Displaying items by tag: Randall Arney

Tracy Letts’ “Bug” beckons audiences back to Steppenwolf live and in-person. This gripping psychological drama tells the story of Agnes (Carry Coon), a drug-addicted, alcoholic waitress marooned in an Oklahoma motel room, consoling herself by staying high, and hanging out with her best friend, R.C. (Jennifer Engstrom), a hard-boiled woman and fellow parrtier.

While COVID-19 forced “Bug” to close mid-way in March 2020, director David Cromer regrouped the original, stellar cast to resume the run, and you will not want to miss this opportunity to see it.

Agnes’s troubles include an abusive ex-husband, Jerry (Steve Key) who soon pays an unwanted visit after being released from prison, looking to pick up where he left off. But Jerry finds someone new in his place: Peter (Namir Smallwood), a drifter who trailed into the room with R.C., and just stayed. Jerry begrudgingly takes off.

Here the story turns. Peter and Agnes rapidly descend into a toxic, co-dependent relationship, spiraling relentlessly downward as Peter shares Agnes's partiality to smoking crack, which they do continuously to an end that will leave you stunned.

The performances by Namir Smallwood as Peter and Carrie Coon as Agnes are breathtakingly good. Smallwood in particular rises to the challenge of convincing us that while he is tethered to reality, it is really somewhat loosely. Coon gives us an Agnes who wavers like a compass needle, pulled to the shifting polarities of the varied players in her life before locking decisevely to Peter.

“Bug” embodies what I consider a signature of Steppenwolf style, if there can be such a thing—allowing for scenes dominated by silent performances, the action on stage amplified by the absence of lines. Such scenes, and the powerful scenic design (Takeshi Kata), builds tension steadily, “keeping us in the dark just enough to continually thirst for its next moment,” as my colleague, Ken Payne noted of the 2020 staging. 

As a post-pandemic show, “Bug” is especially relevant, with drug addiction rising to epidemic levels during these trying times. Letts offers a searingly realistic window into their impact on individuals and relationships. “Bug” captures the paranoia visited upon abusers of stimulants like crack and meth. We even experience the miasma that causes struggling addicts to vehemently resist intervention by their family and friends.aBug runs through December 12, 2021.

Single tickets for Bug ($20 – $110) at steppenwolf.org or 312-335-1650. Discounts include new Artists & Essential Workers discount, expanded 20-for-$20 program, Pay-Your-Age performances, $5 teen tickets through the Teen Arts Pass, and more. Steppenwolf is part of the coalition of over 70 Chicagoland performing arts venues and producers that have agreed upon COVID-19 vaccination and mask requirements for all audiences, artists and staff through the end of 2021. Steppenwolf is offering four reduced capacity performances for “Bug,” seating every other row and one seat on either side of each party: Sunday evening November 21, Wednesday evening November 24 and Wednesday matinees December 1 and 8. www.Steppenwolf.org

When Tracy Letts wrote ‘Bug’ in 1995, it was an age when, yes, though conspiracy theories existed, they haven’t yet run nearly as rampant as the have since the September 11th, 2001 takedown of the mighty World Trade Center buildings in New York. Today we live in a world where conspiracies take form on a daily basis - and certainly the advances of information availability via the Internet over the past couple decades has played a big part in it.  ‘Bug’ reminds us that paranoia is nothing new and that going down rabbit holes can lead to ultimate disaster for some. But who’s to say one’s paranoia isn’t warranted – that there is some truth behind it? Perhaps partial truths lead to more truths or perhaps they become exaggerated. Or perhaps there was never any truth at all.

In Steppenwolf’s ‘Bug’ there are certainly leading moments of volleying back and forth on whether a truth exists or if paranoia-fed delusions have created a personal horror movie. 

Set in Oklahoma, we find a waitress, Agnes White (Carrie Coon) living in a roadside motel. She uses hard drugs and alcohol to get through most days and fears the return of her ex-husband, Jerry Goss, who was recently paroled from prison where he was incarcerated for armed robbery charges. While more and more paranoid with every silent phone call she receives that Jerry is near, she opens her door to a low-key drifter, Peter Evans (Namir Smallwood). He seems gentle enough. The two indulge in small talk and smoking crack and his company becomes a comfort to her. They are both lonely and she takes him in, hardly knowing him at all. Not long after a love affair begins, and then…he sees bugs…and more bugs…and then come the bites. The story quickly becomes a creepy thrill-ride filled with suspicion and government conspiracies, even touching on Bilderberg meetings, population control and the Oklahoma bombing, a tragedy that struck a particular chord with the playwright who was born and raised in the same state. It is a story about fear and trust. It is also, as Lett’s himself describes it, “a love story.”

