Everyone has something to say at The Last Word at iO Theater

Chartreuse is a storied, French alpine liqueur formulated from a secret recipe of 130 herbs, plants, and flowers.  It has been produced continuously since 1605 by the Carthusian monks of the Grande Chartreuse monastery in the Chartreuse Mountains. It’s said only two monks alive know the recipe at any given time, but most of the monks of the order have taken a vow of silence, so I suppose that bit can’t be verified. I happen to also know that for roughly 1000 euros you can join them at a monastery, work in the garden, and silently eat soup in your rooms for a week. Declan Grogan has probably done the week with the soup, but happily for us, he also learned a bunch about his favorite liquor and decided to write a story featuring it.

For the uninitiated, a Table Read is when a script is read aloud by actors, sometimes in front of a small audience, and often while the script is still being workshopped. It is an effective way to work out any weakness in the story, hear the dialogue out loud, and get feedback from potential collaborators and audiences. Initially, Grogan began inviting friends over to read it aloud and enticed them to spend an evening reading by providing fancy cocktails. Three years later, those boozy nights have morphed into a live table read at iO Theater, enhanced with video clips, mini-lessons on cocktails and a live soundtrack.

The actors are seated around a table, and there is no rehearsal, so they are nearly as new to the script as the audience.

The night is broken up into four acts:

Act I – Light, Refreshing, Bright

Act II – Citrus, Wild, Sweet with a Hint of Spice

Act III – Bold, Boozy, Cherry with a Bitter Finish

Act IV – Unlike Anything You’ve Ever Had Before

It follows the story of Michael, a man seeking greatness, after a life he feels has been anything but. On a mission to save himself in France, a series of mysterious events leads him on an adventure to protect the top-secret recipe for chartreuse. He meets several other characters and groups who are DEEPLY invested in chartreuse along the way and becomes involved in a centuries-old mission in the process. Part of the fun of this night is the surprise, so I won’t give away too much of the script.

The cast is a collection of comedians and actors who are all personal friends of Grogan. Everyone is clearly having a blast, creating a relaxed, inclusive atmosphere, and they’re encouraged to act-out the scenes and add their own spin on the characters and action, which adds an element of improv and surprise even for Grogan and co-producer James Cullinane. Many of the actors had read the script before at other performances, but actress Emma Knott was as new to the script as the audience. She dove in and provided another layer of commentary as she reacted in real time to the events going on in the story and to her character: an obsessed academic with a penchant for booby traps. James Cullinane anchors the show as Michael, a man on a mission with a great head of hair. The rest of the actors play multiple roles around him. Liam Mahon milks several glorious death scenes for all they’re worth, does a wicked effeminate European Bad Guy and even managed to throw in a stunt. Colleen Grogan makes an excellent Barbarian Queen (just go with it), Rachel Thomas plays Paula, a midwestern woman on a strange adventure, with an easy warmth. Spencer Gallagher embraces his role as an American Pyscho down to the slicked back hair that slowly escapes it’s bounds as he descends into single minded madness.  An audience member or two is also called on to participate, adding just a little more chaos and unexpected comedy. The story is full of twists and turns and escalates in its intensity and insanity with each cocktail served. It’s a testament to Grogan, however, that amidst all the ridiculousness, there is an underlying reminder that life is meant to be lived, and it really is the friends you make along the way.

If you are looking for a genuinely good time and a few surprises in a room that feels like it’s filled with your friends, don’t look any further. Just be sure to eat first.

Highly Recommended

Reviewed by Alina C. Hevia

The Last Word is at the iO Theater, 1501 N. Kingsbury St. Catch it on Friday, July 31 and Friday, August 28 at 7 p.m. Ticket prices are $50 for general admission with the drink package, which includes four specialty cocktails and $20 for general admission tickets without the cocktail experience. Tickets are available at thelastwordshow.com. 

The running time is 2 hours and 30 minutes including an intermission.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.