Displaying items by tag: on stage

Let he without sin cast the first stone, Lyric’s “Don Giovanni” seemingly says when they bring up the house lights while the cast cheerfully sing about sinners being smote. Lyric Opera of Chicago kicks off the season with a thrilling revival of their 2014 collaboration with former Goodman artistic director Robert Falls.

Generally considered one of the best operas ever written, “Don Giovanni” sets a high bar for opera lovers, specifically Mozart fans. Oddly enough it was the first opera ever performed by the Lyric all the way back in 1954. Thankfully, you’re in good hands with legendary Chicago director Robert Falls at the helm. Falls returns to direct this remount of his 2014 production, and his fingerprints are all over it.

Falls is best known for the Broadway-ready new and classic works during his tenure at Goodman Theatre. Now that he’s retired from Goodman, he works in an emeritus capacity, bringing his signature style to other local institutions. Just last year he directed a celebrated revival of “Amadeus” at Steppenwolf, another Mozart-adjacent show.  His next directing project will be with Edgewater storefront company, Redtwist Theatre.

Christian Van Horn as Don Giovanni and Anna El-Khashem as Zerlina. Photo by Cory Weaver.

Opera plots can be a little hard to follow, but here, Falls delivers a concise and straight forward version that requires little flipping back and forth in the program. Scenes are neatly divided and each scene is larger than life thanks to Walt Spangler’s sets and Ana Kuzmanic’s costumes. Every scene is a feast for the senses, but not in a way that distracts from Mozart’s breathtaking music played by the Lyric Opera Orchestra led by Enrique Mazzola.

Don Giovanni is everyone’s favorite playboy. That is unless you’re one of the women he’s seduced and abandoned. Lyric not only cast wonderful singers in the roles, but they brought in singers who also exude the kind of sexuality and comic timing that makes this such a fun opera. Mozart had a playful sense of humor and the bromance between Christian Van Horn in the titular role and his sidekick Leporello played by the dashing Tommaso Barea is genuinely laugh out loud funny. Not to mention Van Horn’s commanding baritone.

The female ensemble: Donna Anna (Mane Galoyan), Donna Elvira (Nina Solodovnikova), and Zerlina (Anna El-Khashem) are all gorgeous singers, but each bring their characters to life in an almost slapstick way. Particularly Anna El-Khashem who gleefully sings to her husband that he’s free to beat her and pull out her hair because of her triste with Don Giovanni on their wedding night. The absurdity of the lyrics through her childlike yearning is hilarious.

“Don Giovanni” is hard to classify as either a comedy or a tragedy. Mozart’s operas tend to have a bright and cheery sound to them, but this one is less upbeat than say, “Marriage of Figaro” and the plot takes a decidedly more intense turn by the middle. It’s the best of both worlds. Mozart’s music paired with Falls’ theatrical sensibilities make this easily one of the most watchable operas ever produced. Clocking in at just under 3 and a half hours, nothing about this production feels redundant. Each moment is packed with enough amusement that a wry little grin will stay plastered on your face even after the final brava. (through November 1 at Lyric Opera of Chicago, 20 N Wacker Drive. (312) 827-5600)

https://www.lyricopera.org/shows/upcoming/2026-27/don-giovanni/

For its sixth Halloween season, Rough House Theater Co. has transformed Steppenwolf’s Merle Reskin Garage into a spectacular puppet haunted house. Last year I visted House of the Exquisite Corpse V: BLOOD & PUPPETS, and this year’s installment feels familiar in form but distinct in approach. The experience unfolds across six short puppet performances, each about seven minutes long and staged in its own small, enclosed box. Instead of sitting in seats, audience members peer through peepholes and listen through headphones, becoming voyeurs of a series of strange, self-contained worlds.

Last year’s “Blood & Puppets” theme offered a direct prompt. This time, LULLABIES gives its six creative teams a more abstract one, and they take it in folkloric, tall-tale directions. The stories draw on the uneasy promise at the heart of a lullaby: sleep, and you’ll be safe; stay awake, and you’re powerless. The audio narration felt especially full and impactful this year, adding texture to the stories and pulling listeners further into each room.

Jumping Jack Money. Photos by Greg India.

Exquisite Corpse's unique format gives each team room to experiment and draw on personal or cultural connections to lullabies. This variety is one of the production’s greatest strengths. Puppetry appears in many forms, often layered together: shadow puppets, hand puppets, and full-body puppets all share these small spaces. You’re close enough to notice the details in the figures and the mechanics of their movement, while the peepholes keep you just outside the worlds you’re watching.

That close-up view, combined with each team’s total freedom to construct an original world, raises expectations and makes the weaker moments more noticeable. There are always limits in live theater, but it’s disappointing when a story sets up a moment and then declines to stage it. “Jumping Jack Money” is a hilarious, cheeky piece, and its audience interaction is among the evening’s most charming. All the more frustrating, then, is that when the central conflict arrives, the piece avoids the playful challenge of staging a puppet fight and opts for a blackout that isn’t even dark enough to make the absence feel intentional. Another piece introduces a tornado—a chance for an intricate, dynamic effect alongside its many forms of puppetry, then buries the moment under a simple projected animation. Both left me wishing the production had followed through on the possibilities it had deliberately established.

don’t you want to live it? don’t you want to live your dream? 

My favorite stories show what the format can do when its ideas and staging work in tandem. Designed by Caitlin McLeod, “Hushaby hush, you’re not going with them,” performed by Finn Bradley, Eddy Barber-Rozema, Rachel Hartmann and Emilie Wingate, uses an angled castle set with meticulous detail. From all angles, the perspective gives the scene the feeling of a storybook illustration, making it an especially apt fit for a show about the tales we tell to get children to sleep.

The final piece, “don’t you want to live it? don’t you want to live your dream?,” created by J. Felix and Abby Palen and performed by Mallory Limbrell and Shannon Twenter, makes memorable use of its floating, moving set. The performers move around it, giving the puppets space to transform along with the scene. It’s a playful, visually inventive take on lullabies and a strong finish to the sequence.

The experience design has also become more cohesive since last year. Each performance space’s exterior peepholes now feel connected to the story inside, and the paths between each story, between and around the boxes, carry a more unified atmosphere, giving the six distinct rooms a shared setting: an eerie, wonderful night of lullabies and puppets!

House of the Exquisite Corpse VI: LULLABIES runs at Steppenwolf’s Merle Reskin Garage through November 1. Tickets are available at roughhousetheater.com/tickets.

They're creepy and they're kooky, Mysterious and spooky, They're altogether ooky, The Addams Family.

Yes, ooky.

BrightSide Theatre’s production of The Addams Family Musical at the Theater at Meiley Swallow Hall feels like stepping back into the wonderfully odd world of a family we’ve all grown up with. There’s an immediate charm in seeing Gomez and Morticia - the passionately devoted, darkly elegant heads of the Addams clan - presiding over their spooky, loving household with the same theatrical flair that made them iconic. With a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice and music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa, the show’s blend of gothic quirk, musical comedy warmth, and big-hearted family chaos lands with a personal, familiar joy that makes this staging especially inviting. And right at the center is Wednesday Addams, their sharp tongued, deadpan daughter whose unexpected leap into romance sets everything spiraling.

