Chicago Critic Must See recommendations.
“Underneath the Lintel” is intriguing to watch perseverance toward a goal with reckless abandon…the librarian’s dogged passion which punishes yet awakens. It leaves you asking the big questions, or reminds you of them. This play offers significant rewards for those patient enough to take the journey….a must see for many!
Audiences of The Artistic Home’s recent staging of Iguana may keep this in mind, if only because the struggle of its central character, Rev. T. Lawrence Shannon, so closely intimates the one Williams himself would be forced to undergo in the years following. Shannon (played here by the incomparable John Mossman), is a man on the edge. He is “cracked up” and “at the end of [his] rope,”
If The Building Stage’s current production of Dawn, Quixote feels undergirded by a pervasive—even wistful—sadness, it’s not hard to understand why. For following the show’s completed run on April 27th, The Building Stage will be shuttering its doors for good. Thankfully founder and artistic director Blake Montgomery’s recent adaptation of Cervantes’s classic is a final act truly worthy of remembrance.
The libretto doesn’t shy away from the sexual power of the original script as it contains references to Blanche’s gay husband and as it presents the provocative kissing the newspaper collector “on the mouth”scene. This free-flowing three hour plus production has the haunting tone and a fluid use of trumpet and solo clarinet to amplify the atmosphere and psychology of a scene. Previn demonstrates his perception of the cloudy views of reality as seen by Williams’ characters. A Streetcar Named Desire pack a wallop and must take its place as one fine contemporary operas. Renee Fleming makes Blanche her own.
Thus with a remarkable eye for Shakespeare’s darker tonalities, Falls’ Measure for Measure is wickedly smart even as it seemingly pulls our inner moral compasses all which ways. As beautifully constructed as it is intellectually evocative, it comes highly recommended.
chicago shakespeare theater
Re-imagining the world of Shakespeare’s Venetian army as that of a vast hip-hop empire, the traditional Moorish general is here recast as MC Othello (Postell Pringle), who rises up from the ghetto to reach the heights of music stardom and the full extent of the “American dream.”
As the story progresses, we learn to love the characters, hate the hypocritical American film makers and we feel the pain as we hear about the desperate action of one young lost Irish soul. Humor and heartbreaking situations give Jones’ script depth. You’ll laugh and be amazed at the stage craft of David Ivers and Brrian Vaughn – they even do some expert Irish dance steps!
La boheme is not the greatest opera ever composed, but it is perhaps the quintessentially atmospheric operatic experience; it justifies its reputation not by overwhelming the audience with dramatic power but by sweeping us up into the many small currents of life and emotion that run through it and depositing us at its heartrending yet intimate conclusion. Such a work needs a really sensitive performance to make its full effect, and that is just what can be heard at Lyric this month (aided by Michael Yeargan’s warmly evocative set).
This emotionally packed drama with music grabbed the opening day audience and kept them transfixed throughout. This may be Hershey Felder’s finest show. Certainly it is his most unique historical work that fills us in on an unknown historical figure as it is Felder’s most challenging acting role. It is a tight, powerful, and expressive glimpse both into history and 19th Century America culture. Hershey Felder once again proves that he is a master of stage presence. He is the finest storyteller of our time. Don’t miss his stunning work.
Essential to a successful Fiddler is the acting of Tevye, a milkman and the father of five daughters. Imagine the audience reaction when it learns that on opening night the leading role needs the understudy, David Girolmo, for at least a week. His first monologue immediately says that we are in good hands, and if there is any doubt, his first solo song, “If I Were A Rich Man” wins everyone over. His subtle style and a lazy rolling motion causes audible chuckles from most listeners.