The End of Reality review by Karyn Ashby

If you’re sentimental for late 90’s, early aughts experimental theater/performance art, you will

love The End of Reality, written by Richard Maxwell and performed by Theater Y. Those were

my golden years. Performance groups Goat Island and Lucky Pierre were established in Chicago,

while Radiohole and Richard Maxwell were heating up in New York. It was my scene, my

people, my artistic circle. The End of Reality is not stuck the past, though. I was surprised to

learn it was first performed in 2006, post 9/11, because it’s just as relevant now as it was then.

This play marks a departure for Maxwell, based on previous works I have seen at PS 122 in New

York. I was expecting comedy, satirical songs, maybe even the same deadpan “acting non-

acting” style of performing that he and the New York City Players are known for. The play has

humor but no songs, and Theater Y’s production evokes a much darker subtext, with more

traditional acting and staging.

Theater Y is the perfect vehicle for one of the few times Maxwell’s work has been performed

outside of The New City Players. The performance scene I was a part of was predominantly,

though not entirely, young and Caucasian. Artists by nature tend to be inclusive, but diverse

activism was not on our radar at the time. Theater Y reimagines Maxwell’s themes of nostalgia

and violence through a far more contemporary lens. For starters, the audience is an integral

part of the piece as we are the ones being protected by a cast of security guards. The audience

involvement starts before even entering the theater – on the sidewalk, and continues upon

entering the space. While the audience remains more on the witnessing, not participating, side

of the fence, the fourth wall is continuously blurred.

The opening scene is a master class in building tension through imposed silence and perfect

timing. The transition to the limnal space of the play is pure brilliance. By that time, you will be

enmeshed in its fabric – time, space, and reality will blur. You may wonder where, exactly, you

are, and feel slightly nervous about what is about to happen. You would not be wrong in

thinking there is some outside, sinister force at work. It is presented to you in player 3.

There were times when I wasn’t able to track the threads in the writing, and the play became

inscrutable. Experimental theater is more staged poetry than plot and inscrutability is not

uncommon in the genre. When this happens, the audience is tasked with interpreting and

applying meaning themselves. I hyper-focused on Marvin Tate playing 3, and what his character

symbolized. I abhorred his actions, then subsequently became horrified when he was

dehumanized by the cast, going from predator to prey. He is forced into uncomfortable

positions for long periods of time, reminiscent of the durational physical work of Goat Island.

His violence was individual and societal, omnipresent and present, singular and circular. He

represents violence and our reactions to violence, our separation and complicity.

It’s a tall order for actor Marvin Tate to evoke without speaking, and he carries it out

beautifully. Each actor had distinct styles. Matt Flemings’s acting as 1 was character-driven, and

he adroitly presented a stereotypical Midwestern blue collar security guard. Willie Round’s

acting as 2 was very natural and somehow bold yet understated. Kris Tori ‘s acting as 5 was

stylized and probably closer to how the play was originally performed. Arlene Arnone as 6 was

funny, dramatic, and emotional yet entirely believable. Shawn Bunch as 4 played a compelling

“straight man.” They are an extremely talented group of performers, and I found the disparate

styles interesting to compare.

I loved how the cast and the staging utilized the entire space. The space itself is an homage to

the time period in which the play was created; it echoes the types of spaces we used for

rehearsing and performing in Chicago and New York. The lighting was gorgeous, although

sometimes when the characters were not illuminated, I wanted to see their faces. The audio

design established the otherworldly aura of the piece, with detailed touches like when the side

door opened, the “outside sound” increased in volume. The production style is top notch.

At one point, player 1 climbs an industrial scaffold ladder and looks out a “window” that has

been boarded up with metal (that is how I interpreted the vent). He says he knows he’s in the

future, but he can’t let go of the past. During the play, he speaks about yearning to be in a

movie, so that he will be remembered. He talks about his fondness for the” old neighborhood”

and bemoans the current lack of connection and community. Although it’s Kris Tori as 5 that

embodies the emotional core of the play through her narrative, I was the most emotionally

invested during 1’s moments of nostalgia. My generation, Gen X, is the last generation that

started their adult lives without a digital voice. When I moved to Brooklyn in 1999, I would walk

to the library to check my email every few days, and I would be disappointed if I didn’t get one.

Now, I count emails by the hour. Cell phones became affordable and my first one was a

Motorola flip phone. We made Facebook happen in the 2000’s. Gen X is the only generation to

bridge the gap between a society with and without social media. We can’t let go of the past

because we hold it only in our memories. We hold it in printed photographs, journals, and

letters. We have files of papers chronicling our lives before there were digital footprints. We

are the forgotten Generation in more ways than one. We experienced the end of one reality

and the beginning of a new one.

I felt like a new fan after viewing The End of Reality, a fan of the more serious work of Richard

Maxwell, and a fan of Theater Y. After the show, the company holds space for people to

comment and discuss the work (optional). As we talked, I felt like I was part of an artistic

community that has been and continues to be fostered. It made me excited about the future of

the space, the company, and experimental theater in the US.

The End of Reality by Richard Maxwell at Theater Y

Performance Schedule: May 15-June 15, 2025

Showtimes: Thursdays 7 pm, Saturdays 3 pm & 7 pm, Sundays 3 pm. 

Location: Theatre Y - 3609 W Cermak Rd, Chicago, IL 60623

Ticket Information:  

Please reserve your ticket at https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/theatre-y/the-end-of-

reality 

All performances are FREE to the public thanks to members who donate as little as $5/month

($60/year). We welcome DONATIONS and MEMBERS!

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