In this musical comedy, Wednesday has fallen in love with Lucas Beineke, a sweet, decidedly “normal” young man from Ohio. Determined to prove she’s ready for something real, she asks her parents to host a dinner so the two families can meet - but she also begs Gomez to keep her engagement a secret from Morticia. That single request throws Gomez into a hilarious moral crisis, while Morticia senses something is off and the rest of the Addams household prepares for an evening guaranteed to go sideways. When the straight-laced Beinekes arrive, their collision with the gloriously eccentric Addamses sparks a night of confessions, misunderstandings, unexpected alliances, and more than a few supernatural surprises. What unfolds is a heartfelt, funny, and delightfully macabre exploration of love, loyalty, and the beautifully strange ways families learn to accept one another - quirks and all.

BrightSide’s production thrives on the strength of its performers, and this cast brings the Addams world to life with personality, precision, and a magnificently off-center spirit.

Scott Kelley and Samatha Keret (rear) as Gomez and Morticia and Ancestors in Brightside Theatre’s The Addams Family Musical. Photos by CM Stage Photography.

At the center of the production are Scott Kelley’s Gomez Addams and Samantha Keret’s Morticia Addams, who anchor the show with an easy chemistry that makes their partnership feel lived in and genuinely affectionate. Their banter and romantic interactions are fantastic - playful, sharp, and full of the kind of idiosyncratic mutual understanding that makes their marriage the emotional core of the evening. Kelley gives Gomez a warm, slightly frantic presence, the kind of theatrical bravado that feels both funny and sincere. Keret, with her beautiful voice and cool, elegant presence, matches him beat for beat, creating a dynamic that feels both grounded and pleasantly heightened. Together, they knock their roles out of the ballpark.

The ensemble - from the Addams clan to the buttoned-up Beinekes, along with the ghostly Ancestors who linger in the house until Wednesday’s journey toward love sets them free - brings strong energy and cohesion to the production, giving the show a vibrant foundation for some standout performances.

Lauren Mathews’ Wednesday Addams is terrific, offering a Wednesday who is smart, guarded, and brimming with the dry, deadpan wit audiences expect - but also carrying the emotional uncertainty of someone stepping into adulthood faster than she planned. Her performance captures a teenager caught between loyalty to her wonderfully strange family and the terrifying possibility of real change. Because the story ultimately revolves around love - romantic, familial, and everything in between - Mathews becomes the hinge of the entire narrative, and she handles that responsibility with clarity and confidence.

Collin Borisenko’s Uncle Fester adds a welcome dose of sweetness and eccentricity, leaning into Fester’s gentle oddball nature without tipping into caricature, while Amy Arbizzani’s Alice Beineke provides some of the evening’s biggest laughs as a tightly wound suburban mom whose unraveling becomes a comedic highlight. Arbizzani’s timing - and her ability to really belt when the moment calls for it - turns her musical outbursts into genuine showstoppers.

BrightSide’s creative team shapes this production with care and a clear affection for the material. Under De Haddad’s direction, the musical moves with clear, unfussy ease, balancing the story’s humor and heart while keeping the unconventional Addams world feeling cohesive and inviting. Shane Brown’s choreography adds light, well placed movement that supports the storytelling without crowding the stage, giving each number a clear, character focused lift. Phil Videckis leads the music with steady assurance, keeping the score’s personality and emotional beats aligned with the action. Cheryl Newman’s costumes offer a thoughtful blend of familiar Addams silhouettes and clean, stage ready designs, while Kurt Ottinger’s lighting brings subtle shifts in mood and color with just enough theatrical shadow to frame the world effectively. The production’s scenic design, crafted by Ariel Mozes, provides a space that feels both spooky and welcoming - a home that fits the Addams tribe and the story unfolding within it. One of the production’s most engaging details is the way the Ancestors drift in and out of the family portraits, turning the walls of the Addams home into a living gallery that observes the action as it unfolds.

Pugsley and Wednesday Addams (Carson Kelley and Lauren Mathews) in Brightside Theatre’s The Addams Family Musical. 

This is a funny show that is all about love, and BrightSide delivers that humor with a light, playful touch that keeps the audience laughing. And even when some of the jokes are predictable, they still land, because the delivery, timing, and sheer Addams‑style absurdity make the familiar feel fun rather than tired. I did wonder whether comedy born sixty years ago would still resonate with today’s crowd, but the production blends the classic Addams deadpan with a few modern winks - including some sly innuendo and contemporary asides - that make the jokes feel fresh without betraying the spirit of the original. The crowd was a mix of longtime Addams fans and newer generations, something made instantly clear when the familiar theme kicked in - a handful snapped right on cue while others clapped along. It was a fun blend of reactions, and the overall effect showed that the humor lands for everyone.

Big musical moments like When You’re an Addams burst with playful choreography and gothic silliness, setting the tone right from the start. Later, Full Disclosure turns a family dinner into a brilliantly chaotic spectacle, layering jokes, reveals, and ensemble energy in a way that feels both sharp and amusingly messy. Morticia’s Just Around the Corner is another highlight - a charming bit of dark humor built around her cheerful pun that “death is just around the coroner… get it?” delivered with exactly the kind of melodramatic glint the character thrives on.

For so many of us, The Addams Family began in grainy black and white reruns on TV - the kind you’d stumble upon on a quiet afternoon, or watch curled up on the couch, instantly pulled into that wonderfully odd little world. Those episodes became part of childhood in a way that sticks, shaping our sense of humor and giving us characters who felt strange, sweet, and strangely familiar all at once. Seeing the Addamses still make people smile today - onstage, in full color, with all their offbeat charm intact - is a reminder of how enduring they are. Decades later, they’re still beautifully weird, still welcoming, and still capable of bringing out that same simple, shared joy.

BrightSide Theatre’s The Addams Family Musical is recommended, offering a spirited, nostalgic, and thoroughly enjoyable night out for audiences of all ages. The production runs October 2–18, 2026 at the Theater at Meiley Swallow Hall at North Central College, located at 31 S. Ellsworth St. in Naperville. With an estimated running time of 2 hours and 30 minutes, including intermission, it’s an evening that delivers plenty of laughs, charm, and quirky family fun - a welcome return to the wonderfully weird world of the Addams clan.

https://brightsidetheatre.com/the-addams-family/

Avalanche Theatre announces the world premiere production of They Broke Up by Chicago playwright Skyler Tarnas, November 6–22, 2026.  Opening November 7 at 7:30pm) at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 Ridge Ave.

They Broke Up is Avalanche's first world premiere presented at their new home as a resident company at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble. The play is the professional full-length debut from playwright Skyler Tarnas, an ensemble member of Avalanche and graduate of Northwestern University's Writing for the Screen and Stage MFA program.

They Broke Up — which was originally developed in Avalanche's new play incubator the Next Draft Series in 2024 — is an apocalyptic absurdist comedy centered around a friend group trying to weather both the end of the world and the much more devastating end of a relationship. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit avalanchetheatre.com/event-details/they-broke-up.

