Category: Tracy Letts
Think Fast: Cheyenne Jackson, Red Orchid Theatre, Barbara Gaines, and Superior Donuts
Good news for Old Town’s A Red Orchid Theatre: tickets for their current production Mistakes Were Made (our review here), by Craig Wright, have been selling like hot cakes – so much so that they’ve added an extra Wednesday night performance for all of October. Be sure to check it out before it closes on October 31st. Mistakes Were Made stars Michael Shannon, and is directed by Dexter Bullard. (h/t Chris Jones)
Check out the interview with Chicago Shakes artistic director (and founder) Barbara Gaines regarding her direction of the company’s current production, Richard III. Well worth the read.
The Daily Beast has posted a rave review of Tracy Letts’ Superior Donuts, which played last year to positive reviews at Steppenwolf. An excerpt:
Letts and his cast can breathe deeply today. While a far less ambitious play than August, with its three-story set and sprawling cast, Superior Donuts is no less successful for what it aims to be: a tender, funny, and often tragic valentine to Letts’ Chicago in a time of intense cultural change. Fans of August won’t find that play’s heavy, gut-wrenching revelations here, but Donuts was always intended to be a smaller, lighter effort, as delightful and sweet as a doughnut itself. The play, which Letts began writing even before August, earned positive reviews when it first opened in Chicago with the same cast in July 2008, and after a year of Letts’ tweaks and rewrites, it may be even better….
Read the entire review here.
Per Perez Hilton:
Tina Fey’s brilliant comedy, 30 Rock, may be getting the one thing it’s severely lacking – a hot piece of eye candy!
Rumors are circulating that Broadway hottie, openly gay and successful actor Cheyenne Jackson, will allegedly be joining the cast in a semi or possibly a completely permanent capacity.
For those of you who don’t live and die by the goings on of the Great White Way, Cheyenne has been in productions like Xanadu and All Shook Up!.
More here.
Broadway in Chicago announces 2010 season
Broadway In Chicago has announced their complete 2010 Broadway In Chicago Season Series. Shows included in the 2010 Season Series are Billy Elliot the Musical (website), Shrek The Musical (website), August: Osage County,(website), NETworks presentation of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, and The 39 Steps. Season subscriptions go on sale Sunday, September 13, 2009 at 10 a.m. Below is a sampling of pictures from some of these upcoming shows.
Feb 2: August: Osage County
March 18: Billy Elliot the Musical
June 1: Shrek the Musical
The 39 Steps
FYI: For The 39 Steps, no dates were supplied.
Think Fast: Michael McKean, Jonas Brothers, CSO and ‘Peter Pan the Musical’
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August: Osage County set to close on Broadway
August: Osage County, written by Steppenwolf ensemble member Tracy Letts, winner of five 2008 Tony Awards, as well as the 2008 Pulitzer Prize, and currently starring Tony and Emmy award winner Phylicia Rashad, will play its final performance on SUNDAY, JUNE 28th, 2009. It will have played 648 performances and 18 previews, surpassing The Heidi Chronicles, Master Class, The Real Thing, and Doubt, among many others, to become one of the longest running plays in Broadway history.
August: Osage County will begin its National Tour, starring Academy award winner Estelle Parsons, at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts on July 24th, 2009, before travelling to more than 18 locations all around the country. For more information and dates, please visit WWW.AUGUSTONBROADWAY.COM.
The show currently boasts the most Award winning cast on Broadway: Tony winners Phylicia Rashad (“The Cosby Show”, Raisin in the Sun, Gem of the Ocean), John Cullum (Urinetown, Shenandoah, On the Twentieth Century), Elizabeth Ashley (Dividing the Estate, The Best Man), and Frank Wood (Side Man), with Original Cast member (and Tony nominee) Amy Morton, and Anne Berkowitz, Guy Boyd, Kimberly Guerrero, Brian Kerwin, Michael Milligan, Sally Murphy, Mariann Mayberry, and Troy West.
The original Broadway company, directed by Anna D. Shapiro, featured Ian Barford, Deanna Dunagan, Kimberly Guerrero, Francis Guinan, Brian Kerwin, Dennis Letts, Madeleine Martin, Mariann Mayberry, Amy Morton, Sally Murphy, Jeff Perry, Rondi Reed and Troy West, with understudies Munson Hicks, Susanne Marley, Jay Patterson, Dee Pelletier, Molly Ranson and Kristina Valada-Viars.
The design team included Todd Rosenthal (sets), Ana Kuzmanic (costumes), Ann Wrightson (lights), Richard Woodbury (sound) and David Singer (original music).
The production received 5 Tony Awards, including Best Play, Best Director of a Play – Anna D. Shapiro, Best Actress in a Play – Deanna Dunagan, Best Featured Actress in a Play – Rondi Reed, and Best Set Design of a Play – Todd Rosenthal.
