Playwright: Neil Connelly. At: The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave. Tickets: 617-721-0675; thedentheatre.com; $25. Runs through: April 3
An Uptown bicycle shop is turned upside down following the death of owner, Cal, who was hit by a cab while on his bike.
Under the Rug Theatre Company has good timing with this show. The weather is changing and more bike riders are currently out and about in Chicago traffic. After seeing this play, hopefully, automobile drivers will check their blindspots even more frequently.
Setting the show in the Windy City gives the text an immediate recognition for Chicago audiences. Places and references are familiar and we are in on the local jokes. The set brings watchers right onto the stage to see the drama happen.
In this story estranged brother Danny and sister Molly return to discover their deceased brother's bike shop has a drunken lesbian named Quill living inside. Bike mechanic Riley and local hustler Dell have also become quite comfortable in the shop over the years during the time Cal was alive. This does not sit well with the conservative family and drama unfolds in every corner.
The cast tackles the cynical sense of humor from playwright Neil Connelly very well. There are lines like "all accidents are preventablethat's why they are called accidents" that are preachy in content but somehow work.
The subject matter can be heavy at times, but the cast keep things rolling when the story becomes intensely fast from the start. Things slow down a bit towards the end but there are some nice moments between Danny ( Todd Wojcik ) and Quill ( Rose Freeman ) that tie things up. It is fun to watch Wojcik evolve his character throughout the experience at Brennan's Bikes. He shows that everyone can learn by moving out of their comfort zone.
There is a local lesson to be had, that if more Chicagoans perhaps venture out of their prospective neighborhoods they may discover a lot about themselves in the process. This group has put that idea into the work itself by enlisting a variety of local organizations and bike shops to help them out on this particular production.
People deal with death and society in many different ways and RIDE doesn't hit the brakes on that fact.