It was standing room only at the Vic Theatre Thursday night, as one of the Just for Laughs Festival heavyweights, Nick Swardson, gave the crowd an evening to truly remember. With an arsenal of jokes that touched on everything from cats vs dogs to the Virgin Airlines “rave plane”, Swardson barely allowed audience members to catch their breath between laughs.

In a very funny bit, Swardson speculated on what it must have been like to be the first person to ever suffer from a brain freeze - this being of course the inventor of ice cream. “Here you go kids. I have created a tasty treat called ice cream (as he pretends to sample). Come everyone, try this tasty treat.  It’s very delicious (as he samples faster and faster). I am eating this delicious treat faster and faster now”. Until, “Arrrrggggghhhhh! Oh my God!!!! What the f**k is this!? My brain is being eaten alive!” Of course the pain goes away moments later. “What the f**k was that?”

Swardson’s material was nothing short of brilliant, but I had hoped to see a longer set. He left the crowd with a humorous story where he was flying first class only to have Liv Tyler sitting next to him. Somewhat nervous and not knowing what to say, he opted to say nothing. He leaned his seat back to sleep and Liv Tyler followed suit, wherein he was “sleeping with Liv Tyler”. Swardson explained that they were baking chocolate chip cookies in first class and he groggily awoke to “What’s that smell?” only to have Tyler smile and whisper from her sleep excitedly “cookies”. “Is there possibly a better way to wake up?” asked Swardson to the crowd. Of course, he then explained how lucky he was to have Liv Tyler sitting next to him instead of say, Gary Busey, or it could have been, “What’s that smell?” with a reply of “COOKIES, MOTHERF**KER!!!”

Nick Swardson was simply hilarious and showed Chicago why he is considered one of the top comics in the circuit.

After Swardson’s show at the Vic, I scrambled over to Stage 773 just a few blocks west on Belmont. Stage 773 is TBS Just for Laughs comedy hub during the festival where a variety of super funny comics take on four stages all week long. While there, I was lucky enough to catch The Urban Comedy Hour, which featured a slew of great South Side Chicago comedians, including its hysterical host, Brian Babylon. Afterwards, Ari Shaffir took on the late night slot with his storyteller series “This Is Not Happening” to round off a perfect night of comedy.   

The 2013 TBS Just for Laughs Festival is underway and there are a bevy of terrific acts to catch throughout the week. With multiple shows each evening at various Chicago venues, one of Wednesday’s shows had the Park West Theater hosting The Whitest Kids U’ Know - and they did not disappoint. One of the top sketch comedy teams since their early Manhattan days in 2003, the hilarious quintet had the crowd roaring from their opening sequence where they slammed George Lucas for destroying the original Star Wars trilogy.   

Comprised of members Trevor Moore, Sam Brown, Zach Creggor, Timmy Williams and Darren Trumeter, The Whitest Kids U’ Know performed several sketches including one that had two rival monster truck drivers unexpectedly meeting at a party setting up a hysterical confrontation. Other sketches touched on a warped version of The Dating Game, four girls whining about having their periods, a boss who voyeurs one of his employees while having sex and a twisted séance. Trevor Moore also presented a couple funny music videos had had done - the first, a portrayal of a money hungry Pope likened to a street thug and another - “Tom Hanks Is an Asshole”.

The Whitest Kids U’ Know certainly showed audience members why they are a worthy addition to the TBS Just for Laughs Festival and also showed just how white they really are. At the end of the show, the comedy troupe led the crowd in a festive rendition of Oasis’ “Wonderwall”. Asking everyone in the audience to raise either a lighter or cell phone and wave it back and forth, they plan to edit footage from each city into a montage for their website just so people can ask, “What the hell is their show about?”   

TBS Just for Laughs Festival is the where to be this week. With such talented performers as Russell Brand, Seth Meyers, Nick Swarsdon, Dylan Moran, Todd Barry, Bill Maher, Artie Lange, Bob Newhart and so many, many more, you can see why this event is the hottest ticket in town.  For a complete rundown of the Just for Laughs schedule, click here.   

"Believe" is the Harley Davidson of magic shows. There are motorcycles and then there are Harley Davidsons. Not that there is anything wrong with many of these motorcycles, but it’s the innovative style, performance, detail and quality that sets Harley Davidsons apart from the rest. Well, in comparison, there are magic shows and then there is “Believe”, the amazingly mind-blowing collaboration of super magician Criss Angel and Cirque Du Soleil. Performing in Las Vegas’ Luxor Hotel and Casino, Criss Angel’s magic spectacular is performed in a theater specifically built to handle the magnitude of such a show. With over forty illusions executed to perfection in each show, “Believe” has all the ingredients to make this an experience to remember for a lifetime – a larger than life set, energetic music, humor, explosions and fiery bursts, sexy assistants and an immensely charismatic magician who has the skill and ability to back up the hype as one of the world’s best performers of magic. Basically, a rock n roll magic show.   

