Author: Colin Douglas
Overstuffed and Overwhelming
Becky Nurse of Salem
Distinguished writer, poet, professor and essayist Sarah Ruhl is one of America’s most highly-respected and often-produced playwrights. She’s created some of theatre’s finest plays, such as IN THE NEXT ROOM (OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY), THE CLEAN HOUSE, EURYDICE and the soon to open in Chicago, DEAR ELIZABETH. Ms. Ruhl is the recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship, the PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater, a Tony nomination for Best Play and a two-time nomination for the Pulitzer Prize in Drama. In other words, Sarah Ruhl is undeniably a recognized and talented writer. But in her 2019 play, currently having its Midwest Premiere by Shattered Globe Theatre, the gifted playwright overwhelms her audience with far too many ideas.
Read More
A True Winner
Primary Trust
Have you heard of Eboni Booth? She belongs to an elite group of distinguished playwrights that include Edward Albee, Thornton Wilder and Tennessee Williams, and more recently Lin-Manuel Miranda, Lynn Nottage and August Wilson. Ms. Booth is the greatly deserving recipient of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her glorious one-act, PRIMARY TRUST. And, if that accolade wasn’t enough, consider that this deeply moving 80-minute play, which premiered in New York at the Laura Pels Theatre just last year, also won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play. And now the Goodman Theatre is presenting this sparkling theatrical gem in its Chicago Regional Premiere. And this play, particularly this production, is indeed a true winner!
Read More
The Mystery of the Haunted Bush
The Golden Girls Meet the Skooby Gang
They say that timing is everything. Well, just in time for Halloween, Hell in a Handbag is presenting another hilarious original episode of their Golden Girls series. These beloved parodies have always delighted audiences, particularly the LGBTQ+ community, as well as all those Liberal-minded theatergoers who have good taste. So don your masks and head on over to the Chopin Theatre where the fun and frolicking is just beginning.
Read More
The Ten Commandments, 2.0
An Act of God
Try to imagine God portrayed by the late, great comedian, Don Rickles. His famous manic riffs and insults are legendary. If you’re too young to remember Mr. Rickles, picture the high-energy comedy of Jim Carrey, Dave Chapelle, Aziz Ansari or John Stewart in the role of the Almighty. This will give theatergoers an image of Alex Weisman’s portrayal of God in Paramount Theatre’s new production of this one-act comic play by Emmy Award-winner, David Javerbaum.
Read More
Groovin’
Blue Eyed Soul Sung By Brown Eyed People
As in “2001: A Space Odyssey,” the film that made Richard Strauss’ classical tone poem so familiar to theatergoers, the, dramatic chords of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” opens Jackie Taylor’s new musical revue. It’s skillfully performed by Instrumentalists Adam Sherrod (keys), Oscar Brown, Jr. (guitar), Walter Harrington (bass) and Musical Director/Arranger and Percussionist, Robert Reddrick. This classical work magically conjures up images of outer space and an ethereal location, because that’s precisely where this revue is set. As the ten talented performers make their way down the aisles to the stage and introduce themselves, the audience discovers that we’ve been transported to a mythical locale called The Oracle. We come to understand that this concert will be both musical, celestial and spiritual.
Read More
The American Dream
Ironbound
Darja was optimistic when she immigrated from Poland to the United States with her husband, Maks. They were in their 20’s back then. Both of them were confident about the promise of living the American Dream, hoping to have a better life with a nice home, a fancy car, a decent-paying job and the chance for their own personal happily-ever-after. But that illusion soon dissolved into a nightmare. The couple’s new reality turned into a multitude of hardships, which included prejudice, financial austerity and a relationship that fell apart.
Read More
Your Number One Fan
Misery
It’s the dead of winter in rural Colorado. A violent snowstorm has made roads practically impassable and communication almost impossible. Lying unconscious in the bed of a tiny, remote mountain cabin, a man fights for his life. His face, legs and entire body have been broken, bruised and bandaged. The man’s name is Paul Sheldon. He’s the famed author of, among other novels, a series of period page-turners about a female woman he calls Misery.
Read More
Whimsy, Wit, Romance and Political Parody
Iolanthe
Oh, joy; oh, rapture! “Loudly let the trumpet bray!” This very, very popular Victorian fantasy operetta, the fourth consecutive hit by the theatrical writing team of W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, has magically appeared in a polished and professional production in Evanston. I advise you to spread your wings and fly as fast as possible to see this enchanting entertainment.
Read More
Magic, Illusions and Wizardry
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Audiences haven’t eagerly anticipated a production arriving in Chicago since HAMILTON. This spectacular theatrical production will be a real treat for both fans of J.K. Rowling’s incredibly well-written and enchanting seven-book series about the “The Boy Who Lived,” as well as lovers of the series of wonderfully captivating film versions of the books. In this play with music, Harry Potter enthusiasts will find many of their favorite, familiar characters superbly brought to life, as well as a few new personalities created just for this story. The almost three hour production is fast-paced and whisks onward to its heartwarming conclusion. The show’s filled with great acting, creative choreography, unbelievable magic, illusions and wizardry.
Read More
Freedom of Thought
Inherit the Wind
Almost 100 years ago the famous Scopes “Monkey” Trial took place in rural Tennessee. The courtroom case charged John Scopes, a high school teacher, with the crime of violating a state law that prohibited the teaching of Darwin’s theory of evolution in the classroom. The publicity of the Scopes Trial was overwhelming. The event attracted so much national publicity, that it prompted dozens of reporters from all over the country to descend upon tiny Dayton, Tennessee. Then the Trial was broadcast on radio, which was a new invention in 1925. Chicago’s WGN transmitted the proceedings making it the first time the media had turned a trial into a national event. Suddenly history was being made.
Read MoreRECOMMENDED SITES
