Displaying items by tag: Namir Smallwood

Steppenwolf Theatre Company, the nation's premier ensemble theater company, is pleased to continue its 50th Anniversary Season with Windfall, a gripping new work by Academy Award-winning ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney, directed by Awoye Timpo, playing April 9 – May 31, 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, April 19, 2026 at 6 pm.

Windfall reunites ensemble members Alana Arenas, Glenn Davis and Jon Michael Hill, who starred in Steppenwolf's Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Purpose, joined by ensemble member Namir Smallwood, direct from his Broadway turn in Bug opposite ensemble member Carrie Coon. Additional casting to be announced.

About the Production:

This is a story about money. Don't let them fool you otherwise. When a father loses his child in a clash with the police, he is visited by three strangers who advise him to take the city's cash settlement, relocate and forget his grief – or else remain, haunted by memories of the world his child fought so hard to protect. This lyrical world premiere is a vital and timely look at the spirit of activism set against the most indifferent system of them all: the almighty dollar.

Steppenwolf Artistic Directors Glenn Davis and Audrey Francis comment, "When we commissioned ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney to write a new play specifically built for our in-the-round Ensemble Theater as a centerpiece of Steppenwolf's 50th season, we weren't sure what he'd create. But, given that Tarell is one of the most talented writers of his generation, we were not at all surprised that he delivered a stunning, lyrical and undeniably bold script. This is a play for our moment, for our city, tailor made for an ensemble cast and this unique venue. We eagerly anticipate sharing this vital Chicago story with our community."

The creative team includes Andrew Boyce (Scenic Design), Qween Jean (Costume Design), Jason Lynch (Lighting Design), Willow James (Sound Design), Bryar Barborka (Dramaturg), Patrick Zakem (Creative Producer), Tom Pearl (Producing Director), 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: Windfall
Playwright: ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney
Director: Awoye Timpo
Cast: ensemble members Alana Arenas (First Lady, Second Wife, Miss Second, The Last One) Glenn Davis (Marcus), Jon Michael Hill (Nurse, Cori) and Namir Smallwood (Officer, Brother 1). Additional casting to be announced.

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

Dates: Previews: Thursday, April 9 – Saturday, April 18, 2026
Opening: Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 6 pm
Regular run: Tuesday, April 21 – Sunday, May 31, 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, April 14, Wednesday, April 22, Tuesday, April 28, Tuesday, May 5, Saturday, May 9 (Steppenwolf Gala) and Tuesday, May 26; there will not be at 3 pm performance on Saturday, May 9 (Steppenwolf Gala); there will be an added 7:30 pm performance on Sunday, April 26; there will be an added 2 pm matinee on Wednesday, May 20.

Tickets: Single tickets for Windfall ($20 – $148.50*) are now on sale at steppenwolf.org and the Box Office at (312) 335-1650. Steppenwolf Flex Memberships are currently on sale at steppenwolf.org/memberships: 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 membership 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, May 24 at 3 pm (1:30 pm Touch Tour)
Open-Captioned: Saturday, May 16 at 3 pm & Thursday, May 21 at 7:30 pm
ASL-Interpreted: Friday, May 29 at 7:30 pm

Education and Engagement:

Throughout the 2025/26 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 Membership Series productions including Mr. Wolf, Amadeus, The Dance of Death and Windfall, 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. Additionally, Steppenwolf is reimagining their community engagement and will pilot new public programming, continue accessibility programming and offer opportunities for deeper explorations for audiences throughout the season. For additional information about Steppenwolf's Education and Engagement programming and to register your school for a field trip visit steppenwolf.org/education-and-engagement/steppenwolf-field-trip-series.

