Displaying items by tag: Steppenwolf Theatre

Love is often jokingly referred to as a socially acceptable form of insanity, but in Sam Shepard’s ‘Fool for Love’ – social acceptability is an afterthought. Steppenwolf is especially known for their revivals of Shepard’s plays, and under Jeremy Herrin’s direction, their revival of ‘Fool for Love’ is as good as you can get.

‘Fool for Love’ is a gripping drama about two unstable lovers battling for control in a seedy, desert motel. The fools, May and Eddie played by Caroline Neff and Nick Gehlfluss are an equal match, dancing over the thin line between love and hate.

The one-act play opens on a hauntingly abandoned motel room somewhere in the Mojave Desert. May and Eddie cling to one another like feral animals. As the play barrels along they reveal the perverse intertwining that led them to this moment. Caroline Neff gives a wrenching and gritty performance that’s nothing short of electrifying. Nick Gehlfuss’ hulking appearance is hard to ignore, but in this version, his character is almost goofier than threatening. For that reason, their desire feels more understandable.

‘Fool for Love’ is said to live in the same universe as Shepard’s ‘True West’ and ‘Buried Child’. This play is certainly the most straightforward of the three. Here Shepard refined his exploration of brutality with a more universal central question: what makes a relationship toxic? And of course, there’s a touch of the mystic. Tim Hopper is nearly unrecognizable as The Old Man but makes for some of the most intense moments of the show.

Steppenwolf’s revival of this erotic thriller feels perfectly timed considering the success of last year’s ‘Babygirl’ and ‘Challengers’. If there’s any truth to the old adage ‘sex sells’ then the current pop culture landscape is only proving it. For years the erotic thriller seemed all but extinct as a genre which once dominated the 80s and 90s. Today there seems to be a renewed hunger for stories with sexual taboos as their subject matter.

Part of what makes this play so engrossing is the production itself. The thoughtfully designed set by Todd Rosenthal paired with Raquel Adorno’s perfect costume styling, achieve Jeremy Herrin’s vision. Every small detail tells part of the story and provides context otherwise not in the short script.

Steppenwolf’s first show of 2025 is going to be hard to top. Between the cast and the shocking script, ‘Fool for Love’ is sure to leave a lasting impression on those who see it. In confident hands, Sam Shepard’s romantic dark comedy continues to unsettle audiences even 40 years later. 

Extended through March 23 at Steppenwolf Theatre Co. 1650 N Halsted St. 312-335-1650

Steppenwolf's cozy downstairs theater provided the ideal setting for an evening of outstanding and expressive dance by the highly acclaimed Season 47 Fall Series by Hubbard Street Dance Company.

The performance began with Aszure Barton's “return to patience,” featuring the entire company uniformly dressed in simple, gray and pale blue loose-fitting attire, defying gravity by leaning into space rather than onto each other. The piece masterfully captures a sense of restless animation striving for contemplative serenity, achieving this balance beautifully. (Set to Caroline Shaw’s “Gustave Le Gray,” an adaptation of Chopin’s gentle “Mazurka in A Minor, Op. 17, No. 4”).

The second piece, a solo performance titled “Show Pony” (2018, HSDC premiere 2023), danced by Shota Miyoshi, stands in stark contrast to “return to patience.” Clad in a formfitting, shiny gold Vegas Elvis jumpsuit, Miyoshi's performance is spectacular. He is literally spotlighted with beautiful lighting by Dan Scully that appears and disappears, as he dominates the stage. The term “Show Pony” perfectly encapsulates Miyoshi's confident and explosive dancing.

Lar Lubovitch’s “Prelude to a Kiss” (2005, HSDC 2023) is a romantic delight, danced superbly by Alexandria Best and Elliot Hammans with palpable chemistry. The couple's dance and flirtation are mesmerizing, with Best sometimes hanging from Hammans' arms like an exquisite butterfly. Their duet is mesmerizing and romantic, culminating in a breathtaking moment as Hammans gently removes the shoulder straps from Best's gown, one at a time, and plants a single, masterful kiss on the exposed nape of her neck.

In “Sweet Gwen Suite”, Cyrie Topete, Dominick Brown, and Aaron Choate dazzle in wildly sexy, bedazzled leather and Mexican-style form-fitting pants and bolero jackets, with costumes designed by Bobby Pearce. This number by Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon exudes sass, flair, and self-confidence. Brown and Choate support lead dancer Cyrie Topete, who shines in what feels like a near-solo performance. Topete makes every gesture count, from smoking and extinguishing her cigarette with a sexy twist of her leather boot toe, to the defiant lift of her chin and single smile at the end, like a victorious matador. The act was set to Herb Alpert & Tijuana Brass’ “Mexican Shuffle,” Lola Schiffrin’s “Cool Hand Luke,’ and “Mexican Breakfast” by Johnny Mandel.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in 'BUSK' by Aszure Barton.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago’s opening night of the company’s Season 47 Fall Series was graced by the presence of Nicole, the daughter of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon. HSDC proudly became the first company to collaborate with the Verdon/Fosse Legacy to showcase Fosse's work. As a longtime admirer of Verdon/Fosse-inspired dance, this collaboration brought their iconic style to life in a thrilling and deeply satisfying way.

