Goodman Theatre proudly announces a five-performance extension of the Broadway smash sensation Clyde’s by Lynn Nottage, directed by her longtime artistic partner Kate Whorisky (see extension schedule below). This Chicago premiere by one of the Goodman’s most produced playwrights—and the first woman in history to win two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama—was hailed as “a heaping helping of comedy (that) will leave you ravenously hungry for more—four stars (out of four)” (Chicago Sun-Times); a “thoroughly enjoyable…a lively dark comedy (from) the shrewdest of American playwrights” (Chicago Tribune); “a poignant, laugh-out-loud funny play” (New City); and “palate-pleasing opener for the Goodman’s season” (Chicago Reader). Clyde’s appears September 10 – October 16 in the 856-seat Albert Theatre. Tickets ($35 –$80, subject to change) are now available at GoodmanTheatre.org/Clydes or by phone at 312-443-3800. The Goodman is grateful for the support of JP Morgan Chase & Co. (Lead Corporate Sponsor) and Winston & Strawn LLP (Corporate Sponsor Partner). Clyde’s is a co-production with Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, where it will appear November 15 – December 18, 2022.
The cast of the Chicago premiere features Danielle Davis as the hot-tempered Clyde (casting update: Davis, who appeared as Clyde in the opening night performance, will continue in the role for the duration of the run, replacing De’Adre Aziza, who cannot continue with the production due to injury). Clyde’s eponymous truck stop café’s kitchen staff of formerly incarcerated people —Kevin Kenerly (Montrellous), Reza Salazar (Rafael), Nedra Snipes (Letitia) and Garrett Young (Jason)—dreams of creating the perfect sandwich. Lynn Nottage’s work at the Goodman includes Sweat (2019), By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (2013), Ruined (her Pulitzer Prize-winning world-premiere Goodman commission and co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club, 2008) and Crumbs from the Table of Joy (2006), Kate Whoriskey’s world-premiere collaborations with Ms. Nottage include Sweat (2015), Ruined (at the Goodman, 2008), Fabulation or The Re-Education of Undine (2004) and Intimate Apparel (2003).
EXTENSION SCHEDULE
Thursday, October 13 at 7:30pm
Friday, October 14 at 8pm
Saturday, October 15 at 2pm and 8pm
Sunday, October 16 at 2pm
SPECIAL EVENTS AND COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Caged Rooster – Artist Sandra Antongiorgo’s visual series, “Caged Rooster,” features images of those who have been incarcerated and their loved ones | Goodman Theatre lobby, FREE.
First Slice Pie –Enjoy a fruit pie from First Slice Pie, available for purchase following the Friday and Saturday evening performances. First Slice Pie is committed to employing formerly incarcerated people | Goodman Theatre Lobby.
North Lawndale Employment Network – Parched patrons can pick from two specialty cocktails—“Clyde’s Collins” and “The Grinder”—from which 20% of the proceeds support this southside organization that helps formerly incarcerated people reenter society and the workforce. | Goodman Theatre Lobby
ChiFresh – All the food on stage is provided by ChiFresh—a local, Black-owned business that sources their produce from Chicago’s urban farms and hires most of their workers from the South and West sides of the city.
ENHANCED AND ACCESSIBLE PERFORMANCES
Visit Goodman theatre.org/Access for more information about Goodman Theatre’s accessibility efforts.
ASL-Interpreted: Friday, October 7 at 8pm – An American Sign Language interpreter signs the action/text as played.
Touch Tour and Audio-Described Performance: Saturday, October 8, 12:30pm Touch Tour; 2pm performance – The action/text is audibly enhanced for patrons via headset. NOTE: Touch Tours for the 2022/2023 Season will not have access to the stage due to current health and safety protocols, but will feature alternate pre-show sensory introductions.
Spanish Subtitles: Saturday October 8 at 8pm.
Open-Captioned: Sunday, October 9 at 2pm – An LED sign presents dialogue in sync with the performance.
ABOUT THE CO-PRODUCING THEATERS
Center Theatre Group, one of the nation’s preeminent arts and cultural organizations, is Los Angeles’ leading nonprofit theatre company, which, under the leadership of Managing Director / CEO Meghan Pressman and Producing Director Douglas C. Baker, and in collaboration with the five Associate Artistic Directors, Luis Alfaro, Lindsay Allbaugh, Tyrone Davis, Neel Keller, Kelley Kirkpatrick, programs seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1,600 to 2,100-seat Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In addition to presenting and producing the broadest range of theatrical entertainment in the country, Center Theatre Group is one of the nation’s leading producers of ambitious new works through commissions and world premiere productions and a leader in interactive community engagement and education programs that reach across generations, demographics, and circumstance to serve Los Angeles. centertheatregroup.org
Chicago ’s theater since 1925, Goodman Theatre is a not-for-profit arts and community organization in the heart of the Loop, distinguished by the excellence and scope of its artistic programming and community engagement. The theater’s artistic priorities include new play development (more than 150 world or American premieres), large scale musical theater works and reimagined classics. Artists and productions have earner two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards and more than 160 Jeff Awards, among other accolades. The Goodman is the first theater in the world to produce all 10 plays in August Wilson’s “American Century Cycle.” Its longtime annual holiday tradition A Christmas Carol, now in its fifth decade, has created a new generation of theatergoers in Chicago. The Goodman also frequently serves as a production and program partner with national and international companies and Chicago’s Off-Loop theaters.
Using the tools of the theatrical profession, the Goodman’s Education and Engagement programs aim to develop generations of citizens who understand the cultures and stories of diverse voices. The Goodman’s Alice Rapoport Center for Education and Engagement is the home of these programs, which are offered free of charge for Chicago youth—85% of whom come from underserved communities—schools and life-long learners.
As a cultural and community organization invested in quality, diversity and community, Goodman Theatre is committed to using the art of theater for a better Chicago. Goodman Theatre’s Action Plan for Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Anti-Racism and Access (IDEAA) was born out of the belief that progress means action, which includes building on the decades-long commitment to using art, assets and resources to contribute to a more just, equitable and anti-racist society.
Goodman Theatre was founded by William O. Goodman and his family in honor of their son Kenneth, an important figure in Chicago’s cultural renaissance in the early 1900s. The Goodman family’s legacy lives on through the continued work and dedication of Kenneth’s family, including Albert Ivar Goodman, who with his late mother, Edith-Marie Appleton, contributed the necessary funds for the creation on the new Goodman center in 2000.
Today, Goodman Theatre is led by Artistic Director Susan Booth and Executive Director Roche Schulfer. Theater leadership also includes the distinguished members of the Artistic Collective: Rebecca Gilman, Dael Orlandersmith, Henry Godinez, Steve Scott, Kimberly Senior, Chuck Smith, Regina Taylor and Mary Zimmerman. Jeff Hesse is Chairman of Goodman Theatre’s Board of Trustees, Fran Del Boca is Women’s Board President and Craig McCaw is President of the Scenemakers Board for young professionals.