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

For the first time in my life, I finally saw A Midsummer Night’s Dream last Wednesday night. How could it be that I had waited so long to see this play? Why had it eluded me all this time? And to be very honest, I had never even read the play!

I knew there was someone named Hermia, a play within a play, that someone turned into a donkey, and a lot of magic. After working as an assistant director on The Tempest, I was intrigued to see this sister play, to be able to check ‘See A Midsummer Night’s Dream‘ off of my To Do list, and to test my Shakespeare ear, hopefully well-tuned over several weeks of Tempest rehearsals.

There is a scene around a group of would-be actors who are debating how to represent the fantastical elements of their play. How might one represent a tiny hole in a great wall onstage? One cannot bring in an entire wall. They conclude “Some man or other must present Wall; and let him have some plaster, or some loam, or some roughcast about him, to signify wall; and let him hold his fingers thus, and through that cranny shall Pyramus and Thisbe whisper.”

For me, this was a miraculous revelation: Shakespeare promoting suggestion, theatricality and imagination on the stage! That a man, entering from stage right, planting himself firmly in one place, holding a bucket of plaster and proclaiming “I am a Wall” is SHAKESPEARE! That’s Shakespeare? (more…)

Remember that first day back to high school after summer break? That bizarre sense of compulsory reunion, with people who populate your life based only on proximity to the local high school? Well imagine that scene, except with students who actually like each other – and have chosen to reunite not for the daily grind of high school, but to promote theatre for young audiences across Chicago. Welcome to the Steppenwolf Young Adult Council.

I am a new addition to the Council. As a recent hire into the Steppenwolf for Young Adults Department, I am coming onto the scene three years after the Council’s inception. In those first three years, the Council created the high school-geared MaTEENe series, facilitated teacher and student workshops and regularly met with Steppenwolf staff to better understand the inner-workings of professional theatre. However, aside from these quantifiable accomplishments, the Council members have obviously reaped other, intangible benefits from their time at Steppenwolf: a trust between each other, and an impressive vocabulary with which to speak about theatre in Chicago. (more…)

This weekend, I spent a chunk of time researching an article about The Seafarer I’m writing for the program. I rashly agreed to write about Baldoyle—the Dublin suburb in which the play is set—despite my complete and utter ignorance about the region. So, I’ve been spending some time at the library. Now I know I’m outing myself as a massive dork by saying this, but it’s actually kind of fun for me. While reading about Baldoyle’s geography and history, I’ve been able to create an imaginative map of this place I’ve never visited. I’m dreaming up an idea of what it might mean to be from there.

I’ve been thinking a lot about what the idea of place means in our work. Last season, Steppenwolf received a lot of gratifying attention as August: Osage County made a splash in New York City. But while Tracy Letts won national awards and was wooed by international producers, he was writing a play about home. Superior Donuts was, Tracy said, a “love letter to Chicago.” (more…)

Audience members line up outside Steppenwolf for the chance to purchase last-minute tickets to Superior Donuts.

Opening this show has been a monumental moment in my life and career. Imagine my excitement as I watched August: Osage County on its opening night on Broadway, knowing I was next in line to tackle a play written by the same genius man. Imagine my terror. At this point I had not performed on the Steppenwolf stage as an ensemble member, and I already knew that the eyes of the theater world would be closely watching to see what Tracy would come up with next–not to mention subscribers who had been coming to the theater for years who must have been curious to see this new kid that the ensemble had embraced as their own. Just imagine my relief when I learned that Tina Landau, whom I had already worked on two previous shows with and had grown into myself as a young actor with, had been pulled on board! Then, if you will, imagine the honor I felt when I learned that Michael McKean, whom I had seen in the acclaimed The Homecoming on Broadway not too long ago and was staggered by, had joined the project.

I won’t ask you to imagine anything else, but I will tell you that I felt small and still do. This experience can be described as nothing other than humbling for me. To be in the presence of the caliber of actors I’m working with, the astounding insight of Tracy and Tina’s unmatched craftsmanship I was not only trying to do justice to the play and the brilliant character but also trying to absorb the years of experience in the room. (more…)