What Would Your Season Look Like?
Posted by Martha Lavey on 8/12/2009
We’ve just begun rehearsals for the first show of our 2009-2010 season at Steppenwolf. Our ensemble member, Eric Simonson, directs his play, Fake. We have a terrific cast: ensemble members Kate Arrington, Fran Guinan, and Al Wilder, and Steppenwolf veterans Coby Goss (When the Messenger is Hot and Dead Man’s Cell Phone) and Larry Yando (Mother Courage and Her Children).
Fake is a wonderful opening to our season-long conversation about authenticity and belief. I love the excitement of anticipating a new season of Chicago work. Most of the theaters in town have announced their seasons and I’m sure that, like me, many of you are thinking about the productions you are most eager to see. I’d love to hear which plays you are most looking forward to seeing at theaters across Chicago. If you were to create a five-play subscription series with each play produced by a different theater, what would that season look like?
August 12th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Oh, Martha, for a second there you had me all twitterpated — I thought the game was to create a hypothetical season: what shows I would want five different Chicago companies to produce had I my druthers. My entirely unmarketable tastes were glimmering with joy.
This is actually much harder — many of the season announcements coming through are out and out repulsive to my wallet. It’s official: Repression Theatre sucks. But I’ve scoured and played the game to the letter and the best of my abilities anyway. Here’s my five, in chronological order:
1. Goodman’s Animal Crackers (a tough choice b/w this and Krapp’s, but the clowning potential behind Molly Brennan and Paul Kalina’s involvement is the tipping point)
2. Court’s The Mystery of Irma Vep (Graney + Ludlam = a very frightening sort of madcap)
3. Steppenwolf’s Endgame (you win the toss-up b/w this and Next’s War With The Newts for being the company to pose the question and for already having the crazy talented cast)
4. Signal’s Aftermath (I’m biased, having already read the first draft of this world premiere, a balm on the gaping lack of rock and roll influence in Chicago theatre, esp. this year)
5. TUTA’s Baal (a great work in need of an overhaul to maintain relevance; if there’s anyone I trust to adapt this, musically no less, it’s TUTA)
Now let me know when I can break out the Shows I Want To See That No One Will Produce Otherwise pamphlet. That’s where the real fun lies!
August 18th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
Hi Martha, here are five that I’m excited to see this season -
YEAST NATION (the triumph of life) a new rock musical at The American Theater Co.
STOOP STORIES at The Goodman
THE MYSTERY OF IRMA VEMP at The Court
TRUST at Lookingglass (the one I know the least about, but the mixed media intrigues me).
and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE directed by David Cromer at Writers’ Theatre
Now, a dream season for me would have new play readings between every one of the produced plays…