Hey suburbanites, listen up! The sliding doors to the backyard barely open and the patio is uneven. Plus, since human nature is the same everywhere, even beyond the city limits there are—surprise!—human problems. That’s what Lisa D’Amour‘s new play, “Detroit,” which opened at Steppenwolf Saturday, Sept. 18, is trying to tell us, though her method […]
Stephen King never wrote a musical. Probably because he can’t one-up Sweeney Todd—The Demon Barber of Fleet Street’s ability to simultaneously sicken, entertain and enthrall, as the Drury Lane Theatre’s current offering of the Stephen Sondheim classic does. An all-star ensemble cast near-flawlessly performs the stunning Sondheim score, led by Chicago native Gregg Edelman as […]
You might think that you have to go downtown to see a big spectacle musical, but thanks to the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire, there’s thrilling singing and dancing to be enjoyed right here in the suburbs. Known for its Broadway revivals, the Marriott has mounted “A Chorus Line,” which—at a reasonable two and a half […]
Ah “Godspell,” you crazy minx, you, with your rag tag group of free spirits rocking out with Jesus. Hailing from the early 1970s, which saw an uptick in rock musicals based on Bible stories, “Godspell” features a cast of twenty-somethings reenacting parables primarily taken from the Gospel of Matthew. In terms of controversy, it’s definitely […]
The 2001 movie “Shrek” is a quirky fairytale, with its story of a swamp-dwelling ogre and a homely, chubby princess who fall in love. “Shrek, the Musical,” which runs through Sept. 5 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago, tells that story in a frantic, over-amplified production, with crude humor (farting and the like) that’s […]
“The Sins of Sor Juana”, a moving drama about a defiant nun and poet highlights the fifth biennial Latino Theatre Festival at the Goodman’s Albert Theatre. So what were her sins? Perhaps the secular poems this prolific 17th century Mexican woman wrote — though she remarked that the Bible’s “Song of Songs” contained far racier […]
Alice is an aerialist, who soars above the audience. Lewis Carroll walks up the wall — yes, he really does. And characters pile out of a picnic basket like Keystone Kops. Such is the magic of this slightly mad, definitely madcap circus-like version of the classic Lewis Carroll tale about a girl who falls down […]
“Theater is a living, moving art,” says Susie McMonagle, the Evanston actress who is starring in the Chicago production of “Billy Elliot.” “It’s a collaborative work of art; that’s what I love about it,” she says. And the theater loves McMonagle right back. She is “Mum” in “Billy Elliot,” which is a great tear-jerker […]
You will never hear the blues performed better than in Northlight Theatre’s world premiere of “Low Down Dirty Blues.” We’re not talking about “Stormy Weather” or “The Man That Got Away.” Nope! “Low Down Dirty Blues” makes those mainstream songs sound like nursery rhymes. Mississippi Charles Bevel, Felicia P. Fields, Gregory Porter and Sandra Reaves-Phillips […]
The cast of Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” tear up the stage in a new production of this drama at Glencoe’s Writers’ Theatre. The performance, directed by David Cromer, is packed with raw emotion and sexual energy, but at the same time is tender, painful and even beautiful. From the minute Natasha Lowe appears […]
