Photo Flash: In Rehearsal With DANCE NATION At Steppenwolf

Steppenwolf Theatre Company is now in rehearsals with Pulitzer Prize Finalist Dance Nation by Clare Barron, directed and choreographed by Lee Sunday Evans. Steppenwolf's production features ensemble members Audrey Francis (The Moms/Vanessa), Tim Hopper (Dance Teacher Pat), Caroline Neff (Zuzu), and Karen Rodriguez (Amina) with Ariana Burks (Sofia), Adithi Chandrashekar (Connie), Shanésia Davis (Ashlee), Torrey Hanson (Luke) and Ellen Maddow (Maeve). A success-driven pre-teen dance troupe finds themselves trying to understand their ambition, insecurities, changing bodies, rivalries and friendships while exploring the desires, confusion and sometimes feral nature of adolescence.

Dance Nation begins previews December 12, 2019 (opening is Thursday, December 19) and the production runs through February 2, 2020 in the Upstairs Theatre (1650 N Halsted St). Press performances are Thursday, December 19, 2019 at 7pm and Friday, December 20, 2019 at 7:30pm. Single tickets ($20 - $94) are on sale now through Audience Services at 312-335-1650 or steppenwolf.org. Classic and Flex Memberships are currently available for the 2019/20 Season. To purchase a Membership and secure the best seats at the lowest prices, contact Audience Services at 312-335-1650 or steppenwolf.org/memberships.

A pre-teen dance troupe navigates ambition, friendship and desire as they claw their way to Nationals in Tampa Bay. Featuring a multigenerational cast of women playing our pre-teen heroines, this Chicago premiere is fiercely funny, theatrically inventive and full of heart.

Playwright Clare Barron shares "I hope that an audience will remember things about their 13-year-old selves that they had forgotten, and that there is a little bit of an awakening of old feral rumbles... There's a strength there that I remember having as a kid that I sometimes miss as an adult. I hope this play is a bit of an archaeology project that allows people to recover their inner teenage girl strength."

Director Lee Sunday Evans on what excites her about this production: "I have always had an art crush on Steppenwolf Theatre so it's a thrill to get to do a new production of this play that I love so much at this legendary theater. Clare is one of my closest collaborators, and I've learned so much about theater and art from her... Also-I love actors and I love designers, and the cast and creative team that's on board for this production is totally extraordinary- Arnulfo Maldonado, our brilliant scenic designer from the first production, and Ellen Maddow, who unforgettably originated the role of Maeve, are coming with us to Chicago. I'm also glad everyone in Chicago will get to know them."

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