In this over-connected world, where anyone can turn someone else’s life into online content, it’s fair to question who actually owns our personal stories. Our social media feeds are often inundated with the personal, even embarrassing stories that people tell to get their 15 minutes of fame.
These ideas come together in the cleverly crafted world premiere “Keerah” at Definition Theatre, running through June 28.
The show, written by Chicago actor and first time playwright Netta Walker, who has a recurring role in the CW’s “All American: Homecoming,” centers around the meet-cute and intense summer fling between Ciara (played by Walker), a young African American woman working in a Logan Square restaurant, and her Irish coworker Cormac (Beck Nolan), who is in the country on a J1 Visa.
Underneath the passion of new love, the playwright explores gentrification, both here in Chicago and in Dublin, Ireland, which was a refreshing addition to a conversation that typically lives in America’s urban neighborhoods. The production also addresses mental health, addiction, immigration and grief all coming from the perspective of Walker and poignantly exploring issues plaguing her generation.
The show is fun, and the first act, while much too long, is paced more like a television show than a play. Director McKenzie Chinn, who also has experience in film and television, needed to both cut a few scenes down and allow the audience more time to sit in the heavier material.
The second act plot twist, which I won’t spoil here, explains the pacing and TV-show feel of the production perfectly. It also dives into big questions: Who owns a story? How should artists, or in the real-world, content creators, approach using the lives of others — without permission — to turn a profit?
Overall, the show is fun, and the acting — especially from Walker and Nolan — is near excellent. The duo mesh cultures and build a real chemistry that I rooted for as an audience member.
Both characters are budding writers and they bond over classic literature. Greek mythology becomes a thread pulled throughout the play. At times, the lyrics of lesser known Shakespearean sonnets are sandwiched between the writings of James Joyce and Frederick Douglass. But even if you aren’t an English major like me, the show never goes deep enough here to lose the audience, which in itself is a nod to the skill of the emerging playwright.
At more than two and half hours in length, this show is in need of an additional edit. There are many scenes, especially in the first act, that just linger, going beyond dialogue or meaningful character interaction.
Even so, this was an enjoyable experience in the theater, and in full transparency, it takes place in my own neighborhood, so yes — I’m always here for a Logan Square love story.