Steppenwolf Theatre Company presents the Chicago premiere of Annie Baker's 2014 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, The Flick. Under the direction of Dexter Bullard, who also directed the Chicago premiere of Baker's Circle Mirror Transformation, the cast features Danny McCarthy, Caroline Neff and Travis Turner as the three hapless employees of The Flick movie house. Previews begin February 4 (opening night is February 14; press performances are Saturday, February 13 at 3pm and Tuesday, February 16 at 7:30pm) and runs through May 8, 2016 in Steppenwolf's Upstairs Theatre (1650 N Halsted St). Tickets ($20 - $89) are available through Audience Services (1650 N Halsted), 312-335-1650 and steppenwolf.org.
Three underpaid employees sweep up stale popcorn in a run-down movie house called The Flick, one of the last theaters in Massachusetts still projecting 35mm films. For Avery, this isn't a dead-end job. It's a way to get closer to the art form he loves. Passionate debates about cinema lead to a friendship of sorts with co-workers Sam and Rose. But will their tentative bond survive as they reveal what they actually need from each other? The Flick is a heartfelt cry for the kind of authentic connection we all want, even if we're a little afraid of it.
"What double fortune to return to Steppenwolf and to return to directing
Annie Baker's luminous writing. Steppenwolf's attention to excellence in acting and artistic detail will be a terrific match to Annie's consummate and imaginative theater," shares director
Dexter Bullard. "After my engaging, emotional and hilarious experience working on Circle Mirror Transformation in 2011, coming to The Flick at Steppenwolf is even more exciting."
Annie Baker received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama,
Susan Smith Blackburn Award and Obie Award for Playwriting for The Flick, which premiered at
Playwrights Horizons in 2013. The show was remounted at the Barrow Street Theater in May 2015 and will end its eight-month run this January. Most recently her hit play John, featuring Steppenwolf ensemble member
Lois Smith, enjoyed an extended run at
Signature Theatre. Other notable works by Baker include The Aliens (Obie Award for Best New American Play), Body Awareness and Circle Mirror Transformation (Obie Award for Best New American Play), which
Dexter Bullard directed at
Victory Gardens Theater in 2011.
Dexter Bullard has strong ties with Steppenwolf, having directed ensemble member
Tracy Letts's Bug at the Barrow Street Theater, for which he received the 2004
Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Direction Off-Broadway. He has directed for Steppenwolf's First Look Repertory of New Work in 2006 and 2013. Recent directing credits include the critically acclaimed production of Sucker Punch at
Victory Gardens Theater, Big Meal at American Theatre Company and
Craig Wright's Grace at
Northlight Theatre. He is the head of Graduate Acting and Showcase Artistic Director with The Theatre School at DePaul University.
The complete cast for The Flick includes
Will Allan as Skylar/The Dreaming Man,
Danny McCarthy as Sam,
Caroline Neff as Rose and
Travis Turner as Avery.
Caroline Neff performed in last season's critically acclaimed premiere Airline Highway by Lisa D'Amour at Steppenwolf and on Broadway. She is an ensemble member at Steep Theatre Company, and was voted the 2015 Chicago Readers' Pick for "Best Actress."
Will Allan performed in the sold-out run of Steppenwolf for Young Adults' production of
George Orwell's Animal Farm last season.
Danny McCarthy, a longtime company member of A Red Orchid Theatre, last performed at Steppenwolf in Middletown in 2011. His television credits include Prison Break, ER and Chicago Fire, and film credits include Fred Claus, Stranger Than Fiction and Transformers 3.
Travis Turner, who most recently performed in Second City's Let Them Eat Chaos, makes his Steppenwolf debut.
The production team includes
Jack Magaw (scenic design),
Alison Siple (costume design),
Keith Parham (lighting design) and
Rob Milburn and
Michael Bodeen (sound design). Additional credits include Jessamyn Fuller (casting); Christine D. Freeburg (stage manager) and Jonathan Nook (assistant stage manager).
Single tickets to The Flick are available through Audience Services (1650 N Halsted St),
312-335-1650 and
steppenwolf.org: Previews: $20 - $54 and Regular Run: $20 - $89. Prices subject to change. 20 for $20: twenty $20 tickets are available through Audience Services beginning at 11am on the day of each performance (1pm for Sunday performances). Rush Tickets: half-price rush tickets are available one hour before each show. Student Discounts: a limited number of $15 student tickets are available online. Limit 2 tickets per student; must present a valid student ID for each ticket. For additional student discounts, visit
steppenwolf.org/students. Group Tickets: all groups of 10 or more receive a discounted rate for any performance throughout the season. For additional information, visit
steppenwolf.org/groups. For subscription packages and flexible pass options available, call
312-335-1650. Steppenwolf Pass: Passes are currently on-sale. Good for either 3 or 5 credits to use for any show in the 15/16 Subscription season. To purchase a 2015/16 pass, visit Audience Services at 1650 N Halsted St, call
312-335-1650 or visit
steppenwolf.org.
Accessible performances include an American Sign Language interpretation on Sunday, April 10 at 7:30pm, Open Captioning on Saturday, April 16 at 3pm and an Audio Description and Touch Tour on Sunday, May 1 (1:30 touch tour; audio-described performance at 3pm). For more information, visit
steppenwolf.org/access.
Full performance schedule included at end of the release. Curtain times are Tuesdays through Sundays at 7:30pm; Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3pm and Wednesday matinees at 2pm on April 20, April 27 and May 4. There are no Sunday 7:30 performances on April 24, May 1 or May 8.
Ameriprise Financial, PEAK6 and Razorfish are the Corporate Production Sponsors of The Flick.
Photo by Saverio Truglia
