Actor's illness forces Goodman to suspend 'Pamplona' premiere in mid-performance

Goodman Theatre halted its world premiere of the one-character play "Pamplona" Tuesday and cancelled its Wednesday night show after star Stacy Keach became ill during Tuesday's press opening.

Goodman representatives said Wednesday that Keach was "undergoing medical testing."

Keach, 75, was about one hour into Jim McGrath's 90-minute play chronicling the later life of Ernest Hemingway when a stage manager - citing technical difficulties - halted the performance and asked the actor to leave the stage.

Moments later, Goodman artistic director Robert Falls stepped on stage to inform the audience that the performance was suspended. According to Falls, Keach had been feeling ill all day but insisted on performing with the theater's support.

Early on, however, Keach's performance as the celebrated author struggling with writer's block suggested something was amiss. Keach spoke haltingly at times and repeated passages of dialogue sometimes three or four times. This apparently threw off lighting and projection cues. Meanwhile, the restless audience coughed and fidgeted, seemingly sensing something had gone awry.

A Goodman spokeswoman declined to give details on Keach's condition except to say he was "under the weather." Paramedics were not called and Keach was not hospitalized, the spokeswoman said.

In a prepared statement issued late Tuesday, Goodman representatives thanked audience members for expressing concern for Keach.