A man who murders children, abuses his wife, and usurps the throne, Shakespeare’s Richard III is the epitome of villainy—and usually shown as a limping hunchback othered because of his disability.

Babes With Blades, in collaboration with University of Illinois Chicago’s Disability Cultural Center, challenges that portrayal in a current production at the Edge Theater.

Richard’s disability has often been caricatured, and mostly interpreted by able-bodied actors. Babes With Blades centers his disability and puts it in the hands of those with lived disability experiences, including a director who is Deaf, an actor with partial blindness playing Richard III, and a Deaf actor playing Queen Elizabeth, among other women and nonbinary performers with disabilities seen and unseen.

Richard IIIThrough 10/15: Thu-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Edge Theater, 5451 N. Broadway, babeswithblades.org; open captioning all performances 9/3-10/15, sensory friendly Sun 9/11-9/17, ASL Sat 9/24, audio description and touch tour Sat 10/1, ASL/audio description/touch tour/talkback Sun 10/9, livestreaming Sat 9/10 and Fri-Sat 9/23-9/24; $20-$35

Hayley Rice, the artistic director of Babes With Blades, invited disability advocate and artist Richard Costes to direct Richard III. During casting, Costes surveyed those auditioning to ask whether they identified as disabled and wanted to request accommodations. 

Accommodations range from having a large-print script to needing to be late or take a day off because of mental health needs. Costes acknowledges that many actors are afraid to request these accommodations for fear they won’t be cast, believing that the theater company will be unwilling to pay for a longer rehearsal period. 

“We really did our best to let the actors lead the way in terms of what they needed,” Costes says. “Then we did our absolute best to make sure that we could accommodate them.”

Costes was especially firm about casting people with disabilities in the opposing roles of Richard III and Queen Elizabeth, the woman who orchestrates his downfall. 

Aszkara Gilchrist portrays Richard while Queen Elizabeth is played by Lauren Paige. Costes wanted those roles played by people with visible disabilities to explore why the characters choose different paths.

“Richard believes that, because of his disability, he has been shunned by women, by God, and by his own mother,” Gilchrist says. “This lack of love has left him feeling empty, and he feels that the only thing that will fill that emptiness is becoming king.”

Gilchrist says she used to hide her disability because she felt people would be unwilling to cast her. She wouldn’t bring her cane to auditions for fear directors and producers would see her blindness as a liability.

“Only recently have I felt empowered enough to own my disability, and I began bringing my cane to auditions,” Gilchrist says. “Once I embraced who I am, a world of opportunities opened to me.”

Costes acknowledges that Shakespeare used Richard’s disability in an ableist manner, as a mark of evil. 

“I cannot deny that the core of this play is Richard’s disability,” Costes says. “And there is no way to get around that Richard is a villain. I do not want to shy away from the ableism in the script in terms of the other characters using Richard’s disability as an insult.”

“Shakespeare endeavored to paint Richard as a monster,” Gilchrist says. “He used disability as a tool to dehumanize Richard, depicting him with an exaggerated hunchback and giving the other characters in the play intensely ableist dialogue—for example, many compare him to creatures, such as a hedgehog and a ‘bunch-backed toad.’”

Gilchrist’s interpretation is that Richard is a person who just happens to be partially blind the way that she is a person who happens to be partially blind.

“His disability has contributed to hardships in his life, and it has definitely made him self loathing,” Gilchrist says. “There’s even some jealousy towards the able-bodied people around him. However, these are just things that make him a complete, complex person. By bringing my own disability and life experiences to Richard, our production makes him feel like a real person, rather than a caricature.”

Gilchrist describes the collaboration with other disabled actors as incredible. She praises Costes for understanding her both as an actor and a person living with a disability.

“I resonated with his vision for Richard III from the beginning,” Gilchrist says. “We aren’t shying away from or excusing the atrocities he commits; in fact, we are highlighting them. It’s important for audiences to see a disabled, cisgender woman of color committing despicable acts onstage. It may be uncomfortable, but this is a chance for people to recognize their biases.”

Costes says they wanted to make sure that Richard’s disability was not the cause of his evil choices but rather one of many contributing factors. He adds that he and Gilchrist explored the internalized ableism and self-loathing that many people with disabilities experience.

“That’s natural in terms of having to exist in a world that is not built for you,” Costes says. “There is anger and frustrations that you go through on a daily basis that just builds and builds and builds and builds. That was our key to understanding Richard’s character.”

It also contributed to casting another character with disabilities who does not do all the monstrous things that Richard does. 

“We are able to say that Richard had a choice,” Costes says. “He did not have to commit all these atrocities. Elizabeth shows us a different way.”

“I think it’s so interesting that the two masterminds of the play are both disabled,” Gilchrist says. “The audience will see how Richard and Elizabeth are similar in terms of their struggle with disability, yet they react very differently to the world and the people around them.”

