Sunday, 31 July 2016 13:37
Extry, Extry, Read All About It!! “Newsies” is in Chicago!!
Written by Michelle Reidy
Inspired by the Newsboy Strike of 1899, “Newsies” uses the power of dance and song to tell the story of a group of teenagers and children who stand up to the powerful men running the newspapers of New York City, defending the rights of children workers everywhere. Jack Kelly is…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 30 July 2016 01:08
A Towering Historic Figure Comes Down to Earth in Lively Douglass
Written by Bill Esler
Douglass is striking from the moment the stage lights go on at Theater Wit. De’Lon Grant commands the stage as the escaped slave, Frederick Douglass – who in his time was a towering intellect among abolitionists, and who remains a powerful influence on public discourse even today. Playwright Thomas Klingenstein…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Sunday, 31 July 2016 14:57
My Son the Waiter, a Jewish Tragedy Filled with Hilarious Insight
Dan Vargas
Brad Zimmerman's one-man show is a one-man wonder. My Son the Waiter, A Jewish Tragedy currently being performed at the Northshore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, takes the audience on a whimsical and hilarious adventure discussing the many common characteristics of what growing up in a Jewish family…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Earlier this year, The New Colony in collaboration with Definition Theatre, produced a smash hit called 'Byhalia, Mississippi.' The New Colony has done a great deal to insert themselves into the Chicago theater landscape over the past few years. Some of their work has even appeared off-Broadway, as was the…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Friday, 22 July 2016 01:22
Real Chicago Grifters Vie to Survive in Chops – a success of Mametian proportions
Written by Bill Esler
Right out of the gate CHOPS is a winner – in performances, production and script. Playwright Michael Rychlewski captures that ineffable quintessence of Chicago-ese as his three remnants of the 1950s and ‘60s glory days of Rush Street wash ashore at Vince’s bar. Let’s hear it for the casting, too…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Friday, 15 July 2016 12:48
The New Colony’s "Kin Folk" Is A Humorous and Poignant Look into Self-Actualization
Written by Kimberly Katz
Who’s to say how we each should be identified? Whether labeled as a man, woman or even a dragon, those are in fact just that – labels. So why should others tell us how we ought to perceive ourselves? That premise is the foundation in New Colony’s latest production “Kin…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 18 July 2016 09:47
WOZ: A Rock Cabaret That Falls Short of Expectations
Written by Michelle Reidy
Pinterest fails are an internet sensation, with recognizable side by side pictures illustrating the difference between expectations and reality for the everyday crafter, baker, photographer, etc. It seems that no matter how many of these memes we see, it is still commonplace to set high expectations which risk being let…
Published in
Theatre in Review
It is with a heavy heart I confess that I cannot recommend the play Eroica. David Alex’s melodrama is not without merit or redeeming character – but for most people it will probably not be worth spending 70 minutes to extract them. The story is compelling and worth telling: during…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Friday, 17 February 2017 12:34
Scientology Exposed Like Never Before in Schenkelberg's "Squeeze My Cans"
Written by Ken Payne
It goes something like this: “Sit down, relax and squeeze the two cans in front of you” The cans are wired to a funky gizmo where a needle gauges one’s activity on a meter based on their responses to questions asked. “Tell us about a pleasant memory you’ve had.” “Give…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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There are something’s that just stick with you from your childhood. Any time a reminder of said memory comes up you can instantly recall when and where that memory took place. For me, I can clearly remember watching Ghostbusters as a young child and it sticking with me throughout my…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 11 July 2016 17:37
Review: Steppenwolf's Between Riverside and Crazy
Written by John Accrocco
It’s not often a theatre company tackles two Pulitzer Prize winning plays in one season, but Steppenwolf is doing just that. While you may grow a long white beard waiting to see the 2016 winner, "Hamilton," Steppenwolf has 2014 and 2015 covered with "The Flick" and "Between Riverside and Crazy."…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 11 July 2016 18:50
Factory Theater's "Dating and Dragons" A Hilarious Look At Gamers and Love
Written by Kimberly Katz
The Factory Theater Company just opened their latest production, Dating and Dragons, in its adorable space in the heart of Rogers Park. The venue is very intimate but comfortable, nicely lit, colorful and in this summer heat - well air conditioned! In Dating and Dragons, the lead character Jack and…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 10 July 2016 15:58
Magically Mirthful - First Folio's A Midsummer Night's Dream Under the Stars
Written by Ken Payne
In one of William Shakespeare’s most popular works, A Midsummer Night’s Dream has been performed widely across the world, this summer finding a temporary home at First Folio Theatre (Mayslake Peabody Estate in Oakbrook). Celebrating twenty years of the company’s annual Shakespeare Under the Stars Production, theatre goers are treated…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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