Greta Sidwell Honold (speaker), Jacqueline Williams (speaker)
and Cedric Young (speaker)
photo by Michael Brosilow

Steppenwolf  Theatre Company
presents the world premiere of
No Place Like Home
adapted and directed by Jessica Thebus
Plays until February 9, 2003.
Review by Ed Vincent

A savory reminiscence of nostalgia, served up with some fine acting and
inventive sets.  I would call it theater in the round, but the room is rectangular
in shape.  There is a diverse group of  readers (actors) of all shapes, sizes,
ages, and colors, all held together by a smooth flowing story line viewing many
different perspectives.  The show runs without intermission and is not much
longer than 85 minutes.

Greta Sidwell Honold, a young actress on several of the stages at
Steppenwolf in the past, has been in some interesting  diverse roles. She is 
a high school student in Chicago and we look to her for continued
success in her association with Steppenwolf.  This is a wonderful production,
affordable in price, and you may hear something of your own past noted in the
oration of many hands writing.
 

No Place bar: Linh Thanh Pham (speaker) and chorus members.
photo by Michael Brosilow
 

“I’m not 100 per cent homeless, to me it’s a vacation”

“I’m not going to be doing this for he rest of my life”

“Yesterday my dad called and now I’m headed home”

“My brother’s  going to stay at Ronald Mc Donald's house”

Please come and have a listen, "highly recommended" OPJ.
 

Lance Stuart Baker (speaker) and chorus members.
photo by Michael Brosilow

Chicago-No Place Like Home, a new theatrical piece adapted and directed by
Jessica Thebus, begins   previews in the Studio Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted, on
Thursday, January 9, 2003. The production opens on Saturday, January 18, 2003,
at 3:00 p.m. and continues through Sunday, February 9, 2003.

This powerful production about our profound connection to home is drawn from a
diverse collection of true stories. Through the intimate memories and experiences of
our community. No Place Like Home takes you to the house in which you were
raised, to a first kiss, to a life-altering moment. This poetic collage interprets the
human experience and reflects on the vivid landscape of memory. 

"It's very exciting and very important for the theater as an organization to challenge
itself with new ways of making its art," states artistic director Martha Lavey.
"Institutionally, this project presents a new frontier for Steppenwolf. There is no
model for how to make this kind of performance at our theater. 

This is a group-generated body of material that Jessica has been responsible for
shaping into a script." Adaptor and director Jessica Thebus explains the process of
creating No Place Like Home, "We developed a series of questions that focused
on evoking specific memories-smells that take us back to our childhood, images
that evoke places of danger in our lives-triggers for the stories that people have to
tell. We put together a representative group of thirty people, some of them actors,
many of them non-actors. Then we did an in-depth workshop in May, where we
documented the participants' personal story cycle about leaving home and 
returning home. It was like cutting a section of seats out of the audience and then
asking those random people to give us their stories. The collected images and
pieces of text from this group of people are woven into a exploration of the idea
of home, creating a home, memories of home and memories of family."

The cast for ;No Place Like Home includes speakers and a chorus. The speakers
are Lance Stuart Baker, Alison Halstead, Greta Sidwell Honold, Margaret
Kustermann, Monica Payne, Linh Thanh Pham, Jacqueline Williams, and Cedric
Young. The chorus members include Mary Aldousary, Fabrizio Almeida, Lois
Atkins, Virginia Brackett, Kevin Davis, Anne McGravie, Kimberly Senior, Louis
Washington, and Erin West. 

Designers for No Place Like Home are Stephanie Nelson (sets), Jaymi Lee Smith
(lights), Brooke Schaffner (costumes), and Dave Pavkovic (sound). The stage
manager is Erin Wenzel and Dr. Mary Agnes Doyle is the dramaturg.

Contributors to ;No Place Like Home include anonymous, Helene Achanzar, Joan
Afton, Mary Aldousary. Fabrizio 0. Almeida. Gary Ambler, Lois Atkins, Bonnie A.
Badurski, Lance Stuart Baker, Francois Battiste, Ian Belknap, Mike Billone, Nina
Billone. Nina's Uncle Jeff, Bishop, Catherine Blair. Ginger Brackett, Heather
Brown, Bob Breuler, Rich Bryant, Marisa Bryce, Louis Cancelmi, Amy J. Carle,
Nichole Cash, Robin Chaplik, Fraser Coffeen, Curt Columbus, Jenny Connell,
(Catherine Cross, Annie Cusentino, Kevin Davis, Maggie Doyle, Chris Farrell,
Caroline Figel, Nancy Figel, Jimmy Freund, Julie Ganey, Sandy Gerding, Hallie
Gordon, Alison Halstead, JoeAnn Hervey, Greta Sidwell Honold, Shaakira
Horbrook, Lizette Jaramillo, Gita Jensen, Carmen Kile. Julia Kile, Colleen Kollar,
Margaret Kusterman, Kaitlin Lang, Simone La Pierre, Martha Lavey, Patricia
Lavey, JoLynda Lawrecki, Frank Mackey, Anne McGravie, Herman Freddie
Mills, Sarah Moberg, Jacqueline Murphy, Tim Niedzielak, Brighid
O'Shaughnessy, Lee Papa, Monica Payne, Linh Thanh Pham, Lindsay Porter,
Karen Quinn, Fred Ramage, Stephanie Reynoso, Elizabeth Rich, Joanie Schultz,
Kimberly Senior, Adam Silver, Erin Strain, Lauren Tartaglia, Cathy Taylor, Jessica
Thebus, Mary Ann Thebus, Nana Thebus, Yahaira Toruno, Kristen
Vanderwarker, Zachary Wagner, Louis Washington. Erin Wenzel. Erin West,
Kanise Wooden, Dennis Yohnka, and Cedric Young. Jessica Thebus (adaptor and
director) is an associate artist at Steppenwolf Theatre. She holds a doctorate
in Performance Studies from Northwestern University, where she has taught
courses in performance. Jessica has also taught and designed courses at DePaul
University, Columbia College, the University of Chicago, the Piven Theater
Workshop and Center Theater. She has directed and performed with Center
Theater, Redmoon Theater, Lifeline Theater, Caravan Productions and the Piven
Theater Workshop, and she toured internationally with the Bread and Puppet
Theater. Recent directing credits include Winesburg, Ohio at Steppenwolf Theatre,
Seven Moves at About Face Theatre and They All Fall Down The Richard Nickel
Story at Lookingglass Theatre.

