Music and Lyrics by Elton John and Tim Rice Additional Music and Lyrics by Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Julie Taymor, and Hans Zimmer Book by Roger Allers and Irene Mecchi Adapted from the screenplay by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton Directed by Julie Taymor Choreography by Garth Fagan Music Supervision by … Read more
A New Musical Book by John Reeger Music & Lyrics by Julie Shannon Musical Orchestrations by Larry Blank Directed by L. Walter Stearns Musical Direction by Eugene Dizon Schooner’s heart fills the holidays with joy! Now in its fifth year at the Mercury Theater, The Christmas Schooner still packs much good will and holiday cheer … Read more
By GQ, JQ, Jackson Doran, and Postell Pringle Developed with Rick Boynton Music by JQ Directed by GQ and JQ Choreography by Anacron Produced by Chicago Shakespeare Theater “Our final destination is all the same station.” Among the newer Chicago theatre Christmas traditions is the Q Brothers’ hip-hop adaptation of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. … Read more
Directed by Ryan Berneir Musical Direction by Jacob Shuda Produced by The Second City, Chicago Self-Referential Sketch Show Worthy of More Development Second City is back with a new revue following a fire earlier this year. While some parts of their building in Old Town are still covered in plastic, the Mainstage, now strangely decorated … Read more
By Noël Coward Directed by Shannon Cochran Produced by Remy Bumppo, Chicago “O, the despicable squalor of it all.” Fans of Noël Coward have had several chances to see the witty English satirist of sexual relationship’s masterpieces on stage this fall. Shaw Chicago is currently presenting a staged reading of Private Lives, which is about … Read more
Archive review: This review covers American Blues Theater’s 2015 production of It’s a Wonderful Life: Live in Chicago! at the Greenhouse Theater Center, directed by Gwendolyn Whiteside. For current dates and tickets, see our Chicago holiday shows guide. From the Frank Capra movie It’s a Wonderful Life Based on the Philip Van Doren Stern story … Read more
By Greg Kramer Based on the work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Directed by Andrew Shaver Produced by Broadway In Chicago At the Oriental Theatre, Chicago Campy parody is more silly than serious Sherlock Holmes arrives in Chicago for a week run. Why this completely lame production, which originated in Montreal, exists is the real … Read more
By Will Kern Directed by Eric Burgher Produced by Profiles Theatre It’s Christmas for Weirdos, Too Among Chicago’s grittier holiday season theatricals, Will Kern’s Hellcab stands out as a reliable crowd favorite. First produced in 1992 by a company called Famous Door, it ran continuously until 2001, and is now revived by Profiles Theatre every … Read more
By Noel Coward Directed by Barbara Zahora Produced by Shaw Chicago At the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, Chicago Classic comedy of manners nicely performed Shaw Chicago presents a sophisticated and well acted stage reading of Coward’s 1930 comedy. Private Lives presents Noel Coward’s sharp wit, fluid language, and smart, quirky plot. It amounts to … Read more
By Arthur Miller Directed by Ian Frank Produced by Redtwist Theatre, Chicago An Examination of People on the Brink of Destruction Few companies have been more attentive than Red Twist to commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of Arthur Miller’s birth, and tenth anniversary of his death. Earlier this year they revived The American Clock, his … Read more