Alumna finds playwriting success at Steppenwolf

Martyna Majok's "Ironbound" is the story of the relationship between Darja, a struggling Polish immigrant, and three very different men. The play, she says, was inspired by the work of Marxist theorist Slavoj Zizek. It's also a comedy. Despite its weighty subject matter, the last thing Majok wants is "for the audience to sit there for the next hour and a half thinking this is just drama. You have to give them permission to laugh." Majok, AB'07, is one of three playwrights featured in Steppenwolf Theatre's First Look series, which runs through Aug. The five-year-old program is aimed at developing new plays for production at Steppenwolf and other theaters nationwide. "Ironbound" emerged as Majok was preparing to marry her then-fiancé and reflecting on "who has the privilege to marry for love." Both Majok and her husband grew up poor and chose to pursue careers in the arts.