All stories by Mary Wisniewski on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, June 25, 2025

As American as Apple Pie: Oak Park Festival Theatre Celebrates Its Fiftieth Anniversary by Mary Wisniewski

This summer Oak Park Festival Theatre is marking its fiftieth anniversary with “Twelfth Night.” Peter Andersen says that Shakespeare in the park as “American as apple pie.”

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Wednesday, June 18, 2025

The Search for Meaning: A Review of “Pippin” at BrightSide Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

“Pippin” was a Broadway hit in 1972. Bob Fosse was the original Broadway director and choreographer. Being a seventies musical, “Pippin” is edgier and darker than the big 1940s music…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Friday, June 13, 2025

A Marvel: A Review of “Iraq, But Funny” at Lookingglass Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

“Iraq, But Funny” will join “The Arabian Nights” and “Metamorphoses” at the top of the Lookingglass canon. It is not to be missed.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Silver Lining: A Review of “Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues” at American Blues Theater by Mary Wisniewski

“Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues” is a warmhearted and funny play that celebrates both vaudeville and the possibility of friendship across cultural and generational divides.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Friday, June 6, 2025

Planetary Drift: A Review of “War of the Worlds” at Lifeline Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

Lifeline’s production takes on misinformation, a clueless media and the rejection of science—all worthy targets. But the death rays don’t always land.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, May 22, 2025

The Packer Fans of Theater: How American Players Has Kept Shakespeare—and More—Thriving in a Tiny Wisconsin Town by Mary Wisniewski

Why American Players Theatre has managed to survive for forty-six seasons in the Wisconsin woods while fancier, more centrally located, and less mosquito-y venues have closed.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Friday, May 16, 2025

The Future Is Here: A Review of “The Antiquities” at Goodman Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

“The Antiquities” is a play of big ideas about the meaning of life. It reminds us that even if humans are just a blip on the universal timeline, we had some things worth remembering. Get…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Wednesday, May 14, 2025

The Naked Truth: A Review of Bertolt Brecht’s “Galileo” at Trap Door Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

When audience members enter the Trap Door Theatre for Bertolt Brecht’s “Galileo,” they see a nearly naked man, sitting on a chair with his face to the wall. They learn that the man is …

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, May 1, 2025

The Future Is Now: A Review of “Berlin” at Court Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

Any play that takes on Berlin during the Weimar Republic era must operate in “Cabaret’”s long shadow. “Berlin,” now in its world premiere at the Court Theatre, tells stories from t…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Monday, April 14, 2025

Grace Under Pressure: A Review of “The Book of Grace” at Steppenwolf Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

This isn’t a feel-good or a perfect play, but it is a powerful one.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, March 27, 2025

An Electric Jolt to the Heart: The Story of the Kinks at Chicago Shakespeare by Mary Wisniewski

How did one group, formed by often-feuding brothers from working-class North London, have this much depth and scope? “Sunny Afternoon,” a musical playing at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, …

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Monday, March 24, 2025

Hope Springs Eternal: A Review of “The Winter’s Tale” at Invictus Theatre Company by Mary Wisniewski

Depending on your mood and disposition, the magical ending of this play might make you roll your eyes. But I always find it moving, and more so now in a time of so much anger and bitterness.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Monday, March 3, 2025

In Go the Bodies: A Review of “Titus Andronicus” at Redtwist Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

Here’s some advice: Go see “Titus Andronicus” at Redtwist Theatre. It’s a shocking, energetic and muscular version of Shakespeare’s earliest tragedy, filled with gore, excellent st…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, February 25, 2025

Helen Hunt Has Wanted to Do Pinter's Betrayal For Years. Now She's Getting Her Wish in Chicago by Mary Wisniewski

The Oscar-winning actor stars in the marital drama opposite Ian Barford and Robert Sean Leonard at the Goodman Theatre.

