Photo Flash: O'Neil's STRANGE INTERLUDE at Goodman Theatre

The Neo-Futurists, acclaimed Chicago off-Loop theater troupe and "one of the most imaginative experimental theater ensembles in the country" (The Economist), bring Goodman Theatre's 21st century Exploration of Eugene O'Neill to a triumphant close with Strange Interlude March 6 - 8. With an all-Chicago ensemble cast led by Merrie Greenfield as Nina Leeds directed by Founder Greg Allen, The Neo-Futurists present their imaginative and contemporary new interpretation of O'Neill's five-and-half-hour epic for three performances only in the Goodman's Owen Theatre. Tickets are $12 - $20; a full calendar, including dates, times, ticket prices and information about the special events, appears at the end of the release.

"I'm very excited to bring our version of Strange Interlude to the Goodman," says Director Greg Allen. "O'Neill's play has this crazy conceit of having all of the characters speak their internal thoughts onstage, which lends itself very well to The Neo-Futurist aesthetic. It's an outrageous, preposterous play with jaw-dropping turns of events that are simultaneously hysterically funny and horrifying."

Strange Interlude is Eugene O'Neill's rarely-revived, Pulitzer Prize-winning epic story of Nina Leeds and her three lovers-and the lengths she will go to keep them in her life and under her control. Using extensive asides in which characters reveal their inner thoughts, the play unfolds over 25 years of time, spanning nine acts and five-and-a-half hours in length. It was an immediate sensation when it premiered on Broadway in 1928; running for 426 then-unprecedented performances, it quickly became an object of admiration and satire among the theatergoing elite. Gilbert Gabriel of the New York Sun said, "Strange Interlude stands firm and giant-sized as a giver of new scopes, as a hewer of ways for such truths as the usual drama can scarce imply, as a method to meet the need, today's immense need, for plays that can ably cope with Freud. If only for that reason-and I guarantee to find you others-it is the most significant contribution any American has made to the stage."

The play's unconventional approach to character revelation, its influence by the theories of Freud and Jung, and unusual length all contributed to its overwhelming popular success-as did its controversial nature. Banned in Boston in 1929 for being, according to Mayor Malcolm Nichols, "a plea for the murder of unborn children, a breeding ground for atheism and domestic infidelity, and a disgusting spectacle of immorality," the production was brought to nearby Quincy where it attracted scores of audiences eager to view "the spectacle." Strange Interlude remains one of O'Neill's most distinctive, iconic achievements.

Patrons are invited to join Greg Allen and Sean Graney, Artistic Director and Founder of The Hypocrites who directs O'Neill's The Hairy Ape at the Goodman, for a free discussion about Eugene O'Neill in the 21st Century on Saturday, February 21 in the Goodman's Owen Theatre after the final performance of The Hairy Ape. Tickets are free but reservations are required; please call the Goodman's Box Office at 312.443.3800.

Running time for Strange Interlude is approximately 5 hours and 30 minutes with two intermissions. Saturday and Sunday performances include a dinner break.

Photos by Eric Y. Exit.

More Articles by This Author...