Items filtered by date: November 2007

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” repeats James Seol in Lauren Yee’s new play “The Great Leap” now playing at Steppenwolf Theatre. Jesca Prudcencio directs this modern twist on the Dickens classic “A Tale of Two Cities”, which divides its action between 1980s San Francisco and Beijing. 

“The Great Leap” refers to a period of social revolution in China beginning in the 1950s that spilled over into chaos by the late 1980s. Yee’s play is based on a series of real life basketball games in which her father played on behalf of America in Beijing during the 80s. Her father, much like the main character Manford, was a basketball star of San Francisco’s Chinatown. From this bit of personal history, Yee creates a fictional friendship match between USF and Beijing which culminates in the height of the Tiananmen Square protests.

Manford, played by the indefatigable Glenn Obrero is a fast-talking basketball wunderkind from the streets of Chinatown. He convinces down-on-his-luck coach Saul Slezac (Keith Kupferer) to bring him to Beijing for a high-profile rematch between the two countries. Slezac is the standard cocky American who credits himself for bringing basketball to China eighteen years prior when he trained the Republic of China coach, Wen Chang (James Seol). Though the game is coined a friendship match, the stakes are high for both coaches as well as Manford who has limited post-high school options. 

For many theater-goers, plays about sports can be a snooze, but Yee’s play is rarely just about basketball. “The Great Leap” is a history lesson about a revolution in China that failed. Many of today’s teenagers are entirely unaware of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and the famous image of the man with bags in front of a tank. The playwright uses basketball as an allegory for the communist party’s tension with the west. 

Performances and production run strong here. Those with only a lukewarm interest in sports will be dazzled by the theatrical vision Jesca Prudencio has for this show. The basketball choreography creates a sense of excitement in the brightly lit set by Justin Humphres. It’s not often that a major house has an entirely Asian American cast (with the exception of Keith Kupferer). It is on the stellar and inspiring performances by James Seol, Glenn Obrero and Deanna Myers that this play hinges. Though Kupferer gets most of the laughs as the crass American coach through which Yee pokes fun at her own Asian American heritage. James Seol establishes himself as the main character with a performance that is as humorous as it is heartfelt. 

“The Great Leap” comes at a relevant time in history. As we observe the 30th anniversary of the June 4 protests, Yee asks us if diplomatic relations have improved or degraded. An ongoing trade war between the two nations as well as uprisings in Hong Kong are food for thought. As complex as the social revolution was, Yee’s play uses hindsight to suggest it was a simpler time, or at the very least a time of great hope. 

Through October 20 at Steppenwolf Theatre. 1650 N Halsted. 312-335-1650

The inimitable Doris Day played the lead in the film version of Pajama Game after the hit musical ran on Broadway for three years and won a Tony. I enjoyed this production of The Pajama Game at Theatre at the Center so much from beginning to end that I am surprised it is not produced more often. 

Although there is a relevant plotline about the workers of a pajama factory who are trying to get a seven and one-half cent raise by organizing a union strike, the real story that affects all of the couples in the show is about love. 

Filled with delightful and memorable classic songs like “Hey There", "I'll Never Be Jealous Again", "Fernando's Hideaway" and "Steam Heat", I was taken back in time to the 1950's and swept up in each characters struggle to make a successful and lasting connection with the apple of their eye. 

Curtis Bannister plays Sid, the new boss over grievance committee leader Babe Williams (played by Elizabeth Telford), and even though they fall in love at first sight, Telford goes on to triumphantly sing "I’m Not at All in Love!" to her fellow girlfriends/workers and Sid. The handsome but insecure new man in town belts out a really moving rendition of "Hey There": 

"Hey there, you with the stars in your eyes Love never made a fool of you

You used to be too wise

Hey there, you on that high-flying cloud

Though she won't throw a crumb to you

You think someday she'll come to you

Better forget her

Her with her nose in the air

She has dancing on a string

Break it and she won't care."

