JEFFERSON PARK — Directors of the Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Lawrence Ave., announced a major pickup Wednesday with the addition of Tony Award-winning playwright David Rabe to their permanent creative team.
Rabe, who won the award for "best play" in 1972 for penning the script for "Sticks and Bones," will become the 32nd member of the theater's ensemble, cementing his commitment to a theater he's already imparted with a handful of ad-hoc projects.
After writing a vignette for the theater's 2015 production of "Ten," Rabe crafted the story of "Good for Otto," which premiered to stellar reviews at the Gift later that year.
Gift Theatre artistic director Michael Patrick Thornton called Rabe's contributions "powerfully searching, poetic, magical, haunted, and yearning," saying they've "always felt absolutely central to the emotional and ethical heart of The Gift," according to the announcement.
"He has been such an aesthetic north star for us for so long that we are humbled and vivified to call David Rabe an ensemble member of The Gift," Thornton added. "We’re excited to get to work.”
The Gift's next original play, a psychological thriller titled "Unseen," premieres Friday and runs through April 9. Tickets are available for purchase online.