In the show’s final act, “Busk” by Aszure Barton opens with Elliot Hammans sleeping on the street, transforming into a character reminiscent of Buster Keaton, complete with hat and cane. Hammans' wonderfully expressive face enhances his dance performance, as he is joined by a cast of street people. Their movements range from defiant leaps to huddled masses, pleading for help with outstretched arms, their faces conveying profound sadness, struggle, and desperation. Random vocalizations are also used by the dancers, which really add to the already stunning piece. The entire dance company is involved in what is the perfect finale.

I highly recommend this incredible and passionate selection of dance performances, including the collaboration with the Gwen Verdon Bob Fosse Legacy, for audiences of all ages. The Hubbard Street Dance Chicago dancers are uniquely gifted and each piece so mesmerizing, making it difficult to pick a favorite number. The company’s Season 47 Fall Series, beautifully staged at Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theatre, was truly a night of dance you and your family and friends will never forget.

For more information on Hubbard Street Dance Chicago’s current and upcoming performances, visit https://www.hubbardstreetdance.com/.  

(*Dancers alternate roles in performaces depending on select dates. This review reflects the dancers performing for the specific performance reviewed.) 

Ngozi Anyanwu’s Leroy and Lucy, in its electrifying world premiere at Steppenwolf Theatre, takes the legendary tale of Robert Johnson’s fateful night at crossroads and infuses it with the powerful mysticism of Yoruba spirituality. Forget the familiar Christian devil—instead, Anyanwu conjures Eshu, a complex Orisha (god) from Yoruba mythology who rules over sin and consequence, fate and chance, life and death. Directed by the fantastic visionary Awoye Timpo, this production doesn’t just retell a story; it transforms it, offering a dynamic cultural perspective that pulses with life and spirit.

Anyanwu’s storytelling is steeped in Yoruba tradition, with each line brimming with lyrical beauty and mythic depth. Lucy, played with fierce magnetism by Brittany Bradford, is Eshu personified—a playful, vain, argumentative trickster whose allure is irresistible. Leroy, played by the exceptional Jon Michael Hill, thinks he’s stumbled upon Lucy by chance, but the truth is far more chilling: Lucy has been waiting, watching, and weaving her magic to ensnare him—and the audience is captivated right along with him. Bradford’s portrayal of Lucy is utterly mesmerizing, casting a hypnotic spell that lingers long after scenes fade.

In one unforgettable scene, Legba—the Orisha known in Yoruba religions as the divine messenger and guardian of roads, paths, fate, and life—possesses Leroy’s body to confront Eshu in a thrilling clash of wills. As the master of destiny, Legba’s challenge to Eshu is charged with intense energy and revelation. The production also weaves in reincarnation, a core belief in Yoruba spirituality, adding a profound layer of spiritual depth making the play as thought-provoking as it is captivating.

Bradford and Hill’s chemistry is electric, their performances so raw and dynamic that they alone would be worth the ticket. Bradford, recently seen in Julia, The Watcher, and Dead Ringers, brings a complexity to Lucy that is fierce and enigmatic, while Hill, a Tony-nominated Steppenwolf ensemble member, infuses Leroy with vulnerability and resolve, torn between his aspirations and the spiritual forces at play.

Under Timpo’s masterful direction, Leroy and Lucy immerses the audience in a world that feels at once familiar and otherworldly. Andrew Boyce’s stunning set design, Heather Gilbert’s evocative lighting, and Conner Wang’s immersive soundscape create an atmospheric crossroads where visions flicker and secrets seem to breathe. Every element blurs the line between the earthly and the supernatural, drawing the audience into a world where they, too, must confront forces beyond comprehension.

Ultimately, Leroy and Lucy is a transcendent theatrical experience that bridges worlds—both cultural and spiritual. Anyanwu, Timpo, and the cast have created something profound and stirring: a play that speaks to ancient truths while challenging Western narratives, leaving its mark as a significant addition to contemporary theater.

