Review: RIP World Premiere in Milwaukee Takes Gallows Humor to Extreme
If you agree that the only certainties in life are death and taxes, you could say that the world premiere of RIP—A Musical Comedy of Life & Death is certainly […]
On the Road: Letter from New York—Culture Hopping in the City of Islands
“I’m in a New York state of mind”–Billy Joel New York is a city of islands or near-islands. In all, there are more than three dozen of them, inhabited and […]
Review: American Blues Theater’s The Last Wide Open Is a Charming Romantic Comedy
“You know what I wish? Just once for my life to be like the movies.” Lina and Mikołaj sit on the ground of the Polish diner where they both work. […]
Review: Romeo and Juliet Simmers With Young Love and Tragedy in Midsommer Flight’s Theater in the Park
Is there anything as lovely as theater in the park on a warm summer evening? That’s the concept behind Midsommer Flight’s annual summer series of Shakespeare in the park. This […]
Review: Otherworld Theatre Tackles Problems of Parentage and Demigodly Puberty in The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical
The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical made its Broadway debut in 2017 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre and went on a national tour in 2019. The show’s source material, […]
Review: Theatre L’Acadie’s The Swan Is a Surreal Concoction of Magical Realism and Mythology
Theatre L’Acadie describes The Swan as a psychosexual fever dream. It is that, but there is more simmering beneath the murky surface. Playwright Elizabeth Egloff’s play takes place in Nebraska […]
Review: Raw and Emotional Hedwig and the Angry Inch at Haven Chicago
This is a love letter. To Stephen Trask’s brilliant music and lyrics and John Cameron Mitchell’s searing wit. To one of the best musicals to ever come out of New […]
Review: Goodman Theatre’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil Needs Pruning
The new and eagerly awaited production of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil at Goodman Theatre fails to present a unified story and collapses under its own weight […]
Preview: The Underground Society for Music Portrays a World Where Music Is Banned
“The Underground Society for Music is a play with music about a group of musicians fighting to keep their artform alive. In spite of constant threats from government actors to stop […]
Review: Laurie Metcalf Stars in Little Bear Ridge Road, a Powerful Comedy-Drama With Some Things To Say
In Chicago theater, the return of a great—not to mention famous—ensemble actor to the Steppenwolf Theatre Company is an event exciting enough to register on the Richter scale. Particularly when […]
Review: Purple Onyx Productions Celebrates Prince’s Purple Rain at Funky 40
Next week is the 40th anniversary of the date that Prince’s album, Purple Rain, hit the airwaves; the film appeared in movie theaters a month later. I did not have […]
Review: Black Ensemble Theater Gives the People What They Want in The Salon
Black Ensemble Theater (BET) has been a mainstay of Black theater for almost 50 years. That takes grit which is a step above determination. It takes vision, talent, and fearlessness—the […]