Photo: Paul Metreyeon

RECOMMENDED

“Hey! Dancin’!” is the new musical entertainment from the Factory Theater and director Sarah Rose Graber.  It’s a cross between the musical “Hairspray” and an episode of “Kids Incorporated” and, since most audiences will know the Broadway musical based on the campy cult film, I’ll say that if you remember and loved the 1980s children’s program that integrated radio hits into its sketch-show format, you should stop reading this now and run down to the Prop Thtr to catch this irresistibly fun and gloriously cheesy piece of 1980s musical kitsch.

The show concerns a sweet, somewhat naïve teenage girl (Halle) who’s absolutely determined to dance on Chicago’s number-one public-cable-access dance show (“Hey! Dancin’!”).  Since co-writers Kirk Pynchon and Mike Beyer settle this conflict early on in their light confection of a script, the main dramatic tension rests with whether or not the program will survive its station manager’s attempt to replace the (“getting too black”) programming of Sade, Janet Jackson and Howard Jones (“He’s British but same thing!” says the ignorant bigot), with the vanilla dance grooves of Bon Jovi (“it’s like classic rock, only worse!” cries a young dancer). There is a revolution against “the man” and you can guess who wins in the end. So like “Hairspray,” “Hey! Dancin’!” is at its heart the tale of a young heroine with a dream of dance superstardom, the show itself a small “Rebel Yell” against prejudice. And since the “Hey! Dancin’!” dancers represent a large cross-section of kid-types who were hitting the dance floor circa 1986 (the year in which the show is set), including a flamboyant homosexual clearly modeled on Pete Burns of Dead or Alive, a vapid Belinda Carlisle clone with teased-out big hair and an African-American Prince priestess, the strongest message in “Hey! Dancin’!” is one of inclusion for anyone who’s different, weird or unattractive (Halle’s unexpected romantic interest is with a pudgy background dancer named Pete, who’s been told by the producers to stay in the way back since he’s “TV ugly,” which means “like real-life ugly, only slightly more ugly.”) Read the rest of this entry »

Photo: AJ Zanyk

By Monica Westin

Playwright-director Young Jean Lee brings one of this spring’s most anticipated shows to the MCA this week: “The Shipment,” a subversive minstrelsy performance that’s in keeping with her history of experimental, confrontational plays about racial identity. What’s different is that where previous shows about race centered around stereotypes of the Korean-American experience Lee identifies with, “The Shipment” addresses African-American identity politics, presenting cultural images of Black America through various sketches, dance, stand-up comedy and drama.

We spoke with Lee about seeking discomfort, avoiding irony and bringing her ever-changing and highly praised show to Chicago.

“The Shipment” has gone through several adaptations after what you’ve described as “unsuccessful workshops.” Has it continued to change?

We’ve continued to tweak the show based on where we are in performances, from Carolina to Europe… We actually had to make a major change in touring the show in Europe because in the first shows the audience thought the play was about how backwards Americans are for having race problems—one more quaint story of American stupidity—with the idea that Europe doesn’t have race problems. We had to add in a long paragraph making clear that they were implicated too. Read the rest of this entry »

For two decades, Judith Jamison has sat at the helm of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, staying true to the company’s mission of celebrating African American heritage while expanding the diversity and artistry of the company’s repertory. This year, the twentieth anniversary of Jamison’s role as artistic director, she will hand the reins of the legendary company to a yet-unnamed successor. The program this weekend at the Auditorium Theatre celebrates Jamison’s vision and her considerable contribution to the richness of the AAADT repertory. The centerpiece of the program is “Best of 20,” a collection of excerpts from thirteen pieces commissioned or revived by Jamison, choreographed by a diverse cross-section of talent, from heavy-hitters like Lar Lubovitch and Ronald K. Brown to emerging artists. Jamison’s “Love Stories,” a collaborative effort with Robert Battle and hip-hop artist Rennie Harris is also on the program, along with her new work “Among Us (Private Spaces: Public Places).” Read the rest of this entry »

Late Saturday morning the theater district is a dead zone; matinee crowds have yet to flood Argo Tea and Borders, killing time before the 2pm performances of “Billy Elliott” and “Jersey Boys.” A freak snowstorm whips the few solitary pedestrians with slop, a reminder that this is the true first day of Chicago spring. The severe mood grows thicker in the atrium of the Cadillac Palace Theatre, where b-boys, hip-hoppers, fresh-faced jazz dancers and one be-necktied hoofer gaze floorward as they mark out their routines in dimly lit, ornate corners. The pride of their studios, the talk of the clubs, these young dancers take their three-minute turns on stage, then walk, panting, downstage center for the verdict, delivered by three brightly-lit judges seated in plush swivel chairs on a platform above the orchestra seats.

“Adam, did that have the ‘wow’ factor for you?”

“More like the ‘ow’ factor.”

A video camera on a boom swoops from above the stage to below; a handheld operator stands a row in front of adoring parents, zooming in for reaction shots. These are the callbacks for “So You Think You Can Dance,” and the standards are brutal. Every triple pirouette is flawless, every windmill exited with precision, but something always seems lacking—poor use of the floor, repetitive phrasing, not enough smiling. A breakdancer is asked if he’s done any ballroom. By season seven the standards of the immensely popular amateur competition have become extraordinarily high—contestants must master every style of pop dance and deliver moves with the pizzazz of a Broadway veteran. Out of the ten dancers who audition in the course of an hour, only one makes the cut. (Sharon Hoyer)

RECOMMENDED

The world of experimental performance can feel quite elusive and tough to navigate in Chicago—lucky for us, accomplished local artists Mark Jeffrey (SAIC faculty) and Sara Schnadt (Department of Cultural Affairs) are working hard to make it a little easier, by curating the bi-annual IN>TIME Performance Series. An eclectic mix of local, national and international artists, this latest installation of IN>TIME includes a much anticipated work-in-progress showing from new local company Every House Has a Door, which is the latest project of Lin Hixson and Matthew Goulish, co-founders of the renowned Goat Island performance group (of which Jeffrey was a member), which disbanded in 2008. Other artists include Angela Ellsworth, presenting “Another Women’s Movement,” a “roaming durational tableau of well-armed frontier women;” SAIC students and emerging local artists Justin Cabrillos and Jessica Hannah, performing work developed through the IN>TIME Incubation series; and, featured international performance group OOUR, from Zagreb, Croatia. So clear your calendar for Saturday night—this is a one-night-only event, not to be missed.

