It’s Snatching Season

OAK

Along with the other junk discarded in the gutter, an old television unexpectedly comes to life, announcing that it’s seven o’clock—do you know where your children are? Then a perky newscaster covers in graphic detail the recent disappearance of sweet little blonde white child. Her poor, weeping mother is shown pleading with the public for any information that might lead to her baby’s return. And—oh yeah—fourteen black children have also disappeared from the tiny town of Oak. But it’s Snatching Season, so…

A Fine How-De-Do!

The Mikado

In 1999, “Topsy-Turvy,” a hit British film by Mike Leigh, won Academy Awards for Best Costume Design and Best Makeup. The movie told the story of famed British operetta writers, W.S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan, during a creative conflict that occurred between playwright and composer. Set during the late 19th century, producer Richard D’Oyly Carte finally called upon Gilbert and Sullivan, imploring them to heal their creative differences and write a new operetta. Money talks loudly. Inspired by a Japanese sword that fell off the wall in his study, Gilbert supposedly hit upon the idea of writing a libretto set in exotic Japan, a country to which he’d never actually traveled. The idea was to poke fun at Victorian English society, without the story actually taking place on the British Isles. And, according to legend, the highly popular THE MIKADO was born.

Karma Can Be a Bitch

Veal

Do you remember what it was like to be a middle school student? We were immersed in a microcosm of friendships and cliques, cool kids and nerds, teenagers who were at the top of the food chain and those unfortunate kids who provided their nourishment. Figuratively speaking, the veal. Veal is the high-priced beef that comes from a young calf that’s kept in a confined space and fattened up, only to be slaughtered while it’s still a baby. For those middle school kids who are at the bottom of the food chain, they are the veal.

Hakuna Matata

The Lion King

The brilliant colors are almost blinding. The unbelievable artistry and energy are off the charts. Enchantment reigns once again over Pride Rock. Julie Taymor’s creativity sparkles everywhere in this extraordinary musical, reminding audiences why her innovative, authentic, African-inspired production about family loyalty won so many Tony Awards. The captivating score, with gorgeous Music and Lyrics by Elton John and Tim Rice, is filled with tribal rhythms, lush ballads and upbeat, inspirational melodies. Additional music and lyrics are provided by Ms Taymor, Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin and Hans Zimmer. And under the skillful Musical Direction of Karl Shymanovitz, who also conducts the full-sounding pit orchestra, this score has never sounded better. Familiar film favorites fill the air, like “Hakuna Matata,” “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” and “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” soaring along with the beautiful “They Live in You” and “Shadowland.”

What It Takes to Survive

Mr. Wolf

Twelve years ago, long before the play begins, a young girl was taken from her home. Theresa was only three years old at that time. She’s been raised all these years by Mr. Wolf, her captor. He’s an esteemed astronomy professor at the local college. But Mr. Wolf has been kidnapping young girls for years, not with the nefarious motives one might expect, but for the purpose of teaching and training them to align knowledge about the universe with a higher power. His goal is to groom and give life to a Prophet of God. Of all the children he’s stolen and tried to instruct, only Theresa has shown the superior intelligence and willing aptitude for Mr. Wolf’s life mission.

When the play opens, the titular character has just returned to the house that’s been Theresa’s prison and entire world for twelve years. Never having even been outside, her captor/mentor/father figure has bought her a warm coat and shoes. He explains to Theresa that he’s preparing the young girl for the next stage of her life. Mr. Wolf warns his apt pupil that “The world is coming.” And indeed it is because, as Steppenwolf Ensemble Member and Playwright Rajiv Joseph wrote, “The universe cracks open and everything disappears.” And, before the theatergoer’s eyes, Walt Spangler’s incredible Scenic Design, artistically enhanced by Keith Parham’s Lighting Design and Rasean Davonte Johnson’s unbelievable Projection Design, does just that. The house, bulging with books and a chalkboard covered with Theresa’s beautifully detailed illustrations of the cosmos, suddenly splits apart. A shellshocked Theresa is then suddenly thrust into a world she’s never known.

The Jeff-honored Steppenwolf Theatre opens their 50th Anniversary Season with a Chicago premiere. Playwright Rajiv Joseph was lauded in 2010 as a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his play, BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGHDAD ZOO. In this surreal, Tony Award-winning drama, Joseph depicts the Iraq War with wry humor, as seen through the eyes of a phantom tiger. His other works include GUARDS AT THE TAJ, DAKAR, THE NORTH POOL, ARCHDUKE and many other plays. But 

MR. WOLF tells a more relatable story about trauma and what it takes to survive. There’s very little humor in this sad, often gut-wrenching story about a victim trying to come to grips with her new world, as well as the new people in Theresa’s life who revolve around her, like planets rotating the sun.

Empathetically Directed by Ensemble Member K. Todd Freeman (AIRLINE HIGHWAY, DOWNSTATE), the play moves forward with an almost detached, objective feel. Each of the five main characters is portrayed with their own fierce directness. But despite this, there’s an almost detached, clinical feel to each individual. Theresa, the young victim, deservedly earns the audience’s main focus and sympathy, not as much for she what’s been through but for what she must now endure. A strange, entirely new life awaits Theresa that’s frightening and foreign to her. Making her auspicious Steppenwolf debut, Emilie Maureen Hanson (THE MALIGNANT AMPERSANDS at A Red Orchid Theatre) beautifully plays Theresa as a child brimming with nervous energy. The precocious teenager wins the audience’s understanding and compassion as she brilliantly navigates a brave new world filled with strangers.