Highly Recommended
When: Through Dec. 15
Where: Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted
Tickets: $20 - $92
Info: steppenwolf.org

Do you like scary movies? I do. I blame the origin of this love of scary movies to being tricked into watching The Blair Witch project alone in a glass house in The Hills in Southern California in middle school; I loved the adrenaline rush, the ‘would I have survived that’ thought process that ensues. With spooky season officially upon Chicagoland, do you think I would miss the opportunity to see an Immersive Puppet Haunted House? No chance.

House of the Exquisite Corpse IV: SUPERSTITIONS is an annual themed anthology of puppetry art show. Part haunted house, part puppet show, and part platform for artists to create an immersive, experimental, non-hierarchical art form. The immersive puppet show features six haunted rooms which feature a different puppet show that run about 5-6 minutes a piece. You as a viewer observe the performances through peep-holes, adding to the voyeuristic horror-like setting. Each year, teams of multidisciplinary  puppet artists anchor to one particular theme which the artists interpret, prepare, and perform for audiences. This year’s anthology is centered around superstitions, each of the performances, each selecting a different superstition to feature. There’s “Step on a Crack,” by Ken Buckingham and Corey Smith,  “Broken Mirror,” by Justin D’Acci and Pablo Monterrubio, “If you lie, the devil’s darning needle will sew your mouth shut,” by Chio Cabrera, Alonso Galue and Brett Swinney, “Through the Looking Glass,” by Felix Mayes and Cam Armstrong Smith, “A White Bird in the House is an Omen of Death,” by Jacky Kelsey, Fletcher Pierson and Kevin Wesson, “Dreams Foretell the Future,” by Sion Silva and Emilie Wingate.

I know what you might be thinking. Horror show? Not for me. But for those perhaps not a fan of scary movies, fear not. There are no jump scares, no gore, only a series of artistic expressions utilizing multiple different puppet mediums. But puppets? Really? Yes! Did you know there are actually six different types of puppetry? There are far more than just those like Lambchop (creepy) or puppets like those in Avenue Q. There are marionettes, hand puppets, rod puppets, shadow figures, and Bunraku-style puppets, and you’ll see many of these artforms on display at House of Exquisite Corpse. The puppets add to that particular spine tingling, skin crawling curiosity that one gets when watching a scary or suspenseful film and it is executed in fascinating ways.

While there are no jump scares that will leave your heart pounding, the shows do feature some visual and auditory elements such as frightening imagery, strobe lights, loud noises, and haze effects. But fear not, those so inclined may soothe any creepy crawly feels with a drink at Front Bar at Steppenwolf Theatre only steps away. You will be on your feet for the majority of the show. The floor is concrete, so you may want to wear comfortable shoes. Audience members with limited mobility will be accommodated, all you need to do is email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to discuss any accessibility needs. The show is recommended for audiences aged 14 and over.

House of the Exquisite Corpse IV: SUPERSTITIONS runs through spooky season ending its run on November 2nd is conveniently located at the south end of the Steppenwolf complex, 1624 N Halsted, in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood tickets are available at www.tickettailor.com. Don't miss your chance to see SUPERSTITIONS at House of the Exquisite Corpse, you won't regret it, just be sure to throw a pinch of salt over your shoulder, just in case.

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I walked into Steppenwolf Theatre not really knowing what to expect when going to see their new play Noises Off. Turns out, admittedly, I have never heard of the comedic art of British Farce or the original 1982 play by English playwright Michael Frayn called Noises Off. My only goal when selecting this play was to laugh and enjoy my time. I can successfully say that I did laugh a lot, and I enjoyed my time, but it took some time to get there.

The comedy show, directed by Anna D. Shapiro is a play-within-a play with a cast acting as actors, backstage crew and the director of the show preparing for an upcoming play called ‘Nothing On’. The show begins with the opening scene of actress Dotty Otley playing Mrs. Clackett, a housekeeper who is answering the phone while the homeowners are away. This takes place during a late night dress rehearsal just hours away from their opening performance. As the rehearsal carries on, many issues arise amongst the actors and the director. Missed cues, wrong lines, broken doors and lost props drives the cast into a mess. Meanwhile, drama unfolds amongst the cast with secret relationships, personal problems, and the mounting pressure of getting the show right.

The beginning of the show feels a bit confusing, having little context as to what is going on. All of the characters enter on and off the stage, while carrying two identities between their actor character and their play character. This constant movement and character changes make it a bit challenging to follow. By the end of the first act, I got the gist of what was happening and who each of the characters were.

Act I of the show is about the horrendous dress rehearsal that sets the stage and gives you an inside look at the drama and affairs amongst the cast. Act II takes you backstage, where chaos erupts during their opening night performance. And Act III brings you back to the front stage with one of the final shows for the cast. Out of the three acts, Act III is by far the best. All of the preparation, failures, and drama reaches a climax with a dizzying final performance with everything that could go wrong in a play. I found myself laughing along with the majority of the crowd during Act III.

