Author: Colin Douglas
I Sing the Body Electric
I and You
Of all the students in his class, Anthony decided to choose Caroline to be his study partner. Together they’re supposed to work together to create some kind of multimedia project based upon Leaves of Grass, by American poet Walt Whitman. So Anthony unexpectedly arrives at Caroline’s house with his backpack of research and a dogeared copy of the literary classic. The high school student has read up on Whitman’s life and finds his lengthy series of poems inspiring, universal and something that speaks to him. He’s sure that Caroline will also understand poems like “I Sing the Body Electric” and feel the same way about the poet, although Anthony’s never actually met her. You see, Caroline has been out of school for a long time because she’s very ill.
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Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds
One Love, One Heart
Bob Marley was one of Jamaica’s most talented and famous singer/songwriters. Of his many much loved songs, “Three Little Birds” is his most popular hit. It’s a cheery and optimistic reggae tune that’s familiar to almost everyone. The song is about three tiny feathered fowl who sit on the vocalist’s windowsill, singing brightly to lift his spirits. The song is often mistakenly thought to be titled “Don’t worry about a thing” or “Every little thing is gonna be alright,” because that refrain is heard so often.
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As Sweet As Pie
Waitress
One of the jewels of the 2016 Broadway season, this beautifully uplifting and cathartic musical is as sweet as pie. It’s adapted from the popular 2007 film that starred Keri Russell. What makes this show especially enjoyable is the resplendent, often poetic lyrics and music by Sara Bareilles. Her score is unusually beautiful and haunting, sometimes even humorous. The songs frequently touch hidden emotions that have been buried deep inside. The late Adrienne Shelly’s film screenplay has been faithfully adapted for the stage by Jessie Nelson and makes each character especially unique and memorable.
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As Timely As Today
One Party Consent
You know how when you attend a show—any show, these days—it has become obligatory to give the cast a standing ovation? It’s annoying because every theatergoer is forced to rise and applaud when, perhaps, there were aspects of the production that you didn’t feel merited such a stellar response. But I’m here to tell you that every single element of First Floor Theater’s latest production deserves this kind of praise. Omer Abbas Salem’s brilliant ONE PARTY CONSENT is, not only electrifying, but as and timely as today.
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A Drop Dead Comedy
Clue: Live on Stage!
“I tell you, the murder was committed by Miss Scarlet (or Mrs. Peacock, Mrs. White, Colonel Mustard, Professor Plum or Mr. Green); and it took place in the Ballroom (or the Conservatory, the Kitchen, the Hall, the Billiard Room, the Dining Room, the Library, the Lounge or the Study); and the weapon used was the candlestick (or the lead pipe, the revolver, the rope, the dagger or the wrench).”
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Looking Back in Angst
Betrayal
What exactly is Betrayal? The dictionary defines it as violating the trust or confidence of someone. American psychologist John Gottman describes it as “a noxious invader” that undermines stable romances and lies at the heart of every failing relationship. As seen in Harold Pinter’s semi-autobiographical one-act, in which the Nobel Prize-winning playwright is looking back at his own life in angst, sees betrayal to include sexual infidelity, commitment, deception, lying, selfishness and breaking promises.
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Tilting at Windmills
Circus Quixote
Lookingglass, one of Chicago’s finest and, probably, the most inventive and creative theatre company in the Windy City, has finally returned. After a pause in operations in 2023 to reorganize and create a new business model, the company is thankfully back and better than ever. The venue also sports a sparkling new look inside the Water Tower Pumping Station. The Theatre now features a spacious, newly reimagined lobby that offers plenty of seating and a variety of coffee and potent potables for purchase. But, best of all, Lookingglass Theatre Company is continuing to produce exciting, inventive and stimulating entertainment. And for its premiere production, the company reopens with CIRCUS QUIXOTE, a show in the style of one of their most popular shows of the past years, LOOKINGGLASS ALICE.
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An Autobiographical Drama
The Cave
Sadieh Rafai’s autobiographical drama is laced with humor and plenty of moments from real life. The thing that makes this play so unique is that Rafai depicts a family story about told through the eyes of a young Palestinian-American teenaged girl. Dema, played with extraordinary depth and understanding by Aaliyah Montana, has a lot to cope with, not the least of which is simply surviving puberty.
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Does a Dream Dry Up?
A Raisin in the Sun
Take a look at the first line of Langston Hughes’ epic poem about the African-American experience, which he entitled Harlem. In the first line he raises the question, “What happens to a dream deferred?” He goes on to answer this question with more questions, including “Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?” Lorraine Hansberry was inspired by Hughes’ picturesque poetry and borrowed the line for the title of her play about an African-American family’s struggle for their right to a dream.
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An Embrace of Passion and Hate
Fool for Love
Love and pain go hand in hand in Sam Shepard’s dark, 1983 drama. Sometimes it’s an embrace of passion mixed with hate. May is holed up in a rundown motel in the Mojave Desert when Eddie shows up. Portrayed by handsome Nick Gehlfuss, making his Steppenwolf debut, Eddie’s a good-old-boy, a cowhand turned stuntman, at least for the moment. He and May have a long and turbulent history together. Director Jeremy Herrin’s new production at Steppenwolf is guided with heat and an animalistic fervor that’s present from the very first moment. There’s also a feeling that we’re witnessing their relationship, not from its onset, but from the middle. A lot has happened before this one-act opens and, no doubt, their story will continue long beyond the final curtain. We find ourselves uncomfortably witnessing some kind of lovers’ battle that’s been ongoing for years. In between, we’re given a few sketchy details about the couple’s backstory and some hints as to where this tragic story may be headed down the road.
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