Displaying items by tag: Northlight Theatre

I am delighted that Northlight Theatre chose to produce The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk, penned by Daniel Jamieson and expertly staged and directed by Elizabeth Margolius, especially given the alarming rise of antisemitism currently sweeping the country.

The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk is a play that tells the love story of the famous Jewish artist Marc Chagall born Moishe Shagal and his wife, writer Bella Rosenfeld. Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century Vitebsk, the narrative explores their relationship as they navigate significant historical events such as the Pogroms, the Russian Revolution, and the rise of fascism in Europe. Marc Chagall, a renowned painter born in the small town of Vitebsk, where he met his wife Bella, lived to the age of 97. Such a ripe old age, despite the harrowing events depicted in the play, where he and Bella flee the brutal pogroms in Russia and the Nazi atrocities in Europe, Chagall’s resilience and longevity stand out. The play masterfully intertwines dance and music along with gripping dialogue to narrate the couple’s journey through some of the most turbulent periods of the 20th century, leading up to the Nazi occupation of France while focusing on the couple’s strong relationship and strength. 

Jack Cahill-Lemme portrays Chagall with a focused optimism and an unwavering devotion to his Jewish bride, Bella, capturing the essence of love at first sight from their very first encounter. As Cahill-Lemme follows and admires Bella moving across the stage, his unwavering pursuit of her love is evident. His character’s elegant movements, captivating smile and dreamy expression reveal that his attention is entirely devoted to her. Cahill-Lemme’s longing  gaze envelops Bella, reflecting his profound love, devotion, and undeniable attraction. Interestingly, during their first encounter, he asked her to pose nude for him, a common practice among painters of that era. Jack Cahill-Lemme is a rising star who was most recently seen on Broadway in the National Tour of Moulin Rouge alongside Boy George and has taken on roles at Marriott Theatre and Paramount Theatre among many other Chicagoland theaters. Rosenthal has also made her mark in the theater world, appearing at Drury Lane Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre and Writers Theatre.

Emma Rosenthal portrays Bella, the love of Chagall’s life with a tremendous amount of energy and childlike wonder. Her character is a fiery, headstrong, and intelligent woman deeply in love and devoted wholly and joyously to her passionate and genius husband, and their child. Rosenthal’s performance radiates with the spirited energy of a Jewish woman who has found both her true love and her destiny as his inspiration, especially evident in their numerous dance numbers and songs together. 

It was fascinating to see that instead of using the stained glass painting of the flying lovers as a backdrop, the simple yet modern set allowed each dance number between the two lovers to evoke the painting’s uplifting joy and the lifelong physical attraction that inspired the most famous painting by Chagall of all time.

The live music for the show, performed by musical director Michael Mahler and Alyssa Carlson, featured a mix of new and old instruments, including the piano. Their performances added depth to the many wonderful song and dance numbers, which were delivered in various languages, including Yiddish, Russian, French, and English, creating a powerful emotional impact.

Marc Chagall was ahead of his time in many ways and faced rejection in his Russian homeland despite his worldwide acclaim as a pioneer of the art movement now known as Impressionism.

Under the guidance of Artistic Director BJ Jones, The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk captivates audiences with its compelling narrative that holds their attention from start to finish. The production is brought to life with its talented cast along with music by Ian Ross, stage and movement direction by Elizabeth Margolius, and musical direction by Michael Mahler.

I highly recommend this beautiful, moving, and joyful 80-minute one-act production for audiences of all ages. It offers a wonderful opportunity to learn about Jewish history and the arts in a setting that celebrates the relationship between artist and muse.

The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk is being performed at Northlight Theatre in Skokie through October 6th. For tickets and/or more show information, click HERE. 

When life’s chaos is full of impossible choices, how are we possibly meant to move forward?

Brooklyn Laundry is about a lot of things. There’s love. There’s heartbreak. There’s family, and there’s grief. However, at its center, you might find that the play boils down to the central question above. Playwright John Patrick Shanley may not offer the answer, but he certainly invites a conversation.

