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Chicago boasts a slew of award winning, multi-million dollar theatre edifices built of brick, glass, concrete and cement, but few can match the unique environment that First Folio Theatre has called home since 1996. This small Equity company, which has now dropped Shakespeare from its title to more accurately reflect the range of work it offers, is handsomely situated on the grounds of the Mayslake Peabody Estate, nestled in a quaint, serenely wooded Oakbrook forest preserve. And although First Folio began as an annual summer outdoor Shakespeare festival, you might be surprised by the variety of plays it has on its roster this season. The company is currently in production for the Chicago Premiere of "The Passion of Dracula," which also opens the new Event performance space in the historic mansion. This season will also see productions of Noel Coward's comedy "Design for Living" in January and February, Eugene O'Neill's lusty drama "A Moon for the Misbegotten" and Shakespeare's notorious Scottish play, "Macbeth".
As Producer David Rice explains, "We never intended to limit ourselves to just Shakespeare. That was our core mission, especially in the beginning when we were just doing the outdoor works. We chose the name First Folio Shakespeare Festival because that was solely what we were doing at the time. We feel we have outgrown the name now, but we wanted to maintain the identity, so we have a slight shift." The name isn't the only thing new this season. First Folio's highly successful fall slot has been reserved for the unveiling of a new and larger space in what was once the sanctuary of the mansion. The space offers beautiful wooden beams, a high vaulted ceiling in vintage Gothic style, and seating for between 120 and 130. First Folio began performing in the mansion in 2003 in the more intimate library space, which offers limited seating for about 80. The smaller venue will continue to be used for more intimate productions, giving First Folio a second indoor alternative to compliment the al fresco summer presentations.
While the large Gothic hall would seem ideally suited for a Halloween performance of the vampire classic, it also comes with a hefty price tag. "It's been a lot of work and it's going to cost a lot of money because we have to expand our risers. We had to purchase 50% more risers, chairs and escape stairs for the audience, which is a substantial investment. We also had to make an investment in our lighting system so we could expand our capabilities. The space itself is so huge that a small set would have been dwarfed by the space. Therefore our designer Angie Miller has come up with a nearly 2 ½ story set, which sits within an arched opening of the sanctuary itself. It's pretty amazing, although every time I look at it, the producer in me goes ‘It's beautiful, gulp!" Rice estimates that including capital expenses for the added audience risers and new lighting equipment, the fall production will run in excess of $100,000.
Few companies begin on such a grand scale, and First Folio is no exception. Rice and his wife, Artistic Director Alison C. Vesely founded the company twelve years ago and mounted their first production of Shakespeare's "The Tempest" the summer of 1997. Alison had grown up in Clarendon Hills and spent her childhood running through the fields and lakes that now play host to her summer productions. The Peabody Estate was the first space that came to mind when she and Rice had the opportunity to start their own company. They found an ally in Audrey Mushler, who headed up a group that worked to get the mansion listed on the National Trust of Historic Preservation. As Alison says, "She thought having a Shakespeare festival was a great use and would get people out to the property to see what they helped to save, since the tax payers had bought it. Then we went through all the things you go through in forming a theatre. Getting electrical supply out there was a major hurdle, getting plans and approval and getting things built. It was touch and go that first year as to whether we would be able to open on time."
Fortunately, First Folio was able to not only open, but to attract a large and loyal following of people who appreciated the non-traditional theatre experience. "In many ways," Alison explains, "it's wonderful because so much of Shakespeare is about nature and was originally played outside, so it seems to work very well. In modern day you do compete with a few things like planes flying overhead and traffic noise. We're very lucky to be in a wonderful forest preserve that minimizes those distractions as much as you possibly can this close to a major city. There's heat and rain and bugs, but we all keep good spirits about that and provide bug spray and lots of water and Gatorade when it's hot out. It's part of the fun of doing outdoor theatre; you never know what's going to happen. I think our audience loves that."
Indeed, the aroma of Citranella candles now seems almost inherently linked to the Bard, and that poses some challenges for First Folio to bring audiences accustomed to lounging outside with picnics and blankets indoors. "There is a particular audience for those outdoor shows," Alison concedes. "We're trying to bridge a gap between our outdoor and indoor audiences because they seem to be divided into two distinctly different groups. We've started over the years to do subscription series, more promotion and pre-show speeches to let people know about the other things we do." Approximately 8,000 audience members attended First Folio productions last season, and with the larger seating capacity of the new space, Alison expects this season to grow even more.
The company works under an Equity Tier 3 contract, which allows it to attract the highest quality professional artists. There's a core group of Artistic Associates that includes Kevin McKillip, Nick Sandys, Christian Gray, Melanie Keller and Sean Grennan among several others. Both Alison and David claim that their top priority is finding and supporting the best people. "I think it always comes down to the artists we work with," Alison says. "We've been very lucky and blessed to have attracted great people from the very beginning. Money is always an issue for every theatre, and we've gotten more help over the years. We have a new group working with us now that specializes in marketing and publicity that will hopefully kick us up to the next level to maintain the standards we want."
