Upcoming Shows
Violet Surprise Theatre, whose mission is to vibrantly validate the voices of women, presents a traveling production of The Revolutionists, a historical and hysterical play...
by Rachel Weinberg - April 07, 2026
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM is a well-acted, slow-burn character study. August Wilson’s 1982 play centers on a fictitious 1927 Chicago album recording, as the musicians gather and wait for the notorious Ma Rainey (or Madam Rainey, as she demands they call her) to record her latest album. Ma Rainey ...
by Emily Werner - April 06, 2026
Lookingglass Theatre Company begins its 2025/26 season with the world premiere of White Rooster in the Joan and Paul Theatre at the Water Tower Water Works. ...
by Emily Werner - April 01, 2026
Theater Wit opens the Midwest premiere of The Ally on March 30, 2026. Originally premiering in February 2024 at New York City’s Public Theater, Itamar Moses’ play was a finalist for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Blending dark comedy with urgent social questions, The Ally challenges its audi...
by Rachel Weinberg - March 29, 2026
THEATER OF THE MIND is an engaging, interactive, and fun tour through the senses....
by Rachel Weinberg - March 03, 2026
THE BRIEF WONDROUS LIFE OF OSCAR WAO is a lopsided stage adaptation of Junot Díaz’s 2007 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. While the first act is tight and focuses squarely on the budding relationship between ultra-nerd Oscar Wao and his freshman year college roommate Yunior, the second act incorpora...
by Tina St. Angelo - February 23, 2026
The Joffrey Ballet is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. The current offering is called Icons. What a gift to the audience. I don’t know if Robert Joffrey had any idea what his company has become. Icons recreate 4 different ballets from different decades over the 20th Century....
by Rachel Weinberg - February 19, 2026
When I think of Steppenwolf, I often think of family members crying, screaming at one another, or some combination of the two. So the sparring between spouses Alice and Captain Edgar in August Strindberg’s 1900 play THE DANCE OF DEATH feels right at home. In a surprisingly funny and sharp version ...
by Tina St. Angelo - February 17, 2026
What did our critic think of DEAR EVAN HANSEN at Paramount Theatre Aurora IL?...
by Rachel Weinberg - February 14, 2026
Royal Shakespeare Company’s HAMNET is a dramatic and languid stage adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s 2020 buzzy novel of the same name....
by Rachel Weinberg - February 13, 2026
THE OUTSIDERS presents an original and vibrant stage adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s classic 1967 novel about the conflict between Tulsa teen gangs the Greasers and the Socs (short for socialites). The musical — and particularly director Danya Taymor’s inventive and visually dynamic staging — pu...
Past Shows
This March, SMH will stand for Sapphics Making History, when Violet Surprise Theatre presents seven short plays about women who refine, define, and redefine the expression...
Violet Surprise Theatre presents SapphFest: Pride Off Into the Sunset. Our seventh and final virtual variety show is teeming (and streaming) with audacity and authenticity,...
Sapphics save the day!Lesbian Visibility Day, that is. Violet Surprise Theatre presents Lavender Menaces, a play festival celebrating Sapphic superheroines. Eight 10-minute plays will be...
When it comes to Chicago winters, there's no business like snow business, and since we're still in ice-olation, we're going to have ourselves a so...
Join Violet Surprise Theatre for a virtual variety show showcasing ethereal material by creepy comediennes, potent poets, diabolical dancers, prestidigitating playwrights, and sinister singers. From...
Summer dreams, gripped by livestreams... This summer, the heat is online, where you'll experience love at first site during Violet Surprise Theatre's virtual variety show,...
It's a cruel summer, leaving you queer on your own. So join Violet Surprise Theatre for SapphFest: Summer Queerance, a virtual variety show presented with...
Violet Surprise Theatre presents SapphFest: Pride Edition, a virtual variety show celebrating queer women and non-binary artists from all over the country and internationally, through...
Violet Surprise Theatre presents SapphFest, a digital variety show celebrating queer women and non-binary artists from all over the country and internationally, through storytelling, comedy,...
You can take the "gal" out of Galentine's Day, but wouldn't you rather take the gal out ON Galentine's Day? Preferably to Lez Beaus, a...
Videos