A preface: this Branson-meets-Vegas spectacle gave me a headache. But the audience loved it. Of course. And, I’ll admit: it had its moments, mostly thanks to Mr. Osmond’s disarming charms. Maybe I’m just not cut out for these types of shows? There were many eye-rolling moments, such as when Ms. Osmond introduced the overdone, pseudo-operatic “Pie Jesu” by actually saying, [...]
House Theatre’s ‘The Nutcracker’ cracks a classic tale wide open
The cast from the 2010 production of The House Theatre of Chicago’s “The Nutcracker” About 10 minutes into The House Theatre of Chicago’s surprising production of The Nutcracker, things take an unexpected (and very much welcomed) turn. The show opens with jovial charm and spirited energy, accompanied by singing, dancing and general merriment. Always a [...]
Route 66 Theatre Company’s ‘A Twist of Water’ gets New York debut
Stef Tovar in Route 66′s production of “A Twist of Water.” While I hardly believe a production has to open in New York for it be validated, it’s exciting news (per Chris Jones) that Route 66 Theatere Co’s production of Caitlin Montanye Parrish’s A Twist of Water will get seen by more people — and [...]
Remy Bumppo’s ‘Changes of Heart’ needs a heart transplant
Linda Gillum and D’Wayne Taylor look on as Nicolas Gamboa hams it up in Remy Bumppo’s “Changes of Heart.” Photo by Johnny Knight Following Remy Bumppo’s visually lovely but conceptually DOA production of Changes of Heart, an 18th century romantic French farce by Pierre de Marivaux and wittily translated by Stephen Wadsworth, I posted the following facebook status, [...]
The queen behind “Alien Queen” — an interview with Scott Bradley of The Scooty and Jojo Show
“I’d say we’re a cross between the Sonny and Cher show meets the Muppets. On acid.” That’s how Scott Bradley, one-half of the creative genius behind The Scooty and Jojo Show, describes the aesthetic sensibility of their work. The other half of this pair is Jonny “Jojo” Stax, Scott’s (Scooty’s) real-life life partner. Together for the [...]
Chicago Like a Local: American Theater Company’s ‘It’s a Wonderful Life: The Radio Play’
The cast of American Theater Company’s “It’s a Wonderful Life: The Radio Play” I dare you to find a more “awww”-inducing moment on any Chicago stage currently then when beloved Chicago actor Mike Nussbaum as guardian-angel-in-training Clarence — all short and white-bearded and bespeckled – impishly looks up at Joseph (Philip Earl Johnson) and asks, [...]
Guest review: National tour of ‘Memphis’
Bryan Fenkart and Felicia Boswell star in the national tour of “Memphis.” Photo credit: Paul Kolnik. Due to the holiday weekend, I sadly couldn’t make press opening of the national tour of Memphis, so I asked a guest reviewer to cover the show on my behalf. Like me, this person is a musical fanatic, so [...]
Alien + Queen = all sorts of potential awesome
What happens when you take the cult movies “Alien” and “Aliens” and combine them with the glorious rock music of Queen? You get Alien Queen: The Concert – a gender bendy, rock musicy, performance arty evening. Words fail me. Just watch this clip: Crazy, right? Originally performed at Circuit nightclub in Boystown, this cult show has [...]
Mary-Arrchie’s superb ‘Red Light Winter’ finds compelling tragedy in revisiting a one-night stand
What happens in Amsterdam stays in Amsterdam. At least, that’s what should have been the case for Matt (Dan Behrendt), Davis (Dereck Garner) and a mysterious redhead named Christina (Sasha Gioppo). Matt, a sensitive and sad playwright, has been going through a rough patch. He broke up with his girlfriend last year, his latest play [...]
So, everyone’s a critic. And the problem with that is …?
This article (which is technically a blog post — ironic, given the subject matter of the piece) by Michael Kaiser, president, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, has been making the rounds and making waves. Read the entire thing, but I want to draw your attention to this section: And third, the growing [...]
Profiles explores its caregiving side with ‘Assisted Living’
Assisted Living, a new play by Deirdre O’Connor, is a tender domestic drama about a woman, whose life has been consumed by taking care of her ailing mother, struggling to rediscover herself. Really? Profiles Theatre, a company known for producing extremely violent and upsetting works such a Killer Joe and Kid Sister, is producing this? [...]
All brain and little heart in Hershey Felder’s ‘Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein’
Hershey Felder is a talented man. He can play piano virtuosically (that’s a word, right?). He can command a stage. He knows how to establish a mood through carefully modulated delivery of words and music. He can sing (though, at times the sound isn’t what one would describe as pleasing). He can even do accents! [...]
My reactions to the Equity Jeff Awards
Jeff Award winner Harry Groener in ChiShakes’ “The Madness of George III.” First off: congrats to all the Equity Jeff winners! Some thoughts: The shockers: Steppenwolf’s rabidly praised Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? gets a remarkable ZERO awards (with Steppenwolf, as a whole, getting no Jeff love as well). Even Tracy Letts’ mold-breaking performance as George [...]
Sondheim gets his Shakes on, the most overrated play of 2011 and more …
Get ready for some random theatre-y thoughts: Sondheim gets his ChiShakes on: After receiving the Chicago Tribune Literary Prize for lifetime achievement on Sunday morning, the man himself visited Sunday’s matinée of Follies at Chicago Shakespeare Theater (along with playwright David Henry Hwang and the great Sir Peter Hall). He then went backstage following the [...]
Raven hits a road bump with lackluster ‘Bus Stop’
Sophia Menendian, Antoine Pierre Whitfield and Jon Steinhagen in Raven Theatre’s “Bus Stop” I admire Raven Theatre for many reasons. The staff and actors all seem to love what they do. And the highly diverse audiences seems to love watching the result. It’s a supportive and inviting atmosphere, and the last few shows I’ve seen [...]
Welcome to [CTA]
- Hi. My name's Bob Bullen and I'm a Chicago Theatre Addict [CTA]. Learn more here. Please leave comments — I'd love to hear what you think, and promise to do my best to reply.
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