DEBATE: BALDWIN VS. BUCKLEY Comes to DePaul's Cortelyou Commons

“Is the American Dream at the expense of the American Negro?” This was the topic on February 18, 1965, when an overflow crowd packed the Cambridge Union in Cambridge, England, to witness a historic televised debate between James Baldwin and William F. Buckley, Jr. Baldwin was the leading literary voice of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s, while Buckley Jr., was a fierce critic and America’s most influential conservative intellectual. Their historic clash revealed the deep roots and lasting legacy of racial conflict that continue to haunt America.

Next winter, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of their legendary duel, TimeLine Theatre Company will present the Chicago premiere of the american vicarious’ Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley, adapted and directed by Christopher McElroen, January 29 - March 2, 2025. Press opening is Friday, January 31 at 7:30 p.m. 

Thanks to a unique partnership between TimeLine Theatre and The Theatre School at DePaul University, the Midwest’s leading theatre conservatory and the alma mater of TimeLine’s founders, the internationally acclaimed the american vicarious’ Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley will be uniquely staged, not in a traditional theater, but in an immersive, site-specific production, tailor-made for Chicago and replicating the feeling of being in the Cambridge Union.

The entire five-week run of Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley will be presented inside Cortelyou Commons, a historic student gathering space built in 1929 on DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus, an academic setting with a beautiful Gothic Collegiate design that replicates Cambridge Union, where the original debate was held. 

Once inside Cortelyou Commons, audiences will witness an epic confrontation that pitted Baldwin’s call for a moral revolution in race relations against Buckley’s unabashed elitism and implicit commitment to the status quo. 

“TimeLine is thrilled to produce this powerful theatrical experience in the immersive setting of the Cortelyou Commons. Partnering with the internationally acclaimed company, the american vicarious, and The Theatre School at DePaul University—alma mater to me and my fellow TimeLine co-founders—is an honor, as TimeLine continues a season of curated collaborations across Chicago while our new home in Uptown is under construction,” said TimeLine Artistic Director PJ Powers. “Following heralded productions in New York and London, we’re creating a unique, Chicago version of Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley that will invite the audience into a space resembling the one in Cambridge where Baldwin and Buckley’s legendary clash of ideas occurred. Presenting this on the 60th anniversary of their debate will illuminate what progress has occurred in our country and what troubling comparisons still can be made with arguments from 1965.”

“The objective of the american vicarious in restaging this historic debate is not to inhabit such monumental figures as James Baldwin or William F. Buckley, their shoes are too large to fill,” said Christopher McElroen, Founding Artistic Director of the american vicarious. “Rather, our objective is to simply place their words, which still resonate 60 years later, within the voice of contemporary artists.”

“With Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley, TimeLine will transform DePaul’s Cortelyou Commons into a unique and immersive space where powerful public discourse can take place,” said Mica Cole, Executive Director of TimeLine Theatre. “Scholars, activists and audiences will be able to experience a historic moment in race relations, then engage in a critical conversation about our present and future.”

Original cast members Teagle F. Bougere (Baldwin) and Eric T. Miller(Buckley) will reprise their roles in Chicago, following critically acclaimed runs in New York City, London, and elsewhere.

Underscoring TimeLine’s connection with The Theatre School, the cast also showcases four student performers, all in their final year in DePaul’s BFA Acting program. Alexander Perez and Aspen Schucker will rotate performances as Mr. David Heycock of Pembroke College, the Cambridge University student who introduced Baldwin at the 1965 debate. Jack Baust and Quintin Craig will rotate as Mr. Jeremy Burford of Emmanuel College, who championed Buckley.

The Production Team includes Sally Dolembo (Co-Costume Designer), TimeLine Company Member Maren Robinson (Dramaturg) and Katrina Herrmann (Stage Manager). Understudies are Kevin Aoussou (Baldwin) and Joseff Stevenson (Buckley).

Not only will this unique, immersive Chicago theater experience honor the 60th anniversary of the historic Baldwin vs. Buckley debate, 2025 also marks the 100th anniversary of The Theatre School at DePaul University. 

How fitting is it that, to kick off the school’s centennial, a team of DePaul theatre students will gain real-world professional experience as part of the Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley Production Team, including Zachary Grasee(Co-Costume Designer), Bruno Díaz Miranda (Assistant Stage Manager), Edward Ambrose (Wardrobe Supervisor), and Ashly Demay, Katherine Schuert and Omari Sloan (Dramaturgs).

“We are so happy to have our current students and faculty work with our alumni on a production that ushers in the beginning of our centennial year of existence and also speaks to the importance of debate in an educational backdrop,” said Martine Kei Green-Rogers, Dean of The Theatre School at DePaul University. 

To post a comment, you must register and login.