Photo: Matthew Gregory Hollis

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It feels almost beside the point to note that, in turning Sophocles’ seven surviving plays into a four-hour theatrical event (with dinner), some elements are going to get edited out or lost. Each of the plays has been compressed to half an hour or less, so that the tension inherent in, say, the dramatic irony of Oedipus’ self-delusion, never builds over enough time for it to be unbearable for the audience, as with the Hypocrites’ 2009 adaptation of the play. And the most common critique volleyed at writer-director Sean Graney—that he butchers literature to make entertaining theater—could certainly be applied here, for Graney’s trademark high and low language is out in full force, modernizing the stories and adding in comedy at every turn. Read the rest of this entry »

Kurt (Carlos Rogelio Diaz) returns from Afghanistan, haunted (literally) by a deceased marine buddy (Keith Falconer), who demands that important correspondence be delivered to his husband (Adam Stephenson). Kurt struggles with his guilt and delusions while wife Claire (Robyn Coffin) struggles with their marriage.

It’s a great premise, but playwrights Heather Bodie and Emily Gann’s script strains for credibility. In the social media era, it’s hard to believe a man would not know his lover’s whereabouts, regardless of his lack of mention on the next-of-kin list–Marines use Facebook, too. The authors have great ears for dialogue, but fail to use it to explore Kurt’s hang-ups and hesitation. Read the rest of this entry »

For those unfamiliar with twenty-four hour theater festivals, the idea may seem more than a little crazy: a set number of short new plays are written, directed, memorized, blocked, teched and performed in the space of a single day. For Geopolis Theater, the Just-A-Day Play Fest is the perfect way to kick off their new season and involve local talent in a low-commitment, high-stakes theatrical event.

For each season of shows, Geopolis chooses a particular area of the world to focus on when selecting their plays. Germany, Austria and Switzerland were selected this year, allowing Geopolis to draw on their rich tradition of folk tales. “We wanted to do something that would start the season off with Grimm’s Fairy Tales,” says Kristy Scheuer, Geopolis’ artistic director. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from Broadway in Chicago:

BROADWAY IN CHICAGO IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THE 2012 BROADWAY IN CHICAGO SPRING SEASON SERIES:
THE BOOK OF MORMON, AMERICAN IDIOT, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s SOUTH PACIFIC, BRING IT ON: THE MUSICAL, FELA! and JERSEY BOYS
Off-season specials include: IN THE HEIGHTS, MAMMA MIA!, RIVERDANCE and CATS

CHICAGO (Sep. 8, 2011) – Broadway In Chicago is thrilled to announce the complete 2012 Spring Season Series. The upcoming spring season will include THE BOOK OF MORMON, AMERICAN IDIOT, SOUTH PACIFIC, BRING IT ON: THE MUSICAL, FELA! and JERSEY BOYS. Off-season specials include IN THE HEIGHTS, MAMMA MIA, RIVERDANCE and CATS. Read the rest of this entry »

By Zach Freeman

The success of Geek Girl Burlesque at Gorilla Tango Theatre over the past year is impressive by any stretch of the imagination. In October of 2010, “Boobs and Goombas: A Super Mario Burlesque” launched as something of a curiosity—an improbable parodic tale in which Mario and Luigi become so sexually frustrated that everywhere they look they see “beautiful ladies.” Geeky jokes about Nintendo characters intertwined with seductive costuming and burlesque strip teases caught the media’s—and the public’s—attention. Most, even the nerdiest, seemed to take the show as something short-lived, something that geeky gamers would rave about and then move on from. But that’s not what happened. Read the rest of this entry »

Renee Fleming/Photo: Andrew Eccles

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 Although billed annually as “Stars of Lyric Opera at Millennium Park,” there have been some years where the billing has had a noticeable dog star or two. But this year, the first such concert since soprano Renée Fleming was named creative consultant at Lyric Opera, Fleming’s presence as the reigning superstar soprano in the world today boosts up the luminosity factor of this pre-season concert considerably.  

Coming as it does on the eve of the tenth anniversary of 9/11—an occasion when Fleming soothed the soul of the nation with the balm of her voice at services at Ground Zero—Fleming offers “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Carousel” as an opening piece and commemoration of that occasion. Read the rest of this entry »

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Most anyone is likely to be familiar with the story of Cyrano de Bergerac, even if they’ve never seen Edmond Rostand’s 1897 play. The Steve Martin adaptation “Roxanne” was a popular film, and the play’s balcony scene is rivaled only by the one from “Romeo and Juliet.” Ubiquity aside, however, Matt Hawkins’ new version strips the story down to its iconic bare essentials, making for a swashbuckling, irreverent evening of heroism and romance. Read the rest of this entry »

Gregg Edelman and Liz McCartney/Photo: Brett Beiner

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Stephen Sondheim has garnered considerable attention recently about how miffed he was concerning changes being made in an upcoming Broadway adaptation of “Porgy and Bess.” Many have applauded his purist stance. Others are genuinely puzzled by it: not so much because of his defense of Gershwin’s original work as the fact that Sondheim himself allowed equally—if not more—radically destructive changes to the film version of the work usually considered his masterpiece, “Sweeney Todd.”   Read the rest of this entry »

Photo: S. Truglio

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The highlight of August may have been the week of free performances by nationally renowned dance companies during Chicago Dancing Festival, but September belongs to The Other Dance Fest. Otherness being the smaller, Chicago-based modern and experimental companies/artists who often perform in intimate venues, warehouses, public spaces and park district buildings. And there’re a lot of them, all worth seeing.
This week’s lineup includes Peter Carpenter, Darrell Jones, Hedwig Dances, Lucky Plush, Raizel Performance and Other Fest hosts Chicago Moving Company. Read the rest of this entry »