All stories by Dennis Polkow on BroadwayStars

Thursday, December 2, 2021

Ghostly Comfort and Joy: A Review of “A Christmas Carol” at Goodman Theatre by Dennis Polkow

We watch Scrooge go through his familiar redemptive and restorative ritual with renewed interest.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, October 28, 2021

The World According to Garth: Returning to Chicago with Paradise Square, a Pre-Broadway Race Musical by Dennis Polkow

A conversation with Garth Drabinsky on his new show “Paradise Square" a musical about a pre-Civil War Irish/African-American neighborhood that existed in New York prior to the 1863 Draft …

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Drunk With Slapstick: A Review of The Elixir of Love at Lyric Opera by Dennis Polkow

With its carefree and sunny demeanor, “Elixir” could not be more different than Verdi’s “Macbeth,” which opened the season the week before.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, July 6, 2021

Filling The Dance Card: Lyric Opera Welcomes New Roommate Joffrey Ballet to Refurbished Opera House by Dennis Polkow

"This is a partnership which we hope will have an indefinite future. For this house to be able to offer the city a regular diet of opera and ballet changes the feel of what the opera house r…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Lifting the Veil on Valhalla: An Inside Look at Lyric’s “Ring” Cycle by Dennis Polkow

"The piece is so rich that the most important thing for me to say is 'Once Upon a Time.'"

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 11:00AM
Monday, May 6, 2013

Review: Oklahoma!/Lyric Opera by Dennis Polkow

When Renée Fleming was announced as Lyric Opera’s creative consultant in December of 2010, she related that the company would have an “annual commitment to American musical theater” b…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 12:48PM
Monday, April 29, 2013

Review: South Pacific/Marriott Theatre by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED There is a lot of Richard Rodgers being heard around town this spring, from the rarely heard Rodgers and Hart “Pal Joey” at Porchlight and the first-ever Rodgers and Hammerst…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 12:57PM
Monday, April 22, 2013

Review: María de Buenos Aires/Chicago Opera Theater by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED One of the problems with being the new impresario in town who conducts, directs and simultaneously runs another opera company on the West Coast is catching your breath long enoug…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 01:42PM
Monday, April 15, 2013

Review: Cruzar la Cara de la Luna/Lyric Opera by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED Heavily promoted as two words you don’t hear together very often, i.e., a “mariachi opera,” “Cruzar la Cara de la Luna” [“To cross the face of the moon”] is actuall…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 01:38PM
Monday, April 8, 2013

Review: Catch Me If You Can/Broadway In Chicago by Dennis Polkow

They come without warning, those occasional Non-Equity shows that Broadway In Chicago manages to slip into its lineup. They are usually classics or revivals popular enough to be relatively…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 07:28PM
Tuesday, April 2, 2013

How It Begins: Composer of “Big Fish” Hopes to Reel in an Emotional Whopper by Dennis Polkow

By Dennis Polkow Andrew Lippa, the composer of “Big Fish,” has been very busy readying the show for its pre-Broadway world premiere in Chicago. “‘Big Fish’ is a joyful celebration …

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 05:00AM
Friday, March 29, 2013

Review: A Streetcar Named Desire/Lyric Opera by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED One of the great difficulties in bringing an iconic contemporary play to the opera house is securing permission from the playwright, without which, an opera is not possible. In t…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 07:40PM
Monday, March 25, 2013

Review: Priscilla Queen of the Desert/Broadway In Chicago by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED The touring version of the Broadway production of the Australian jukebox musical based on the 1994 Australian film has landed at the Auditorium Theatre. The film “The Adven…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 09:37AM
Thursday, March 14, 2013

Review: Aspects of Love/Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED The early works of Andrew Lloyd Webber incorporated rock and pop idioms into the Broadway musical that, taken with the punchy lyrics of his early partner Tim Rice and a through-c…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 03:00PM
Monday, March 4, 2013

Review: Rigoletto/Lyric Opera by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED Verdi’s “Rigoletto” is so popular and done so often that it has become a festering ground for avant-garde directorial concepts that more often than not are bizarrely superi…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 11:30AM
Monday, February 25, 2013

Review: The Fall of the House of Usher/Chicago Opera Theater by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED The Andreas Mitisek era has begun at Chicago Opera Theater. Walking across the stage on crutches with a leg cast at Saturday night’s season opening, Mitisek noted that his fall…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 12:46PM
Monday, November 26, 2012

Review: Don Pasquale/Lyric Opera by Dennis Polkow

RECOMMENDED Whereas the recent Lyric production of “Werther” was constantly fighting against the music for attention, the production of Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale” that opened S…

SOURCE: Newcity Stage at 03:00PM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic