2008: The Year Chicago Took New York

BY Jonathan Abarbanel

Biggest story of the year: Chicago triumphs at the Tony, Obie, NY Drama Critics Circle, Outer Circle Critics, Drama Desk and Lucille Lortel awards. Between Steppenwolf’s August: Osage County, Next’s The Adding Machine, Chicagoan Kate Harris’s The Conversation and Chicago Shakespeare Theater, the 2008 New York awards season was dominated by Chicago talent and Chicago shows. Although less visible to the public (but highly visible to theatre industry money people), Chicago-based Jam Theatricals and its president, Steve Traxler, produced six Broadway shows nominated for Tony Awards, among them August: Osage County.

Second biggest story of the year: the huge number of companies that changed artistic directors or managing directors or both! Most dramatic were the retirements of “founding mothers” Eileen Boevers from Apple Tree Theatre (after 25 years) and Arlene Crewdson from Pegasus Players (30 years). Most companies—especially ensemble troupes—either promoted from within or hired a long-established Chicagoan. However, About Face Theatre and Next Theatre Company went to the East Coast for new artistic directors (respectively) Bonnie Metzgar and Jason Southerland.

Other artistic director changes: founder Stuart Oken departed the American Music Theater Project, Guy Van Swearingen stepped down at A Red Orchid after 15 years and Jason Loewith left Next Theatre after six years. Seanachai Theatre welcomed John Dunleavy as the new AD, Luke Hatton took the reins of Barrel of Monkeys and Kevin Hagen stepped up at Shattered Globe along with newly-named managing director Tiffany Carter.

On the management side, Laura Blegen was named the new Stage Left managing director (MD), succeeding Kevin Heckman who took the MD spot at Next Theatre. Matt O’Brien left the executive director (ED) slot at Metropolis Centre after just five months, replaced by marketing director Jim Jarvis. The new ED at American Theater Company is Michael Thomas Newberry, joined by Julie Saltani in the new post of producing director. Jon Arndt took over the MD slot at Circle Theatre, ditto Martin Kamanski at Collaboraction. And at the top of the food chain, Joan Gunzberg stepped down after 19 years as ED of the Arts and Business Council, succeeded by Peter Kuntz (formerly of the Chicago Humanities Fest), while League of Chicago Theatres ED Lyle Allen honorably resigned after less than a year officially in the top spot (after a lengthy League career), succeeded by Deb Clapp.

Yeah, the flow of personnel was enough to make your head spin and a little too much like musical chairs.

As ever, the space race, the bricks-and-mortar chase was a regular source of news. The newly-reconstructed Morse Theatre finally opened in September, likewise the Joffrey Tower in The Loop as the new creative and administrative home for the Joffrey Ballet. ComedySportz, after several years in temporary Lakeview headquarters, opened their new permanent home on Belmont. Two new Off-Loop venues also quietly opened their doors, both in the emerging arts neighborhood around the Elston-Kedzie-Addison intersection (pioneered theatrically by Prop Thtr). LaCosta Theatre Company offers a very spacious second-floor loft playhouse and gallery while the new Stages 33 is a tiny 25-seat black box. Each has a resident company but welcomes rentals.

Several itinerant troupes decided it was time to settle down, among them The Journeymen, now resident at the Berger Park Cultural Center, and the Artistic Home, now snug in the former Live Bait space just ‘round the corner from their long-time storefront on Irving Park (in turn acquired by Chemically Imbalanced Comedy). Most dramatic of all, Theatre Wit! has assumed the lease on 1229 W. Belmont, the digs occupied for 15 years by Bailiwick Repertory. Bailiwick will travel while Theatre Wit! reconfigures the venue into three 99-seat playhouses. Steep Theatre made a leap, trading the noise of the live bands next door for the rattle of the Red Line next door, as they moved from their Sheridan at Irving Park digs to Berwyn, just off Broadway. The new quarters are bigger and better for both artists and audiences, with a comfy lobby gallery.

The biggest bricks-and-mortar stories, however, were the three that seemed to indicate the economic hard times ahead. Victory Gardens Theater reluctantly sold their old venue, the Greenhouse, to retire debt from the purchase and remodeling of the Biograph. It was a good deal financially, with sympathetic purchasers promising to operate the Greenhouse as-is for at least several years. Then, both Porchlight Music Theatre and Circle Theatre backed off of previously announced plans (and funding campaigns) to purchase and/or renovate spiffy new venues. The Circle plans were modest compared to the several-million-dollars Porchlight project, but even so the times dictated a holding action.

Actors Equity Association had a mighty year, racking up record-setting contract work week numbers for the July 1, 2006-June 30, 2007 year. The Central Region reached 52,303 work weeks while the Chicago Area Theatre (CAT) contract hit 8,379 work weeks. Both numbers are all-time highs. Numbers for the 2007-2008 season (ended last June 30) should be released just about NOW, even as we’re nearly half-way through the 2008-2009 year. Whether or not the sour economy will pull work week numbers down remains to be seen.

As ever, the list of goodbyes is far too long. The 2008 “In Memoriam” honor roll includes both the great and famous as well as humbler friends and workers: actor Greg Lackner, international jazz choreographer Gus Giordano, circus artist Ottavio Canestrelli, actor and producer Page Hearn (the sweetheart of City Lit), writer and lyricist Patti McKenny, beloved son Thomas Tyler Bringley, writer-filmmaker Ben Byer, founding father Paul Sills, Joffrey Ballet co-founder Gerald Arpino and the incomparable, sui generis Studs Terkel. Many of these men and women were personal friends of several decades and several were my teachers in the sense that we learn from those with whom we work, or whose work we admire.

Finally, for the first time in years we elected a president with a defined, written arts policy that not only was part of the Democratic Party platform, but also was among the Obama campaign position papers. How President Obama (oh, how I like to write those words) will implement his policy, and what funds might be available for it in hard times, remains to be seen. But some things, such as easing burdensome visa restrictions for visiting artists, will cost little or nothing to implement. We are hopeful as we welcome 2009 with some belt-tightening.

Jonathan Abarbanel is a freelance journalist and regular PerformInk contributor.

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