In conversation with the performance series, there will be an artists’ symposium on Friday afternoon, examining professional sustainability for artists. The panel will feature an array of prominent artists and scholars, including Sara Jane Bailes, Roberto Sifuentes, and Tricia Van Eck. (Valerie Jean Johnson)

IN>TIME Performance Series: Saturday, March 27. 6pm-9pm, Chicago Cultural Center. Free. Symposium: Friday, March 26, 1pm-5pm. Chicago Cultural Center, 5th floor, Millennium Park Room. Free (reservations required).

RECOMMENDED

Nibble, tipple and schmooze at Cerqua Rivera’s Spring Fling this Saturday night. The multi-disciplinary company founded by choreographer Wilfredo Rivera, composer Joe Cerqua and painter Matt Lamb raises funds with a social bash slash dance lesson. Pick up some moves and try them out with members of the company, or if you’re shy on the floor, pay a little less and focus on the food and atmosphere. CRDT specializes in making thematic works—often with a Latin or jazz flavor, always with live, onstage music—creating exuberant evenings of delicious musical theater. Show them some support by joining in the fun. (Sharon Hoyer)

At the Hubbard Street Dance Center, 1147 W. Jackson, (773)847-0305. Saturday, March 27, 7pm. Tickets with lessons $75 or $100 per couple. Without lessons $50.

RECOMMENDED

By now, one knows what to expect from director Charles Newell:  bold sets and striking design (“Uncle Vanya”); big emotions and (in the best possible way) sentimentality (“Carousel,” “Caroline, or Change”); playful meta-theatrics (“Titus Andronicus”); narrative coherence amidst structural sophistication and dense vernacular (“Rock and Roll,” “Arcadia”).

That his imaginative and beautiful new play at Court Theater manages to showcase all of these talents in one compact evening is some achievement.  That the play is Pierre Corneille’s “The Illusion,” a rarely-staged, seventeenth-century comedy from a French tragedian, makes that achievement truly amazing.  And yet, thanks to a sumptuous staging, full of heart, comic brio and modern-day relevance, Newell and his collaborators have taken a minor comedy and transformed it into a great play. Read the rest of this entry »

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If Winnetka native Christine Ebersole is not a household name, part of the reason may be that her range is so diverse and the genres she has conquered so unrelated that only someone paying close attention would notice it is all the same person.

Back in the late 1970s, the New Trier graduate went to New York City where her dramatic prowess was showcased as a regular on the soap opera “Ryan’s Hope”—and much later “One Life to Live”—before landing at “Saturday Night Live” where she co-anchored the “Weekend Update” desk and also revealed that she is a wicked comic and mimic.

As a character actress, Ebersole has been a constant in movies and television—my own favorite was her portrayal of the soprano who beats up Mozart in “Amadeus” when she learns he is engaged to someone else—but it is as a Broadway performer that Ebersole has most come into her own. Read the rest of this entry »

Alison Torem, Philip R. Smith/Photo: Sean Willliams

RECOMMENDED

David Schwimmer and Andy Bellin’s piece about high-tech sexual assault isn’t anything new; we’ve already seen the internet-predator angle mined to death on “Law and Order: SVU.” But the stellar individual performances rise above the script to give us a bleak picture of technology’s abilities to unite and divide.

Annie (Allison Torem) is a well-adjusted high schooler whose long-distance friendship with a boy her age turns serious and sexual. He insists on an in-person rendezvous, and Annie discovers her adolescent boyfriend is really a 35-year-old man. The encounter results in a family’s fabric ripped apart at the seams as a young woman comes undone.

Torem is an ingenue’s ingénue; she invests her character with completely plausible vulnerability, yearning and discomfort. Philip Smith’s father is heartbreaking as he faces a daughter he doesn’t know anymore in a situation he cannot control. The material’s trite, but the performers give it new life. (Lisa Buscani)

The Lookingglass Theatre Company, 821 North Michigan, (312)337-0665. Through April 25.

I love me some Ed Jones. The veteran drag actor, late of various Hell in a Handbag productions, is always an audience favorite. His informed-yet-naïve presence makes me giggle. But even the supremely competent Ed Jones can’t save this turkey. Duane Scott Cerny’s script has its moments (usually Jones-generated) but does its best to shoehorn irrelevant pop references in alongside brainless sexual innuendo. I can take offensive, I can’t take offensive and sloppy. Michael Miller, David Besky, Lori Lee, Craig Conover and Daniel Hickey gamely and energetically suffer through the clinkers; it’s an ensemble that deserves better.

Confidential to the owners of the Mary’s bar/restaurant complex: you can make cash on theater, but not if the actors fall off your limited stage and kill themselves. Invest in blackout curtains that completely cover your windows and risers that safely extend your stage. If you’re gonna do it, boys, do it right. (Lisa Buscani)

Even and Odd Theatricals at Mary’s Attic Theater, 5400 N. Clark, (773)784-6969, through April 23.