The Steppenwolf Theatre stage hosts the set of the ‘Nothing On’ play the actors are preparing for. The set is the inside of an old British home with a staircase and many, many doors waiting to be slammed. The stage smoothly rotates between acts as you move to the front and back stages. The stage design works well for the show and gives enough dimension to keep things interesting.

I am thoroughly impressed by the cast in this show. Each actor seamlessly switches in and out of their play characters without error. Most of them carry the British accents well, while others could finesse it a bit more. By the third act, the actors were flying off and on stage, changing props, exchanging lines and swapping characters rapidly. I felt my head spinning and was shocked by each actor’s ability to carry on at that pace.

Rick Holmes who plays the Director of the play named Lloyd brilliantly captures the God complex a stereotypical play director holds. He’s condescending, pessimistic and truly vain. Holmes is convincing in his role as the director, and he exudes the distasteful personality of a narcissistic director who gets inappropriately involved with his cast. Meanwhile the cast in the ‘Nothing On’ play is a mixed bag of over-confident, lackadaisical, overly emotional, and dramatic personalities. Each character has a unique personality, which is entertaining to watch as the drama unfolds.

One standout cast member is Andrew Leeds who plays Garry Lejeune and his character Roger Tramplemain. Leeds is a quirky actor who is confident in his role and questions the director on a few of his decisions. I found Leeds to be the most exaggerated character with ridiculous behavior and a very convincing fall down the long staircase. He is quick in his character’s actions and is hilarious in his lines. He seems experienced in all things farce comedy and effortlessly switches in and out of his Garry and Roger roles.

Izumi Inaba’s costume design for the show embraces the 70s era style for the ‘Nothing On’ play with bright vibrant patterns. Each costume accurately portrays the characters each of the actors were playing. Some of the costume pieces eventually become props in the show and work as comedy pieces.

This production runs approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes with two short intermissions. The show itself feels a bit long between the first two acts but quickly picks up speed by Act III. I recommend getting to the theatre early and grabbing a drink and a small snack at the front bar.

As mentioned before, this show is based on a British farce comedy and the touring production of a bedroom farce. Farce is a style of comedy that heavily relies on physical and sometimes violent humor and ridiculous highly exaggerated situations. This show is well suited for adults who are into slapstick comedy and find “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” funny. Not to mention this show is loud in parts. There is a lot of door slamming and the play is ironically named Noises Off. I found this show to be pretty funny as I picked up on farce humor. This show is truly chaotic, stressful, a tad confusing and just downright absurd in the best way.

Noises Off, a Co-Production with Geffen Playhouse, is now playing at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company located at 1650 N Halsted Street in Chicago. This show will run from September 12th to November 3rd. Showtimes include 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays and 3:00 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Single tickets for the show range from $20-$148 and are now on sale at steppenwolf.org and at the Box Office at (312)-335-1650.

Steppenwolf’s Laurie Metcalf gives us a tour de force performance in playwright Samuel D. Hunter’s masterful “Little Bear Ridge Road.” But you might find this is a little different than the roles from Ibsen and Albee for which she won Tony’s on Broadway.

As Sarah, the 60ish cranky nurse living alone in backwater Idaho, she may remind you a bit of Roseanne Barr (whose sister Metcalf played on TV): brusque and sometimes mean, but her remarks are more reflective, less scattershot than the commedienne's.

Set in the outskirts of Troy, Idaho during COVID, the play opens with Sarah in rubber gloves cleaning around her three-seat, motorized recliner sofa - the only thing we’re given in the way of a set. But to what amazing use Metcalf and director Joe Mantello will put that recliner.

Soon Sarah’s nephew Ethan arrives, (Micah Stock is excellent), and after the briefest of pleasantries his aunt castigates him for arriving at eleven pm, three hours past her bedtime. “You should have started earlier,” she says. “I’m doing chores to keep myself awake.” Sarah finally offers condolences and we learn the reason he is visiting: to settle the affairs of his late father, a meth addict who died the week before.

Our sympathies go right to Ethan, but that will change. Hunter’s masterful and subtle script unfolds and unfolds these two, peeling back the layers of who they are and how they got that way.

Metcalf’s performance as Sarah is striking. Tony winning director Mantello, who partnered with the Steppenwolf actress to commission Hunter’s script, has Metcalf roaming the stage, exiting left and right but still shouting dialog back to Ethan. Stock is every bit as good, but his character is wounded, emotionally stunted, and ultimately less likable. His mother, we learn, ran away when he was young, probably because his father was an active addict throughout his upbringing.

