Mikolaj is an immigrant Polish dishwasher. Lina’s a waitress from Chicago. This is not “Frankie and Johnny” but “The Last Wide Open,” a sentimental little play with music at American Blues Theater that stars the real-life married couple of Michael Mahler and Dara Cameron.
I’ve long been a sucker for locally oriented work about working-class Chicagoans and I got a particular kick this weekend out of the number of clearly delighted Polish speakers in the house for this 85-minute piece, with a book and lyrics by Audrey Cefaly and score by Matthew M. Nielson.
When this commissioned work premiered at the Cincinnati Playhouse in 2019, this “love song in three movements” was set in an Italian eatery and Mikolaj was Roberto. But American Blues artistic director Wendy Whiteside persuaded Cefaly to significantly retool the work so that it was set in the kind of spot you still can find in the Wicker Park neighborhood. In fact, Grant Sabin and Marcus Klein’s sweet little design for the still-new American Blues venue on Lincoln Avenue struck me as similar to one such establishment I admire, located next to the Chopin Theatre: Helena Madej’s Podhalanka Polska Restauracja, justly known for its pierogis and potato pancakes.
This show, which now features a script adapted by Katarzyna Müller, imagines a relationship that persists in different circumstances. To some extent, it’s like the musical “If/Then,” although it’s a much quieter piece that cares more about its characters than metaphysical possibility.
Love is the main theme here: Mikolaj subscribes to the Stephen Sondheim imperative: “Loving you is not a choice, it’s who I am.” Lina, being a pragmatic Chicagoan who does not believe in happy endings, needs some persuasion. But one never knows.
Aside from its complex shifts, “The Last Wide Open” also is a strange hybrid when it comes to its use of music: there could (and should) be more musical numbers, given the ease with which these two yearning characters can express their feelings through songs. If it committed to actually being a musical, the material would feel more fluid and organic and better able to flow back and forwards through time, which is the way it has been structured by Cefaly. Right now, it’s stuck between two styles, and that lack of aesthetic unity impedes its appeal.
Still, while the stakes don’t always rise as high as they should, director Whiteside’s production deftly showcases two very lovable performances from this talented duo: Both are excellent singers and musicians, vulnerable actors and thoroughly charming company.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@chicagotribune.com
Review: “The Last Wide Open” (3 stars)
When: Through Aug. 18
Where: American Blues Theater, 5627 N. Lincoln Ave.
Running time: 1 hour, 25 minutes
Tickets: $39.50-49.50 at americanbluestheatre.com
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