Hedwig and the Angry Inch Rocks
Transgendered individuals deserve extra attention during these dark days, so Chicago’s remount of Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a balm, a glorious, rock-star, kick-ass celebration of the ultimate joy […]
Halcyon and A-Squared’s American Hwangap An Affecting Family Story
In Korea, a “hwangap” refers to someone’s 60th birthday. The celebration is a major milestone in East Asian culture and represents the completion of one life cycle and the start […]
Chicago Children’s Theater Stages Circus Adventure in Italy: The Year I Didn’t Go to School
The Ruth Page Center for the Arts was a full house Sunday for an opening weekend performance of The Year I Didn’t Go to School: A Homemade Circus. The audience […]
A Wonder in My Soul Is Provocative Feminist Black Theatre
“A black woman is both queen and warrior…” says Bell Grand Lake to her daughter. In heartbreaking lines of spoken word she explains the reason behind the uneven treatment she’s […]
The Columnist Revisits the Vietnam Era, When Journalists Were Not “The Enemy of the People”
It may be hard for today’s online news consumers to believe, but there was a day when newspaper columnists—certain newspaper columnists—were Masters of the Universe. The Political Universe anyway. The […]
Porchlight’s The Scottsboro Boys Shines Light on Judicial Injustice
Porchlight Music Theatre’s production of The Scottsboro Boys satirically presents a true story in the controversial style of the minstrel show. There is no doubting that the musical, which chronicles […]
Monster at Steppenwolf for Young Adults Probes Perception and Identity
The Steppenwolf for Young Adults series is known for its thematically dynamic productions centered around teenagers and the real issues facing Chicago, and our nation’s, young adults. From productions like […]
Best of Bri-Ko Gets Physical
The Best of Bri-Ko, playing every Thursday night at Stage 773, lives up to its name. Clowns Brian Posen, Tim Soszko and Brian Peterlin put their energies together to silently […]
New Adaptation of Uncle Vanya Refreshes the Language of Love, Longing and Boredom
Chicago has been blessed with several visits by Anton Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya in recent years. Some of them have been fairly traditional renditions (Tuta Theatre Chicago in 2009 and Strawdog […]
Schenkelberg’s Smart Scientology Smackdown in Squeeze My Cans
Cathy Schenkelberg adds her own narrative to the recent repudiations of Scientology in the remount of her rapid-fire, intimate, informative, mind-boggling and poignant solo exploration Squeeze My Cans. In […]
‘Unseen’ at The Gift Theatre Is Intense, Impactful and Impeccable
The Gift Theatre is a small space. From lobby to stage is under a minute’s walk. But this past Thursday, for the world premier of Mona Mansour’s play, Unseen, it […]
Chicago Shakes Finds the Humor in Love’s Labor’s Lost
Populated with the Italian stock characters of the braggart (Allen Gilmore as Don Adriano de Armado), sassy servant (James Newcombe as Boyet) and dumbass (Steve Pringle as dullard Constable Dull), […]