A season filled with CBS News & McCarthy, the return of an imperfect daughter, a Brooklyn stoop, a boys choir and an iconic play to open our new theatre-in-the-round.
Good Night, and Good Luck
By Matt Charman
Directed by ensemble member Anna D. Shapiro
Featuring ensemble members Alana Arenas, Ian Barford, Audrey Francis, Tom Irwin and William Petersen
Based on the Screenplay by George Clooney and Grant Heslov
In the Downstairs Theatre
1953: Dark days in Washington, DC. Senator Joseph McCarthy wages his ruthless campaign against all those he deems “Un-American,” public trust in the institutions of government is in perilous decline and a panicked gloom grips the nation. All that stands in the way of the continued disintegration of the American body politic is Edward R. Murrow, his room of intrepid journalists and one black-and-white newscast destined to change the course of this country’s civic life. This world premiere adaptation of George Clooney’s Oscar-nominated film is a stark, fast-moving and timely look at the treacherous business of telling truths in dark times.
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
Based on the book by Erika L. Sánchez
Adapted by Isaac Gomez
Directed by ensemble member Sandra Marquez
Featuring ensemble member Karen Rodriguez
In the Upstairs Theatre
At its heart, this is a Chicago story about family, community and coming together even when that feels impossible. An adaptation of Erika L. SI Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter follows Julia, a Chicago high school student, as she navigates the trials and tribulations of following her dreams of becoming a writer alongside the death of her sister, Olga—who might not have been quite as perfect as she seemed.
Recommended for grades 8+
Student performances will be held at 10am.
Last Night and the Night Before
By Donnetta Lavinia Grays
Directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton
Featuring ensemble member Namir Smallwood
In the Downstairs Theatre
A young woman is on the run. From what, she will not say. Arriving on the doorstep of her older sister’s Brooklyn brownstone with her ten-year-old daughter Sam, but without her loyal husband, her presence asks more questions than it answers as everyone in her orbit is thrown off balance and into one another. As Sam becomes increasingly haunted by the life she was forced to leave in Georgia, the adults are forced to consider what they must sacrifice to break a cycle of despair. Stunning, poetic and heartbreaking, Donnetta Lavinia Grays’ portrait of Black Love explores the complex forms family can take.
Choir Boy
By ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney
Featuring ensemble members James Vincent Meredith and Austin Pendleton
In the Downstairs Theatre
Pharus Young, now a senior at the Charles R. Drew Prep School for Boys, an institution committed to building “strong, ethical Black men,” endeavors to be the best leader of the school’s prestigious choir in its 50-year history. But in a world built on rites and rituals, should he conform to the expectations of his peers in order to gain the respect he desperately seeks? Written by Oscar-winning ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney (Moonlight), this Tony-nominated play—threaded throughout with soul-stirring a cappella gospel hymns—is the story of a young gay Black man and his battle between identity and community.
Seagull
By Anton Chekhov
Translated and adapted by ensemble member Yasen Peyankov
Directed by ensemble member Yasen Peyankov
Featuring ensemble members Ian Barford, Cliff Chamberlain, Francis Guinan, Tim Hopper, Sandra Marquez, James Vincent Meredith, Caroline Neff, Karen Rodrgiuez and Namir Smallwood
In the NEW theatre-in-the-round
In a giant country house filled to overflow on a long summer weekend in the Russian countryside, three generations collide in Yasen Peyankov’s extraordinarily funny and magical adaption of Anton Chekhov’s Seagull, the play that will open our new theatre-in-the-round. In classic Chekhovian style, an all Ensemble cast will wrestle with the eternal questions that haunt the intellectual artist class: What is Love? What is Art? When is Lunch? Please join us for this historical moment in Steppenwolf’s journey as we explore the work that inspired us, laugh at the battles that consume us and celebrate, together, all that makes us grateful for each other.
Steppenwolf NOW
OUR VIRTUAL STAGE, WHEREVER YOU ARE
A new digital platform for original and provocative work, available anywhere and included in all membership packages. Steppenwolf NOW will feature commissioned work EXCLUSIVELY created for the virtual platform by ensemble member Bruce Norris, ensemble member Rajiv Joseph, James Ijames, Mia Chung, Donnetta Lavinia Grays and Isaac Gómez.