How Glenn Davis Shepherded PURPOSE on Its Path to Broadway

Ever since Steppenwolf Theatre Company opened its doors over 50 years ago in 1974, the legendary Chicago theatre institution has been making history. A recipient of a The National Medal of Arts and the 1985 Regional Theatre Tony Award, its iconic ensemble boasts 49 members, from Gary Sinise to Carrie Coon; Bruce Norris to John Malkovich, and 45 other stellar actors, writers and directors in between.

Steppenwolf has already brought a whopping 15 productions to Broadway, and this spring, it becomes 16 when Brandon Jacobs Jenkins' Purpose opens on March 17.

Glenn Davis had a huge part to play in Purpose's journey, not only as a cast member in Chicago and now on Broadway, but as Steppenwolf's co-Artistic Director and the person behind pushing along its development in recent years. Though this is not Davis' first Broadway credit (he starred in 2011's Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo), this is the first play he has led to a Broadway stage. He checked in with BroadwayWorld during a break from rehearsals to tell us all about it.

How often is Steppenwolf commissioning plays? 

We always have playwrights under commission. We're a theater company that has made its reputation in recent years on new plays. I would say the formative years of Steppenwolf were plays that had already existed in the canon. There were very talented actors early on, like Gary Sinise, Laurie Metcalf, John Malkovich, Jeff Perry, Joan Allen... they took those plays and did something really special with them. More times than not, those plays were not the original versions. For example, True West, which Steppenwolf is known for, had already played in New York when those guys did their interpretation of it. It still became a big, big hit and then transferred. 

In more recent years, we've become more known for new plays and being a launching pad for new work for artists like Tarell Alvin McCraney, Tracy Letts, Bruce Norris, Rajiv Joseph. I think for us, it's vitally important to be always commissioning new work. We have a slew of playwrights under commission right now that are very specific in that we want playwrights who, like Brandon Jacobs Jenkins, have a great ear for actors and actors voices.

Brandon specifically, has been writing this play for years, and he attuned it to the actors who he was working with. Many times, the playwrights don't know where the play is gonna go until they sit down with the actors in the room and hear their interpretations of their work. That's the nature of a lot of generative artists. They want to be inspired by the artists that they're going to be working with. In Brandon's case, I think he tailors his characters to the actors who are performing the work, which is a great gift of his as part of his genius.

When did talks start with Brandon about Purpose? 

There was an artistic director for Steppenwolf for about 20 years named Martha Lavey. Steppenwolf being known for being a launching pad for new work... that started to really take shape under the leadership of Martha. She was the first one to look at commissioning Brandon- that was towards the end of her tenure. Then Anna D. Shapiro stepped into the role of Artistic Director and she put the train on the tracks in terms of executing the commission for Brandon. So that's almost 10 years ago now.

In 2019, the summer before the pandemic, we did a workshop of it. Brandon came with some really important pages that made up the spine of the play. We had plans to do other workshops, but then the pandemic happened, so we had to push back our timeline. Then in 2022 I called him up and asked if he could finish it in time for the 2023/24 season. And he said "Absolutely!" It was a big swing, because you usually don't program a play that you don't have in hand, fully baked. But I believe in him as a singular artist. Then with Phylicia Rashad at the helm, I knew we were in good hands. 

What was the reception like in Chicago?

In previews, we were selling out. We were also getting new pages every day, so we were memorizing voraciously. Sometimes we had to go on with pages in our hands, which a lot of the actors had never done in their life. It was surreal because we were performing pages that you just got that day in front of a paying audience! In some ways you just had to let go of any premeditated ideas of what you wanted this to be or what you wanted it to look like. It was liberating.

I cannot even imagine...

Yes! At the first preview, it was a sold out house and people jumped up and at the end of the show, and they were enthralled. Afterwards people gave us standing ovations every night. They were completely overtaken with this story about this family- no matter who they were in terms of their race, socioeconomic background, where they were from... people responded to this play in a way that I don't think I've ever truly experienced.

That must be so wildly satisfying for you- not just being in it but having made it all happen.

It's a very satisfying feeling to know that you've programmed something that people are responding to in such a positive way. We sold out the run at Steppenwolf and Purpose became the highest grossing show in Steppenwolf's almost 50 year history.

And this was happening while Appropriate was running on Broadway, correct?

Yes, as we were selling out in Chicago, he was selling out in New York. He was having quite the moment, so conversation started right away about moving the play. 

You must be so proud.

I was telling someone the other day about the first time I went to Broadway. It was in 2011 and it was one of the great experiences of my life. I did a play called Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. Going back to Broadway this time is a completely different feeling because I've been a part of this process from the very beginning and helping to steward this play on its journey. 

Every actor who was in that show in Chicago, I literally just picked up the phone. I called up every actor and I said, "I want you to be a part of this. I believe in this play. I believe in this experience." Every actor said, "Absolutely. I'm in."

Have there been rewrites happening now that there are a few new cast members involved for Broadway?

To work with Brandon is a sublime experience. He listens to you as you're performing his work, as you're reading it... even before you're on your feet. He's listening to how words fall out of your mouth. He's watching you in ways that you don't quite realize because you're fully engulfed in it as an actor. But then he'll come in with new pages and you'll see something that he's done- a transition he's made or an up glide in a sentence. He studies you. And then he attunes it to you. It's a surreal experience.

And he's still doing it to this moment! He's listening to us and we've been working on this play for years now. I feel supremely confident that we have the right actors in the room. It's been one of the great experiences of my artistic and producing life to work on this play with Brandon. 

What do you think is going to surprise Broadway audiences about this play?

I think that the people who've seen Appropriate won't be surprised at how talented Brandon is or how good the play is. I think what will surprise them is the thing that still surprises me- he is so well equipped to tell so many different kinds of stories.

We often call this play a companion piece to Appropriate. He is telling a very different story about a family, in a completely different subject matter. That is the thing that sort of blows me away is that he can write for artists who traversed that stage, and then look at the artists who are now in his play who look completely different, sound completely different, have a different worldview. And he can write for all of us. 

And also, I think that people will be surprised that no matter what the people look like in his plays, particularly this one, you can see yourself. I think that's a great beauty in this one. 

Purpose will open on March 17, 2025 at the Hayes Theatre. View the full 2025 Spring Preview!

Photo Credit: Marc J. Franklin/Michael Brosilow