Steppenwolf Theatre Company, the nation’s premier ensemble theater company, proudly announced today Kenny Leon, acclaimed Tony and Obie Award-winning director will helm the world premiere production of King James by ensemble member Rajiv Joseph in the company’s 2021/22 Comeback Season. Leon’s lauded directing career spans stage and screen, including the 2014 revival of A Raisin in the Sun starring Denzel Washington (Tony Award for Best Direction and Best Revival) and most recently A Soldier’s Play, which won the 2021 Tony Award for Best Revival. Co-commissioned and co-produced with Center Theatre Group, King James will have its world premiere in Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theater, March 3 – April 10, 2022. Opening is Sunday, March 13, 2022.
“King” LeBron James’s reign in Cleveland brings promise, prosperity and renewal to a city in desperate need of all three. It also brings together two friends who communicate best when they are talking and arguing about sports. King James is an intimate exploration of the place that sports and athletes occupy in our emotional lives and relationships. It explores the star player’s impact on Cleveland, from his rookie season to the city’s historic championship, and the lives of these two unlikely friends whose turbulent relationship is best navigated through their shared love of the sport in a verbal game of one on one. Though he is never seen in the show, LeBron James serves as a symbol for the hopes, desires and fears that they have bottled up since childhood.
King James features newly appointed Artistic Director and ensemble member Glenn Davis alongside Chris Perfetti. Previously announced director Anna D. Shapiro will direct the Spring 2022 remount of Steppenwolf’s production of The Minutes on Broadway, which she was directing when theaters were shutdown. King James will travel to the Center Theatre Group’s Mark Taper Forum, June 1 through July 3, 2022; opening June 8, 2022.
Single tickets for Steppenwolf’s production of King James go on sale at a later date. Classic and Flex Memberships to Steppenwolf’s 2021/22 Comeback Season are currently available and offer first access to seats and easy exchanges; learn more steppenwolf.org/memberships.
Kenny Leon is a Tony and Obie Award-winning; Emmy-nominated; Broadway and Television director. Most recently, he directed Lifetime’s Emmy-nominated "Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia." Last year, he directed the Tony Award-winning Broadway premiere of Charles Fuller's Pulitzer Prize winning masterpiece, A Soldier's Play, for which he also received a nomination for Best Director. He also directed The Underlying Chris at Second Stage Theatre Company and the acclaimed production of Much Ado About Nothing at the Delacorte/Shakespeare in the Park. Broadway: A Soldier’s Play; American Son; Children of a Lesser God; Holler If Ya Hear Me; A Raisin in the Sun (Tony Award; 2014); The Mountaintop; Stick Fly; August Wilson’s Fences, Gem of the Ocean and Radio Golf. Off-Broadway: Everybody’s Ruby, Emergence-See! (The Public), Smart People (Second Stage). Television: “American Son” (adapted for Netflix), “Hairspray Live!,” “The Wiz Live!,” “Steel Magnolias,” “Dynasty,” “In My Dreams.” Author, Take You Wherever You Go. Artistic Director Emeritus, Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company. Senior Resident Director, Roundabout Theatre Company.
King James is the new play from Cleveland native Rajiv Joseph who burst onto the American theatre scene with Pulitzer finalist Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, which had its world premiere at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in 2009 before being produced at the Taper and then on Broadway. Joseph’s play Archduke had its world premiere at the Mark Taper Forum in 2017 as part of the Taper’s 50th season. He has won the Obie Award for Best New American Play twice, in 2016 for Guards at the Taj (also a 2016 Lortel Winner for Best Play) and then in 2018 for Describe the Night. Joseph wrote the libretto for the opera Shalimar the Clown, based on the novel by Salman Rushdie. He was also the co-writer of the feature film "Draft Day" and wrote for two seasons on the Showtime series "Nurse Jackie." His other plays include The North Pool, Gruesome Playground Injuries, Animals Out of Paper and The Lake Effect. Joseph is a Steppenwolf ensemble member. Currently Joseph’s Letters of Suresh is being performed at Second Stage in New York. His plays have been translated and produced worldwide.
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 Artistic Director Michael Ritchie, Managing Director / CEO Meghan Pressman and Producing Director Douglas C. Baker, programs seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1600 to 2100-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.
