Chicago Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 33

Fain Commands 'SANTALAND DIARIES' With Elven Charm & Smarm
by William Panek - November 29, 2009

Theater Wit's 'THE SANTALAND DIARIES' is an alternative gin-fuel yuletide holiday monologue for anyone who's over the manufactured 'joy' of the season and into an ol' fashioned adult-aimed evening of comic storytelling....

Munster's 'Christmas Schooner:' The Gales of November Pack An Emotional Wallop
by Paul W. Thompson - November 23, 2009

I may be the only Chicago theater critic of a certain age who has never seen "The Christmas Schooner." After its initial production by the Music Theatre program at Northwestern University in 1993, directed by Dominic Missimi, the show debuted at the old Bailiwick Repertory Theatre in 1996 and ran fo...

'Miracle On 34th Street' A Modestly Charming Play With Music
by Paul W. Thompson - November 22, 2009

Now on the boards at Theatre Building Chicago is the first edition of Porchlight Music Theatre's hoped-for holiday tradition, 'Miracle on 34th Street,' an adaptation of the Academy Award-winning 1947 film (and its Valentine Davies source novel) by Patricia Di Benedetto Snyder, Will Severin and John ...

'YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN' Tour Needs to Bulk Up
by William Panek - November 06, 2009

YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN features extremely talent performers carrying an ok show on a lack-luster tour....

Oakbrook's 'MILLIE' a Tappy, Happy Hit
by Paul W. Thompson - November 01, 2009

Opening this week at the high-flying Drury Lane Theatre, in Chicago's far western suburb of Oakbrook Terrace, is "Thoroughly Modern Millie," the 2002 Best Musical Tony winner which gave the world the career of Sutton Foster (and didn't too badly for her male co-stars Gavin Creel and Marc Kudisch). B...

James' 'IMBECILE D'AMOUR' a Beautifully Sung Showcase
by William Panek - October 30, 2009

Whether or not Zachary James realizes it yet, his name is in for a world of star-power draw in the upcoming months. If he decides to perform 'IMBECILE D'AMOUR' in Chicago again, it's bound to have musical theatre and vocal aficionados filling Gorilla Tango to the brim....

Macabaret - A Ghoulish Good Time
by Trish Vignola - October 23, 2009

Alright, I have to confess that I was prepared for a night of processed cheese melting under stage lights. I personally cannot stomach holiday-themed theatre (regardless of the holiday) and this was the second Halloween-themed show I reviewed in the past three weeks. However, I am happy to say that...

Filament's 'THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW:' Let Them Tell You a Story
by William Panek - October 23, 2009

Filament Theatre Ensemble picked the perfect month, performance space, & design team to present their new folk music adaptation of Washington Irving's 'THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW.'...

Bed Hopping with Lucinda
by Trish Vignola - October 16, 2009

I support the promotion of local playwrights, especially women. However, 'Lucinda's Bed' plays into every stereotyped moment of a woman's life: self-consciousness, violence, guilt, fear. Don't get me wrong. A stereotype is a stereotype because there is some kernel of truth to it. Who hasn't had...

"Rhymes with Evil" Scares Up a Good Time
by Trish Vignola - October 10, 2009

I can't stress enough that if you are looking for something for the kids to do this Halloween, this is not the show for you. There are no slashers or ax-murderers; however, Rhymes with Evil is a scary Hitchcockian good time. This Halloween, if you are looking for an original suspenseful evening, t...

The Profiles Theatre hits the mark with "The Mercy Seat"
by Trish Vignola - October 03, 2009

The Profiles Theatre opened its 21st Anniversary Season with the Midwest premiere of Neil LaBute's The Mercy Seat. Directed by Artistic Director, Joe Jahraus, this production runs now through November 15, 2009 at the Profiles Theatre, 4147 N. Broadway. The Mercy Seat was one of the first theatrica...

A Lincolnshire "Hairspray:" Total, Inevitable Integration
by Paul W. Thompson - October 02, 2009

Opening this week at the Marriott Theatre in Chicago's far north suburban collar community of Lincolnshire is one of the first post-Broadway productions of "Hairspray," one of this decade's biggest hits and longest running Broadway shows, based on a hit movie and the basis for yet another.... ...

