BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY Finds Artful Balance Between Poignant Topicality and Light-Heartedness
(l-r) Audrey Francis, Elena Marisa Flores, Eamonn Walker and Tim Hopper. Photo by Michael Brosilow Review: BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY at Steppenwolf Theatre Company By Rachel Weinberg Stephen Adly Guirgis’s 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning play BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY, now in its Chicago premiere at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, focuses on issues of...
It’s About More Than Just Laughs in A JEWISH JOKE
In ShPiel Performing Identity’s production of A JEWISH JOKE, Hollywood screenwriter Bernie Lutz has a few jokes up his sleeve. In fact, he has an entire green plastic box full of jokes carefully written out on index cards.
THE UNFORTUNATES Grisly and Honorable
Mary Jane Kelly is just one of the “unfortunates” of seedy 19th century East London–her story one of many dismal accounts of not only the victims of notorious Jack the Ripper, but also of the women left with little options in this eat-or-be-eaten world.
GRAPES OF WRATH Features Solid Performances
Namir Smallwood and Kona N. Burks. Photo: Claire Demos Review: THE GRAPES OF WRATH at The Gift Theatre By Tonika Todorova Seeing the epic journey of the Joad family in THE GRAPES OF WRATH at the Gift Theatre can be quite the immersive experience given the hot sticky days of...
Spectacular Design and Delightful Surprises Abound in SPONGEBOB THE MUSICAL
I was skeptical. I loathe the cartoon, but SpongeBob Squarepants the Musical just might be the surprise “feel good” musical that delights kids of all ages and gets everyone excited about Broadway musicals.
DEATHTRAP: A Sharp Thriller with a Deliciously Shocking Storyline
Two acts, one set, five characters– a sharp thriller spun as a play-within-a-play, Ira Levin’s hit DEATHTRAP will surprise even the sharpest connoisseurs of murder mysteries.
THE HO– USE THAT WILL NOT STAND Stands Tall
Jacqueline Williams, Lizan Mitchell. Photo by Michael Courie What happens when people are too White to be Black and too Black to be White? Playwright Marcus Gardley’s THE HO– USE THAT WILL NOT STAND brings this conversation to the forefront in a dance with dialogue and history. There are advantages...
Passion and Energy abound in Eclectic’s MAKE ME A SONG
MAKE ME A SONG: The Music of William Finn, is a fast-paced, delightful, and fun night at the theater.
Mesmerizing HUMAN TERRAIN Is a Story That Needs to Be Told
Shozzett Silva and Kim Boler. Photo by Matthew Freer. Review: HUMAN TERRAIN at Broken Nose Theatre By Abigail Trabue Every so often a play falls into the right company at the right time and becomes the example of what Chicago storefront theater is all about. That play is HUMAN TERRAIN and that...
THE MARVIN GAYE STORY – a Powerful and Nostalgic Tribute
I have the utmost respect for the foundation established by Jackie Taylor and her ability to produce stories that people genuinely gravitate towards.