Another wonderful thing about “Little Bear Ridge Road” is the freshness and immediacy of the dialog. The playwright, through Sarah, gives us the things we really talk about today: the grind of punishing jobs, details of medical conditions and attendant bills, and especially, picking apart streaming video series as we binge through meals ensconced in our recliners. The playwright (Hunter wrote the stage version of “The Whale” which won an Oscar in its film adaptation) indicates where actors’ lines overlap, the way we naturally talk over each other. And he gives the cast three volumes for delivery: explosive, normal speech, and implied lines in enduring silences. Oh does it work!

Metcalf’s Sarah, in particular, puts this guidance to amazing use, especially as we listen in on her side of phone conversations. When she dresses down a work scheduler, her voice is hellfire, like she flipped open the door of a blast furnace. As she abruptly ends the call, Sarah resumes a conversation with Ethan, all collected and nice as you please. At a few points she toggles back and forth between these voices quickly, and suggesting this is how she battles for survival with the outside world.

As the scenes advance, we advance in time, and to other locations, all portrayed with lighting (Heather Gilbert) and this simple set of a recliner sofa on a turntable. We’re at Ethan’s father’s house, where we watch as he flits through his late dad’s effects; a bar in Moscow, Idaho where men hook up with men and Ethan meets James, an astrophysicist grad student; a hillside where the two look up at the stars and James names and describes them.

A year after selling the house, Ethan somehow is still in that recliner with Sarah. In one remarkable scene Sarah and Ethan debate the merits of a streaming show— a particular preoccupation of our COVID sequestration that still endures. The two rise and fall in their individual seats, moving from supine to sitting, and back, leg rests rising and falling, one character ascending another descending, as they sallie and joust in the discussion. If barcaloungers have body language, this is surely it.

And James begins to appear on the sofa as well. Sarah and James forge their own relationship, and the gradual revelations—Ethan’s mother abandoned him to his father, who was addicted to methamphetamine (the drug in the streaming series “Breaking Bad”), Sarah had miscarriages, and daunting medical challenges.

The playwright’s smartphone voices in particular merit our consideration. They are Sarah’s lifelines to real relationships, two of them credited as Kenny and Vickie, whom we never see. But Sarah does, on Facetime. These voice characters recur, a kind of chorus of commentary that advances the action. Facetime Vickie (played by Meighan Gerachis) calls out Sarah’s co-dependency on her brother, and now with her clinging nephew Ethan. Gerachis is also onstage at the end in a spot-on performance as a nurse, Paulette.

A play that takes us along new paths into unexplored terrain, “Little Bear Ridge Road” comes highly recommended. Its run has been extended until August 4, 2024 at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago.

“Together we created this nothingness,” says Audrey Francis in Steppenwolf’s production of Larissa Fasthorse’s ‘The Thanksgiving Play’. Hot off its Broadway run, this madcap comedy cuts right to the bone. Under Jess Mcleod’s direction, the intimate cast leaps right off the stage.

‘The Thanksgiving Play’ is about three elementary school teachers and one sassy actress who come together to devise a children’s play that illustrates the first Thanksgiving. In a fast-paced one-act, emotions and hypocrisies run amok.

Logan (Audrey Francis) plays the director, a role the actress and Steppenwolf Artistic Director Audrey Francis is used to playing. What a treat it is to see Francis on stage in her element. Francis is a masterful actor, and this play is but another entry in a long list of perfect performances.

Logan is dating her New Age-y coworker Jaxton (Nate Santana) who is also enlisted to help with the Thanksgiving play alongside Caden (Tim Hopper). Thinking they’re being progressive, they hire who they assume is a Native American actress, Alicia (Paloma Nozicka). Without a script, the four theatre artists must work together to tell a story that pays deference to Native American culture. Though well-intentioned, the all-white creative team exposes everything wrong with today’s supposed “woke” ideals.

At its core, ‘The Thanksgiving Play’ is a scathing satire of the “white savior” complex. Though Logan’s heart is in the right place, it’s perhaps her over-education on race-related issues that finds her with her foot in her mouth throughout the play. Larissa Fasthorse’s play suggests that some allies are more concerned with the outward appearance of racism than they are with true authenticity.

As we’ve been told, the very first Thanksgiving was a breaking of bread between settlers and natives to commemorate their collaboration during the harvest season. We can likely agree this probably was more fiction than fact, but for the sake of a children’s play, maybe the gruesome truth isn’t appropriate. Fasthorse’s play asks the audience is there a better way to tell this story with both respect and truth?

Things quickly fall apart between the creatives as they all battle to enact their own will. Sound familiar? ‘The Thanksgiving Play’ is as much an allegory as it is a comedy. Paloma Nozicka’s character Alicia, who is there to be the token Native American character presents an interesting observation: smart people are often not content. The white characters in the play make their lives more complicated with rules and propriety which leads to their unhappiness. Whereas Alicia lives simply and seems really happy. With these parallels established, Fasthorse could be seen as making an argument that European settlers brought neuroses with them to the New World. 