Newcomer Bannister's voice is outstanding, the whole audience took notice of his skills from the very first notes to the last. 

Bannister and Telford are both perfectly cast, each has the right amount of clean-cut earnest passion to help others while helping each other and both have the singing and acting chops to wow the audience in number after number. 

Sierra Schnack plays Babe's best friend in the factory and deserves a special mention for her great comedic timing and her knockout dancing in the sexy tuxedo and top hat dance and song number "Steam Heat". Another great comedic actress/dancer played Gladys the sexy company secretary (Kelly Fethous).

Linda Fortunato directed this piece at the perfect pace and makes the audience wish there was an encore after the final number, the show is that much fun to watch. 

I highly recommend seeing this show, every number in it is filled with joy, love, humor, and insight about the conditions required to fall in love and stay in love.  

We all play the "pajama game" at some time in our lives and this play makes you want to run out and buy new pajamas! 

For tickets and/or more information visit https://www.theatreatthecenter.com/.

Would you be able to spot a person in trouble? Lucas Hnath’s new play “Dana H” is a fascinating look at what the seedy underbelly of America may be (or sound) like. Goodman Theatre gives this unique new drama its Chicago premiere with direction by Les Waters. 

“Dana H” is part documentary, part one-woman show and yet still doesn’t neatly fit into either category. Lucas Hnath is arguably one of the country’s most imaginative playwrights working today.  In this new play he explores the kidnapping and torture of his mother in the late 90s. It’s a period of his mother’s life that they admittedly avoid discussing. In fact, he himself did not conduct the interviews that led to the creation of the play. Through pieced together bits of an extensive interview between the real Dana H (Dana Higgenbotham) and Steven Cosson, a true story of harrowing survival and compassion unfolds. 

Deirdre O’Connell portrays Dana in a way never-before seen in mainstream theatre. Most actors rely on their voice to find the character, but in this play O’Connell remains silent. Her task is to provide the body and mannerisms as she lip-syncs to interview tapes of Higgenbotham. While the device is somewhat jarring at first, O’Connell seamlessly becomes Dana H and you easily forget it’s not her own voice. 

“Dana H” is a true testament to Dierdre O’Connell’s skills as an actress. In her Goodman debut she’s given the task of physical theatre. She’s so natural as Higgenbotham that she even adjusts her jewelry as Higgenbotham had done on the interview tapes. A glance at how much compassion an actress must have for their character as well as how many times she had to listen to the grizzly tapes to get the gestures down.  

But “Dana H” is more than just a “48 Hours” with a gimmick. It’s a story about how involved we get with strangers. Dana is a hospice chaplain. Her job is to help people pass from one world into the next. The irony is her getting tangled between the law-abiding reality most of us can relate to and an underworld that knows no law, only power. It’s also ironic that so few people intervened on her behalf. Was it cowardice or ignorance? 

“Dana H” never lacks theatricality. O’Connell’s mesmerizing performance makes this a very active telling of a gruesome interview. Les Waters breaks the uniformity of Hnath’s concept with a well-crafted set and some effects that punctuate the timespans Higgenbotham covers. “Dana H” is an unforgettable evening of theatre. It’s certainly an impressive feat for actress and author but more than anything it’s a real-life situation that makes you wonder what you’d do. 

Through October 6 at Goodman Theatre. 170 N Dearborn. 312-443-3800

Imagine some not too distant in the future totalitarian society where young people have never seen a book (much less a theatre play), computer screens had moved inside people’s heads, and language has so many technological terms, it’s barely recognizable. People work all the time, no one goes out anymore, and human interaction is reduced to a minimum. Luckily, mental health is well taken care of: everyone has a virtual psychologist and has to take “a pill”, just to cope. That’s the sad reality of Jason Hedrick’s two-act play ‘Vanya On the Plains,’ staged at The Artistic Home Theatre under the direction of Kayla Adams.

