Latest from Chicago Critic

Hedwig is a ‘love it or hate it’ affair. If you don’t like drag shows or loud rock music, then this isn’t for you. But if punk rock and drag is your thing, then Hedwig will be a treat.

Mark Young is one of a handful of playwrights who captures the imprecise, highly contextualized language of younger Americans. His ear for cadence, inflection and oblique comment is pitch-perfect and his knack for getting the language on paper gives his contemporary young characters an authenticity that allows the audience to feel that they are eavesdropping on private conversations

This is a little more than 60 zany minutes with non-stop action and some very clever writing. The story is about mobsters during the Depression era circa 1930’s having a “bad day at the office”.

Lynne McMahon’s The Bird Sanctuary is a one-act drama about group of late middle-aged friends – two married couples – and their unspoken disappointments with their lives. It plays with another one-act, Mark A. Young’s The Rocks, which deals with a similar topic from a 20-something point of view.

By Jay Presson Allen Adapted from the Novel by Muriel Spark Directed by Ronan Marra Produced by Signal Ensemble Theatre At Chopin Theatre Patricia Austin is fabulous as Jean Brodie “I was quite strongly influenced by a teacher. . .a Miss Jean Brodie in her prime”— Sister Helena, in response to a question about some … Read more

Sheridan was trying to poke fun at the ridiculous behavior of the upper class English and Polarity’s amateurish production turns this classic into a wildly over acted manic parody that is more clown-like vaudeville that satirical comedy.

Playwright Iizuka’s new play, Ghostwritten, commissioned by the Goodman Theatre, is a drama about the lingering debt, complex family ties told with mystical elements including magical food.

This is a ninety minute play that takes place during the Hurricane Katrina period of time, following a young girl’s journey during the storm that shares her name.