Dispatch From Chicago

Just heard from a former L.A. journalism/music colleague who happens to be dating an up-and-coming Chicago playwright, Ellen Fairey, whose new play Graceland just opened at the Profiles Theatre. How hot is she? The Tribune's Chris Jones:

Fairey's drama is a must-see for anyone who follows important new plays from and about Chicago. This young Chicago writer, whose earlier play "Girl, 20," seduced me with similar intensity in 2006, is right on the cusp of being the next Chicago playwright to hit the big time in the fashion of Tracy Letts or Keith Huff. This latest play could well be the one. It is a touching and beautifully crafted piece of Chicago theater.

I would argue that Fairey's work here has some notable similarities to the great Chicago North Side writing tradition from "Sexual Perversity in Chicago" to "Superior Donuts." But Fairey also is a kinder, gentler writer with a lean and wholly unforced style that only emphasizes the pain, sadness and fortitude of her middle-class characters.

With Letts' Donuts and Mamet's Race hitting B'way in the fall, here's hoping NY gets a Fairey shake sooner than later.