Brooklyn Laundry follows Fran (Cassidy Slaughter-Mason) - a young woman who meets business owner Owen (Mark Montgomery) upon dropping off her laundry at his dry cleaners. By chance they meet, and Owen ask her out for dinner. Fran is touched, and ultimately says yes. However, life is rarely as it seems, and Fran is navigating far more than a recent breakup. With one sister, Trish (Marika Mashburn), suffering from cancer and her other sister, Susie (Sandra Delgado), battling her own health challenges, Fran finds herself drowning in the middle – unsure of how to proceed.

Directed by Northlight Artistic Director BJ Jones, the production features a stellar ensemble as a whole. Mashburn and Delgado may only have one scene each, but the emotional depth they bring into these moments is enough to make them stand out. Delgado in particular gives a heartbreaking performance as Susie and certainly does not hold back. The character’s high-strung tendencies are likely to feel relatable to the older siblings in the audience, as well as the devastating blow when we see her pushed too far, and the true feelings beneath simply have to bubble over.  

Slaughter-Mason and Montgomery fill the blooming relationship at the center of the story with charm and if you’re anything like this writer, you may find yourself leaning in – hoping they succeed.

Fran and Owen’s first date is full of that awkward energy that so many audience members will recognize. From the moment that Fran walks into the restaurant, it’s clear that nothing will quite go as expected. At the surprising realization that she is completely high, Owen offers to take some of the drugs alongside her to even the playing field. As the effects settle in, the two embark on a conversation around intimacy that completely changes the tone around the evening.

The stage is empty except for the couple, allowing us as an audience to fully absorb the moment. Slaughter-Mason and Montgomery fill this scene with empathy and relatability. Laughter and gasps from the Opening Night audience filled the theater at the beginning of the date; however, as the scene moved along, pure silence took over. The shift in mood made it clear that this writer was not alone in her feeling that Slaughter-Mason and Montgomery certainly knew how to win over the crowd.

Shanley’s script is fast-paced and strong. Fran’s journey as a whole is far from easy, and Shanley smartly includes a mix of fun, light-hearted romantic scenes to break up the larger, heavier trajectory of the character’s arc. If anything, you might find that the script is too short. This 80-minute play is packed from beginning to end, and I personally found myself surprised when the lights came down at the end.

Stand-out performances and a gut-wrenching (yet at times comedic) story make Brooklyn Laundry an emotional roller coaster from start to finish. Modern-day romances rarely follow the path of a romantic comedy, and Shanley offers a window into the nuances that can hopefully lead to something stronger on the other side.

RECOMMENDED

Brooklyn Laundry runs through May 12, 2024 at Northlight Theatre - 9501 Skokie Boulevard.

There’s no mystery to “whodunit” in Northlight Theatre’s current production of “Dial M for Murder.” The audience watches a murder planned, while also being privy to the motivations of all the major characters. But there is plenty of suspense and intrigue as we watch Inspector Hubbard (Nick Sandys is spectacular) determine what happened. The suspense rests on whether his detective skills and penetrating questions will unravel the events the audience has witnessed, allowing the perpetrator to be caught.

Among perennial stage favorites, “Dial M for Murder” has seen multiple live and film versions - perhaps most notably Alfred Hitchcock’s noirish 1954 version - and always keeps audiences enthralled. It originated as a 1952 BBC teleplay. The Northlight Theatre production represents a well-written update, from a 2022 adaptation by Jeffrey Hatcher (endorsed by the estate of the original author, Frederick Knott).

Set in Britain, the story centers around wealthy heiress Margot (Lucy Carapetyan) and her fortune-hunting husband Tony (Ryan Hallahan is excellent) who freely admits to his grifter confidant Lesgate (Felipe Carrasco is suitably sleazy) that he married not for love, but money. Tony lives the highlife courtesy of his wife Margot, far beyond his means as a lowly book editor.

Enter Maxine (Elizabeth Laidlaw in a perfect performance), a murder mystery author, and Tony’s client at the publishing house. We soon learn something more about her relationship with Margot, the condition around which the plot turns.

Directed by Georgette Verdin, who maintains precise timing so necessary for the action, “Dial M for Murder receives the high production values that Northlight Theatre reliably delivers. The mid-century modern furnishings (Mara Zinky for set design) are exquisite, as are the couturier gowns (Raquel Adorno for costume design) in which women of Margot’s station dress for cocktails before dinner.

