The Late Henry Moss
by Sam Shepard
MIDWEST PREMIERE
ARTISTIC HOME THEATRE
June 2 - Aug. 3, 2014
2015 Jeff Awards Nomination: "Best Supporting Actor"
★★★★ "The burden of the production falls to the actors, who, under the direction of Kaiser Zaki Ahmed, handsomely rise to the challenge…what makes this production great: a wobbly balance of sadness, comedy and fruitless, ill-fitting aggression that irrepressibly compels."
-- TimeOut Chicago
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
“An electrical mishap mandated that Artistic Home's opening night performance be illuminated solely by the storefront auditorium's house lights (seven unfiltered fresnels, to be specific), with only sound cues to mark the evening's progress. Even under these impaired circumstances, Kaiser Zaki Ahmed's direction of an ensemble exhibiting the intense subtextual focus that is this company's hallmark keeps us cognitive of the narrative's underlying themes every minute—no easy task given Sam Shepard's sun-stunned universe.”
-- Mary Shen Barnidge, Windy City Times
RECOMMENDED
"It’ll grab you and keep you engaged throughout."
--Chicago Critic
★★★☆!"director Kaiser Ahmed's staging works around the dangers of self-parody that litter the script like so many linguistic land mines by simply acting the tarnation out of it, with very little energy expended on solemnity or sentimentality.”
-- Kerry Reid, Chicago Tribune
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
“The whole cast wows, especially Frank Nall as the hulking Henry Moss and Julian Hester, whose meticulous choices bring fleshy life to a small-town boy from Texas.”
--Chloe Riley, Chicago Reader
RECOMMENDED
"As a theatrical experience, it's pure Chicago. … "...Kaiser Ahmed's direction effectively moves the story from dream to reality and back again and keeps his talented cast in rhythm with the story.”
-- Nancy S Bishop, Gaper’s Block,
RECOMMENDED
"A booze-soaked force!!"
-- The Fourth Walsh
Haunted by a history of violence and mismatched memories, estranged brothers Ray and Earl explosively reunite after the death of their desert-rat father in Sam Shepard’s play The Late Henry Moss. Drawn together by their father’s death, the brothers battle to discover the truth of their own lives as they sit watch over their father’s body. The Late Henry Moss is the culmination for Shepard of a career often focused on the complex, violent father-son dynamic. Even in death, Henry dominates the room and the relationship between Ray and Earl, who fight to the bitter end to exorcise themselves from his toxic death grip.
Featuring: Yadira Correa, Julian Hester, Arvin Jalandoon, Tim Musachio, Frank Nall, Jae Renfrow and David Vogel
Design Team:
Jacob Bray (Scenic), Delia Ridenour (Costume), Scott Pilsbury (Lighting), Thomas Dixon (Sound), Gerri Fabri Mary McClenahan (Prop), Cody Spellman (Dramaturg)
Photos by Ryan Bourque