BY LUCIA MAURO
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An ongoing commitment to ensemble acting and a constant presence in the Chicago theatre scene might lead many people to think Strawdog Theatre Company has not experienced any radical changes. But the Lakeview-based troupe, founded in 1988 by Lawrence Novikoff and Paul Engelhardt, has undergone a striking metamorphosis over the past few years.
As several original ensemble members moved away and took their careers in new directions, a fresh group of artists stepped in to carry Strawdog to a more experimental plane without sacrificing the hard-hitting realism for which it was known. Still based at its 70-seat upstairs space at 3829 N. Broadway, the company that specialized in such straightforward plays as HurlyBurly and Criminal Hearts is now tackling more abstract pieces as well as approaching the classics from unexpected angles.
New co-artistic directors Michael Dailey and Jennifer Avery began their affiliation with Strawdog Theatre as actors. And, while Dailey cites Nic Dimond’s 1996 Dada-esque production of Doug White’s Interrogating the Nude as a key avant-garde turning point, he notes that "things didn’t just turn on a dime."
Gradually, a fresh group of actors, directors and designers replaced the original ensemble. Richard Shavzin, closely associated with Strawdog as its artistic director from 1993 to 1999, also moved on to larger freelance directing projects. The new team hooked up with Business Volunteers for the Arts to work on board and audience development. It also re-examined its programming.
"The theatre was known for its single sets, realistic environments and people talking to each other," says Dailey. "The old Strawdog was proudly two chairs and a curtain. The size of the space had a lot to do with that. We still respect language-based plays, but we want to fully integrate lights, sound and sets. We’re not going to forfeit production values because of the small space. You can still pump in cool scenic effects."
Although it was a problematic play, Anne DeMare’s Big Brother-themed Manufracture, directed by Kirsten Kelly in 1999, demonstrated Strawdog’s ability to transform the space into an environmental maze of pipes and elevator shafts. Its most recent offering, Timberlake Wertenbaker’s Our Country’s Good (running through June 10), cleverly re-imagines a classic. Guest director Shade Murray (artistic director of Roadworks Productions, where Avery also serves as managing director) gave this epic 18th century tale of a British convict colony in Australia an inventive spin.
Structurally, Our Country’s Good is more than a play-within-a-play. It’s one magnified play even in its real-life sequences. So Murray judiciously chose to emphasize an imaginative theatrical conceit, evident in everything from Lynn Koscielniak’s tableau-like lighting to Sarah Pace’s weather-worn costumes atop street clothes and painted signs announcing the title of each scene.
The director allows the audience to be transported through the power of resourceful suggestion. One of the most brilliantly crafted moments is a pantomimed rowing scene between the tormented midshipman Harry Brewer (Dailey) and his evasive convict-lover, Duckling Smith (Avery) in which their movement melds with sound designer Chris J. Johnson’s lugubrious lapping water. Scenic designer David Wolf’s deftly positioned panels shift from the bowels of a ship to a smoky bivouac in an instant.
"Our Country's Good is a known play," reiterates Avery. "Yet we’re doing it in a way it’s not been done before. I think we’re very cognizant of the space we work in, and we try very hard to use the space to our advantage."
Dailey says that last season’s well-received production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure was not staged traditionally. Strawdog cut two-thirds of the play, narrowing it down to the main plot and 10 characters. "It was faster and sharper," he says. "The performance style was tight and streamlined. We let the language do it."
The 20-member ensemble (individually voted in) takes an active part in script selection.
"It’s truly an ensemble," explains Avery. "Everyone is allowed to bring forth projects. If you like something, you have to get at least two people interested. We’re all volunteers, so our choices are naturally based on the level of enthusiasm.
"We have in-depth discussions about how a script will best serve the ensemble."
"We’ve kept the idea of ensemble," continues Dailey, "but not in a flippant way. The ensemble must work seamlessly and selflessly. Our Country’s Good is an example of an ensemble that’s on equal footing."
With a track record of presenting about a dozen world premieres and close to 20 Midwest and U.S. premieres, Strawdog has not lost its desire to promote original work. Last year, it struck cult-status oil with Adam Joyce and Doug Nagel’s new bowling-centric hip-hop musical, Return to the Howard Bowl. It ran for 10 weeks and reached a large segment of non-theatregoers. People even came back, Rocky Horror-style, dressed in bowling shirts and shouting out lines.
"We typically attract a non-traditional theatre audience," explains Dailey. "They’re usually not the same people who go to Goodman or Victory Gardens."
Strawdog’s casual benefit parties at the theatre, featuring live music, have successfully drawn people from all walks of life. One of their main goals is to reach individuals who have never seen a play.
Plans for a roller-skating sequel to The Howard Bowl are under way. Also confirmed for next season is Princess Ivona of Burgundia, a classic Polish play about non-conformity. And Sam Shepard’s Tooth of Crime is under consideration.
The theatre is in the midst of revamping its promotional materials to attract younger audiences; and a program for professional artists to assist high school students with putting on plays is being discussed.
When asked what drives them to create for no monetary reward, Dailey states, "Our informal mission statement is that we fight evil. But we’re not into dark things. We look at dark things and examine them honestly and sympathetically."
Adds Avery, "Everybody gets better being here because they can take risks in an incredibly safe environment. We didn’t go to school together. We don’t work the same way. It’s wonderful watching people’s processes. I became an actor to be part of an ensemble. This is the truest ensemble I’ve found."