Windy City Playhouse Presents THE BOYS IN THE BAND Review – Closet Brew

Posted on by Amy Munice

Click here to read more Picture This Post Windy City Playhouse stories.

Tip:  If you can, grab a seat on the sunken living room couch.

…but wherever you sit, know you are up close and personal.

Windy City Playhouse THE BOYS IN THE BAND
James Lee as Larry in Windy City Playhouse's The Boys

Rage, flirtations, fast-flowing satiric wit, sadness, and self-loathing— this and more spills out of playwright Mart Crowley’s pen, and the proverbial closet where mainstream culture circa 1968 kept gay men.  Historic though this play may be, perhaps the greatest power of Windy City Playhouse’s immersive theater style production is to make it SO vivid that it pokes anew at your assumption that that was then, and this is now.

Windy City Playhouse THE BOYS IN THE BAND
Jackson Evans and WIlliam Marquez
Windy City Playhouse THE BOYS IN THE BAND
Christian Edwin Cook as Alan

Windy City Playhouse Invites You to the Party

In true Windy City Playhouse style, a few drinks are served to you as you join the party.  These characters are drinking far more than you—lacing it with some  Alice B. Toklas lasagna.  The party’s host, Michael (Jackson Evans), is a bit of a mean drunk who breaks his abstinence streak and becomes ringleader of a sort of Truth or Dare game. One after another, we learn the stories of these men, and how their hearts break, or were broken.  Their culture is thick with narcissism, but it's Crowley’s ability to cut through that and make their humanity real. That is the earthquake of this script.  More though, in this writer’s view, it’s the stellar cast that Windy City Playhouse has assembled that makes this production so compelling.  While all the actors are superb, William Marquez’ Emory—a character whom the  dominant culture of the time would  describe as a pansy— especially makes us want to weep.As you ruminate on the play you too may realize just how much Evans’ Michael is the glue.  That said,all of these performers are so perfect that you too will likely forget they were acting.  They let us meet people, not just characters in a script.

You too might think that there is a lack of realism to the party game premise.  Most of the time, most of the cast has to sit out on the sidelines as one or another takes their turn in the spotlight.  Perhaps this immersive setting gives them far more room to do so than a traditional set might otherwise.  It more than works, in this writer’s view.

Windy City Playhouse THE BOYS IN THE BAND
Denzel Tsopnang, William Marquez, and Ryan Reilly
Windy City Playhouse THE BOYS IN THE BAND
Ryan Reilly, Christian Edwin Cook, Denzel Tsopnang, William Marquez, and James Lee

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Windy City Playhouse THE BOYS IN THE BAND
Side view- the set of Windy City Playhouse's The Boys

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Cast

Sam Bell Gurwitz as Harold, Christian Edwin Cook as Alan, Jordan Dell Harris as Donald, Jackson Evans as Michael, James Lee as Larry, Kyle Patrick as Cowboy, Ryan Reilly as Hank, Denzel Tsopnang as Bernard and William Marquez as Emory.

Creative team:

William Boles (Scenic Designer), Uriel Gomez (Costume Designer), Erik Barry (Lighting Designer), Sarah Espinoza (Sound Designer), Mealah Heidenreich (Properties Designer & Set Dressing), Max Fabian (Violence & Intimacy Diretor), Jenniffer Thusing (Production Stage Manager), Spencer Fritz (Assistant Stage Manager), Jonah White (Master Electrician), Jonathan Schleyer (Technical Director) and Ellen White (Production Manager).

When

Running through April 19, 2020

Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.
Fridays at 8 p.m.
Saturdays at 3:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. and
Sundays at 1:30 p.m. and 6 p.m.

Where

Windy City Playhouse
3014 W.Irving Park Rd.
Chicago

Tickets:

$75+

For full-priced tickets and ticket availability information visit the website Windy City Playhouse or call 773-891-8985.

Check for Half-Price Deals from Hot Tix:

Photos: Michael Brosilow

Note: Picture This Post reviews are excerpted by Theatre in Chicago

Amy Munice

About the Author: Amy Munice

Amy Munice is Editor-in-Chief and Co-Publisher of Picture This Post. She covers books, dance, film, theater, music, museums and travel. Prior to founding Picture This Post, Amy was a freelance writer and global PR specialist for decades—writing and ghostwriting thousands of articles and promotional communications on a wide range of technical and not-so-technical topics.

Amy hopes the magazine’s click-a-picture-to-read-a-vivid-account format will nourish those ever hunting for under-discovered cultural treasures. She especially loves writing articles about travel finds, showcasing works by cultural warriors of a progressive bent, and shining a light on bold, creative strokes by fledgling artists in all genres.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES BY AMY MUNICE.

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