I never published my top ten theatre picks for 2013. If I had, "The Mother" would have been #1. It was an innovative, impressive, intimate theatrical experience. And guess what? It's back! The entire ensemble (sans the wonderful Sarah Pretz) returns for an encore production. In a week of 24 show openings, I chose to ...
The Fourth Walsh
Theatre with a side of life
Category The Fourth Walsh
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Review “Rasheeda Speaking” (Rivendell Theatre): Powerful
Rivendell Theatre presents the World Premiere of Rasheeda Speaking. Playwright Joel Drake Johnson’s story prompts a “No, she didn’t” response followed closely by a hand over the mouth. His conversations provoke a definite uncomfortable reaction. Stereotypes are teased out. Some of the dialogue is candy-coated politically correct. And other times, the offensive barb is just hurled. Johnson provides ...
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EXTENDED Thru 4/6 “Hedda Gabler” (Writer’s Theatre): Fry-ed to Perfection
On Thursday, I saw Hedda Gabler for the last time – Kate Fry’s (Hedda) sublime performance has ruined me for any future Hedda Gabler productions. Playwright Henrik Ibsen, translated by Nicholas Rudall, penned a tale of a complex woman. The classic centers around the newly-married Hedda. Living in the late 1800s, Hedda is discontent with the social mores of the era. The convention ...
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Review “Through The Leaves” (Side Project Theatre): Heartbreaking yet Hopeful
Reviewed by Sara Eisenbaum and Katrina L. Wyss Side Project Theatre presents Through the Leaves. “Through the Leaves” is a play that represents well what happens when stream of consciousness takes center stage. The play centers around a middle aged woman in Germany who is a butcher. While she does not outwardly struggle with the fact that she ...
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Review “Solstice” (A Red Orchid): Riveting!
A Red Orchid Theatre presents SOLSTICE. Playwright Zinnie Harris penned a disturbing tale. The setting and time period is anywhere in the near future. In a town separated by economic and religious differences, one family is the microcosm. Dad is a religious fanatic. Son is a rebellious teenager. Mom is afflicted with an environmental disease. Uncle tries to ...
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Review “Phantom of the Opera” (Broadway in Chicago): Extraordinary!
Broadway in Chicago announces Cameron Mackintosh presents the new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. In one word, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is Extraordinary! I was supposed to see PHANTOM in 1990. My friend’s father had a heart attack and we gave our tickets to my parents. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score has haunted and eluded me for 24 ...
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“Our Country’s Good” (Shattered Globe): True Dramedy
Shattered Globe Theatre presents OUR COUNTRY’S GOOD. Timberlake Wertenbaker’s clever premise imagines the 1788 British export of criminal types to Australia. The penal colonization is managed by a collection of dignified and smarmy soldiers. Within this new world, Wertenbaker places a play within a play. The convicted are forced into theatrical roles. The coerced opportunity turns redemptive. ...
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The Mandrake (Commedia Beauregard): A Hit or Miss Production
Reviewed by Jennifer Benoit-Bryan Commedia Beauregard’s interpretation of Machiavelli’s The Mandrake at Raven Theatre was scattered and overwrought. The plot of the Mandrake is full of comedic possibility with a playboy, Callimaco, scheming to trick another man in to allowing Callimaco to sleep with his beautiful and virtuous wife. However, the adaptation fell a bit flat, largely due ...
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Review “The Shadow over Innsmouth” (WildClaw Theatre): Edgy!
I was a novice to H.P. Lovecraft. Then on Saturday, I had a crash course about one of the most influential American authors in the horror genre. The Super Lovecraft Saturday featured a reading of THE DREAMS IN THE WITCH HOUSE and the play THE SHADOW OVER INNSMOUTH. In between the shows, Lovecraft expert Kenneth Hite led a discussion ...