Tom Williams

Tom Williams founded ChicagoCritic.com in 2001 and spent decades reviewing theatre and live performance across Chicago and its suburbs, from Broadway tours and major institutions to storefront theatre, opera, cabaret and classical music. In 2010, the Society of Midland Authors honored him with the James Friend Memorial Award for Literary and Dramatic Criticism (our 2010 announcement). Concord Theatricals quotes his reviews on its licensing pages for shows including Crazy for You and City of Angels.

MAME at Light Opera Works

September 15, 2017August 21, 2016 by Tom Williams

The creatives at Light Opera Works, under the determined direction from Rudy Hogenmiller, have mounted a fabulous production of the1966 Broadway musical Mame, the show that necessitates a lady who can do comedy, act, sing and dance- a rarity in a middle aged performer. Rosalind Russell in 1957 in the comedy Auntie Mame , Angela Lansbury in 1966 Broadway musical, Lucille Ball in 1974 in the movie version of Mame. That character is one of the most charmingly lovable, vivid and endearing characters to grace the stage. Finding all the attributes in one person is difficult leading to few productions of Mame onstage.. My best guess is that Mame was last mounted in Chicago at Marriott Theatre in 2001.

TORUK — The First Flight

October 22, 2022August 4, 2016 by Tom Williams

To me the story was secondary to the energetic scenes played out by a large cast of acrobats, gymnasts and tumblers. This show features loud techno music vivid lighting and mind-blowing sets and extreme puppets. The emphasis on how the story is told trumps (sorry) the story. At just under two hours, it works Especially for those into Avatar the film. The audience seemed to enjoy the spectacle more than I did. All the running, tumbling and climbing together the ear-splitting music wore thin with me. But this show is “critic-proof” since the large following of Avatar will love this show.

Newsies 2016 National Tour

September 11, 2017July 30, 2016 by Tom Williams

Newsies delivers enough sheer energy with an adventurous story that depicts a worthy moral. This exciting show is filled with heart, empathetic characters as the boys win a round in quest of their place in the scheme of life in turn-of-the-Century New York. Newsies is a fine show filled with enough joy and energy to light up our holidays. It is much better than the film. Hurry, you have only until August 7th to see this fun show.

C. S. Lewis onstage The Most Reluctant Convert

October 23, 2022July 28, 2016 by Tom Williams

Concepts such as the above are effectively explained by McLean during this 80 minute one-act solo show. This show is for fans of C. S. Lewis, for those who enjoy a “thinking-person’s” play, and for anyone who enjoys a tour de force performance. Actors need to see Max McLean to learn how to make subtle and complex material by an academic sizzle on stage. McLean delivers in C. S. Lewis onstage The Most Reluctant Convert without being ‘preachy.’

War Paint

July 24, 2016July 22, 2016 by Tom Williams

But, I did have some problems with the bland, too-specific “talk-songs” that dominated this show. The dialogue was underwritten making the show depend on the “sound-all-alike” songs far two much. After three or four talk songs, my ear only heard the same sound alike songs. I’d advise more dialogue and less singing plot twists. The power ballads and anthems by the leads are terrific but those talk songs are repetitious and annoying. Here less is more. One of my friends suggested that War Paint needs to be refocused as a play with music with drama intermixed with those strong power numbers so expertly delivered by Lu Pone and Ebersole.

Chops

October 22, 2022July 17, 2016 by Tom Williams

Chops is a winner on many levels. It is a nostalgic remembrance of the Rush Street night club era as well as a clever con plot to gain cash. The Randy Steinmeyer and Daniel Patrick Sullivan have terrific stage rivalry with Larry Neumann, Jr. contributing passive stability. These outstanding actors under Richard Shavzin’s tight direction make this 88 minute one-act zing along. You’ll be engrossed into the world of jazz and conmen as the glimpse into a lost era finds these guys trapped into to who they are. This show is a treat.

Operetta In Exile 2016

October 22, 2022July 13, 2016 by Tom Williams

Operetta in Exile begins with six songs from Die Blume von Hawaii, a 1931 collaboration between three Jewish artists, Paul Abraham, Alfred Grunwald, and Fritz Lohner-Beda. The story is typical of what defines an operetta: it is light-hearted, uses stock characters, and a formulaic plot. However, between the songs we learn about Abraham’s persecution at the hands of the Nazis.

Eroica

July 24, 2016July 13, 2016 by Tom Williams

Alex’s Eroica is a 75 minute morality play about secrets and hypocrisy. Victor (Felipe Carrasco) is the popular 20something basketball coach at the town’s local high school. He has a medical deferment from the draft, but he is a pro-war patriot. His wife Sally (Sara Pavlak McGuire) is a super-patriot who lost her father before she was born to WWII and now has her brother MIA in Vietnam. She laments that Victor can’t serve. Why?

Between Riverside and Crazy

October 22, 2022July 11, 2016 by Tom Williams

Add the wonderful, two-level apartment set (designed by Collette Pollard) based on the look and feel of playwright Guirgis’ Manhattan apartment and the set becomes a character in the play! Riverside is filled with several monologues that are full of social commentary. Quotes like this one from Lulu: “I may look how I look, but that don’t mean I am how I look” add rich insights and honest humor and some sex.

Without giving away more, Between Riverside and Crazy is a master work, a terrific night of theatre as well as a timely honest look at racial issues especially dealing with cops. We see Eamonn Walker as the Battalion Chief on the TV series Chicago Fire-now see Walker in a fabulous live turn as the flawed ex-cop. Between Riverside and Crazy is one of the best plays of 2016, don’t miss it.

The Cousin from Nowhere 2016

October 22, 2022July 9, 2016 by Tom Williams

One of the joys at this operetta is in the fabulous 22 member orchestra, conducted by Anthony Barrese that sounded magnificent! The cast of classically trained singers projected and enunciate expertly despite no amplification. The cast has professional singers from both the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Chicago Symphony Choruses. I was particularly impressed by the skilled comic chops from Nicholas Pulikowski who carried the lead with immense empathy. He gave one of the strongest performances seen on a Chicago stage this year!