Falls is currently celebrating 20 years as artistic head of the Goodman, one of Chicago's largest and oldest nonprofit theatres. His work has been seen on Broadway in such productions as Death of a Salesman, Long Day's Journey Into Night and Shining City. Howard Witt and Steve Pickering, Chicago mainstays known in New York for their turns as Charlie and Howard in Falls' Tony-winning revival of Death of a Salesman, play the Fool and Kent, respectively. Kevin Gudahl, meanwhile, is the Duke of Albany.

Lear's three daughters are portrayed by Kim Martin-Cotten (Goneril), Kate Arrington (Regan) and Laura Odeh (Cordelia). Odeh made her Broadway debut in The Rivals directed by Mark Lamos and then played the Dana Ivey's daughter in Mrs. Warren’s Profession at Irish Repertory Theatre.

The actors portraying Gloucester and his two sons, Edmund and Edgar, are Edward Gero (Gloucester), a 24-year veteran of Washington stages and a 10-time Helen Hayes Award nominee and a four-time recipient; Jonno Roberts (Edmund), who was seen Off-Broadway in Tracy Letts' Bug; and Joaquin Torres (Edgar), who appeared in New York in Beauty of the Father at Manhattan Theatre Club.

Rounding out the cast are Chris Genebach as Cornwall, Dieterich Gray as Oswald, and ensemble members Kareem K. Bandealy, Jeffrey Baumgartner, David Blixt, Patrick Clear, Carolyn Defrin, Hans Fleischmann, José Antonio García, Brian J. Gill, Michael Goldberg, Ann James, Christopher Johnson, Elise Kauzlaric, Ronald Keaton, Kyle Lemieux, Andrew Navarro, Steve Schine and Matthew Lon Walker.

The design team for King Lear includes Walt Spangler (set design); Ana Kuzmanic (costume design); Michael Philippi (lighting design) and Richard Woodbury (sound design). Rick Sordelet is the fight choreographer.