Steppenwolf Theatre's PURPOSE World Premiere Extends Through Late April

Steppenwolf Theatre Company's world premiere of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ epic family drama Purpose has added one additional week of performances, extending through Sunday, April 28, 2024.

Directed by two-time Tony Award winner Phylicia Rashad, Purpose will begin performances Thursday, March 14 in Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theater.

Purpose features ensemble members Alana Arenas (David Makes Man, The Brother/Sister Plays), Glenn Davis (King James, Downstate) and Jon Michael Hill (Elementary, Pass Over) with Ayanna Bria Bakari (Last Night and the Night Before, The Chi), Harry Lennix (through April 17, 2024, The Blacklist, The DC Universe), Tamara Tunie (Law & Order: SVU, I Wanna Dance with Somebody) and Cedric Young (April 18 – 28, 2024, Familiar, Lindiwe, The Chi).

For decades, the influential Jasper family has been a pillar of Black American Politics: civil rights leaders, pastors and congressmen. But like all families, there are cracks and secrets just under the surface. When the youngest son Nazareth returns home to Illinois with an uninvited friend in tow, the family is forced into a reckoning with itself, its faith and the legacies of Black radicalism. Spirited, hilarious and filled with intrigue, Purpose is an epic family drama – a long-awaited world premiere from one of the country’s most celebrated voices.

The creative team includes Todd Rosenthal (Scenic Design), Dede Ayite (Costume Design), Amith Chandrashaker (Lighting Design), Rob Milburn & Michael Bodeen (Sound Design), Tyrone Phillips (Associate Director), Matt Hawkins (Fight Choreographer), Kate DeVore (Vocal Coach), Jonathan L. Green (Dramaturg), Patrick Zakem (Creative Producer), Tom Pearl (Producing Director), JC Clementz, CSA (Casting), Laura D. Glenn (Production Stage Manager) and Jaclynn Joslin (Assistant Stage Manager). For full cast and creative team bios, click here.

Production Details:

Title: Purpose – World Premiere!
Playwright: Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
Director: Phylicia Rashad
Cast: ensemble members Alana Arenas (Morgan Jasper), Glenn Davis (Solomon “Junior” Jasper Jr.) and Jon Michael Hill (Nazareth “Naz” Jasper) with Ayanna Bria Bakari (Aziza Houston), Harry Lennix (Solomon “Sonny” Jasper, through April 17, 2024), Tamara Tunie (Claudine Jasper) and Cedric Young (Solomon “Sonny” Jasper, April 18 – 28, 2024).

Location: Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theater, 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago

Dates: Previews: Thursday, March 14 – Saturday, March 23, 2024
Press performance/Opening: Sunday, March 24, 2024 at 6 pm
Regular run: Tuesday, March 26 – Sunday, April 28, 2024

Curtain Times: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30 pm; and Sundays at 3 pm. Please note: there will not be a performance on Tuesday, March 19 or Tuesday, April 16; there will be a 2 pm performance on Wednesday, April 10; there will not be a 7:30 pm performance on Wednesday, April 10.

Tickets: Single tickets for Purpose ($20 - $116) are now on sale at steppenwolf.org and the Box Office at (312) 335-1650. Steppenwolf Flex Memberships are also currently on sale: Black Card Memberships with six tickets for use any time for any production and RED Card Memberships for theatergoers under 30.

Accessible Performance Dates:

Audio-described and touch tour: Sunday, April 7 at 3 pm (1:30 pm touch tour, 3 pm curtain)
Open-captioned: Thursday, April 4 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, April 13 at 3 pm
ASL-interpreted: public performance: Friday, April 12 at 7:30 pm 

Single tickets beginning at $20 are now on sale for all performances at steppenwolf.org and the Box Office at (312) 335-1650.

Photo credit: Joel Moorman

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