Steppenwolf Theatre Company Blog – Chicago Theater, World-Class Ensemble

Well, here we are in the middle of the second week of rehearsal for Sonia Flew. I am writing from the rehearsal room on a lunch break–this morning we’ve been going over the staging in act one, trying to solve problems, looking at the actor’s traffic patterns as they move around the stage, defining the timing of action and words: does he say, “I love you” before or after he puts the silverware down, and does she look at her watch first, or reach for the phone? How did we do it last time? Very unromantic work sometimes, and it can start to feel like a huge SAT logic problem with 5 actors, a christmas tree, a roast, 3 wine glasses, several coats, a trivet and a driedel. If the driedel’s on the coffee table when we start, which wine glass will move to the desk when the yellow scarf is put on the hat rack? Everyone is tired and retreats to seperate corners to chill out on the break, instead of chatting. The actors are taking notes in their scripts and trying to remember these dances with objects they have to learn, and then learn to do lightning fast.

It’s funny for me to be embroiled in this kind of work now, because the last week has been emotional for all of us. We have had two different guests come to speak with us who left Cuba for the United States when they were children, without their parents. The stories are different, but the tellings are very emotional. And it is the little details that we remember about the past that carry the emotional weight. What it felt like to quickly take family photographs before leaving your home forever at the age of 13. Did you think you would never see your parents again? What was the final good bye like in the airport? These stories are full of tears, and strange moments, and funny things also, of course. It felt like we were painting out the emotional world of the second act, where the events of one day in Havana in 1961 result in a young girl being put on a plane and sent away from her home forever. (more…)

This past Friday night Steppenwolf’s production of The Bluest Eye opened at the Duke Theatre in New York City. This opening followed closely on the heels of another opening – that of Steppenwolf’s production of The Sunset Limited at the 59 East 59th Street Theatre. It’s an exciting time - having these two intimate productions representing Steppenwolf in the Big Apple. Autumn in New York - Times Square – and the beautifully realized production of Toni Morrison’s powerful and haunting story. It was an exciting night for all.

Today I went back to the Anne Frank House and sat inside the rooms of the Annex for a very long time. Just sat.

I decided to get there not at 8:30 so as to be first on line, but at 9:15 so as to go in after the initial rush of early-risers and, this way, neither have to wait on line nor contend with the greater crowds which would start later. Can you believe I spent so much time strategizing about the lines at the Anne Frank House? Anyway, this worked. I did not have to wait on lines, and the House was relatively empty still at this hour.

I’m not sure what, if anything yet, is a new revelation or insight for me today from the time spent here. I just know that I noticed all sorts of new sights and details – mostly stains on the walls, cracks in the kitchen counter-top, the odd angle of the mirror over the bathroom sink, the miniature drawings on Peter’s game board, and so on. (more…)

(Forgive me for not getting this posted sooner. Of course as soon as I returned from my trip abroad, “real life” hit, and much delay ensued.

So, here is what I wrote on Tuesday, Oct. 10th:)

Today we rented bicycles and rode through Amsterdam, attempting to find various locales that Anne inhabited before she went into hiding. There is a great map I found online here which shows a ton of the places Anne traveled in and through during her time here.

We began by trying to find Merwedeplein 37, the apartment building where the Franks lived from 1933-1942. Anne and her family arrived in Amsterdam in 1933 when she was 4 years old, fleeing the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany. Otto Frank believed Amsterdam would provide a safe haven – and he also had contacts and work in the area. The Franks moved into an apartment in a recently constructed complex in the “new” Jewish quarter, Rivierenbuurt, at Merwede Square (in Dutch: Merwedeplein) – which still exists today more or less as it was when it was first built in the early 30s. (more…)