Sunday, 08 February 2026 15:29
Black and Highly Flavored Ignites Second City’s UP: A Joyride of Wit, Warmth, and Wild Energy
Written by Maddie Burroughs
As a longtime comedy fan, seeing a show at Second City has been on my bucket list for years, so when the opportunity to attend Black and Highly Flavored came up, I jumped at it. That excitement, however, was paired with some hesitation: I questioned whether I was the right…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 08 February 2026 11:08
Trial in the Delta: Bearing Witness in Collaboraction’s New House of Belonging
Written by Wesley David
Collaboraction Theatre Company could not have chosen a more resonant inaugural production for its new House of Belonging than Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till. In this sleek, in-the-round studio in Humboldt Park, the company inaugurates its new home by opening an old wound—one that America has…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
- Trial in the Delta: The Murder of Emmett Till
- House of Belonging
- Collaboraction Theatre Company
- G Riley Mills
- Anthony Moseley
- Dana N Anderson
- Roy Bryant
- JW Milam
- NK Gutiérrez
- Darren Jones
- Mysun Aja Wade
- Donald Fitzdarryl
- Jim Crow
- Richard Alan Baiker
- Tyler Burke
- Matt Miles
- Emmy Weldon
- Mamie TillBradley
- Judge Curtis Swango
- Trial in the Delta
- Mickey Dolan
- John Henry Roberts
- theatre
- Chicago
Friday, 06 February 2026 17:32
Drury Lane's On Your Feet! A Rhythm-Fueled Night in Oakbrook
Written by Kimberly Katz
Drury Lane’s On Your Feet! The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan opens with a confident, inviting energy that immediately sets the tone for the evening. The production draws the audience into its momentum with ease, creating a lively atmosphere without ever feeling over the top. It’s an engaging, high‑spirited…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tuesday, 03 February 2026 10:53
COSI FAN TUTTE or ‘Thus Do They All’ - In other words: ‘Wimmin are like dat’
Sarz Maxwell
COSI FAN TUTTE translates loosely as ‘Thus Do They All’, referring to the inconstancy – fickleness, even infidelity – of women. ALL women. The opera, composed by Mozart with libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, begins with two infatuated men, Ferrando (Anthony Leon) and Guglielmo (Ian Rucker) extolling the virtues of…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 01 February 2026 14:23
Matters of the Heart: Patti LuPone’s Evening of Memory, Mischief, and Grace
Written by Wesley David
Patti LuPone’s long-running concert piece Matters of the Heart unfolded on the stage of the National Historic Landmark The Auditorium Theatre not as a greatest-hits parade, but as a seasoned artist’s intimate conversation with her own past. Premiering some 25 years ago at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater in New…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 31 January 2026 14:23
Chaos Checked In: Unnecessary Farce Brings Down the House at The MAC
Written by Kimberly Katz
Paul Slade Smith’s Unnecessary Farce - a 2006 comic whirlwind that is fast becoming a modern staple of the genre - lands with full force in Buffalo Theatre Ensemble’s lively production at The McAninch Arts Center in Glen Ellyn. The show is a reminder of how exhilarating a well‑constructed farce…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Friday, 30 January 2026 11:26
Little Shop of Horrors at Marriott Theatre: Somewhere That’s Green
Written by CJ Burroughs
Back in simpler times, what seems like decades ago, during a global pandemic, I remember watching an NPR Tiny Desk Concert featuring the Broadway cast of Little Shop of Horrors. In the middle of the string of incredible songs from the show, the songs’ composer Alan Menken sat down at…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 29 January 2026 11:23
Broadway in Chicago’s Stereophonic is Full of High-Stakes Drama and Emotional Performances
Written by Lauren Katz
“There’s a fine line between compromise and losing yourself.” So many of us have that story of a favorite band. A group brought together by a shared passion and realizes they have that special something that can make them huge. So often that passion takes a dramatic turn, and the…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 28 January 2026 16:52
Beautifully Performed, This Outrageous 'Salome' Made Musical History
Written by Bill Esler
“Salome” is an opera with an amazing backstory, and comes to us at the Lyric Opera with a content advisory (“adult themes, brief nudity, and disturbing imagery”), especially novel considering this work was first mounted in 1905. No wonder, given the beheading and necrophilic kiss that are at the center…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
More...
Monday, 26 January 2026 12:28
My Life As a Cowboy at Open Space Arts: A Yeehaw-Fueled Joyride
Sarz Maxwell
I WANNA BE A COWBOY is a song by Boys Don’t Cry (lovin’ that band name!). MY LIFE AS A COWBOY is a play by Hugo Timbrell playing its American premiere at Open Space Arts Theatre. Yippee yo ky yay! and similar assertions of glee and approval! Art is intersectional, and…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 22 January 2026 18:37
Timeline Theatre’s Biting Production of EUREKA DAY Astounds and Intrigues
Written by Lauren Katz
Let’s face it – in today’s world, “vaccinations” are a hot-button topic. More than ever, anything around health has become highly politicized, and for some, can elicit a deeply emotional reaction. Therefore, consensus is even harder to come by, and for some, even entering the debate feels impossible. Despite all…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 10 January 2026 13:21
Echoes in the Opera House: BrightSide's 'Phantom' A Concert Triumph
Written by Kimberly Katz
As a lifelong Phantom of the Opera devotee in every form it takes, I was genuinely delighted to see BrightSide Theatre tackling Phantom in Concert. As the title promises, this version reimagines Gaston Leroux’s classic novel as a sweeping musical experience. With actors reading from scripts accompanied by a full…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 15 December 2025 11:24
Review: Couch Penny Ensemble's 'Everybody' at Greenhouse Theater Center
Written by Maddie Burroughs
A quick disclaimer for this review: Couch Penny Ensemble's Everybody, by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, is written with a caveat for anyone who dares to perform it. At the start of each performance, the actors are randomly assigned their roles by lottery, creating 120 possible cast combinations. In other words, the Everybody I…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Register
Login
Latest Articles
-
Standing Room Only Crowd for Chicago’s Leading Theater Artistic Directors
Written by Bill EslerIt must have been heavenly for the creative leaders of Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare and Court, Chicago’s top regional theaters, to be greeted by a standing room only crowd. But there they were, on a panel moderated by the eminent… -
The Best of Us: Marriott Theatre’s Come From Away
Written by Kimberly KatzCome From Away begins from a place of deep uncertainty, yet what emerges is a story grounded in the steady, everyday kindness people offer when they have nothing else to give. Rather than revisiting the events of September 11 themselves,… -
Steppenwolf Theatre Presents Revival of TOPDOG/UNDERDOG September 17 – November 1 / Rehearsals Underway
Written by Buzz Center StageSteppenwolf Theatre Company, the nation's premier ensemble theater company, is pleased to launch its 51st Season with Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Topdog/Underdog, helmed by Tony Award-winning director Kenny Leon, who returns to Steppenwolf following his hit production of King James. Ensemble members Glenn Davis (Windfall, Purpose–Chicago/Broadway, King James) and Namir Smallwood (Windfall, The Book of… -
Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project Gala: Radiant & Sumptuous at the Harris
Written by Mitchell OldhamThe first thing you notice about the meticulously curated Black dance performance held at the Harris Theater over the weekend is language. The eloquence and weight of the words used to explain why the Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project (CBDLP)…
Does your theatre company want to connect with Buzz Center Stage or would you like to reach out and say "hello"? Message us through facebook or shoot us an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
*This disclaimer informs readers that the views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to Buzz Center Stage. Buzz Center Stage is a non-profit, volunteer-based platform that enables, and encourages, staff members to post their own honest thoughts on a particular production.