The setting, first in a prison, then in gangland LA is vividly depicted (fine set by Kevin Depinet with lighting by Jesse Klug). The Oedipus myth that finds the son killing his father and marrying his mother (all while being unaware of what he has done) is wonderfully staged and well acted.
Kudos to the newly formed Chicago Commercial Collective for remounting A Steady Rain. The Collective is dedicated to remounting shows that closed too soon. They are badly need here since many a hit show was forced to close too soon. Welcome! Police Superintendent Gary McCarthy should see this show then he’ll want all his supervisors to see it so they can become more aware of rogue cops.
When Chicagoan Yolanda (the terrific Marketta P. Wilder) is sent down South after her brother is gunned down, she finds strength from the tales of the five wise women who surround her. The power of learning old-time rituals symbolized by the pride in their hats eventually dazzles Yolanda
“Toska” -its nostalgia for dreamed life- of a life that never was nor ever will be. Three Sisters is about a certain kind of paralysis that finds the characters visualizing a future happy life that keeps them immobilized in the here and now.
They’ve done it again! The Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s production of Beauty and the Beast enchants the audience just as effectively as the old woman enchants the tale’s hero. These CST Family Productions never disappoi
Julie Ganey’s 60 minute solo piece takes an up close and personal look at being an urban living advocate who finds Chicago’s diversity something to cherish
Second City opens its 36th revue with a great cast — Aidy Bryant, Mike Kosinski, Michael Lehrer, Tawney Newsome, Andel Sudik and Chris Witaske carrying on the tradition of three men, three women and four chairs. This cheerful, bouncing group easily transcends their material.
Inherit The Wind at Oak Park Festival Theatre. The debate between Christensen’s Brady and Hickey’s Drummond is most compelling as Christensen exudes charisma while his outdated and narrow sociopolitical beliefs are destroyed by Hickey’s Drummond.
This smart drama vividly focuses on hurts so deep that forgiveness is difficult. It looks at how on letting go of past hurts can immobilize one emotionally. The play also demonstrates how we often use others sexually for both relief and as bodies that substitute for the one we love.
When he contorts into one cave too many, he gets both feet stuck under a large slab of rock. After a day or so, his family organizes a search to rescue Floyd. Once his brother Homer (Jon Harrison) finds him, he realizes that Floyd is in trouble. No one except the young reporter, Skeets Miller (the rich-voiced Greg Foster) can slink into the narrow cave opening. The two bond as the rescue attempts become labored.