A World Premiere Play By Kate Walbert Directed by Darrell W. Cox At Profiles Theatre’s Alley Stage, Chicago Short, unfocused and confusing drama not ready for the stage Novelist/playwright Kate Walbert’s four person play presents is an incomplete work that, after only 70 minutes, a becomes a ” so what”? We wonder why we listened … Read more
By Matthew Maguire An Ensemble Devised Production Produced by Transcendent Ensemble Theatre Company Interesting Exercise in Modernizing Tragic Passion The story of Phaedra, the Minoan princess who tried to seduce her step-son and then accused him of rape, is not one of the first that springs to mind when most people think of Greek mythology. … Read more
By August Wilson Directed by Chuck Smith Produced by Goodman Theatre Goodman Pays Tribute to Great Writer and Friend The tenth year since August Wilson’s death provides a fitting time to honor the author who wrote a play for each decade of the twentieth century. Across the city, the ten plays Wilson considered part of … Read more
A New Play by Shannon Pritchard Directed by Jessica Fisch Produced by Feast Productions As part of Jackalope Theater’s Pioneer Series At the Frontier Storefront, Chicago Delightful rendition of the Scottish fairy tale unfolds in an intimate setting The ambitious creatives who run Jackalope Theater Company, besides using the vast Broadway Armory, have established a … Read more
Music & Lyrics by David Yazbek Book by Terrence McNally Directed by John Glover Music Direction by Koey Danielson Choreographed by Daniel Spagnuolo Hilarious & Sexy, The Full Monty is a crowd pleaser. Mounting Yazbek & McNally’s The Full Monty is a brave choice for a non-Equiity troupe like Kokandy Productions since the show contains … Read more
Music and Lyrics by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Eddie Holland Book by Linda Bloodworth Thomason Directed by Simon Phillips Produced by Broadway in Chicago New Musical Will Struggle Awhile Yet First Wives Club, an original musical based on the 1990s movie and book of the same name about three scorned women seeking revenge, opened … Read more
By Steven Simoncic Based on the Book by Eric Klinenberg: “Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago” Directed by Rinska Carrasco-Prestinary Produced by Cold Basement Dramatics At Steppenwolf Theatre’s Garage Rep Series Heat Wave is an indictment of the follies of the Daley mayoral administration Steven Simoncic’s adaptation of Eric Klinenberg’s Heat Wave … Read more
By Nathan Allen and Chris Mathews Directed by Nathan Allen Produced by The House Theatre of Chicago Epic History Unfolds Through Dialectical Dragons Though I’ve encountered great hospitality in theatre, I have never seen a production as warm and intimate as The House Theatre’s marathon performance of The Hammer Trinity. It was clear from my … Read more
By Topher Payne Directed by Derek Van Barham Produced by Pride Films and Plays At the Steppenwolf Garage Rep Series “To get it better, we must make it better.” Bait and switch doesn’t work in theatre anymore than in advertising or marketing Playwright Topher Payne, an Atlanta based actor/playwright, sucks us into a political comedy … Read more
By Taylor Mac With Music by Ellen Maddon Directed by Bonnie Metzgar with Eric Hoff Produced by Red Tape Theatre At Steppenwolf Garage Rep Series Wildly poor taste rules in manic performance piece disguised as a play. Taylor Mac, himself a fringe actor/playwright, has organized a wild manic performance art piece featuring a dozen weird … Read more