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Chicago Tribune
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Review: In world premiere ‘Neighborhood Watch' at Jackalope Theatre, an uneasy time in suburbia
What happens when a Muslim man moves into a predominantly white, politically divided suburb a month after the 2024 election? In Rehana Lew Mirza's new play, 'Neighborhood Watch,' it means that the white-haired NPR listener who still wears Bernie 2016 and Clinton-Gore '92 T-shirts starts acting pretty weird. This world premiere, directed by Kaiser Ahmed for Jackalope Theatre, is the latest play to skewer the hypocrisies of white liberals — a genre most recently seen on Chicago stages in Larissa FastHorse's satire of progressive theater-makers, 'The Thanksgiving Play,' and Omer Abbas Salem's tense academic drama, 'One Party Consent.' Mirza's new work can best be categorized as a dramedy, though the comedic elements come off more successfully than the domestic drama at its core. In the first scene, we meet Paul (Frank Nall), a widower and single father to Becca (Jamie Herb), a recent college graduate who's moved back into her dad's Virginia home while she searches for a job. When Mo (Harsh Gagoomal), a handsome man around Becca's age, moves into the house next door, sparks fly between the two young people while Paul's liberal values are put to the test. Mirza's script serves up plenty of situational humor in the first act, which is full of cross-cultural misunderstandings and awkward gaffes. When Paul brings a house-warming gift to the new neighbor, the older man seemingly can't open his mouth without making a cringeworthy remark, despite his intention to be welcoming. At one point, he says he's glad that Mo has moved in, since the neighborhood was getting a little too white. Meanwhile, Mo amuses himself by winding up his new neighbor, intentionally playing into white stereotypes about Muslim men. It's pretty light-hearted fun until Mo and Becca start dating, at which point Paul's protective instincts kick in as he listens to the Iago-like whisperings of his middle-aged MAGA neighbor, who has a creepy crush on Becca and a shady business as a private investigator. Shawn, a campy character played by Victor Holstein, soon convinces Paul to hire him to spy on the young couple. Halfway through the play, Mo's past catches up with him with the appearance of a fifth character, Javed (Omar Bader), a cousin who grew up with Mo before serving a prison sentence for electronic terrorism — a juvenile offense of posting extremist videos and making threats online. As Becca gets to know both of the cousins better, Paul's paranoia grows, and his surveillance tactics quickly escalate. While the comedy works well in Act 1, the relationships between most of the characters aren't developed enough for the drama that unfolds in the second act to make much of an impact. Herb and Gagoomal have strong chemistry as Becca and Mo, but the play's father-daughter relationship is less convincing. Paul's motivations come across as overly simplistic, and it seems far-fetched that he would so easily put his trust in Shawn at the expense of his daughter's privacy. The belated introduction of Javed makes his storyline feel rushed, while the overall pacing lags in the second act, which is a letdown after the explosive setup just before intermission. Mirza seems interested in complicating stereotypes about suburban polarization but only offers a surface-level exploration of these themes. First, there's the unlikely alliance between Paul and Shawn, which pokes at the so-called horseshoe theory — the idea that far-left and far-right ideologues are more alike than different, circling around to meet at a similar point. On the other hand, Paul also discovers that he has more in common with Mo than it first seemed, a realization that doesn't reflect well on either of them by the end of the play. Although these ideas and characters would benefit from further development, 'Neighborhood Watch' is already a lot of fun in its current form. This is likely the first fully staged production that you'll see featuring Harris-Walz yard signs (set design by Tianxuan Chen), and Mirza also works in a reference to Luigi Mangione. All that to say: the play is topical, and perhaps rushed to the stage too quickly, but it's a good time — even for well-meaning white liberals who may find themselves the punchline of a few 'Neighborhood Watch' (2.5 stars) When: Through June 28 Where: Broadway Armory Park, 5917 N. Broadway St. Running time: 2 hours, 5 minutes Tickets: $15-$40 at
Chicago Tribune
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Of Notoriety: Munster's Cliff Chamberlain in cast of now-extended ‘Fool for Love' at Steppenwolf
Stepping into a character role featured in any of the plays by the late playwright Sam Shepard takes both the chosen actor and theater audiences on travels to the darkest reaches of the mind. Shepard, who died at age 73 in 2017, explored the gritty and shadowy underside of life and the consequences of decisions, trying to balance and sort out the good from the bad. Steppenwolf Theatre Company has already added another week of performances for their stage revival of Pulitzer Prize winner Shepard's dark and beautiful early masterpiece 'Fool for Love,' playing into next month through Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Steppenwolf's Downstairs Theater, 1650 N. Halsted St. in Chicago. Directed by Jeremy Herrin, 'Fool for Love' features Steppenwolf ensemble members united for the four-member cast starring Cliff Chamberlain, previously seen in 'The Minutes' and 'Superior Donuts,' Tim Hopper from 'The Thanksgiving Play' and 'Downstate,' and Caroline Neff known from her roles in 'POTUS' and 'Another Marriage' playing opposite new to the Steppenwolf stage Nick Gehlfuss as seen on TV's 'Chicago Med,' 'Chicago PD' and 'Chicago Fire.' Set in a seedy motel room in the Mojave Desert, May, played by Neff, and Eddie, played by Gehlfuss, have been reunited, and the play opens with the couple trapped under a cloud of regret, soaked in booze, brawling and fears from the past looming over their sexual connection. Both must also endure the haunting memories of their parents, especially 'the Old Man,' portrayed as the rocking chair phantom guise of Hopper, who smiles at the control he holds over others. Confused Martin, the character played by Chamberlain, shows up to the motel planning to take May on a movie date but first must confront the couple's growing tensions and tormented twisted and intertwined lives from their pasts. Chamberlain is an actor who lives in Munster with his wife and family, and though he's been familiar with Shepard's plays for the past decades, 'Fool for Love' was one of the works he hadn't read until he was considering joining the production. 