"They Broke Up is one of the most fun, distinct, and laugh-out-loud plays we've come across at Avalanche. Skyler has such a clear voice and vision for this play, which made the workshop a delight," says Avalanche Theatre's Artistic Director Alexander Attea, who also will perform in production as Brett. "In the two years that we've been working on this play, it has grown and changed in some weird and wonderful ways; all while staying rooted in the comedy and tragedy of this insane group of friends having to grapple with the reality of being themselves."

It's New Year's Eve, and it sure looks like the world is ending. But much more importantly, Brett and Amy have just broken up. As aliens pollute the water, zombies run for Congress, birds ravage the housing market, and apocalyptic cult plans for the end of days, Brett and Amy's friends scheme to reunite them while the ex-couple themselves try to navigate a world with an end-date and a world without each other.

"I remember reading three grotesquely awful news stories in a row in a Trader Joe's parking lot and then dissociating heavily next to the oranges. I realized that's what this play was going to try to capture... the constant overload of tragedy and the deranged sense of detachment I felt like I needed to get through the day, letting numbness shut out helpfulness and growth," says playwright Skyler Tarnas. "I love how absurd I got to be with language and logic in this piece."

Avalanche Theatre's world premiere of They Broke Up plays Nov 6 - 22, 2026, at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble at 5779 Ridge Ave. Tickets are now available starting at an early-bird rate of $25 through September 15th and then increasing to $35 at AvalancheTheatre.com. A special edition of the script, published by Avalanche Theatre, will also be available for purchase as a ticket add-on.

The cast of They Broke Up features Avalanche Theatre ensemble members Gabriela Diaz, Alexander Attea, Ky Anderson, and Mitch Fischer. The cast also includes Reagan James, Jack Disselhorst, Maya McEntyre, and Jo Tannous. Understudies for the production are Lily Lourigan, Nathan Keiller, Becca Anderson, Curen Feliciani, Katie Bevil, and Matt Schutz.

They Broke Up is directed by Avalanche Theatre ensemble member Owen Hickle-Edwards. The design team includes Avalanche Executive Director Zoe Sjogerman (Production Manager), Emma Crumption (Stage Manager), Yukta Sinha (Assistant Stage Manager), Alishiana Uyao (Technical Director), Nathan Keiller (Lighting Designer), Drew McCall (Sound Designer), Eel Black (Costume Designer), Ab Rieve (Props Designer), and Tristin Hall (Intimacy Designer).

They Broke Up

World Premiere

By Skyler Tarnas

Directed by Owen Hickle-Edwards

Nov 6 - 22 (Opening night Friday Nov 6 at 7:30pm) at Rivendell Ensemble Theatre

Information

Tickets: www.AvalancheTheatre.com

General Admission Tickets: $35 - $45

About Avalanche Theatre

Avalanche Theatre, founded in 2019 by Alexander Attea and Zoe Sjogerman, is Chicago's new home for new play development. With a mission centered on developing new plays by Chicago playwrights, Avalanche has workshopped scripts that have gone on to be seen on stages including the Goodman Theatre, Shattered Globe Theatre, Alleyway Theatre, Silk Road Cultural Center, Renaissance Theatreworks, and others, as well as recognition from the Maxim Mazumdar New Play Award and as Finalists & Semi-Finalists for the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference. Through its script development programs like the Next Draft Series and its monthly Show & Tell events, Avalanche is committed to elevating the voices of Chicago's emerging playwrights.

Oil Lamp Theater is proud to announce the cast and creative team for its next production and the final production in its 2026 season, It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, November 20 - December 27, adapted by Joe Landry and directed by Becca Holloway at Oil Lamp Theater, 1723 Glenview Road. The schedule includes preview performances Friday, Nov. 20 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 21 at 3 p.m. with the opening performance Saturday, Nov. 21 at 7:30 p.m. The performance schedule is Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 3 and 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. with additional Wednesday performances on Dec. 2 at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m, Dec. 16 at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. and Dec. 23 at 7:30 p.m. There will also be an understudy performance on Wednesday, Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now for $30 for previews and $55 for the run at OilLampTheater.org.  

This heartwarming production is the perfect way to embrace the spirit of the Christmas season. Experience unmatched holiday cheer with Frank Capra's beloved classic, It's a Wonderful Life, reimagined as a captivating Live Radio Play, complete with foley sound effects and set in Oil Lamp Theater’s WBFR radio studio.

Audiences are invited to journey to Bedford Falls, where George Bailey's troubles lead him to wish he was never born. Clarence, an angel sent to intervene, steps in to make his wishes come true and George quickly learns just how blessed he is and how many lives he has touched.

The cast of It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play includes Ethan Smith (he/him, Jake Laurents); India Huy (she/her, Sally Applewhite); Adam Schulmerich (he/him, Freddie Filmore); Baxter Konstans (he/him, Harry “Jazzbo” Haywood); Julia Hope Budd (she/her, Lana Sherwood); Anthony Augustine  (he/him, Foley Artist); Christopher Ratliff (he/him, U/S Jake Laurents); Aly Mackenzie (she/her, U/S Sally Applewhite); Neil Figuracion (any, U/S Freddie Filmore); Payton Nesci (he/him, U/S Harry “Jazzbo” Haywood); Katherine Abel (she/her, U/S Lana Sherwood) and John N Williams (he/him, U/S Foley Artist).  

The production team includes Becca Holloway (she/her, director); Anthony Doyle (he/him, stage manager); Trenton Jones (he/him, scenic designer); Rachel D. Hemm (she/her, lighting designer); Taylor Pfenning (she/her, costume designer); Elly Burke (she/her, props designer); Conner Nicoson (they/them, technical director); Connor Windle (she/her, production manager and sound designer) and Rose Leisner (she/her, company manager). 

ABOUT JOE LANDRY, playwright

Joe Landry's plays have been produced across the country and internationally and include It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (named one of the top-ten most produced plays by American Theatre Magazine). His other Live Radio Play adaptations include Vintage Hitchcock, Meet Me in St. Louis, War of the Worlds: The Panic Broadcast and A Christmas Carol, published through Playscripts/Broadway Licensing and Concord. Other plays include The Wicked Stage, Reefer Madness, Numb and Hitchcocked!. He attended Playwrights Horizons/NYU and has taught playwriting at Sacred Heart University.

ABOUT BECCA HOLLOWAY, director

Becca Holloway is a director/choreographer based in Chicago. She’s thrilled to return to Oil Lamp Theater, where she made her directorial debut 10 years ago! Favorite directing credits include Curious Circumstances of Louis Le Prince, Wise Guys, Die Hard 4 Your Luv (The Factory Theater), Muted (Red Theater) and Wanderlust and The Muses (Chicago Music Theater Festival). As an associate director: Godspell (Music Theater Works) and the upcoming Sunday in the Park with George (Paramount Theatre). Holloway has also worked extensively as a casting director for more than 30 productions including work with Wicked and The Lion King. 

Christmas Day is in our grasp. Why the vodka? Glad you asked! 

Who's Holiday! brings R-rated Cindy-Lou Who back to Theater Wit for her sixth consecutive year of adults-only holiday fun. 

