Soups, Stews, and Casseroles: 1976 Makes Chicago Premiere
Soups, Stews, and Casseroles: 1976 begins performances this evening at Goodman Theatre.
It’s the 1970s, and the Durst family lives in a small Wisconsin town, where the father, Kim Durst, works as a cheese factory employee. As corporate America infringes increasingly on the business, however, the town and the Durst’s lives change forever, and with the opportunities come unseen costs. This examination of workers’ rights and the effect of big business on small town lives brings to light the moral dilemmas we find ourselves faced with today.
Artistic director Robert Falls helms the play, which was written by Rebecca Gilman. The cast features Cliff Chamberlain as Kim Durst, Cora Vander Broek as Kat, Lindsay Stock as Kelly, Ty Olwin as Kyle, Angela Reed as Elaine, and Ann Whitney and Meg Thalken as JoAnne.
"I was at a garage sale for the volunteer fire department in this little town in Wisconsin, and I found a cookbook called Soups, Stews, and Casseroles: 1976. As I was reading the recipes the women of the town had submitted, I started to think about how communities really come together to help each other out in small towns in ways that remind me of how unions can have a really strong connection to community as well," said Gilman.
The creative team includes Kevin Depinet (set design), Jenny Mannis (costume design), Jesse Klug (lighting design), Richard Woodbury (sound design), and Kim Osgood (stage manager).
Performances will run through June 19.
