Chicago Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 29

BWW Reviews: Summer Sizzles with Theo Ubique's A COLE PORTER SONGBOOK
by Misha Davenport - August 13, 2013

The summer sun doesn't have anything on Rogers Park theatre troupe Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre. The group's latest, the musical revue 'A Cole Porter Songbook' puts plenty of sizzle into the summer and has now been extended through Sept. 15....

BWW Reviews: Touring FLASHDANCE Nearly Makes a Splash
by Misha Davenport - August 08, 2013

The stage version of the movie musical about a steel town girl has a few sparks, but is in need better original tunes before it takes flight...

BWW Reviews: KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN Burrows Under the Skin in BoHo's New Staging
by Paul W. Thompson - June 03, 2013

I hardly know where to begin with this review of the Bohemian Theatre Ensemble's gutsy, stripped-down and yet somehow epic production of “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” the musical by John Kander, Fred Ebb and Terrence McNally that is running at Theatre Wit through June 30, 2013. There, I guess I just b...

BWW Reviews: What a Glorious Feeling - Getting a Glimpse Into the Silver Screen's SINGIN' IN THE RAIN
by Paul W. Thompson - May 07, 2013

Now through June 2, 2013, at the Theatre at the Center in Munster, Indiana (and not as far away as you might think) is a new play that gives us an interesting look into the making of one of the most enduring work of art produced by Hollywood in its Golden Age of Movie Musicals, the 1952 classic MGM ...

BWW Reviews: BIG FISH an Epic Whale of a Tale
by Misha Davenport - April 23, 2013

'Big Fish' offers visual sights and sounds to capture the audience hook, line and sinker....

BWW REVIEWS: World Premiere Musical UNDER A RAINBOW FLAG Sheds Light On A Forgotten Chapter Of WWII
by Paul W. Thompson - March 25, 2013

Running almost every Wednesday through Sunday between now and April 21, 2013, is a world premiere musical that is certainly worth seeing. It's "Under A Rainbow Flag," with book, music and lyrics by Chicagoan Leo Schwartz, and based on the recollections of the now 91-year-old Jon Phillips, living in ...

BWW Reviews: ASPECTS OF LOVE Moving, Problematic and Worthy in Theo Ubique's Gutsy Production
by Paul W. Thompson - March 12, 2013

Playing now through April 21, 2013 at the No Exit Cafe in Rogers Park, and officially opening yesterday, the rarely seen Andrew Lloyd Webber musical 'Aspects of Love' has been very competently mounted by the consistently high-quality storefront non-Equity company, Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre. And th...

BWW Reviews: Cathy Rigby Still Soars as the Boy Who Won't Grow Up in PETER PAN
by Misha Davenport - February 07, 2013

At 60, Rigby shows no signs of slowing down in a role she has been playing off and on for the last four decades...

BWW Reviews: Music Marches To The Fore In The Paramount's Postcard-Pretty THE MUSIC MAN
by Paul W. Thompson - January 20, 2013

In the Paramount's production, directed and choregraphed by Rachel Rockwell, the show lives and breathes in the very music that a con man and flim-flam artist, "Professor Harold Hill," uses to sell band instruments, uniforms and instruction booklets to the parents of young boys he knows he cannot re...

BWW Reviews: The BOOK OF MORMON: Chicago Cast Rings all the Right Bells
by Misha Davenport - December 27, 2012

Chicago production of Tony-award winning show 'The Book of Mormon comes into its own, rightfully deserving all the buzz and praise....

BWW Reviews: MY ONE AND ONLY Tappa Taps Through the Schmaltz at the Marriott
by M. William Panek - December 03, 2012

There's something so utterly intoxicating about a skilled tap dancer decked out in a spiffy tuxedo - top hat, tails, and all - commanding the audience's attention for a brilliantly exhausting routine. There's something even more so invigorating when a cast-full of local performers nail their respect...

BWW Reviews: THE CHRISTMAS SCHOONER: A Holiday Tradition That Is About--Well, Tradition!
by Paul W. Thompson - December 02, 2012

"The Christmas Schooner" has been performed in the Chicago area every year, except for one, since 1995. And yet, I know for a fact that new theatergoers are discovering it all the time. Hence, it's a good thing that the Mercury Theater on Southport Avenue has mounted this story--based on a real slic...

