anderson (in partnership with TITAS), musical innovators BL Lacerta, Massachusetts-based Shakespeare & Company, and Big Thought’s award-winning arts education program Creative Solutions.

One Mind Productions, which will create the original film incorporated into the play, is a film production company founded by Gretchen Dyer and her sister, Julia Dyer. One Mind produced Late Bloomers, directed by Julia, and has other film projects under development, including The Playroom and Backlash.

The Texas Equal Access Fund is a nonprofit organization founded in 2005.  Its mission is to promote reproductive justice for women in North Texas by helping to lower economic barriers to abortion access for low-income and disadvantaged women. The organization also works to inform and educate the public about reproductive justice issues.  Since 2005, volunteers have processed more than 5,000 calls, providing information, referrals and emotional support in addition to helping more than 1,300 women pay for abortions.  The TEA Fund is an affiliate member of the National Network of Abortion Funds, whose more than 100 grassroots groups raise money to directly help women cover the cost of abortion and to eliminate economic barriers to abortion.