There were just a couple rough edges in the production. Overall, the adopted English accents weren’t finely honed, and our Midwest nasal overtones came through in most characters. This was all the more evident when the redeeming exception of Sandys’s Detective Hubbard, on whose role the play’s power rests. His British English was flawless (Sandys was born in Coventry, England), and his trained voice seemed to fill the theater space effortlessly. Sandys also seemed to be wearing his natural hair, which fit the part; the other hairstyles looked like they had a little too much help from the make-up department, and were distracting.

Those minor quibbles aside, this is an excellent staging of an intriguing and suspenseful murder saga, and “Dial M for Murder” is certain to leave you satisfied. Its run has already been extended through January 7 at Northlight Theatre in Skokie.

I must admit, I knew nothing about Marie Knight or Rosetta Tharpe. It went over my head when they made an appearance in the critically acclaimed movie “Elvis”. Baz Luhrmann’s inclusion of Rosetta Tharpe and Marie Knight during the Club Handy scene with the likes of Elvis, BB King and Little Richard spoke volumes of her place in music history. Not only was Rosetta Tharpe a major influence on Elvis Presley, Jimmy Hendrix and Johnny Cash but the gospel guitarist practically discovered Little Richard, bringing him on stage for his first performance. “Marie and Rosetta” documents their lives together with a rousing, heartfelt production at Northlight Theatre.

It is 1946, Rosetta Tharpe is an explosive gospel singer and R&B performer,. After hearing Marie Knight sing, she tries to get the ingénue to create an act with her. “Sister” Rosetta needs Marie’s holier than thou credentials to “get back in the church folks’ good graces”. Her brand of gospel is infused with R&B and electric guitar riffs. She is a popular nightclub act and just as righteous as Mahalia Jackson, she just likes R&B. Marie Knight, on the other hand, is a traditional gospel singer with a powerful angelic voice. She is in awe of the older, popular Tharpe, but is unsure of the worldly music Tharpe calls gospel. This is their first rehearsal on the day of their first performance so naturally things must be sorted out before a duet can be made.

Playwright George Brant has done his research for this play with music, yet he hasn’t created a jukebox musical. There is a clear story being told here and the music is a bonus. Although, the play is heavy on exposition, it tells the beautiful relationship between these women and their influence on the music world. It is thought Marie and Rosetta’s relationship extended beyond the stage. Brant doesn’t straightwash this story. He has handled their relationship with the utmost respect. Brant does an interesting writing trick. It would be unfair to reveal it, but it has been on my mind since I saw the show. Brant has used spiritual songs like “This Train” and “Didn’t Rain”, as well as worldly songs like “I Want A Tall Skinny Papa” and “4 - 5 Times” to keep things hot.

E. Faye Butler is making a name for herself as a director. She is fresh off “Five Guys Named Mo”, a co-direction assignment with Felicia Fields at The Beverley Arts Center. It was excellent. Here, Butler is challenged with giving these characters emotional depth equal to their amazing voices. Challenge met. Butler has raised the stakes between these two women without losing the love and respect they had for each other. Their movements were instinctual, their emotions palpable.

This play is heavily dependent on excellent actresses. Not only must they sing well but they must be able to portray characters long gone from the collective psyche. Making these characters real was no easy task. Alexis J. Roston and Bethany Thomas by themselves knock your socks off, together they are a force of nature. They both engage us with their very different singing styles. Roston blesses the heavens with her symphonically precise tones. Thomas is like a hurricane, belting out the blues in all it’s various hues. They are accompanied offstage by Morgan E. Stevenson on piano and Larry Brown on guitar.

John Culbert’s scenic design coupled with the lighting design by Jared Gooding will be the subject of conversation for a while. McKinley Johnson’s costume design played a significant role. It’s always wonderful when set, lights and costumes enhance the characters presence and add depth to the overall production. Florence Walker-Harris is a joy, and her assistant director credit makes a wonderful show even more wonderful.

