Review: BILLIE JEAN at Chicago Shakespeare Theater

In Chilina Kennedy, director Marc Bruni and Lauren M. Gunderson have found a tenacious and hard-hitting actor to play the eponymous tennis legend in Billie Jean. The role of Billie Jean King, who tirelessly fought for women to have equal pay in professional tennis, necessarily centers the play. Kennedy’s boundless energy and appealing spunk really give it life. 

Gunderson’s well-researched play charts the trajectory of Billie Jean’s career neatly. While most of the presentational style is straightforward, Gunderson also dips her toes into some lyricism — with mixed results. A chorus of women cue up much of the action, and Billie Jean’s inner monologue is often accompanied by echoes of signature phrases. I didn’t think the more flowery elements of the text totally landed, and the script doesn’t quite merge its diverse styles.

Still, tennis enthusiasts will enjoy the action-packed feel, as the play progresses swiftly from one scene to the next. While Wilson Chin’s set clearly depicts a tennis court, oddly there’s no rackets involved. The actors mime tennis play, but never pick up any rackets! I think a more literal representation would have been warranted.

That said, this is an ensemble that works hard at playing the tennis game. Dan Amboyer lends a welcome affability to Billie Jean’s husband Larry King, who’s eager to help her make moves in her career. The play also doesn’t shy away from their marital conflicts, and necessarily incorporates Billie Jean’s discoveries about her sexuality — and her relationships with women.

Julia Antonelli is a veritable Energizer Bunny as Young Billie Jean, bounding onto the stage with fervent enthusiasm. As Billie Jean’s doubles partner Rosie Casals, Elena Hurst is spirited while remaining grounded. The other ensemble members are referred to only by gender and number in the script, including Nancy Lemenager, Courtney Rikki Green, Lenne Klingaman, Murphy Taylor Smith, Carolyn Holding, CAllie Rachelle Johnson, Wynn Harmon, and Jürgen Hooper. They rotate between different significant figures in Billie Jean’s life, from her parents to her brother, coaches, the press, and more. 

It’s quite a feat to switch between all those roles, but I think it was sometimes hard to discern who was who. Likewise, some characters only briefly appear and aren’t integrated throughout. While I enjoyed Hooper as Billie Jean’s supportive brother Randy, for example, I think his role needed to be a bigger part of the narrative or perhaps not appear. I’m sure Randy is an important part of Billie Jean’s life, but he showed up seemingly out of nowhere in the play.

Overall, I think this ensemble — with Kennedy at the lead — has the high energy and liveliness needed to make this production vivid. Even if stylistically all the choices didn't make sense, I the play moves at a nice clip. The play’s highly reverent of Billie Jean and her accomplishments, but Gunderson’s text provides the evidence to back that up. I will say a few moments in Bruni’s production pander to the audience too much, but I think in this kind of “amp up” play it’s not so bad to psych up the viewers.
 

The role is an athletic feat for Kennedy, which seems fitting. She’s in every scene, and she takes it all on with aplomb. She captures Billie Jean’s boundless energy and outspokenness, but she never veers into caricature territory. She’s centered in her approach, so the talkativeness feels genuine. Kennedy’s performance as Billie Jean is a real grand slam, and that’s the key to making the play work. 

Billie Jean plays in the Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier through August 10, 2025.