Steppenwolf’s New Building and Return to Live Performances
Rendering by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture
In November, Steppenwolf proudly opens its trailblazing new 50,000 square foot theater building and education center: the Liz and Eric Lefkofsky Arts and Education Center. Designed by world-renowned architect Gordon Gill FAIA of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, with theater design and acoustics by Charcoalblue and construction by Norcon, the expanded Steppenwolf campus is a cultural nexus for Chicago—offering bold and ambitious opportunities for creative expression, social exchange, unparalleled accessibility, and arts-driven learning for Chicago youth in The Loft, Steppenwolf’s first-ever dedicated education space. Learn more at steppenwolf.org/buildingonexcellence.
Steppenwolf will welcome audiences back for in-person performances for the first time in 20 months with its acclaimed and extraordinary revival of Bug by ensemble member Tracy Letts, in the Downstairs Theater November 11 – December 12, 2021. Directed by David Cromer with ensemble members Randall Arney, Carrie Coon and Namir Smallwood alongside Jennifer Engstrom and Steve Key reprising their roles, the production was shut down before the end of its run in March 2020 due to the pandemic. Single tickets available at steppenwolf.org or 312-335-1650.
A Safe Return
Steppenwolf is part of the growing coalition of more than 70 Chicagoland performing arts venues and producers that have agreed upon COVID-19 vaccination and mask requirements for all audiences, artists and staff through the end of 2021. Audience members must provide proof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 test certification upon entry in addition to wearing masks for all indoor productions. Learn more about Steppenwolf's guidelines at steppenwolf.org/welcomeback.
Steppenwolf has worked over the past year with our operations team, public health advisors and HVAC consultants to prepare its facility to safely welcome patrons back for performances. The addition of the new Arts and Education Center has expanded the square footage of the lobbies to nearly twice the previous amount of space offered to guests. Two additional elevators and multiple stairways have also been added to Steppenwolf’s campus for ease of transition between seating levels. The HVAC systems have undergone upgrades to allow for increased filtration and a higher percentage of circulated fresh air across all three theaters.
Accessibility
Committed to making the Steppenwolf experience accessible to everyone, performances featuring American Sign Language Interpretation, Open Captioning and Audio Description are offered during the run of each play. Assistive listening devices and large-print programs are available for every performance and the Downstairs and 1700 Theatres are each equipped with an induction hearing loop. All theaters feature wheelchair accessible seating and restrooms, and Front Bar features a push-button entrance, all-gender restrooms and accessible counter and table spaces.
Sponsor Information
King James is generously supported in part by PNC and the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation. United Airlines is the Official and Exclusive Airline of Steppenwolf. Steppenwolf is also grateful for the significant season support from Allstate Insurance Company, ComEd, JPMorgan Chase, PNC, and Vinci Restaurant.
Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Steppenwolf Theatre Company is a Chicago theater that is home to America’s ensemble. The company began performing in the mid-1970s in the basement of a Highland Park, IL church—today Steppenwolf is the nation’s premier ensemble theater with 49 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field. Deeply rooted in its ensemble ethos, the company is committed to equity, diversity, inclusion and making the Steppenwolf experience accessible to all. Groundbreaking productions from Balm in Gilead and August: Osage County to Downstate and Pass Over—and accolades that include the National Medal of Arts and 12 Tony® Awards—have made the theatre legendary. Artistic programming includes a main stage season; a Steppenwolf for Young Adults season; LookOut, a multi-genre performance series; and the Steppenwolf NOW virtual stage. The nationally recognized work of Steppenwolf Education engages more than 20,000 participants annually in Chicagoland communities promoting compassion, encouraging curiosity and inspiring action. While firmly grounded in the Chicago community, more than 40 original Steppenwolf productions have enjoyed success nationally and internationally, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, London, Sydney, Galway and Dublin. Glenn Davis and Audrey Francis are Artistic Directors and E. Brooke Flanagan is Executive Director. Eric Lefkofsky is Chair of Steppenwolf’s Board of Trustees. steppenwolf.org, facebook.com/steppenwolftheatre, twitter.com/steppenwolfthtr and instagram.com/steppenwolfthtr.
Steppenwolf's mission
Steppenwolf strives to create thrilling, courageous and provocative art in a thoughtful and inclusive environment. We succeed when we disrupt your routine with experiences that spark curiosity, empathy and joy. We invite you to join our ensemble as we navigate, together, our complex world.