Written to be staged in smaller theaters for a more intimate audience, Steppenwolf takes on the challenge of creating a larger production and, thanks to brilliant direction from David Cromer, who Letts calls the “greatest living director,” the theatre company pulls it off without a hitch. The play is up close and personal enough to really resonate while giving us a grand set that still puts every audience member inside the seedy motel room. Letts, a Pulitzer Prize for Drama winner, also shares his excitement of a larger venue. “’Bug’ has primarily been done in really small spaces, normally in theaters of 100 seats or fewer, so to see it in our theater with the caliber of our actors and David Cromer directing…I can’t wait,” says Letts.      

Ensemble member Carrie Coon, who previously tore it up in Steppenwolf’s ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf?’ and was nominated for a Tony for the same role on Broadway, shows us once again why she is considered a top-caliber stage actor. Her portrayal of Agnes is nothing short of breathtaking. Coon courageously navigates this bold role with harsh demands and leaves us with a performance that is haunting and memorable but most of all real. Fellow ensemble member Namir Smallwood is also superb is his take of Peter Evans and watching him is as compelling as is gets in this thriller. So convincing is Smallwood, I could have sworn I was getting bug bites just watching him. Together, the two are a force. In addition to the dynamism of the play’s two leads, the show gets strong support from Jennifer Engstrom as R.C., Steve Key as Jerry Goss and Randall Arney as Dr. Sweet.

Though a psychological thriller, the play is not without well-placed humor. It’s got a little of everything. ‘Bug’ is just a damn good show from its suspenseful opening scene to its climactic ending. The tension throughout builds at a steady pace, keeping us in the dark just enough to continually thirst for its next moment.

Highly recommended.

‘Bug’ is being performed at Steppenwolf Theatre through March 15th. For tickets and/or more information, visit www.steppenwolf.org. 
    
 

If anyone can be trusted to pay tribute to the late Sam Shepard’s work, it’s Steppenwolf. While they didn’t necessarily originate Shepard’s now classic play, their 1982 production certainly had something to do with the play’s legacy. In fact, Steppenwolf owes a lot of their respected standing in the international theatre community to this particular production. Directed by Gary Sinise and starring then unknowns John Malkovich and Laurie Metcalf, the storefront theater’s production transferred Off-Broadway in 1982. It ran for nearly 2 years and did better than the play’s original Off-Broadway run just a year earlier. 

In 2018 it was announced that Steppenwolf would revive their production in the 2019 season. Of the original ensemble cast, Francis Guinan is the only member to return (in the same role no less). Randall Arney replaces Gary Sinise as director and the results are fairly revolutionary. Some audiences may struggle with Sam Shepard works, but in Arney’s hands Steppenwolf delivers a comprehensible revival worthy of the hype. 

‘True West’ is at its core a simple story. Austin (Jon Michael Hill) is a successful writer taking some time away from his wife and kids to house-sit outside LA for his mother (Jacqueline Williams). His peace is disturbed by his screw-up older brother Lee (Namir Smallwood). The two spend the play battling out their dominance in near primal terms until their mother returns early. 

Sam Shepard had a gift for taking typical American life and turning it on its side with odd, but profound dialogue. ‘True West’ is an examination of the old west and what glimmers of it remained by 1980. It’s especially expounded upon when the two brothers vie for film producer Saul’s (Francis Guinan) attention. ‘True West’ also represents Shepard’s own duality; the slick Hollywood writer and the rebellious hellion described in Patti Smith’s memoir ‘Just Kids’. 

Sam Shepard plays are thinkers. They can be tedious to read, and even more tedious when done badly. This cast and director have a solid grasp of Shepard’s intention rendering a very easy to follow performance. While the ethnicity of actors should be irrelevant, Arney has made an interesting choice by making this a primarily African American cast. This casting adds a layer of complexity perhaps even Sam Shepard never thought of. Both Jon Michael Hill and Namir Smallwood turn in intense performances. They deftly switch between their character architypes and by the end you aren’t sure which character should be feared more. The last image will leave you breathless.  

If you’ve never seen ‘True West’ this is the production to see. It’s epic in scale with an impressive set by Todd Rosenthal and it’s incredibly well acted. For those Steppenwolf enthusiasts, this is an important revival for the institution itself, as this was the play that put them on the map. It’s hard to believe that without Sam Shepard’s ‘True West’ we may not have the iconic space on Halsted and maybe Chicago wouldn’t be nearly as reputable for outstanding regional theatre. In any case, this ‘True West’ is a bit of history reimagined for a new generation to not only find Shepard’s work relevant, but also consider the impressive legacy of one of Chicago’s finest institutions. 

Through August 25th at Steppenwolf Theatre. 1650 N Halsted. 312-335-1650