STEPMOM showed Susan Sarandon's spirit

Several times a year, STEPMOM comes back to town and when she does she's “Mother Earth, incarnate.” Although not all capitalized, the 1998 film of the same name might surprise some as a parody, but those doubts will fade away after the opening credits roll.

A packed crowd piled into The Old Ethan Allen Space of the iconic theater on Halsted Street for the last night of the seasonal STEPMOM show on December 16, 2023. Some ticket holders carried the signature Snowball Sangria from the Front Bar and several had done their homework in reviewing the classic film ahead of time.

The original script was used as a backdrop which allowed the curators involved to skip through the slow parts and include the memorable highlights as needed. The simple story started off the same way with Isabel Kelly rising to tackle her sunny workday of photography and busy life.

In the film Julia Roberts portrays Kelly and the theatrical version is subtly supplied by Alex Grelle. Chicago talent Rob Lindley became possessed by the spirit of Susan Sarandon while wearing a red wig from hell for the title character that fateful night. Jackie Harrison was a sharp-tongued ex who didn't suffer fools and had a bone to pick with the new member of the family. This added to the big screen soap opera with plenty of past baggage to unpack in the convoluted plot.

The cast conveyed an over two-hour movie by playing multiple roles like Mitchell J. Fain, who knocks Jena Malone's part of daughter Anna Harrison out of the park.

Poor son Ben Harrison was relegated to being a puppet which provided an opportunity for Lolly Extract to add marionettes into the mix.

When STEPMOM takes off the wig off and lets its hair down that's the time it truly shines. Grelle and Lindley have magnetic chemistry while simply sitting down to eat a salad together. There are laugh-out-loud moments on the video screens that would give Saturday Night Live a run for its money. The start is a bit clunky with an unnecessary major set change in the bedroom, but things smooth out quickly thanks to spot-on performances.

At the time Stepmom was released women were limited in Hollywood and in some ways still are. This particular project came with multiple rewrites, which were addressed in this production, and shockingly cancer was used as a plot device for sympathy between the characters onscreen.

The age-old catfight trope was once again cultivated through the media on various press junkets. Sarandon claimed that her public relations person created rumors of their feud and Roberts later joked having sex together would have made a more exciting story. Maybe she wasn't kidding and this story is a behind-the-scenes account of a juicy love affair for fans to see.

In the past Sarandon has confessed that her sexual identity is fluid and not gender constrained. This gives the creative team a mountain to climb and explore with limitless possibilities, so this could be just the start. The current cast is made up of majorly talented singers so why not step it up for a musical version?

For audiences who love camp combined with contrived cinematic situations, STEPMOM could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship!

Visit steppenwolf.org for the current roster of shows and stay tuned for more STEPMOM in the future!