Steppenwolf Theatre Company has announced it will postpone the 20/21 planned production of Donnetta Lavinia Grays’s Last Night and the Night Before to a future season due to extended public health concerns related to COVID-19. While disheartened to delay the return to the physical stage, the storytelling remains as alive as ever with the first production of six on the Steppenwolf NOW virtual stage. Audiences will be tuning into the iconic Chicago theater from more than 300 cities, 41 states and 12 countries and counting.
Artistic Director Anna D. Shapiro shares, “When we entered into this season we knew it would be an unusual one. As restrictions have kept our stages dark this fall, it might come as no surprise but with no less heartache that we need to postpone the 2020/21 planned production of Last Night and the Night Before by Donnetta Lavinia Grays to a future season. While we eagerly await the return to the stage, we are thrilled by the reception to Steppenwolf NOW, our virtual programming stream—what a true gift to be able to connect with more people and students across the globe than we ever imagined. This new platform also allows us to deepen our relationships with so many groundbreaking artists, including Donnetta, whose incredible one-woman show, Where We Stand is part of the virtual lineup and will feature Donnetta herself!
We are a Chicago theatre company—we don’t break in tough times, we create, we evolve, we build. Steppenwolf has discovered new innovative ways of storytelling and community building that will continue long after we’re back on the stage. One of things that can be hard about theater is how few people it can reach, yet in this moment of isolation theater makers are embracing the opportunity to connect the world and each other, and we are all the better for it.”
Steppenwolf NOW features six breakthrough stories written by America’s most talented voices and available from anywhere in the world. First up on the Steppenwolf NOW stage is the world premiere of What Is Left, Burns by James Ijames and directed by Whitney White, now available for members to stream through August 31, 2021.
Ensemble members Ensemble members K. Todd Freeman (Downstate, Airline Highway – Tony Award nomination) and Jon Michael Hill (Spike Lee’s Pass Over, Superior Donuts – Tony Award nomination) star in What Is Left, Burns as two poets and former lovers who wade through the connection they once had as they struggle with the desires that still bind them. Featuring original music by Justin Ellington and Photography and Video Design by Lowell Thomas, this stunning play uncovers a deep level of intimacy on this new virtual platform. Press are welcome to review; RSVP at this link to receive a login to stream the production. Watch the video trailer here. More information at steppenwolf.org/whatisleftburns.
Access and Reach
Virtual programming offers the unique and incredible opportunity to connect with theatre lovers, families, students and communities across the globe in new ways. Steppenwolf is deeply appreciative of the brave workers worldwide who continue to keep our communities healthy, engaged and functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a token of gratitude, Steppenwolf is offering $25 off a Steppenwolf NOW virtual membership to all essential workers, including artists. Essential workers and professions can include, but are not limited to Healthcare Providers, Arts Workers (artists, industry professionals and arts administrators across all genres), Paramedics, Child Caregivers, Food and Agriculture (Grocery, Farming, Distribution), Social Services (Public servants offering critical services), Critical Retail (Pharmacies, Mechanics), City Workers (Water, Waste, Sanitation, Public Transportation, Construction) and USPS Employees. Discounted memberships can be claimed by calling the Audience Services team at 312-335-1650. More information at steppenwolf.org/memberships/essential-worker-discount/.
"It is a privilege to expand our audience and cultivate a new generation of storytelling enthusiasts through Steppenwolf NOW,” Executive Director E. Brooke Flanagan shares. “The impact has been exhilarating—in one month Steppenwolf Education has brought George Orwell’s Animal Farm to more than 21,000 students, which is three times the number served with one live production; and our virtual stage is welcoming first-time Steppenwolf attendees in 12 countries and counting. We are truly grateful for the continued support of our Board, donors and loyal 20/21 season members whose commitment makes this groundbreaking work possible. With our new theater-in-the-round and education building opening in Fall 2021, it lifts our spirits to know we can bring these new practices and relationships with us as we literally open the doors of our organization’s next chapter.”
While Steppenwolf continues to follow guidelines from local health officials, the remaining lineup of the season includes an adaptation of Erika L. Sánchez’s award-winning novel I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Isaac Gómez, Choir Boy by ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney and Seagull by Anton Chekhov, translated and adapted by ensemble member Yasen Peyankov; the dates remain in flux with hopes of staging these productions should conditions allow.
Steppenwolf for Young Adults’ Radio Play Production of George Orwell’s Animal Farm for Schools Reaches 21,000 Students
Streaming began October 19th for Steppenwolf for Young Adults’ original radio play production of George Orwell’s Animal Farm and has reached nearly 20,000 students and teachers worldwide. The radio play is available via captions, American Sign Language and Spanish-language transcript. Accompanying the production is an interactive study guide (access here), featuring interviews, lesson plans and more.
Since March, Steppenwolf Education has hosted dozens of free virtual workshops, which are archived and available at steppenwolf.org/education.
Half Hour: The Steppenwolf Podcast
Half Hour is a Steppenwolf Theatre produced interview-style podcast that uses the most magical amount of time there is in the theatre—the half hour before a show begins—to sit down and make connections between artists in the Steppenwolf family and beyond. With more than 10,000 downloads since its launch in April 2021, the first season wrapped up on October 20th with an episode featuring ensemble member Carrie Coon (The Leftovers, Fargo, The Sinner). Listen at steppenwolf.org/halfhour and on all podcast platforms. Season two will debut in winter 2021.
Steppenwolf NOW Virtual Stage
What Is Left, Burns
By Written by James Ijames
Directed by Whitney White
Featuring ensemble members K. Todd Freeman and Jon Michael Hill
Streaming November 2020
Two poets separated by age and distance engage in a video call rendezvous after fifteen years. Keith, a distinguished poet and professor of literature is moving towards retirement after a recent divorce from his wife. Ronnie, his younger former lover and mentee, has a New York Times bestselling book and a burgeoning career ahead of him. The two men wade through the connection they once had as they struggle with the desires that still bind them.
What Is Left, Burns creative team features Justin Ellington (Sound Design & Original Music), Joel Moorman (Creative Director), Lowell Thomas (Director of Photography & Video Editor), JC Clementz and Leelai Demoz (Artistic Producers), Claire Haupt (Production Manager), JC Clementz (Casting Director), Laura D. Glenn (Stage Manager) and Christine D. Freeburg (Assistant Stage Manager).
James Ijames and Whitney White are the same team behind The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington, which had to postpone its Steppenwolf debut this past April due to the pandemic. More info on What Is Left, Burns at steppenwolf.org/whatisleftburns.
Wally World
By Isaac Gómez
Co-directed by Isaac Gómez and Lili-Anne Brown
Featuring ensemble members Audrey Francis, Sandra Marquez and Karen Rodriguez with Sydney Charles
Streaming December 2020
It's Christmas Eve and a group of Wally World employees are about to lose it. On the one day of the year the mega-department superstore is supposed to close its doors, secrets come to life that may destroy more than their holiday cheer. Their manager Andy is doing everything in her power to keep her store in line and her employees in check. But can hard truths from her past ruin everything she's ever worked for? Wally World is a festive, poignant examination of finding magic in the mundane as ten employees do everything, they can to find purpose in a place that has never seen purpose in them.
Red Folder
Written and directed by ensemble member Rajiv Joseph
Featuring ensemble member Carrie Coon
Streaming January 2021
The red folder belongs to a first grader. It is the source of all his woes. Years later, he seeks vengeance.
Duchess! Duchess! Duchess!
By Vivian J.O. Barnes
Streaming February 2021
A Royal Wedding is looming. The Duchess and The Soon-to-be-Duchess are meeting face to face for the first time to go over everything you ever needed to know to become a duchess. There are rules. There’s a way of doing things. Remember, everybody is watching. And you don’t want to know what happens if you step out of line. Duchess! Duchess! Duchess! looks at the hidden costs of being the “luckiest girl in the world.”
Where We Stand
By Donnetta Lavinia Grays
Directed by Tamilla Woodard
Featuring Donnetta Lavinia Grays
Streaming April 2021
What does community mean? And what do we owe to one another? When a man who has been shunned by his town makes a deal on behalf of it with a mysterious stranger, he must stand before his community to ask for forgiveness in hopes that they might answer these enduring questions as they determine his fate. Through poetic verse and music, this work challenges our capacity to forgive and our ideas of mercy and who might deserve it.
Ages of the Moon
By Sam Shepard
Directed by ensemble member Ian Barford
Featuring ensemble members Randall Arney and William Petersen
Streaming June 2021
Byron and Ames are old friends, reunited by mutual desperation on a hot summer day. As day turns into night and the bourbon keeps flowing, they sit, reflect and bicker about fifty years of love, friendship and their rivalry.
Sponsor Information
United Airlines is the Official and Exclusive Airline of Steppenwolf. ComEd is the Official Season Lighting Sponsor. Steppenwolf Education Virtual Workshops are made possible by The Ralla Klepak Foundation for Education in the Performing Arts.
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 more than 50 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field. 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 performances series and Steppenwolf NOW, a new virtual programming stream. The nationally recognized work of Steppenwolf Education engages more than 20,000 participants annually in Chicagoland communities promoting compassion, encouraging curiosity and inspiring action. Deeply rooted in its ensemble ethos, the company is committed to equity, diversity, inclusion and making the Steppenwolf experience accessible to all. 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. Anna D. Shapiro is the Artistic Director and E. Brooke Flanagan is the Executive Director. Eric Lefkofsky is Chair of Steppenwolf’s Board of Trustees.
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.