Step inside Chicago’s #1 holiday bedazzled mobile home to meet Cindy Lou-Who, now 40, as she reveals the shocking true story of all the crazy things that happened after her Christmas Eve encounter with the Grinch. Veronica Garza, who earned a Jeff nomination for originating the role in Chicago, and recently won a 2026 Jeff Award for Best Performer in a Supporting Role in Marriott Theatre’s A Little Night Music, is back as Cindy Lou-Who – funny, flirty and foul-mouthed as ever.

First Cindy-Lou welcomes audiences into her mobile home at the base of Mount Crumpit for a festive holiday party. After plying her guests with party snacks and Malort, she spills the green tea about the twisted turns her life took after her Christmas Eve encounter with the Grinch.

The Chicago Reader called Wit’s annual holiday bon bon “a hell of a lot of fun…Garza’s performance offers surprises for her audience at every nook and cranny.” “Raunchy, hilarious, and shatteringly honest, you won’t even care that a tear sneaked out," raved Third Coast Review. Chicago Theater Review wrote Who’s Holiday! is “a very funny, often poignant production guided with panache by an excellent director.”

Director Christopher Pazdernik returns to direct Wit’s sixth outing of this hilarious, heartfelt holiday comedy by Matthew Lombardo. Also back is Angela Weber Miller’s Jeff Award-winning, Seuss-inspired set. Designers include Shelley Strasser, lights; Uriel Gomez, costumes; Lonnae Hickman, props, and Matthew R. Chase, sound and production manager.

Opening Night is Friday, November 27 at 7 p.m. Performances run through December 27: Saturday, November 28 at 7 p.m.; Sunday, November 29 at 3 p.m.; Monday, November 30 at 7 p.m. (Industry Night); Thursday and Friday, December 3 and 4 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, December 5 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Sunday, December 6 at 3 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, December 10 and 11 at
7 p.m.; Saturday, December 12 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Sunday, December 13 at 3 p.m.; Thursday, December 17 at 7 p.m., Friday, December 18 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; Saturday, December 19 at
7 p.m.; Sunday, December 20 at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.; Tuesday, December 22 at 7 p.m., Wednesday, December 23 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, December 26 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.: and Sunday, December 27 at 3 p.m. Run time is 70 minutes, no intermission. Tickets are $42-$70. Who’s Holiday! is for adults only. Tickets for children 12 and under are $500. Purchase tickets at theaterwit.org or call the Theater Wit box office, (773) 975-8150.

Theater Wit is located at 1229 W. Belmont Ave., in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. Convenient parking is available for $10 across the street in the lot behind Kubo restaurant (pay at the Theater Wit box office.) Neighborhood street parking is available, as are private paid lots (tip: book ahead and at a discount with Spothero). Theater Wit is also accessible via the CTA 77 Belmont bus, and is three blocks west of the CTA Belmont Red/Brown/Purple line stop. 

To learn more, visit theaterwit.org  or follow the company on Facebook and Instagram.

At fifteen, the world can feel like a television show you haven't quite figured out how to turn off.

For Salma (Jacqueline Guillen), it may be even more difficult. She watches too much television—especially detective shows—and has begun to see the world through the eyes of a detective. So when Maria (Andrea Ferro) disappears, Salma doesn't simply wonder where her friend is. She decides to investigate.

She recruits Este (Carmen Berkeley) and Phoebe (Ariana Burks) to help her find Maria, and Phanèsia Pharel's Dead Girl's Quinceañera takes off from there.

Produced by Goodman Theatre in association with Chicago Latino Theater Alliance, the production is a collective World Premiere with Barrington Stage Company and Hartford Stage. Directed by Melia Bensussen, the play has at times the quick-cut energy of the procedural television shows that inspired Pharel when she originally conceived the work.

And it moves fast.

Very fast.

Pharel understands the language of fifteen-year-old girls—the rapid-fire speech, the sudden shifts in thought, the jokes that arrive in the middle of serious conversations and the ability to move from one subject to another without warning. These girls don't simply talk; they process.

And Salma processes everything like a detective.

Television has given her a vocabulary for understanding crime, clues and suspects. She has watched enough procedural television shows to believe she knows how an investigation works. There is something funny about her confidence, but there is also something unsettling about it. For all the light-heartedness there’s an air that something isn’t right.

Pharel wisely doesn't allow that danger to become the only thing we see. The girls joke, argue, tease one another and behave like fifteen-year-olds. Their humor is genuine, but it also creates an increasingly uneasy contrast with what may be happening beyond their immediate world.

That contrast gives the play its darker edge.

The girls are dealing with situations that are far more adult than they are. Salma's television education has taught her that mysteries have clues and crimes have solutions. But real life doesn't necessarily follow the rules of a television show.

The four girls come from distinctly different cultural backgrounds. Salma is Cuban, Este is Salvadorian, Phoebe is Dominican/Haitian, and her cousin Maria is Dominican. Their different cultural experiences shape their ideas about family, friendship, behavior and what it means to grow up American, while their interactions allow Pharel to explore questions of identity, belonging and how young people see one another across economic and cultural lines. Yet they share something equally important: they are all approximately fifteen years old, and they are all American.

Pharel doesn't present Latino identity as one uniform experience. Instead, she allows the girls' differences to shape their relationships and their understanding of the world. They are negotiating family expectations, cultural identity and American teenage life simultaneously.

Dead Girl’s Quinceañera is ambitious, culturally layered and unapologetically youthful. Pharel gives us four girls who may come from different places, but who share the complicated experience of growing up American while carrying the histories, expectations and family secrets that shape who they are. As those secrets begin to surface, friendship is tested, identities are questioned, and the girls are forced to confront realities far beyond their years.

Ultimately, this is a play about friendship, identity and agency—and about young women discovering that sometimes the most important story is the one they have the courage to uncover for themselves.

RECOMMENDED

When: Through Nov. 1 (Extended through November 8th!)

Where: Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St.

Tickets: $34-$79

Info: www.goodmantheatre.org

Box Office: 312-443-3800

With Halloween creeping closer, there’s something fitting about revisiting one of opera’s earliest flirtations with macabre horror - especially in a production presented and performed by Chicago City Opera (COT). Der Vampyr may not enjoy the mainstream familiarity of later supernatural works, but its mix of moonlit superstition, doomed romance, and aristocratic menace makes it an ideal October offering. As audiences lean into the season’s appetite for the eerie, Marschner’s opera emerges as a surprisingly modern ancestor to everything from Victorian melodrama to contemporary horror musicals.

Though often treated as a standalone curiosity, Der Vampyr has a lineage that begins well outside the opera house. The story originates with John Polidori’s 1819 prose tale The Vampyre, one of the first works to codify the seductive, aristocratic vampire archetype. Polidori’s narrative was adapted into a German stage play by Heinrich Ludwig Ritter, whose dramatization became the direct source for Wilhelm August Wohlbrück’s libretto. Heinrich Marschner’s 1828 opera builds on Ritter’s theatrical version, shaping the material into a darkly romantic, musically driven narrative that blends early Romantic lyricism with gothic theatrics. In short: Polidori’s story inspired Ritter’s play, and Ritter’s play became the foundation for Marschner’s opera.