It’s a remarkable thing to hear a crowd of intellectuals be able to laugh at themselves. A lot of the dialogue will leave you with your jaw open because it’s chock full of ideas you know better than to articulate, such as “why isn’t there a white history month?”

‘The Thanksgiving Play’ is not a show for the humorless. It’s a blistering send-up of how bleeding-heart white people can find themselves twisted in knots trying to appease political correctness, and at what cost.

Through June 2 at Steppenwolf Theatre Co. 1650 N Halsted. 312-335-1650

The expansive, opulent home exudes an air of solid middle-class comfort, boasting a formal dining area, an upright piano, and multiple doors leading to various sections of the house. A bay window graces an alcove, while a grand staircase ascends to the sleeping quarters on the second floor. Adorning the walls are portraits commemorating significant moments in the family's history, including images of MLK and Rosa Parks alongside the patriarch. This residence, nestled in the Jackson Park Highlands—an economically segregated enclave on Chicago's South Side—radiates a sense of peace, tranquility, and nobility. Soon, however, it will transform into a bustling hive of activity.

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, a MacArthur Fellow and Pulitzer Prize finalist is a chameleon in the world of dramatist.  He wrote the controversial Obie Award-winning “An Octoroon”; the satirical  thriller “Gloria”, and the southern plantation drama “Appropriate” which received its world premiere in Chicago. Branden Jacobs-Jenkins is not a Black playwright, he is a playwright who just happens to be Black.  He would have it no other way. He doesn’t allow himself to be classified to any specific genre of storytelling. His influences are as varied as the plays he writes.

"Purpose," directed by the Tony Award-winning actress and director Phylicia Rashad, is nothing short of extraordinary. It transcends the confines of a mere family drama, delving deep into the realms of a virtual character study.

(left to right) Harry Lennix and Ayanna Bria Bakari with ensemble members Glenn Davis and Jon Michael Hill in Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s world premiere of Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, directed by Phylicia Rashad.

The Rev. Solomon "Sonny" Jasper is a civil rights icon. He has marched for justice and witnessed important moments in the Civil Rights Movement. He has met with influential figures like Rosa Parks and Nelson Mandela. His income comes primarily from speaking engagements and donations. He has dedicated his life to helping others. He tried to raise his two sons according to his values, church and state. Naz was to be a pastor and  Solomon Jr. was in politics.  Now retired, he has taken up beekeeping, perhaps to find purpose in his life.

His wife Claudine Jasper is the proverbial women behind the man. She takes care of her family and is the strength they rely upon. A lawyer by degree, she uses it in service of her family. She’s shrewd  and disarmingly warm at the same time. She likes to be in control and she’s not one to cross.

Solomon "Junior" Jasper, son of Sonny and Claudia Jasper, embodies both his parents' strengths. A former congressman, he has recently been released from prison after serving time for using campaign funds for his personal use.   Despite his challenges, he stays positive and believes in himself. He blames his troubles on his recently diagnosed mental health issue. He craves attention and shows signs of narcissism, but his charisma makes it easy to overlook.

Morgan Jasper is the wife of Solomon Jr.  When we meet her she is soon to enter prison to serve her time for tax fraud. She was caught up in her husband’s financial improprieties. Since they have  children Morgan and Junior cannot serve their prison time at the same time.  She is more bitter than a slice of lemon in a jar of three-day old Kool-Aid. She feels she is taking the fall for her husband and by default his family. She warns anyone within earshot to be wary of The Jaspers. She denies them the company of their grandchildren, knowing this drives Claudia to distraction.

Nazareth “Naz” Jasper is the youngest son of Solomon and Claudia. He is an introvert in a family of extroverts, in essence, the weird one. He photographs nature scenes for a living and enjoys his solitude. He dropped out of divinity school much to the chagrin of his father who wanted him to follow in his footsteps and become a pastor. He’s possibly on the spectrum (aren’t we all) and asexual. He’s also our narrator, giving us valuable insights into the Family Jasper.

Aziza Houston, an independent self-sufficient woman, is the friend of Nazareth Jasper. She walks into this situation blind. She is shocked Naz, is the son of the civil rights icon. She is elated to be in the company of the Jaspers until she is truly in the company of the Jaspers.

Director Phylicia Rashad effectively maintains the motivation and focus of her cast throughout the production, fostering a sense of familial unity among the actors, which I find particularly appealing in collaborative efforts. The casting couldn't have been more apt, with each actor perfectly suited to their respective roles.

