Strawdog Theatre presents Max Frisch’s THE ARSONISTS. Why would anyone knowingly invite trouble into their life? Playwright Max Frisch answers that question in absurdity. Frisch sets his tale in a city plagued by arsonists. His protagonist, Biedermann (played with deft by Robert Kauzlaric) gets goaded into defending his morality by the charismatic Scott Danielson (Schmitz). Kauzlaric represents ...
The Fourth Walsh
Theatre with a side of life
Category The Fourth Walsh
-
-
Review “WITCH SLAP!” (Babes with Blades): A Calderon of Personalities
Babes with Blades presents the World Premiere of WITCH SLAP! Playwright Jeff Goode explores the male corruption by the Puritanical driven witch hunts. The 2013-2014 winner of “Joining Sword & Pen,” WITCH SLAP! is the herstory told from the witches’ perspectives. Goode’s characters represent a wide range of sorceresses: the crone, the gypsy, the vamp, the ...
-
Review “Stupid Fucking Bird” (Sideshow Theatre): Sort of Liked
Sideshow Theatre presents the Midwest premiere of STUPID FUCKING BIRD. In the program the phrase ‘sort of’ appears before the adaptation credit. Playwright Aaron Posner uses the basic framework from Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull.” Although Posner sets it in contemporary times, his characters have the same Chekhov conflicts. Dev loves Mash who loves Con who ...
-
Review “Hank Williams Lost Highway” (American Blues Theatre): Don’t Miss this Jambalaya Special
I saw HANK WILLIAMS on Saturday. American Blues is remounting their smash Honky Tonk Blues hit from last summer. Most of the original cast is back for a second hearty helping of Louisana’s legendary native son. If you missed it last summer, don’t miss it this time around. If you saw it last year, ...
-
Review “Hellish Half-Light” (Mary Arrchie): Beckett X 6
Mary Arrchie Theatre presents HELLISH HALF-LIGHT: Shorter Plays of Samuel Beckett. Playwright Samuel Beckett based his art on the study of human nature. Beckett created odd characters and put them in weird scenarios. And he tells his stories in abrupt minimalism. The audience is thrown into a life already in progress and forced to acclimate within ...
-
Review “Warriors” (Cirque Shanghai): Cringe-able and Gawk-able!
Navy Pier, in conjunction with International Special Attractions, LTD., presents CIRQUE SHANGHAI: WARRIORS. WARRIORS starts and ends with a parade of two dozen, brightly dressed performers marching through the aisles. The fresh-faced, smiling troupe is every bit the performing showbiz crew. They wave. They smile. They encourage... the excitement. It’s love at first sight as the ...
-
Review “Intimate Apparel” (Eclipse Theatre): Tightly woven patchwork quilt
Eclipse Theatre presents INTIMATE APPAREL as the second offering in their Lynn Nottage season, one playwright-one season. This play about a seamstress is all about the detailed construction. Scenic Designer Kevin Hagan creates a variety of rooms in limited space. Director Steve Scott assembles the multiple lives within these individual locales. Playwright Lynn Nottage establishes a ...
-
Review “The Jungle” (Oracle Theatre): Unique, Blood-Splattering Spectacle
Oracle Theatre presents the world premiere adaptation of THE JUNGLE. Upton Sinclair’s classic novel is a grim reflection of the ugly reality of Chicago stockyards in the early 1900s. Director and adapter Matt Foss actualizes Sinclair’s vision in what can best be described as a unique, blood-splattering spectacle. This show is the epitome of performing arts. ...
-
Review “Much Ado About Nothing” (Midsommer Flight): Something to fall in love with
Midsommer Flight announces its third summer season of Shakespeare in the Park with Much Ado About Nothing. Well, this is much ado about something. The show is a tightly-packed comedy. Director Beth Wolf has actors entering and exiting the makeshift stage by running. The action clips. The barbs fly. The love grows. It’s time to fall ...