August: Osage County welcomed many prestigious new cast members throughout its run, including Academy Award winner Estelle Parsons, Tony Award winners John Cullum, Elizabeth Ashley, and Frank Wood. The cast also welcomed Tony nominee Johanna Day, Robert Foxworth, Molly Regan, Michael McGuire, Michael Milligan, Guy Boyd, Scott Jaeck, Anne Berkowitz, Samantha Ross, Jim True-Frost, and Amy Warren, with understudies Aaron Serotsky, Stephen Payne, Avia Bushyhead, Frank Deal, and Emily Walton.
Chicago Theater – Best of 2008 (Chicago Sun-Times)
Hedy Weiss, theater-critic extraordinaire for the Chicago Sun-Times, has put together an excellent list of her 10 favorite plays of 2008. Along with the list, Hedy notes the wonderful year Chicago theater has had on the national stage:
…this was the year that Steppenwolf Theatre picked up five Tony Awards for its Chicago-bred Broadway production of Tracy Letts‘ “August: Osage County” before the cast crossed the pond to remount the show at London’s National Theatre, and when the Chicago Shakespeare Theater was feted with the “Best Regional Theater” Tony.
Continuing:
But that was just the beginning. Next Theatre‘s production of the new musical “Adding Machine,” was hailed in its Off Broadway incarnation, with director David Cromer racking up plaudits for his work on that show, as well as for his revelatory revivals of “Our Town” (at the Hypocrites) and “Picnic” (at Writers’ Theatre). Profiles championed the work of incendiary playwright Neil LaBute to grand effect. Remy Bumppo earned laughs with its tale of financial chicanery in a revival of an Edwardian classic, “The Voysey Inheritance.” And director Sean Graney experimented boldy with productions of “The Threepenny Opera” and Marlowe‘s “Edward II.”
Now here are Hedy Weiss’s favorite productions in 2008:
| 1. | Caroline or Change (Court Theatre) by Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori Standouts: Charles Newell (director), Doug Peck (musical director); performances: Malcolm Durning, E.Faye Butler |
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| 2. | Ruined (Goodman Theatre) by Lynn Nottage Weiss comments: Worthy of a Pulitzer Prize, the play will soon move to New York’s Manhattan Theatre Club. |
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| 3. | Gatz (Elevator Repair Service Theatre) by John Collins |
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| 4. | Our Town (The Hypocrites) by Thornton Wilder Standouts: David Cromer (director) |
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| 5. | Requiem for a Heavyweight (Shattered Globe) by Rod Serling Standouts: Lou Contey (director) |
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| 6. | Amadeus (Chicago Shakespeare) by Peter Schaffer Standouts: Gary Griffin (director), Daniel Ostling (set designer); performances: Robert Sella, Robbi Collier Sublett, Elizabeth Ledo, Lance Baker |
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| 7. | As You Like It (Writers’ Theatre) by William Shakespeare Standouts: William Brown (director), Performance: Larry Yando |
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| 8. | Drowsy Chaperone (Cadillac Palace Theater) by Laura Wade Standouts: Casey Nicholaw (director) |
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| 9. | Around the World in 80 Days (Lookingglass) Standouts: Laura Eason (adaptor/director); Performances: Philip R. Smith, Kevin Douglas, Joe Dempsey, Ravi Batista, Anish Jethmalani, Ericka Ratcliff, Nick Sandys and Rom Barkhordar |
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| 10. | Columbinus (Raven Theatre) by Stephen Karam and P.J. Paparelli Standouts: Greg Kolack (director); Performances: Matthew Klingler and Jamie Abelson |
To see the Hedy Weiss’s complete description and thoughts on her favorite plays, click here.