Known for his stardom on the popular “Mindfreak” series, Criss has taken on the challenge of live theater and is in the middle of a ten-year deal at Luxor. In fact, the fifth anniversary of “Believe” falls on Halloween, 2012. Without giving too much away, “Believe” (also designed and directed by Criss Angel) is one breathtaking illusion after another. At one point, Criss Angel dangles upside down, high above the audience as Harry Houdini’s mystifying straight jacket escape is recreated. Rapidly spinning in place, we watch from the edges of our seats to see if an escape will be made in record time. Moments of intensity in the show are frequent and when Criss disappears from the stage only to reappear in another part of the theater in a blink of an eye, it’s…well – Mindfreak! In “Believe” we are also treated to Criss’ unfathomable demonstrations of mentalism, sleight of hand and there is also plenty of audience participation, which always adds to the fun.

Las Vegas has plenty of shows to see but “Believe” should be on the top of everyone’s list. It is also a show that constantly evolves and can be entertaining time and time again.

I met with Criss after the show and, after talking with him for some time, realized the person I was sitting with was a perfectionist, an extremely hard worker and someone who has a deep, perpetual inner drive to continuously better his performance. I also found Criss Angel to be a genuine and down to earth person with the raw energy and excitement of a little kid. Yep, he’s the real deal.

Buzz – So as far as your own creativity and personal touch for “Believe”, is this show mostly your own conception?

Criss – This show itself it basically written, directed, designed by me as far as the magic and illusion goes. I completely designed it. We literally fabricated the stuff in my facility. I have a 60,000 square foot production facility. We manufacture the magic that you see on “Mind Freak” as well as the stuff that you see in “Believe”. Basically, it starts off in my mind and we’ll do some drawings and then some small, little prototypes and then once when we have it evolving to the point that we feel good about it, we’ll start building one. It goes through several phases – several months or even years – before it is developed enough so that it can be used in a practical way for ten shows a week - 46 weeks a year for a ten year deal.

Buzz – So you are the mind behind the show.

Criss - So the illusions you see, I create and design them and the show itself – I wrote the show so all the lines and all the jokes I wrote from beginning to end and directed everybody. Cirque also provided incredible support and creative minds that were able to do the projections, bring in the pyro and add the scenic elements and stuff like that. So it was kind of an evolution - the show is all about magic. There are more than 40 illusions in the show – more magic in the show than any other Las Vegas magic show and it all centers around giving people an experience that is unlike any other magic show – to revolutionize magic as far as awe and wonderment.

Buzz – Sounds like “Believe” is the show to see and based on what I saw, it is.

Criss - Cirque and I take it very seriously with the economy the way it is and people coming to Vegas and not having the disposable income they once had, they have a very important decision to make. They are not seeing two or three shows anymore, they’re choosing one show, and if they choose believe I want to make sure we deliver and the best promotion and marketing in this business as you know is word of mouth. People leave here and tell their friends and they come back. We’ve have people that have seen the show 70 or 80 times. We also have all kinds of fans from six years old to seventy-five years old. It’s really amazing the demographic. It’s really exciting and it’s a big room. It has 1,534 seats, unlike other shows in town that play in venues half the size. We’re very, very, very fortunate and I really attribute that to the great show that we have, and it’s not my show it’s really everybody’s show because without this amazing team, there would be no show. It takes an army to win a war not just one person, and I have the best army in the world.   

Buzz – Do you as a magician go out and see other magic shows?

Criss – I know it’s out there, but I don’t spend a lot of time looking over my shoulder looking to see what others are doing because I try to lead the way, doing things that are innovative. A lot of the stuff that’s out there – not to pick out anybody in particular – but you go see that show and you can see seven other shows that do the same tricks. You know, have the box come out and we’re going to squish somebody that is small or have the box come out and slice people. For both me and Cirque Soleil, we have built our reputation on being able to deliver first class entertainment that’s provocative, that’s engaging, that’s exciting and that’s unique and that is the mantra that we have – and if someone else is doing it, we don’t want to do it. We have an advantage in the fact that the show is built right here and we’re not moving around from venue to venue. This show is here for ten years and maybe five more if we mutually agree to an additional five-year contract.

