Displaying items by tag: Sarah Gitenstein
Review: Memorable Show About Online World Asks: Do We Have a Right to Be Forgotten?
‘Right to Be Forgotten ' is a play for our times, in contemporary language and a production at Raven Theatre that is laser-focused on an issue of our day—the inability of the average person to remove online content about themselves that is damaging or even life-threatening.
Directed by Sarah Gitenstein from a script by Sharyn Rothstein, this Chicago premiere features minimalist sets—a simple table and chairs evokes a coffee shop; a desk makes an office—and characters that are quickly recognizable types. The stage features a surround of screens on which social media posts and Google search results are displayed, apropos of the subject: the indelible stamp made by digital records of our lives.
Hapless 17-year-old nerd Derril Lark (Adam Shalzi), who for weeks dogged his first school crush, Jamila Tyler (Eve Salinsky), was called into the principal’s office and set straight. Mending his ways thereafter, his stalking behavior was documented on the ‘High School Girl’ blog, and he soon became a symbol of stalkers despite stopping his behavior.
A decade later Darril Lark is at work on his PhD in literature, and dreaming of settling into a serious relationship. Dating through match-up apps, he meets Sarita (Kelsey Elyse Rodriguez), and the two hit it off. But very soon he divulges to Sarita that his profile carries an assumed name, for his real name is infinitely attached to the hashtag #lurkinlark. The story of his brief high school misstep was subsumed into an onslaught of posts about other heinous aggressions suffered by girls and women everywhere, along with numerous related supportive posts, all of which appear when anyone googles his real name.
The story leads us through Darril's futile attempts to have his history cleared voluntarily by the search engine giant, using their appeals process. In desperation he pleads his case to a lawyer known in the field for battling internet behemoths, Marta Lee (Susaan Jamshidi), who takes his case. The plot now turns on the legal and eventually political jousting around his case, leading us through the twists and turns of a first-rate courtroom drama.
‘Right to Be Forgotten’ is an artful exploration of the dynamics of a fraught societal issue. Threaded neatly with exposition of the subject, we learn that Europeans have the right to be forgotten, and upon request can have their histories expunged from the web. Via the clashes among lawyers, politicos, and individuals online (who are both consumers and suppliers of content) the playwright leads the audience to understand the unresolved tension in the U.S. between freedom of expression, and the right to privacy, both enshrined in the Constitution.
In some respects this script is a series of vignettes, and characters and dialog are lean and purposeful, like a web search result. While not naturalistic—we get just what we need to know, both about the characters, and for scenes to advance the action—the whole of ‘Right to Be Forgotten’ works together to conjure our empathy for individual suffering. And it ends with a satisfying, even optimistic resolution. Running through March 26 at Raven Theatre in Chicago, ‘Right to Be Forgotten’ is unforgettable, and comes highly recommended.
*Extended through April 2nd!
GDC Spring Program Eloquently Distills the Vagaries and Splendor of Life Through Dance
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‘Trial of Themistocles’ Shows Off Best of the Culture of Greece, and Chicago Jurisprudence
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A Hull Lot of Laughs: Titanique Makes Waves On Stage
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MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is Now Playing
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Disney's THE LION KING Returns to Chicago
01 April 2025 in Upcoming TheatreBy popular demand, Disney’s The Lion King will return to Chicago for the first time since 2023, where the production played a sold-out…
Review: The Listeners at Lyric Opera of Chicago
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IDENTITY PERFORMING ARTS: Spring Concert 2025 - 'Instinct' at Ann Barzel Theater (April 26-27)
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Dynamic South Chicago Dance Theatre at The Auditorium in one perf only, May 3
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Open Space Arts announces staged reading series and a powerful premiere for April through June
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Hell in a Handbag Productions' World Premiere of SCARY TOWN By Artistic Director David Cerda Directed by Cheryl Snodgrass April 9 – May 11, 2025 at The Clutch
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Definition Theatre Defines the Crisis: 'Splash Hatch on the E Going Down'
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Kokandy Productions Announces Line-Up for CHICAGO MUSICAL THEATRE FESTIVAL Returning April 3 – 6, 2025 at The Chopin Theatre
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Hive of Hilarity: Copley Theatre’s 'Spelling Bee' is a Buzzing Triumph!
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The Search for Truth Turns to War in Oil Lamp’s Outstanding ‘The Lifespan of a Fact’
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Disability-inclusive company brings Frankenstein to Chicago Shakespeare Theater
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Invictus Theatre Presents Enchanting Production of The Winter’s Tale
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Writers Theatre announces 2025/26 season
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About Face Theatre presents the return of Re/Generation Studio at The Alice at Goodman Theatre March 28-30, 2025
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Steppenwolf Theatre Presents Broadway's Kelli O'Hara - April 18 & 19, 2025
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THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA Returns to Chicago
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Marriott Theatre Continues 50th Anniversary Season with Tony Award-Winning Titanic the Musical - Opening April 16th
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Teatro La Plaza teams up with Chicago Latino Theatre Alliance for wonderful production of Hamlet at Chicago Shakespeare Theater
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Announcing CityTalk: A Series of Conversations on Assimilation, Antisemitism and Culture
14 March 2025 in Upcoming TheatreTheater Wit, in collaboration with the Crown Family Center for Jewish Studies at Northwestern and Northlight Theatre, hosts CityTalk: A Series of Conversations on Assimilation, Antisemitism…
Steppenwolf Theatre Presents THE BOOK OF GRACE - March 27 – May 18, 2025 - Chicago Premiere!
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Lyric Opera announces 2025/26 season, including major collaborations with Billy Corgan, avery r. young
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BEETLEJUICE is Now Playing Through March 16
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The Auditorium proudly presents Parsons Dance One Night Only: Saturday, April 12 at 7:30 PM
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The critically acclaimed hit production of Obliteration returns
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GDC Spring Program Eloquently Distills the Vagaries and Splendor of Life Through Dance
Written by Mitchell OldhamDance performances can often be moving events but rarely do they hold the density, breadth and depth of emotions Giordano Dance Chicago’s (GDC) Spring engagement encompassed Friday night at the Harris Theater. Part tribute, part commemoration of a milestone, and… -
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Written by Bill EslerWalking into the Harris Theater for the “Trial of Themistocles,” I was expecting something translated from ancient Greek, togas, masks, maybe a chorus, and a scholarly script that would take some work to wade through. Instead I found the latest… -
MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL is Now Playing
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A Hull Lot of Laughs: Titanique Makes Waves On Stage
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