RECOMMENDED Coming on the heels of their insightful production of "Sondheim on Sondheim," Porchlight Music Theatre provides just enough silly to make "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to th…
Written and directed by Ruben D. Echoles, “Sounds So Sweet” follows the Harris family on their journey to lay their matriarch to rest. As the Harris' gather in Mississippi to hos…
RECOMMENDED Since their 1997/98 season, Eclipse Theatre Company has focused on one particular playwright for all of their adventures, or re-visited a group of previously examined authors for…
RECOMMENDED Satire works best when it has enough of a bite that even those laughing can feel the teeth marks. Too gentle and the jokes just feel safe and congratulatory for those in agreemen…
RECOMMENDED If you're looking for an enchanting emcee who can walk the fine line between low-key and high class while sipping a giant martini, look no further than MsPixy, the quick-witted h…
A high school student in Germany, alienated by the hypocrisy and materialism of his surroundings, turns to religious literalism. Soon, he becomes a gleaming-eyed fanatic at war with society …
RECOMMENDED Just because someone's died doesn't make their death a martyrdom. It doesn't mean they were a saint. Complicated or downright negative feelings that a person had for someone when…
RECOMMENDED We all have secrets. Some bind us to others; some keep us bound in silence to ourselves; very few remain concealed. "Between You, Me and the Lampshade," a world premiere written …
By, Mary Kroeck The arts community lost a staggering number of incredible talents in 2014. Arguably, no death caused the world so much shock as the suicide of Robin Williams. He and hi…
Some people, when moved to frenetic laughter, are prone to requiring so much air to replace the air lost due to their audible guffaws that they suck in through their noses, creating a snorti…
RECOMMENDED It's always an event when Chicagoland can steal director/choreographer Marc Robin away from his duties as artistic director of Lancaster, PA's Fulton Theatre to work his special …
Soft-spoken and self-effacing, Nicolas Blanc sits in a folding chair in a sunny studio room of the Joffrey tower, gently cueing the entrances and changes for five dancers in his short ballet…
In our world of bullet points and sound bytes, the second act of an entertainment seems presented with the challenge of proving its worth. A bristling Act I is often sadly followed by a defl…
RECOMMENDED The family-sitting-room genre is built on secrecy. Sometimes it's a literal secret, one that lurks from the opening curtain until just the right moment"usually right before an in…
People will probably never stop basing plays (and movies and books) on “The Odyssey.” Homer's ancient epic poem chronicling Odysseus' long return home from Troy is elemental to o…
RECOMMENDED The depth of a woman's love is unmatched. For the man lucky enough to capture a woman's heart, she will move heaven and earth for him, even at times to the detriment of bo…
Wonderful things can come of Lyric's decision to present musical theater. New audiences may be caught up in the ambiance, and elect to attend an opera. Lyric's opera audiences could see musi…
By no coincidence whatsoever, my saddest, oldest, drunkest (SOD) friend is a big fan of pro wrestling, so a trip to the Annoyance to see some ladies go at it seemed like just the ticket. Dir…
RECOMMENDED We usually have to wait till June and bus, bike or train down to the Loop to see great free performances but, thanks to the Chicago Human Rhythm Project"that mighty advocate o…
RECOMMENDED Alongside the Neo-Futurists, Waltzing Mechanics are purveyors of micro theater. Their latest edition in the "El Stories" series ought to be called "Not Talking to Strangers," fol…
RECOMMENDED While Marcus Gardley's "An Issue of Blood" is not a perfect play, it is indeed a powerful one. Set on a tobacco plantation in 1676 Virginia owned by Negro Mary (Lizan Mitchell), …
RECOMMENDED While Carlo Goldoni's 1747 play hangs on the familiar device of mayhem following in the wake of mistaken identical twins and the supporting stock characters of its time, Evanston…
In case you are worried about false advertising, the opening number of "Murder Ballad," currently receiving its Chicago premiere courtesy of Bailiwick Chicago, confirms that you are, in fact…
By Aaron Hunt Every year, New York City Center hosts the celebrated "Encores!” series, imagined as a way to rediscover and celebrate the Broadway musicals that, for whatever reason, sl…
RECOMMENDED Note the quotation marks in the title of Director Taylor Hackford's near-perfect tribute to Louis Prima and Keely Smith, the 1950s act that made Vegas its own. The quotes aren't …