This play is highly recommended. Thank you Northlight Theatre for remembering these forgotten icons. You will leave the theatre joyful, filled with the knowledge of a rock and roll icons making a joyful noise to the Lord.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

When: Through August 6, 2023

Where: Northlight Theatre, 9501 Skokie Blvd.

Running time: 90 minutes

Tickets: $30. - $89 Student tickets $15.

Contact: northlight.org.

*Extended through August 13th

On a rather ordinary winter day, I settled in to binge-watch Big Little Lies on HBO. In the show, the community of upper-class suburbia signs a petition to ban a musical from performing in the local theater. The play was against the community values, they argued, handling issues of racism, porn, and most dreadfully sex. The bit of the whole thing was that the play had puppets and those puppets simulated sex (gasp!). Watching the outrage of the characters in the show and the eye-rolling of the show’s protagonist of her narrow minded community members, I promised myself if the show ever came to Chicago I would be front row center. Luckily this fool’s spring, that show has officially come to Chicagoland; that show was Avenue Q.

Avenue Q can best be summed up as a satirical parody of PBS’s Sesame Street. The musical comedy features puppets and human actors with upbeat, clever, and catchy music and lyrics exploring adult themes. It won Best Musical, Book, and Score at the 2004 Tony Awards.

We arrive on Avenue Q with Princeton, a bright-eyed recent puppet college grad questioning the very thing I did after graduation with the song “What Do You Do with a B.A. in English?”. Princeton, like most of us, wonders what happens now in his life, how can he afford rent? What will he do for a living? What is his purpose? Princeton and his neighbors, both puppets and humans, are all young adults facing problems after school ends and the real world begins. They navigate and explore these issues often through song, problems dealing with money troubles, job issues, sex ("You Can Be as Loud as the Hell You Want (When You're Makin' Love)", homosexuality ("If You Were Gay"), unrequited love, racism ("Everyone's a Little Bit Racist"), and wondering when and how you can chase your dreams. There are incredibly relatable numbers that explore why we’re here and what the hell we’re supposed to be doing (“Purpose”), and longing for a more simplistic life (“I Wish I Could Go Back to College”). The musical also boasted profanity, fucking puppets, and I feared I would be asked to leave the theater when I couldn’t stop laughing when the puppet Kate-Monster and her puppet neighbor Trekkie Monster sing about the beauty and awe that is the internet “The Internet Is for Porn.” The Northlight production added some hilarious digital elements to the play during stage prep and scene changes, such as funny NYC facts and signs (free wi-fi ON don’t use for porn/free wi-fi OFF they used it for porn) and play-on-word counting videos like Sesame Street (5-4-3-2-1, 1 Night Stand) to prep for a sex scene in the musical.

Avenue Q is a simultaneously well-known and obscure musical. Many audience members had seen the show while I had only heard of it in recent pop culture. It came out the same year I graduated high school and has aged incredibly well. What once might have seemed outrageous to audiences and critics at the time are rather tame by today’s standards. Some older and more current reviews point not to the content but to the mocking or disparaging parody of the groundbreaking show Sesame Street. To me, Avenue Q is merely the grown-up version of Sesame Street or the big brother who returned home jaded from college and moved in next door because they can’t afford rent. It’s the show that Sesame Street could have become if acquired by HBO from PBS. Said another way, Avenue Q is the Cards Against Humanity to Sesame Street’s Apples to Apples. The show’s humor grounds itself in the realness of stepping out as an adult in the world and it is why it is still relevant and relatable today. I can see it quickly becoming a cult classic amongst younger generations who embrace parody, satire, and humor in an otherwise brutal world.

Avenue Q plays at the Northlight Theater (9501 Skokie Blvd) in Skokie. Northlight Theater continues to deliver incredible productions, and its 2023 lineup is filled with incredible shows. The theater is easily accessible for Chicagoans and suburbanites with a sense of humor. Tickets are available at Northlightcenter.org.

Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley now playing at the Northlight Theatre in Skokie offers the third and final installment of Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon’s trilogy which follows some of the most cherished characters from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. 

For those who enjoy the Jane Austen themed material but have not seen the first two installments, have no fear, this play stands just fine on its own and is a lighthearted delight from beginning to end.

