Opera, Stages

Review: Chicago Opera Theater’s Quamino’s Map Pulls the Curtain Back on Black Life in the Georgian Era

Quamino’s Map is the 22nd opera by the Belizean-born composer Errollyn Wallen who trained at the University of London and Cambridge. The libretto is by playwright Deborah Brevoort and the […]

Kathy D. Hey /
Stages, Theater

Review: Shana Cooper’s Direction Adds Zest to All’s Well That Ends Well at Chicago Shakespeare

Helen is a bright, attractive young woman, but, sad to say, she’s not royal. So Bertram/Count of Rossillion, the man she loves for reasons not clear, scorns her. The daughter […]

Nancy S Bishop /
Comedy, Stages

Review: Glad to Have the Time Together—Carol Burnett at the Chicago Theatre

Back in 2020, comedy icon Carol Burnett was scheduled to bring her one-woman show, “An Evening of Reflection and Laughter,” to the equally iconic Chicago Theatre. Then a global pandemic […]

Doug Mose /
Stages, Theater

Review: A Taut Drama Unwinds Identity and Power in Rasheeda Speaking by Shattered Globe Theatre

Identity politics have become a big part of our everyday life. There is always a tussle over who can be called a real American. If you act a certain way, […]

Kathy D. Hey /
Stages, Theater

Review: Family Dysfunction is Comically Functional In Strawdog’s On the Greenbelt

I had to look up the Greenbelt in Boise, Idaho, to see if it was a real place—it is. There isn’t a lot written about Boise in ways that other […]

Kathy D. Hey /
Stages, Theater

Review: Moulin Rouge! The Musical Captures the Bombastic Energy and Tragic Love Story of Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 Film

Before a certain virus changed everything, I’d gotten into the enviable habit of jetting off to New York whenever a show I really, really wanted to see premiered on Broadway. […]

Lisa Trifone /
Stages, Theater

Review: A Woman’s Worth Revealed in Intimate Apparel at Northlight Theatre

Women in America have long demanded that society appreciate their worth and contributions beyond the confines of a household. Lynn Nottage’s Intimate Apparel, directed by Tasia Jones, mines the history […]

Kathy D. Hey /
Comedy, Stages, Talk show

Review: Rage Against the Cell Phone Machine With Fran Lebowitz

In the midst of war and plague, a good dose of literate snark is required. Noted curmudgeon and raconteur Fran Lebowitz visited the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, one of only […]

Karin McKie /
Dance, Stages

Preview: Joffrey Ballet to Premiere New Work Adapted from Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men

The Joffrey Ballet’s spring program will combine an iconic John Steinbeck story transformed into a modern ballet with Serenade, a classic George Balanchine ballet first performed in the 1930s. The program […]

Nancy S Bishop /
Beyond, Stages, Theater

Review: Milwaukee Rep Launches Titanic: The Musical, Its Biggest Show in History

Guest review by Anne Siegel.  In 1912, the fabled ocean liner Titanic never made it to its destination in New York City. In 2021, it seemed as though the Milwaukee […]

Anne Siegel /
Magic, Stages

Review: It’s Magic With Cocktails in Sean Masterson’s Message in a Bottle at Chicago Magic Lounge

To sit in a beautiful, bustling lounge, surrounded by plush art deco fixings and dolled-up people, while sipping a cocktail (called Smoke and Mirrors) is a luxe experience indeed. But […]

Kim Campbell /
Stages, Theater

Review: Far From Being Forgotten, Six Returns as an International Sensation

Guest review by Anne Siegel.  Make no mistake; while most of the real-life wives of Henry VIII ended their days in misery (or worse), their 21st century counterparts are wiser, […]

Anne Siegel /