Ike Holter is a busy guy. In the five years since his breakout work Hit the Wall premiered in Steppenwolf’s Garage Rep and went on to an Off Broadway run, the playwright has premiered five additional full-length plays in Chicago, with two more (so far) announced for the 2017–2018 season. Now, Time Out Chicago can exclusively reveal Holter’s been keeping another one up his sleeve. The Roustabouts, a new ensemble founded by Holter and Tony Santiago, will make its official debut with Holter’s new play Put Your House in Order, opening at A Red Orchid Theatre in just two weeks.
The Roustabouts—also, incidentally, the adopted name of the citizen crimefighters in Holter’s Prowess—have been quietly in production for the new play for months. (New plays don’t come together overnight, so keeping a production like this under wraps until two weeks out is basically the equivalent of a Kendrick or Beyoncé secret album drop.) Holter is keeping the plot of Put Your House in Order close to his vest until the opening performance on July 13, but we know it will star Santiago, Aurora Adachi-Winter and Janice O’Neill and it’s directed by Jackalope Theatre Company artistic director Gus Menary (Holter’s collaborator on Exit Strategy). And we hear we can expect a vibe like early Stephen King—which is definitely the feeling we get from seeing the poster image below (designed and illustrated by Joel Maisonet with typography by Jenifer Dorman).
Put Your House in Order will play for five performances only at A Red Orchid. Tickets will become available July 5 at 3pm at RoustaboutsChicago.com; follow the company on Facebook for updates.
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