It may be winter outside but inside Chicago Street Theatre it will be the 4th of July for January 19th-28th with Terrence McNally’s dark comedy “Lips Together, Teeth Apart.”
Continuing its 69th season with its first play of the new year, CST has a history of presenting artistic, thought-provoking plays in January that invite audiences to take a deeper look into the issues we see in our society. “Lips Together, Teeth Apart” follows that tradition, says director Lisa Formosa-Parmigiano, saying it will be a “signature CST production.”
McNally, who is the playwright responsible for penning the Tony award-winning musical adaptations of “Ragtime” and “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” presents the story of “Lips Together, Teeth Apart” as two straight couples spending the weekend in Fire Island, a seaside community south of Long Island with a largely gay population. The time setting is the early 1990s when much about AIDS was still unknown.
Sally, a painter, has inherited a beach house belonging to her brother, David, who recently succumbed to AIDS and is visiting the house for the first time with her husband, Sam, her sister-in-law, Chloe, and Chole’s husband, John, for the 4th of July. Sally begins to worry while painting the ocean that a swimmer has drowned. Meanwhile, Sam is dealing with his insecurity about an affair between Sally and John which Chloe also knows about. Chloe hides her trouble over the affair and John’s cancer diagnosis by occupying herself with serving food and drinks, organizing party games, and singing.
With the figure of death surrounding them, the characters reveal their personal thoughts through monologues. Even though we see the characters struggle with grief and loss, comedy manages to break through in the ways they react to each other.
“Humor is used throughout to evade and express hidden thoughts and emotions,” said Formosa-Parmigiano. “Although (the play) deals with strong themes of sexuality, prejudices and social norms, it is very entertaining and fun.”
Co-directing with Formosa-Parmigiano is Tyler Mills.
“The monologues are similar to a Shakespeare soliloquy. Performers flow in and out of their own conscious thoughts and dialogue, similar to water which is another prevalent element of the show,” said Formosa-Parmigiano and Mills.
The cast of four includes Anne Nicholls as Chloe, Allison Granat as Sally, Michael Glorioso as Sam, and Erik Gollnick as John.
Granat doubles as the play’s set designer and said the theme of personal isolation is incorporated into the stage setup.
“Each (actor) has specific zones on the stage which we retreat to when our characters are pulling away from each other and the truth of the situations they’re in. Sally to her easel, John to his chair, Chloe to her table and kitchen, and poor Sam who is forced to try and find a place of his own,” Granat said.
The set will contain a pool constructed downstage center near the first row of seats. CST advises patrons this area will be “a slight splash zone.”
Reserved seats can be purchased in advance at www.chicagostreet.org. The production opens Friday, Jan. 19 and runs just two weekends.
The production contains adult themes, strong language and a mention of suicide.
The Jan. 25 performance will include a post-show discussion led by Formosa-Parmigiano, Artistic and Education Director.
