THE DANGERS OF TECHNOLOGY " ON STAGE AND OFF Playwright Jennifer Haley is definitely onto something in her play Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom, now receiving its Chicago premiere at Str…
AFTERGLOW It's with good reason that Chad Beckim's After has been extended at Profiles Theatre. Yes, Beckim's script undoubtedly tries to cover too much territory as he tells the tale of Mon…
YOU DEFINITELY WANT TO MEET THESE FEET I was led to believe, based on having seen both the original Broadway version of 42nd Street and the humongous Broadway revival, that the slight jukebo…
THE LANDSCAPE OF THE SOUL Those who were lucky enough to witness the Joffrey Ballet's Spring Desire program this year were treated to what may well have been the greatest dance program…
A STORY TO TELL Writer/Actress Dael Orlandersmith has many stories to tell in her one-person show at the Goodman, but they all encompass the same theme: abuse. Specifically, involving boys a…
PIECES OF FATE There is quite a bit of buzz surrounding Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's One Thousand Pieces, which will commence the company's 35th season. Inspired by Chagall’s masterp…
ONE TIME ONLY FOR ONE NAME ONLY WAS ONE TOO MANY TIMES Yes, America's got talent. And the performers on stage at Black Ensemble Theater's beautiful new digs are packed to the gills with char…
NOISE IS OFF It is 1944 in a field near a watering hole in Kent, England. A strapping, fine-looking, and masculine young man purveys the view and strips off his shirt. Another young man ente…
GARY GRIFFIN CREATES A TRIUMPHANT MASTERPIECE AT CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE Rare is the theatrical experience that is so haunting and so achingly beautiful that your soul actually feels caressed an…
TRAGEDY FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY If you have ever wanted to introduce teenagers to Hamlet, the production directed by Leisl Tommy at California Shakespeare is the one to take them to. Staged on …
THE PUZZLE BOX OF THE SOUL Critics should avoid discussing plot in their reviews, but playwright Sharr White has unintentionally placed a challenge before me: because the play is a labyrinth…
BYRNE THIS Grammy®, Oscar® and Golden Globe winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame honoree David Byrne along with St. Vincent make their Segerstrom Center debuts in An Evening with Davi…
WILL THE REAL AMERICANS PLEASE STAND UP? I was on a road trip in 2007 seeking to explore the plethora of National Parks that we, the American people, own. While heading through Des Moines, I…
MORE POLEMIC BARK THAN EMOTIONAL BITE IN THIS NORMAL HEART Some eyes will be misty, some guts will be wrenched, and some souls will be startled after attending Larry Kramer's seminal play Th…
A LITTLE BLUE More than a few friends recently mentioned that there are many "great" things on the boob tube. Since I don't watch TV, it came as a surprise because I assumed it was mostly pa…
WHAT WILL YOU SEE IN RED? John Logan's 2010 Tony-winning Red is a work of art, and the Mark Taper Forum is presenting the 2009 Donmar Warehouse Production, starring the illustrious Alfred Mo…
MIND YOUR MANOR Site-specific theater productions"that is, theatre which is performed in unconventional spaces compatible to the script"remain mystifyingly uncommon. For example, why do outd…
O.C. STORY First, scroll down to the bottom of this review; there you will find the information you need to buy your tickets to Oanh Nguyen's magnificently re-interpreted production of West …
BEST BE ON YOUR AVANT-GARDE Understanding the origins of REDCAT, the downtown center for innovative visual, performing, and media arts, will assist the uninitiated in preparation for the ava…
IT COULD HAVE BEEN WONDERFUL Attendees who had never seen Stephen Sondheim being interviewed in person must have been licking their chops with every juicy morsel that the legend said about h…
GOLD DISCOVERED IN THE PLAINS I rolled my eyes when I heard about the plot of Harmony, Kansas, a musical having its world premiere at Divisionary Theatre in San Diego. Heath is a gay Kansan …
NO EVIL. NO GOOD. There are few who do not know the story. The devil possesses Regan, the innocent 12-year-old daughter of movie star Chris MacNeil, who is working on a film in Georgetown. A…
ALL THE WORLD'S A GLOBE After previewing in the month of June, The Old Globe officially opens the 2012 Shakespeare Festival this week. Adrian Noble returns for his third season as the intern…
LEARNING OF A DEATH PENALTY FOR ONE'S EXISTENCE Uganda has an alarming history when it comes to human rights violations, but recent developments against gay people are horrifying. In 2005, U…
THREE'S COMPANY ON SHROOMS The concept of David Adjmi's flawed but entertaining new play 3C is an intriguing one: to take Three's Company, an iconic, milquetoast ABC sitcom (which starred Jo…