Acorn nabs cop drama, A Steady Rain

Published 9:37 am Friday, October 26, 2012

Peter DeFaria plays Joey, a seasoned police officer, in the hit drama, A Steady Rain, which is coming to the Acorn Theatre in Three Oaks Nov. 1-2. Submitted photo

Hailed by critics as “gritty, rich, thick, poetic and entirely gripping”, the hit Chicago and Broadway Drama, A Steady Rain, is set to thrill audiences right here in Southwestern Michigan.

The Chicago Commercial Collective is presenting two performances of A Steady Rain, with its original cast, at The Acorn Theater, 107 Generations Dr., Three Oaks.

The production, written by Keith Huff and directed by original director Russ Tutterow, runs Thursday, Nov. 1 and Friday, Nov. 2 at 8 p.m. Tickets, on sale now, are $30 and may be purchased online at www.acorntheater.com.

Audience members are invited to stay after the Friday, Nov. 2 show for “Drinks with the Boys,” a meet and greet session with the cast of A Steady Rain at the Acorn Theater bar. For more information on A Steady Rain visit www.asteadyrainchi.com.

A Steady Rain received its world premiere at the Chicago Dramatists in fall 2007 and was an instant hit. The production ran for six weeks before moving to the Royal George Theatre for a four-month run and then opened on Broadway starring Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig in Sept. 2009. The Chicago Commercial Collective remounted A Steady Rain in Chicago with its original cast and crew at the Chicago Dramatists for a successful nine week run in July 2012.

Few other productions in recent Chicago history have garnered the rave reviews as A Steady Rain. The critics have called Keith Huff’s A Steady Rain “a gritty, rich, thick, poetic and entirely gripping noir tale” (Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune); “some of the most dazzling acting you will ever see anywhere” (Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times); and “excellent, evocative” (Steve Oxman, Variety).

In Chicago, the production won the 2008 Joseph Jefferson Awards for “Best New Work,” “Best Actor” (for Randy Steinmeyer) and “Best Production.”  A Steady Rain’s New York adaptation broke box office records for highest weekly gross of a non-musical production on Broadway and was included in Time magazine’s “Top 10 Plays of 2009.”

A Steady Rain is the story of two seasoned police officers, Denny (Randy Steinmeyer) and Joey (Peter DeFaria) who find themselves caught up in a conflict between family and duty when a seemingly routine domestic disturbance call results in the death of a boy. When the horrific truth of the situation is made public, one of the two must take the blame for the fatal mistake. Their life-long friendship is put to the test, as both men struggle with issues of honor, love and loyalty in the face of adversity.

The design team for A Steady Rain includes set designer Tom Burch, lighting designer Jeff Pines, costume designer Samantha Jones, sound designer Mike Tutaj, and stage manager Wendye Clarendon.