Set in early 19th century Scotland, the opera follows Lord Ruthven, a charismatic nobleman cursed with vampirism and bound to claim new victims before dawn or face eternal damnation. After surviving a near fatal attack, the young hero Edgar becomes unknowingly entangled in Ruthven’s hunt. Ruthven first targets the innocent Janthe, luring her to a ruined castle under the guise of seduction, and later sets his sights on Malwina, Edgar’s beloved, whose wedding night becomes his final opportunity to fulfill his deadly pact. As Edgar pieces together the truth, the opera accelerates toward a frantic race against sunrise: Ruthven’s identity is exposed, his supernatural bargain collapses, and the community rallies to save Malwina as the vampire is ultimately destroyed. What remains is a blend of gothic suspense, romantic rescue, and early Romantic moral drama - a seasonally perfect slice of operatic horror as Halloween approaches.

Jeremiah Strickler commands the evening as Lord Ruthven, delivering a performance that blends aristocratic charm with a chilling, predatory stillness. His presence anchors the production - vocally assured, theatrically magnetic, and always in control of the opera’s gothic pulse. Opposite him, Jordan Loyd brings a clear, earnest intensity to Edgar Aubry, shaping the role with a bright tenor and a palpable sense of moral urgency. Loyd had some of the most spectacular and heartfelt vocal moments of the evening, particularly toward the end of Act II as he reflects on his past love. Jessie Lyons’ Malwina adds welcome tenderness, her lyrical phrasing and grounded sincerity adding to the opera’s romantic core. Ariel Emma’s Janthe provides one of the night’s most striking early moments, her brief arc handled with vivid color and fearless commitment, and some of the notes she held were genuinely astounding - the kind that stop the room for a beat. Keaton Payne’s Humphrey von Davenaut provides a sturdy, authoritative counterweight, shaped by both his assured delivery and his expressive, sharply drawn presence. Meanwhile, Molly Clementz (also the production’s graphic designer) brings Emmy Perth to life with bright energy and an impressive finesse that lifts every moment she’s given, adding flashes of warmth, wit, and a polished musicality - especially in the way she shapes and sustains her notes with such control and clarity.

Bat Collazo’s George Dibdin and Kevin Wheatle’s John Berkley round out the ensemble with crisp, well-shaped character work that keeps the world of the opera humming with specificity.

Jerimiah Strickler (rear) Molly Clemenntz (left) and Bat Collazo in Chicago City Opera's Der Vampyr.

One of the unexpected pleasures of the evening was simply hearing each singer on their own - every voice carrying its own color, character, and emotional weight. But when paired, those timbres intertwined with a striking naturalness, and in the moments when all eight sang off one another at once, the result was nothing short of exquisite. The ensemble sound had a richness and immediacy that felt almost architectural, each voice reinforcing the next until the room seemed to vibrate with a unified, resonant force. It was a reminder of how thrilling Marschner’s writing can be when performed by artists who listen as intently as they sing.

Behind the scenes, Alexis Enyart conducts with sharp dramatic instinct, shaping Marschner’s score with clarity and momentum. SarahAnn Sutter’s direction deepens the production’s impact, treating Der Vampyr not merely as gothic spectacle but as a living, breathing psychological drama. She embraces the opera’s supernatural flair with confidence - the shadows, the proximity, the sudden shifts in tone - yet she never lets the human stakes slip away. Sutter has a keen sense for spatial storytelling, using the venue’s architecture to heighten tension and intimacy; she sends performers through the aisles and along the home’s sweeping historic staircase, activating much of the house as part of the dramatic landscape. Her staging choices reveal a director who understands how early Romantic horror works best: not through excess, but through precision, ambience, and emotional clarity. Supported by Jordan Crice’s deft piano work and Adam Nicholson’s distinctive set design, the result is a production where every element feels intentionally placed and dramatically charged. Thanks to this talented cast and creative team, Chicago City Opera builds a world where early Romantic horror feels both stylish and surprisingly immediate.

Although Der Vampyr travels through a handful Chicago area venues during its run, the performance I attended on opening night unfolded inside the storied Colvin House - a location that feels almost predestined for this opera. Colvin House, beautifully placed across the street from Lake Michigan on the corner of Thorndale Avenue and Sheridan Road, proves to be an inspired setting for Der Vampyr, its historic architecture and intimate, richly textured rooms amplifying the opera’s gothic mood in ways a traditional proscenium simply can’t match. The building’s carved woodwork, shadow friendly corners, period furnishings, and old-world elegance create a natural sense of suspense and closeness, allowing the audience to feel almost inside the drama rather than observing it from a distance. The scale of the space heightens the tension - Ruthven’s entrances feel more dangerous, Janthe’s fate more immediate, Malwina’s peril more personal. Colvin House becomes a living extension of the opera’s supernatural world and a perfect match for Marschner’s early Romantic horror.

Despite all its strengths, the evening wasn’t without a minor but noticeable drawback. Although brief stretches of dialogue were exchanged in English, the opera itself is sung in its original German, making the surtitles essential for most. Unfortunately, the monitor displaying those subtitles sat off to the front side and too low to be easily seen by much of the audience; only those in the unobstructed front section had a consistently clear view. Sitting in the third row opposite the monitor side, I was able to catch most of the surtitles when first‑row head movement allowed, but many around me – and further back - were blocked entirely. I’m no set designer, but raising the monitor and centering it - even if it encroached slightly into the stage picture - would make the surtitles far more accessible, a small trade off that would greatly improve audience experience. In the meantime, I strongly recommend that attendees read the Act I and Act II synopsis in the program before the performance begins; with that context in hand, most will have a solid grasp of the unfolding drama even if the surtitles prove difficult to see.

Regardless of that small hiccup, the opera itself remained a beautiful, wonderfully performed experience - rich in mood, artistry, and musical power.

Der Vampyr is recommended as a rare and atmospheric experience - the kind of intimate, site specific opera that feels tailor made for October. For audiences looking to embrace the season with something truly unique, this production offers a gothic thrill you won’t find anywhere else. Upcoming performances include Wednesday, October 7 at Colvin House (7pm), Friday, October 9 at Fulton Street Art Center (7pm), and Sunday, October 11 at Skokie Theatre (3pm).

https://www.chicagocityopera.com/

Mud Life, a world premiere drama by Chicago writing duo G. Riley Mills and Willie Round, drawn from Round’s life experiences as an emerging writer, rapper and producer, opens Collaboraction Theatre’s 2026-27 season, October 21 - November 15.

Round and Mills are the Emmy Award-winning writing team behind Collaboraction’s acclaimed immersive docudrama, Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till. Set in North Lawndale, Mud Life is a powerful new play exploring  the bonds that hold us together, the forces that keep us stuck, and what we’re willing to risk for the chance at a better life.

Mud Life follows Roc and his cousin Tae, two aspiring hip-hop artists from Chicago’s West Side, struggling to build a future while under the thumb of a manipulative strip-club owner named Littles. When a mysterious outsider offers Roc and Tae a rare opportunity to break free, loyalties fracture, ambitions collide, and they are forced to make choices that will alter the course of their lives forever. 

“For our 31st season, Collaboraction is eager to open our new House of Belonging to Chicagoans to cultivate new knowledge, empathy, dialogue, and action by writing partners and Collaboraction Company Members, G. Riley Mills and Willie Round,” said Collaboraction Artistic Director Anthony Moseley. “Set in a worn down recording studio on Chicago’s West side and drawn from  Willie's actual life, audiences can expect a raw, revealing look at the hopes and dreams of escaping poverty and scarcity through music.” 