Previews for No Place Like Home are January 9, 2003, through January 17, 2003.
The production opens Saturday, January 18, 2003, at 3:00 p.m. and runs through
February 9, 2003. Please note our curtain times: all performances run Thursday
through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. with matinees on Saturday and Sunday at 3:00 p.m.
The Sunday, January 19, 2003, production is at 6:00 p.m.

Ticket prices are $18 to $28. Box office hours are 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
everyday and 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on days with evening performances.
The box office number is (312) 335-1650. 

Tickets can also be ordered on-line at www.steppenwolf.org.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

No Place Like Home
adapted and directed by Jessica Thebus
Chicago—No Place Like Home, a new theatrical piece adapted and directed
by Jessica Thebus, begins previews in the Studio Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted.
The production opens on Saturday, January 18, 2003,, at 3:00 p.m. and continues
through Sunday, February 9, 2003. 

This powerful production about our profound connection to home is drawn from 
a diverse collection of true stories. Through the intimate memories and experiences 
of our community, No Place Like Home takes you to the house in which you were
raised, to a first kiss, to a life-altering moment. This poetic collage interprets the 
human experience and reflects on the vivid landscape of memory.

"It's very exciting and very important for the theater as an organization to challenge
itself with new ways of making its art," states artistic director Martha Lavey. 
"Institutionally, this project presents a new frontier for Steppenwolf. There is no 
model for how to make this kind of performance at our theater.

This is a group-generated body of material that Jessica has been responsible for
shaping into a script." Adaptor and director Jessica Thebus explains the process of 
creating No Place Like Home, "We developed a series of questions that focused on 
evoking specific memories—smells that take us back to our childhood, images that 
evoke places of danger in our lives—triggers for the stories that people have to tell.
We put together a representative group of thirty people, some of them actors, many 
of them non-actors. Then we did an in-depth workshop in May, where we documented
the participants' personal story cycle about leaving home and returning home. It was
like cutting a section of seats out of the audience and then asking those random people 
to give us their stories. The collected images and pieces of text from this group of people
are woven into a exploration of the idea of home, creating a home, memories of home
and memories of family."

The cast for No Place Like Home includes speakers and a chorus. The speakers are
Lance Stuart Baker, Alison Halstead, Greta Sidwell Honold, Margaret Kustermann, 
Monica Payne, Linh Thanh Pham, Jacqueline Williams, and Cedric Young.

The chorus members include Mary Aldousary, Fabrizio Almeida, Lois Atkins, 
Virginia Brackett, Kevin Davis, Anne McGravie, Kimberly Senior, Louis Washington, 
and Erin West.

Designers for No Place Like Home are Stephanie Nelson (sets), Jaymi Lee Smith (lights),
Brooke Schaffner (costumes), and Dave Pavkovic (sound). The stage manager is
Erin Wenzel and Dr. Mary Agnes Doyle is the dramaturg.
 

Jessica has also taught and designed courses at DePaul University, Columbia College, the
University of Chicago, the Piven Theater Workshop and Center Theater. She has directed
and performed with Center Theater, Redmoon Theater, Lifeline Theater, Caravan Productions
and the Piven Theater Workshop, and she toured internationally with the Bread and 
Puppet Theater. Recent directing credits include Winesburg, Ohio at Steppenwolf Theatre, 
Seven Moves at About Face Theatre and They All Fall Down:

The Richard Nickel Story at Lookingglass Theatre.

Jessica Thebus will host post-show discussions every Thursday night throughout the run 
of No Place Like Home. The dates are January 9, 16, 23, 30 and February 6, 2003.

Audiences can subscribe to the Pre-Show Lounge Series for $99 and unwind after work
in a social setting with complimentary wine, beer, and appetizers before the show in the Studio 
lounge. A subscription to the Lounge Series includes the following show dates: January 24, 
April 4, and June 27, 2003.

No Place Like Home was developed through Steppenwolfs New Plays Initiative, which
is generously sponsored by the Zeil Family Foundation, the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation,
the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Pritzker Cousins Foundation and support
from members of the Director's Circle.
 

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is located near all forms of
public transportation and is wheelchair accessible.
Assistive listening devices are available for every
performance. Street and lot parking are available.
 

Steppenwolf Theatre Company's programs are partially
supported by grants from the National Endowment for the
Arts, the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and
by a CityArts Program 4 grant from the City of Chicago
Department of Cultural Affairs.
 

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is a Chicago-based
international performing arts institution committed
to ensemble collaboration and artistic risk through
work with its permanent ensemble, guest artists, partner
institutions and the community. Founded in 1976 as an
ensemble of nine actors, Steppenwolf has grown into
an internationally renowned company of thirty-three
artists whose talents include acting, directing,
playwriting, filmmaking, and textual adaptation.