The play takes place in a house where an extended family co-habits without much interaction with each other: a 79 year old patriarch of the family, Elijah, his mad daughter, Anka (Katherine Schwartz), and two teenage grandkids (Sophia and Nicolas), as well as Elija’s mother-in-law, Gayle, and Anka’s boyfriend, Carl.  Gayle (superbly played by Kathy Scambiatterra) is very old; she is possibly just a ghost, since most characters just ignore her. But she is the breath of fresh air in that dreadful place: flamboyant and outspoken, and completely void of technocratic influences- it’s as if she’s been plucked out of some old, long forgotten reality. Gayle does like to drink quite a bit of vodka, but who wouldn’t. The entire house is like a perverse tea party: everyone’s mad in their own way. 

Many colorful characters keep the [slightly too lengthy play] entertaining. Special mention of great young talent Ariana Lopez (as Sophia), who added sparkles to the play.

When wise and bookish Elijah (wonderfully intuitive acting by Frank Nall) has a bright idea to “humanize” those around him by staging Chekhov’s “Uncle Vanya” at his house and making everyone act in the play, the rehearsals that would go on for years will have eventually become the much needed therapy for that crazy family. 

‘Vanya on the Plains is being performed at The Artistic Home Theatre. For more info visit www.theartistichome.org.

How does an advice column translate to stage? Surprisingly well in the case of 'Tiny Beautiful Things’ at Victory Gardens. From an adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s book penned by “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” star Nia Vardalos comes this uplifting one-act. Directed by Vanessa Stalling, this production marks the Chicago premiere for this 2017 play. 

Strayed is best known for her 2012 memoir “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail’ which was adapted into a film in 2014. In “Tiny Beautiful Things” (Also from 2012), Strayed recounts the time she spent writing the anonymous advice column “Dear Sugar” for “The Rumpus.” 

Chicago stage favorite Janet Ulrich Brooks takes up Strayed’s character in this inventive adaptation. The play is set in a hip looking coffee shop as designed by Courtney O’Neill. In rapid-fire succession anonymous questioners played by August Forman, Jessica Dean Turner and Eric Slater throw their quandaries at Strayed and she responds back as all-knowing Sugar. In a series of bittersweet and heartbreaking monologues, Janet Ulrich Brooks relays Strayed’s troubled past as it relates to her readers’ questions. 

Nia Vardalo’s swiftly-paced script nearly serves as a one-woman show for the transfixing Janet Ulrich Brooks. Through the power of good storytelling, entire scenes are built out of responses to some of life’s most challenging questions. Despite tales of woe from Strayed’s somewhat traumatic life, there’s a great deal of humor in this play. Vardalos shows us both ends of the emotional spectrum in the eighty minute runtime. The message of her stories is always of survival or overcoming bad circumstances in order to grow. Ulrich Brooks has a comforting and relatable way of taking an audience in her arms as she pours herself into the life of the character. 

Like A.R. Gurney’s classic play “Love Letters” “Tiny Beautiful Things” is a play that could be performed with little to no staging, but it’s nice that director Vanessa Stalling has added so much style to her production for Victory Gardens. When we aren’t being gutted by the moments of humanity in the advice column, or hopelessly endeared by Janet Ulrich Brooks’ performance, there’s an inviting atmosphere being created here.  Wise casting maintains a universal appeal in this life affirming play about growing up and the choices we make. “Tiny Beautiful Things” is a play about the minute moments that alter the course of a life and the perspective of age. Splendid acting and a compelling script make this a play that’s anything but tiny. 

Through October 13 at Victory Gardens. 2433 N Lincoln Ave. 773-871-3000

Directors say Caryl Churchill’s Love and Information is a challenging play, but in good hands, it is a treasure. And this is what we have at Trap Door Theatre’s production – an absolutely enthralling experience directed by Kim McKean.

It is like a tightly scripted improv show, packed with familiar personalities, some of them offbeat, playing roles that could share the stage in Lily Tomlin’s “Search for Intelligent Life in the Universe.” McKean’s accomplishment becomes clearer when you realize Love and Information brings us more than 100 sometimes loosely identified characters, mostly appearing as couples or trios, in a series of short scenes that end in blackouts.