Like other Babes With Blades productions, this show celebrates combat, not shying away from choreographing complex stage fights. Maureen Yasko provides fight and intimacy direction (with Jillian Leff assisting), creating fight choreography that Gilchrist calls both safe and visually striking.

“The stage combat in this production is unbelievable,” Gilchrist says. “It’s both a testament to the hard work and talent of the cast and Maureen’s incredible choreography. She isn’t afraid to lean into the darkness of the violence. I think people may be a little shocked at how intense some of the violence is, but it is so necessary to the story.”

The combat, Gilchrist says, emphasizes Richard’s cruelty and how horrific his actions are. 

“The choreography is complex and exciting, and I know the audience will be wowed,” Gilchrist says. 

Babes With Blades has endeavored to make the show accessible to all audiences. Every performance will have open captioning, and there will be sensory friendly performances on September 11 and 17; an ASL-interpreted show on September 24; an audio description and touch tour on October 1; livestreaming on September 10, 23, and 25; and a combined ASL interpretation, audio description, touch tour, and talkback on October 9. 

The accommodations strive to ensure that no one in the audience feels othered the way that the eponymous villain of Shakespeare’s tragedy was.

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After the NFL’s initial roster cuts on Tuesday, teams went deep into the waiver wire in order to find additional talent. The Chicago Bears ended up claiming the most players by any team, with six new additions on Wednesday.

One of those additions was a 2021 breakout player in defensive lineman Armon Watts, who was cut by the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings opted to trade for Ross Blacklock instead, making him a starter in place of Watts.

In order to make room for Watts, the Bears parted ways with former seventh-round pick Khyiris Tonga, who was a fan favorite and looked like he could become an integral part of this defense in the future.

But, Tonga and Watts are very different players. Bringing in Watts was a smart move, as he fits this defense much better than Tonga did.

Armon Watts will fit the Chicago Bears defense well, and sends a message about what this team wants to accomplish.

While Tonga was a strong run-stuffer on the interior, that’s not the direction the Bears wanted to go with their front. Matt Eberflus and Alan Williams’ 4-3 scheme wants to get after the quarterback with their front four, and Watts is a much better interior pass rusher than Tonga.

In fact, Watts finished with a top-25 interior pass rush grade last year via Pro Football Focus. Still, the Vikings parted ways with the 26-year-old and the Bears were able to take advantage.

Last year, Watts broke out with 5.0 sacks in nine starts. He also came up with 10 quarterback hits, three tackles for loss and two forced fumbles while playing 56 percent of defensive snaps in Minnesota.

Looking at the Bears’ defensive line, they have a lot of guys who are better pass rushers than anything else. Justin Jones, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Robert Quinn, Angelo Blackson, Trevis Gipson, Dominique Robinson — all of these are guys who can get after the quarterback on any given down.

Watts simply adds another talented lineman to this group.

Much has been made about the Bears’ offensive woes and their lack of talent surrounding Justin Fields. However, the defense could be much better than some may think — and it all starts up front.

With two rookie defensive backs in their starting secondary, the Bears will need a formidable front four to help those guys out. It is very clear that this is the goal by Poles and Eberflus, to have a deep defensive line that can get after the quarterback and force ill-timed mistakes which the secondary can take advantage of.

Somehow, Watts was a victim of cutdown day. And somehow, the Bears were able to add him. Now, he’ll only add to the strength that is this defensive line.

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Wednesday, the Chicago Bears continued putting the final touches on their 53-man roster. On Tuesday, the NFL saw each team reach their initial limit while making dozens of cuts.

The Bears ended up putting in claims on several players, claiming a total of six altogether — an NFL-high.

One of those players claimed was 2021 first-round pick Alex Leatherwood, formerly of the Las Vegas Raiders and coming to the NFL by way of the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Leatherwood was labeled a bust by many after just one season, but not everybody knew the entire story. The Raiders were, of course, a mess in 2021. Leatherwood was placed in a position where it would be difficult for him to succeed, and if the Bears are smart, they’ll go the correct route.

By claiming Alex Leatherwood, the Chicago Bears are taking a worthy risk with plenty of upside.

In 2018 is where you could start to see the potential for Leatherwood to be an NFL caliber offensive lineman, when he lined up at right guard for 15 games at Bama. After that year, Leatherwood was voted Second Team All SEC before moving to left tackle going forward.

Even after moving to tackle, Leatherwood’s notoriety grew further as he earned First Team All SEC at that position. Still, draft experts believed his traits best suited him for the guard position. Although he earned high honors at left tackle his junior year, the tape showed room for improvement in pass blocking.

Looking at his collegiate tape, Leatherwood’s biggest issues came on the outside at tackle where he didn’t have strong enough hands to handle the elite edge rushers. He also struggled to get out quickly in space, laterally. His traits certainly suited him best on the interior, and ideally in a zone run scheme — which is what the Bears run.

