Marnie & Phil: A Circus Love Letter Melds Circus with Theater
The Actors Gymnasium has always made a point of adding theater and music to their circus productions, long before contemporary circus made it a trend. But in Marnie & […]
Sister Act Gets The Marriott Theatre Dancing
It’s always interesting to see productions in the round at the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire. Set design must be creative and lightweight, and the actors’ movements on the square stage […]
Tympanic’s “Blueberry Toast” Finds Itself Having To Scrape Off Its Burnt Edges
If you had a sinking suspicion that, hey, maybe Tympanic Theatre Company’s Blueberry Toast is not about fruity breads and Eggo waffles and a celebration of domestic bliss over an […]
The Flick at Steppenwolf: Reel Love Becomes Real Life in a Rundown Movie Theater
Annie Baker’s Pulitzer-winning script for The Flick, newly opened at Steppenwolf Theatre, gives us a chance to get to know three people, underpaid workers in a movie theater in Worcester […]
All the World’s a Stage is Emotional and Entertaining
It’s difficult to turn your life– and your pain– into art. Too often it ends up being therapy– good for you, but not necessarily good for the audience. But All […]
Pop Waits: It’s Punk Raucous Mixed with Melancholy
Pop Waits, the Neo-Futurists’ new production, directed by Halena Kays, is a punk rock operetta with some sweet and sad moments. Created by Malic White and Molly Brennan, Pop […]
Refuge Theatre Project’s High Fidelity Reclaims a Chicago Classic
Refuge Theatre Project, the no frills, contemporary music theater group that brought you Next Thing You Know and Glory Days in 2015, is starting off 2016 with a run of High […]
Porchlight’s “Far From Heaven” Takes Their Musical Theater Fare Shaken, Not Stoic
How do you take a cloyingly overused plot line and make it feel less decayed, more relevant, and, above all, interesting? That’s what Porchlight Music Theatre’s Far From Heaven attempts […]
Eclectic Full Contact Theatre’s Overworked Shape of Things
The first time I saw Neil LaBute’s The Shape of Things was at my small Midwestern liberal arts college, the same setting as the play itself. Afterwards, my friends and […]
One More Chance to see Jackie Chan’s Kung Fu Troupe Perform
Nine years ago Jackie Chan handpicked 11 young men in China who showed promise as martial artists and trained them in a variety of disciplines, including kung fu, dance and […]
Hypocrites Remount Tennessee Williams’ Memory Play, The Glass Menagerie
Hans Fleischmann developed a distinctive poetic vision for his production of Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie, which ran for about six months in 2013 at Mary-Arrchie Theatre and then at […]
Joffrey Ballet Brings Boldness to Winter Program
The Joffrey Ballet is adopting a contemporary flair for its winter engagement. The show, Bold Moves, takes place at the Auditorium Theatre and features three contemporary ballets, anchored by the […]