In a paradox that seemed to bespeak of all kinds of theatrical promise, the fellow for whom one of Chicago’s wealthiest neighborhoods is now named was a populist renegade who not only hated Gold Coast fat cats but also wanted to carve up the lakefront into affordable housing.
“Streeterville,” the new docudrama penned by G. Riley Mills and Ralph Covert, tells the tall tale of Cap Streeter, a 19th Century maverick who ran aground on a sandbar located just off the Chicago city limits, created a landfill and claimed ownership of the unincorporated land.
This was a much-anticipated production: TimeLine’s last show, “Not About Nightingales,” was a deserved hit; Nick Bowling is a very creative director; and the talented authors of “Streeterville” were responsible for “Sawdust and Spangles,” a marvelous circus-themed show seen here in the mid-1990s.
And the topic is not only a fascinating piece of local history but would also seem to facilitate potent comment on the problems of gentrification, the disturbing role of influence-peddling in local politics and various other issues still germane to Chicagoans.
Sadly, the whole thing is a mess.
As is usually the case when premieres go awry, the problems begin with the script.
Even though they have a great deal of fascinating material, the authors seem not to have figured out what they want their play to be.
There’s a promising narrative frame focused on one of Streeter’s followers who becomes disillusioned in later life, but the device is never fully explored.
Parts of the play are penned in a realistic style, whereas other scenes seem to be broad parodies. There’s a long and boring flashback sequence in the second act that makes no sense. And most troubling of all, the complex figure of Streeter himself sometimes seems at the heart of the work and, at other times, shadowy and almost peripheral.
These issues are compounded by a production that was at least a week away from being ready for an audience. On opening night, costumes, props and sound cues all went awry. And despite the level of talent, the work of the ensemble had that unmistakably insecure whiff of actors who are not entirely comfortable with their lines.
There were moments when you could see what might have been. Bowling forged some striking stage pictures at the opening. Despite a wildly uneven performance, at times Michael McNeal’s Streeter thrillingly fired on all cylinders. And there was rich acting work from Christopher Thometz as a crooked alderman and Julie Granata as a decent young woman caught in all this trouble.
Tackle a huge and unproven project like this, of course, and one risks disaster.
But if this exciting young company is to keep raising our expectations, it will also have to practice some quality control.
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“Streeterville”
When: Through March 18
Where: TimeLine Theatre, 615 W. Wellington Ave.
Phone: 773-409 8463
