Windy City Playhouse to Return to Flagship Theatre with Sons of Hollywood
Windy City Playhouse Artistic Director Amy Rubenstein announced that the immersive theater pioneer will present the world premiere of "Sons of Hollywood," a searing take on 1920's Hollywood through the eyes of gay silent film stars Ramon Novarro and William Haines, beginning January 26, 2022 at Windy City Playhouse's flagship location (3014 W Irving Park Rd).
Set in the early 1920's, the production centers on Hollywood as it brims with risque films, off-screen scandals, enormous parties and glamorous opening nights. As the lives of film stars become more public than ever with the advent of talkies, the reputations of film studios suddenly hang in the balance. Silent film stars Ramon Novarro and William Haines enjoyed lives as Hollywood royalty, steeped in the luxury of booze, sex, prostitutes and more drama off-screen than on. When the Motion Picture Production Code brings a swift and sudden end to their lifestyle and the silver screen is purged of its openly gay stars, William and Ramon face a hard, oppressive reality: they must choose love or money.
How will these former film stars fight for their rights while coping with their new, shocking reality? Will they recede into the numbing comfort of alcoholism, drugs and male hustlers or could this be a golden opportunity for self-reinvention?
"Following a two-year hiatus through the COVID-19 pandemic, we're very much looking forward to returning to our flagship location for this incredible production," said Rubenstein. "It's exciting to get the chance to travel back in time to the 1920's, especially with the vehicle of a true story. We're ready to dazzle our audiences with all of the Hollywood glamour and mystique."