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:48PM
Tuesday, February 18, 2025

The Dust of War: A Review of “The Cave” at A Red Orchid Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

Sadieh Rifai is a playwright to watch and this is a play worth seeing. A little trimming and shaping would make it better.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, February 4, 2025

The Daily Grind: A Review of “Lobby Hero” at Shattered Globe Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

Elliot Esquivel plays Jeff, the graveyard-shift security officer at a drab New York apartment building. He’s at the center of the action in this 2001 Kenneth Lonergan play about the diffic…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, January 28, 2025

The Comeback Kid: A Leaner Lookingglass Is Back After Almost Two-Year Pause by Mary Wisniewski

The reopening of Lookingglass this winter with “Circus Quixote” is a joyful event, and comes after a lot of soul-searching.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, January 9, 2025

What Will Juicy Do: An Interview with Tyrone Phillips, Director of “Fat Ham” by Mary Wisniewski

“Fat Ham,” a modern reimagining of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” won the Pulitzer Prize in 2022 and got nominated for five Tony Awards. It’s set at a Southern cookout. Juicy, a young q…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, December 12, 2024

Witty and Complex: A Review of “Little Women” at Northlight Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

A new adaptation by Lauren Gunderson, premiering at Northlight Theatre, avoids the sentimental piety that mars some versions by using more language from Alcott’s astonishing book.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Monday, November 25, 2024

A Touch of Spring: A Review of “The Secret Garden” at Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

“The Secret Garden” is healing: If you come into this show like Mary, cross and wounded, you may come out warm and blooming.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, November 7, 2024

Finding the Light Within: A Review of “Leroy and Lucy” at Steppenwolf by Mary Wisniewski

This is a moving and magical show, exploring the idea of human genius and transcendence.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Friday, November 1, 2024

The Cost of Justice: A Review of “Nat Turner in Jerusalem” at American Players Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

This 2016 play by Rockford-born Nathan Alan Davis asks what justifies violence, a question that resonates with today’s global struggles.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Bedtime Fairy Tales: A Review of Kokandy’s “Into the Woods” at The Chopin Studio Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

There is magic in the setting for Kokandy Productions’ fine and intimate telling of Stephen Sondheim’s 1986 musical “Into the Woods”—a tale of wishes, spells and deadly danger.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, October 15, 2024

Silly Love Songs: A Review of “The Last Wide Open” at American Blues Theater by Mary Wisniewski

The production has many appealing qualities, but the play doesn’t quite satisfy. It needs more—more music, more convincing dialogue. I wanted the full pierogi plate, but left feeling a l…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Wednesday, October 9, 2024

A Poisonous Love Story: A Review of “Misery” at American Blues Theater by Mary Wisniewski

If you like Stephen King or psychological thrillers in general, don’t miss this show. There’s magic here.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, October 8, 2024

Life of an Immigrant: A Review of “Ironbound” at Raven Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

It’s a powerful and rare play that puts a spotlight on a regular working-class woman, bravely negotiating a difficult life.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Tuesday, September 17, 2024

The Game of Make-Believe: A Review of “Henry V” at Chicago Shakespeare Theater by Mary Wisniewski

“Henry V” is like one of those M.C. Escher prints where sometimes you see fish and sometimes ducks—it plays with your perception.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Monday, September 9, 2024

Hogwarts From the Heartland: Chicago Actors Matt Mueller and Larry Yando on Their Roles in “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” by Mary Wisniewski

Yando, who played Scrooge in The Goodman Theatre’s “The Christmas Carol” for sixteen years and is known for playing complicated, dark characters, will take on the prickly Severus Snape…

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Monday, August 26, 2024

If, If Only and What If: A Review of “Constellations” at American Players Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

The performances are real, and the play doesn’t feel like a gimmick but a true portrayal of how life works. It’s like cubism in story form—the variations are altogether at once.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Thursday, August 22, 2024

Successful Entertainment: A Review of “The Virgin Queen Entertains Her Fool” at American Players Theatre by Mary Wisniewski

“The Virgin Queen Entertains Her Fool” is a bawdy, witty, fast-paced tragicomedy, brilliantly acted and expertly plotted.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM
Wednesday, August 21, 2024

Villains By Necessity: A Review of “King Lear” at American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin by Mary Wisniewski

There’s no time wrong for “King Lear,” and if you haven’t seen a live performance, American Players Theatre’s production is a great place to start.

SOURCE: www.newcitystage.com at 08:00AM