Lee Keenan | Theatrical Lighting and Scenic Designer

‘Our Enemies’ steers clear of caricature

By Chris Jones | Theater critic
March 4, 2008

At the top of Yussef El Guindi’s new play, we’re taken to a TV studio—it looks a lot like Fox News—where an iconoclastic host is about to interview the Arab-born author of “Jihad 101.” It’s a book that panders to the prejudices of conservative hosts who view all Arab cultures as nothing more than petri dishes for terrorism.

Oh no, I thought. Most plays don’t do either cable news or conservative authors well—the temptations of caricature prove too great. And for about five minutes, it feels like we’re about to get one of those earnest, liberal, grant-friendly and (if all we’re being is honest) deadly boring plays where the American mass media is vilified (like that’s hard) and a misguided character spends two hours discovering the spiritual importance of from whence he came.

El Guindi delivers no such thing. On the contrary, this world premiere of “Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat” reveals an exceedingly smart, sophisticated and compelling exploration of Arab-American identity and the opportunities as well as the perils of assimilation. Not only does El Guindi probe the dilemma of being Arab in a culture with little understanding of the Middle East, he’s also willing to explore the demonstrable personal benefits of leaving the past behind in America. (more…)

The Building Stage presents Noir

What a joy this was to light, the whole production is in greyscale, right down to skin and hair [thanks to the actors for their laborious preshow makeup job]. It is is dark,shadowy , high contrast, sexy, its Noir. And the show is funny, it comes from a clown aesthetic and plays at the noir style. It runs Fri-Sun till Nov 4th.

Reviews:

New City Chicago

“…in terms of aesthetics, Montgomery knows what he is doing. Lee Keenan’s lighting design is crucial–the long, husky shadows; the muted glow creeping through the slats of an unseen window blind, tattooing the wall. (Keenan also designed[actually I collaborated with Blake and Megan on] the set, a soaring space defined by pivoting walls that suggests the slipperiness of truth as it reveals itself in film noir.) ” - Nina Metz (more…)

I’m really proud of this show. I designed the set and the projections on this our latest Silk Road Theatre Project: Shishir Kurup’s Merchant On Venice. The “On” is not a typo, this is a modern adaptation set on West LA’s Venice Blvd with Hindus and Muslims rather than Christian’s and Jews, its a perfect Silk Road show. Reviews have been phenomenal as you can see below. It runs through November 4th, don’t miss it.

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chicagotribune.com
THEATER REVIEW
Bold ‘Merchant’ melds Bard, Bollywood
By Chris Jones

Tribune theater critic

October 8, 2007

Shylock becomes an alienated Muslim trapped in a Southern Californian world of immigrant, movie-loving Hindus. Jessica runs away to Hollywood. To snag Portia’s hand in marriage, suitors have to pick the right DVD. And that famous pound of flesh? In Shishir Kurup’s remarkable polycultural deconstruction of William Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice,” the owner of the Money Store wants to make his extraction from a most delicate part of the male anatomy. (more…)

Chicago’s top papers give The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow (I designed the set) top marks.

At Collaboraction, ‘Jenny Chow’ a must-see
By Chris Jones

Tribune theater critic

Jennifer Shin must have been waiting for Jennifer Marcus her entire life. Or so this young Chicago actor’s blistering, careermaking performance atop a fabulous little Collaboraction show suggests.

Penned by Rolin Jones, one of those clever young writers known for language, “The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow: An Instant Message With Excitable Music” sits on the page with a post-modern haze. To the casual reader it might seem hyperkinetic or pretentious. But in production — especially this production — this hip, smart and insightful play roars to life. (more…)

 

This fall I became a company member at Silk Road Theatre Project. As Resident Scenic and Lighting Design I have a real artist home at SRTP. Our current project Golden Child has been a challengering and highly rewarding one, and its a great night at the theatre, so go see it. My set gets a good nod in the review below.

Cultures clash tragically in ‘Child’
March 13, 2007 BY MARY HOULIHAN Chicago Sun Times Staff Reporter

East meets West in David Henry Hwang’s “Golden Child,” but not in a stereotypical way. Hwang does not rely on the usual scenarios of generations of Asian-Americans battling one another over conflicting ideas. Instead, he refigures the concept, setting the play in 1918 China, where much like today, globalization is changing the way the Chinese think about themselves and the world. (more…)

 

The Dueling Critics on Chicago Public Radio’s 848 have nothing but praise for Collaboraction’ The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow:

I’m really proud of my scenic and lighting design for Caravaggio downtown at Silk Road Theatre Project. Its our second show in our beautiful new space in the Chicago Temple Building across from Daley Plaza. I’ll post a couple reviews below:

From Gay Chicago Magazine - reviewed by Venus Zarris

Silk Road Theatre Project delivers a stunning world premiere of Richard Vetere’s beautiful “Caravaggio.” This play dramatizes the turbulent life and career of the most revolutionary painter of the late 1600s-early 1700s, often credited as being the father of the Baroque. Passionate, at times violent and always unconventional, Caravaggio’s life and breathtaking work makes for the perfect subject of theatrical interpretation. (more…)

Rebecca Barrett and I got a great write-up on our co-lighting design for Dorian in TimeOut Chicago.

The reviews for Dorian are in and they’re top-notch. Don’t miss this show.
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Audio from 848’s Dualing Critics on NPR

“smashing design”, “gorgeous design” -Christopher Piatt

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Chicago Tribune
`Dorian’ a blend of dialogue, movement

By Nina Metz
Special to the Tribune
Published August 11, 2006

Were he with us today, Oscar Wilde probably would roll his eyes at the tools of modern vanity — the nips, the tucks, the Botox and spray-on tans. This fixation with youth and beauty is hardly different than the one explored (and exploited) by Wilde in his only novel, “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” first published in the late 19th Century, and currently adapted for the stage as “Dorian,” by Ben Lobpries and Tommy Rapley for Bailiwick Repertory’s 2006 Pride Festival.

This is the second recent effort from Lobpries and Rapley — House Theatre company members who collaborated earlier this year on “Ellen Under Glass,” a production that attempted (and failed) to fuse dance and theater into a single language. Their accomplishments this time around in “Dorian” are more complex and intriguing. (more…)