Displaying items by tag: CIBC Theatre

First on the stage was Tabla artist Salar Nader, considered Afghanistan’s premier virtuoso on the tabla. His unceasing accompaniment was at times almost subliminal, then bursting out with intentional significance, but ever present, keeping us firmly rooted in Afghani culture … though I hadn’t been aware that in August 2021 the Taliban banned music in Afghanistan. Welcome to the States, Salar!

THE KITE RUNNER is based on the book by Khaled Hosseini, adapted for the stage by Matthew Spangler. Be warned that THE KITE RUNNER is not a light-hearted tale of boys frolicking in fields; many scenes in THE KITE RUNNER will be triggering to many people. These duplicities and complexities are what make THE KITE RUNNER a superb story.

Amir is the protagonist and narrator of the story, splendidly played by Ramzi Khalaf.  Fitting, as Amir’s talent for writing and storytelling is a key factor in his relationship with his father Baba (Haythem Noor), who is bitterly disappointed that his son is not interested in the games of ‘real men’, like soccer.

One game that Amir is enthusiastic about is Kabul’s annual Kite Fighting contest. Kite fighting is a two-man team sport: Amir directs and steers the kite while the glass-edged line is reeled out by kite runner Hassan, ardently played by Shahzeb Zahid Hussain. This relationship between Amir and Hassan is a central and enduring theme throughout THE KITE RUNNER.  

In Kabul kite fighting the kite strings are sharp and the sole objective is to use the tension of your string to cut all your opponent’s kite strings: the game is over when there is but one kite remaining in the sky. The runner’s role is to keep continual fixity on the line: just enough traction to make the string a weapon. There are no other rules … except, of course, that only boys can play.

Salar Nadar in The Kite Runner National Tour 

Amir and Hassan are closer than brothers: born into the same house, they nurse at the same (wetnurse’) breast, they take their first step together, and they speak their first words the same day: Amir’s first word is “Baba”, while Hassan’s is “Amir”. Though they live in the same estate, Amir and Baba sleep in the palatial house, all marble walls and crystal chandeliers, while Hassan and his father Ali (Hassan Nazari-Robati) live in a mud hut against the wall of the compound. The bonds of loyalty, Baba to his servant Ali and Amir to Hassan, are strong despite Baba and Amir being Pashtun, practicing Sunni Islam, while Ali and Hassan are ethnic Hazara and Shi’a Muslims. Throughout the story Amir struggles to navigate his feelings of ethnic superiority over the natural bonds of friendship: ‘But he’s not my friend! I almost blurted. He’s my servant!’ … and ‘Why did I play with Hassan only when no one else was around?’  

The Pashtun’s genetic elitism manifests in their relationships: meek, humble Ali would never dream of sullying his fealty to his lifelong master, any more than Hassan would renege on his allegiance to Amir. Both Pashtun men, however, deceive and betray the Hazara men they love dearly. Prejudice against Hazara is widespread: Hassan is often bullied by Assef (Wiley Naman Strasser) and his brutish cronies; Amir usually defends him… usually.

BTW: Any of this sound familiar? THE KITE RUNNER is totally relevant to 2024.

The production was splendidly directed by Giles Croft, with the able assistance of Cultural Advisor and Dialect Coach Humaira Ghilzai, who has meticulously crafted every detail to accurately reflect the glory of Afghan culture, particularly the Nikah (wedding) ceremony and the sparkling Afghan national dance, attan; I’ll wager Movement Director Kitty Winter had real fun with this!

The production crew was outstanding. The minimalist sets by Barney George were perfect to contain the complexities of the script. I loved how the curtains were triangular, like kites, and how their color changed via Lighting Designer Charles Balfour. The work of Musical Supervisor Jonathan Girling, Sound Designer Drew Baumohl and Projection Designer William Simpson allowed us to differentiate our location as the story moved from Kabul to San Francisco, from the kite-fighting fields to the cramped and sterile offices at Immigration. I need to give a shoutout to Fight Consultant Thomas Schall; he had a lot of work in this production and the fights came off flawlessly.

I always make sure to praise the Stage Manager. I once asked my friend and Thespian oracle, “so what does a Stage Manager do?” to which they replied: “Everything.” So, thanks, Giles T Horne, for doing Everything and doing it Well.

What makes THE KITE RUNNER truly remarkable is its complexity. The characters are multi-dimensional and expertly crafted out. The hostile Russian occupation of Afghanistan leaves deep scars; when the only oncologist Amir can find to care for Baba has Russian parents, Baba refuses, preferring death to fraternization.

The horror, however, was well balanced. Just when I thought I couldn’t take another barbarity, a word or a skillful mannerism would make me chuckle … and thank Whoever for that! cos there’s plenty of barbarity. THE KITE RUNNER is unquestionably a tragedy, but not irretrievable; Hassan’s final message to Amir said: ‘There is a way to be good again.’ *

VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Playing through June 23; two shows on Saturday 6/15 at CIBC Theatre

*BTW, you can get a t-shirt printed with that legend in the lobby

“May God bless and keep you always
May your wishes all come true
May you always do for others
And let others do for you
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung
May you stay forever young
May you stay forever young”

For many, if they are unfamiliar with the music of Bob Dylan, they have at least heard the one. As the opening cords of “Forever Young” start to play, Elizabeth (Jennifer Blood) takes center stage. She sits on the bench and sings – backlit by a screen of light blue. Aside from her husband, Nick (John Schiappa), who sits frozen by her side – the stage is empty. The room is silent save for her stunning vibrato. We are left with nothing but her and the lyrics on which to focus, allowing us to join in her somber, reflective journey.  

