2,444 stories from chicagoreader.com
The choose-your-own-adventure-style parody features all the best tropes and treats of made-for-TV holiday specials.
'Tis the season for cheesy, made-for-TV holid…
"As long as I got YouTube and the latest iPhone, I'm Gucci."
When you were in high school, did you ever sneak into a girl's house after school? And did her dad h…
Furries aren't all fetishists"they're members of a supportive community who (sometimes) don costumes to feel more comfortable in their own skins.
"It's not like …
Eclipse Theatre's all-Durang seasons finishes strong with a brutal black comedy about post-9/11 paranoia.
Christopher Durang's Why Torture Is Wrong, and the Peop…
Githa Sowerby's long-neglected drama has a strong cast at TimeLine, but drags at times.
For a mostly forgotten 1912 play, written by Githa Sowerby (but presented…
Sugarplums, sparkle, and a stellar cast can't quite overcome a treacly script.
In commercializing Jane Austen's enduring appeal, playwrights Margot Melcon and La…
The Dickensian melodrama-turned-musical features an outstanding ensemble.
Lionel Bart's musical adaptation of Charles Dickens's 1839 novel Oliver Twist first pre…
Red Tape Theatre's production traces a woman's empowerment through role-playing.
With ambitious productions that push the boundaries of subject matter, Red Tape …
Sophocles's tragedy could use some emotional veils in Court Theatre's staging.
Montaigne, quoting from ancient sources, describes a painting of the sacrifice of …
The House Theatre's annual tradition remains one of Chicago's best seasonal offerings.
It took me nine years to get out to the House Theatre's annual nonballetic…
Steppenwolf's latest collaboration with Ladysmith Black Mambazo has too much story, not enough song.
Steppenwolf's long association with Ladysmith Black Mambazo,…
Dennis ZaÄek's solid staging lets Samuel Beckett's existential comedy be.
Written in the wake of World War II, with its carnage and cruelty committed by all s…
Generational and racial divides light the fuse at Writers Theatre.
In 2015, Yale University was rocked by student activists demanding change within an organizati…
Based in Australia, the company fuses contemporary dance with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander traditions.
Bangarra Dance Theatre of Australia makes its Chi…
Chicago Opera Theater's Everest is stunning contemporary opera.
It was a great weekend for contemporary opera in Chicago. Lyric's not-to-be-missed Dead Man Walki…
The handmade clothing line offers ethical and sustainable fashion for all.
Vihanga Sontam always wanted to start her own fashion label.…
Mary Zimmerman's adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale is moving and magical.
Marionette-like figures in colorful, exaggerated costumes dance on a…
Tango 21 Dance Theater's cabaret show lacks narrative sophistication.
Originating on the streets of Argentina, filtered through European high society, blending A…
The central characters feel like an afterthought in Barbara Gaines's contemporized version.
Setting Romeo and Juliet in a contemporary urban setting inevitably d…
Scott Bradley's solo show for About Face creates an important document of queer life.
Living out and proud in a coastal queer mecca full of historic gayborhoods,…
Aguijón Theater's production of Nilo Cruz's drama is searing and sharp.
Nilo Cruz's plays often center on people suffering displacement and trying to find dis…
In its 108th main-stage revue, Second City tries to get a handle on our crazy times.
A year ago, Second City unveiled Algorithm Nation or the Static Quo, a grim …
A white Canadian pop star and two Black hip-hop artists share a reality-TV crib.
There are two specific places in Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm's P.Y.G. or the Mis-…
Lucky Plush's new ensemble piece uses the roller rink as a metaphor for community.
Ah, the roller rink"a community center where everyone keeps moving in circles,…
The live show and podcast aim to shake the shame from our most disgusting moments.
Bodies are gross. It's true of all bodies, but while men are often encouraged …
