Monday, 02 February 2015 00:00
Laughter on the 23rd Floor - A Smorgasbord for These Fine Character Actors!
Written by Kimberly Katz
Well, you just can’t go wrong with Neil Simon, one of the greatest Jewish playwrights of all time and a solid grouping of well trained Chicago character actors like the cast assembled at First Folio Theatre in Oakbrook. “Laughter” is based on Sid Caesar’s beloved “Your Show of Shows” where…
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Theatre in Review
White Guy on the Bus is a powerful and very well-acted drama that asks several questions about modern day racism. In this highly provocative piece by Bruce Graham, we are met with race issues and opinions based on life’s experiences coming from both sides of the fence. We see how…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 24 January 2015 18:00
Chicago Bailiwick's Princess Mary Demands Your Attention
Written by Kimberly Katz
I decided to review this wonderful new play by Aaron Holland partly because I loved the title and in spite of the mention in the PR materials saying that Holland’s inspiration were in part from Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. I’m so glad I did because this play about one…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tuesday, 27 January 2015 00:00
Tango Buenos Aires Astounds Auditorium Theater
Written by Rachel M Payne
A one-time performance by the touring Argentinian group, "Tango Buenos Aires" was as invigorating as it was eloquently graceful! Presented in the stunning, historical Auditorium Theater in Chicago's downtown, the theatre interior rivaled the beauty of the dancers. Built in 1889, and acquired by Roosevelt University some years ago, the…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 24 January 2015 00:00
Drury Lane's West Side Story an Aggressive Feast of Dancemania
Written by Ken Payne
"Breeze it, Buzz it Easy does, it Turn off the juice, boy" But the juice is not turned off in this keyed up production. If you are looking for high-energy dance numbers performed with grace and precision, powerful harmonies engulfed in beauty and emotion, a story of tragedy, hope and…
Published in
Theatre in Review
By 2015 it stands to reason that most people have seen STOMP, or at least know what it is: performers in street clothes drumming, banging, rattling, and clanging on trash cans and hubcaps and dozens of other ordinary items to make different rhythms and sounds. While the idea that "we…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 21 January 2015 18:00
New Colony’s Plastic Revolution Is Air Tight
Written by Kimberly Katz
Plastic Revolution is a funny and campy musical comedy that takes place in 1950s Kissimmee, Florida about a recently widowed suburbanite, Delores Clarke, who meets an enthusiastic and pioneering Tupperware saleswoman named Brownie Wise. Together these two gals revolutionize the sales process by introducing the concept of “Tupperware parties” as…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tuesday, 20 January 2015 00:00
Shattered Globe Reawakens Rose Tattoo at Theater Wit
Written by Rachel M Payne
An Italian love story, built over the tumultuous waters of loss, heartache and betrayal. Tennessee Williams, the legendary playwright, spins his romantic tale in the American South, in a small town of immigrant Italians, where grief and lies cannot stand in the way of new love. Originally presented in 1950 Chicago…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Monday, 19 January 2015 18:00
Accidentally, Like A Martyr Comes Up Big at A Red Orchid Theatre
Written by Ken Payne
Accidentally, Like A Martyr is a witty comedy drama now playing at A Red Orchid Theatre that packs a punch with its humor and charm but also with its intrigue. Taking place in a seedy gay bar on Manhattan's lower east side we meet a colorful group of regulars, are…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Thursday, 15 January 2015 18:00
50 Shades! The Musical Parody - Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby!
Written by Kimberly Katz
No , I haven’t read the book 50 Shades of Grey, only portions of it - while standing in the grocery store, but still I was swept up by the excitement of Broadway Playhouse’s mostly female audience who giddily lined up to see this show as if they were going…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Holidaze really is like nothing you’ve seen before, especially during the traditional Holiday season offerings like The Nutcracker. The international cast members from many countries including Italy, Mongolia, Asia, Ukraine, and Ethiopia were extremely gifted in each of their unique disciplines. The magnificent Chicago Theater was a perfect venue for…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Tuesday, 16 December 2014 18:00
The Ruffians' Burning Bluebeard A Hauntingly Rich Theatre Experience
Written by Ken Payne
Almost as funny as it is tragic (that sounds so wrong), The Ruffians’ Burning Bluebeard, currently running at Theatre Wit, is a very unique live performance that everyone should experience. Bluebeard is an ensemble piece that recreates the stage performance that took place during the famous 1903 Iroquois Theater fire…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 10 December 2014 18:00
I Love Lucy Live On Stage - Period Perfect Hilarity with Real Star Turns from Thea Brooks and Euriamis Losada as Lucy and Ricky!
Written by Kimberly Katz
Oriental Theatre - From the opening of the show when Chicago actor Ed Kross comes out and explains in a perfect 50’s TV announcer voice that we are all at a live taping of the Lucy Show back in 1952, I was captivated. Two real episodes of the show were…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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'Blue' Holds Mirror to Race in America
Written by Betsy SchmittWhen Francesca Zambello, director of The Glimmerglass Festival, commissioned an opera about race in America, the country was reeling from a spate of police shootings of young African-American men in Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, and South Carolina. By the time the… -
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Written by Kimberly KatzI thoroughly enjoyed Drury Lane's enchanting stage production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid from start to finish. While few are overly familiar with Hans Christian Andersen’s original, darker tale of ill-fated romance, the Disney animated film and this stage adaptation,…
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