Red Theater’s Beowulf Is a Wacky Duet of Monsters, Mead and Music
The outline of Grendel’s Mother visible in dim red light lies on the floor. She stands up realizing her surroundings and begins her seduction. In direct address, she tells the […]
By the Bog of Cats: Irish Gothic Mixed With Greek Tragedy at The Artistic Home
Marina Carr’s 1998 play, By the Bog of Cats, is set in a ghostly bog in the Irish midlands. Hester Swane (a fierce and determined Kristin Collins) has lived in […]
Straight White Men: Brotherly Horseplay and Rejecting the American Dream
Matt rejects the American dream, but his father and brothers will have none of it. Straight white men rule the world. Matt has to be happy, use his skills and […]
Northlight’s Faceless A Timely Courtroom Drama by Promising Playwright
There’s no doubting the timeliness of Selina Fellinger’s play, Faceless. In a world premiere directed by BJ Jones now running at Northlight Theatre, the 22-year-old’s play examines a variety of […]
The Bodyguard: Singing Along Because I Love the Music. The Play Not So Much.
I will admit that I had a smile on my face when I left the Oriental Theatre after seeing The Bodyguard. But, while I was smiling and singing along with […]
Preview: New Irish Voices Festival by Irish Theatre of Chicago
Irish Theatre of Chicago will present staged readings from three emerging Irish playwrights three weekends this month at Chief O’Neill’s Pub on Elston Avenue. The plays, never before produced in […]
Elemeno Pea Spells Bad Choice for Citadel
At the outset of Elemeno Pea, a Molly Smith-Metzler play at Citadel Theatre, there is arguing. Halfway in, there’s still arguing. The whole show centers on the tired “rich vs […]
Teatro Vista’s The Wolf at the End of the Block Is a Thriller Set in Chicago’s Mean Streets
It’s the end of the evening, the end of The Wolf at the End of the Block. The lead character, Abe (Gabriel Ruiz) is in a bar, thinking about what […]
The Nether at A Red Orchid Predicts a Darker Side of the Web and Virtual Life
Jennifer Haley’s very contemporary play, The Nether, is set in a world we may find all too familiar. Neither real nor unreal. Mostly virtual, in fact, rather like our social media […]
High Energy Rock Chops in Remount of High Fidelity: The Musical
Oh, if only one could jump into the Wayback Machine into the simpler times of Nick Hornby’s 1995 novel and Stephen Frears’ 2000 movie to escape 2017’s dystopia. You can, just […]
A Family 20 Years Later in Raven’s Assembled Parties
“Times change,” Julie’s neurotic-if-charming sister-in-law, Faye, tells her near the end of The Assembled Parties, now in its Midwest premiere at Raven Theatre. “Yes,” is Julie’s reply. “Times change and […]
Steep Theatre’s Earthquakes in London: A Sly, Carnival-Like Treatment of the Planet’s Demise
Three sisters. Estranged from their climate scientist father. Their lives each upended by climate change. And dozens of other characters. Steep Theatre’s U.S. premiere of Earthquakes in London spans eras […]