When the Buffalo Theatre Ensemble opens “Naperville” on April 28, it will be the fourth time that the troupe has tried to get the show on its feet.
“The show was slated to run three times, but COVID precautions caused cancellations,” said Kurt Naebig, who is directing the play. “One time we actually got into the room and started rehearsing.”
Playwright Mat Smart is a native of Naperville. The play takes place entirely in a Caribou Coffee shop on 95th Street (which no longer exists) in Naperville in 2012. At the shop is Candice, who has lost her sight in an accident, and Howard, her son, who comes back from Seattle to Naperville to help her adjust.
Also at the coffee shop is Anne, struggling from the collapse of her marriage, who is in the midst of creating a podcast about the city’s founder, a shipbuilder named Joseph Naper. The coffee shop is run by T.C., who is working his first shift as a new manager. Another character, the sociable Roy, is also at the coffee shop.
“Naperville” was first slated to run in April 2020 as part of BTE’s 2019-2020 season. It was canceled due to COVID-19. The show was scheduled a second time for September and October 2020 as part of BTE’s 2020-2021 season. After that was canceled, “Naperville” was rescheduled to run in January and February 2022. COVID-19 caused another cancellation and the show was rescheduled to the current dates of April 28-May 29.
“Some people have said, ‘Oh, it’s cursed’ or some crazy stuff like that,” said Naebig about the repeated cancellations. “I just said, ‘We’re dealing with COVID.’ The last time it was canceled we had started building the sets and had to put them in storage, so we got them back out.
“Now, nearly two years later, BTE and I are more than ready to finally bring this wonderful play to our audiences,” Naebig continued. “We knew we had a good play and a good cast, so we wanted to proceed with this show.”
“Naperville” will be presented by the Buffalo Theatre Ensemble at 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and at 3 p.m. Sundays from April 28 to May 29 in the Playhouse Theatre of the McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn. “Naperville” contains adult themes and language.
“This dramedy is about second chances,” Naebig said. “These are good people, with good intentions, but everyone is a mess and they have to work through everything to find contentment and freedom. It’s a play about loss, regret and redemption,”
The delays for staging the play did not significantly affect Naebig’s approach to directing, despite having some cast members replaced.
“Each actor has their own personality and brings their own humanity to a scene,” Naebig said. “One actress left and the replacement brought a different energy, so some things were adjusted. When we had the first read-through with the new person, I saw things that she brought that the first actress had not, but then there had been things that first actress brought that the replacement didn’t.”
People do not have to live in Naperville to enjoy the play. The play is meant to connect with people from all walks of life.
“The play first ran in New York City,” Naebig said. “The playwright could have called it Downers Grove or Lisle. But playwright Mat Smart grew up in Naperville and he thought the suburbs sometimes got looked down upon and he didn’t think it should be that way.”
For Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Naebig has directed “The 39 Steps,” “Don’t Dress For Dinner,” “Trumbo: Red White and Blacklisted” and “Leading Ladies,” among others.
“I am fine with directing anything,” Naebig said, “but I think I have a specific skill at finding comedy even when there are serious aspects.
“This show is a dramedy, so there is comedy in it,” he continued. “But if it looks like you are going for the laugh, then the show doesn’t work. If you have the wrong tone, it takes away the heart.”
Naebig’s goal is to get the audience invested in the characters.
“I want to draw people in so that they care about these folks,” he said. “I have to get people to care about everyone involved in the play.”
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‘Naperville’
When: April 28-May 29
Where: McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn
Tickets: $40-$42
Information: 630-942-4000; atthemac.org
Randall G. Mielke is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.