"Brooklyn Laundry" is at Northlight Theatre and 2's Got Your Ticket
CHICAGO (CBS) — One of the nation's most acclaimed writers for film and the stage is bringing his latest work to Northlight Theatre in Skokie.
With 2's Got Your Ticket, Entertainment Reporter Vince Gerasole sits down with the creator of "Moonstruck" and "Doubt," John Patrick Shanley, about his latest production, "Brooklyn Laundry."
He's a Pulitzer, Oscar, and Tony winner, yet Shanley's characters are incredibly down-to-earth and real despite those lofty credentials.
"My characters have forced their way into my life. I didn't chase them. They chased me," he said.
Shanley's latest work, "Brooklyn Laundry," explores the midlife romance of two melancholy souls.
Whether it's the eccentric Italian family in "Moonstruck" or the rigid Sister Aloysius Beauvier in "Doubt," Shanley's characters are unforgettable.
What is it about those projects that seem similar even though they're very different at first glance?
"You laugh, and you cry during the course of your life over many things. Whatever it was that I was going through, I wrote about it. Turned it into a movie or a play," Shanley said. "In my own way, I'm trying to really live and celebrate the fact that I was given this brief time on this earth and do my best with it."
When asked why his characters are so rich, Shanley said
"I think people are rich. And I'm the little bank robber who's coming and taking a small piece of what they're doing. We're surrounded by astonishing and quirky. People and ideas and actions. And I think most of the time, to protect ourselves from being overwhelmed, we try not to notice," he said.
The play was partly inspired by Shanley's corner laundry, which somehow lost his clothes.
"Brooklyn Laundry" is on stage at Northlight Theatre through May 12.