Erik Gernand is resident playwright at Redtwist Theatre, and his Prayer Circle is absolutely laugh-out-loud funny. The strength of this script is the characters—who are clearly defined and familiar types—and the performances, directed by Dusty Brown, are uniformly outstanding.
Set in the cramped loft of a church (with stained glass and roof vaults dominating a well-detailed set by Jeff Bain), we will meet the five members of the Prayer Circle (they call themselves “prayer warriors” for reasons that later become apparent) as they gather one by one for their spiritual endeavor. Doug (Kevin Waters) is already there when the lights come up, at the piano, singing carefully, spiritually (a snippet of the hymn "Blessed Assurance" I believe) with a beauty and intensity that suggests the conviction of the group we are to meet.
Waters’ singing is so good, conveying that his character Doug is intensely immersed in this vocal invocation he is caught off guard by the arrival of the irreverent Addy (Andi Muriel), who also happens to be his high school student in daily life.
Muriel is a very good comedic actor, and her Addy dispels the possibility of too much seriousness as she conveys the quick-witted slapdash humor that can spring forth when young people have discovered the absurdity of the adults governing them. We also meet Carol (Macaria Chaparro Martinez), a 30-something enveloped in a cloud of earnestness: “You can call me Bible lady just don’t call me late for prayer circle.”
Soon enough Marilyn (Jacqueline Grandt) lands, that familiar church matron who is far more powerful than she should be, perfectly coiffed and clad with a designer bag. There is still one seat vacant, a result of the tragic death by cancer of a young mother DeeDee, who we learn was the wife of Pastor Evans (Phillip C. Matthews).
Marilyn is all in a dither, because the president declared a war last night in a televised speech. Marilyn tells the circle that she has summoned Pastor Evens to address the matter with the prayer circle, calling him from his bereavement leave, and the care of his motherless children. What could possess her to do such a thing?
We soon discover this prayer circle wields unusual powers with its prayers and hopes to enlist the involvement of the pastor in its spiritual work. Gernand’s script stumbles a bit in its structure, with a tad more procrastination in the plot reveals than a screwball comedy like this warrants.
We also don’t see the moral analysis that the playwright seems to want to make the characters face. The playwright seems uncertain about how seriously we are to consider morality when he brushes against serious concerns encountered by these faithful.
Nevertheless, the tremendous comic performances, especially by Jacqueline Grandt and Andi Muriel, make this a show worth seeing. Prayer Circle, running through November 8, 2026 at Chicago's Redtwist Theatre, comes recommended.