In addition, Leatherwood was actually not bad when it came to inside pass rushers. He operated much better “in a phone booth,” which sounds a lot like what we’ve been seeing with Teven Jenkins as of late.

Everything said about Leatherwood in his pre-draft analysis screams guard, yet Tom Cable opted to play him at tackle in Las Vegas. It should be noted that Cable has had mixed results in the NFL as an offensive line coach, not always being able to find success. Moving Leatherwood to tackle, in the NFL, seemed like a blatant mistake at the time — and here we are, now. It was absolutely a mistake.

Cable has since been fired, and has not yet found another job.

Enter Ryan Poles, an ex-offensive linemen and now in charge in Chicago. Poles has been extremely decisive with his roster choices thus far, making this “his” team. He’s also allowed Matt Eberflus to play his guys at different spots, simply trying to find the best players at each one.

Leatherwood is still a project, at this point, but with his traits coming out of Alabama, he’s a worthy addition to this Bears team. He’ll likely be a guard on this roster, and he’ll be able to provide good depth in his first season with the team. Beyond 2022, Leatherwood could have an opportunity to start if he’s able to develop.

On the flip side, should Leatherwood not end up panning out, then the Bears aren’t out a whole lot. Taking a flier on the remaining $5.9 million of his contract looks very small by comparison. If he doesn’t stick around long-term, the Bears aren’t out major cash.

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Why did it take six years for this album to be released? It didn’t take long to make: electric guitarist Jeff Parker, double bassist Eric Revis, and drummer Nasheet Waits spent just one day recording Eastside Romp in a Pasadena studio in late May 2016, and it’s been mixed since 2018. The music certainly hasn’t languished because of an issue with its quality—the session was basically a summit between the formerly Chicago-based string bender and the rhythm section from celebrated jazz ensemble Tarbaby, and all three players shine. The album wastes no time shifting into high gear. After stating the jubilant theme of Marion Brown’s “Similar Limits,” the musicians launch into a propulsive three-way slalom, then converge with a clash like an explosion in a Slinky factory—only to seamlessly snap into a restatement of the theme. For the rest of Eastside Romp, the trio play a variety of instrumentals composed by each member. Parker’s “Wait” is an importuning ballad whose melody practically demands to be delivered with one knee on the ground and one hand over the heart—except that it’d be tough for the guitarist to hold that pose, given that it sounds like he needs four limbs to play the shimmering, effects-laden solo that clinches his plea for pause. Revis’s ironically titled “Drunkard’s Lullaby” draws a zigzagging path that even a stone-cold-sober gymnast might have a hard time walking without stumbling; the trio negotiate it handily, with a thrilling combination of rhythmic precision and electronic distortion. And Waits’s “A Room for VG” uses sparse notes and reluctantly deployed drumbeats to mold silence into exquisite shapes. Maybe one day we’ll find out why this music spent so long under wraps, but even without that answer it’s profoundly satisfying to hear Parker, Revis, and Waits reconcile accessibility and abstraction.

Jeff Parker, Eric Revis, and Nasheet Waits’s Eastside Romp is available through Rogueart’s website.

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Why did it take six years for this album to be released? It didn’t take long to make: electric guitarist Jeff Parker, double bassist Eric Revis, and drummer Nasheet Waits spent just one day recording Eastside Romp in a Pasadena studio in late May 2016, and it’s been mixed since 2018. The music certainly hasn’t languished because of an issue with its quality—the session was basically a summit between the formerly Chicago-based string bender and the rhythm section from celebrated jazz ensemble Tarbaby, and all three players shine. The album wastes no time shifting into high gear. After stating the jubilant theme of Marion Brown’s “Similar Limits,” the musicians launch into a propulsive three-way slalom, then converge with a clash like an explosion in a Slinky factory—only to seamlessly snap into a restatement of the theme. For the rest of Eastside Romp, the trio play a variety of instrumentals composed by each member. Parker’s “Wait” is an importuning ballad whose melody practically demands to be delivered with one knee on the ground and one hand over the heart—except that it’d be tough for the guitarist to hold that pose, given that it sounds like he needs four limbs to play the shimmering, effects-laden solo that clinches his plea for pause. Revis’s ironically titled “Drunkard’s Lullaby” draws a zigzagging path that even a stone-cold-sober gymnast might have a hard time walking without stumbling; the trio negotiate it handily, with a thrilling combination of rhythmic precision and electronic distortion. And Waits’s “A Room for VG” uses sparse notes and reluctantly deployed drumbeats to mold silence into exquisite shapes. Maybe one day we’ll find out why this music spent so long under wraps, but even without that answer it’s profoundly satisfying to hear Parker, Revis, and Waits reconcile accessibility and abstraction.

Jeff Parker, Eric Revis, and Nasheet Waits’s Eastside Romp is available through Rogueart’s website.

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