These are gathered into seven sections, and within each, Churchill requires the director to set the order of the scenes and assign the roles. To further spice it up, the script packs an eighth section of scenes intended to be sprinkled at will in the show wherever they seem to fit.

And those scenes! Listing heavily toward couple encounters, Churchill shows us how information becomes a form of emotional currency in relationships. Couples share (or withhold) knowledge, leveraging it to gain power, debilitate, bond – or just plain flirt. A representative sample:

• A girl whose rare nerve condition doesn’t let her feel pain asks a man to explain what pain is. (He compares it to a failed love affair.)
• A man tries to impress an adoring girl by describing his research in animal learning, but ends up clinically describing dissection of chicken brains involved in his work. (She is not put off.)
• An aspiring male suitor brings a young girl a red flower. On his knees as her feet, his heart is full and open. She thanks him for it, profusely. Then too profusely, launching into a rattling, seemingly endless manic riff about how we see red, things they will do together, envisions a day trip on a train….as she goes on and on, he wilts.

Admittedly it is difficult to describe humor, and really which Churchill gives us is a dark and coldly clinical look at the world and those we share it with. Love and Intelligence doesn't traffick in sentimentality. It opens with a scene in which people are moving mechanically and seemingly inexplicably on the stage. A man enters the crowd, apparently paranoid. Then the electronic dance music rises and we see it is like a dance floor at a rave, and suddenly everything makes sense - but Churchill has pulled back the curtain and we cannot unsee the uncomfortable social aspects of that dance floor.  A  Here's a sample scene with a man who doesn’t recognize his wi

But I am your wife.

You look like my wife.

That’s because I am. Look, even that little birthmark behind my ear. Look.

Yes, I see it. It’s me.

Darling sweet, it’s me. I’m here.

No, she’s gone. They’ve all gone. Who’s gone?

Everyone I know. Everyone who loved me.

No, I love you.

I don’t want you to love me, I don’t know you.

There’s things only we know, aren’t there. That day on the beach with the shells. You remember that? Yes, of course. And cabbages. Why is cabbages a funny word, we’re the only ones who have cabbages as a joke because of what happened with the cabbages. Cabbages is a joke, yes?

Cabbages was a joke I shared with my wife. I miss my wife.

But I am. . . Let me touch you. If you’d see what it feels like to touch me. If we made love you’d know it was me because there are things we like to do and no one else would know that, if I was a stranger pretending to be her I wouldn’t know those things, you’d feel you were back with me, you would I know, please.

You disgust me. You frighten me. What are you?

Director McKean has made the most of this formula, selecting and ordering carefully from this smorgasbord of very fine writing, packing dozens of carefully honed mind-bending scenes by Churchill. Among Britain’s top ranking playwrights, Churchill is known best known this side of the Atlantic for her Cloud Nine or Top Girls. Most recently Chicago had a chance to see her Dark Mirror-style A Number, a stunning 2012 thriller produced at Writer’s Theatre in Glencoe last year. And McKean also brought in a spectacular cast, willing to go with a blank slate that evolved into this fine show: Whitney Dottery, Jake Flum, Brian Huther, Emily Lotspeich, Michael Mejia, Emily Nichelson, Keith Surney, Lilly Tukur, Carl Wisniewski. Love and Information runs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday’s through October 19 at Trap Door Theatre, 1655 W. Cortland in Chicago.

How odd that a play about nihilism could be so uplifting. ‘Be Here Now’ at Shattered Globe is just that. Shattered Globe ensemble member Sandy Shinner directs a new play by Deborah Zoe Laufer. A small, mostly ensemble cast opens the season with a relevant play about the state of happiness in the modern world.

