Saturday, 19 January 2019 19:44
Noises Off Is a Hilariously Funny Take on a Play That Goes Wrong
Written by Bill Esler
Backstage comedies and dramas are a beloved genre – David Mamet’s Main Street, Ronald Harwood’s The Dresser, Noel Coward’s Present Laughter, Mel Brooks The Producers– known for sending up actors, directors, and show business. Michael Frayn’s Noises Off – the phrase is basically British for “Quiet on the Set” -…
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Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 16 January 2019 07:39
Brendan Coyle nothing short of perfection in Goodman's 'St. Nicholas'
Written by Ken Payne
Brendan Coyle is no Mr. Bates when it comes to his latest stage endeavor. Instead, the Olivier Award-winning actor, best known for his role on Downton Abbey as the likeable, mild-mannered, ever so loyal valet to Lord Crawley – Mr. Bates, takes on a persona far removed from what most…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 14 January 2019 23:43
Fuente Ovejuna: a #MeToo Event in 15th Century Spain. Even More Remarkable? It Really Happened
Written by Bill Esler
An alluring play with a less familiar name - Fuente Ovejuna – is delivering a startlingly great moment of theater. Written in 1619 by Lope de Vega – the prolific writer who is considered the foremost playwright of Spain’s golden age - it is based on a true story that…
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Theatre in Review
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Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:48
Making the Old New Again: 'The Lightning Thief' at the Oriental Theatre
Written by CJ Burroughs
Despite being both a writer and a fanboy of books aimed at readers much younger than I’ve been for what seems like millennia, I never got around to Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. Maybe I thought it was a knockoff of the, at the time, immensely popular…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 29 December 2018 01:52
La Ruta Inspires Us with the Valiance of Families Facing the Unthinkable
Written by Bill Esler
La Ruta accomplishes an impossible feat: drawing a luminous theater experience from a horrific factual account. This premier at the Steppenwolf tells the tale of the scores of young women who have been kidnapped and murdered near Juarez over several decades. And yet, it is an uplifting and inspiring show. …
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Theatre in Review
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Sunday, 23 December 2018 21:21
It Takes a Village: 'Fiddler on the Roof' at the Cadillac Palace Theatre
Written by CJ Burroughs
The above phrase has become a regular one spoken in my home and in the homes of friends in the village of Skokie, first as an inside joke and now as a communal mantra. A mantra of togetherness. A mantra of character. A mantra of love. That same mantra kept…
Published in
Theatre in Review
It is that time of year again to ring in the daze of the Holiday season with some Cirque Du Soleil Holidaze at the Chicago Theatre (175 N. State St), December 14th -16th. Holidaze is a two-hour spectacular, brightly lit and sparkling holiday themed show that encourages audience members and…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 17 December 2018 02:58
Good Tidings They Bring: CTT charms at North Shore Center for the Performing Arts
Written by Kendall Royzen
The holidays bring many traditions for different people. Some rewatch home alone, some bake cookies, some see Christmas lights, and some watch The Nutcracker with family. To me, it isn’t Christmas until I've seen the ballet at least five times. I've always loved the ballet, especially around the holidays. But…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 16 December 2018 00:33
Theo Ubique Delivers The Full Monty in Its Wonderful new Cabaret Theater
Written by Bill Esler
Theo Ubique Cabaret Theater has kicked-off the opening of its tailor-built home, with a very good production of The Full Monty – a Broadway musical adapted by Terrence McNally and David Yazbeck from a well-regarded 1997 British film. The troupe was crammed into the heartland Café and No Exit bar…
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Theatre in Review
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Monday, 10 December 2018 18:38
A Spot of Tea and a World of Wonder — Chicago Children’s Theatre Does 'Beatrix Potter'
Written by CJ Burroughs
I’ve gotta admit — as my six-year-old daughter and I entered the Chicago Children’s Theatre’s main stage and took our seats, one of us wasn’t having any of it. One of us, of course, remembered the enchanting play we’d taken in there earlier this year, and could not stop talking…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 08 December 2018 18:27
Review: 'The Santaland Diaries' at Goodman Theatre
Written by John Accrocco
What kind of holiday season would it be without ‘The Santaland Diaries’? Old Chicagoans will remember the iconic poster art for the Theatre Building’s production that ran for years at Theatre Wit. This year the gang at Theatre Wit and their usual elf Crumpit played by Mitchell Fain opted not…
Published in
Theatre in Review
In the time I’ve been reviewing theater for this revered publication, I’ve often found myself quietly judging minutiae that’s occurred in productions that coincidentally share personal interests or obsessions of mine. While watching wonderful takes on the Buddy Holly Story or Roger Miller’s Broadway show, Big River, I’ve had to…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 08 December 2018 09:28
Keep It On The Shelf; pass on The Book of Merman
Written by Kendall Royzen
Has anyone ever knocked on your door trying to sell you something? Magazines? Cookies? What about religion? No? Me neither. A new Chicago musical-comedy utilizes a familiar character-driven plot line of two Mormon missionaries knocking on doors, only to discover a new friendship, and themselves along the way. It’s not…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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