Steppenwolf's revival of August Sparks, the 1987 family drama from playwright Donna Estabrook that has been a fixture of regional theatre programming for nearly four decades, brings a fresh interpretive frame to the play that distinguishes it from the now-familiar staging traditions.

The interpretive frame

Director Annie Mendez has framed the production around the structural choice of using only practical lighting from sources visible within the set's domestic interior. The choice is the kind of decision that, in lesser productions, would feel like a gimmick; in Mendez's hands, it produces a visual texture that supports the play's emotional architecture.

The performances

The cast of seven leans on three veteran Chicago performers and four younger Steppenwolf ensemble members. The combination produces the kind of generational texture the play needs and that more uniform casting often misses.

The pacing

The pacing under Mendez's direction is somewhat slower than the most familiar regional productions have favoured. The slowing accommodates the patient observation that her staging logic depends on; it also asks the audience for more patience than recent comparable productions have asked for.

The technical work

The technical work supporting the lighting concept has been the part of the production that has clearly absorbed the most preparation. The set and lighting designs work in coordination in ways that more conventionally-lit productions would not need to manage; the coordination produces the production's distinctive visual signature.

The verdict

The Steppenwolf revival of August Sparks is the kind of regional theatre work that justifies the institutional infrastructure that supports plays of its scale. The production runs through late June; it is the kind of work that audiences within travel distance of Chicago should consider seeking out.