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Tom Williams
The Top 10 Plays of 2011
These are the ten top plays of 2011 in Chicago that reflect excellent stage craft and flawless production values according to us at Chicagocritic.com.
Read MoreThe Addams Family National Tour
The Addams Family features a marvelous score and witty/funny lyrics by Andrew Lippa whose score has everything from vaudeville, to power ballads, to tango/fandango, to patter songs, to a pop/rock pastiches that deftly tell the story and enrich the characters. Lippa score is the vehicle that drives this show–it has humor, panache and loads of heart. There are hummable take-home songs here such as the opening “When You’re an Addams” and dance tune “Just Around the Corner.”
Read MoreThe Secret Garden
It is wonderful that the management at Light Opera Works keeps producing authentic productions of classic operettas and Broadway musicals using the full orchestrations from the originals with a full 28 piece orchestra. The lush score filled with haunting operetta style ballads and English folk melodies, The Secret Garden is a beautiful heart-warming musical filled with charm and wholesomeness.
Read MoreLa Cage Aux Folles National Tour
From the opening number that was changed and poorly danced by the six boys (instead of the mixed gender 13 from the 1983 original), we quickly realize that this crude production is a mere parody of the lush heart-felt original that was ground-braking in 1983-84 since it featured a male-male relationship. In this production, no one will ever believe that George Hamilton and Chris Sieber have been lovers for more that 20 years
Read MoreA Christmas Story – The Musical
Led by the steady work from Gene Weygandt as Shepherd and by golden-voiced youngster Clarke Hallum as Ralphie, A Christmas Story The Musical is a most winning full-blown Broadway musical true to its source material and marvelously acted, sung, and danced by a 30 person cast consisting of a mixture of Chicago Equity talents and a polished troupe of kid talents. Adam Petly, George Andrew Wolff and Karen Mason are a few of the Chicago players featured in this family friendly new show.
Read MoreOpus
Utilizing flashbacks for the back story, Opus is a compelling ‘family’ story of how personal dynamics, professional jealousy, sexual relationships, and drugs contribute to the vibrant culture of the four expert musicians. Opus deftly offers a glimpse into the artistic world of musicians striving for perfection in their art.
Read MoreRobert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker
Clara returns to the living room after the party around midnight and is confronted with the mice. She is saved by her Godfather Drosselmeyer who takes her into the Land of Snow. This is the fabulous place where movement is supreme, where ballet takes us into a fantasy land that captivates us with the soaring music and breathtaking dance. In the Land of Sweets, the Sugar Plum Fairy fascinates us in spectacle and movement.
Read MoreElizabeth Rex
When the queen arrives, Ned is her outspoken opponent since his eminent death from the pox allows him the freedom to say whatever comes to his mind. The debate rages on as the two engage in verbal debate. Elizabeth hides her female side as a mechanism for sovereign survival – ruling as a man works for her. Ned has played woman all his life in Shakespeare’s plays and as a gay man feels more comfortable as a woman.
Read MoreLawLawPalooza -The 88th Annual Christmas Spirits Show
The cast is made up of lawyers, judges and law students who want to show that attorneys have ‘show biz’ talents besides law acumen. They sure do as the large cast deftly sings, dances and lands their biting parody garnering enough laughs to leave audiences smiling aplenty.
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