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

Steppenwolf stage manager Laura Glenn – who has been with the company for nearly 20 years – notes her experiences working on the 18-week run of Betrayal in the Upstairs Theatre with ensemble members Ian Barford, Tracy Letts and Amy Morton.

January 27th – Performance #4
Ian was just heart-breaking in scene 9 – “Prince of Desolation” – just very simple and open-hearted.

February 17th – Performance #25
It was a tough day in the Venice scene; Tracy’s back went out. While on the bed, he also had some…how shall I say…burping issues. Amy got through the scene—almost.

March 4th – Performance #43
The soundtrack of today’s performance: hacking, wheezing, sneezing, coughing and maybe even some snoring! At times, these sounds were louder than the scene shift music. Then, of course, there was some perfectly timed audience “reactions,” like: Last line of play. [Big sneeze from audience] Blackout. (more…)

1. Why does Robert maintain his friendship with Jerry?

2. Who is the biological father of Ned?

3. Is Judith having an affair herself?

4. Why doesn’t Jerry tell Robert about Sam falling off his bike?

5. Has Robert ever beaten Emma?

6. Has Robert had affairs?

7. Why is Jerry so fixated on tossing Charlotte in the air?

There are no wrong answers.

In order to truly appreciate what I have to say here, you have to accept this premise: 99% of you are great. Thoughtful, energetic, and respectful, you are the fuel that drives the engine of Steppenwolf. We couldn’t do it without you, and we wouldn’t want to.

No, REALLY, you have to accept that premise. Please don’t e-mail me, saying “I can’t believe Tracy holds his audience in such contempt.” I don’t hold you in contempt. I love you. I love you very much.

But I’m not writing about you, the 99% of you. I’m writing about YOU, the 1%. And I’m willing to wager the 99% know exactly who I’m talking about… (more…)

If I had my way I would be able to appear in every play that I’m in as an unhsaven (sometimes unshowered) barbarian. I must admit that I’ve been fortunate to have been allowed (to varying degrees) to appear this way on several occasions. But, alas, acting often requires physical and cosmetic transformations from one’s own appearance into that of one’s character in a play. Theatre, being a collaborative art, necessitates from time to time a conforming on the actors part to whatever artistic vision is applied by director and designer. Realizing the futility of arguing that Jerry (the role I play in Betrayal) was a man who only occasionally showered and shaved, I was uncertain what kind of look we collaborators would settle upon. Nevertheless, it goes without saying that I showed up for the first rehearsal with a full beard and a slightly questionable odor.

Generally speaking, people were polite about the odor but the beard provoked some skeptical glances from director and designer. Not that I didn’t have a fine full beard mind you, but I was thwarted by the presence of another actor (Tracy Letts) who also showed up with a full beard, though certainly not as fine. The male characters in Betrayal are written as being the same age and in real life Tracy (a male actor) is only one year older than I but in appearance well…let’s just say he reads a lot older. (say 15 to 20 years). I expected this to bode well for my beard as it tends to age my baby face somewhat, but for reasons best ascribed to collaboration, I consented to shave it off. With the older grayer actor keeping his beard, I was required to AGE myself for the play through artificial means. (more…)

On Wednesday, Amy Morton, Tracy Letts, Ian Barford and I did a talk at the Arts Club. We were there to discuss Betrayal–both the play itself and their actor experience of it. One of the things we discussed was the language of the play and the orchestration of the “pauses” and “silences” (a distinction that Pinter supplies in his stage directions) in the play. We started talking about the discipline that Pinter requires in the actors’ management of language. It’s not naturalistic speech (it isn’t intended to be) but it does require that the actors create the illusion of conversation. In the conversation, we also referenced Mamet as a playwright who produces a similarly rigorous deployment of language. (And Tracy pointed out that Mamet references Pinter as an influence on his, Mamet’s, playwrighting style). We sort of riffed our way into the ways in which playwrights distinguish themselves through the shaping of the speech act.

Thinking more about it, I suspect that playwrights are subject to a myriad of influences as they develop what comes to be understood as their “style.” One influence, surely, is the force of their own internal voice–the speech they received in their early environment (the talking style of their home which, itself, is a confluence of forces–the collectively-achieved family voice, the influence of national, regional, and cultural/ethnic identity). Another is the voice of the times (the popular cultural lingo, the political discourse, the social proprieties). And another, surely, is their project as artists–the ways that they choose to resist those commonly-held texts to foreground their voice as distinct against the background of culture. I suspect that playwrights are compelled to engage in a dance between a participation in the language culture of their belonging and the adoption of a counter-cultural voice (out of which can issue a cultural critique–or, at least, a voice that awakens culture to its received values). (more…)