2008 After Dark Awards Announced!
Gay Chicago Magazine has just announced this year’s After Dark Awards. Below is an abbreviated list. For the complete list, as well as production photos, go to Venus Zarris’s website: Chicago State Review
Best Production
Passion Play: A Cycle in Three Parts (Goodman Theatre)
The Mark of Zorro (Lifeline Theatre)
Hunchback (Redmoon Theatre)
Outstanding New Work
Sarah Ruhl - Passion Play: A Cycle in Three Parts (Goodman Theatre)
Anna Carini – Sweet Confinement (SiNNERMAN Ensemble)
Tracy Letts – Superior Donuts (Steppenwolf Theatre)
Outstanding Adaptation
Shishir Kurup – Merchant on Venice (Silk Road Project)
Devon de Mayo and Ensemble – As Told By The Vivian Girls (Dog & Pony Theatre)
Outstanding Musical
Old Town (Strawdog Theatre)
Outstanding Direction
David Cromer – Our Town (Hypocrites Theatre)
John Mossman – Juno and the Paycock (Artistic Home)
Anna Bahow – Sweet Confinement (SiNNERMAN Ensemble)
Peter Robel – Merchant of Venice (Bohemian Theatre Ensemble)
Outstanding Direction of a Musical
Fred Anzevino – “Cabaret” and Jacque Brel’s Lonesome Losers of the Night (Theo Ubique Theatre)
Outstanding Musical Direction
Joshua Stephen Kartes – Jacque Brel’s Lonesome Losers of the Night (Theo Ubique Theatre)
Outstanding Performance in a Play
Jennifer Grace – Our Town (Hypocrites Theatre)
Mark Ulrich – Juno and the Paycock (Artistic Home)
Nicole Wiesner – Passion Play: A Cycle in Three Parts (Goodman Theatre)
Keland Scher – Much Ado About Nothing (First Folio Theatre)
Madeline Long – Soldiers: The Desert Stand (LiveWire Chicago Theatre)
Sadieh Rafai – Speech and Debate (American Theatre Company)
Jeremy Sher – Hunchback (Redmoon Theatre)
Annabel Armour – Fiction (Remy Bumppo)
Jenn Remke – Resort 76 (Infamous Commonwealth)
Andy Hager – Red Light Winter (Thunder and Lightning Ensemble)
Polly Noonan – Passion Play: A Cycle in Three Parts (Goodman Theatre)
Nick Vatterott – Love is Dead: A NecRomantic Musical Comedy (Annoyance Theatre)
Adam Kander – The Merchant of Venice (Bohemian Theatre Ensemble)
Outstanding Performance in a Musical or Review
E. Faye Butler – Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Goodman Theatre)
Kat McDonnell – Old Town (Strawdog Theatre)
Summer Smart – Sweet Charity (Drury Lane Oakbrook)
Bethany Thomas – Nine (Porchlight Music Theatre)
Outstanding Ensemble
Emma (Trapdoor Theatre)
As Told by the Vivian Girls (Dog & Pony Theatre)
Juno and the Paycock (The Artistic Home)
Sweet Confinement (SiNNERMAN Ensemble)
Superior Donuts (Steppenwolf Theatre)
For the complete listing of all 2008 After Dark Awards, including full descriptions and great pictures, go to my friend Venus Zarris’s theatre blog: www.chicagostagereview.com. Go Venus!!
Steppenwolf’s "AOC" – National Tour planned
The producers of the Purlitzer Prize winning, 7-time Tony-nominated August: Osage County, written by Chicago playwright Tracy Letts (and directed by Steppenwolf’s Anne D. Shapiro), have just announced that they will be mounting a national tour of the play in 2009,
The tour’s first stop will be San Francisco’s Curran Theatre, August 11th-September 6th, 2009. Subsequent 2009 engagements have yet to be announced.
Although August premiered here in Chicago, and enjoyed a sold-out extended run at Steppenwolf Theatre, I’m hoping that the tour will make a pit stop back in the Windy City. I would definitely love to see it again!
August: Osage County can currently be seen on Broadway at The Music Box Theatre on 45th Street. More info is available here.
Chicago Tribune’s Top Plays of 2007
In alphabetical order, here are the Chicago Tribune’s choices for the top 10 plays of 2007:
The Adding Machine
(Next Theatre – and soon Off-Broadway)
August: Osage County
(Steppenwolf – and now receiving rave reviews on Broadway)
Between Barack and a Hard Place
(Second City)
The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow
(Collaboraction)
Joe Turner’s Come and Gone
(Congo Square)
Merchant on Venice
(Silk Road Theatre Project)
Othello
(Writers Theatre)
Shenendoah
(Marriott Theatre)
The Sparrow
(House Theatre)
A Stead Rain
(Chicago Dramatists)
To see further discussion regarding each show, go to Chris Jones’ The Theater Loop blog posting.
“August: Osage County” racks up 6 Jeff Awards!
While director Anna Shapiro was busy in New York, in the middle of previews for Steppenwolf Theatre’s “August: Osage County” Broadway run, the original Chicago production handedly took home 6 Jeff Awards for the Tracy Letts’ play, including:
* Best Production
* Best Ensemble
* Best New Work: Tracy Letts
* Best Director: Anna D. Shapiro
* Best Actress in a Principal Role: Deanna Dunagan
* Best Scenic Design: Todd Rosenthal
Congratulations to Steppenwolf for these much-deserved awards!
Speaking of “August….”, Steppenwolf has posted a new video on YouTube – a rough interview with some of the ensemble members (Jeff Perry, Francis Guinan, Amy Morton and Mariann Mayberry) regarding the process of bringing the play to New York. Check it out…
