Hear from BAD BOOKS playwright Sharyn Rothstein and director Nick Chase.
Bad books
By Sharyn Rothstein
Directed by Nick Chase
January 8 - February 1, 2026
Curious Theatre Company
1080 Acoma Street, Denver CO
February 5 - 14, 2026
Dairy Arts Center
2590 Walnut St, Boulder, CO 80302
A concerned mother. A dedicated librarian. The quietest place in America turns into the battleground for a fiery debate about parenting and censorship that starts a chain of events no one saw coming.
Recommended for ages 13+ click here to read the content awareness.
Thu, Feb 5, 7:30 pm - Denver Actors Fund (DAF) Night*
Fri, Feb 6, 7:30 pm - OPENING NIGHT
Sat, Feb 7, 7:30 pm - Post-Show Conversation w/ Betty Hart, Co-Artistic Director*
SOLD OUT: Sun, Feb 8, 2 pm - Post-Show Conversation w/ Colorado librarians* + Pay What You Will* performance
Sun, Feb 8, 7:30 pm - Pay What You Will* performance
Thu, Feb 12, 7:30 pm - Battle of the Book Clubs Literary Trivia*
Fri, Feb 13, 7:30 pm - Community Meal*
Sat, Feb 14, 2 pm - OUT Night*
Sat, Feb 14, 7:30 pm - Gal-en-tines 2-for-1 tickets* CLOSING NIGHT
*COME TOGETHER event. The Come Together program is Local Theater Company’s community engagement series. Come Together events are free and open to the public. They include:
-Denver Actors Fund: this performance benefits the Denver Actors Fund
-Post-Show Conversation w/ Colorado Librarians: join your fellow audience members as Betty Hart engages librarians Cristy Moran (Branch Manager, AnyThink Huron Street, Thornton), Dana Petersen (Tallyn’s Reach Library, Aurora), and Michelle White (Weld RE-4 School District, featured in the documentary The Librarians).
-Out Night: LGBTQ+ community members & allies are welcome
-Community Meal: gather for food and conversation directly following the performance -Battle of the Book Clubs Trivia: Join us at 6:30 pm for pre-show literary trivia. Gather your bookclub members and form teams of up to 6 people or sign up independently and we’ll help you form a team. Either way, you’ll sign up upon arrival at the theater. All are welcome! Winning team wins a prize (TBA).
Co-produced by Curious Theatre Company and Local Theater Company, this world premiere production is part of a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere. Curious Theatre Company engages the community in important contemporary issues through provocative modern theatre. Learn more HERE. Other Partner Theaters are Florida Studio Theatre (Sarasota, FL), Round House Theatre (Bethesda, MD), and Williamston Theatre (Williamston, MI) with additional support from The David Goldman Fund for New American Plays.
Sponsored in part by Mark & Jamie Ragan on behalf of the Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company (BETC) and co-sponsored by Diana & Mike Kinsey
MEET OUR CO-PRODUCER, CURIOUS THEATRE COMPANY
We are thrilled to be collaborating with Local Theater Company on this production. Both of our organizations are deeply invested in developing and presenting new plays, and both are committed to bringing urgent, contemporary work to audiences across the Denver and Boulder area. This partnership reflects a shared desire to take artistic risks, amplify new voices, and create theatre that invites conversation long after the curtain falls.
Working together allows us to do what we do best—support fearless artists and engage audiences with work that is thoughtful, challenging, and deeply human. Bad Books represents the kind of collaboration we value most: one rooted in trust, curiosity, and a shared belief in the power of theatre to reflect and question the world around us.
At the center of this partnership is a play that feels especially timely. While Bad Books begins with debates around book banning, it quickly expands into a larger conversation about parenting, censorship, and how stories shape our understanding of ourselves and one another. It asks who gets to decide what is acceptable, how we protect what we value, and what it means to care for the next generation in a divided world.
This is the kind of work Curious is drawn to—plays that resist easy answers and instead offer space for reflection, dialogue, and empathy. In collaboration with Local Theater Company, we are proud to bring Bad Books to the stage as part of our continued commitment to bold, meaningful theatre.
Thank you for joining us for this collaboration and this conversation.
-Jada Suzanne Dixon
Artistic Director
CURIOUS THEATRE COMPANY
CURIOUS SHOW SPONSORS
Ensemble
Richard & Joanne Akeroyd
Dr. Elizabeth & Evan Anderman
Lynne & Jon Montague Clouse
Friends
Wiegand Attorneys & Counselors
Thank you to all of Curious Theatre Company’s Season 28 Sponsors. To read the full list, click HERE.
PRESS
MEET THE TEAM
LOCAL THEATER COMPANY and CURIOUS THEATRE COMPANY present BAD BOOKS | written by SHARYN ROTHSTEIN | directed by NICK CHASE | performed by LAUREN DENNIS (The Librarian, The Manager, The Editor) and JADA SUZANNE DIXON* (The Mother) | stage manager CAMDEN HORNOR | assistant stage manager ANNA CORDOVA | scenic designer DAVID J. CASTELLANO^^ | props designer KATIE HOPWOOD MCCLEAF | lighting designer SEAN MALLARY | technical coordinator MICHAEL MORGAN | original music composer + sound designer MAX SILVERMAN | costume designer NICOLE WATTS | scenic construction by STEVEN MCDONALD, DU TECH INTERN PROGRAM | deck crew KRYSTAL BROWN | associate sound designer ROWAN LIVENGOOD | assistant costume designer CHLOE MARTIN
*Appearing through an Agreement between Local Theater Company and Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
