Community connections: 'Scatter the Pigeons' to debut at Steel Beam Theatre
Steel Beam Theatre artistic director Marge Uhlarik-Boller has had her eye on Gary McGowan's play “Scatter the Pigeons” since she saw an early reading of the work at friend's home.
After the playwright workshopped it at Chicago Dramatists, Uhlarik-Boller directed another workshop of the play at Steel Beam. Now she's directing the finished product, which makes its debut at the St. Charles theater on Friday, Feb. 22, and runs through March 17.
“It's so different from anything we've done,” said Uhlarik-Boller, an Elgin resident. “The characters are common people who live in a mobile home park. I thought it would be a fascinating show to do.”
The 90-minute play, which has no intermission and takes place in real time without scene changes, progresses through a 50th birthday party for Maddie, a resident of a California mobile home park. While the celebration is happening, the town where they live is voting on whether to sell the land the park is own to a developer.
“It's supposed to be a happy occasion, but this is looming throughout the night whether these people will be displaced,” said McGowan, who lives in Forest Park. “It makes for an interesting situation.”
McGowan said he was inspired to write “Scatter the Pigeons” after he read a magazine article about retirees settling in mobile home parks because it allowed them to live independently without spending too much.
“The caveat is that just because you own the trailer doesn't mean you own the land underneath the trailer,” he said. “There's been litigation where the residents are trying to fight to stay in their communities because developers want to come in and do something else with the land.”
The story is a personal one for Uhlarik-Boller, whose own parents retired to a mobile home park.
“It was lovely and there was quite a community there and they kind of looked out for each other,” she said. “Gary got that sense of community.”
All but two of the performers in the Steel Beam production have been with the show since the first reading. Forest Park resident Annie Slivinski plays Maddie, who came to live in the mobile home park to take care of her ailing mother. She stayed on after her death and has formed tight connections within the community, whose other residents include a former Major League Baseball player with a gambling problem and a struggling young Hispanic couple.
“It's really great to see the genesis of a project and how it evolves and changes and grows,” Slivinski said. “The feedback Gary was able to get from actors and people listening and watching really impacted his final show and made it better along the way. As an actor it's so great to see the process of the playwright and how he created the role.”
McGowan said he also enjoyed bringing his first play to the stage.
“This is all fresh and new for me,” he said. “I've just been enjoying the process. We'll see what the audience thinks of it. The play has been combed through thoroughly with different readings and lots of different drafts. It's in good shape. I'm just happy to have it up and be able to share it with people.”
Steel Beam Theatre is at 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. Tickets are $22-$28. For information, call (630) 587-8521.
“Scatter the Pigeons”
Where: Steel Beam Theatre, 111 W. Main St., St. Charles
When: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday Feb. 22 to March 17
Tickets: $22-$28; call (630) 587-8521 or visit