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NEXT UP is next up in the Steppenwolf Garage

Posted in Unscripted blog by Kris Vire on Mar 4, 2011 at 4:56pm

Steppenwolf has big plans for another repertory in its Garage following Garage Rep, and this time it's part of a major new partnership with Northwestern University's M.F.A. programs in directing and design. NU's graduating M.F.A. directors will each helm a production in the Garage, with scenic, costume and lighting designs by newly-minted M.F.A.'s in those specialties.

They'll work under the mentorship of Steppenwolf ensemble member Anna D. Shapiro, who also heads Northwestern's graduate directing program, and scenic designer Todd Rosenthal, who's worked with Shapiro on such Steppenwolf productions as A Parallelogram and August: Osage County and is also an NU faculty member. Steppenwolf casting director Erica Daniels has put together casts of professional Chicago actors for each of the plays, which were pitched for the project by their directors. Steppenwolf's director of new play development, Polly K. Carl, will provide leadership as well.

Dubbed NEXT UP (and I'm sure that N.U. is no accident), the program is being billed as the inauguration of an ongoing collaboration showcasing Chicago's next generation of theater artists. The complete lineup is after the jump.

Jaclyn Jutting will direct Animals Out of Paper by Rajiv Joseph (whose Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo begins previews on Broadway next week); Jutting's cast will include Amy J. Carle, Derek Hasenstab and Adam Poss.

Brad Akin helms Where We're Born by Lucy Thurber, with a cast featuring Audrey Francis, Shane Kenyon, Max Lesser, Tim Musachio and Caroline Neff.

Jess McLeod's production of Suzan-Lori Parks's Venus will star Jamie Abelson, Carolyn Hoerdemann, Mildred Marie Langford, Jeff Parker, Michael Pogue and Ann Sonneville.

The Northwestern designers are Scott Davis and Emily Tarleton (scenic design), Mekey Guberinic and Emily Tarleton (costume design), Nastassia Jimenez (lighting design), with sound design by Andre Pluess. NEXT UP runs May 31–June 19; tickets ($20/show, $45 rep pass) go on sale April 15.

03/04/2011

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"Next generation of theater artists"...? What about all of the theater artists that pound the pavement every day that didn't have the money to attend Northwestern to have an automatic "in" into the community? How about The Garage continues to support small local companies that don't have the money to produce on their own and let a huge university fend for itself?

By Anonymous (not verified) on 3/07/2011 at 12:29 pm

Dear Anonymous, The assertion you seem to be making that everyone in Northwestern's MFA class is a child of privilege whose connections do more for their career than their work is at best reductive, at worst pretty offensive. Undergrads and grads at that school (and I was one of the former) come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and have made significant contributions to the theatre culture of this city. The NEXT UP program doesn't appear to be displacing any money or resources for either that Garage Rep or First Look festivals, and is bringing to the stage two plays that I believe are Chicago premieres by authors we've barely seen here and one exceptionally difficult masterpiece by one of the best playwrights working today. What exactly is the downside? (Okay, aside from the name being a little cutesy.)

By Zev Valancy (not verified) on 3/07/2011 at 1:27 pm

I feel awkward when university theatre starts to be pegged as anything more than what it is... which is university theatre. Personally I am not interested in paying $20 to watch an MFA student's directing dreams come true... Especially when I know that there are plenty of professional companies who could benefit from the venue space. Maybe it will be the AmericanMusicalTheatreProject: Part Deux? Everyone knows we need another piece of brilliance like "Girls vs. Boys." Nothing like watching one Institution make out with another Institution. Heck, where is Broadway In Chicago in all of this, we could easily make this a three-way.

By Anonymous (not verified) on 3/07/2011 at 4:59 pm

In regards to Anonymous's "didn't have the money to attend Northwestern" snap - do your research. The MFA program at Northwestern is fully funded for students, and therefore is one of the few MFA programs nationwide that educates graduate students based on their talent, NOT on their ability to pay for an MFA.

By Johnny (not verified) on 3/07/2011 at 5:14 pm

This looks like a pretty exciting line-up of up-and-coming talent in Chicago. And since Steppenwolf designed the Garage space as a venue to showcase the work of Chicago's next wave of talent, I can't think of a better opportunity for audiences to witness the early works of these talented directors/designers/actors. This program serves the intended purpose of the Garage wonderfully. I'll be there.

By Jack (not verified) on 3/08/2011 at 3:27 am

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