Director Robert Falls returns to Chicago’s Goodman Theatre for hit romantic comedy ‘Holiday’

CHICAGO (WLS) — Robert Falls started out in the Chicago theater scene as a roller-skating panda! Now, he’s a world-acclaimed director, with a career that’s flourished, mostly at the Goodman Theatre. That’s where he just launched “Holiday,” a rousing play that’s the hit of the season. The Tony winner is still telling captivating tales and crafting majestic moments on stage. ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch “When I was sent this play, I just sort of fell in love with it, and went, this is something I haven’t really done, I haven’t really done a sort of a romantic comedy,” Falls said. “For a comedy, it goes in some complicated places about human relationships and family. I thought, this will be really fun, and that’s exactly what it turned out to be. If I’m excited by the play I can tell because it starts forming visually in my mind, I start to see what a set might look like, I start to see what the world might be, I start making notes, I start writing notes to myself, I start researching,” Falls continued. “There’s always someone down the line and it could be the tiniest role, you just fall in love with for whatever reason and so I’ve always felt that. To some extent you are in love with them because you begin to understand them, and you understand the human behavior and the complexity of it.” The director explained that he has tremendous empathy for the acting process and a love of actors themselves. “I find what they do absolutely heroic, that they get on stage and they’re willing to expose themselves, they’re willing to be present,” Falls said. “It’s almost as though one has to be a psychologist in a sense of what that actor needs most. The actors who have to go out there every night and be vulnerable in front of an audience.” Now, he’s back on his longtime stage in Chicago. “The Goodman Theatre was the opportunity of a lifetime,” Falls said. “I would not have known I’d be there 35 years. The time went extraordinarily quickly, and during that time I was fortunate enough to work with such incredible people and make work that resonated with a lot of people. Chicago has had fantastic audiences, it’s where I’ve grown up, really, and it’s home. “You make the play, it opens and then you go away, it’s like raising a kid and at a certain point you’ve got to let go,” Falls continued. “What I remember best is often sitting around the table talking about the play with the actors and discovering it. Or the excitement of being on our feet for the first time, hearing the play run from A to Z, and having the pleasure of seeing the work everybody has done come together. Holiday” is now extended at the Goodman until March 8, by popular demand.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/acclaimed-drector-robert-falls-returns-chicagos-goodman-theatre-hit-romantic-comedy-holiday-based-1938-movie/18622256/