By Arthur Miller Directed by Louis Contey Produced by Timeline Theatre Company, Chicago A Lifetime of Self-Deception Unravels In The Wild Duck, Ibsen called it the “life-lie.” In The Iceman Cometh, O’Neill called it a “pipe-dream.” In The Price, Arthur Miller doesn’t have a specific term for the self-deception people practice to convince themselves they’re … Read more
Now extended by popular demand through November 1, 2015 Created by Richard Maltby, Jr. Conceived by William Meade Directed by Brian Russell Musical Direction by Malcolm Ruhl At the Mercury Theatre Chicago Revise, refined yet still a crowd pleaser –Ring of Fire – The Music of Johnny Cash delights My third visit to Ring of … Read more
By Beth Henley Directed by Joe Jahraus At Profiles Main Stage Theatre, Chicago Wacky characters in dark humor and reckless situations inhabit seedy Southern hotel Profiles Theatre loves to find weird, seedy, and violent plays. Their latest, The Jacksonian, by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Beth Henley (for 1979 Crimes of the Heart) is a confusing, underwritten, … Read more
Book by Aaron Thielen Music and Lyrics by Michael Mahler Directed by Rachel Rockwell Music Direction by Ryan T. Nelson Produced by The Marriott Theatre, Lincolnshire In Association with Universal Stage Productions A Heart-Warming Story about Intellectual Pursuits Even had Rachel Rockwell not recently directed Billy Elliot at Drury Lane, it would be impossible not … Read more
By Patrick Marber Adapted from August Strindberg Directed by Elly Green Produced by Strawdog Theatre Company, Chicago The Battle of the Brains Comes to Britain Listen to my interview with Elly Green Producing Patrick Marber’s After Miss Julie is to adapt an adaptation. Marber took August Strindberg’s landmark 1888 drama about a then-contemporary Swedish count’s … Read more
Adapted and Directed by Zachary Baker-Salmon Produced by Oracle Theatre, Chicago, In association with Theater on the Lake Teaching History to the Choir From Oracle, the theatre company that recently brought us The Jungle among other highly enjoyable examples of Epic Theatre, comes this latest documentary drama using found text. This House Believes… is a … Read more
Written by Joan M. Schenkar Directed by Emily Lotspeich Produced by Trap Door Theatre Derrida Doesn’t Always Make Things Better Joan M. Schenkar’s The Universal Wolf was written in 1996, when Judith Butler was making French deconstructionism the rage in feminist studies. Perhaps that’s why Monseuir Wolf (Antonio Brunetti) and the narrators (Mary-Kate Arnold and … Read more
A Theatrical Investigation By Hillel Levin Directed by Kevin Christopher Fox Based on Interviews with Zechariah Shelton At the Museum of Broadcast Communications, Chicago Extremely thorough and exhausting investigation makes the case against the Chicago Mob’s involvement in the Kennedy Assassination After many self-serving films (by Oliver Stone) and countless books, my generation is burned … Read more
By Eleanor Bergstein Directed by James Powell Musical Supervision and Orchestrations by Conrad Helfrich Choreography by Michele Lynch Original Choreography by Kate Champion Produced by Broadway in Chicago Playing at the Cadillac Palace Theatre A Rousing Good Time With Top Talent Dirty Dancing—the Classic Story Onstage has been touring since 2004, leaving a trail of … Read more
By Peter Ackerman Directed by William Brown Produced by Windy City Playhouse A Very 90s Sex Comedy The new Windy City Playhouse, now in the third show of its inaugural season, has drawn attention to itself for its swanky, comfortable, nightclub atmosphere. With its swiveling armchairs, end tables for drinks, and handsome lobby, the casual … Read more