Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

SCOTTISH PLAY SCOTT 'Look'-ing at Laura Jacqmin's production
by Scott C. Morgan, Windy City Times
2015-04-22

This article shared 2299 times since Wed Apr 22, 2015
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


When Chicago playwright Laura Jacqmin got word that Rivendell Theatre Ensemble would produce the world premiere of her drama Look, we are breathing, there was only one person she wanted to helm the production—lesbian director Megan Shuchman.

"I just love working with [Shuchman]," Jacqmin said. "I think she's one of the smartest directors in Chicago."

Shuchman previously directed Jacqmin's plays Dead Pile, Pluto Was a Planet and Dental Society Midwinter Meeting—the latter to such acclaim that it was given a quick revival by Berwyn's 16th Street Theater in 2011 just a year after its world premiere at Chicago Dramatists. Shuchman had also directed two previous readings of Look, we are breathing in 2009 for Chicago Dramatists and in 2010 for Theatre Seven, so it was only natural for Jacqmin to return to her frequent collaborator.

"We've really become deep collaborators over the past seven years, and I'm always hopeful that I can direct Laura's work," Shuchman said. "I think that it's really unique to find an artist that you mesh so well with and you really kind of speak a similar language and it makes the whole process feel really collaborative and that you have a teammate."

With 11 years in arts education working primarily with teenagers and her current day job as an associate education director for Steppenwolf for Young Adults, Shuchman hopes that her experiences prove particularly helpful to Jacqmin's Look, we are breathing, since it focuses on how three women react to the death of Mike ( Brendan Meyer ), a teenager killed in a drunken-driving accident.

"There's a 17-year-old boy who is in the play, but you learn from the very beginning that he has died and it's flashbacks and a series of memories that have to do with the women in his life dealing with his death and kind of grappling with what it means because he's not particularly a nice kid," said Shuchman, noting that there are scenes with his mother Alice ( Rivendell Theatre founder and artistic director Tara Mallen ), his English teacher Leticia ( Lily Mojekwu ), and his "girlfriend" Caylee ( Brenann Stacker ), that all show Mike in a very unflattering light.

"This play is sort of looking at the very private nature of grief, and sort of what you go through when the person really was a mixed bag," Jacqmin said. "How do you mourn someone who maybe you didn't like all that much?"

"How do you still memorialize this person and think about them?" Shuchman said. "It's really more about the potential that he had rather than the person that he was."

Shuchman feels her working relationship with Jacqmin is unique since they spend so much time in rehearsals together. It's very different from some directors who prefer to banish the playwright practically from the entire rehearsal process.

"I'm just so used to working that way with her that it feels comforting rather than, 'Oh my gosh, what is the playwright going to come in and say?'" Shuchman said. "Laura did a ton of rewriting on this play, almost every day that she was in she would be tweaking something. And even going into the process, we knew that there would be things that we still wanted to work on in the script, so it was really important that she be there frequently to make those changes."

With Look, we are breathing, both Jacqmin and Shuchman are happy to be working for the first time with Rivendell Theatre Ensemble in large part for what the company represents. Now in its 20th season, Rivendell is the only Equity theater company in Chicago dedicated to producing original plays created by and about women.

"I'm a longtime fan," Shuchman said. "It's a theater that promotes women who are often underrepresented still in the theater. That could be with a feminist agenda, or one could just look at it as we need spaces that make sure they dedicate work to women—playwrights, actors, directors, designers and it's been a very purposeful part of the conversation with the company from the beginning when I said who I wanted to work with as designers, they said let's make sure we have women represented."

As for Jacqmin, she's glad to be collaborating with Shuchman again and specifically at Rivendell.

"To make the commitment and say, 'I want to work with playwrights and world premieres, I want to do stuff that hasn't been done before'—I just think that's tremendous and that's one of the reasons that Megan and I continue to work with each other," Jacqmin said. "It's just been a dream from beginning to end of being able to do the play in the right city, with the right people and the right company."

The world premiere of Look, we are breathing continues through Saturday, May 16, at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge Ave. Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays and at 4 and 8 p.m. Saturdays. Tickets are $32-$35 and $22-$25 for students and seniors; call 773-334-7728 or visit www.rivendelltheatre.org .


This article shared 2299 times since Wed Apr 22, 2015
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

City Lit Executive Artistic Director Brian Pastor talks theater, comics, queerness 2024-03-26
- City Lit Theater has announced its programming for the 2024-25 season—which will be the company's 44th. It will also be the first season to be programmed under the leadership of Brian Pastor (they/them), who will assume ...


