Goodman Theatre presents DISGRACED. I was fortunate to have seen DISGRACED debut at American Theatre Company in 2012. Three years later, the play still is evocative. Even knowing how this dinner party unravels didn’t stop me from continually flinching and holding my breath. Playwright Ayad Akhtar and Director Kimberly Senior continue their reign as the DISGRACED ...
Review “Butcher” (Signal Ensemble Theatre): Nightmare Inducing
Signal Ensemble Theatre presents the U.S. premiere of BUTCHER. This show went from what-the-heck to what-the-f#ck in about thirty minutes. And the last ten minutes were oh-my-God-oh-my-God-oh-my-God intense. After the curtain, I walked out of Signal a little wobbly from the brutality of what I heard and saw. The play starts out slow with three men at ...
Review “Miss Buncle’s Book” (Lifeline Theatre): Housewives of the U.K.
Lifeline Theatre presents the world premiere of MISS BUNCLE’S BOOK. Fortunately for us, the Lifeline library is limitless and open to the public. Every season, they select a few books to showcase. Although they have an extensive collection of Austen and Bronte, Lifeline can’t be labeled as doing one type of book best. They do it ...
Review “The Revel” (The House Theatre of Chicago): I wasn’t a believer
The House Theatre of Chicago presents THE REVEL. I didn’t like this play. THE REVEL starts out folksy. The guitar strumming Andy Lutz (Deacon) addresses the audience directly. He apologizes for his vocal stylings and playfully gets us to join in his singing. Lutz is amicable enough. I’d join him for a drink at a bar. I ...
Review “Side Show” (Porchlight Music Theatre): Unforgettable Production and Love Story
Porchlight Theatre presents the Chicago Premiere of the newly revised SIDE SHOW. This is a love story about sisters. The musical is based on the real lives of Daisy and Violet Hilton. The sisters were twins conjoined at the hips. Abandoned by their mother, they were sold into the circus life. Audiences paid money to see ...
Germany Day 5: The Royal Send-off
Our last day in Germany was a day to feel like royalty. We booked the VIP castle tour with Grayline Bus Tour. The VIP tour included a luxury coach, free wi-fi and snacks. We splurged! We ended up being in a nicer bus than anticipated. Munich’s professional soccer team, FC Bayern, was in Athens ...
Germany Day 4: Getting Our Glockenspiel On!
Technically, we started Day 4 in refugee recovery at Luisi Tambosi. We got off the train and tried to make it to Hard Rock Munich before midnight. We popped out of the subway at 11:45pm with an uncertain walk of ten to fifteen minutes ahead of us. Meanwhile, we could see people on the patio ...
Germany-Austria Day 3: During a side trip to Salzburg, we got von Trapped!
We had decided to visit another new country. Salzburg, Austria is an hour and half by train from Munich. We booked our train tickets and tour tickets online. Early Monday morning, we even felt sassy enough to take the subway to the train. The language barrier is a challenge for ordering off the menu or ...
Germany Day 2: Bitte Hier Warten
Sunday morning, I woke up at 10am. The sister went even longer. We are slowly but surely accumulating to the new time zone. I woke to church bells ringing which continued to happen all day and with no particular regularity. There was a heated bell off between 5:37pm to 6pm in the city centre. We ...
Germany Day 1: I’m Two Pretzels In
Greetings from Munich, Germany! Friday night, my sister Jenny and I hopped on a plane for a little adventure. The direct flight from Chicago to Munich left forty-five minutes late and arrived twenty minutes early. With the 9 hour flight and a 7 hour time difference, we arrived foggy to a beautiful, sunny day in Germany. ...