Artist Biographies:

Tarell Alvin McCraney (Playwright, he/him) is Artistic Director of Geffen Playhouse. In this role, he is responsible for identifying, developing and programming new works and re-envisioned classics. He sets the strategic artistic course for the Geffen's Gil Cates and Audrey Skirball Kenis Theaters. McCraney is an award-winning writer, producer and educator, best known for his acclaimed trilogy, The Brother/Sister Plays. His script In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue is the basis for the Oscar–winning film Moonlight directed by Barry Jenkins, for which McCraney and Jenkins also won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar. He is an ensemble member at Steppenwolf Theatre and a member of Teo Castellanos D-Projects in Miami, a graduate of New World School of the Arts, The Theatre School at DePaul University and the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale. He received an honorary doctorate from the University of Warwick. He was recently Co-Chair of Playwriting at the David Geffen School of Drama, where he remains on faculty. He is an associate at the Royal Shakespeare Company, London, and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Writers Branch).

Awoye Timpo (Director) is a Brooklyn-based Director and Producer. She recently directed Ngozi Anyanwu's Leroy & Lucy at the Steppenwolf. Her recent New York credits include The Swamp Dwellers by Wole Soyinka (TFANA), Syncing Ink by NSangou Njikam (Apollo Theater), Elyria by Deepa Purohit (Atlantic Theater), Wedding Band by Alice Childress (Theatre for a New Audience), In Old Age by Mfoniso Udofia (New York Theatre Workshop), Carnaval by Nikkole Salter (National Black Theatre), Good Grief by Ngozi Anyanwu (Vineyard Theatre and Audible) and The Homecoming Queen by Ngozi Anyanwu (Atlantic Theater Company). Regionally she has directed at the Huntington, Studio Theatre, Paradise Blue, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Berkeley Rep, Marin Theatre Company. Other projects include concert performances for independent artists as well as for the NBA, Ndebele Funeral (59E59, Edinburgh, South African Tour), "Black Picture Show" (Artists Space/Metrograph), and Bluebird Memories (Audible). Awoye is a Creative Arts Consultant for the African American Policy Forum and the Founding Producer of Classix, a collective of 5 artists created to explode the classical canon through an exploration of dramatic works by Black writers and Black performance history, theclassix.org.

Alana Arenas (First Lady, Second Wife, Miss Second, The Last One) joined the Steppenwolf Theatre Company ensemble in 2007. She most recently appeared in Steppenwolf's world premiere of Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins in Chicago and on Broadway (Tony Award – Best Play). Alana also created the role of Pecola Breedlove for the Steppenwolf for Young Adults production of The Bluest Eye, which also played at the New Victory Theater Off-Broadway. Recent Steppenwolf appearances include: the Steppenwolf for Young Adults production of Monster, The Fundamentals, Marie Antoinette, Tribes, Belleville, Head of Passes, Good People, Three Sisters, The March, Man in Love, Middletown, The Hot L Baltimore, The Etiquette of Vigilance, The Brother/Sister Plays, The Tempest, The Crucible, Spare Change and The Sparrow Project. Broadway: Purpose. Other theatre credits include Disgraced (American Theater Company), The Arabian Nights (Lookingglass Theatre Company, Berkeley Repertory Theatre and Kansas City Repertory Theatre), Eyes (eta Creative Arts), SOST (MPAACT), WVON (Black Ensemble Theater) and Hecuba (Chicago Shakespeare Theater). Television and film credits include David Makes Man, Canal Street, Crisis, Boss, The Beast, Kabuku Rides and Lioness of Lisabi. She is originally from Miami, Florida, where she began her training at the New World School of the Arts. Alana holds a BFA from The Theatre School at DePaul University.