Bari (Rebecca Jordan) is a former professor of nihilism who finds herself far from New York City working in a fulfillment center upstate. Her coworkers Patty (Deanna Reed-Fosters) and Luanne (Demetra Dee) are her coworkers who find themselves constantly at odds with Bari’s negative attitude. When Bari starts having severe headaches that bring about visions of optimism, her coworkers get worried. In an attempt to bring Bari joy, they set her up with local oddball Mike (Joe Wiens). As Bari and Mike get closer, she must decide if the potentially lethal vision-producing headaches are something she even wants to cure.

Rebecca Jordan is perfect in this role. Bari is a tough character to love even if you agree with half of her stream of negativity. Jordan cashes in on the dark comedy of Laufer’s script. When Patty and Luanne wax on about their own personal happiness, Bari pokes apt holes in their personal philosophies. Jordan’s performance elevates the petulance of the dialogue to something both humorous and academic. She tactfully drops her lines into the scenes so swiftly that you want to rewind so you can quote it. Deanna Reed-Foster also brings a great deal of humor to the philosophical discussions.

There’s a fine line between optimism and nihilism. In fact, the two may bleed into each other in Laufer’s interpretation. If the future of the world is as bleak as it seems, then why not enjoy the ephemeral beauty around us? In the end, it’s unclear if Bari really changes from nihilist to optimist, but is anyone capable of being just one thing? Life is a grey area and it’s probably better to be happy. Even if that takes work.

‘Be Here Now’ says a lot about the emphasis America puts on the idea of happiness. Laufer asks whether happiness is a choice and what difference does it make it we have it or not? Shattered Globe premieres this work to Chicago in a beautiful production designed by Angela Webber Miller. Sandy Shinner continues her tradition of directing new works that slyly make you question your very existence while also tickling your funny bone.

Through October 19th at Shattered Globe Theatre. Theatre Wit 1229 W Belmont Ave. 773-975-8150

It’s a rainy night in Edinburgh, a divorce lawyer name Helena is sitting alone in the corner of a pub. She has just been stood up by her lover who so happened to be married to another woman. Across the room is a petty criminal named Bob who’s reading Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky to cheer him up, somber from a life he feels is unfulfilled. Helena takes a chance and approaches Bob with a bottle of wine in her hand. From there, the characters catapult the audience into a chaotic weekend and will give you a theatre experience that will have you filled with bliss and laughter.

David Greig’s 'Midsummer (A Play with Songs)' is a delightful retelling of a weekend Bob, and Helena never expected to be the weekend that would change their lives forever. They grab the audience by the arm and pull them into the lives of two middle-aged adults tormented by an unsatisfaction with the outcome of their lives. Two lost souls that clash together out of desperation to feel a connection. After a one night stand, they conclude that they can never be compatible, but, of course, life has a funny way of keeping them together.  

In this unconventional romantic comedy, Bob and Helena not only poke fun at themselves and the dozen characters they interact with, but they take moments to rant away the misgivings of life. They do so in such an elegant and humorous way that doesn’t force the audience to feel sorry for them but rather feel connected to them. Midsummer is a play that calls for the two main actors to play sixteen parts between them, play an instrument, act and sing wonderfully and do this all in a Scottish accent. A challenge well accepted by Chicago celebrated Chaon Cross and Patrick Mulvey. Both actors show a chemistry that comes across as natural as two college buddies taking a night out on the town. 

Chaon Cross is a joy to watch. A force that draws you in with her passionate performance. In a production where the actors simply move to the side, rather than leave the stage, while the other takes the spotlight. Chaon Cross calls for your attention even in the shadows of the background. 

In saying that, Patrick Mulvey, who this past spring played the title role in David Auburn’s The Adventures of Augie March, performance is not to be overlooked. He will have you laughing out loud from beginning to end and absorbs the character of Bob so well it’s hard to imagine anyone else filling in that role. 