Janyce Caraballo takes on the role of Georgiana Darcy, the younger sister of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, who is a feminist musician before her time. Janyce Caraballo is a beautiful ingenue who plays the role with charm and grace. Kitty Bennet (played by Samantha Newcomb), the younger sister of Mr. Darcy’s wife Elizabeth, is her best friend and supporter. Mr. Henry Gray, played by Erik Hellman, makes a nervous but inwardly passionate admirer - and the chemistry between Caraballo and Hellman is the romantic cement that holds the whole show together as the audience is really rooting for them to succeed as a couple. 

Gray has met Darcy at one of her concerts and the two flirt with each other using the language of love in obscure musical terms that only they both fully appreciate which is a delight and shows how much he loves her despite the times being unwelcoming to female musicians and songwriters of any kind. 

The entire cast, that also includes Yousof Sultani, Amanda Drinkall, Emma Jo Boyden, Andrea San Miguel, Preeti Thaker and Nate Santana, is full of both newcomers to the Northlight stage and mature actors who do a great job in all the supporting roles keeping the pace and humor of the piece moving along nicely. 

There is a wonderful message about women, music as a career and freedom of human rights for women to publish music when the two friends create a society to help budding female musicians that gives the entire play a decidedly feminist bend while not detracting at all from the love story unfolding. 

The costumes designed by Raquel Adorno are very colorful and lush and give each scene a lovely period feel. Richard and Jacqueline Penrod designed the set, which is simple but effective, although I would have liked to see some movement in the set, and some change between the first and second act which occurs on Christmas day in their home that celebrates the lights and colors of the holiday. The only set decoration that indicates this wealthy home has been decorated for the Christmas day concert event are three little poinsettia plants set gingerly on the edge of the stage. A fully pre-lit Christmas tree or even a projection of Christmas lights and colors would have given the second act the Christmas joy that the title implies will be included. 

Marti Lyons directs this very talented cast well and moves the large cast aptly around the beautiful, if static, set design in a way that shows off the best lines of each character. The intimate theater setting at Northlight is a three-sided thrust stage, wherein every seat is a great seat is perfect for this romantic and cheerful holiday offering. 

I highly recommend this cheerful, funny, romantic show for audiences of all ages who would like to enjoy a pleasant evening revisiting some of the most beloved Jane Austen characters in a classic yet freshly presented production set in turn of the century London. 

Wonderfully directed by Marti Lyons, Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley is being performed at Northlight Theatre through December 24^th. For tickets and/or more show information, visit northlight.org.

“Intimate Apparel” by Lynn Nottage is a story about 35-year-old Esther, a skilled seamstress in New York City. The year is 1905. She lives in a boarding house owned by Ms. Dickerson, a widow. This boarding house houses other women who are passing thru on their way to marriage. Esther has been living in the boarding house the longest with no proposal of marriage coming her way. She makes beautiful corsets and other intimate apparel for two of her clients, Mayme, a well-paid prostitute, who dreams of becoming a concert pianist and Mrs. Van Buren, an uptown married women in a childless, loveless marriage. There is a mutual attraction between herself and fabric merchant, Mr. Marks, an orthodox Jewish immigrant. They understand this relationship can never be more than what it is. Esther also has dreams. She has been saving her money over the years in hopes of owning her own beauty salon. She also dreams of being married and is afraid that she is getting too old. Her pastor’s nephew, while working on the Panama Canal, give her name and address to fellow co-worker, George Armstrong from Barbados. After an epistolary relationship, where Esther, not being able to read or write was helped by the other ladies, George proposes to Esther in one of the letters and she accepts. What a beautiful story if it ended there.

“Intimate Apparel” is one of my favorite plays. It reminds me of my family who immigrated from the Caribbean to New York City in the 50’s.

