Blow winds and crack your cheeks! Rage, blow!
The only storm McQueary got, though, was a shitstorm on the Internet, where she was widely condemned for a lack of sensitivity in discussing a disaster that resulted in more than 1,800 deaths and the displacement of hundreds of thousands. In lieu of issuing a nonapology, McQueary issued a nonclarification, saying that she was merely using “metaphor and hyperbole” to make a point about the urgent need for political and economic reforms in Chicago.
Interrobang Theatre Project coartistic director and Louisiana native Georgette Verdin appeared in one of Florence’s earlier drafts while they were both working on MFAs at the University of New Orleans (the character she played has since been cut). Now Verdin is staging the work’s first Chicago production. The script’s use of real people’s real words, she says, helps it escape charges that Florence, who is white, is coopting the experiences of a majority-black population.
She’s aware that it’s a delicate balance. “My relationship with my father set against the backdrop of Hurricane Katrina—I know there’s no comparison. And I certainly hope I don’t make it seem like I’m the hero of this thing. I see it like I’m a playwright telling this story and I’m going to be as honest as I can be about that.” Putting herself in the play is meant to acknowledge her distinct and unavoidably limited perspective, as well as the difficulty of depicting a cataclysm like this in all its multitudes of facets.
9/4-10/4: Thu-Fri 7:30 PM, Sat 2 and 7:30 PM (9/5, 7:30 PM only), Sun 3 PM Den Theatre 1329-1333 N. Milwaukee 773-398-7028interrobangtheatreproject.org $20, $15 students and seniors
The Play About My Dad 10/21-11/28: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3:30 PM Raven Theatre 6157 N. Clark 773-338-2177raventheatre.com $42, $37 students and seniors.