Juke-box musicals can often run into challenges. In trying to fit an entire score of pre-made material, it can become tough to craft a story that flows and feels authentic. Girl from the North Country is a Bob Dylan juke-box musical, and you may just find that the creators found the perfect balance of storytelling to match his folk/rock genre.

Written and directed by Conor McPherson, Girl from the North Country centers on a group of wayward travelers in Duluth, Minnesota in 1934. When these characters meet at Nick’s old guesthouse, we catch glimpses into their lives – past relationships, hopes for the future, and all of the regrets leading them to this moment. Much of McPherson’s musical is told in a vignette style – moments in which we see these characters briefly interact before moving on to their rooms for the evening. Scenic and Costume Designer Rae Smith heightens the theatricality with her design. Rather than featuring a full house on stage, we see the structure in segments – with walls dropping in various places as a way to highlight the characters’ interactions before moving to a different space in the house. 

The musical showcases a list of famous songs by Bob Dylan including “Forever Young,” “All Along the Watch Tower,” “Hurricane,” and “Like a Rolling Stone.” With the story moving so quickly, Dylan’s slower musical style allows the audience to catch up as the songs unfold – giving us just enough pause to catch a window into the characters’ true feelings before speeding back up again. This especially rings true in the more heartbreaking, romantic storylines of the show.

“Tight Connection to my Heart (Has Anybody Seen My Love)” appears early in Act One and features Marianne Laine (Sharaé Moultrie) – the adopted daughter of the innkeeper. We learn that she is pregnant but refuses to let anyone know the identity of the father – including her parents. As we see her break away after guest after guest pushes for that answer, the music starts to play. The lights shift. Moultrie is backlit by a bright green screen as she begins to sing – creating a haunting presence as her powerful belt rings throughout the theater. After seeing so many characters move in and out of the space, you may find that Marianne’s isolation on stage almost feels like a shock, but also offers a much-needed moment of backstory before quickly moving on to the next.

A moving story and jaw-dropping vocalists alone make Girl from the North Country a night to remember Conor McPherson and his artistic team celebrate Bob Dylan’s music in a way that I can only imagine is exciting for long-time fans to experience first-hand.

RECOMMENDED

Running through February 25, 2024 at the CIBC Theatre – 18 Monroe Street.

I remember Betty Boop the cartoon character because she was my mom's favorite female cartoon as the sexy, saucy 1930's flapper who had men chasing her around town in her voluptuous, tight-fitting dresses - and this wonderfully staged musical does a brilliant job in bringing her to life! Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop is a star on her way to Broadway with her outstanding vocals, solid dancing skills and an air of innocence mixed with womanly wisdom that gives the entire story a warm grounded presence despite the cartoon's previously conceived air head version of her. 

In BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical, Betty gets to time travel from the black and white cartoon world she lives in to 2023 real world New York city in full color where she feels herself to be both "Real and Free!" There is a slight resemblance in plot there to the Barbie movie when a fictional character from a sexist TV or toy world becomes "real” in today's much different, progressing world - and this plot is also very well executed. People of all ages will identify with that feeling of having their lives go from blah, gray days to bright rainbow colors with one exciting leap of faith! 

When arriving in New York via time travel Boop lands at Comic Con and luckily meets her mate, Dwayne, played with flair by Ainsley Anthony Melham, a struggling young jazz musician with whom she falls in love. Together they perform some fantastic duets like "Why Look Around the Corner" in which the two lovers decide to stop waiting for what "might be around the corner" and decide to love each other in that very moment before their worlds are separated forever. Melham also sings the passionate and exuberant “She Knocks Me Out!" a song that describes how falling in love with Boop at first sight has knocked him off his feet with love for her and all her lively energy and sexual beauty causing him to fall hopelessly in love.

The exciting score by composer David Foster and lyricist Susan Birkenhead includes several hit songs, some of which include "Something to Shout About" sung by Rogers. In the well-performed number, Boop describes that after experiencing both her cartoon world and unrequited love in the real world that she is still waiting to find something really thrilling in life to really live her life to its fullest and not for other "human causes" like that of the politician Raymond Demarest played with great humor and jazz style by Erich Bergen. Demarest, a former sanitation worker now running for office, tries to use Boop’s popularity to con citizens of New York into voting for him so he can con them into using his "Doo Doo Solid Waste System". Nor is Boop looking to find more fame or money in the real world. In fact, from the beginning of the show her character expresses her deep desire to be somewhere, anywhere where she is "not famous" and is free to be her own unique self. But guess what, she's still as famous as ever in 2023, ninety years later - a true Comic Con star. 

