Often, we’re asked “what makes a play a Steppenwolf play?”

If we’ve learned anything from stewarding this theater over the last four years, it’s that there is no one idea, voice or aesthetic that can encapsulate a theater built around a wildly eclectic ensemble of 56 visionary artists. Our multiplicity of voice, of talent, of experience—that’s what makes Steppenwolf unique and strong.  

Still, it’s a question worth pondering. And there is a compelling case that if a guiding aesthetic exists for Steppenwolf, it is built upon the visceral, strange and searing foundation of the late Sam Shepard’s body of work. Our ensemble has returned again and again to these plays for succor and inspiration. Shepard’s plays are inextricably intertwined with our identity as a company, beginning with 1981’s production of Action (followed the next year by a production of True West which catapulted our ensemble to New York and, in turn, national recognition) through to the present day. And Shepard’s writing at large, with its split focus on the American project, deep fractures within the nuclear family and the mythic American West, has further influenced the voices of our company members across generations; look close and you’ll see the impact of Shepard’s style in the artistic output of so many of our actors, directors and writers over the decades. 

We adore this play. As is true for many actors, our training included Fool for Love as a textbook example of visceral, relentless scene-work that demands everything from its performers. There is no room for indifference here. Shepard demands total devotion from his cast as they tread a precarious tightrope; one false step and you tumble into the abyss. What actor alive wouldn’t want to slip into the iconic roles of May and Eddie, locked in a timeless struggle that erases all distance between the most primal emotions of love, hate and guilt? 

We are lucky beyond doubt that this cast is more than equipped to meet Shepard’s provocations. To see ensemble members Cliff Chamberlain, Tim Hopper and Caroline Neff onstage together—well, we’re simply overjoyed. Joined by the deeply talented Nick Gehlfuss, and with Jeremy Herrin (among the finest directors working in the English-speaking world) at the helm, we’re confident that we’re in store for something special. 

We’re reluctant to say much more before you experience this play. There’s something intangible and ephemeral about Shepard’s work that approaches sacred; talk about it too much and you risk losing the magic. So, let’s leave it at this: we are thrilled to share this production with you and to write another chapter in a long relationship with Shepard, Steppenwolf's patron saint of irreverent, enigmatic, and downright explosive American Drama. 

Glenn Davis and Audrey Francis
Artistic Directors

STEPPENWOLF PRESENTS

FOOL FOR LOVE

Written by Sam Shepard
Directed by Jeremy Herrin^‡

FEATURING

Cliff Chamberlain^†*, Nick Gehlfuss^*, Tim Hopper^†*, Caroline Neff^†*

CREATIVE TEAM

Todd Rosenthal⁺ Scenic Design  
Raquel Adorno⁺ Costume Design  
Heather Gilbert⁺ Lighting Design  
Mikhail Fiksel⁺ Sound Design and Original Music  
Samantha Kaufman Fight & Intimacy Choreography 
Kate DeVore Dialect & Voice Coach  
Jonathan L. Green Dramaturg 
Patrick Zakem Creative Producer 
Tom Pearl Producing Director 
JC Clementz, CSA in association with Jessica Ronane, CSA Casting  
Laura D. Glenn^* Production Stage Manager 
Kathleen Barrett^* Assistant Stage Manager 

"Fool for Love” is presented by special arrangement with Broadway Licensing, LLC, servicing the Dramatists Play Service imprint. (www.dramatists.com). 

† member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company ensemble.
* member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers.
+ member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829 of the IATSE.
‡ member of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, a national theatrical labor union.

This Theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

CAST

Cliff Chamberlain†^* Martin 
Nick Gehlfuss^* Eddie 
Tim Hopper^†* The Old Man 
Caroline Neff^†* May 

UNDERSTUDIES

Victor Holstein Martin 
Shane Kenyon^* Eddie 
Scott Westerman The Old Man 
Hilary Williams May 

ADDITIONAL STAFF

Frank Calzavara Rodeo Consultant
Faith Hart Assistant Director 
Sotirios Livaditis Associate Scenic Design
Lia Wallfish Associate Costume Design
Trey Brazeal Assistant Lighting Design 
Socorro Park Assistant to the Lighting Designer 
Stefanie Senior Associate Sound Design
Alivia Arizaga Production Assistant 
Megan Pirtle Wig Coordinator 
Kate Grube Costume Assistant 
Kyra Pan Stitcher 
Jessica Rodriguez Painter/Dyer 
Austin Pettinger Embroiderer 
Josh Derby, Billy Earnisse, Kenny Faust, Austin Olive, Johnnie Schleyer Additional Carpenters 
Nick Bartleson Additional Properties 
Marcus Klein, Niamh Sullivan, Jessica Wardell, Abby West Additional Paint 

SPECIAL THANKS

Courtney Welu
Eric Colleary
The Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin

Fool for Love will be presented in one act with no intermission.

As a courtesy to the actors and your fellow patrons, please turn off your cell phones before the performance. The taking of photographs and the use of any type of recording device are not allowed in the theater during performances and is a violation of state and federal copyright laws; digital media will be deleted, and tape or film will be confiscated.

Entry and re-entry into the theater after the performance begins is not guaranteed.

The theater reserves the right to limit admission of children younger than the age of six.