The Chicago Commercial Collective Presents A STEADY RAIN, Beginning 7/7

The Chicago Commercial Collective today announced the return of the Chicago and Broadway hit drama, A Steady Rain, with its original cast and crew to the Chicago Dramatists, 1105 W. Chicago Ave.  

The production, written by Keith Huff and directed by original director Russ Tutterow, runs Saturday, July 7 – Sunday, Sept. 2. Previews are July 7 and July 8 at 8 p.m. Opening/Press night is Tuesday, July 10 at 8 p.m. The regular run is Wednesdays  - Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Tickets go on sale Friday, May 18 at 10 a.m. and are $40 (preview tickets are $35) and may be purchased online at www.asteadyrainchicago.com. Student and group discounts are available. 

A Steady Rain received its world premiere at the Chicago Dramatists in fall 2007 and was an instant hit.  The production ran for six weeks before moving to the Royal George Theatre for a four-month run and then opened on Broadway starring Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig in September 2009. Few other productions in recent Chicago history have garnered the rave reviews as A Steady Rain.  The critics have called Keith Huff’s A Steady Rain “a gritty, rich, thick poetic and entirely gripping noir tale” (Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune); “some of the most dazzling acting you will ever see anywhere” (Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times); and “excellent, evocative” (Steve Oxman, Variety).  In Chicago, the production won the 2008 Joseph Jefferson Awards for “Best New Work,” “Best Actor” (for RAndy Steinmeyer) and “Best Production.”  A Steady Rain’s New York adaptation broke box office records for highest weekly gross of a non-musical production on Broadway and was included in Time magazine’s “Top 10 Plays of 2009.”

A Steady Rain is the story of two seasoned police officers, Denny (RAndy Steinmeyer) and Joey (Peter DeFaria) who find themselves caught up in a conflict between family and duty when a seemingly routine domestic disturbance call results in the death of a boy. When the horrific truth of the situation is made public, one of the two must take the blame for the fatal mistake. Their life-long friendship is put to the test, as both men struggle with issues of honor, love and loyalty in the face of adversity.

The design team for A Steady Rain includes set designer Tom Burch, lighting designer Jeff Pines, costume designer Samantha Jones, sound designer Mike Tutaj, and stage manager Wendye Clarendon. 

Keith Huff is currently writer/producer for the upcoming David Fincher/NetFlix series House of Cards, featuring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright.  He has written the film adaptation of A Steady Rain for Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson (EON Films), original pilots for HBO, Steven Spielberg/Dreamworks TV, and AMC, and was Writer/Co-Producer for season 4 of AMC’s Emmy- and Golden Globe Award-winning series Mad Men, for which he won a 2011 Writers Guild Award (Best Drama Series).  Recent Theater Productions include The Detective’s Wife (Writer’s Theater), A Steady Rain featuring Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman (Broadway), and Pursued By Happiness and The Bird and Mr. Banks (Road Theater).  Upcoming Theater Productions include Big Lake Big City at Chicago’s Lookingglass Theater (directed by David Schwimmer) and productions of The Detective’s Wife in Milwaukee and Los Angeles.  A Steady Rain continues to be produced across the US and around the world, most recently in France (Paris & national tour), Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Spain (Barcelona & Catalan tour), and Canada.  It is currently running in Hungary and Greece, on tour in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, and new productions are scheduled to open in Brazil, Prague, Venezuala, Tokyo, Colombia, Madrid, and London in 2012-2013.  Huff has an MFA from the University of Iowa’s Playwright’s Workshop, is a Resident Alumnus at Chicago Dramatists, and is the recipient of a Joseph Jefferson Award, the Cunningham Prize, the John Gassner Award, the Berrilla Kerr Award, and three Illinois Arts Council Playwriting Fellowships.  

Russ Tutterow has nurtured the art and careers of countless playwrights at Chicago Dramatists, where he has been artistic director since 1986. To honor his 25th year as Artistic Director and his contribution to the cultural life of Chicago, May Street (adjacent to Chicago Dramatists) was recently proclaimed “Russ Tutterow Way” by the City of Chicago.

Tutterow is the recipient of the 2005 League of Chicago Theatres’ Artistic Leadership Award for his “outstanding achievement in developing new plays and his long time contribution to Chicago theatre,” the 2007 Achievement in Theatre Award from the Illinois Theatre Association and the 2010 Actors' Equity Spirit Award for his commitment to non-traditional casting and diversity. At Chicago Dramatists, he has directed countless new play readings, and nurtured the art and careers of hundreds of playwrights, including Rebecca Gilman, Tina Fey, Sarah Ruhl, Keith Huff, Lydia R. Diamond, Tanya Saracho, Brett Neveu, Rick Cleveland, David Barr, and Roger Rueff, to name just a few. Recently, in addition to directing Chicago Dramatists’ world premiere productions of the Jeff Award-winning hit, A Steady Rain, Tutterow also directed Blizzard ’67 by Jon Steinhagen, Hickorydickory by Marisa Wegrzyn, Water by Alice Austen (Jeff Award nomination for New Work), Voyeurs de Venus by Lydia R. Diamond (Jeff Award for New Work), Heat by Marsha Estell (Jeff Award nomination for New Work) and Drawing War by Brett Neveu.

Tutterow also has directed, managed or taught for such Chicago theatres as Goodman, Victory Gardens, Royal George, Mercury, Briar Street, Prop, Zebra Crossing, Igloo, and Cullen, Henaghan & Platt Productions, as well as Café LaMama Hollywood and served on the 2005 First Look Council at Steppenwolf Theatre. Tutterow has held positions as adjunct associate professor of theatre at the University of Wisconsin and director of theatre at Lake Forest College. He holds an M.A. in Theatre from Northwestern University and a B.A. in Theatre from Ball State University.