Jon Michael Hill embodies the charm of Naz, evoking empathy as the outlier within his family. Whenever he steps into the spotlight, anticipation mounts for the forthcoming revelations, delivered with a blend of wit and sincerity. Glenn Davis delivers his best performance yet as Solomon Jr., infusing the character with a delightful humor that effortlessly captivates the audience. Alana Arenas mesmerizes with her portrayal of Morgan, conveying volumes with just a single glance. Her entrance into the dining room is etched into memory, portraying a woman whose words cut like a dagger.  Ayanna Bria Bakari navigates the complexities of Aziza's character with finesse, charting a compelling arc from excitement to dread as she becomes entangled with The Jaspers. Harry Lennox brings a dignified presence to the role of patriarch Solomon Jasper, embodying the essence of strength and authority. Tamara Tunie shines as the family matriarch, Claudine Jasper, striking the perfect balance between assertiveness and subtlety in her delivery, effectively communicating her message without overpowering force.

Todd Rosenthal's set design is teeming with intricate detail, evoking the sensation of a hive with its distinct compartments—a captivating and thought-provoking choice. Amith Chandrashaker's realistic lighting design further accentuated the set, seamlessly integrating even the more fantastical elements such as the special spotlight on Naz, lending them an air of naturalness. Dede Ayite's costume design elevated the character portrayals, skillfully complementing them without ever overshadowing the performances.

While the playwright never explicitly mentions the name, it's difficult to miss the parallels to the Jackson family……..Jesse,  not Michael. Brandon Jacobs-Jenkins is known for tackling controversial themes, prompting the question: would a white playwright be afforded the same latitude in crafting such an interesting narrative?   Discuss!

“Purpose” is a cautionary tale.  Imagine we are all worker bees in a giant hive called life.  Each bee has a specific role within the hive, whether it's building comb, collecting nectar, or caring for the young. These roles contribute to the greater good of the hive's survival and success.  Just like bees, we all have a unique purpose within the larger ecosystem of life.  Our purpose may not always be readily apparent,  but it's there and only we can live our purpose.

“Purpose” is arguably the best play I’ve seen at Steppenwolf Theatre. It’s going to be the best play seen on Broadway.

Highly Recommended

When: Through April 28

Where: Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St.

Running time: 3 hours

Tickets: $52-$116 at 312-335-1650 and www.steppenwolf.org

*Extended through May 12th

Imagine being Jewish and attending a White Nationalists meeting undercover. Sounds crazy, right? In the award-winning comedian Alex Edelman’s acclaimed Broadway Solo Show, Just for Us you get to hear the story of how Edelman does the unthinkable by putting himself in an extremely uncomfortable situation among White Supremacists. It seems very serious but happens to work perfectly for this comedy show.

The show begins with a few cheesy jokes about gorillas and horses, and how Edelman is dedicated to his craft by spending $800 on sign language classes. Things quickly take a dramatic turn when Edelman shares the blatant anti-Semitism he began to face on Twitter years ago. The scenario gets even more interesting when he finds out there’s a meeting for White Nationalists seeking to “answer questions about their whiteness”. This finding leads to Edelman making a brave and possibly stupid decision to attend the meeting in an apartment located in Queens, New York.

Edelman’s experience attending the meeting carries through the rest of the show as he weaves in childhood stories and random funny lines about our society today. His jokes and anecdotes are brilliantly written with clever punchlines that even made himself laugh. This show is disturbingly relevant to the events unfolding in the world today. And as Jew, who was raised Orthodox, Edelman gives you an inside look of his life experience grappling with his Jewish identity and the hardships of anti-Semitism.

Alex Edelman is a stand-out comedian and is entertaining to watch on stage. He is actively moving around and has quirky movements as he shares his strange experiences and ridiculous thoughts. Comedy seems to come naturally to him as he quickly delivers joke after joke. Edelman did an amazing job engaging the crowd and made us feel like we were a part of his story. He even added a few quiet moments for us to feel how uncomfortable it was for him to be in the room full of anti-Semites at the White Nationalist meeting.

Throughout the show the crowd was on the edge of their seats as laughter echoed in the packed theater. Edelman keeps the audience hooked through ups and downs of laughter and intense silence as he unpacks the depths of serious topics of racism, anti-Semitism, and sheer ignorance. Following the show, audience members were raving with a standing ovation, clapping and cheering.

I spoke with a few of them, and many loved the show. A young man named Asher said, “The show was funny, but relatable, especially if you have experienced any form of being different.”

Another crowd member named Margo said, “It was surprisingly hilarious, endearing and came full circle in the end.” She continued, “It was universal for everybody, something we will take with us and carry from here on out.”

