Sadieh Rifai/Photo: Michael Brosilow

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I have a hard time with the concept of forgiveness. It seems like denial of the unacceptable. I come from the Italian school of Vendetta, which stipulates that anyone who does to me and mine will bleed in the streets. Or something like that.

So I can’t understand the Amish community’s response to the 2006 murder of five young girls at a Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania Amish school. The community attended the gunman’s funeral and befriended his widow and family. They did what their faith demanded.

ATC’s simple yet mindbogglingly complex explanation of that decision is a moving testimony to the resilience of spirit and the indomitable nature of love. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo: Sean Williams

With a cast of seven handling a vast array of characters (with refreshingly little regard for gender/age/ethnicity) this remounting of John Musial’s “The Great Fire” (directed by Musial) features plenty of comedic asides, a helping of emotional depth, memorably striking choreography, a few clever musical interludes and even a hilarious miniature puppet show. Ultimately, though, these diverse bits don’t always connect properly, leaving this ninety-minute Chicago “creation myth” feeling disjointed and less impactful than it could have been. Read the rest of this entry »