Buzz – You’ve single-handedly brought magic to a completely new type of audience that has now become a phenomenon, thanks to a platform such as “Mindfreak”.

Criss – Well, I think magic has been is a stagnant position and was just coasting along, not really keeping up with the times in pop culture, in music, in visual and so on, so I wanted to give it a kick in the ass and do something that I wanted to see. Years and years ago I really did not aspire to be a magician – I thought Houdini was fantastic and one of the greats in magic, but magic that was happening at the time just seemed to be kind of hokey. It was really cutting edge that had a mass appeal to a popular culture, so for me it was all about – as a fan – what do I want to see? How can I bring that to people? I think that success really resonated in “Mindfreak” and obviously in “Believe” it has that kind of a concept. If you watch “Mindfreak” a lot of those illusions are in different incarnations in this show, like the cutting in half which I did in “Mindfreak”. There are a lot of different pieces of magic that I did in “Mindfreak” that are in this show, so they are able to work on television and in live performance. I just think the whole nature of it is much more entertaining and more contemporary, if you will.

Buzz – Was that a big transition to go from TV to live performing?

Criss – Well, I’m a live performer first. I’ve been ding this since I was 11-years-old. I performed at kids’ parties and corporate events – all sorts of clubs in New York City, Webster Hall – all sorts of places. I really started to build a following and then television was something that I was involved in as a teenager and I was kind of able to work in both mediums and understood that just because something works in one medium doesn’t mean it will work in the other. I understood that when you work in television, you have to make engaging TV and that’s very different than live performance. When you’re in live performance you can’t do – we’ll television is a completely different thing. When your in television you’re able to use the cameras to zoom into the action, keeping it moving, upcutting so you don’t have to sit there and be bored watching the whole lead up to the effect.

Buzz – Sure. And the attention spans of younger viewers are different these days.

Criss – Right. Kids and audiences today are so overwhelmed by information with the Internet at their fingertips. They don’t have the attention span that they did 10, 20, 30 years ago. So when you create a TV show, it’s got to hold people’s attention. It’s got to be produced and created in a certain way where it connects and brings them into it and that approach is a very different approach than when you’re doing live performance because in live performance you can’t go to a close up shot – they’re the directors. So they’re watching the show from their perspective and you have to provide a show that’s going to keep moving and my goal is to make “Believe” a freight train. You’re on a fright train – a journey that’s going to be exciting, scary, dangerous and sexy. I try to take people and let them feel these different emotions and not kind of repeat the same thing so it’s funny as well. That’s a very different approach than in “Mindfreak” which is more serious. 

Buzz – I have to ask you about that incident on the TV show “Phenomenon” when you called out that mentalist who claimed to communicate with the dead. Was that whole exchange scripted?

Criss – Oh, no. Absolutely not. That definitely was not scripted. I can’t remember his name offhand but he claimed to talk with the dead. I don’t have a problem with that if it’s for entertainment. I don’t have a problem with that - but when you prey upon the vulnerable and you try to go after people for financial gain, or you manipulate their emotions to get money from them, which is what these charlatans do, I have a real big problem with that. I just think that’s completely wrong. Houdini spent half his life disproving psychics and mediums who claimed to talk with the dead – he proved them wrong. Interestingly enough when Houdini passed away in 1926 on Halloween, he said to his wife – because he spent a good portion of his life debunking these people – he said to his wife, Bess, from his deathbed, “when I die there are going to be a lot of people coming out of the woodwork that are going to claim to have made contact with me, so I’m going to give you a secret word – a code – so that when they hold a séance you’ll know whether they are really talking to me or if they are frauds and charlatans.” And the word is “believe”. That’s why the show’s called “Believe”. So I feel pretty passionate about that.

Buzz – Wow, cool. I didn’t know that - a very apropos name for your show. There are sure a lot of TV psychics out there that are able to get family members to trust them.

Criss - To these people that claim to have these powers, I’ve offered a million dollars of my own money if someone can do something that can’t be explained or reproduced and James Randy, John Edwards, Sylvia Brown – that’s all bullshit. It’s all nonsense. It’s just tricks that a magician would use to be able to utilize the person, to gain information so that the way it appears is as though they know something. This most simple example is like discovery. You’re gonna go home and you’re gonna be in traffic, now there are a million cars and you’re never going to notice a specific car. But if you go out tomorrow and by a specific Nissan, the minute you buy that car your going to notice the same car everywhere because your awareness – your perspective – completely changes.