Glenn Davis (Marcus) is an actor, producer and Artistic Director of Steppenwolf Theatre Company, alongside Audrey Francis, where he has been an ensemble member since 2017. He most recently appeared in Steppenwolf's world premiere of Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins in Chicago and on Broadway (Tony Award – Best Play, Tony nomination – Best Featured Actor). Other Steppenwolf credits include Downstate, The Christians, You Got Older, The Brother/Sister Plays, Head of Passes, King James (also Mark Taper Forum), Describe the Night. Broadway credits include: Purpose; Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo (also Kirk Douglas Theatre, Mark Taper Forum). Off-Broadway credits include Transfers (MCC Theatre), Wig Out! (Vineyard Theatre), Downstate (Playwrights Horizons, Outer Critics Circle Nomination) and King James (MTC). Other regional credits include Moscow x6 (Williamstown Theatre Festival). International credits include Downstate (National Theatre, UK); Edward II, The Winter's Tale and As You Like It (Stratford Festival); Othello (The Shakespeare Company). Television credits include Billions, 24, The Unit, Jericho and The Good Wife. Glenn is an Artistic Associate at the Young Vic in London and at the Vineyard Theatre in New York. He is also a partner in Cast Iron Entertainment, a collective of artists consisting of Sterling K Brown, Brian Tyree Henry, Jon Michael Hill, Andre Holland and Tarell Alvin McCraney. Cast Iron is currently in residence at The Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. In 2021, Glenn founded The Chatham Grove Company along with his producing partner Tarell Alvin McCraney.

Jon Michael Hill (Nurse, Cori) joined the Steppenwolf Theatre Company ensemble in 2007. He most recently appeared in Steppenwolf's world premiere of Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins in Chicago and on Broadway (Tony Award – Best Play, Tony nomination – Lead Actor). Steppenwolf Theatre Company: Leroy and Lucy, True West (also Galway Arts Festival), Pass Over, Constellations, Head of Passes, The Hot L Baltimore, The Tempest, Kafka on the Shore, The Unmentionables. Broadway: Purpose, Superior Donuts, Pass Over. Off-Broadway: The Refuge Plays (New York Theatre Workshop) Pass Over (Lincoln Center). Film: Pass Over, Widows, In The Radiant City, No Pay, Nudity. Television: A Man in Full (Netflix), Elementary (CBS), Detroit 1-8-7 (ABC), Eastbound and Down (HBO), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC) and Person of Interest (CBS).

Namir Smallwood (Officer, Brother 1) joined the Steppenwolf Theatre Company ensemble in 2017. He is currently starring in ensemble member Tracy Letts's Bug on Broadway opposite, ensemble member Carrie Coon. Steppenwolf: Mr. Wolf, You Will Get Sick, The Book of Grace, Seagull, Bug, True West, BLKS, Monster, Man In Love, The Hot L Baltimore, Last Night and the Night Before. Broadway: Pass Over, Bug. Off Broadway: Pipeline, Pass Over (Lincoln Center). Chicago: The Lost Boys of Sudan (Victory Gardens Theater); Charm (Northlight Theatre); The Grapes of Wrath (The Gift Theatre); East Texas Hot Links (Writers Theatre). Regional: Marin Theatre Company, Pillsbury House Theatre, Ten Thousand Things, Guthrie Theater. International: True West (Galway International Arts Festival). Television: Chicago Fire, Betrayal, Elementary, American Rust (Showtime/FreeVee); Power Book IV: Force (STARZ). Film: Rounding.

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/access or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Sponsor Information:

Windfall is supported in part by Conagra Brands Foundation, Laurents/Hatcher Foundation, and CNA. 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 M. Angell Family 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, Walder Foundation, 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, Steven and Nancy Crown, Conagra Brands Foundation, Rich and Margery Feitler, FROST CHICAGO, Joyce Foundation, Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, The Orlebeke Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, Bryan Traubert and Penny Pritzker, Sacks Family Foundation, Smart Family Foundation of Illinois, and Vinci Restaurant. Steppenwolf also acknowledges support from the 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 49 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field. Thrilling, powerful, groundbreaking productions have made this theatre legendary. From the 1980 phenomenon of Balm in Gilead, to The Grapes of Wrath, August: Osage County, Downstate, The Brother/Sister Plays, and now, the 2025 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Purpose, Steppenwolf Theatre has had a long-running and undeniable impact on American Theater and Chicago's cultural landscape. Founded in 1976, Steppenwolf started as a group of teens performing in the basement of a church. 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 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.

