Saturday, December 9, 2017
When Tracy Letts' newest play, The Minutes, is good, it’s very, very good, and that’s the case for the play’s first 90-95 minutes. As a small-town transplant myself, I can verify the h…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 12:18AMWednesday, December 6, 2017
Now in its second glorious year, Joffrey Ballet's updated The Nutcracker, set during the construction of Chicago's 1893 Worlds Fair in an immigrant family's shack and their daughter's fantas…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 09:36PMTuesday, December 5, 2017
One of off-Broadway’s longest-running shows, the boy band parody Altar Boyz is a real-time concert of a Christian boy band who love singing and dancing - but love Jesus even more. Theo Ubi…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 07:12PMBased on the 1967 children’s TV special, this fun Rudolph chronicles the adventures of a North Pole reindeer (Graham Thomas Heacock) who just doesn’t fit in with his peers - he just can'…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 05:06PMThursday, November 30, 2017
In Invictus Theatre Company's inaugural production of Othello, Iago is played as a woman. Her strong performance and a largely solid ensemble are not enough, however, to save a weak lead and…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:48PMWednesday, November 29, 2017
Victory Gardens’ latest play, Fade, a co-production with Teatro Vista, features the relationship of two very different Latinx individuals who happen to work in the same building. Fade is f…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 10:04PMTuesday, November 28, 2017
Running 90 minutes with no intermission, Tick, Tick...BOOM! is poignant but inconsistent, with a score that’s lovely and touching but also frustrating and dreary. The Cuckoo’s Theater Pr…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 10:04PMSunday, November 26, 2017
Everyone loves a good, tragic love story, and Lyric Opera's The Pearl Fishers doesn't disappoint. Its two-and-a-half-hour running time is shorter than that of the average opera, making it a …
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 07:42PMSunday, November 19, 2017
Yasmina’s Necklace is very Muslim in its theme, but also very American – unique yet universal. Thoughtfully directed by Ann Filmer, and featuring a gifted ensemble, the Chicago premiere …
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:48PMFriday, November 17, 2017
Breath, Boom is never an easy watch, challenging the audience to check its collective privilege and watch a survivor endure her darkest years with only small flashes of optimism. Beautifully…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 10:33PMThursday, November 16, 2017
Firebrand Theatre's Lizzie is an all-female rock musical about the the true story of Lizzie Borden, whose alleged axe murder of her father and stepmother in 1892 led to a media frenzy, a nur…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:12PMFriday, November 10, 2017
With a running time of just over 2 hours, School of Rock is just as winning as the original film. Taking an underdog story and blending it with cute kids and a rousing score, the musical mak…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:24PMWith Akeelah and the Bee, Adventure Stage Chicago has adapted the 2006 screenplay, relocating the story to the South Side of Chicago, adding Spanish supertitles to make the show more accessi…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 12:48AMFriday, November 3, 2017
Besides its humor, Bobby Pin Girls tackles issues such as addiction, self-harm and toxic masculinity without being manipulative or heavy-handed, which is a skill on its own. Nothing Without …
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 07:04PMWednesday, October 25, 2017
The Joffrey Ballet’s premiere of a newly-staged Giselle doesn’t disappoint, wringing out every possible drop of excitement, in a production that’s equal parts breathtaking and horrifyi…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 10:42PMSunday, September 17, 2017
Forbidden love, war and deception are all present in the story of playwright John Millington Synge's Deiredre of the Sorrows (which hasn't been professionally produced in Chicago in a centur…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 01:06AMSaturday, September 16, 2017
Known for their innovative, quality work, Kokandy Productions knocks Bonnie & Clyde out of the park, as director Spencer Neiman and team overcome some of the source material’s flaws w…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 09:42PMTuesday, September 12, 2017
The CiviliTy of Albert Cashier has the bones of a solid production: a sad but compelling true story, dynamic lead performers and a beautiful score. However, it still feels like a work-in-pro…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 06:18PMSaturday, September 2, 2017
Rough House Theater Company specializes in physical theater and puppetry, and their world premiere of Cicada Summer seamlessly fuses both with a sweet coming-of-age tale involving thirteen-y…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:18PMWednesday, August 30, 2017
Route 66 Theatre's A Funny Thing Happened... has an excellent cast that almost (but not quite) make up for the script’s flaws. One wishes playwright Halley Feiffer had a better critique pa…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:06PMAlthough there are excellent performances throughout, Barbecue still, overall, feels false - and not in a deep, thought-provoking way. One can sense Playwright Robert O’Hara’s desperatio…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 02:18AMTuesday, August 29, 2017
The Audience is a must-see for fans of the British monarchy, the Windsor family and strong women in leadership roles. The production's acting is overall excellent, with TimeLine and Chicago …
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 03:42PMMonday, August 21, 2017
Playwright Kristoffer Diaz takes a hard behind-the-scenes look at the complex world of wrestling: the ruthless producers, the arrogant *champions*, and the workhorses who genuinely love the …
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 03:36PMWednesday, August 16, 2017
Nearly 90 years after it first premiered, Machinal’s fast-paced and ruthless exploration of what it means to be a woman trapped in a patriarchal society still rings true. Greenhouse Theate…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 12:18AMTuesday, August 15, 2017
Controversial to the point of dangerous in the late 1960s, Hair is still edgy, with nudity, simulated drug use and profanity galore. Mercury Theater Chicago’s production is explosive and t…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 06:06PMMonday, August 14, 2017
Michael Perlman’s play At The Table focuses on a group of college friends who reunite as adults and find that much has changed, and much remains, unfortunately, the same. In Broken Nose Th…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 06:33PMTuesday, August 8, 2017
Pride Arts Center’s newest children’s show is a rainbow take on the traditional story hour, aiming for younger audiences with its messages of love and recognition. Incorporating puppets,…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 06:48PMMonday, August 7, 2017
Chicago Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, presented throughout the city at various parks free of charge, is both delightful and tragic in its portrayal of young love and rash decisions, Mart…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 08:04PMThursday, August 3, 2017
The Neo-Fururists' The Food Show is an original work centered around the culture of food: why we eat it, how we eat it, who we eat it with, and includes music and dance, and a hands-on, inte…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 09:42PMTuesday, August 1, 2017
It’s difficult to see anything redeeming about In The Wake, as the script is so flawed and the main character is so screechy. Director Alex Mallory does her absolute best to keep things mo…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 10:42AMWednesday, July 26, 2017
How you feel about They’re Playing Our Song will depend on how you feel about Neil Simon and the 1970s. Simon wrote the 1970s-set script, Marvin Hamlisch the music. Luckily, Brown Paper Bo…
SOURCE: Chicago Theater Beat at 05:36PM 
