Opening in Chicago, a Wave of the New; World Premieres Signal a Theater Town's Openness to Fresh Voices (original) (raw)
Theater|Opening in Chicago, a Wave of the New; World Premieres Signal a Theater Town's Openness to Fresh Voices
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- May 19, 2003
A serial killer, a lesbian mother, two millionaire con men, the philosopher Hannah Arendt, Howlin' Wolf: all are characters in an extraordinary season of world premiere theater under way here.
Chicago has nearly 200 theater companies, and for at least the last decade it has been the only city in the United States, and one of the few in the world, with a theatrical scene as vibrant as New York's. This season more than a dozen of these companies are presenting works by new playwrights as well as veterans like August Wilson and Stephen Sondheim.
The appearance of so many world premieres within the space of a couple of months reflects the deep pool of Chicago-based dramatic talent and the city's growing appeal to playwrights and producers from other parts of the country. Plays can be produced here relatively cheaply. Directors and playwrights also say that critics and the public here seem more interested in new work than their counterparts in New York and other cities.
''From a theatrical point of view, this is an amazing and unique city,'' said Harold Prince, the Broadway veteran who is directing ''Bounce,'' Mr. Sondheim's new musical. ''When I get time off here, I go to the theater, and the pieces I see are always so interesting and exciting''
''Bounce,'' which opens on June 30, is one of two high-profile premieres that the Goodman Theater is producing. The other, August Wilson's ''Gem of the Ocean,'' which is already running, is the latest in Mr. Wilson's series of plays dealing with African-American life during each decade of the 20th century. This one, set in 1904, is centered on a petty theft that leads to shattering consequences, including the suicide of the wrongly accused thief and the burning of one of the city's giant mills.
Premieres at highly visible theaters like the Goodman focus national attention on Chicago, but smaller theaters also present a remarkably broad range of work. One fast-rising Chicago company, TimeLine, is concluding its sixth and probably most successful season with ''Hannah and Martin'' by Kate Fodor. It deals with the complex friendship between Arendt, the Jewish philosopher, and her teacher Martin Heidegger, a Nazi sympathizer.
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