Steep Theatre presents the Midwest Premiere of THE VANDAL. In his playwright debut, Hamish Linklater nails it! THE VANDAL is engrossing and poignant. Linklater’s story is multiple stories told by three characters. From the start, we are engaged in these people’s lives. A precocious Jack Miggins (boy) aggressively needles a sullen Kendra Thulin (woman) at a ...
I did a handstand…twice
Yesterday, I did this pose at yoga...twice. Of course, I had a shirt on. And I’m fluffier than this guy. Plus, I only did it for a couple moments. BUT I did it. The action freaked me out. I’m getting stronger. My body is changing. I’m not dropping significant weight but that was never my primary ...
Review “Don Giovanni” (Lyric Opera): Deliciously Wicked!
A funny thing happened on the way to the opera... Well, not so much funny as annoying. Tuesday evening, we arrived at the Lyric at 7:10pm. We found a line coming out of the building and wrapping around the corner of Madison and Wacker. I’ve never experienced any line in my nineteen years of attending the ...
Review “Smokefall” (Goodman Theatre): Total original!
Goodman Theatre presents a remount of the successful 2013 premiere of SMOKEFALL. This show is different. The set, designed by Kevin Depinet, hints of that immediately. A massive, slanted wooden ceiling covers an ordinary-looking two level mid-century decorated home. A cut-out window in the roof looks to a sunlit sky. Artificial grass carpets a floating staircase ...
“In the end only kindness matters.” – Jewel
I woke abruptly from a good night sleep this morning. I was having a nightmare. Typically, at this time of year, I have many nightmares about my November fundraiser. It’s my mind restlessly running through ‘what if’ scenarios. It’s the adult equivalent of dreaming about going to school naked or in your pajamas. These ‘what ...
Review “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (Idle Muse Theatre): True Psychological Killer
Idle Muse Theatre Company presents DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE. The well-known tale of physician-by-day and killer-by-night gets an intellectual makeover in Playwright Jeffrey Hatcher’s adaptation. Hatcher has one Jekyll and several Hydes. Each ensemble member plays one of Jekyll’s various colleagues but they also each play his mental nemeses, Hyde. The notion is clever. And ...
#1387 reason to have a personal trainer
JOSH: How are you doing on your jogging goal? ME: Well, I really haven’t done any jogging yet. JOSH: Why? What are you afraid of? ME: Looking unattractive while I’m running. Breaking the treadmill. Falling off the treadmill and breaking myself. This exchange happened on Wednesday while I was walking on the dreadmill. Josh’s response to my fears was ...
Review “Evil Dead – The Musical” (Broadway in Chicago): ‘What the f#ck was that?’
Broadway in Chicago, in conjunction with Starvox Entertainment and Jeffrey Latimer Entertainment, present EVIL DEAD - THE MUSICAL. “What the f#ck was that?” sums up my experience last night with this Canadian cult classic. It’s also the title of a song in this horror spoof set to music. Since the original production opened in Toronto eleven ...
Review “Season on the Line” (The House Theatre): Art imitating Art
The House Theatre of Chicago presents the World Premiere of SEASON ON THE LINE. Playwright Shawn Pfautsch tells the tale of one man’s obsession with a whale. No, it’s not Captain Ahab but it is “Moby Dick.” The man possessed is the artistic director of Bad Settlement Theatre Company. Pfautsch dissects the inner-workings of a ...
EXTENDED Review “Jane Eyre” (Lifeline Theatre): Worth Swooning Over
Lifeline Theatre presents JANE EYRE. In 1847, Charlotte Bronte introduced the world to a modern-day heroine named Jane Eyre. A woman, who despite an abusive childhood, would thrive to become an independent and free-spirited woman. Since Jane was unorthodox for her time period, Christina Calvit gives her life an unconventional adaptation. Calvit pens the masterpiece. And ...