More Details About In A Dark Dark House
Quotes & Highlights
- "In A Dark Dark House is a provocative and uncommonly focused piece of work by LaBute. The performances are vulnerable, engaging, disturbing and very effective in Profiles' solid production." --Chicago Tribune
- "The ambivalent, the ambiguous, the invented and the potentially calamitous meet here, with director Joe Jahraus deftly orchestrating the intersection." --Chicago Sun-Times (recommended)
- "The acting is top-notch in this nuanced puzzle box of a play." --Time Out Chicago
More Information
From the theatre company that presented the critically acclaimed premieres of Fat Pig, Some Girl(s), Things We Said Today and This Is How It Goes, Profiles Theatre concludes its "Season of LaBute" with the Midwest premiere of In A Dark Dark House by playwright and filmmaker Neil LaBute.
On the grounds of a private psychiatric facility, two brothers find themselves brought face-to-face with each other's involvement in their traumatic past. In court-ordered rehab, Drew calls on his brother, Terry, to corroborate his story of abuse. Drew's request releases barely hidden animosities between the two; is he using these repressed memories to save himself while smearing the name of his brother's friend and mentor? In Neil LaBute's powerful new play, these siblings must struggle to come to grips with their troubled legacy, both inside and outside their dark family home.
The Profiles production marks only the second time this play has been produced. In A Dark Dark House received its world premiere by Manhattan Class Company in May 2007 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
Neil LaBute is an acclaimed writer, director and playwright. He received his Master of Fine Arts degree in dramatic writing from New York University and was the recipient of a literary fellowship to study at the Royal Court Theatre. His films include: “In the Company of Men” (New York Critics’ Circle Award for Best First Feature, Filmmakers’ Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival), “Your Friends and Neighbors,” “Nurse Betty,” “Possession” and “The Shape of Things,” a film adaptation of his play by the same title. “Wicker Man,” starring Nicolas Cage, was released in September 2006. Plays include: bash: latter-day plays (2000), The Shape of Things (2001), The Distance From Here (2002), The Mercy Seat (2002) and Fat Pig (2004), which opened at Profiles Theatre in September 2006. His 2005 plays include Wrecks, This Is How It Goes, autobahn and Some Girl(s). In June 2007, MCC premiered his latest play, In A Dark Dark House. LaBute is the author of several fictional pieces that have been published in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar and Playboy among others. A collection of his short stories was published by Grove/Atlantic in October 2004.
Profiles Theatre
Profiles Theatre is a not-for-profit, actor-based professional theatre. Founded in 1988 by five Eastern Illinois University alumni, Profiles has established a reputation for producing some of the edgiest new works in Chicago.
Profiles was in residence at the Wright College Theatre Building until 1990, when Artistic Director Joe Jahraus directed Profiles' first play at the theatre's current home (4147 N. Broadway) - a hit production of David Mamet's Sexual Perversity in Chicago. The following year, Associate Artistic Director Darrell W. Cox joined the ensemble. Darrell has a BFA in Theatre from Sam Houston State University in Texas and first performed with Profiles in their long-running production of Sam Shepard's True West. Profiles shortly thereafter became the resident company at the Broadway address, formerly known as Red Bones Theatre, and took over all management responsibilities for the 50-seat theatre.
The ensemble officially changed the name of the company and of the theatre space to Profiles Theatre in 1995. Today, Profiles still maintains a small, tightly knit ensemble whose other members include Eric Burgher (2003), Somer Benson (2007), Tyler Gray (2008), Allison Torem (2009), Greg Yaeger (1994), Sal V. Armano (1993) and Wayne Karl (1990).
Profiles Theatre's primary goal is to bring new works to Chicago that illuminate the determination and resiliency of the human spirit. They produce World, US and Midwest Premieres by promising new playwrights, as well as established writers whose work has been seen across the country and around the world. They take pride in carefully selecting scripts that combine integrity with risk and are particularly drawn to playwrights with a unique narrative style and use of language. Profiles Theatre is committed to producing plays that tell a story in a captivating way, ones that will complement the ensemble and speak to their audience.
