Sunday, 21 June 2026 13:48
Couch Penny Ensemble’s An Oak Tree: A Raw, Unrehearsed Descent Into Grief
Written by Angelo Campos
Couch Penny Ensemble, in association with Theatre Arcana, presents the ambitious and experimental An Oak Tree, a raw, unconventional approach to theater that is sure to spark conversations on the nature of grief and the experience itself. In writing An Oak Tree, playwright Tim Crouch wanted to replicate the disorienting…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 18 June 2026 14:33
Champions of Magic Captures the Thrill of Live Performance
Written by Maddie Burroughs
One of the things I have always thought that concerts and other live events had over theatre is the energy of the crowd afterward. While people certainly leave plays and musicals moved, impressed, or deep in conversation, there is often a certain reserve to the way theatre audiences spill out…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Lookingglass Theatre Company continues its tradition of staging visually inventive and thought-provoking world premieres with its latest production, Untitled Vampire Play. Written by Lookingglass Ensemble Member Kevin Douglas - who has previously crafted well-received work for the company, including Thaddeus and Slocum: A Vaudeville Adventure - this comedy-drama uses supernatural…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Friday, 19 June 2026 10:25
Tom Stoppard’s epic finale Leopoldstadt is an instant classic at Writers Theatre
Written by John Accrocco
What would you do if you found out your heritage wasn’t what you thought it was? In Tom Stoppard’s case, he wrote a sweeping, epic play about it. Glencoe’s Writers Theatre brings Leopoldstadt to the Chicago area for the first time since its West End and Broadway runs in the…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 18 June 2026 13:24
Nunsense, Not Quite Immaculate - But Blessed With a Strong Cast
Written by Angelo Campos
Following its recent winter production of Sister Act, Drury Lane Theatre returns to the convent with Nunsense, a light-hearted musical comedy which, as the title implies, is a lot of nonsense. The premise is funny, albeit morbid. After an unfortunate mishap, 52 members of the Little Sisters of Hoboken die…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 15 June 2026 23:10
Funny, Incisive 'Southern Rapture' Skewers All Parties in 'Angels in America' Fracas
Written by Bill Esler
“Southern Rapture” quickly elicits loud guffaws from the audience, a heartening circumstancve, as it means playwright Eric Coble’s script is doing its job. Billed as a satire, it recounts the tumultuous week in real life leading up to the 1996 opening night of Tony Kushner's celebrated AIDS play, “Angels in…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 15 June 2026 13:48
Where Identity Slides: Steppenwolf’s Mesmerizing Catch as Catch Can
Written by Ken Payne
Mia Chung’s Catch as Catch Can, which premiered with Page 73 in New York in 2018, arrives at Steppenwolf Theatre - one of Chicago’s most dynamic and daring artistic institutions - with a production that immediately embraces the play’s slippery, shape-shifting nature. Chung’s script thrives on emotional volatility and fractured…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Saturday, 13 June 2026 14:25
Factory Theater’s Two Out of Three Falls is a Theatrical Event
Written by Lauren Katz
Those familiar with the Factory Theater space might feel themselves do a double take upon entering the theater for Two Out of Three Falls. Scenic Designer Manuel Ortiz completely transforms the space. The three-quarter thrust stage that has been there for years is gone – replaced by a wrestling ring…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 13 June 2026 22:43
Bargatze’s Big Dumb Eyes Tour Lands in Rosemont With Subtle Force
Written by Ken Payne
Nate Bargatze’s Big Dumb Eyes tour made its stop at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont with the steady, understated presence that has become central to his appeal. Bargatze continues to draw humor from the small missteps and everyday confusions that shape his storytelling, easing the audience into his rhythm rather…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Saturday, 13 June 2026 20:12
BrightSide’s intimate staging of The Producers shines with Broadway-sized power
Written by Kimberly Katz
BrightSide Theatre’s The Producers storms into Meiley Swallow Hall with the kind of swagger only Mel Brooks can inspire: brash, brazen, and blissfully unconcerned with good taste. From the moment the lights rise, the show charges ahead with a manic momentum that feels both affectionately old school and sharply self-aware.…
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Theatre in Review
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Monday, 08 June 2026 12:49
Guest’s New Andy Warhol Play A Study in Primo Theater
Written by Mitchell Oldham
When Terry Guest left Atlanta and arrived in Chicago ten years or so ago, a bracing reality check caused the young actor to make a bold pivot. Three years of auditions and zero bites on the acting front, he turned himself into a playwright and used a deceased uncle as…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 07 June 2026 14:37
Intimate and Unflinching: The Last Five Years at Oil Lamp Theater
Written by Angelo Campos
When Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years premiered at Chicago’s Northlight Theatre in 2001, it flipped the traditional rom-com musical blueprint on its head. Off came the rose-colored glasses, and what was presented was an intimate, searing, and structurally unique take on the modern relationship, inspired by Brown’s own…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Some stories refuse to fade with time, and Brokeback Mountain is one of them. What began as a modest short story by Annie Proulx in The New Yorker in 1997 grew into an award-winning literary work, an acclaimed film, and now a deeply moving stage adaptation by Ashley Robinson at…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Standing Room Only Crowd for Chicago’s Leading Theater Artistic Directors
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