By calling itself a play with songs and not just a musical, the play strips away the notion that you will be sitting through a dry tale that forces long musical numbers in your ears. Instead, Midsummer offers easy listening acoustics with quirky lyrics that enhances the story rather than push it along. Certain songs will follow you well after the show is over. One may bubble up in the back of your head after waking up to a nasty hangover; "The Hangover Song" or you may find yourself quietly singing the chorus of a song called "Japanese Rope Bondage" in the shower (I mean, the play has a song called "The Song of Bob’s Cock"). This alone should give you an indication that this production will take you to a place you may have never been before.   

If you have ever watched a Hollywood produced rom-com in the last twenty years, you will find 'Midsummer’s' world familiar. The plot hits all the points you’ve seen in almost every romantic comedies. And there’s nothing wrong with that. It wouldn’t be a romantic comedy if there weren’t a risk of the relationship to never be or a secret Bob and Helena hide from each other to keep you involved. Despite its familiarity, the characters will also lead you into refreshing avenues as they tell their story. One example is when Bob leads you into his mind as he battles with his consciousness with the fact that his youth is long gone. 

In a theatre where you could sit on the top row and toss a quarter onto the stage with a flick of the wrist, there’s seem to be no limit on what the actors can do on and off the stage. Bob and Helena invites you into the bedroom they shared, inside their minds, and they will hand you their heart. They dare you to not only listen but to part take. To join in as they sing and dance and interact as they stumble around the stage in a hangover haze. They’ll have you looking left and right and out your chair to get a better view of the moment even if you’re sitting in the front row. 'Midsummer (A Play with Songs)' is a smart and exciting gem that would be a shame to miss. 

'Midsummer (A Play with Songs)' runs through October 6, 2019, at Greenhouse Theatre Center on Lincoln Ave.

The only "rotten" thing about this super funny and colorful production is the title, a line taken from a Shakespeare play. ‘Something Rotten’ is the latest comedy-musical at Marriott Theatre and is full of laughs.

I went to the show not knowing anything about its brief Broadway debut in 2015 and was completely surprised and delighted right out of the gate by the spectacular opening number “Welcome to the Renaissance!" The song is a full-cast extravaganza that makes fun of the conditions people were dealing with in the 1590's (like the black plague), yet also makes the audience realize that at that time the many inventions being brought into humankind awareness seemed really new and miraculous to people of the middle ages.  

Director Scott Weinstein does a fantastic job throughout and has perfectly cast the show with seasoned character actors and actresses who bring it to life with great energy and wit. 

The plot is about two brothers/writers Nick Bottom (KJ Hippensteel) and his brother, Nigel (always another great comedic turn by Alex Goodrich) who, like everyone else at the time, worship The Bard -Shakespeare, played really well  by Adam Jacobs (dressed in sexy  black leather rock star attire to woo the ladies). The brothers ask a soothsayer to give them the plot of a future hit play by Shakespeare. The plot of ‘Something Rotten’ jumps around quite a bit but is superbly funny anyway. 

There are many funny and incisive throwbacks from the past to the present like when Ross Lehman who plays both the soothsayer and a Shylock 0tells the brothers he believes that Shakespeare has made him a character in a play he believes will be titled “Shylock, The Really Nice Jew." Unfortunately, for the brothers, the play the soothsayer predicts that Shakespeare biggest hit will be called ‘Omelet’ not ‘Hamlet’ and the comedy just rolls right on from there. 

Nick Bottom's helpful, hardworking wife, Bea, is a great role for Cassie Slater and she knocks her numbers out of the park every time.  I also really enjoyed Rebecca Hurd as Portia. Portia is the daughter of the only creepy Priest who wants the actors and playwrights of the time to be taken down for crating impure thoughts through theater, which leads people to dancing, which leads to sin, etc.  

Hurd has a wonderful show-stopping number with ‘Bottom’ in which the two lovers discover that they are both really turned on by words! ‘Bottom’ serenades her ears with loving words set to iambic pentameter, and the couple have a hilarious yet heartfelt climactic release together onstage as they find their "word loving" soulmates in each other.  Another showstopper is the full cast blow out of the song "A Musical," which tips it hat to every great musical from ‘Cats’ to ‘Chicago’ to ‘Pippin’ and is jammed packed with spectacular costumes and clever choreography. 