This show has everything we’d hope to see in a big stage production. In Boop! The Betty Boop Musical aka The Boop-Oop-A Doosical, the full stage of excellent dancers, singers, and actors swirl to life with brilliant color. The creative costume design is credited to Gregg Barnes while David Rockwell has designed a huge and constantly changing set that dazzles the eye and enhances the storytelling, with equally colorful dynamic and complex lighting by Philip S. Rosenberg. The show also includes some real eye-popping New York-style hoofing comprising of full cast tap dancing numbers by the talented director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell that rival the Rockettes. This fast-paced, musical, and visual gem also gets a lift thanks to wonderful performances by Angelica Hale as Trisha, Boop’s newfound teenage friend in the real world, Tony Award Winner Faith Prince as Valentina and Stephen DeRosa as the highly and overly animated, Grampy.

Phillip Huber operates the one puppet in the show, Pudgy, Boop’s chubby, white Maltese puppy with adorable huge black eyes who time travels as well. This is a very cute bit of comic relief and the whole audience enjoys this little treat of excellently done puppetry.

Though a fan favorite for decades, let’s face it, the Betty Boop cartoon was littered with discriminatory, narrow-minded views of women. But, thankfully, the problem of the sexist subtext of the times when this black and white cartoon was written in originally, which has survived in cult pop culture, is finally resolved in this fantastic new musical. Upon returning to her own world, Boop’s eyes, now opened from her visit to today’s real world, the 1930’s cartoon starlet tells the director of her "talkie shorts" that she will NOT allow those plotlines to ever be shot again if they include leering men chasing her around desks only to be hit by her with a frying pan. 

BOOP! is based on an old cartoon yes, but its cast and producers combine new ideas about love and womanhood with modern and classic dance numbers that fill the stage with constant movement. Boop’s show stopping and catchy songs, belted out with great range, power and joy by the fabulous Jasmine Amy Rogers, are the Boop oop a doop! 

I highly recommend this sparkling, upbeat World Premiere production for audiences of all ages! 

BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical runs through December 24th at the CIBC Theatre, 18 W. Monroe St. For tickets and/or more show information, visit broadwayinchicago.com.

By the time Charles Fuller’s “A Soldier’s Play” debuted on Broadway in January 2020 it was already a classic in American theatre. It premiered with the Negro Ensemble Company in 1981, winning the Pulitzer Prize in Drama in 1982. It was adapted to film and was nominated for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for the Late Great Adolph Caesar at the 1985 Academy Awards. After 40 years it finally graced the Broadway stage just before the death of its playwright. According to Fuller, his refusal to change the line “You’ll have to get used to Black people being in charge.” at the producer’s demand, prevented the show from going to Broadway sooner. I personally believe the universe was waiting for just the right director to bring the majesty of this play to Broadway. The only director filling that role is the talented Kenny Leon.

The play opens on an U.S.  army base in Louisiana in 1944 during World War II. Tech Sergeant Vernon C. Waters, (an excellent Eugene Lee) drunk and staggering out of his mind, has been brutally murdered.. Waters is a self-hating, sadistic evil man. He takes out his anger on his men. He hates his white comrades for who they are and his Black comrades for who they are not.

To investigate this crime, the Provost Marshal General’s office in Washington sends Capt. Richard Davenport (the debonair Norm Lewis), a Black lawyer. The white officers are shocked at the sight of a Black officer they may have to answer to. The Black recruits are bursting with pride to see one of their own in a position of leadership.

Davenport, despite roadblocks to his investigation prides himself on following the clues and getting to the truth of the murder. He meticulously interviews enlisted men both Black and white to understand why Waters would be a victim of murder. Based on interrogations and flashbacks we learn the murderer can be anyone even the very men in his charge.

Director Leon gets the best from this uniformly stellar cast.  Among the standout performances are the exuberant Alex Michael Givens as Corporal Ellis, our very own Sheldon D. Brown as Private C.J. Memphis, a simple guitar playing man and William Connell as the skeptical Captain Charles Taylor.

The two-level scaffolding set with bunks and footlockers works well, showing present action up front while when necessary showing what’s happening in the background. Scene changes were effortless and clean. The flashback effects were greatly assisted by Lighting designer Allen Lee Hughes lights. World War II military attire were realistic thanks to Costume Designer Dede Ayite.

Although it did not affect my enjoyment or enthusiasm for “A Soldiers Play “it must be stated, one of the major themes in this play is COLORISM.  “A Soldiers Play” is not just a murder mystery as Roundabout Theatre Company’s production would have you believe. Omitting colorism does a disservice to the script.  Fuller was extremely clear about casting. “A Soldiers Play” is Fuller’s exploration of Blacks’ attitudes toward each other as well as toward the white military community he was once a part of.   Rule of thumb, if you must ask a playwright is it alright to do something, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.

“A Soldiers Play” is a classic from the Negro Ensemble Company demonstrating fearless writing, professional execution and top notch acting, for that it should not be missed.

When: Through April 16

Where: CIBC Theatre, 18 W. Monroe St.

Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Tickets: $35-105 at 800-775-2000 

www.broadwayinchicago.com