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Portrait of the artist(s): Actress/writer channels celebrated painter Frida Kahlo in solo play

At some point, theater artist Vanessa Severo will let go of Frida Kahlo, the beloved Mexican painter whom she has portrayed onstage for five years in her solo play “Frida … A Self Portrait,” opening Friday, Jan. 31, at Writers Theatre.

But that time has not yet come.

“She died at 47,” Severo said of Kahlo, who is known for her uncompromising, brightly colored self-portraits.

“When I turn 47 I'm hanging up my Frida flowers,” she said, referring to the flowers she wears on stage, a reference to the flowers Kahlo wove into her signature braids.

Actor/writer Vanessa Severo channels acclaimed 20th century artist Frida Kahlo in Writers Theatre's production of “Frida … A Self Portrait.” Courtesy of Owen Carey

The actor/director/choreographer first encountered a Kahlo painting during an undergraduate art class. It was “The Broken Column,” a provocative 1944 Kahlo self-portrait depicting the constant pain she endured as a result of a devastating bus accident at age 18 that resulted in a broken spine, leg and collarbone, and fractured pelvis. This on top of the childhood bout of polio that left Kahlo with a limp and ultimately resulted in the amputation of her leg.

Fast forward 10 years to a coffee date with a friend who remarked that he saw Frida Kahlo in her.

“I started to research her and I found an amazing woman ahead of her time,” recalled Severo. “I was in awe of her.”

The endlessly quotable Kahlo “was very tweetable,” said Severo. “She had great one-liners.”

And she refused to hide. After the amputation, Kahlo wore a prosthetic resembling her favorite boot. To the prosthetic she affixed a bell as a way of both disguising and exposing her disability.

“The frustration over not being seen and to be vocal about it is refreshing at a time when women had to be quiet,” Severo said.

In her solo show “Frida … A Self Portrait” at Writers Theatre, actor/writer Vanessa Severo tells the story of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo as well as her own story. Courtesy of Michael Henninger

The first incarnation of the show premiered in 2014 at the Living Room Theater in Kansas City, Missouri, and ran 45 minutes. Audiences responded favorably, but Severo wanted to dig deeper. A Theatre Communications Group grant made that possible.

In 2018, she visited Mexico to research Kahlo's life. One of her stops was the Museo Frida Kahlo, located in Kahlo's childhood home La Casa Azul, where she also lived as an adult with her husband, muralist Diego Rivera. The museum disappointed Severo, who mentioned that to her Uber driver.

“Frida is not at Casa Azul,” he told her, and directed her to the Museo Dolores Olmedo, which houses a fine collection of Kahlo paintings. (In 2021, the museum lent 26 Kahlo works to the Cleve Carney Museum of Art at the College of DuPage for its blockbuster exhibition “Frida Kahlo: Timeless”).

“Frida … A Self Portrait,” a solo show by actor/writer Vanessa Severo, tells the story of acclaimed Mexican artist Frida Kahlo through six of her life tragedies. Courtesy of Mikki Schaffner

Returning home, she enlisted director Joanie Schultz to collaborate on expanding the play, whose full-length version premiered in 2019. Severo credits Schultz with shaping the play, stating in an interview that the director asked the right questions. Specifically, she asked why Severo wasn’t telling the truth.

“I wasn't saying the thing I should be saying,” said Severo, who has a congenital disorder of her left hand, which she never discussed, and for years hid from her colleagues.

Vanessa Severo brings her solo show “Frida … A Self Portrait,” directed by Joanie Schultz, to Writers Theatre in Glencoe. “As a Latino woman with a disability, I’m going to put myself in the play,” said Severo, who has a congenital disorder of her left hand that she never discussed and for years hid from her colleagues. Courtesy of Zach Rosing

“As a Latino woman with a disability, I’m going to put myself in the play,” she said.

To that end, she incorporated her own story into the telling of Kahlo's, which continues to evolve as Severo learns more about her subject. In fact, she recently uncovered some information that required her to rewrite the ending for Writers' revival.

“I have to tell the truth about her,” she said. “I have to say it.”

Ultimately, Severo hopes “Frida … A Self Portrait” reminds audience members that everyone has an important story to tell, one that helps them heal and connect to others. She also hopes it inspires them to share theirs in the form of a song, poem, letter or painting.

“When we leave, all that’s left is the story,” she said.

• • •

“Frida … A Self Portrait”

When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Friday; 3 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday through Feb. 23. Also, 3 p.m. Feb. 5 and 7:30 p.m. Feb. 11

Where: Writers Theatre, 325 Tudor Court, Glencoe. (847) 242-6000 or writerstheatre.org

Tickets: $35-$115

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