'The Fantasticks' Lands in the Dark
by Trish Vignola - September 27, 2009

No, it does. Literally. The Porchlight Music Theatre opened its 15th anniversary season this month with The Fantasticks. Based on Edmond Rostand's Les Romanesques with music by Harvey Schmidt and a book and lyrics by Tom Jones, this classic has produced Broadway standards such as "Try to Remember....

'The Marvelous Wonderettes:' Forever Female at the Northlight Theatre
by Paul W. Thompson - September 28, 2009

In the smallish pantheon of shows that followed in the footsteps of "Forever Plaid," that early 90s ode to the boy bands of the 1950s and 60s that uses a small cast, one set and a "juke box" of Baby Boomer radio hits, many of them quite naturally feature girls. ("Beehive" comes to mind, as does the ...

Goodman's 'STOOP STORIES' a Poetic, Yet Hasty, Tour of Manhattan
by William Panek - September 26, 2009

STOOP STORIES, currently playing at the Goodman Theatre, is a solo performance piece definitely worth exploring, though a slightly disjointed evening awaits....

Year Zero - A Well Fought Victory
by Trish Vignola - September 24, 2009

The World Premiere of Michael Golamco's Year Zero opens this week in the new second floor studio of the historic Victory Gardens' Biograph Theater. Year Zero is the first of a two-show premiere concluding Victory Gardens' Ignition Emerging Playwrights of Color Festival, which after this production,...

Harry Chapin's Cotton Patch Gospel - A Great Pick!
by Trish Vignola - September 20, 2009

The Provision Theater Company opened their season last week with a revival of their 2004 production of Cotton Patch Gospel. The Cotton Patch Gospel is a reverent retelling of the Gospels of Matthew and John, set to Bluegrass music. Based on the book, The Cotton Patch Gospel of Matthew and John by ...

'MISTAKES WERE MADE' A Master Class in Solo(ish) Performance
by William Panek - September 13, 2009

Director Dexter Bullard has fashioned Craig Wright's world premiere of MISTAKES WERE MADE into a steady-paced and impeccably acted collaboration between Michael Shannon and A Red Orchid Theatre....

Cruz's 'LORCA IN A GREEN DRESS' Receives A Small Yet Focused Premiere at the Halcyon
by William Panek - September 05, 2009

Halcyon Theatre's LORCA IN A GREEN DRESS is a fascinating way to look at the life (and afterlife) of an artist....

The Caffeine Theatre's 'Under Milk Wood' is a Jolt of Fun
by Trish Vignola - August 28, 2009

Last night, the Caffeine Theatre in association with the Chicago DCA Theater opened Dylan Thomas' 'Under Milk Wood' at the Storefront Theater. Thomas' dark 'Day in the Life' comedy about the fictional Welch town of 'Llareggub' explores the theme of isolation in an ever shrinking world, while still ...

Oakbrook's 'Cabaret' a Seamless, Compelling Theatrical Vision
by Paul W. Thompson - August 20, 2009

Run. Do not walk. Run to Oakbrook Terrace-or, at least, run to your car, train, bus, taxi or helicopter-in order to get to Chicago's western suburbs. There you will witness an extraordinary night of theater, Jim Corti's staging of 'Cabaret,' which is seamless, courageous and frequently state-of-the-...

'SPRING AWAKENING' Is a Rockin' Journey of Passion & Neon
by William Panek - August 05, 2009

With gratuitous R-rated horror films, reality programming, and mindless tweeney bopper fluff all the rage, teens and adults alike deserve to experience 'SPRING AWAKENING's' theatrically thrilling rock-based heart....

Everything Works Perfectly in 'STUDS TERKEL'S NOT WORKING'
by William Panek - July 23, 2009

Whether you're from Chicago, Naperville, the South Side, or the flat lands of Iowa, The Second City e.t.c.'s 33rd review is a beyond-enjoyable homage to not only Terkel's work, but to a city second to none....

'BLACKBIRD' Flies Despite Heavy Material
by William Panek - July 20, 2009

Victory Gardens' premiere of David Harrower's BLACKBIRD is a blunt anguished success....

'FOOTLOOSE' Is 'Flat' At Theatre at the Center
by Paul W. Thompson - July 19, 2009

When a professional theater in suburban Chicago bills a lone actor above the title, expect great things. I mean, it doesn't happen very often. In the opening seconds of Theatre at the Center's production of the musical stage version of 'Footloose' now open in Munster, Indiana, the actor in question,...