Goodman Theatre

For Immediate Release

(Chicago, IL) Artistic Director Robert Falls proudly presents a diverse line-up—from musical hilarity and classic yarns, to memory pieces and family dramas, to stories with ethnic roots that reflect today's world—in Goodman Theatre's 2009/2010 season, beginning September 2009. The season includes six plays in the Goodman's 856-seat Albert Ivar Theatre—including the theater's 32nd annual production of the cherished holiday classic, A Christmas Carol—and three world premiere productions in the 400-seat flexible Owen Bruner Theatre. American Airlines is the Exclusive Airline of Goodman Theatre. Kraft Foods is the Principal Sponsor of the Goodman's free Student Subscription Series. Northern Trust is a longstanding supporter of the Goodman's Education and Community Programs.

Opening the Goodman's Albert Theatre is Animal Crackers (September 18 – October 25) based on the original Marx Brothers Broadway hit and film classic, directed by Henry Wishcamper, book by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind, music and Lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. Next door in the Owen is the Chicago premiere production of Stoop Stories (September 12 – October 11) written and performed by Dael Orlandersmith. Following Stoop Stories in the Owen is Alan Gross' darkly comic world premiere of High Holidays (October 31 – November 29) directed by Steven Robman.

The Broadway-bound double bill of Hughie/Krapp's Last Tape (January 16 – February 21, 2010) takes the stage next in the Albert. Eugene O'Neill's Hughie is directed by Robert Falls and Krapp's Last Tape by Samuel Beckett is directed by Jennifer Tarver—both star Goodman Artistic Collective member Brian Dennehy. The final production of the three-play Owen series is Brett C. Leonard's The Long Red Road directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman (February 13 – March 14, 2010).

Playwright Rebecca Gilman and director Falls team up again for Gilman's newest play and Goodman commission, A True History of the Johnstown Flood (March 13 – April 18, 2010) in the Albert. Following is The Good Negro—Tracey Scott Wilson's gripping new play, directed by Chuck Smith (May 1 – June 6, 2010). The season concludes with The Sins of Sor Juana, Karen Zacarías' passionate tale of love and compromise directed by Henry Godinez. The Sins of Sor Juana launches the Goodman's fifth biennial Latino Theater Festival, June 19 – July 25, 2010.

The season would not be complete without Goodman Theatre's annual production of A Christmas Carol, a Chicago holiday tradition for 32 years, November 20 – December 31. William Brown returns to direct, and acclaimed Chicago actor Larry Yando returns as the irascible Ebenezer Scrooge.

Season subscriptions are now on sale: visit www.ExploreTheGoodman.org or call 312.443.3800.

A complete 2009/2010 schedule follows; plays, dates and artists are subject to change.

IN THE ALBERT THEATRE

Animal Crackers
Book by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind
Music and Lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby
Directed by Henry Wishcamper
September 18 – October 25, 2009

Hooray for Captain Spaulding! When a celebrated sculpture goes missing from Mrs. Rittenhouse's fancy house party in honor of African explorer Captain Spaulding, her guests set out to find the thief in a series of madcap antics and exploits. Based on the original Marx Brothers Broadway hit and film classic, this contemporary adaptation of Animal Crackers is an outrageous, rollicking, laugh-out-loud musical comedy.

A Christmas Carol
By Charles Dickens
Adapted by Tom Creamer
Directed by William Brown, featuring Larry Yando
November 20 – December 31, 2009

Throughout its history at the Goodman, over 1 million people have experienced A Christmas Carol–"a joyous present for the entire family" (Chicago Sun-Times), "year after year…the crown jewel of the holiday season" (Daily Herald), "the best show to get at the true meaning of Christmas" (SouthtownStar) and "ideal family fare, both heartwarming and spectacular in its familiar tale" (Chicago Tribune). Over the years the show has hosted six directors, seven Scrooges, 27 Tiny Tims, and nearly 20,000 "Bah-Humbug!"s. A Christmas Carol is the tale of the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, who is opposed to holiday cheer and indifferent to the sufferings of the poor in Victorian London. Scrooge is visited by four ghosts who offer him the opportunity to sympathize with his fellow man. Dickens' famous characters include Scrooge's kind-hearted clerk, Bob Cratchit, and his family, including Tiny Tim; the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future; the merry-making Fezziwig couple; and the Ghost of Jacob Marley.