I am first generation to be born in America. My maternal Grandmother is from Barbados, my aunt was a seamstress in the garment district. Looking at faded pictures in a photo album I imagined how these people, my people, lived. I was hoping they lived in vivid color. The entire production of “Intimate Apparel” at Northlight Theatre was bathed in muted, faded, pastel tones. The set looked like the inside of a pale pink/baby blue corset. There is a full-sized bed in the middle of the stage with a sewing machine in front of it. This is Esther’s room. Left of the bed is a pink vanity set, signifying Mrs. Van Buren’s room. On the right of the bed, there is a pink upright piano, this Mayme’s room. Lights denote where the action was takes place. Nothing suggest New York City, 1905. It was a beautiful set, but this could have been Los Angeles, 1950. In addition Esther carries a leather handbag in her travels. Leather handbags real or fake didn’t come into vogue until the 1930’s. In 1905 Esther would carry a cloth bag possibly made by her. A small thing but it kept popping up.

There was nothing muted about the acting in this production. Mildred Langford is unforgettably poignant as the sorrowful, painfully shy Esther. In Langford’s eyes we see the strength and vulnerability, dignity and hurt, joy and pain of Esther. We suffer and rejoice with her, she becomes ours.

We want to protect her. Yao Dogbe has the best Caribbean accent I have heard on stage. He excels at portraying George Armstrong as a rough around the edges but good-hearted laborer and then revealing Armstrong’s more complex nature in Act 2. We want to feel for George’s plight, but our loyalties lay with Esther. Dogbe must be careful not to telegraph his intentions in Act 1 as I think he may have done at press opening. George is delivering his lines from a non-descript place behind scrim. Again, A design issue in my opinion. We, the audience, need to see George Armstrong’s face. We need to see his eyes. We need to believe and like George. The way it is presently staged, we, as audience members, are as much in the dark about George as Esther. Rebecca Spence does an excellent job portraying Mrs. Van Buren as a spoiled rotten, sex starved woman of privilege.  The beautiful Rashada Dawan as Mayme gives clear voice into the insecurities of her profession and a different point of view about marriage. The chemistry between Sean Fortunato’s Mr. Marks and Esther is apparent and heartbreaking. We wish that times were different, and this romance can be realized. Fortunato creates a man who appreciates fabric he cannot wear and admires a woman he cannot touch.

I love Felicia Fields; she brings vitality and life to every show I’ve seen her in. I hate to say this but, Felicia Fields was mis-cast. It appears that Northlight wanted some insurance of a packed house, so they hired someone who has a following. I can’t believe there was an open audition of equity actresses and ……..  . Fields is wonderful but not in this role. Mis-casting isn’t new, Denzel played Walter Lee at 60, David Alan Grier played Sgt. Waters…all to fill seats and these were on Broadway.

May 3, The role of George Armstrong will be taken over by the accomplished Al’Jaleel McGee. I know Al’Jaleel’s work. He will bring a new energy to this role making a return visit to Northlight more than worth it.

Director Tasia A Jones has directed a strong moving piece of theatre. The unidentified persons in the photos are brought to life. It is recommended for the beautiful acting

Intimate Apparel By Lynn Nottage at Northlight Theatre

April 14 – May 15

Tuesday: 7:30 May 3 only

Wednesday: 1:00pm and 7:30pm

Thursday: 7:30pm

Friday: 8:00pm

Saturday 2:30pm and 8:00pm

Sunday: 2:30pm and 7:00pm May 15 only

9501 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, IL 60077

(847) 673-6300

My gateway to Nina Simone fandom came when I was a kid, watching some crummy 90's action movie that was somehow soundtracked by Ms. Simone’s music. Her take on George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun” was both recognizable to young me as a Beatles tune, but it was also strange, alien, powerful, wistful, something completely different than anything I’d heard before. Not the song. But the singer. It was a gateway, for sure.

From there, I ended up with a CD reissue of her late-60s Sings the Blues album, an even better introduction for a clueless young white boy to this complicated genius — one with toe-tappers, showtunes, pop tunes, and yes, the blues. Perhaps the most powerful tune on there, perhaps one even too powerful for me at the time, was Langston Hughes’ “Backlash Blues,” which laments that “the world is big and bright and round and it’s full of folks like me who are black, yellow, beige, and brown.”

In the years since, I’ve grown, as my love and understanding of Nina Simone — the musician, the public figure, the strong woman, and the complex human being — has grown. And now maybe I’m old enough or wise enough or just ready to appreciate the picture of this woman and “folks like” her that Christina Ham’s Nina Simone: Four Women paints for us, as currently performed at Skokie’s Northlight Theatre, directed by Kenneth L. Roberson.

