‘The Knockout’: Brownsville native’s play premieres in Chicago

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Brownsville native, Chicago transplant, actress, writer and producer Ilse Zacharias was earning rave reviews from Windy City theater critics for her stage performances in works such as “The Madres,” “The Abuelas” and “Anna Karenina” a few years ago.

Enter COVID and suddenly the curtain came crashing down, as live theater ground to a halt. Happily, Zacharias found a way to stay busy, by writing her first full-length play, “The Knockout.” She plays all the parts including Elena, the main character, and also produces the one-woman show, which premieres June 2-3 at the world-renowned Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago.

“Theater took a halt for a couple of years there,” Zacharias said. “I needed a creative outlet and I felt like I needed to tell important stories about my culture, the Tex-Mex life, in a fun and creative way. I think we all collectively need a good laugh and lots of joy to make up for the lost time, and this show has given me that. The catalyst of this show is a bit cold, but it’s a very positive and joyful piece. It’s got a lot of heart.”

The work began taking shape after hearing news of families being separated at the border, she said.

“It was really heartbreaking, and it’s still happening,” Zacharias said. “I just wondered how these children are going to be affected. That’s how the story of Elena came to be. Elena is separated from her family during her quinceanera, thrusting her into womanhood. Fast forward a few years, she’s in college, works as a cleaning gal at a boxing gym and takes care of her little sister.

“Then one day she encounters the man who’s responsible for breaking up her family. Without giving too much away, Elena decides to stop cleaning the bags and start punching them, and eventually confronts the man. With some theater magic the show goes from present to past to dream sequences. It’s almost like a puzzle, and it’s not until the end when the audience has all the pieces together, that you truly grasp the show.”

She said it’s an amazing experience to be premiering the work at such a famous venue, and that she would love to bring the play to the Rio Grande Valley.

“I really do hope I can produce ‘The Knockout’ in Brownsville or the RGV,” Zacharias said. “I think the audience would love it there. There’s a full-on fight at the end, and I just think about the hooting and hollering that would happen. I’m talking to a lot of folks. Most theaters right now already have their seasons planned out. But hopefully something will spark and we’ll be able to bring it down there.”

Ilse Zacharias is shown in character for a play she wrote and produced, “The Knockout,” premiering at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago June 2-3. (Photo by Joel Maisonet)

She welcomed any interested parties to contact her.

“I’m looking at some festivals,” Zacharias said. “There’s a lot of Texas shows that come up to Chicago, and it’s time to bring some Chicago shows down there.”

Directing “The Knockout” in Chicago is Fawn Johnstin, who Zacharias described as a “lovely director … who has really brought up the piece.”

“It’s very percussive in its use of Spanglish, so it is bilingual,” Zacharias said. “There’s a quinceanera scene where I come out in a gigantic dress and a crown, and there’s a full boxing match at the end, and I may or may not be wearing a luchador mask.”

She also hopes to turn it into a film, she said.

“With my writing in the last few years I’ve also been working on films,” Zacharias said. “Most of the films that I’m writing are based in South Texas, so that’s what I’m going to be focusing on as soon as the show opens at Steppenwolf. I think that will be more accessible to audiences everywhere. More accessible language as well, and topics. William Shakespeare is wonderful, but Spanglish and a luchador boxing match sounds just very entertaining.”

Pulling off the fight scene as the sole cast member required a sparring partner during rehearsals and “lots of practice,” she said.

“I’m also the announcer as we’re boxing, so it’s a bit of a dance,” Zacharias said. “I have a lot of background in stage combat, so that helps, and I’ve been boxing for a few years now. I will physically be the only person on stage. Luckily I do have somebody to help me get that gigantic dress on backstage. But otherwise it will be just me and it will be a beautiful roller coaster.”

Following the premiere she plans to head back to the Valley and soak up some sun on South Padre Island, she said, adding that she has a “lot of love for the RGV.”

“I think that Chicago has really sharpened my acting skills, but the RGV, Brownsville, made me,” Zacharias said. “This is my love letter to Chicago, but I definitely feel like I’m representing the RGV over here, and it makes me incredibly proud to say that I’m from there.”