Theatre Reviews

Although a great deal has changed over the half century since this musical first showed audiences “How to…,” the sheer lunacy of corporate America is as much a laughing matter today as ever. Corporate bailouts anyone? There are still executives no doubt spending sleepless nights sending out emails about the excessive amount of emails going out of their offices. We still have mindless decisions made by inept committees, although we’re not sure if they are actually human or automated. By the time the next revival of “How 2” rolls out it may in fact be cast entirely with robots. I just hope they can be programmed with a small measure of the vast talent that Chicago area audiences often take for granted.

In short, Kinky Boots simply did not give me that overwhelming, enveloping feeling musicals often give you when the story and the music fill the theatre so fully that your imagination, your emotions — your very being — is held captive in awe and wonder. That is not to say others didn’t experience this: there was, after all, a standing ovation on opening night. However, this same audience applauded at the mere presence of men in drag, so . . . if that sounds like you, this musical is for you.

A one-man noir story? It’s a strange idea, but the British drama Bloodshot has been touring Europe to critical acclaim since 2011, and is now making its American debut at The Greenhouse Theater Center as part of the Solo Celebration series. Unlike the other Solo stories thus far, which were about real people, and often drawn from the performers’ own lives, Bloodshot is entirely fictional. Its twisting story and diabolical atmosphere are reminiscent of the murder mysteries of the mid-twentieth century, such as Ira Levin’s Death Trap, which recently played at Drury Lane. Simon Slater, the actor who takes on the role in this unusually long and demanding production, is a top-level performer, and over the course of the show, he demonstrates not only his strength as an actor, but in several other types of performance, as well.

Nolan and his cast have a firm grasp on Brechtian aesthetics, and have localized the story to fit the economic malaise of Chicago’s struggling neighborhoods. The result is a play which is sure to resonate with its viewers, despite its age having changed its meaning.

The Forks & Hope Ensemble are a relatively new group dedicated to devising and adapting works suitable for all ages. Their latest offering, A Hero’s Journey is a strange, but oddly touching piece, in which each of the six performers combine one of their favorite stories from mythology or folk tales with episodes from their own lives.