As part of Philosophy Professor Andrew Chignell's three year grant shared between Cornell, Norte Dame, and Penn, a playwriting competition was sponsored as a means to explore themes of hope, science and philosophy with a wider audience. The winning play, "I Carry Your Heart," written by Georgette Kelly, premieres this weekend at the Hanger Theater in Ithaca, NY.  From a feature in the Ithaca Times:

[T]he Hope and Optimism project applies its $5 million, three-year grant to research on the “theoretical, empirical, and practical dimensions of hope, optimism, and related states in philosophy, philosophy of religion, and the social sciences, especially psychology and sociology.” Chignell describes it as an effort to bring together the philosophers and the social scientists, and when the project added theater and film competitions, he saw those as helping to publicize the scientific research...“I do think it depicts not only how we hope, but should you hope,” said Chignell. “What should you hope for?”

Further previews of the play have been featured in Tompkins Weekly and the Ithaca Journal. Tickets can be purchased on the Hangar Theatre's website with proceeds going to the United Way of Tompkins County. A west coast production of the play will be featured at the Bootleg Theater from May 19th-June 10th.