The play itself is named for one of Ms. Simone’s most powerful compositions, one about women “who are black, yellow, beige, and brown.” But it is also framed around what is perhaps an imagined 1960's fever dream of Ms. Simone’s, in the wake of the horrific 1963 bombing of Birmingham’s historic 16th Street Baptist Church in which four beautiful little African-American girls were murdered.

In the play, Ms. Simone is joined in the church’s wreckage by three other African-American women, each of them representing someone Nina sang about in “Four Women.” Above, I wondered if the play’s setting and the four women’s existence are perhaps imagined, based not only on Ms. Simone’s actual history, but her history of mental illness, as well.

The truth is, perhaps, somewhere in between, and that makes the play work. There are hints at Ms. Simone’s mental health throughout the play — voices and sounds she hears — but they don’t completely define her. And there are, for me at least, distracting bits of expository history — biographical details that might be fleshed out if this were a more standard “jukebox musical” — but I didn’t let them get in the way of the four women onstage. And those four women are what make the play work.

First, Sydney Charles is Nina Simone. And is she ever. I heard the rare complaint after the show that her character didn’t feel quite human. But that affect — that coldness, that stateliness, that hurt — seemed to me so in character. Ms. Charles voice, while very good, doesn’t quite match the richness and depth of Ms. Simone’s, but I’m not sure anyone’s does. But as the play went on, Charles’ voice grows stronger, as does her performance, until she is raging, proud, and loud at the world.

The strongest performance comes from the woman who shares the stage the longest with Ms. Charles — Deanna Reed-Foster’s Sarah. What could have veered into the territory of stereotype is fleshed out and deep thanks to the work of Ms. Reed-Foster, a Chicago actress whose work I realized I’ve seen on the TV show, Chicago Fire. If Nina Simone was perhaps superhuman in some ways and unable to convey the tenderness of humanity in others, “Auntie Sarah” gives the show its human and humane center, moving from fear to anger, from joy to sorrow, filling the theater with her beautiful voice and grounding the stage and the story on it.

The other two actresses in the show, Ariel Richardson and Melanie Brezill, also shine. Ms. Richardson brings us the 1960's modern woman, polished and self-assured, while Brezill (who was a highlight last year on the stage of the Chicago Children’s Theatre) shimmies, struts, and slurs as a more worldly woman, doing so in the performance I saw on a broken stiletto heel! The piano accompaniment and musical direction is provided by Daniel Riley, himself a part of the show for much of the evening.

So, while this play is not a standard jukebox musical about, nor a factual portrait of, one of our most gifted and enigmatic musical geniuses, I think it works because it is neither. Nina Simone couldn’t and cannot be separated from her music or her times or who she was or who people think she is. And, soundtracked by wonderful live performances of many of Ms. Simone’s most powerful songs, Nina Simone: Four Women doesn’t try to do any of those things. It lets Nina’s words and Nina’s music tell a story, even if her own story cannot be told.

It could have been any other Friday night for me; coffee, friends, and a few brief moments away from the responsibilities of motherhood, to talk and vent about the responsibilities of motherhood. But it wasn’t a Friday night with my friends, but Cry It Out, a new play written by Molly Smith Metzler. Like most evenings out, there were laughs, shared emotions and connections, and it ended far too soon leaving me wanting more.

Cooped up on maternity leave and eager for conversation, Jessie invites the funny and forthright Lina for coffee in their neighboring backyards. They become fast friends, quickly bonding over their shared “new mom” experience—and arousing the interest of a wealthy neighbor hoping for a similar connection. This insightful comedy takes an honest look at the absurdities of new motherhood, the dilemma of returning to work versus staying at home, and how class impacts parenthood and friendship. A comedy with dark edges, Cry It Out takes an honest look at the absurdities of being home with a baby, the power of female friendship, the dilemma of going back to work, and the effect class has on parenthood in America.