Rajiv Joseph’s Mr. Wolf is a striking departure from the warmth and humor of his recent King James. Where King James used the comfort of sports as a language of friendship, Mr. Wolf asks us to sit inside the fragile, fractured space of trauma. In Steppenwolf’s intimate production, ensemble member K. Todd Freeman directs with an unflinching precision that refuses to soften the material. His approach creates a space where silence weighs as heavily as dialogue, where each pause presses the audience closer to the raw pulse of grief, survival, and uneasy healing. This is a small play set against a very large world, and its intimacy makes it resonant.

The play centers on Theresa (Emilie Maureen Hanson), a teenager recently rescued after twelve years of captivity. Her abductor, Mr. Wolf (Tim Hopper), is not only a predator but also an astronomy professor who reshaped her entire worldview with cosmic metaphors, rigid theories, and apocalyptic visions. For Theresa, the cosmos—and Mr. Wolf—are inseparable. He does not see the stars as sources of wonder but as proof of his twisted logic.

Mr. Wolf bends the language of science into a doctrine of control. Whereas most scientists keep religion and science in separate spheres, he blurs that boundary, turning the vastness of the universe into a kind of scripture. He declares Theresa a prophetess of the cosmos, teaching her to view the stars not through physics and wonder but through his rigid, apocalyptic framework. Hopper embodies this chilling certainty with unnerving precision, a man who once lectured on the heavens but now orbits entirely within his own delusions.

Now reunited with her parents—Hana (Kate Arrington) and Michael (Namir Smallwood)—Theresa must navigate a world that feels as alien as the galaxies she once studied under his command. Julie (Caroline Neff), Michael’s new wife, hovers between empathy and helplessness, unsure how to reach someone marked by unspeakable experience while quietly grappling with her own grief.

The acting is superb across the board. Hanson captures Theresa’s uneasy balance of fragility and resilience. Arrington and Smallwood embody grief in contrasting shades—Arrington’s sharp-edged regret against Smallwood’s wounded stoicism—while Neff supplies a warmth the others cannot. Hopper, disturbingly calm as Mr. Wolf, delivers control with the cool precision of a man who has transformed astronomy into a theology of delusion.

The design team amplifies this unsettling intimacy. Walt Spangler’s set suggests a world we recognize—rooms, walls, familiar structures—that have splintered into pieces. Watching the play, we feel as though we are tasked with reassembling it, just as the characters try to piece together their broken lives. Dede Ayite’s costumes root the play in ordinariness, and Josh Schmidt’s sound and original music create an undercurrent of wonder. Rasean Davonté Johnson’s projections echo the celestial images that once defined Theresa’s captivity, lingering like ghosts of her indoctrination.

Freeman’s direction sharpens the play’s unease into something inescapable. Rather than offering distance, he compels the audience to witness the jagged rhythms of survival. Where King James thrived on joy and connection, Mr. Wolf strips us down to silence and difficult truths. It is a play less about resolution than endurance, and in Steppenwolf’s hands, it becomes a stark reminder of how trauma ripples outward—and how putting the pieces back together is never simple, but always necessary.

RECOMMENDED

When: Through Nov. 2nd

Where: Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St.

Running Time: 90 minutes

Tickets: $20 - $133.50

312-355-1650

www.steppenwolf.org

*This review is also shared on https://www.theatreinchicago.com/!  

If ever given the chance to see Amy Morton on her home stage at Steppenwolf–take it. She stars in the Chicago premiere of Noah Diaz’s ‘You Will Get Sick’ alongside fellow ensemble members Cliff Chamberlain, Namir Smallwood, Jordan Arredondo and Sadieh Rifai. Steppenwolf Theatre Artistic Director Audrey Francis directs this inventive new production with theatricality and compassion.

‘You Will Get Sick’ comes from writer and screenwriter Noah Diaz. It was previously seen at The Roundabout Theatre in which the late Linda Lavin starred to rave reviews. It’s the oddball story of a man with a secret (Namir Smallwood) who pays a woman (Amy Morton) to have uncomfortable conversations with the people in his life. At first the woman seems only motivated by money, but in time she becomes his unlikely confidant. The woman is preoccupied with her own dreams of starring in a local production of ‘The Wizard of Oz’. As his condition worsens, they live under the constant threat of attack from giant birds overhead.

The list of things that make this play unique is much longer than the list of things that make it familiar. On one hand, it’s not hard to draw a connection between the man’s wasting illness and his new friend’s obsession with being Dorothy Gale in ‘The Wizard of Oz’. This a story about a queer man and the illness that he will eventually succumb to. All the while, an off-stage narrator gives the internal stage directions for how the man feels. Each actor embodies several other unnamed characters that revolve around him in some way.

Sadieh Rifai portrays a handful of zany characters from nurses to new age theatre teachers, but as his sister receives bad news from Amy Morton’s character, her fury is electrifying. Rifai makes the most of Diaz’s gallows humor. Amy Morton’s performance is the centerpiece of the play though. As with her co-stars she wears a few unnamed character’s hats throughout the show, but as what’s described as “an older woman” who’s both a profit-driven jerk and a reliable caregiver–she’s complex and utterly realistic.

Diaz makes a point with ‘You Will Get Sick’ that illness in our society is seen as a moral failing. The man is ashamed for people to know he’s ill, but he’s even more embarrassed of his failing limbs. Namir Smallwood is heartbreaking as a man so lonely he has to pay people to be kind. Conversely, Cliff Chamberlain hilariously plays a swirl of toxically positive characters that seem to only exist to annoy those dealing with traumatic reality.

There’s something hard to define about ‘You Will Get Sick’, but instead of wondering what it’s about, perhaps Diaz wants you to feel what it’s about. Between the dreamy dialogue and Audrey Francis’ sumptuous vision for this production, there’s an emotional energy on stage that is quite literally magic in some parts. Even though there is tragedy in life, what this play explores is what can grow out of that and what parts of people do we carry with us after they’re gone?

Through July 20 at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. 1650 N Halsted St. 312-335-1650

*This review is also featured on https://www.theatreinchicago.com/! 

Eboni Booth’s 2024 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Primary Trust is a deeply introspective and bittersweet exploration of abandonment, routine, and the disorienting reality of sudden change. Directed with sensitivity by Malkia Stampley in her Goodman debut, the production skillfully tells the story of Kenneth, a quiet, unassuming man in his late 30s who has spent his entire life working at a single bookstore. When the shop closes, Kenneth is forced to confront not only the uncertainty of unemployment but also the emotional abandonment that surfaces as his stable, predictable world unravels. The closure of the bookstore, along with his long-standing isolation, pushes Kenneth to face a future where the comforting routines and relationships he once relied on are gone, underscoring the profound effects of abandonment in his life.

Namir Smallwood’s portrayal of Kenneth is truly extraordinary. He captures the character’s quiet vulnerability, depicting a man whose life revolves around the safety of a small, predictable world. Smallwood infuses Kenneth with a subtle yet profound emotional depth, inviting the audience to experience both his fear of change and his intense longing for connection. His interactions, especially with his imaginary friend Bert, reveal Kenneth’s deep-seated need for stability and companionship. Bravo!

Charles Andrew Gardner plays Bert, Kenneth’s imaginary friend and a manifestation of his internal struggles. Gardner’s portrayal is warm and engaging, bringing a sense of playfulness and hope to the otherwise heavy emotional landscape. The dynamic between Smallwood and Gardner is captivating, with Bert acting as both a comforting presence and a stark reminder of Kenneth’s profound isolation. Gardner brings a lightness to the role that underscores the bittersweet nature of Kenneth’s imaginary companionship.

Christiana Clark is impressive in her portrayal of 27 characters, most notably Corrina, a waitress at a bar where Kenneth frequently dines. Clark brings a vibrant energy to her roles, providing Kenneth with moments of real, tangible connection. Her Corrina is kind but grounded, gently pushing Kenneth to consider the world beyond his limited bubble. Clark’s range is showcased as she shifts between 27 (you read that) 27 different personas, offering a fresh perspective to each new character.

Fred Zimmerman also takes on multiple roles, including Kenneth’s boss, Clay, and various other characters. His versatility adds depth and dimension to the play’s supporting cast, each character uniquely distinct and contributing to Kenneth’s journey. Zimmerman’s performance helps fill out the world of Primary Trust with a sense of realism and gentle humor.

Mike Przygoda’s onstage musicianship brings a delicate, almost whimsical layer to the production. His understated presence as the tiki bar musician, playing late 90s top 40 hits, highlights key emotional moments in Kenneth’s journey. The music acts as an emotional echo, amplifying Kenneth’s solitude and brief glimpses of hope.

Lex Liang’s set design perfectly captures the small town of Cranberry, N.Y. where Kenneth lives. He brilliantly makes the town feel even smaller through his presence. Heather Gilbert’s lighting design enhances this with soft, natural tones and hints of color that create a sense of warmth while subtly highlighting a sense of hope.

Malkia Stampley’s direction allows the story to unfold at a measured pace, giving space for the quiet moments to resonate. She lets the production breathe as she skillfully balances the play’s themes of abandonment, loneliness and hope, guiding the audience through Kenneth’s gradual self-realization with care and empathy. The delicate interplay between reality and fantasy is handled with a light touch, allowing the audience to feel immersed in Kenneth’s internal world without losing sight of the story’s emotional core.

Primary Trust is a moving and tender exploration of a fragile man struggling to cope with the sudden upheaval of his carefully structured life. With an outstanding cast and an inspired creative team, the production offers a quiet yet profound reflection on human connection, personal growth, courage, and the essential need for primary trust. Yeah, it’s okay to not be okay.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

When: Through Nov. 3

Where: Goodman Theatre 170 N. Dearborn

Tickets: $25 - $40

Infor:www.goodmantheatre.org/show/primary-trust/

In the dark of night, a man is digging a hole. Once the hole is deep enough he drops a bundle into it and covers it with dirt. Behind him a little girl looks on. After re-filling the hole, he walks off.

Scene.

It is early morning. We are in a well-appointed home. In fact, it is an updated Brooklyn brownstone. Brooklyn is my home. I would know it anywhere. The exterior stands stately and proud. The interior is right out of Architectural Digest magazine. There is a floor thru kitchen leading to a dining area. Behind the dining area is a slide away door leading to an office.  Scenic Designer Regina Garcia did a fantastic job conveying not only this apartment, but also the street where it lives. This is the home of Nadima (Jessica Dean Turner) and her lover Rachel (Sydney Charles). Theirs is a happy, solid home, at least it is staged that way. Rachel is a New York City school teacher and Nadima, is a real estate agent, she’s used to staging homes for sale.

When Nadima answers the front door and sees Monique (Ayanna Bria Bakari), her lover’s sister, she practically shuts the door in her face. There is history between these two and it creates much needed tension in this play. It is Rachel who invites her sister Monique and Sam (Kylah Renee Jones, Aliyana Nicole alternately), her niece, into the house. After negotiating with her lover, Rachel allows Monique and Sam to stay, only for Monique to create a convoluted story and leave without Sam a few days later in the middle of the night. 

“Last Night….” takes us back to those nights before life spiraled out of control for this family. We meet Reggie (Namir Smallwood), Monique’s boyfriend, and Sam’s father. We see the love between Reggie and Monique before Sam’s birth.  We see Reggie and Sam playing hand games, games meant to calm as well as teach Sam about life. Whose memories these flashbacks are isn’t quite clear. Through conversations with Nadima we learn of Rachel and Monique’s upbringing. We learn of generational traumas they had to bear, and the guilt Rachel has for her escape... We also start to see this once solid relationship show signs of weakness.

Director Valerie Curtis-Newton has assembled an excellent cast whose major job is supporting the child character of Sam. Sam is the raison d’ étre of “Last Night….”   It is a lot to put on a child, but Jones (on opening night) shows she has the acting chops to not only play this role but to shine in it.

In my opinion, Donnetta Lavinia Grays’ “Last Night….” suffers from a lack of a clear antagonist. There are some beautiful lines and certain scenes are precious, but it lacks a certain dramatic immediacy. Other than Sam, we never spend enough time to truly care for these characters. They seem to have it all figured out anyway, after all, the real problem is buried. The rest is just life.

When: Through May 14

Where: Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St.

Tickets: $48 - $88

Info:  steppenwolf.org

“A man came by chance, saw it, and destroyed it” repeats Chekhov in his psychological melodrama “The Seagull”. Such a simple phrase says so much about the ways humans can treat one another. Steppenwolf Theatre revives the classic play under the title “Seagull” in a new adaptation by company member Yasen Peyankov who also serves as the director. Steppenwolf invites audiences to their new impressive theater space for its inaugural production. The cast primarily features ensemble members in what feels like a celebration of Steppenwolf’s rich legacy.

“Seagull” is a great introduction to the impressive new building on Steppenwolf’s campus as well as a great introduction to Anton Chekhov. Yasen Peyankov worked on this script for many years, occasionally working with Russian language experts from Northwestern University to maintain Chekhov’s original intent. Audiences will be struck by how fresh this script sounds. Plays of this era can be a bit of a slog for the uninitiated, but this version has a stronger sense of immediacy to the lines. Peyankov focuses his script on the dark humor that often gets diluted out in tedious repetition and lengthy scene-work. The main points are easier to grasp here and overall serves the tragic ending more because the characters feel more relatable.

Peyankov’s script is peppered with a reality TV flare. Nobody perhaps better inhabits that flavor than Lusia Strus as Irina Arkadina. Her character is a fading stage actress who’s summering at a country house with her new beau and her adult son. Her adult son Konstantin (Namir Smallwood) is also struggling writer and loathes his mother’s successful writer boyfriend Trigorin (Joey Slotnik). He’s in love with Nina (Caroline Neff) but she much favors fame than love. Konstantin cannot return the love of the caretaker’s gothic daughter Masha (Karen Rodriguez) though she’s the only one who believes in his talent as a writer. Emotions run high and reactions run big, just like an episode of “Real Housewives.” Lusia is a bold, sexy and smokey voiced Irina, often walking away with most of the laughs in the play.

“Seagull” seems more focused on the female ensemble and that’s just fine because this is a stellar cast of actresses. Masha is arguably one of the best roles an actress can ask for. Karen Rodriguez doesn’t get bogged down in the angst of the role, but rather uses physicality to enhance the comic absurdity of Masha’s moroseness. Masha’s mother Paulina is played by Sandra Marquez who also does a great job of pulling out the humor of an otherwise pathetic character. This script brings the young starstruck Nina character to life more than previous versions. The play gets its name from her character afterall. Caroline Neff delivers a notably emotional performance. The beauty of the new in-the-round space is that in the final moments of the play audiences are able to see and experience the facial expressions of the actors in a way not possible in their existing spaces. Neff is devastating as she manically circles the performance space vacillating between clarity and delusion. Throughout the play Neff speaks the dialogue so naturally that it almost doesn’t feel like scripted words at all.

Purists will have their qualms with this new adaptation but there are only so many ways to use the same dusty old scripts. Yasen Peyankov’s script is definitely cheeky, but there’s real depth in his version. By cleaning up the clutter of words in traditional translations he makes room for the character ambitions to be clearer. When they don’t get what they want, it makes it all the more tragic. If you’re looking for a lighter dance through Chekhov, this is the version to see.

Through June 12 at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. 1650 N Halsted. www.steppenwolf.org/seagull

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Highly recommended.

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