Review: Five Presidents, a Great Premise Brought Down by Stilted Acting

It was a historic occasion when George H. W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton all came together for Richard “Tricky Dick” Nixon’s 1994 funeral. We’ll […]

James Brod /

Review: Blair Witch is Tedious and Not Scary

When The Blair Witch Project came out in 1999 it was a phenomenon, spawning a huge cut following and practically inventing a new type of horror film—the found footage horror. […]

Antal Bokor /

Review: Devil’s Hunt: Aw, Hell No

Way back in the day, somewhere on the internet, I came across a list of things that made someone “badass.” It was filled with mostly ridiculous, hyper-masculine achievements—stuff like “fought […]

Antal Bokor /

Bach’s Mass in b-minor Got Audience Hosannas at Music of the Baroque Season Opener

The Mass in b-minor is often described as Johann Sebastian Bach’s valedictory masterpiece. It certainly received a masterly treatment by the Music of the Baroque Chorus and Orchestra, whose season-opening […]

Bob Benenson /

Review: Joe Pug Returns to Chicago with The Flood in Color at the Hideout

If he didn’t have family back east, Joe Pug would live with us in the Windy City. “They’re fucking up shit in the rest of the country. Chicago’s still got […]

Matthew Nerber /

Review: Sugar Candy Mountain Mesmerizes at Beat Kitchen

These days, psychedelia has crept back into music like it never left the ‘60s and ‘70s. We have Tame Impala playing arenas. We have Drugdealer sounding best on vinyl. We […]

Sarah Brooks /

Riot Fest 2019: Day 2 in Review

My second day at Riot Fest was another one of firsts—first time that I used the port-o-potty at the festival, first time I rode a divvy bike into oncoming traffic, […]

Matthew Nerber /
Tiny Beautiful Things

Review: Words of Wisdom Shine in Victory Gardens’ Tiny Beautiful Things

If you need an actor to carry your show on her shoulders, might I recommend the talents of one Janet Ulrich Brooks? Last year, she dominated Timeline Theatre’s Master Class as opera […]

Lisa Trifone /

Riot Fest 2019: Day 1 in Review

I’ll get this out of the way up front. I’m a Riot Fest virgin. In fact I have only been to one festival in my life, when I covered Pitchfork […]

Matthew Nerber /
Lit,

Review: Ensemble, Mark Larson’s Oral History, Brings Chicago’s Theater Past Alive

Ensemble: An Oral History of Chicago Theater is a book you can enjoy in two ways. You can read it from beginning to end, as you would any narrative of […]

Nancy S Bishop /

Review: Gears 5 is a High Point for the Series

Gears of War is a series famous for its roided-out protagonists, and infamous for its extreme violence. Gears 5 is definitely a high for the series, with an expansive campaign, […]

James Brod /

Review: Control’s Creative Visuals and Genre Nods Make a Trippy but Solid Shooter

Control is a game that enjoyed some early good buzz and review scores—it was probably the most popular video game released in August. When Control was originally announced, the trailer […]

Antal Bokor /