A CHRISTMAS CAROL at the Goodman Theatre: Classy Holiday Magic, Courtesy of Three Stars
by Paul W. Thompson - November 27, 2012

One of the nation's most prominent of the many productions of "A Christmas Carol" that crop up like greenery this time of year is the one at Chicago's Goodman Theatre. Now in its 35th annual outing, it's a warm, thought-provoking and timeless tale of redemption and good will, humanity and universali...

PIPPIN: A Bollywood Spectacular? Why, yes. Yes, it is.
by Paul W. Thompson - November 25, 2012

For consistency and boldness of artistic vision, or (more accurately) for auteur singularity of mind in application of a specific lens to the artistic work of another, one need look no further than to Oak Park, Illinois, and the Circle Theatre production of "Pippin," playing now through December 23,...

“PLAID TIDINGS” in Munster: Holiday Nostalgia for All Things Plaid
by Paul W. Thompson - November 20, 2012

The musical "Forever Plaid," created in 1990 by writer/director Stuart Ross and the late musical director/arranger James Raitt (cousin to John and Bonnie), was and is a perennially popular staple of regional theaters looking for a small-cast, upbeat and moving musical to satisfy audiences of a certa...

BWW Reviews: Art Institute of Chicago Showcases Video Art, Film with Steyerl, McQueen Exhibitions
by Raymond Hayen - November 06, 2012

Following its highly publicized summer Lichtenstein retrospective, the Art Institute of Chicago appears to be putting emphasis on video art and film installations during the fall season with two innovative new exhibitions - FOCUS: HITO STEYERL and STEVE MCQUEEN....

BWW Reviews: No Kinks Here, KINKY BOOTS is a Crowd-Pleaser
by Misha Davenport - October 18, 2012

Broadway World Chicago reviews the pre-Broadway tryout of 'Kinky Boots'...

Bailiwick's BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON a Mixed Bag
by Misha Davenport - October 09, 2012

'Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson' envisions the seventh U.S. president as Emo rockstar....

BWW Reviews: Nightblue's AVENUE Q Finds Its Purpose
by Misha Davenport - October 08, 2012

Relatively new to the Chicago theater scene, suburban-based Nightblue scores with their original take on the Tony-award winning 'Avenue Q.'...

BWW Reviews: A Glorious SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE
by Misha Davenport - October 05, 2012

Gary Griffin's production of the classic Sondheim musical is a fitting work of art and this season's first must-see....

“The Last Five Years” for the Next Four Weeks: Invest In It, and It Will Reward You
by Paul W. Thompson - September 09, 2012

This month, a modest production of this powerful but modest show is running on the weekends at Stage 773 in Lakeview, brought to us by a new production company, Another Production Company. The company was founded by Raymond K. Cleveland and Toma Tavares Langston, two men who cut their theatrical tee...

BWW Reviews: Marc Robin’s DREAMGIRLS Keeps It Moving at the Marriott
by Paul W. Thompson - August 31, 2012

It's quite an achievement for any theater company to mount a credible "Dreamgirls," frankly, with its casting challenges, costume budget and high energy performance level. But Robin's Marriott "Dreamgirls" succeeds on many levels. It never stops moving, and it frequently moves the audience as well.....

BWW Reviews: The Dream Works at STREAMWERKZ: THE MUSICAL
by Misha Davenport - July 09, 2012

The towel clad lads server up a late-night musical treat at 'Steamwerkz: The Musical'...

HERO: A World-Premiere Comic Book Musical That’s Ready For Its Grown-Ups
by Paul W. Thompson - July 01, 2012

Opening this past Wednesday, the latest new work at the Marriott Theatre is "Hero," conceived and written by Aaron Thielen (the theater's Lead Artistic Director) and based somewhat on his childhood in Milwaukee and the neighborhood he grew up in. The show has music and lyrics by Michael Mahler, an a...

BWW Reviews: BoHo’s FLOYD COLLINS - An Impressive Blend of Stagecraft and Musicianship
by Paul W. Thompson - June 18, 2012

Chicago's non-Equity Bohemian Theatre Ensemble has undertaken Adam Guettel and Tina Landau's 1996 off-Broadway masterpiece (or close to it) and put it on at Theater Wit on West Belmont Avenue for the next month (through July 25, 2012). If you have imagination enough to meet the company halfway, some...