PicksInSix Review: THE BOYS IN THE BAND Windy City Playhouse
Party time for Windy City’s “Boys”
It’s April 14, 1968, and you’re looking for a night out in New York City. On Broadway, you might opt to see the premiere of “George M.” starring Joel Grey (and Bernadette Peters), Neil Simon’s “Plaza Suite,” or “Hair,” the groundbreaking musical that defined a generation.
Then again, you could choose to see Mart Crowley break new ground of his own as his play, “The Boys in the Band,” opens at a small theater on West 55th Street and very quickly became a phenomenon for its open representation of gay lifestyles on stage. After 1,001 performances Off-Broadway, a 1970 feature film and a 2018 Broadway production that won a Tony Award for Best Revival, Crowley’s pivotal work is still considered a watershed moment for gay rights and social awareness.
All the excitement of that debut is now on full display—and terrifically staged—at the Windy City Playhouse’s West Irving Park location with the first Chicago production in 20 years of “The Boys in the Band,” directed with precision by Carl Menninger. It’s party time for 40 or so as “guests” gather in the 1960s-era Upper East Side apartment of host Michael (Jackson Evans) for the 32nd birthday celebration for his friend Harold (Sam Bell-Gurwitz). And you’ll be glad you came!
Harold’s other friends include Donald (Jordan Dell Harris), Bernard (Denzel Tsopnang), Emory (William Marquez), Larry (James Lee) and Hank (Ryan Reilly). Larry and Hank are a couple with mixed priorities. Donald has recently moved to the suburbs and is distancing his relationship with Michael. Emory and Bernard deal with loneliness in different ways. Early on, all of the boys are having a good time—often at the expense of each other, including when Cowboy (Kyle Patrick) joins the party with a special gift for Harold.
Things take a turn when Alan (Christian Edwin Cook), Michael’s former college roommate, unexpectedly appears. As at good parties everywhere, alcohol flows, tempers flare and truths begin to emerge thanks to a party game that Michael devises to liven things up.
Windy City’s immersive experience places everyone in the action of the drama, allowing the audience to see the work of Menninger’s fine cast unfold from every point of view, courtesy of William Boles’s scenic design, which includes a sunken living room in which the audience may find choice seats. Period-perfect properties by Mealah Heidenreich and outfits by costume designer Uriel Gomez will take you back in time. For the friends at Harold’s birthday party, expressing real feelings to, and for, each other is still the name of the game.
PHOTOS|Michael Brosilow
WINDY CITY PLAYHOUSE
presents
THE BOYS IN THE BAND
through April 19, 2020
3014 W Irving Park Rd.
BOX OFFICE:
(773) 891-8985
WEBSITE
TICKETS
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