Buzz – That is so true. Happens every time.

Criss – Sure. So if you’re looking for information and I’m able to fill in little pieces in your mind that make sense, then you’re going to give me information by your body language, by your vocal responses  - your gonna feed me with information just like how somebody dresses, how they conduct themselves – I’m gonna know what kind of personality and what kind of financial base they probably come from, etcetera. You become very aware and perceptive to these things so that you’re able to create a scenario that people buy into and as they buy into it, your getting more information from them. It’s called cold reading. That’s the name of the technique.

Buzz – So it’s like mentalism?

Criss – Well, mentalism is a category. Mentalism is basically more of a magician kind of word. Like I do mentalism. Now people that claim to have these beliefs, they’ll say they are clairvoyant or psychic – it’s all kind of the same thing, but I wouldn’t use those terms because I am an entertainer.

Buzz – What’s your favorite trick to perform?

Criss – I get asked that a lot and it’s really funny because we do over forty in “Believe”, but they’re all basically my children. So to pick one over the other is impossible. Each illusion is designed to evoke a different emotion so they’re designed differently to give the spectator a different feel. So to pick one over the other is very, very difficult, but some of them are much more challenging because the show is very physical to do, so sometimes on my body, it’s much more difficult. The straight jacket escape where I’m hanging above the audience and spinning then free falling to where I’m caught by my ankles is sometimes challenging. For me and the cast and the crew, we always go out there and give 110% because we’re very grateful to have such an amazing audience. We put in our best to give the best and I’ve never missed a show in my entire career. 

Criss Angel is the most watched magician in history for a reason and “Believe” allows him to bring the magic right to your seat. Get ready to be bewildered and mystified in a highly intense magic show you will never forget!

“Believe” is performed eight times weekly. For more show information click here.

Steppenwolf Theatre is currently presenting the world-premiere production of “Head of Passes”. A story that takes place in the marshlands of Louisiana, “Head of Passes” is a story about tested convictions and soul searching.

What begins as a family gathering for a birthday party, turns into a tragic tale that would test the spirit of those with the greatest resolve. In this case, though many would curse the name of God after such endured misfortune and heartbreak, we see such a trust in one’s faith actually strengthened. It is a story that points to the question that everything happens for a reason and suggests everything is part of a greater plan. It is a story of belief and touches on the existence of angels.

“Head of Passes” features a bright and talented cast. Cheryl Lynn Bruce shines and delivers a masterful performance as “Shelah”, the family’s mother. Glenn Davis and Steppenwolf favorite, Alana Arenas, also bring out their A-game, as both are dynamic n their support roles.

Set on the porch of a large southern house, we are taken as an audience to the swampy backwoods at the mouth of the Mississippi River where the shifting grounds and rain are taking a toll on the family’s home. When the house and family are simultaneously destroyed, Shelah is left dependant on her own inner strength and faith.

Big time performances and an elaborate set that comes with its own surprise make this an thoroughly entertaining production.

“Head of Passes” is playing at Steppenwolf through June 9^th. For show and ticket information, visit www.steppenwolf.org or call Audience Services at  312-335-1650.

There is nothing better than a good chase. Based on the remarkable, almost too far-fetched true story, “Catch Me If You Can” is a whirlwind of exciting scenes and show stopping numbers. The story follows the exploits of Frank Abagnale Jr., a con artist in a league of his own, who successfully passes as a doctor, an airline pilot and a lawyer – all before hitting the age of 21 years old. I should also mention that he stole nearly two million dollars by passing bad checks. While Frank lives the playboy life from one city to the next, the F.B.I. is hot on his trail but by-the-book agent Carl Hanratty always a step behind.

It’s the early 1960’s and the jazzy, jet-setting era is tremendously brought to life with memorable, well-timed songs and dance numbers that swing and sway with an unadulterated youthfulness, such as the opening “Live in Living Color”, “Jet Set”, “Someone Else’s Skin” and the sexy “Doctors Orders”.

A well-rounded and talented cast put this show on the must-see-while-in-town list. The charismatic Stephen Anthony as “Frank Jr.” puts on one of the best stage performances I have seen in the last few years delivering spot on timing and on-a-dime expression while also providing breathtaking vocal prowess, most notably in his big finale “Good-bye”. Dominic Fortuna also demonstrates his pitch-perfect, lounge club voice as “Frank Abagnale Sr”, while Merritt David Janes (“Carl Hanratty”) does a great job as the likeable agent who gradually befriends Frank Jr. as the chase ensues. Caitlin Maloney as Frank Jr.’s mother “Paula” and Aubrey Mae Davis (“Brenda”) also deserve great praise for their wonderful performances.

