Review: CHICAGO at Hershey Theatre

While the cold rain attempted to ruin the evening, the national tour of Chicago at Hershey Theatre made it all worthwhile.

Chicago, as many know, is a lively show with familiar songs and lots of jazz hands. Set in the 1920s Chicago jazz scene, this musical tells the story of death row inmates and their over-the-top strategies to get away with murder. 

The story revolves around two main characters fighting for media attention and fame. Velma Kelly (Kailin Brown) is a strong force not to be reckoned with. Brown’s portrayal is powerful. They convincingly create a confident, brassy, outrageous woman and amaze the audience with their powerful vocals and beautiful dance lines. Roxie Hart (Katie Frieden) is not to be underestimated. Frieden’s portrayal of this scrappy character is a spot-on sultry manipulator. Frieden slinks across the stage and demonstrates range in her hilarious ventriloquist act with Connor Sullivan creating one of the night's favorite performances. 

Other standout performances include some remarkable vocalists, hysterical comic relief, and impressive dancers. ILLEANA KIRVEN is a crowd favorite with her soulful tone and powerful belt. Connor Sullivan commands the stage with a confident presence and extraordinary voice. It is hard to explain just how impressive J. Terrell’s performance is without giving away too much, but audience members are truly delighted by this performance. Creating laugh-out-loud moments are the performances of Amos Hart by Robert Quiles and Hunyak by Lauren Teyke. Quiles’s mousy Amos is hard not to enjoy. He is sweet and clueless in all the right places. Teyke’s comedic timing as Hunyak is hysterical. Perhaps the most noteworthy performance of the night came from the dancers. While it takes a moment to adjust to the campy choreography inspired by Bob Fosse, the dancers (led by Chelsea James and Austin Taylor Dunn) are one of the best parts of this performance. Nearly stealing the show, however, is the Chicago band led by conductor Cameron Blake Kinnear. 

While still a wonderful night of music and dance, unfortunately, the show was literally hard to watch. As this was my first visit to Hershey Theatre, it is unclear whether the issues were due to the lighting design or limitations with the facility. Whatever the case, the dark stage and heavy reliance of the spotlights made it difficult to appreciate all the amazing dancing and performances taking place on stage. Nevertheless, whether it is your first experience with Chicago or you know every line in every song, audience members will not be disappointed. 

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