Tim Hopper, one of the four talented Ensemble Members in this cast, is a familiar face to Steppenwolf regulars. Seen recently in FOOL FOR LOVE and THE CRUCIBLE, Mr. Hopper is frighteningly stoic and controlled as Mr. Wolf. The actor also pops back into the story in several other roles, all of whom look like Mr. Wolf to Theresa. He plays a doctor who examines Theresa after she’s rescued from her captor, and he returns as the police detective, once again resembling the kidnapper to the young teenager. But it’s as the titular character where Tim Hopper portrays a man so perfectly cold and calculating that the audience wonders how Theresa could’ve found her tutor anything but scary and unnerving.

Michael, Theresa’s father, is played with a quiet, honest sensitivity by Namir Smallwood. This terrific young actor works constantly, not only in Chicago but on Broadway. he recently starred in Steppenwolf’s YOU WILL GET SICK, and he has wowed audiences in productions like BUG, TRUE WEST and MONSTER, to name just a few. As a man who never gave up the hope of finding his little girl, Mr. Smallwood once again conveys so much in his gentle, almost underplayed performance.

Kate Arrington, another gifted, longstanding Steppenwolf Ensemble Member, is terrific as Hana, Theresa’s mother. With the loss of their daughter, Hana offered a handsome reward for anyone who could shed light on the baby’s disappearance. But when the crime proved unsolvable, Hana divorced Michael and relocated to Canada to start a new life. Playing this aloof and almost callous woman, brimming with self-entitlement, the audience becomes skeptical that any kind of reunion will ever be achieved between this woman, her reclaimed daughter and her estranged husband. And Ms. Arrington plays this role perfectly.     

The always exquisite Caroline Neff (POTUS, FOOL FOR LOVE) is excellent as Julie, Michael’s second wife. Her portrayal of a young mother quietly mourning the death of her own daughter, is faultless. Although Julie seems to be docile, glib and almost apathetic at times, buried within this heartbreaking performance is a woman facing a situation to which she must surrender. While Julie is still grieving over the loss of her own baby, Michael’s search for his daughter has finally ended. Or has it?

Skillfully Directed by K. Todd Freeman, Rajiv Joseph’s new play is sad and sometimes difficult to watch. It makes a splash as the drama opens Steppenwolf Theatre’s promising 50th Anniversary. This one-act is meaty and thought-provoking, but very compact. Still, there are nagging issues that aren’t settled during its 85-minute running time. For instance, it’s baffling why Theresa isn’t ever taken to a therapist to help her adjust, after such a traumatic ordeal. But after all, this is Mr. Joseph’s story and he provides us with precisely what he wants seen and heard. The drama takes off with a bang and never releases its grip on the audience until the final moments. That’s when theatergoers leave and contemplate just what it takes to survive.    

Highly Recommended

Reviewed by Colin Douglas

Presented September 11-November 2 by Steppenwolf Theatre in the Downstairs Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago.

Tickets are available in person at the box office, by calling Audience Services at 312-335-1650 or by going to www.steppenwolf.org.

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

No Bread For You!

Rome Sweet Rome

The clever and uniquely imaginative performing group, The Q Brothers, have proven their ingenuity over and over again in Chicago. Their brilliant OTHELLO: THE REMIX was an entertaining, updated and easy-to-follow hip hop reimagining of Shakespeare’s “The Tragedy of Othello.” And the holidays wouldn’t be the same without the delightful and hilarious Q BROTHERS’ CHRISTMAS CAROL. This modern day contemporary urban riff on the Charles Dickens holiday classic is as innovative as it is funny. And while their shows might be aimed at young adult theatergoers, savvy audiences of all ages will delight in the group’s imaginative retelling of familiar stories.

The Golden Age of Hollywood

Ava: The Secret Conversations

During the Golden Age of Hollywood, the years between 1930 through 1950, some of the greatest movies ever made showcased Hollywood’s sizzling star power. The actresses whose names are synonymous with the talent and beauty of those decades include Elizabeth Taylor, Vivien Leigh, Grace Kelly, Lana Turner, Bette Davis, Rita Hayworth and, of course, the gorgeous Ava Gardner. 

We’ll Be Friends

Elephant & Piggie’s “We Are in a Play”

Bringing humor and hilarity with such catchy songs as “Lucky to See You,” “Ice Cream Hero,” “Elephant in the Room” and the sweetly sincere, “We’ll Be Friends,” ELEPHANT & PIGGIE’S “WE ARE IN A PLAY” is festival of fun for the entire family. And in this new production by Young People’s Theatre of Chicago, which opens their new Friendship and Adventure Season, audiences experience a fun-filled musical comedy about  two best buddies.

You Gotta Have Friends

Wish You Were Here

Both brutally frank and brashly funny, Iranian-American playwright Sanaz Toossi’s comic drama presents a truth universally acknowledged. No, it’s not, as Jane Austen claimed, that “a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” Although that may be true, Toossi’s play is a celebration of confidants, companions and chums. Friends, as someone once said, make life brighter, funnier and a whole lot more memorable. In this exquisite one-act, by the Pulitzer Prize winner in Drama for ENGLISH, audiences should get ready to smile, laugh and maybe even shed a tear amid the beautiful chaos of, as Robert Louis Stevenson wrote, the “gift you give yourself.” Because, as Bette Midler sang, You Gotta Have Friends. And being Friends is what this play is all about.

Farm Aid Turns 40

September 22, 1985 the first Farm Aid was held in Champaign, Illinois. What was supposed to be a one time event has turned 40 with the need just as relevant as it was back then.  And on September 20 the event took place for the first time in Minneapolis  at Huntington Bank Stadium  to an energized crowd of 40,000 fans gathered for the music and mission. And what a day it was.