This wonderfully directed show by Jack O’Brien really has it all. The stage adaptation of Steven Spielberg’s 2002 hit of the same name brings out everything desired in a fun, stimulating and visual Broadway musical.   

“Catch Me if You Can” is playing at Cadillac Palace (151 W Randolph) through April 14^th. Ticket information can be found at www.BroadwayInChicago.com, www.CatchMeOnTour.com or by calling (800) 775-2000.

Just sit back, fasten your seat belts and enjoy the chase!

Lookingglass Theatre’s “Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo” is a dark comedy that questions human nature, the existence of God and explores living with the decisions we have made. Directed by ensemble member Heidi Stillman and written by Rajiv Joseph, “Bengal Tiger” takes us to Baghdad and centers around two U.S. Marines, an Iraqi translator and a tiger.

Greed and disloyalty are present in this land of ghosts. This play shows the world to which the spirits of those one kills stay with them, often driving one crazy. At the same time, we are also shown the unfortunate behavior of some American soldiers who take advantage of a country taken over for a gluttonous cause guised as a mission of liberation.

Troy West is delightful as the Bengal Tiger, who delivers one question on human nature and beliefs after another, adding profound observations on man from one looking in from the outside. JJ Phillips is sensational as “Kev” and lights up the stage with a dynamic performance while Anish Jethmalani anchors the terrific cast as “Musa”.

“Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo” is playing at Lookingglass Theatre through March 17th and is well worth seeing. For more information and/or tickets, visit www.lookingglass.org or call 312-337-0665.     

“The Birthday Party” at Steppenwolf’s new upstairs theatre, is theatre in the round at its best, with the living room set in the middle of the room amidst the audience, almost giving us the feeling that we are part of the play. With Chicago theatre heavyweights filling the cast, including John Mahoney, Ian Barford and Francis Guinan, we are treated to rich and passionate dialogue, making the show fiery and heartfelt. Harry Pinter’s “The Birthday Party” takes us from the dull times of daily living to a fast-paced, intriguing and often uncomfortable situation to which all hell breaks loose.

The story revolves around a boarding house in England run by Petey (Mahoney) and Meg (Moira Harris) where there single guest of nearly a year Stanley (Barford) has been hiding out from a past “organization”. Everything has been calm and relaxed until two mysterious guests arrive, members of this organization, to confront Stanley. Stanley, normally cocky and rather rude to his hosts, takes on a scared and fragile demeanor once confronted by the guests. But it’s Stanley’s birthday and Meg has a party planned, inviting the two guests, Goldberg and McCann. Goldberg and McCann are on their best behavior in front of Meg and Petey, while Stanley is obviously enveloped with impending doom. While Petey picks up the gravity of the situation, Meg is oblivious and is as overbearingly sweet as usual.

I enjoy watching John Mahoney in live theatre every chance I get, though I felt his tremendous gift of acting was a bit wasted here. While John Mahoney’s vast talent was harnessed by a less challenging role, Francis Guinan plays Goldberg and is just magnificent. He hammers his lines with the intensity of a wrecking ball making contact with a dilapidated building. Also to note that Sopia Sinese, daughter of actors Gary Sinese and Moira Harris, makes her Steppenwolf debut in strong fashion as “Lulu”.    

“The Birthday Party” is a dark comedy that may not get you in a birthday mood, but will get you to laugh at times and uncomfortably stir in your seat at others. Directed by ensemble member Austin Pendelton, “The Birthday Party” is playing at Steppenwolf Theatre through April 28^th.   For more information visit www.steppenwolf.org. 

Steppenwolf Theatre Company kicks in the 2013 season with a dark comedy that is both engaging and compelling from the opening scene that has “Jackie” finding the hat of his girlfriend “Veronica’s” alleged lover. Just out of prison, “Jackie” takes a big step towards starting his new life by getting himself a job. However, everything takes a turn once “Jackie” is convinced “Veronica” is seeing someone on the side and his “new life” is no longer his priority. Jackie finds solace in talking things through with his sponsor “Ralph D. and “Cousin Julio”.

Written by Stephen Adly Guirgia, fast dialogue and lots of cursing make this story move quickly and with realism. The story has plenty of on edge moments, but also rounds out well with a good amount of funny lines and sexy scenes. The story flows smoothly and never threatens to lose audience interest. Fun twists and turns await around every corner in this witty show directed by ensemble member Anna D. Shapiro.