In addition to co-writing the play, Willie Round leads the cast as Anthony “Roc” Harris, and Round’s new hip-hop single “Bottom to the Top” is featured in Mud Life (listen to an excerpt on Tidal.) The cast also features DeMorris Burrows as Devontae “Tae” Shields, Simeon Henderson as Malcolm “Littles” Gardner and Carina Lastimosa as Casey Reyes. 

The full production team includes G. Riley Mills and Willie Round, playwrights; Anthony Moseley, director; Martine Kei-Green Rogers, Dean, The Theatre School at DePaul University, dramaturg; Isabella Bradley, assistant director; John Wilson, set design; Crystal Bryant, costume design; Destiny Garner, lighting design; Harper Justus, sound design; Liviu Pasare, projection design; Sam Lancaster, props design; Alivia Arizaga, associate producer and production manager; and, Sam Burkett, stage manager. 

Mud Life runs October 21-November 15 at Collaboraction’s new House of Belonging in the Kimball Arts Center, 1757 N. Kimball Ave. in Humboldt Park. Previews are Wednesday through Saturday, October 21-24 at 7:30 p.m. Performances run through November 15: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm; Sunday at
3 p.m. No show Saturday, October 31. Industry Night is Monday, November 2 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15-$50 and on sale at collaboraction.org. Each show includes a pre-show lounge, performances and an open mic. Mud Life is recommended for ages 13 and up.

Note: The Luminaries, featuring alums of Collaboraction’s The Light youth ensemble, invites young audiences to a special version of their Radiate open mic series every Friday during the run starting at 6 p.m. Participants will be given comp tickets to attend the show, if available. This special Friday night Radiate open mic series is led by Linda Sol, Earl Hester and Bigg Ceno.

Free and nearby street parking is available near the Kimball Arts Center. For CTA riders, the 82 Kimball-Homan bus stops right in front of the building. The theater is also a short walk from the Kimball stop on the 72 North and 73 Armitage bus lines. For bikers and pedestrians, the Kimball trailhead on The 606 leads directly to the Kimball Arts Center. 

Mud Life first entered Collaboraction’s orbit in 2019 as the seven-minute short play Broke Down Drone in Collaboraction’s Peacebook Festival. That experience spawned an award-winning short film in 2022 of the same name. Round and Riley continued developing the script, which received workshops earlier this year at both Bramble Theatre and Definition Theatre in Chicago.

Playwright biographies

G. Riley Mills is an Emmy Award-winning producer and writer based in Chicago. His musical, The Hundred Dresses, (co- written with Grammy-nominee Ralph Covert), premiered Off-Broadway at The Atlantic Theatre Company, starring Academy Award-nominee Stephanie Hsu. He and his frequent writing partner, Willie Round, co-adapted Collaboraction’s award-winning hit docudrama Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till. Their play, Lift Every Voice, also co-written with Round, was published by Dramatic Publishing and won the 2022 “Distinguished Play Award” from the American Alliance for Theatre and Education. He has twice won the Jeff Citation for Best New Work (Sawdust and Spangles in 1997 and Streeterville in 2001). His plays have been produced at such theatres as TimeLine, Mixed Blood, The Children’s Theatre Company, Prop Thtr, Orlando Rep, Birmingham Children’s Theatre, Royal George Theatre, Apollo Theatre, and many more. His new book, “Synergy and Sparks” was published by John Wiley & Sons and won a 2026 International Impact Book Award. grileymills.com

Willie Round is a Chicago-born playwright, actor, filmmaker, songwriter, and community- centered storyteller from North Lawndale. A graduate of Central State University with a B.A. in Mass Communication, Round creates work rooted in the history, culture, resilience, and lived experiences of Chicago’s West Side. His works include Mud Life, a stage play inspired by his life and experiences growing up in North Lawndale; Lawndale King, which explores Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1966 campaign in Chicago; and the published work Lift Every Voice. Round is also a co-writer of Trial in the Delta, a three-time regional Emmy Award-winning production centered on the Emmett Till murder trial. His artistry extends across theater, film, music, acting, and videography. As hip-hop artist MudLife Roc, he has opened for artists including Gucci Mane and Lil Wayne. He is also the founder of Mud Life Entertainment LLC. Round’s mission is to authentically represent Chicago’s West Side, preserve its stories and history, and inspire the next generation through art. Round’s music is available on all platforms under MudLife Roc.

In December 2022, Round and Mills won an Emmy for co-creating and co-producing The Lost Story of Emmett Till: Trial in the Delta for Collaboraction and NBC5 Chicago. The subsequent immersive live stage adaptation, Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till, has since gone on to two critically acclaimed runs at The DuSable Museum, was the inaugural production at Collaboraction’s new House of Belonging in February, 2026, and will be remounted by Collaboraction February 3-March 14, 2027. Tickets are already on sale at collaboraction.org.

About Collaboraction

Celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2026, Collaboraction is an award-winning Chicago theater company that uses immersive, socially conscious performance to spark change and build equity. Across all platforms, Collaboraction uses its KEDA methodology - Knowledge, Empathy, Dialogue, and Action - to spark changes in behavior and attitudes that manifest social change.

Collaboraction’s past work includes NBC Chicago’s three-time Emmy Award-winning The Lost Story of Emmett Till: Trial in the Delta, the resulting live stage play film, Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till, live productions of Crime Scene, Moonset Sunrise, A Blue Island In the Red Sea, its annual Peacebook and Sketchbook festivals, and its youth ensembles, The Light and The Luminaries.

Collaboraction receives generous operating support and program funding from the Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation, the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Marc and Jeanne Malnati Family Foundation, Gary Grube, the Lester and Hope Abelson Fund for the Performing Arts at the Chicago Community Trust, Naperville Rotary Club, Field Foundation, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

Collaboraction is led by Darlene Jackson, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director; Anthony Moseley, Chief Programming Officer and Artistic Director; and a dedicated board, company members and staff.  For more information, visit collaboraction.org or follow Collaboraction on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or TikTok.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company, the nation's premier ensemble theater company, is pleased to launch its 51st Season with the world premiere of Chicago playwright Stephanie Alison Walker's biting satire Adirondack Chair Circle, directed by Tony Award winner Pam MacKinnon (Downstate, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?), playing October 22 — December 6, 2026 in Steppenwolf's Ensemble Theater, 1646 N. Halsted St. in Chicago. Single tickets are now on sale at steppenwolf.org or the Box Office at (312) 335-1650. The press opening is Sunday, November 1, 2026 at 6 pm.

The Adirondack Chair Circle cast features a stellar lineup of talent including ensemble member Caroline Neff, who returns to the Steppenwolf stage, adding to her extensive Steppenwolf credits including Mr. Wolf, Fool for Love, POTUS and Another Marriage. She is joined by David Darrow, who dazzled Steppenwolf audiences as Mozart in last season's record-breaking Amadeus. Broadway favorite Katrina Lenk, who received Tony and Grammy Awards for her turn in The Band's Visit, returns to Steppenwolf for the first time since 2005's Lost Land. Making her Steppenwolf debut is Chicago actor Wendy Mateo, while Sadieh Rifai returns to Steppenwolf after captivating audiences in last year's You Will Get Sick.

