“The Glass Menagerie” at Steel Beam Theatre
If you think your family is dysfunctional, you should meet the Wingfields.
Audiences will have a chance to take in a classic Tennessee Williams drama when Steel Beam Theatre presents “The Glass Menagerie,” directed by Terry Domschke of Elgin, weekends through March 11 in St. Charles.
“The Glass Menagerie” tells the story of an overbearing mother, Amanda Wingfield, whose sole reason to live is her children; a fragile, lonely daughter Laura, with an obsession for collecting glass animals, and a dutiful son Tom who longs to escape his mundane existence.
Tom arranges for Jim O’Connor, an ambitious former high school star athlete and co-worker, to visit with Laura. The meeting, meticulously orchestrated by Amanda, ends with disastrous results, with Tom paying a high price for his freedom.
“The Glass Menagerie” was Williams’ first successful play and he went on to write the Pulitzer Prize-winning dramas “A Streetcar Named Desire” and “Cat On A Hot Tin Roof.”
“The Glass Menagerie” premiered in Chicago in 1944 and moved to Broadway, where it won the New York Drama Circle Critics Award a year later.
“The Glass Menagerie” opened Feb. 17 and runs through Sunday, March 11. Show times are 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays. There is free parking next to the theater, which is handicap accessible, and a variety of dining options nearby.
Single tickets are $25 for adults, $23 for students and seniors and $22 for groups of 10 and over. For tickets, visit www.SteelBeamTheatre.com or call (630) 587-8521.
The Glass Menagerie cast includes SBT founder and director Donna Steele as the overprotective and stifling Amanda Wingfield; Dennis Edwards of West Chicago as Tom Wingfield, the son torn between his loyalty and his aspirations; Colleen Dilts of Chicago as the sensitive and lonely Laura, who finds refuge in her world of fragile glass animals; and Dean Gallagher of Algonquin as Jim O’Connor, who although trying to help, unwittingly encourages and then smashes Laura’s dreams in one fleeting encounter.
SBT’s “The Glass Menagerie” director Terry Domschke of Elgin has been actively involved in theater throughout the Fox Valley and Chicagoland areas. He is a co-founder of Janus Theatre and currently serves as the artistic director emeritus for the company. He’s the former artistic director for the Renaissance Repertory, Synquest Players and was the founder and director of the theater program at Elgin Community College for more than 25 years.
Domschke’s directed more than 200 productions throughout his career.
Steel Beam Theatre is at 111 W. Main St., St. Charles.