A World Premiere Musical Book by Alexander Dinelaris. Featuring music produced and recorded by Emilio & Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine. Directed by Jerry Mitchell. With Ana Villafañe, Josh Segarra, Andréa Burns, Alma Cuervo. At the Oriental Theatre, Chicago The beat goes on…”On Your Feet!” I think my mother may have had a Gloria … Read more
By William Nedved Directed by Marti Lyons Produced by The Gift Theatre, Chicago A Family Loses Faith in God and Their Brother This year, The Gift Theatre is dedicating itself to the admirable, but risky enterprise of producing new works. The current offering, Body + Blood, was written by ensemble member Bill Nedved, who artistic … Read more
By Conor McPherson Adapted from the short story by Daphne du Maurier Directed by Kevin Kingston Produced by Griffin Theatre Company At Theater Wit, Chicago Lack of tension and low expectation dulls apocalyptic story McPherson’s adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s short story, “The Birds”, isn’t like Hitchcock’s film nor is it the recent campy Hell … Read more
By Suzan-Lori Parks Directed by Vanessa Stalling Produced by Oracle Theatre, Chicago “Everyone who has ever walked the earth has a shape around which their entire lives and their posterity shapes itself.”—The Foundling Father Oracle Plunges Into a Great Hole James Baldwin’s metaphorical description of writing as archaeology had a big impact on Suzan-Lori Parks … Read more
By Charles Busch Directed by Tiffany Keane Produced by Otherworld Theatre, Chicago Cape and Sword Entertainment Returns to Stage When Charles Busch’s Queen Amarantha debuted in 1997, it was a drag-show with its author in the title role. According to reviews at the time, the campy melodrama seems to have clashed with the show’s exploration … Read more
By Bixby Elliot Directed by Andrew Volkoff Produced by About Face Theatre At the Greenhouse Theatre Over reaching comic fable self destructs as it tries to cover too many stories and styles Playwright Bixby Elliot’s Abraham Lincoln Was A F*GG*T is part campy comedy. part gay coming of age fable and part wishful history. This … Read more
By Christopher M. Walsh Music and Lyrics by Christopher Kriz Adapted from the Book by Austin Grossman Directed by Paul S. Holmquist Produced by Lifeline Theatre, Chicago A Very Big Superhero World For One Musical to Explore One of the main challenges of adapting a novel to the stage is having to simplify an experience … Read more
June 8th was this year’s award ceremony for the non-Equity wing of the Joseph Jefferson Awards, and the first such ceremony I’ve attended. My associate, Tom Williams, thought it might be fun for me to write a little about my impressions of the event, which is of great importance to performers in Chicago who are … Read more
By Brad Fraser Directed by Ernie Nolan Produced by Cor Theatre, Chicago A Grisly Story From a Dark Time What to do today with In-Yer-Face theatre, a genre from the 1990s which shocked mainstream audiences with frank depictions of loveless sex, violence, and often a homoerotic mixture of the two? Is it still shocking? And … Read more
The 42nd Annual Jeff Awards honoring non-Equity theatre in Chicago turned out to be a big night Monday for both Bailiwick Theatre’s “The Wild Party” and Griffin Theatre’s “Men Should Weep.” Michael LaChiusa’s “The Wild Party” led the pack in the musical categories with eight awards, including production-musical; ensemble; Brenda Didier, who won both for directing … Read more