Full of Heart, THE YEAR I DIDN’T GO TO SCHOOL Magically Brings the Book to Life
If you (or your child) ever wished you could open up a book and bring the illustrations and words to life, you needn’t look much further than the newly adapted page-to-stage production directed by Heidi Stillman.
Family Dynamics Gracefully Ring True in AMERICAN HWANGAP
The great American novelist Willa Cather wrote, “There are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never happened before.” The same can be said for many families as they change and grow with the passage of time.
Engaging Performances Make THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE a Must See
I’m impressed. Bluebird Arts is the only theater company in Chicago dedicated to producing consecutive productions in English and Russian. What makes this more impressive is that even with such an intensive undertaking, their work is good.
THE SNARE Is an Intimate Inquiry of Ideas
Jackalope Theatre Company’s THE SNARE conjures up a courageous choice by tackling the most taboo of topics—religion.
Porchlight’s LITTLE ME Leaves a Big Impression
Porchlight Music Theatre’s three-night-only concert staging of the 1962 Broadway musical LITTLE ME as part of its Porchlight Revisits series is every bit as effervescent as a glass of champagne—and it’s certainly an evening of theater worth toasting.
PEERLESS Puts Being the Best of the Best Under a Microscope
A ‘model minority’ is a minority class which is assumed to achieve a higher degree of success than others — hence, being a “model” for others to follow. According to a national finding in the 2010 Census, “About one-half of those who identified their race as Asian alone had received a bachelor’s degree or higher, the highest proportion among the racial categories.”
UNSEEN Shows What Happens When We Look
Throughout our lives, when faced with a moment that is sure to produce pain, we often hear these words in an attempt to offer protection: “Don’t look and it won’t hurt.” If we don’t look, we avoid discomfort, shame, embarrassment, heartbreak, humiliation.
Escape Into the Whimsical World of THE FANTASTICKS
At age eleven, I checked out THE FANTASTICKS CD from the public library and stole my oldest brother’s Discman to listen to it. In 2017, sitting in the intimate Blue Theatre, I was brought back to that joy and giddiness I felt sitting in the corner of my childhood bedroom humming “Soon It’s Gonna Rain.”
CST’s LOVE LABOR’S LOST is Everything Shakespeare Should Be
Most of us know or have been that person who’s really into Shakespeare. The enthusiast who often through a bombardment of Elizabethan vocabulary and extreme enthusiasm for iambic pentameter tries to convert the listener to their love of the bard.
“God, That’s Good!” SWEENEY TODD at Paramount is Theatrical Bliss
I hold very few things sacred, yet, SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET rises to the ranks. Over twenty years ago, I saw a production that transformed me into a musical theater lover.