The Wild West in The Middle East

By Olivia Lilley

The native, the foreigner, and the land that’s rightfully nobody’s is a conflict as old as history itself. Having lived all over the world as a child and having been an adult during the W. Bush years, J. T. Rogers feels like he has something new to say about it. In “Blood and Gifts”, he makes the argument the actions of one American FBI agent in the early 80’s made “The War in Afghanistan” inevitable. Every decision the FBI agent makes is grounded in the American view of the global community and their role in it. The ideal American risks everything for justice. The ideal American sees the world as black and white. The ideal American is a cowboy: we are strong, everyone else is weak. However, when this American tries to do business with a Khan, promises get lost

in translation. The game of Cowboys and Indians finds its modern equivalent.

TimeLine succeeded in translating the cinematic idea of a thriller to the stage. At the heart of this piece, like in films such as “The Bourne Identity” and “Memento”, what keeps us watching is the question, “Who can we trust?” All of the design elements supported this: the way the projections flew and appeared, the stark lighting, the set that kept on going out into the lobby becoming all of these slightly different offices covered in information, the scaffolding that was constantly shape shifting. The acting, on the whole, was a little too big and showy for my taste. There was a potential for intimacy here; however, the acting generally did it’s job. They told the story in a clear way.

“Blood and Gifts” is a play with a bold point of view that needs to be experienced.

Recommended.

TimeLine Theatre presents’

“Blood and Gifts” by J. T. Rodgers

Directed by Nick Bowling

Performances May 9th, 2013 – July 28th, 2013 @

TimeLine Theatre
615 W. Wellington Ave.
Chicago, IL, 60657

Oh, What a Beautiful Production

To avid theatre goers, there’s nothing in the world quite so thrilling as hearing a beautiful, carefully-crafted piece of music being played to perfection by a full orchestra. Hearing those first strains of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s lush overture reminds audiences of what they’ve missed in lesser productions of this show. It’s as if we’ve taken a trip back to 1943 when this groundbreaking classic of the musical stage first opened on Broadway, and oh, what a beautiful moment, that must’ve been.

Sleepwear Fit for the ’50’s

Pajama Game

For those of us who grew up during the Eisenhower years, songs from Richard Adler and Jerry Ross’ score provide a blast from our past. Haunting ballads like “Hey There” and “A New Town is a Blue Town,” and catchy novelty tunes such as “Steam Heat” and “Hernando’s Hideaway” became often-played standards on the radio. George Abbott’s dramatic collaboration with author Richard Bissell of his novel, 7 1/2 Cents, turned into 1955’s Tony Award-winner for Best Musical. The show has been revived twice on Broadway (the latest 2006 version starred Harry Connick, Jr. and Kellie O’Hara) and has become a staple with regional, community and educational theatres. The reasons are many, as demonstrated in Jess McLeod’s grittier, economy-sized version now playing in Highland Park.