David and Alison have joked that First Folio could be subtitled "The Nice People's Theatre" since they always try to hire nice people for their shows. As David claims, "Without mentioning names, Alison and I know there are certain actors who are very talented but we'll never work with because they make life difficult for everyone around them. Nobody's making enough money for us to feel it's worth that. We try to treat people well. We feed them a lot. Actors never make a lot of money, even if they work at the top tier theatres, so we feed them, which goes a long way to keeping them happy. And we have discovered that when people are happy they do really good work." Both Alison and David cook, although busy rehearsals usually dictate that they buy food, Alison shares that David makes a heck of a good brownie.
Maintaining a happy home as well as a happy theatre is something this 27 year married couple can also be very proud of. Their personal story reads almost as dramatically as a movie or play. They met doing a play, of course, the musical "Promises, Promises". As David remembers, "We fought like cats and dogs backstage. At the time we were both engaged to other people, but we became best friends and realized we had a lot more in common than we had differences. We shared similar views on the arts, we made each other laugh and we got along." David and Alison both decided independently to call off their engagements and began dating. The rest, they say is history. "If you put it in a movie, everyone would sigh and say too bad it doesn't work like that in real life," David laughs.
Being together onstage and off seems to offer the couple more plusses than minuses. The challenge, David says, is that "It makes it hard to get away from work, because we have an office in our home. Sometimes we find ourselves saying, this is a no First Folio night. It actually is great because if we need to have a conference between Producer and Director, we can do so in our pajamas or bleary eyed in the morning over coffee and not have to worry about what we look like. We really do compliment one another. Alison's a very abstract, random, artistic kind of person and I tend to be more logical, sequential. Left brain for me, right brain for her, and the two of them fit together. So when we're approaching a problem we're coming at it from different directions and that usually allows us to find some creative solutions."
Always busy, David and Alison are members of the prestigious Jeff Award committee's Arts and Technical Team of industry professionals that are called in to evaluate approximately 10-15 opening nights per year. Alison feels "It's really great to get out and see other people's work. I think that's very valuable." In addition to all their theatrical achievements, they have also produced a 26-year-old daughter, Haley, who is also a Chicago actress. "We tried to talk her out of it," David confesses, but the passion and talent definitely run in this family. Alison traces her own love of theatre and Shakespeare back to grade school, where an intuitive nun had her students reading Shakespeare out loud in class. "We took turns reading ‘Romeo and Juliet' out loud and I found that I naturally loved the rhythm, it made sense to me spoken out loud. Then in college I had a professor who almost killed it for me."
Today, Alison shares a distinction as one of several female Artistic Directors at leading Chicago theatres, including Steppenwolf's Martha Lavey and Chicago Shakespeare's Barbara Gaines. Alison credits Gaines, as well as renowned Folio instructor Patrick Tucker, who conducted workshops during the 1980's and trained Chicago actors on the Folio method favored by local companies today. "Patrick Tucker turned all of us on to Shakespeare and this method made it so clear and easy to approach. It gave you a handle into the language and was really an exciting time." To that method, David and Alison have tried to bring some of their own standards of production, such as a respect for the artists they work with and a collaborative environment. "I work very organically," Alison explains, "and my concerns are the text and the artists. We have done some concept versions of Shakespeare like our Wild West ‘Taming of the Shrew,' but always with a respect for the words and the text. It's amazing how many Western type references there are in Shakespeare's play. But if I'm going to shift time period or style, it's got to make sense with the text."
First Folio has had great success with such non-Shakespearean attractions as "Jeeves," which sold out earlier this year, and "The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe," which was so successful two years ago it had to be remounted again last year. Alison says, "We found we have a niche with the fall show and people have really responded to the macabre. We'll let everyone else have the ‘Christmas Carol,' we'll do the Halloween theme." And what better subject for a Halloween show than "Dracula"? Alison first encountered this adaptation by Bob Hall and David Richmond while she was in New York interning with The Joffrey Ballet. A roommate was working on the New York production at the Cherry Lane Theatre, Alison fell in love with the play and has wanted to do it ever since. "This is a wonderful script. It's smart, literate, funny and incredibly moving at times." There are a number of incentives for attending a First Folio show. "It's not as far as you think," Alison laughs, "and we do really good work. It's definitely worth the trip west if you're a Chicagoan to see theatre with us. We have a unique environment that you just have to experience to fully get."
You can experience "The Passion of Dracula" October 4 - November 2 at the Mayslake Peabody Estate, 31st St. & Rt. 83, Oak Brook, IL. Tickets may be purchased by calling the box office at 630-986-8067 or online at www.firstfolio.org. Ticket prices range from $23-30. And for a special Halloween treat, First Folio will offer audience members the chance to spend Halloween with the Count. On October 30 and 31, First Folio will present two special fund-raising Halloween performances with tickets priced at $65 for the October 30th show and $75 for the Halloween evening show. Both performances will be sponsored by Bacardi Rum, and the admission price will include a post-show reception with cast. Guests will enjoy special Halloween themed drinks created by Bacardi as well as hors d'oeuvres from La Cuisine Catering.
Joe Stead
Theatre In Chicago News Contributor Joe Stead has spent over 20 years as a critic, director, designer and performer. His reviews currently appear online at www.steadstylechicago.com.