By Lauren Emily Whalen
Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s 50th anniversary season is underway, and its third offering, The Dance of Death, offers a new twist on an old classic. In 2012, Tony-nominated playwright and screenwriter Conor McPherson adapted August Strindberg’s 1900 dark comedy, and Steppenwolf’s production is an all-ensemble affair, directed by Yasen Peyankov and featuring company co-founder Jeff Perry (Inventing Anna).
It’s a treat to see a storied cast and witness Collette Pollard’s gorgeously tactile scenic design, but the script meanders and, at times, feels irrelevant, resulting in a frustrating night at the theater.
Nearly 25 years into their marriage, military captain Edgar (Perry) and former actress Alice (Kathryn Erbe, Law & Order: Criminal Intent) live in a converted jail (metaphor, anyone?) on an isolated island. What begins as an evening of “take my wife, please!” jabs devolves into nastiness with the return of the couple’s friend Kurt (Cliff Chamberlain). Alice and Kurt are attracted to one another. Edgar may or may not be dying. Will Alice and Edgar make it to their silver anniversary, or will tawdry sex, fainting spells, and bloodshed get in the way?
Kathryn Erbe’s overdue return to the stage
Erbe, a Steppenwolf ensemble member whose last appearance was as Stella in the company’s 1997 revival of A Streetcar Named Desire, is even more of a powerhouse now, whether her Alice is sniping right back at her blowhard husband, or ordering her new lover to lick her boot. Pollard’s cavernous set mixes faux-concrete, various types of wood, rich carpets, and leather—beautifully tactile compared to the all-too-common video projections in modern-day theater.
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The overlong period piece about a toxic-as-usual marriage feels overwrought in a season that’s already deftly explored the effects of C-PTSD and child abuse (Mr. Wolf) and obsessive jealousy via an iconic script (Amadeus).
Though the acting company is spot-on, the source material and interpretation don’t say much. The Dance of Death is enjoyable on its shiny, star-studded surface, but underneath, there’s little of the groundbreaking provocation on which Steppenwolf prides itself.
3 out of 5 stars
It wants better content.
Fast facts: ‘The Dance of Death’
A gorgeously designed but thematically hollow production that proves even Steppenwolf’s stellar ensemble can’t elevate a script that has little new to say.
- Steppenwolf Theatre Company, 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago
- Notable cast members: Kathryn Erbe, Jeff Perry, Cliff Chamberlain
- Running time: Approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes with one intermission
- Performances through March 22, 2026