'I hadn't read this play or even seen it before, so this was fun for me to approach this work as a new play for me even though it's been around since 1983,' Chamberlain said. In 1985, Shepard played the male lead character Eddie for the film adaptation starring Kim Basinger as directed by Robert Altman. The play and later film version were born during the same decade as Shepard's 25-year relationship span with actress Jessica Lange (whom he has two children with). The couple had met while both starring in the 1982 film 'Frances' with Lange as the title character based on the life of Hollywood movie star Frances Farmer, who suffered from mental illness and spent her final years living in Indianapolis. Steppenwolf Artistic Directors Glenn Davis, who is originally from South Holland, and Audrey Francis agree Shepard's legacy and work shares a foundation with their theater space. 'Through the decades, Steppenwolf has returned again and again to Sam Shepard's searing body of work,' Davis said. 'His plays, filled with tension, symbol and muscle, pose delights and demands for actors and audiences alike. 'Fool for Love' is no exception, with Eddie and May's iconic power struggle at the heart of this prize-winning masterpiece. It's lightning in a bottle.' Chamberlain joined the Steppenwolf Theatre Company ensemble in 2018 with riveting onstage turns in productions like 'Belleville' and 'Clybourne Park.' He will be seen in the Netflix upcoming film 'RIP.' 'My wife is from Munster, and that's where we live now with our three daughters,' Chamberlain said. 'I'm originally from Los Angeles, and after I met my wife in Chicago, we married and had our two daughters before moving back to California, where we had our third daughter. But with the pandemic, we decided to move back home here to Munster, and we love it. My wife owns her own business. We moved into the house where my wife grew up.' Tickets for 'Fool for Love' range from $20 to $138 by calling 312-335-1650 or visit Steppenwolf Theatre Company ranks as one of the nation's premier ensemble theater companies with 49 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field. Founded in 1976, Steppenwolf started as a group of teens performing in the basement of a church. The Steppenwolf Education and Engagement program serves nearly 15,000 teens annually, including the schools of Northwest Indiana.
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Wildfires couldn't stop this playwright from opening her new production: 'This is a beautiful way for us to come together'
For playwright Larissa FastHorse, staging her newest play, Fake It Until You Make It, has not been without its challenges. The Sicangu Lakota writer, who is mounting the production in Los Angeles through March 9 and then in Washington, D.C., had to contend with tragedy in the form of devastating wildfires that consumed parts of L.A. 'There were people here on our production team and on staff and our cast that were evacuated. Some lost their homes, some didn't lose their homes [but] their family lost their home,' FastHorse told Yahoo Entertainment. 'It's been a stressful time to do this.' See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. FastHorse, whose 2023 production of The Thanksgiving Play marked the first Broadway play by a female Native American playwright, looked to her team, including director Michael John Garcés, before making her next move. 'I hate to sound like that person, but theater can be really healing and especially doing a comedy like this,' said FastHorse, who is also the first Native playwright to be staged at Los Angeles's Mark Taper Forum. 'So we took one full day off [during the] wildfires — the day after they exploded and everything was just so scary and uncertain here in L.A.' After talking to her cast and crew — they decided to move forward, calling the theater a 'safe space' and a 'happy place.' 'They said … 'These fires are not going to last forever but this play can have really long-term effects, and we want to be a part of it,' so that's what we did,' she said. The play began previews at the Taper on Jan. 29 and officially opens Feb. 5. Julie Bowen stars as River, a white woman running the Native American-focused nonprofit Indigenous Nations Soaring, who has a rivalry with Native nonprofit leader Wynona (Tongva actress Tonantzin Carmelo), who runs N.O.B.U.S.H., an organization that combats the invasive butterfly bush plant. The satirical farce takes on identity conflicts and the lengths people will go to 'shift' their race. '[River and Wynona's] escalating rivalry ensnares colleagues and bystanders, leading to the unraveling of secrets that highlight the absurdities of ambition and authenticity,' the play's description reads. What could otherwise be seen as weighty and touchy is played for laughs — on purpose — to offer an accessible and nuanced way into these often sensitive topics. 'We're thinking a lot about who's laughing at what when. Is that OK? Is it not OK? My plays ask a lot more questions than they answer, but we also make sure it's the right questions,' FastHorse said, 'and it's a little trickier in something as broad as a farce.' The play uses humor to engage conversations like the effect so-called 'Pretendians' (non-Native people who claim Indigenous ancestry) have on Indigenous people and resources, as well as people who don't feel entirely comfortable in their own race. FastHorse also takes the opportunity through her work and collaboration with Garcés to spotlight Indigenous artists in the cast, crew and overall set design, which works to further 'Indigenize' the theater space. After the play's run in Los Angeles, Fake It Until You Make It will be staged at D.C.'s Arena Stage from April 3-May 4, when Amy Brenneman will take over for Bowen. The rest of the cast and director remain unchanged. While FastHorse hopes audiences gain new insight into an Indigenous perspective, she hopes her play, first and foremost, serves as a reminder that going to the theater can be enjoyable. 'I honestly always want people to walk away and say, 'Why don't we go to the theater more? This is so much fun,'' she said. 'We've been through so much here in Los Angeles specifically, but in our country, there's a lot going on and so this is a beautiful way for us to come together no matter what your previous background is, no matter what your political affiliation is, no matter any of your previous beliefs before you walk in this theater.' She added, 'I want you to be able to come in and have a good time and have fun and say, 'Gosh, we've got to do this more often.''