 About the Production:

A gaggle of suburban moms, armed with pickleball paddles and hard kombucha, are ready to take on the school board in the fight of their lives: attempting to ban the controversial books available to their kids in the school library. But is this trusted inner circle all on the same page? A piercing world premiere from a Chicago playwright, Stephanie Alison Walker's Adirondack Chair Circle exposes the hilarious hypocrisy of the causes we claim and the company we keep. And has a damn good time doing it.

The creative team includes Todd Rosenthal (Scenic Design), Izumi Inaba (Costume Design), Barbara Samuels (Lighting Design), Mikhail Fiksel (Sound Design), Nicholas Hussong (Projection Design), Steph Paul (Choreographer), Kate DeVore (Vocal Coach), Bryar Barborka (Dramaturg), Patrick Zakem (Creative Producer), Elise Hausken (Production Manager), JC Clementz, CSA (Casting), Michelle Medvin (Production Stage Manager) and Kathleen Barrett (Assistant Stage Manager). For full cast and creative team bios, click here.

Production Details:

Title: Adirondack Chair Circle
Playwright: Stephanie Alison Walker
Director: Pam MacKinnon
Cast: ensemble member Caroline Neff (Evelyn Grace) with David Darrow (Crow), Katrina Lenk (Banna), Wendy Mateo (Winona) and Sadieh Rifai (Libby).
Understudies: Tiffany Bedwell (Banna), Brittany Burch (Evelyn Grace), Alexandra Casillas (Winona), Warren Duncan (Crow) and Erinn Fredin (Libby).

Location: Steppenwolf's Ensemble Theater, 1646 N. Halsted St., Chicago

Dates: Previews: Thursday, October 22 – Saturday, October 31, 2026
Press performance/Opening: Sunday, November 1, 2026 at 6 pm
Regular run: Tuesday, November 3 – Sunday, December 6, 2026
Curtain Times: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30 pm; and Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be 7:30 pm performances on Tuesday, October 27, Thursday, November 5, Tuesday, November 10, Wednesday, November 18, Wednesday, November 25, Thursday, November 26 and Tuesday, December 1; there will be an added 2 pm matinees on Wednesday, November 25 and Wednesday, December 2.

Tickets: Classic Memberships starting as low as $165 are now on sale for Steppenwolf's 2026/27 season at steppenwolf.org/myseason. Single tickets for Adirondack Chair Circle ($20 – $149*) are now on sale at steppenwolf.org and the Box Office at (312) 335-1650. Steppenwolf Flex Memberships are currently on sale: Black Card Memberships with six tickets for use any time for any production and RED Card Memberships for theatergoers under 30. *Pricing includes an $8.50 handling fee

Steppenwolf offers 20 tickets for $20 (no added fees) for each performance of every Main Series production. Use promo code 20FOR20 to redeem this offer online, available in advance until they're sold out for every main series show. Limit 2 tickets per person. You can also purchase by phone at (312) 335-1650 on the day-of show at 12 pm for main series performances. Limit 2 tickets per person.

Accessible Performance Dates:

Audio-Described and Touch Tour: Sunday, November 22 at 3 pm (1:30 pm Touch Tour)
Open-Captioned: Saturday, November 7 at 3 pm, Thursday, November 19 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, November 28 at 3 pm
ASL-Interpreted: Friday, December 4 at 7:30 pm

Education and Engagement:

Throughout the 2026/27 season, Steppenwolf continues its commitment to the next generation of theatre learners, makers and appreciators with robust education and engagement programming. Programming includes dedicated student matinee performances during four of the five Main Series productions including Topdog/Underdog, Adirondack Chair Circle, The Comeuppance and Ellen B., in-school residencies in partnership with Chicago Public schools, workshops, panels and events specifically geared towards teens, as well as professional development trainings and resources for educators. For additional information about Steppenwolf's Education and Engagement programming and to register your school for a field trip visit steppenwolf.org/education-community/school-teacher-programs/field-trips.

Artist Biographies:

Stephanie Alison Walker (Playwright) is an internationally-produced, award-winning playwright whose work is known for the personalization of the political, humor in darkness and the dramatization of the resilience of women. She is a native Chicagoburbian who has lived all over including London, Buenos Aires, San Juan Island and fifteen years in Los Angeles. She received her Bachelors in English/Creative Writing and Spanish from the University of Colorado and her Master of Professional Writing from the University of California. She began writing plays while working for Fox Theatricals in Chicago. Her play about the housing crisis, American Home, was the inaugural winner of American Blues Theatre's Blue Ink Award. Her play about the mothers of the disappeared in Argentina, The Madres, received a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere at Teatro Vista in Chicago, Skylight Theatre Company in L.A., Moxie Theatre in San Diego and Shrewd Theatre Company in Austin. It was the 2019 Winner of the Francesca Primus Prize, winner of the Ashland New Plays Festival, the Generations Prize and semi-finalist for the CTG/ Humanitas Prize for playwriting. Her follow-up play The Abuelas, premiered at Teatro Vista and was recently adapted into a short film titled The Birthday Gift. The Art of Disappearing was a finalist for the Primus Prize and enjoyed critical praise for the world premiere in Chicago by 16th Street Theater in 2015. Friends with Guns, her play about liberals and gun ownership was an O'Neill Finalist, winner of Best New Play at the 2019 Valley Theatre Awards, and had its Chicago premiere by A Short Leap Theatre Company in 2025. Sophia Hayden Deserves Better tells the story of the architect of the Woman's Building at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago and was recently a part of Gglassfest by Lookingglass Theatre in Chicago. The Ordeal of Water, inspired by the first women to work as Longshoremen at the Port of Los Angeles, was most recently a part of Bay Street Theater's New Works Festival. Adirondack Chair Circle, her play that tackles suburban book-banning moms, was developed at The Inkwell Theater Company and A Red Orchid's Studio at A Red Orchid. Her short plays have been anthologized by Smith & Kraus. Her full-lengths are published by Broadway Publishing, Inc. In addition to writing plays, she is currently adapting Friends with Guns and The Abuelas as features while raising two spirited boys and selling real estate in the suburbs of Chicago. She is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild of America, Honor Roll Playwrights, NNPN Affiliated Artist, and a proud alumni of the Playwrights Union. stephaniealisonwalker.com

Pam MacKinnon (Director) is a Tony, Drama Desk and multi-Obie Award winning director. She is the artistic director of American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. She has directed more than eighty productions. Her Tony Award-winning production of Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? originated at Steppenwolf. Her production of Bruce Norris's Downstate (Steppenwolf, National Theatre and Playwrights Horizons) was celebrated with several Jeff Awards and won Pam her second Obie. She served as president of SDC, the national Union of choreographers and directors.