Hughie By Eugene O'Neill Directed by Robert Falls

Krapp's Last Tape By Samuel Beckett Directed by Jennifer Tarver

Goodman Artistic Director Robert Falls and celebrated star Brian Dennehy team up again for a Broadway-bound double bill. In Hughie, high-rolling gambler Erie (Brian Dennehy) and Hughie, the credulous night clerk at his apartment building, were confidants. Hughie admired Erie for his bold lifestyle and Erie considered Hughie his good luck charm. When Hughie dies unexpectedly, Erie's luck changes for the worse and he finds himself in dire straights. Then Erie meets the new night clerk (Joe Grifasi), who reminds him enough of Hughie that he takes the gamble his luck is about to change.

Krapp's Last Tape is Samuel Beckett's classic one-act, one-man show. Every year on his birthday, self-absorbed Krapp records the important—and the banal—moments of the last year. As he prepares to record a new tape on his 69th birthday, he begins to listen to his archives. This immersion in his own history leads Krapp to question with growing regret whether his present lives up to his past. These conjoined productions were first performed to universal acclaim at Canada's Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Summer 2008.

A True History of the Johnstown Flood
By Rebecca Gilman
Directed by Robert Falls
March 13 – April 18, 2010

The devastating Johnstown Flood of 1889 serves as the backdrop for this provocative world premiere by Rebecca Gilman. Baxter Theatre Troupe—comprised of siblings James, Richard and Fanny—has been summoned to perform at an exclusive resort next to a beautiful man-made lake in the Pennsylvania mountains. Although the troupe's repertoire consists of the romantic trifles typical of the era, James envisions a different kind of play, exposing the true struggles of common people. When a violent rainstorm compromises the lake's shoddily constructed dam, the resulting disaster lays bare the tragic inequities of the rigid class system—and paves the way for a seismic change in both theater and society.

The Good Negro
By Tracey Scott Wilson
Directed by Chuck Smith
May 1 – June 6, 2010

This gripping new play rips through the pages of history to uncover the human story at the heart of the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement. Tensions build in the increasingly hostile South as a trio of emerging black leaders attempts to conquer their individual demons amid death threats from the Ku Klux Klan and wire taps by the FBI. Through personal and intimate stories inspired by the political upheavals of the era, The Good Negro examines the human frailties behind the historic headlines.

The Sins of Sor Juana
By Karen Zacarías
Directed by Henry Godinez
June 19 – July 25, 2010

Legendary Mexican poet Juana Inés de la Cruz writes expressive, sensual verse at the Viceroy's court in the 1600s, a time when it was unfashionable—and sinful—for women to exercise their intellect. The Viceroy is jealous of Juana's influence on his beautiful wife, the Vicereine, who has arranged a profitable marriage to ensure that Juana will always have a place at court. Believing his own marriage is threatened by Juana's engagement, the Viceroy hires a charming, educated rogue to seduce Juana and destroy her reputation. When Juana refuses to compromise her poetry for what the church ordains appropriate, she stands to lose everything she loves.

IN THE OWEN THEATRE

Stoop Stories
Written and performed by Dael Orlandersmith
September 12 – October 11, 2009

Pulitzer Prize Finalist Dael Orlandersmith transforms with mesmerizing ease into an astounding range of characters, from an elderly Polish Holocaust survivor to a poetic young junkie to a teenage Puerto Rican punk to a washed-up rock 'n' roll star. An electrifying journey through the streets of Harlem, Orlandersmith performs a powerful, sizzling, fierce symphony of the diverse voices that make up her neighborhood.

High Holidays
By Alan Gross
Directed by Steven Robman
October 31 – November 29, 2009
A world premiere

This darkly comic and boisterous look at growing up in the Chicago suburbs during the early sixties is the story of 13-year old Billy Roman and the rollicking, anxiety-riddled preparations for his Bar Mitzvah. When Billy's rebellious older brother returns from college during the Jewish high holidays, his family—the little Roman Empire—begins to wobble and crack as it is forced to examine some hard truths about coming of age in America.

The Long Red Road By Brett C. Leonard
Directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman
February 13 – March 14, 2010
A world premiere

In this raw, provocative world premiere, Sam attempts to drink away his past and exorcise his demons on an Indian reservation in South Dakota, where he has been trying to forget his role in a tragic accident involving his family. When a visitor from his past arrives on the reservation, Sam is forced to face his guilt and to take a harrowing look at the man he has become. The Long Red Road is a searing play about the way one person's anguish can tear a family apart.