22nd Play - The Wolf at the End of the Block by Ike Holter
Summary: "Chicago. Fall. One night, a boarded up bar on the dark side of the block becomes a terrifying crime scene. In the next 48 hours, the neighborhood digs deep into escalating mystery, working against time to separate fact from fiction. But as the clock ticks down, the clues spiral into a razor sharp jigsaw, and what began as a simple mystery quickly twists into a personal, pointed and political thriller." (Theatre in Chicago)
Loved: Wow! Yes, this one is a wow. TMI, I read this one in the bathtub because of time challenges, but I DID NOT WANT TO GET OUT OF THE TUB! This play definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat. It's described as a thriller, and it is, but it's SO MUCH MORE. It speaks to the lack of resources in certain neighborhoods in Chicago (and probably your city too), it speaks to the terror of people of color when faced with police, and it speaks both loudly and sneakily to the question of when is truth less important than the story? And more - there are things I'm leaving out from my quick bathtub read. Okay, white people, you may intellectually understand why people in Black and Latinx communities are literally triggered around law enforcement in your brain, but to get a more visceral understanding, literature/theatre is a great way in. Reading Angie Thomas' amazing young adult novel The Hate U Give allowed me to see the world through the eyes of a young Black girl, and I GOT IT. Ack. Ike Holter understands this, and we GET IT in this play so clearly. The sheer terror felt by Nunley, who is black, and Abe, who is Latino in the bar *** MINI SPOILER *** when they realize that the white guy is a cop is powerful, at least in the reading of the play. Good actors and directors would only accentuate this. I love that all of the characters in this play are good, and also not. Everyone has their questionable, imperfect moments. You root for Abe and Miranda, all the while being annoyed by their faults. Ike Holter understands that people are flawed, and really enjoys writing about those flaws. And yet, we still care about them. Even the antagonist, the one white character, James, is reasonably likeable until ... he's not. This play also really digs into the idea that there are two sides to every story, and although that can be frustrating, it's real, and I think even more powerful in this time where people on both sides of the political aisle believe their side is right. And the question of whether the truth is less important than the bigger social problem is raised and ... not completely answered, as good playwrights do. We have to go home and ask ourselves that. I also love Holter's language. He doesn't fuck around with big fancy words, but his stumbling, expletive-filled, rambling speech is the poetry of REAL people. Definitely real people who live in this neighborhood. And it's good for comfortable white people to visit this neighborhood and see people trying to do the right thing, although circumstances conspire against them.
What I didn’t Love: I don't have a lot of criticism of the play, frankly - I really liked it. I didn't like all of the uncomfortable feelings the play brought up, but THAT'S THE DAMN POINT. I wanted clearer characters - are they good or bad? But the playwright didn't give me that. And that makes him a great playwright. Sometimes as an audience member, I want easy answers. Good playwrights don't give them, even if I'm frustrated in the moment. I guess my only REAL complaint is that *** ANOTHER MINI SPOILER *** the play ends right before shit goes down. We don't know what's going to happen. I appreciate that intellectually, BUT I WANT TO KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN!!! I read a review that said this play felt like a really exciting first act of a play. I'd be VERY interested to read/see Act II of this one. But, I suspect Holter is not interested in a resolution for this situation. He wants us to feel and respond and learn. And we do. Then we have to figure out what we want the ending to be. It's kind of annoying, but darned smart writing, sigh.
Summary: I didn't always love living in the uncomfortable world of this play, but it was important and I learned from it. I loved the humor that the playwright always inserted, even in these really difficult, life changing situations. The most important takeaways for me were the lessons the play very non-didactically gives us, the biggest one being that no situation is truly black and white (irony noted, and not completely intentional, but I left it in). The characters are all very real - all have great points and big flaws. Holter touches on so many things I haven’t had time to mention - even having a character question the use of the phrase "Latinx" which many people who fall into that category do not like at all. On top of all of that, this play was a total page turner (ironically it was the only one I read a physical copy of the play of so far) and I couldn't stop reading it. I can only imagine watching it would be literally edge of your seat. I can't wait until someone in Chicago produces this again. It's not my play to be a part of as an actor or director, but I would support any theatre who does it and I will be there to see it!
Here’s a link to Google Sheets with more info about the play: Play a Day Sheet
Want to read more about Ike Holter? https://www.americantheatre.org/2021/01/22/ike-holter-beyond-the-playwright/