By Kelvin Roston, Jr. Directed by Samuel G. Roberson, Jr. Produced by Congo Square Theatre, Chicago New Play Inspires Action on Mental Illness That you or somebody you love could be mentally ill is a terrifying prospect. I think most people would feel helpless, and therefore ignore something potentially life-threatening. Even to someone with a … Read more
By Nancy Harris Directed by Joe Jahraus At Profiles, The Main Stage, Chicago Technical and script problems plague Our New Girl Irish playwright Nancy Harris’ Our New Girl is a troubled work on several levels. For the first 15 minute or so, a loud fan wailed above the stage rendering most of the early dialogue … Read more
Book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice Music by Bob Gaudio Lyrics by Bob Crewe Directed by Des McAnuff Produced by Broadway in Chicago Jersey Boys a Rousing, Fun Time Chicago musical lovers may rejoice at the return of Jersey Boys, winner of the 2006 Tony Award for Best Musical. The second national touring production, … Read more
By Michele Lowe Directed by Kimberly Senior At TimeLine Theatre, Chicago Pillage of ancient Middle East artifacts becomes a personal mission for a dedicated patron It is 2003 in Iraq, just before the US invasion and Yasin Shalid (Demetrios Troy), the curator of a museum in Mosul, Iraq is obsessed with saving a key ancient … Read more
By Beth Henley Directed by Brad Akin Produced by Step Up Productions, Chicago Three Sisters’ Lives Make for One Dark Comedy This month in Chicago, playgoers can get a double-helping of dark comedies about southern families. The 1939 play The Little Foxes, about the thieving rich is playing at the Goodman, and at the Athenaeum … Read more
By Lillian Hellman Directed by Henry Wishcamper Produced by Goodman Theatre, Chicago Depraved Greed Shows Why Melodrama is Fun Modern writers are generally advised not to make the divide between good and evil characters too stark. But modern writers aren’t Lillian Hellman. And her 1939 play The Little Foxes depicts a time and place, 1900 … Read more
By Joshua Harmon Directed by Jeremy Wechsler Produced by Theater Wit, Chicago Future of Judaism Dramatized with Wit Joshua Harmon’s play Bad Jews, which debuted in New York in 2012, has been causing such a stir that despite its newness I was a little surprised to see it is only now being produced in Chicago. … Read more
Written and Directed by Carla Stillwell Produced by Ma’at Production Association of Afrikan Centered Theatre, Chicago MPAACT Find Beauty in Growing Pains I hope everybody enjoyed Mother’s Day, because MPAACT has a show that will remind everyone of how upsetting losing a mother is. The Divine Order of Becoming, written by MPAACT playwright-in-residence Carla Stillwell, … Read more
By John Marans Directed by Timothy Gregory At Provision Theater, Chicago “Art consists of knowing the basic rules and realizing when it is time to deviate from them.” “Life is not clear cut.” “The combination of joy and sadness – this is the core of truly beautiful music. Just as it is the core of … Read more
By Beth Graham, Charlie Tomlinson, and Daniela Vlaskalic Directed by Melanie Keller Produced by Signal Ensemble Theatre, Chicago How to Have Fun with Murder Respectfully One hundred years ago, the English serial killer George Joseph Smith was captured, convicted, and executed for the murders of three of his wives. Bessie Munday Williams, Alice Burnham Smith, … Read more