Friday, 21 April 2023 09:59
The Devil Makes Em Do It in Excellent Revival of Musical Classic 'Damn Yankees'
Written by Bill Esler
“Damn Yankees,” the vintage 1955 musical comedy at the Marriott Theatre in suburban Lincolnshire, has it all: a witty book, delicious songs, great choreography, and an excellent chorus. From the days when musical comedies were still rooted in operetta, it is truly musical, packed with memorable songs arranged in beautiful…
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Theatre in Review
Tuesday, 18 April 2023 13:06
Steppenwolf’s “Last Night and the Night Before” is just life
Written by Wesley David
In the dark of night, a man is digging a hole. Once the hole is deep enough he drops a bundle into it and covers it with dirt. Behind him a little girl looks on. After re-filling the hole, he walks off. Scene. It is early morning. We are in…
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Theatre in Review
Friday, 14 April 2023 11:27
Don't Miss Alanis Morisette’s Striking "Jagged Little Pill” at Broadway in Chicago Thru April 23
Written by Bill Esler
“Jagged Little Pill,” Alanis Morisette’s 1995, 16X platinum album, with 33 million copies sold, is her declaration of the terms of her self-emancipation. Timelessly truthful and inspirational, it remains an emotional catalyst for generations of people. The album is at the core of Broadway in Chicago’s “Jagged Little Pill,” which…
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Theatre in Review
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Wednesday, 12 April 2023 12:47
Review: 'The Cherry Orchard' at Goodman Theatre
Written by John Accrocco
Robert Falls is back! Well, for a short time at least to direct his adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s “The Cherry Orchard.” Falls retired as the Goodman Theatre artistic director in 2022, but his productions of Chekhov’s classics have become events to anticipate. “The Cherry Orchard” is the endcap to Falls’…
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Theatre in Review
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,…
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Theatre in Review
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Sunday, 02 April 2023 14:57
MadKap's 'Rumors' at Skokie Theatre is a Hilarious Celebration Of Great Jewish Playwriting
Written by Kimberly Katz
After its successful run of Book of Merman, MadKap Productions decided to take on a brilliant, little known farce comedy - Neil Simon’s Rumors. Quick, witty dialogue is the name of the game in this fast-paced story that revolves around an upscale dinner party where everything that can possibly go…
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Theatre in Review
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Artistic Home has given theater goers a rare jewel of a comedy, a 1928 send-up of Soviet society that was never seen by Russian audiences because Stalin banned it. Well, his censors must have read only half way through, and clearly had no sense of humor, because this is comedy…
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Theatre in Review
Sunday, 19 March 2023 14:05
Review: 'How Blood Go' at Steppenwolf's 1700 Theatre
Written by Wesley David
“It should be a crime to not acknowledge another person’s humanity.” Didi – “How Blood Go” I’m not a fan of hospitals, television dramas taking place in hospitals or anything involving healthcare. From a very young age I’ve had an uncomfortable relationship with the healthcare industry. My grandmother, God rest…
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Theatre in Review
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Tuesday, 21 March 2023 21:35
Laced with Gallows Humor, ‘The Shroud Maker’ Looks at Life in Gaza as It's Really Led
Written by Bill Esler
“The Shroud Maker” is a look into the world of Hajja Souad, an 84-year-old Palestinian seamstress, plying her artisanal trade amid the rise and fall of violence in Gaza City adjacent to Israel. Her specialty: shrouds used in Islamic funerals to wrap the deceased. Unfortunately for the world, Souad’s business…
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Theatre in Review
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Friday, 17 March 2023 19:56
Keep on Turnin', Keep on Burnin'; TINA- The Tina Turner Musical Rolling through Chicago at Nederlander Theater
Written by Kendall Royzen
In 2023, “iconic” is a word often used hyperbolically. It is flippantly used to describe and categorize an incredible movie, a famous influencer clap back, a beautiful piece of fashion, or even used to describe a viral TikTok video. When we overuse or misuse a word enough it loses its…
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Theatre in Review
Sunday, 12 March 2023 20:22
Can You Tell Me How to Get To; Avenue Q at Northlight Theater
Written by Kendall Royzen
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,…
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Theatre in Review
Tuesday, 14 March 2023 11:13
Seriously Entertaining: Rajiv Joseph's 'Describe the Night' in Chicago Premiere at Steppenwolf
Written by Bill Esler
“Describe the Night” at Steppenwolf is serious theater that is seriously entertaining. Intellectually challenging yet side-splittingly funny, it has sat with me for days after as I’ve puzzled over what it is telling us. Written by celebrated playwright Rajiv Joseph, whose sly wit enthralled audiences in Steppenwolf’s “Guards at the…
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Theatre in Review
Thursday, 09 March 2023 13:20
It's the Hard Knock Life for "Annie" at Cadillac Palace
Written by CJ Burroughs
The first movie I remember seeing in a movie theater was John Huston’s 80s film version of Annie — the one with Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks and Carole Burnett as Miss Hanigan. Burnett’s drunken spinster entertained little me nearly as much as the film’s climax high atop the steel…
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Theatre in Review
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