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

As I watch the printer spit out the 14th copy of my Up research packet, I’m struck by the ways the season’s theme of imagination is apparent in the pages accumulating in the copy room. As Steppenwolf investigates notions of imagination in its 08-09 season, I’ve found that thematic focus has permeated my world of library books and online sleuthing.

During my nine months at Steppenwolf (as Literary Apprentice) I’ve revisited some of the same subjects through the new lens of each show, and though the perspective is different, there are fascinating intersections. Sometimes these thematic links are obvious, but on other occasions there are subtle connections that surprise me. (more…)

The librarians see me coming from miles away at the Harold Washington Library. The first time I showed up on behalf of Steppenwolf’s literary department I had a research agenda for The Seafarer including: the history of the devil, the ins and outs of poker and Irish Christmas traditions. The reference desk employee looked up at me, and asked, “What is your research topic actually?” While I do get a modicum of satisfaction out of confounding librarians, I knew I needed all the help I could get trying to plumb the depths of scholarship waiting for me with The Tempest packet.

My new eclectic list of topics included the political structure of 16th and 17th century Italy, Alchemy, the Age of Exploration and New World Shipwrecks. And so I dove in to a sea of old English accounts of plague-ridden London, and missives from one ship Captain to another attempting to describe for the first time, something as exotic as a penguin. Surfacing periodically to see how far off course I had drifted, I once again find myself with an intriguing body of knowledge; some of these 17th century morsels I can’t help but offer up regularly during Steppenwolf lunch breaks, which are received with varying degrees of interest. (more…)

A number of times in post-show discussions, the question has been raised: “Why now, after 25 years, has the devil returned to collect on Sharky’s promise of a card game for his soul?” The reasons are glancingly hinted at in the play but a review of the facts makes a pretty clear case for it having something to do with Sharky’s conscience.

25 years ago in Limerick, a drunken Sharky assaulted a man and accidentally killed him. He spent the night in jail and played a card game with the Devil. He won the game and as a result, he was inexplicably released from jail without charge the next morning. However, in exchange, the devil made him promise to play another hand of cards in the future. (more…)

Walking into last Saturday’s MaTEENée of The Seafarer was a truly exhilarating experience. It was my first MaTEENée as a Steppenwolf Young Adult Council member, as I just joined the group this past November. The MaTEENée is geared toward a teen audience, and is meant to be a chance for Chicago students to experience Steppenwolf at the amazing price of $15, in hopes they will come more regularly to live theatre. Everyone entering the theater was greeted by a huge crowd of bustling theatergoers, both adults and teens. After students purchased their tickets, they chatted with each other and members of the Young Adult Council in the Steppenwolf lobby while they waited for the show to begin. When the lights flashed, and everyone began filing into the theater to take their seats for the show, there was definitely an air of excitement.

The theater soon went dark and acoustic guitar began to play. The teens were audibly surprised by John Mahoney’s entrance, and continued to get emotionally involved with the show throughout the performance. When the lights went down for the last time, the teens joined the standing ovation. (more…)

Often in post-show discussions audience members want to discuss the title of a play. In the case of The Seafarer, Conor McPherson gives us a clue as to why he chose the title by including as a preface to the script the following quote from the medieval poem called The Seafarer:

“He knows not
Who lives most easily on land, how I
Have spent my winter on the ice-cold sea
Wretched and anxious, in the paths of exile
Lacking dear friends, hung round by icicles
While hail flew past in showers.”

-From a translation by Richard Hamer

In addition to referencing the poem and locating the character of Sharky as the central figure from the poem, audience members have referenced the John Synge play, Riders to the Sea, which is the story of an Irish woman who loses her husband, her father-in-law and five sons to deaths in the sea. People have also suggested that the title has connotations of how we metaphorically navigate our lives: subject to weather we have no control over, experiencing both smooth sailing and stormy weather, always with the danger of getting lost, or worse to drown in its depths.