The Anyway Cabaret
The Anyway Cabaret (an animal cabaret) is a strange but funny new musical from the creative team at TUTA. An amazingly talented cast of ten accompany each other in songs about animals that range from goofy to very sad.
Must See
Chicago Critic Must See recommendations.
The Submission
Since The Submission was finished in 2011, the focus is all on Danny pretending to be black. Today, the biggest controversy in theatre regarding discrimination vs. tokenism is about women, but Emilia doesn’t talk about gender as much. For dramatic tension, Talbott made both characters bigots, leaving a discussion of the issue entirely on its merits up to the audience. The show is about issues habitual theatre-goers have wanted to see addressed for some time. The character Pete brings up the question of what all this looks like to outsiders. I’m really not sure what someone outside our community would make of this story, but I suspect similar discussions are happening elsewhere. The play is called The Submission, but I doubt anyone will surrender.
Take Me Out
Greenberg’s script cuts right to the heart of anxiety over gay men in sports by including lots of showering and changing scenes. Eight actors are fully naked at least once onstage. It’s necessary for an honest examination of the issue, but requires a lot of courage from the cast. For that alone, I commend them all, but they also give strong performances besides that.
Romulus
The first thing to about Durenmatt’s Romulus is that he called it a history play with no historical basis. Several different people from the period in the fifth century arbitrarily labeled “the fall of the Western Roman Empire” are conglomerated here, and their relationships are redefined for dramatic effect. But that’s alright, because this story, presented now by the capable team at Oracle, is more engaging and thought-provoking than a treatment of the actual events would likely be.
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Porchlight Music Theatre
Porchlight Theatre, under the leadership and direction from Michael Weber, have mounted, on a low budget, an intense, well sung and well performed production of Sweeney Todd. It rivals the terrific production recently at Drury Lane Oakbrook in quality not scope. This production is intimate, slick and darkly scarey proving that the source material can work on different scales. This Sweeney plays very much like the 1979 original and the 1982 national tour.
Capriccio
…Capriccio was referred to by Strauss as “conversation piece” rather than a serious drama, is an opera within an opera and an appreciation of the wonders of music over words (lyrics) that fuels opera.
Both Your Houses
Founding artistic director of Remy Bumppo, James Bohnen, returns to direct a political satire by Maxwell Anderson, his 1933 Pulitzer Prize winner drama, Both Your Houses. This is a fine ensemble work that features naturalistic dialogue from a cast that easily captures the essence of powerful United States Congressman as they wheel-and-deal to get an appropriations bill through congress in the late days of the Hoover Presidency as the Great Depreciation devastates America.
Season on the Line
Season on the Line follows the Bad Settlement Theater company, a once prominent company in their community who in recent years have hit new lows in both ticket sales and subsequently production quality. A dilapidated, musty old Motel Theater with a budget stretched thinner than razor wire. The scene opens with the new kid, just known as The Narrator, telling the story of how he became the Assistant Stage Manager (ASM
The Wild Party
Among the remarkable accomplishments by LaChiusa and Wolfe that director/choreographer Brenda Didier made in The Wild Party was that the story contains a rich, fully developed group of characters depicted through song, dance and comedy. This show is a drama that morifs into a into a musical that marvelously tells its story through songs and strong acting. The singing, dancing and comic turns by the entire cast were amazing
Cole Porter’s Greatest Hits
Take all the youngsters in your life to hear a master songwriter’s work neatly song by a veteran cast presenting a varied, engrossing revue of memorable show tunes that have survived the test of time. Cole Porter’s songbook needs to be heard again by us fans of genius composers/lyricists. Porter takes his place among Gershwin, Sondheim, Berlin and Herman. Light Opera Works, once again, has a hit revue going that begs a trip to Evanston.