John Ortiz (“Jackie”) and Jimmy Smits (“Ralph D.”) put forth the dazzling performances that one would expect in a Steppenwolf production. Both are able to take command of the stage in each scene performed, as well as get good laughs from the audience. Ortiz and Smits roll with “Motherf**ker”, have fun with it and kick its ass. “Dynamite” would be the word of choice regarding both of their performances.    

Sandra Delgado, Sandra Marquez and Gary Perez round out the talented cast and each are excellent in their own right. Perez as “Cousin Julio” had some very funny scenes. The cast shows great chemistry together and the story is rich in displaying the different behaviors in humans incited by the circumstances that surround the characters – both good and bad.

The thoroughly entertaining “The Motherf**ker With The Hat” is well worth seeing and is playing through March 3^rd in the downstairs theatre of Steppenwolf (1650 N Halsted St). For tickets and/or more information on “The Motherf**ker With The Hat”, visit www.steppenwolf.org. 

The highly anticipated musical theatre production, “The Book of Mormon”, winner of nine Tony Awards, has made its way to Chicago’s Bank of America Theatre (18 W Monroe) amidst its second national tour. With a humorous story revolving around young Mormons spreading the word of “Heavenly Father” according to The Book of Mormon, the production is filled with hilarious dialogue and silly musical numbers.

Nic Rouleau, who comes directly from the Broadway production, leads the mega-talented cast as the over zealous, overly ambitious Mormon advocate, “Elder Price” , along with Ben Platt who plays his bumbling partner, “Elder Cunningham”. Price’s dream is to be sent to Orlando to spread the word, but the pair is sent to Uganda, much to his chagrin. A compulsive liar, Cunningham, stumbles his way into a “successful” mission by reinventing The Book of Mormon to the locals, outshining Price and the other existing Mormons sent by the church who have not found any success by preaching the true word of Mormons.

Keep in mind this show was written by South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, so humor that pushes boundaries should be expected. There is plenty of R-Rated cursing and, like their famous cartoon, no topic is safe from jabs. Matt Stone and Trey Parker were on hand for the opening night performance in Chicago and were greeted to a standing ovation when they took the stage following the show. “The Book of Mormon” feeds the audience with a steady stream of solid laugh material and is as funny as advertised.

Though high demand for the performance has the show sold out through March 3^rd, “The Book of Mormon” is set to run through June 2^nd. Tickets run from $45-$115 and are available through Ticketmaster retail locations or online at www.BroadwayInChicago.com.     

‘Tis the season to jump into the holiday spirit and what better way than to kick it off by taking in a holiday classic. “It’s A Wonderful Life: The Radio Play”, now playing at American Theater Company, is a charming and fun-filled way to do exactly that. In this warm hearted production, the audience is taken to a live 1940’s radio broadcast when storytelling was a much different art and form of entertainment. As crowd members file in, a pianist plays Christmas classics while the cast strolls about the stage awaiting and preparing for  their “radio performance”.

Golden-voiced announcer Chris Amos finally takes to one of the four microphones stationed across the stage and starts the show, introducing the story while plugging an advertiser on occasion just as was done during such an era. Just before the cast goes into “It’s A Wonderful Life”, he instructs the audience to clap when the applause sign light up.

The 1940’s radio set is just as imagined it would be, propped with old time microphones, furniture and other 1940’s essentials. The set also included a Foley station operated by Rhapsody Snyder, where live sound effects were made to follow every detail of the story, which was very interesting and fun to watch.

Each cast member took on multiple characters, adding a comedic element at times, especially when outstanding actor Mike Nussbaum, went directly from mean old Mr. Potter to the loveable and naïve guardian angel, Clarence. Cliff Chamberlain was dynamic as the beloved George Bailey, while Sadieh Rifal, Tony Lawry and Tyler Ravelson added very solid performances for each character they played.

Another delightful blast to yesteryear came during the story breaks when the cast participated in quirky advertisements complete with corny jingles and campy one-liners. During these breaks the cast would also read aloud Christmas greetings from audience members submitted prior to the show’s beginning.

“It’s A Wonderful Life: The Radio Play” is the perfect show for the holidays and one that can be seen multiple times if you want to share the experience with others. “It’s A Wonderful Life: The Radio Play” is playing at American Theater Company (1909 W Byron St) through December 30thand tickets are a very reasonable $35-$40. For more show information or tickets, visit www.atcweb.org or call 773-409-4125.