“Just For Us” directed by Adam Brace is hilarious and thoughtfully pieced together with each joke. It’s easily one of the best comedy shows I have seen in a long time. I highly recommend everyone attend this show, no matter your background. The jaw-dropping ending is worth every penny.

The Steppenwolf Theatre was the perfect setting for the comedy show. The theater was sold out and offered a variety of drinks at the bar. The Downstairs Theater has two levels of seating including main floor and balcony areas. The theater is accessible for everyone and is intimate enough so that you don’t feel like you are miles away from the stage.

The Just for Us show runs from Thursday, February 15 to Saturday February 24, 2024. The running time is a quick 85 minutes with no intermission. Showtimes vary day to day from 3:00 pm to 7:30 pm. It’s located in the Downstairs Theater at Steppenwolf Theatre Co. located on 1650 N. Halstead St. in Chicago. Tickets start at $52 and are on sale now at steppenwolf.org/justforus or at the Box Office at (312) 335-1650. Make sure to get your tickets soon as they are selling out fast!

Matthew Paul Olmos is a playwright on the rise, and under the direction of Laura Alcalá Baker we have a chance to see a beautiful production of an exceptional work in its world premiere at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre. As the vernacular title suggests, “A Home What Howls (or the house what was ravine)” is not a staid work, not a constrained “Cherry Orchard” where emotions are buried between the lines.

Instead, Olmos’ work is poetic, magical, and musical as well, and the characters, though poor, are living rich, happy lives in their homes. In the first act, realism rules in many scenes, and Olmos shows a mastery of dialog and detail.

The play opens with a married couple—Abrana (Charin Alvarez) and Manuel Vargas (Eddie Torres) asleep on a bed. In the adjacent room their daughter Soledad (Leslie Sophia Pérez) is hard at work on papers scattered around the floor, perhaps her schoolwork, or maybe something else.

Her parents are awakened by sounds of trickling water running outside. Soon after, sound of a helicopter roars by, and we hear earth moving equipment as well. “There are nightmares around this house,” says Manuel as he and Abrana jump from the bed, and he begins fiddling with a trap door in the floor—an escape hatch?

We begin to piece together that this family is illegally living in a home condemned to make way for a reservoir, one that will allow housing and other development nearby ravine , through which a river flows. By means of a kind of inferential exposition, Olmos paints a portrait of what happens when families are driven from their homes by development—not from the outside looking in, but from inside the homes and families.

Olmos departs from this style to solid realism filled with exposition in one crucial scene: a public hearing at which the now adult Soledad challenges government official Frank over the process by which these families in the way of development have been displaced. It is certainly the best representation I’ve run across of a marginalized community challenging the validity of an eminent domain claim by city officials to displace homeowners dwelling in an area coveted by developers.

As the ravine along which they live is being flooded, and their homes taken, Soledad challenges the city establishment at a public hearing, outing all the tropes which society accepts as the rules of the game—the original seizure of the land from indigenous people by treaty and ceremony; the surveys of businesses showing broad support for the development; Tim Hopper in the role of Frank is exquisitely obtuse. After all, he argues, a ceremony was held in which a “citizen” of the indigenous “transferred” rights to development to the city. “How was this representative procured?” Soledad asks.

The question flies over his head, as Frank goes on to describe, in all sincerity, a ceremony that he found moving—but it highlights the suggestion that the indigenous individual may have had no right to speak for his people. “You’re using the term ‘peace offering,’” Soledad says. “But Public Works uses the terms ‘relinquish’ and ‘transfer.’”

And what about the original homeowners who settled for generations in this indigenous land. ”They were not asked, but they were considered deeply,” Frank says. ”Only businesses” were surveyed, admits Frank, who is beginning to realize he has aquite an adversary in Soledad. Frank says the homeowners displaced were compensated for the value of their homes, which were dilapidated and brought them little. But a home is much more than a building, Soledad points out. How were they compensated for the loss of happiness and memories, and the dispersion of their families, she asks. Market value can’t equal that kind of loss.

“A Home What Howls” runs about 90 minutes, no intermission, and is part of Steppenwolf's Young Adults theater program. But as with other such works in the Young Adults series, it is profoundly good, so I try to see them all.

I will say that I couldn’t always follow the magical parts of the second half, as the old woman resident Syera Lama (Isabel Quintero) appears. She teams up with Soledad in a quest for the rights of the people, encountering a menacing train conductor, also played by Hopper. Quintera also appears numerous times disguised as a magical figure Coyote. Despite my own confusion, the audience was clearly digging it, and the laughter at comical scenes was quite full. “A Home What Howls" runs through March 2 in Steppenwolf’s new in-the-round Ensemble Theater. It’s a great chance to see the work of a playwright we will doubtless be hearing from more and more.