Latest from Chicago Critic

Girl You Know It’s True

The short scenes mixed with those inexplicable fraudulent pop celebrates left me confused. I was able to ‘get’ the gay couple that had one a playwright – Bixby (John Zinn) struggling to get produced. After many rejections, he decided to send in his plays not from himself but from a fictional African-American Lesbian woman (Sam Bailey) in a wheelchair.

Fish Men

After hearing Jerome pontificating on the plight of American Indians, we also learn that Ninety-Two is a Holocaust survivor. We learn that Rey is much more than a chump “fish” chess player. We hear his story about surviving a genocide of his family and village in Guatemala. Rey lives for revenge and since the chess hustlers took the man who saved his life in Guatemala, he is bent on cleaning out the hustlers through his amazing chess skills

Angels in America (Parts I and II)

Angels is a wondrous journey that may leave you permanently altered as its lessons on love, humanity and forgiveness continue to immigrate into that vast continent of the self. Taken at separate times or together, this is a complex work that is quite simply a must see.

MOSCOW, CHERYOMUSHKI

Every principal carries their songs in character beautifully! While Sophie Gordeladze (soprano) is the voice of the state, she is also a sweet treat as Lusya. Sara Heaton (soprano) as Lidochka vocally conveys the skeptical female of the three and works very well with (baratone) Paul LaRosa’s Boris, the gadabout. (bass) Matt Boehler’s physical comedy plays with just enough of the required sleaze.

The Butcher of Baraboo

By Marisa Wegrzyb Directed by Shade  Murray At A Red Orchid Theatre, Chicago Wacky comedy a winner that  reminds me  Fargo on crystal meth Marisa Wegrzyn is a  new theatrical voice with an appetite for violently dark comedy in the style of Martin McDonah. She fills her Baraboo, Wisconsin town with a wacky female cop, … Read more

The Pirates of Penzance – Marriott Theatre

Book by W. S. Gilbert Music by Sir Arthur Sullivan Directed by Dominic Missimi Music Director Ryan T. Nelson Choreography by Matt Raftery At Marriott Theatre, Lincolnshire Pirates hijack delighted audience Dominic Missimi has justifiably been called a force of nature. That’s because Missimi is as talented as a director as he was as a … Read more

Jersey Boys 2012 National Tour

Jersey boys is the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons—Bob Guadio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi. These guys are blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks. DeVito is a small-time Jersey hood and mafia want-to-be who narrates the early story of the rise of the pop foursome. Jeremy Kushnier plays DeVito with raging intensity. We see that Nick Massi is the passive, go-with-program guy and friend to Tommy Devito. DeVito’s control over the group is challenged when songwriter/arranger Bob Guadio arrives in the group.

After the Revolution

We see the dynamic of family relationships as three generations emerge with different political and social beliefs. Ben is an open Marxist apologist while Emma is both an American patriot and a leftist. We see the generational conflicts with Ben and her grandmother Vera (MaryAnn Thebus). The common binding thread here is the Marxist beliefs shared by all.

We Are Proud to Present…

if – you can get over the actor’s struggle to tell and move the story along. The leaderless troupe finds the black women (Tracey N. Bonner) trying to arbitrate, stimulate and focus the storytelling to mixed results. All the bickering, backstage humor and role playing games eventually sets up the final powerful racially-charged final role playing game that becomes much