*** As part of its 38th season, Curious Theatre Branch has revived Talking About Godard, written and directed by Beau O’Reilly, nearly thirty years after its original production. Despite the company’s long and respected history in Chicago theatre, this was only my second experience with Curious Theatre Branch. The first was Chris Bower’s The Ship and the Sea, which was also staged at the Facility Theatre in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood.What struck me then, and again now, is the versatility of the Facility Theatre. As a true black-box space, it constantly transforms itself to fit the needs of each production. When I saw The Ship and the Sea, I was impressed by the size of the stage and how close the audience sat to the action. For Talking About Godard, the theatre has become an intimate living room occupied by roughly 35 members of audience. Every expression, every movement, every prop is visible. You are so close you could practically count every cigarette in the ashtray. That is the beauty of black-box theatre, nothing separates the audience from the performers.Before the show began, I unknowingly walked right past playwright Beau O’Reilly himself. With his long white hair, he looked like he had stepped directly out of the counterculture movement of the 1960s. It was hard to imagine that this unassuming man has written more than 80 plays and has had work produced at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago and the Rhinoceros Theater Festival for more than three decades. After seeing Talking About Godard, it is easy to understand why his work continues to endure.
The play revolves around three unusual women whose lives are defined by obsession, longing, and self-created delusions.
The dominant personality is Helen, played with remarkable strength and authority by Jenny Magnus. Helen is a chain-smoking bisexual who seems willing to sleep with anyone she meets. Fierce, intimidating, and intellectually sharp, she commands every scene she enters. Magnus delivers a powerhouse performance, making Helen both captivating and terrifying at the same time.
Her roommate Chrissy, played by Kristin Garrison, serves as Helen’s emotional opposite. Chrissy is needy, vulnerable, and hopelessly in love with Helen despite a brief relationship that ended two years earlier. Helen has repeatedly made it clear she does not share those feelings, but Chrissy refuses to let go. Her peculiar side business of stealing luggage from O’Hare Airport and selling off the contents only adds to her eccentricity. Garrison skillfully balances comedy and heartbreak, creating a character who is both amusing and deeply sad.
Then there is Leon, played by Jayita Bhattacharya. Leon remains something of an enigma throughout the evening. Is Leon a drug dealer? A pimp? Simply a French man hopelessly in love with Chrissy? The ambiguity becomes part of the charm, and Bhattacharya embraces the mystery with confidence and humor.
Rounding out the group is Mary Barnes, played by Vicky Walden. And as the play constantly reminds us, never call her simply Mary—it is always Mary Barnes. A perpetual student working on a thesis film about legendary French New Wave filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard, she is consumed by her obsession. She watches Godard’s films repeatedly and dreams of creating her own masterpiece on Super 8 film. Walden gives the character warmth, sincerity, and just enough eccentricity to make her memorable.
When these long-time friends gather for dinner, their obsessions and fantasies begin colliding in spectacular fashion. Over ninety minutes, audiences are treated to a parade of emotional dependency, artistic fixation, failed relationships, and comic absurdity. O’Reilly’s dialogue remains sharp and intelligent, finding humor not in punchlines but in the strange ways these characters navigate their lives.
What makes Talking About Godard especially compelling is that O’Reilly never judges his characters. Their delusions may be ridiculous, but they are also profoundly human. Beneath the comedy lies an exploration of friendship, loneliness, aging, and the stories people tell themselves in order to survive.
The technical elements deserve special recognition. The fight choreography by Michael Saubert and Kate Booth was so convincing that I genuinely thought the actors were striking each other. At times, I expected to see bruises forming on their faces. Much of that realism was enhanced by Jeffrey Bivens’ sound design, which gave each confrontation additional impact.
The set was equally impressive. More than twenty-five suitcases are stacked throughout the apartment, reinforcing Chrissy’s unusual occupation while creating a sense of cluttered chaos. Combined with a small living room, dining area, and television space, the set feels lived-in and authentic. Credit is due to Julia Williams, Graciela Gonzalez, Paul Leisen, and Stefan Brun, whose work helped bring this eccentric world to life.
Thirty years after its debut, Talking About Godard still feels fresh, quirky, and surprisingly relevant. It is a reminder of why Chicago’s storefront theatre scene remains one of the city’s greatest artistic treasures. Curious Theatre Branch continues to champion unconventional storytelling, and this revival proves that O’Reilly’s writing has lost none of its wit, intelligence, or humanity.
“Talking About Godard” runs through June 28 at the Facility Theatre, 1138 N. California Avenue in Chicago.
Performances are :
Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m.
Sundays at 3 p.m.
The production runs for approximately 90 minutes with no intermission.
More info- visit www.curioustheatrebranch.com
or info@curioustheatrebranch.com
Tickets are offered on a pay-what-you-can basis, with a suggested donation of $25.
For audiences who appreciate eccentric characters, intimate theatre, and thoughtful comedy, this revival is well worth seeing.
To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Talking About Goddard”.
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