Martha Lavey News

Steppenwolf Theatre Company continues its 2010-2011 season with The Hot L Baltimore by Lanford Wilson, directed by ensemble member Tina Landau.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is pleased to announce its new American play Detroit by Lisa D'Amour and directed by ensemble member Austin Pendleton will open on Broadway early fall 2011. Detroit makes its Broadway debut following world premiere at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company, September 9 - November 7, 2010. Casting for the Broadway engagement will be announced shortly.

Red Tape Theatre presents two Chicago premieres, 'Church' and 'Pullman, WA' by Young Jean Lee. One of the boldest voices in contemporary theater, playwright Young Jean Lee puts her absurdist spin on religion and self-esteem.

The American Theatre Wing's (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Howard Sherman, Executive Director) original interview series, "Downstage Center," reaches a milestone today with the release of the program's 300th interview.

Red Tape Theatre presents two Chicago premieres, 'Church' and 'Pullman, WA' by Young Jean Lee. One of the boldest voices in contemporary theater, playwright Young Jean Lee puts her absurdist spin on religion and self-esteem.

Steppenwolf is pleased to announce ensemble member and three-time Tony® and Emmy® nominee Martha Plimpton will be the guest of honor at the 2nd annual Steppenwolf Salutes WOMEN IN THE ARTS fundraising luncheon on Tuesday, March 15, 2011 at 12:00 pm at The W Chicago - City Center, 172 West Adams St. Ms.

Goodman Theatre extends Robert Falls' acclaimed new adaptation of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull by one week due to high demand for tickets.

Director Robert Falls and actors Mary Beth Fisher and Francis Guinan talk about the process of bringing Anton Chekhov's The Seagull to Goodman Theatre at a special discussion on Sunday, November 7 at 6:30pm, following the matinee performance. Moderated by Steppenwolf Theatre Company Artistic Director Martha Lavey, this conversation is part of the theater's Artists Talk series, a unique opportunity for audiences to connect directly with the artists from Goodman productions. Tickets to the Artists Talk are $10 ($5 for Goodman subscribers); 312.443.3800. The Seagull runs through November 14 in the Goodman's Owen Theatre. The culmination of two years of research and preparation, this production of The Seagull marks a departure from Falls' recent large-scale work-and a focus on the method of Konstantin Stanislavsky, the man often credited as 'the father of modern theater.' As previously announced, the ensemble cast of 14 includes Will Allan, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Rebecca Buller, Cliff Chamberlain, Laura T. Fisher, Mary Beth Fisher, Dieterich Gray, Stephen Louis Grush, Francis Guinan, Scott Jaeck, Kelly O'Sullivan, Steve Pickering, Demetrios Troy and Heather Wood. Kirkland & Ellis LLP is the Contributing Sponsor of The Seagull.

Goodman Theatre extends Robert Falls' acclaimed new adaptation of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull by one week due to high demand for tickets.

Director Robert Falls and actors Mary Beth Fisher and Francis Guinan talk about the process of bringing Anton Chekhov's The Seagull to Goodman Theatre at a special discussion on Sunday, November 7 at 6:30pm, following the matinee performance. Moderated by Steppenwolf Theatre Company Artistic Director Martha Lavey, this conversation is part of the theater's Artists Talk series, a unique opportunity for audiences to connect directly with the artists from Goodman productions. Tickets to the Artists Talk are $10 ($5 for Goodman subscribers); 312.443.3800. The Seagull runs through November 14 in the Goodman's Owen Theatre. The culmination of two years of research and preparation, this production of The Seagull marks a departure from Falls' recent large-scale work-and a focus on the method of Konstantin Stanislavsky, the man often credited as 'the father of modern theater.' As previously announced, the ensemble cast of 14 includes Will Allan, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Rebecca Buller, Cliff Chamberlain, Laura T. Fisher, Mary Beth Fisher, Dieterich Gray, Stephen Louis Grush, Francis Guinan, Scott Jaeck, Kelly O'Sullivan, Steve Pickering, Demetrios Troy and Heather Wood. Kirkland & Ellis LLP is the Contributing Sponsor of The Seagull.

The Honorable Richard M. Daley raised a glass and recognized the cast of Steppenwolf's critically acclaimed play August: Osage County as one of Chicago's great cultural ambassadors as they depart to Australia for a six-week engagement at the prestigious Sydney Theatre Company (Cate Blanchett & Andrew Upton, Artistic Directors).

Let's face it. The chance to see an incredibly dynamic cast, like Endgame, is an honor that does not come along every day. The audience of last night's show behaved absolutely terribly and made the show incredibly hard to watch. Yeah, Beckett is not an easy playwright to absorb. I get that. However, that does not give you the right to let your cell phone ring multiple times in a show. Unless you are a doctor (and in that case, put it on vibrate), you are not that important. Oh, and the coup de grace? The man next to me was outright heckling William Petersen. What? This isn't Zannies (and even if it was, that's still not acceptable).

Steppenwolf Theatre Company continues its 2009-2010 season, an exploration of the theme of belief, with Endgame written by Samuel Beckett and directed by ensemble member Frank Galati. Endgame, featuring ensemble members Ian Barford, Francis Guinan, Martha Lavey and William Petersen, plays April 1 - June 6, 2010 in Steppenwolf's Downstairs Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted.

Esteemed British theatre critic Michael Billington of the The Guardian, Steppenwolf Theatre artistic director Martha Lavey, veteran Chicago theatre critic Richard Christiansen, and noted theatre teacher, journalist, and critic Todd London will be among featured speakers at Chicago - Theatre Capital of America: Past. Present. Future, an international symposium on Chicago theatre to be presented May 18-22, 2011, by the Theatre Department of Columbia College.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is pleased to announce its 2010/2011 Subscription Season, exploring the theme of public/private self. Season subscriptions are currently on-sale.

More than 600 guests attended Steppenwolf's Theatre Company's GALA 2010 on Saturday, May 8, 2010 - raising over $1 million for Steppenwolf's artistic and community programming.

Steppenwolf celebrates its 34th season with GALA 2010: Choose to Believe on Saturday, May 8, 2010 at 6:30 p.m. at Steppenwolf Theatre Company (1650 N. Halsted St.) and this year's spacious new reception venue: Structured Development's TruServe Building, 1460 N. Halsted St.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company continues its 2009-2010 season, an exploration of the theme of belief, with Endgame written by Samuel Beckett and directed by ensemble member Frank Galati. Endgame, featuring ensemble members Ian Barford, Francis Guinan, Martha Lavey and William Petersen, plays now through June 6, 2010 in Steppenwolf's Downstairs Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted.

The 17th Annual Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration program, posthumously honoring and celebrating the work of lighting and set designer Michael Philippi (Desire Under the Elms, Death of a Salesman), 'an esteemed longtime collaborator and friend', will take place on Monday, May 3, at the Goodman Theatre.

Let's face it. The chance to see an incredibly dynamic cast, like Endgame, is an honor that does not come along every day. The audience of last night's show behaved absolutely terribly and made the show incredibly hard to watch. Yeah, Beckett is not an easy playwright to absorb. I get that. However, that does not give you the right to let your cell phone ring multiple times in a show. Unless you are a doctor (and in that case, put it on vibrate), you are not that important. Oh, and the coup de grace? The man next to me was outright heckling William Petersen. What? This isn't Zannies (and even if it was, that's still not acceptable).