Gay News

The Jeff Awards announces the 50th anniversary awards for non-equity theater 2024-03-26
--From a press release - A complete list of recipients can also be found online in the Non-Equity and News and Events sections at www.jeffawards.org. (March 25, 2024 - Chicago) — Celebrating its 50th anniversary awarding recognition for Non-Equity theater, the ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer musicians, Marvel situation, Elliot Page, Nicole Kidman 2024-03-21
- Queer musician Joy Oladokun released the single "I Wished on the Moon," from Jack Antonoff's official soundtrack for the new Apple TV+ series The New Look, per a press release. The soundtrack, ...


Gay News

THEATER Chicago's City Lit has anxiety on tap with 'Two Hours in a Bar' 2024-03-21
- Two Hours in a Bar Waiting for Tina Meyer by Kristine Thatcher with material by Larry Shue Text Me by Kingsley Day (Book, Music and Lyrics). At: City Lit Theater, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave.. Tickets: ...


Gay News

Jamie Barton brings nuances of identity to her Lyric Opera 'Aida' performance 2024-03-18
- Chicago's Lyric Opera is currently featuring a production of Giuseppe Verdi's Aida starring Michelle Bradley as Aida, Jamie Barton as Amneris and Russell Thomas as Radamès. The opera runs through April 7, 2024, with Francesca Zambello ...


Gay News

Queer Eye's Jai Rodriguez is set to slay at The Big Gay Cabaret 2024-03-05
- Out and proud performer Jai Rodriguez is set to play at The Big Gay Cabaret this March for three days. Presented by RuPaul Drag Racer Ginger Minj, this monthly series highlights the wide world of cabaret ...


Gay News

THEATER 'R & J' puts a female, queer spin on Shakespeare 2024-03-05
- Romeo and Juliet is the theatrical gift that keeps on giving. It's been reworked for the masses numerous times, whether in direct adaptations or musicals such as West Side Story. Shakespeare's plotline points have even inspired ...


Gay News

Center on Halsted hosts 6th Annual Intergenerational Talent Show 2024-03-03
- On the evening of Feb. 29, Center on Halsted held its 6th Annual Intergenerational Talent Show in front of a packed audience at the Hoover-Leppen Theater. The event brought together participants of the Center's youth and senior ...


Gay News

THEATER When growth is paramount: Jim Corti helps fuel Aurora theater expansion 2024-03-01
- Out actor/director/choreographer Jim Corti made his Broadway debut in 1974, in the ensemble of Leonard Bernstein's musical Candide. Director Harold Prince's acclaimed Tony Award-winning revival is often cited as a ...


Gay News

Theater Review: Billy Elliot, The Musical 2024-02-19
- Book and Lyrics: Lee Hall; Music: Elton John. At: Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora Tickets: 630-896-6666 or Paramountaurora.com; $28-$79. Runs through March 24 Billy Elliot: The Musical may nearly be two decades old, but ...


Gay News

'West Side Story' gets a sex-positive spin with new burlesque show 2024-02-19
- In partial observance of National Condom Day, which was Feb. 14, Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) presented A West Side Story Burlesque at the Harris Theater for two hour-long performances on Feb. 17. The show, ...


Gay News

Second Glance Productions hosts LGBTQupid Soiree 2024-02-16
- In celebration of Valentine's Day, Chicago based film and media production company Second Glance hosted The LBGTQupid Soiree. The event, which was focused on spinning attitudes on this particular day, was presented at The iO ...


Gay News

Carisa Hendrix mesmerizes as Lucy Darling in Teatro ZinZanni 2024-02-12
- Since 2019, Teatro ZinZanni has gathered together amazing performers from all over the world to create an experience in Chicago under the Spiegeltent in the Cambria Hotel building, 32 W. Randolph St. Over the years, ticket ...


Gay News

THEATER Dot-Marie Jones talks Goodman production, 'Glee,' 'Bros' 2024-02-12
- Running through Feb. 18 at the the Goodman Theatre, the production Highway Patrol works with a script conceived entirely from Emmy-winning actor Dana Delany's (TV's China Beach) digital archive of hundreds of tweets and direct messages ...


Gay News

Dr. Lady J explains how opera can be a drag 2024-02-10
- On Feb. 8, Center on Halsted, in partnership with Lyric Opera of Chicago, presented a lecture by historian, drag activist, podcaster and curator Dr. Lady J. The event, titled "Castrated Superstars, Cross Dressed Divas, and Queer ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.