David Darrow (Crow) Steppenwolf Theatre Company: Amadeus; Off-Broadway: Memnon (Classical Theatre of Harlem), All Is Calm (Drama Desk Award), The Revival (Project Y Theatre); Regional: Over ten productions at The Guthrie including A Little Shop Of Horrors, Juno And The Paycock  and The Tempest; Sweat (ACT); Ragtime, Sweeney Todd, Fiddler on the Roof (Asolo Repertory Theatre); Lookinglass Alice, Twelfth Night (Baltimore Center Stage); Romeo And Juliet (Ten Thousand Things); Television: RJ Decker, Ballard and Cupertino; Education: MFA Grad Acting – Tisch School of the Arts. David has written several musicals which have been developed/produced at theatres around the country.

Katrina Lenk (Banna) Broadway: Company, The Band's Visit (Tony, Grammy, Lucille Lortel Award), Indecent, Once, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, The Miracle Worker. Additional theater credits include: High Spirits (New York City Center Encores!), Indecent (Vineyard, La Jolla Playhouse, Yale Rep), iWitness (Mark Taper Forum), Lost Land (Steppenwolf), Lovelace: A Rock Opera (L.A./Edinburgh). Television: Cupertino, Apples Never Fall, Ozark, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Little Voice, The Good Fight, The Village, Tommy, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order, et al.

Wendy Mateo (Winona) is beyond thrilled to make her Steppenwolf debut. Wendy is the Artistic Director of Teatro Vista Productions (TVP) and a Chicago-based actor, director and filmmaker. An iO and Second City alum, she has been seen on stage in Beyond Caring and Big Lake Big City (Lookingglass Theatre). Her directing work includes The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (Goodman Theatre); ¡Bernarda! (TVP); Mojada (upcoming at Court Theatre). Her TV/film acting credits include Chicago Med, Station Eleven and Widows, while her filmmaking credits include Good Mothers and Hair.

Caroline Neff (Evelyn Grace) is a Steppenwolf ensemble member. At Steppenwolf, she was last seen in Mr. Wolf, Fool for Love, POTUS, Another Marriage, Describe the Night, Seagull, Dance Nation, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, You Got Older, Linda Vista (also Taper Forum and Broadway), The Fundamentals, The Flick, Airline Highway (also Broadway), The Way West, Three Sisters, Annie Bosh is Missing and Where We're Born. Select theatre credits include: Lettie (Jeff Award Best Actor, Victory Gardens Theater); Uncle Vanya (Goodman Theatre); A Brief History of Helen of Troy (Jeff Award for Best Actress), The Knowledge, Harper Regan, In Arabia We'd All Be Kings (Steep Theatre); The Downpour (Route 66 Theatre); Port (Griffin Theatre); 4000 Miles (Northlight Theatre); Moonshiner (Jackalope Theatre). Regional credits include: Peerless (Yale Repertory Theatre). Film and television credits include: Parallax (upcoming Apple tv) FBI, Three Women, Let the Right One In, The Red Line, Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire, Open Tables and Older Children, and heard in multiple Audible Projects such as: Song of the Northwoods, Crowded Hours, Denali and Boar's Nest. She is a proud company member of Steep Theatre and holds her BA from Columbia College.

Sadieh Rifai (Libby) Steppenwolf Theatre: You Will Get Sick, August: Osage County (u/s). The Targeted, Do You Feel Anger, An Evening at the Talk House, Grey House (A Red Orchid). She's performed at theaters such as Goodman, American Theatre Company, Chicago Shakespeare and Milwaukee Repertory. Film: Block Party, Hekla, The Wise Kids, Nate and Margaret, Olympia, All Happy Families. Television: Bettendorf Talks, The Red Line, Chicago Med, Patriot, Shining Girls and Somebody Somewhere. Sadieh received the Princess Grace Award in 2011 & The Princess Grace Fellow in 2026. She's a graduate of The School at Steppenwolf and is represented by Venture and Paonessa Talent.

Accessibility:

As a commitment to make the Steppenwolf experience accessible to everyone, performances featuring American Sign Language Interpretation, Open Captioning and Audio Description are offered during the run of each STC production. Assistive listening devices (ALDs), large-print programs and Braille programs are available for every performance and all our spaces are equipped with an induction hearing loop. Our building features wheelchair accessible seating and restrooms, push-button entrances, a courtesy wheelchair and all-gender restrooms, with accessible counter and table spaces at our bars. For additional information regarding accessibility, visit steppenwolf.org/plan-your-visit/accessibility or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Sponsor Information:

Adirondack Chair Circle is a recipient of the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award. United Airlines is the Official and Exclusive Airline of Steppenwolf. Steppenwolf is also grateful for the significant season support from lead sponsors Allstate Insurance Company, Paul Angell Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Crown Family Philanthropies, Caroline and Keating Crown, Julius Frankel Foundation, Lefkofsky Family Foundation, Northern Trust, Anne and Don Phillips, John Hart and Carol Prins, Shubert Foundation, Inc, and Zell Family Foundation. Steppenwolf also acknowledges generous support from premier sponsors Anonymous, Andrew and Amy Bluhm, Michael and Cathy Brennan, Ann and Richard Carr, Chicago Community Trust, Rich and Margery Feitler, FROST CHICAGO, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Jessica and Dominic Green Family Fund, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Orlebeke Foundation, Sacks Family Foundation, Gary Sinise Foundation, Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Thoma Bravo, and Bryan Traubert and Penny Pritzker. Steppenwolf also acknowledges support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Illinois Arts Council, and the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.   

About Steppenwolf Theatre Company:

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is the nation's premier Ensemble Theater with 51 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field. Thrilling, powerful, groundbreaking productions have made this theatre legendary. From the early phenomenon of Balm in Gilead, to The Grapes of Wrath, August: Osage County, Downstate, The Brother/Sister Plays, and more recently, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Purpose, Steppenwolf Theatre has had a long-running and undeniable impact on American Theatre and Chicago's cultural landscape. Founded in 1974 by Terry Kinney, Jeff Perry and Gary Sinise, Steppenwolf started as a group of friends in their teens and early 20s performing in the basement of a school in Highland Park, Illinois. Today, the company's artistic force remains rooted in the original vision of its founders: an artist-driven theatre, whose vitality is defined by its appetite for bold and innovative work. Every aspect of Steppenwolf is rooted in its Ensemble ethos, from the intergenerational artistic programming to the multi-genre performance series LookOut, to the nationally recognized work of Steppenwolf Education and Engagement which serves nearly 15,000 teens annually. While grounded in the Chicago community, more than 40 original Steppenwolf productions have enjoyed success nationally and internationally, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, London, Sydney, Galway and Dublin. Steppenwolf also holds accolades that include the National Medal of Arts, 14 Tony Awards, two Pulitzer Prize-winning commissions and more. Led by Artistic Directors Glenn Davis and Audrey Francis, Executive Director E. Brooke Flanagan and Board of Trustees Chair Keating Crown — Steppenwolf continually redefines the boundaries of live theater and pushes the limits of acting and performance.

Steppenwolf's Mission: Steppenwolf strives to create thrilling, courageous and provocative art in a thoughtful and inclusive environment. We succeed when we disrupt your routine with experiences that spark curiosity, empathy and joy. We invite you to join our ensemble as we navigate, together, our complex world. steppenwolf.org, facebook.com/steppenwolftheatre, twitter.com/steppenwolfthtr and instagram.com/steppenwolfthtr.