All I can say is I went to the show hoping for the best from a musical I have never seen before and I got it!

I highly recommend this entertaining, delightfully funny musical with eye-popping costumes and really great laughs throughout to audience members of all ages. The director, crew and cast members including a superbly talented dance/singer ensemble of ‘Something Rotten’ have taken this show and revved it up into a fun packed "must see” production from the ever-solid lineup at the intimate Marriott Lincolnshire Theatre.

Through October 20th at Marriott Theatre.

When we meet Paul Morel, he is just being born. A bearded gentleman off to the side offers commentary on the scene as the nurses attend to his mother.

That narrator turns out to be D.H. Lawrence, and he reappears regularly in Sons and Lovers, adapted and directed from Lawrence’s breakthrough 1913 novel by Mike Brayndick. It is seeing its delayed U.S. premiere at Chicago’s Greenhouse Theatre.

Featuring a cast of 11 in 16 roles, Sons and Lovers brings the heart of Lawrence’s book onstage in just over two hours. The semi-autobiographical work centers on life and loves of Paul Morel (Miles Borchard), a proxy for Lawrence. His mother Lydia (Amy Gray) has married beneath her station, and is emotionally estranged from her coal miner husband Walter (Stephen Dunn), channeling all her love onto her sons Paul and William (Brian Boller, who also plays Lawrence as narrator).

To some degree, Sons and Lovers lends itself naturally to the stage, with patches of dialog that carry over intact. But not everything would fit, and Brayndick deftly excises and merges numerous scenes to keep the action moving.

Brayndick has done other literary adaptations, and his skill shows in Sons & Lovers. Greenhouse previously presented his versions of 19th century works by Turgenev - Home of the Gentry - and Balzac’s Pére Goriot. Sons and Lovers was originally commissioned by Traffic of the Stage in Hampstead, England, and it toured the UK, including London’s Bloomsbury Theatre, in 1996.

As the title suggests, Lydia Morel’s sons are engulfed in their mother’s needy attentions. Walter flees to a good accounting job in London, fulfilling his mother’s upward economic aspirations. This relegates Paul to an even closer interdependency with her.

An artistic, sensitive type, he explores love in two polarities: innocent and exploratory with Miriam, a girl on a nearby farm; and a more torrid affair with Clara Dawes (Emma Brayndick), a woman who is separated from her husband.

Adaptations raise the question, Why not just read the book? In a novel, our minds bask in the inner lives and travails of characters. Onstage, there is an expectation this should all be leading somewhere. What we get here is a tremendously sensitive and effective presentation of a great literary work. As a drama, it is immersive, and interesting. But as theater it is limited to following a lifeline as its plotline.

Still Sons and Lovers is engaging, in no small measure because of the memorable performances of the cast, with Midlands and other accents nicely polished. Noteworthy are Brian Boller in the dual role as Lawrence’s older brother William, and narrator Lawrence (though frankly it took me some time to figure out he was two characters). Stephen Dunn is outstanding as the coal miner Walter. Likewise for Baird Brutscher in the roles of Edgar Lievers and Baxter Dawes. And Corrie Riedl is innocent sweetness personified as the farm girl Miriam Lievers. Tina Shelley as her mother, and Pete Blatchford as Paul’s supervisor Mr. Pappleworth deliver sharp performances in small roles.

Most notable are two who carry the weight of the show: Amy Gray as Lydia Morel, Paul’s mother, who grows and ages in the role convincingly; and Miles Borchard as her son, Paul. Borchard is striking in inhabiting the role so naturally. Onstage nearly in every scene, Borchard reacts continuously to those around him, and develops a portrait of an unselfconscious young man navigating the exploration of life, and love – exactly the character D.H. Lawrence placed in his pages. Sons & Lovers runs through September 29 at Greenhouse Theater Center on Lincoln Ave.