At a time when new mothers have little time off to care for their newborns, and even less time to mentally and physically recover from the trials of giving birth, this play shines a light on how depressingly similar our situations are. Three mothers represent three different economic situations. Each struggle with having a significant other who doesn’t fully understand their decisions and desires, discovering and accepting their new roles as mothers, and each face their own self judgement and worry about making the right choices for their families and themselves.

What Metzler does so well with this play is keeping it simple and unabashedly honest about what mothers go through, and how they deal with the challenging newborns, new bodies, and new friendships. From subtle references to NoseFridas (accurately referenced as the greatest invention of all time), to more tragic realities like breech deliveries and life-altering injuries. Cry it Out is a painfully beautiful story that will leave you crying for more. Its talented cast includes Laura Lapidus (Lina), Gabriel Ruiz (Mitchell), Darci Nalepa (Jessie) and Kristin Valada-Viars (Adrienne).  

Cry It Out runs through June 17th at Northlight Theatre. Tickets are available at https://northlight.org/

In Skeleton Crew, playwright Dominique Morisseau hits close to home, presenting an event that still profoundly impacts America: the 2008 economic meltdown. It is captured here in the form of an imminent Detroit car plant closure.

Our memories are still fresh from that time, and wounds to our social fabric not fully healed from a period when millions lost their homes and savings, and we careened to the brink of a global depression, nearly bankrupting U.S. auto makers.

As Skeleton Crew opens, this tumultuous crash is still unfolding and American were living through early phases of what would befall us. At the plant, management has been whittling away at the employee headcount, raising workloads for those remaining, even as rumors abound that this auto body metal stamping plant may close.

The action plays out entirely in the break room, from which massive industrial gantries and cranes are visible overhead. The clamor of the production line permeates the set as we meet Faye, a senior factory veteran and United Auto Workers Union steward (Jacqueline Williams delivers a dynamic performance); Dez, an aspiring young entrepreneur just finding his in life and work (Bernard Gilbert is excellent); and Shanita, an expectant mom who is also model employee. (AnJi White offers a richly textured performance). A supervisor, Reggie (Kelvin Rolston, Jr.) who has risen through the ranks, represents management in the unfolding drama.

I suspect these characters also stand as archetypes, symbolizing familiar types and generational shifts – each carries also a large measure of personal baggage and backstory. We learn that Reggie’s late mom was very close to Faye, and that Faye was like a second mother to him. We see Dez mapping out plans to open a small business – a car repair and restoration shop - but sense the incursions of rising crime and social dissolution. Dez is jumped by two thugs at a convenience store, and with the perspective of today's #BlackLivesMatter sensibilities, see another young black male at risk. Dez begins to carry a gun, and perhaps Morisseau means to foreshadow the tribulation of inner city violence today.   

The more circumspect Shanita represents self-reliance and maturity. Perhaps just a little older than Dez, she fends off his less-than-serious amorous advances, until shifting gears when she becomes pregnant. Faye is the establishment, the UAW go-between to management negotiating secretly with Reggie over how workers will be affected by the shutdown. We learn the circumstances of her personal life are crumbling - as is the auto industry, and perhaps Morisseau is suggesting, social norms.

Morisseau’s earlier installments in her trilogy of plays, Detroit 67 (at Northlight in 2013) and Paradise Blue at Chicago’s Timeline Theatre in July 2017 – also displayed her facility for rich dialog, and an eye for character and dramatic trajectory. All three have been directed by Ron O.J Parsons (formidably well in Paradise Blue and Skeleton Crew; I missed Detroit 67). Parsons is also a frequent interpreter of August Wilson’s dramas at Court Theatre, where he is an artist in residence, and around the country. That is a fit for Morisseau, who says she aspires to give voice to Detroit (she uses the word “griot” for her role here) just as August Wilson was for Pittsburgh in his cycle of plays set there.  

Northlight Theater's high production values have given a fine expression to this show, with Scott Davis (scenic design), Samantha C. Jones (costumes), Keith Parham (lighting), and Ray Nardelli (sound). Rita Vreeland is Production Stage Manager. The show is highly recommended, especially so since you are well advised to watch for revivals of the rest of Morisseau's trilogy. Skeleton Crew runs through March 3 at Northlight's home, the Northshore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie.