Darren Criss (#4) with Team StarKid

With our criteria shifted back to artistic accomplishment in theater, dance, comedy and opera this year, our task got infinitely tougher. Because while the number of performing venues grows at a steady rate, the increase in the number of noteworthy artists seems to grow exponentially. For everyone we name on the list below, we had to leave off five, an embarrassment of riches for Chicago. We made a conscious effort to introduce a meaningful number of new faces to the list this year; the necessary absences should not be construed as a loss of worthiness as a consequence. We often find trends when we do the research these lists require; this year we’re starting to see a more meaningful effort to redefine performance itself in the internet age, from the runaway success of StarKids, to the more calculated endeavors of Silk Road. So what defines a “player”? Consider it some complex stew of career achievement, recent “heat” and, in some cases, rising stardom.

Written by Zach Freeman, Brian Hieggelke, Sharon Hoyer and Dennis Polkow

Read the rest of this entry »

"Being Harold Pinter"/Photo: Aleksandr Paskannoi

Top 5 Plays of 2011
“Being Harold Pinter,” Belarus Free Theatre
“Clybourne Park,” Steppenwolf
“Yellow Face,” Silk Road Theatre Project
“The Original Grease,” American Theater Company
“Stage Kiss,” Goodman Theatre
—Brian Hieggelke

Top 5 Musicals of 2011
“The Original Grease,” American Theater Company
“Follies,” Chicago Shakespeare Theater
“West Side Story,” Broadway in Chicago
“Next to Normal” Broadway in Chicago
“Working,” Broadway Playhouse
—Brian Hieggelke

Top 5 Shows
“Black Watch,” The National Theatre of Scotland and Chicago Shakespeare Theater
“The Real Thing,” Writers’ Theatre
“Church & Pullman, WA,” Red Tape Theatre
“The Hot L Baltimore,” Steppenwolf Theatre
“Cyrano,” The House Theatre
—Neal Ryan Shaw Read the rest of this entry »

By Dennis Polkow

For a guy who has been working as a high-profile Broadway composer and lyricist for “over forty years now—oh my God, can you believe it?” Stephen Schwartz is remarkably youthful both in appearance and attitude.

Sitting in the basement of Northlight Theatre in Skokie on an early Saturday morning clutching green tea prior to the final day of rehearsals before the first preview of his new work “Snapshots,” Schwartz exudes an enthusiasm and energy that is refreshing and contagious.

“It’s a new work, certainly, in that we keep tinkering and changing things,” he says, “but this isn’t the first version of the show that has been presented. We haven’t had an official ‘world premiere’ yet because I always feel that is the finished work at that point. ‘World premiere’ is a concept that is more important to theaters and venues than to writers.”  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 »

Here’s the press release from Focal Point:

Focal Point Theatre Company Announces Their Inaugural Season

CHICAGO, IL – Newly formed Focal Point Theatre Company is pleased to announce the start of their first season. Opening this season will be a benefit performance: The Against Type Project. The season will continue with the Chicago Premier of Patrick Marber’s After Miss Julie. The inaugural season will be rounded out by the devised theatre piece You Make Me. Individual tickets may be purchased online at www.focalpointtheatre.com. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s the press release from Ruckus:

THE RUCKUS THEATER ANNOUNCES CHICAGO SEASON 3, INCLUDING SIX NEW WORKS DEVELOPED BY ARTISTS FROM ACROSS THE UNITED STATES

***NEW COMPANY AND ENSEMBLE MEMBERS ALSO ANNOUNCED***

(Chicago, IL) The Ruckus Theater is proud to announce Season 3 in Chicago, following a successful year of sold-out performances on the storefront theater scene in Chicago. Artistic Director Allison Shoemaker, Associate Artistic Director Joshua Davis and Managing Director Jeffrey Fauver released today a season of six new plays—all performed at The Side Project Theatre in Rogers Park (1439 W Jarvis Ave). In the fall, Kyra Lewandowski directs a workshop of Conk and Bone by Joe Musso (September 18, 26 and 27, 2011) in repertory with ensemble member Katie Canavan’s workshop production of Dumb Angel by Ruckus cofounder Seth Miller (September 19, 20 and 25, 2011). Kicking off the New Year, Allison Shoemaker directs the world premiere of Little Triggers by Tympanic Theatre Company Artistic Director Daniel Caffrey (January 13 – February 12, 2012). In April 2012, The Ruckus workshops two one-act plays in tandem: Perfect Crash by Aaron Dean and Allison Shoemaker, directed by Brian Ruby, and Rung by playwright/composer Matt Test, directed by Timo Aker (April 8 – 11, 2012). Completing the season next spring is the world premiere of The Thing About Chekhov, developed by the Company, written by Calamity West, directed by Karie Miller (June 22 – July 22, 2012). Further details regarding The Ruckus: Season 3, including casting and ticket information will be announced in the coming weeks. Please visit www.ruckustheater.org for more information. Read the rest of this entry »

Studio Gang's Bengt Sjostrom Starlight Theatre

By Erin Kelsey

In the theater business, sometimes all you can do is cross your fingers and hope for the best. Michael Halberstam, artistic director of Writers’ Theatre, recalls a recent production in which their set was completed on time only because the weather happened to be cooperative during tech week. While unavoidable, these certainly aren’t ideal conditions for any theater to operate under, let alone one producing shows of the scale and quality of Writers’. To prevent similar problems in the future—and allow them to grow in a way currently not permitted by their spaces—the company is embarking upon a project to construct a new building to be the home of Writers’ Theatre. Read the rest of this entry »

Summer’s over, kids. Sure, temperatures might still be in the nineties, and we’re going to enjoy one last hurrah this Labor Day weekend, but weather or not, fall is here. How do we know? The arts calendar, in hibernation these last couple of months, is on the verge of awakening with an explosion of activity. And as we do every year at this time, we’ve distilled it to a short list of highlights in order to help you put you personal fall calendar together.

Start out with our “big eleven” events for fall and then explore these links to the various fall previews we’ve created:

Fall Art Preview
Fall Dance Preview
Fall Film Preview
Fall Music Preview
Fall Resto Preview
Fall Stage Preview