News & Reviews Category
The Master of the Modern Musical
The Sondheim Tribute Review
Stephen Sondheim. His name evokes the many smart, lyrical and emotionally-packed musicals he wrote during the mid-20th and 21st centuries. As a composer, Sondheim’s brilliance in matching words with music broke new ground for the musical theatre. A precocious child with an aptitude for music, Sondheim mastered the piano and organ before he was 15 years old. Then, under the tutelage of family friend, Oscar Hammerstein II, Stephen began an educational journey that led him to becoming the Master of the Modern Musical.
Read More
The Power of Love
Back to the Future: The Musical
Looking through his dad’s old high school yearbook, an idea began to germinate in the minds of screenwriter Bob Gale and his longtime writing partner, film director Robert Zemeckis. Bob wondered if he and his father would’ve been friends if they had attended school together. And thus sparked the idea of a time-travel comedy that would become both a classic and a critical and commercial success. “Back to the Future” was eventually declared the highest-grossing movie of 1985. Now the film’s millions of devoted fans can relive the heart-pounding thrill of that high-tech tale live and on stage. Audiences seeing this fun-filled musical treatment of the movie will once again lose themselves in The Power of Love. It’s a stage version that’s fully faithful to the orginal sci-fi cinema.
Read More
The Vocabulary of Touch
In His Hands
The scriptures tell us that our very existence and the human condition are not controlled by those aggressors who would attack, persecute or oppress us. It’s said that God doesn’t create junk. We are all individuals with different personalities, wants and needs. Our lives are in His hands; indeed, as this beautifully performed one-act play opens, theatergoers hear a voice in the darkness singing, “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.” But the title of Benjamin Benne’s gay romantic comedy might also be referring to someone special in each of our lives who lovingly holds our heats and best interests in his hands, as well.
Read More
Bustin’ Out All Over
Carousel
Chicagoland audiences are in for a magical and moving musical treat with Music Theater Works’ second production of its 2024 season. Showcasing one of the best of the Rodgers and Hammerstein canon, this exquisite presentation follows their incredible production of THE 25th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE. The company’s latest offering is a seldom-produced romantic musical by America’s iconic composer and lyricist team. Based upon “Liliom,” Ferenc Molnar’s tragic 1909 drama, this gorgeous musical, like their first hit, OKLAHOMA, became another groundbreaker in American theatre back in 1945, with its antihero, dark themes and poignant ending. And Music Theater Works’ new production, so full of talent, is simply “bustin’ out all over.”
Read More
Down the Hole
Alice By Heart
Bombs are exploding everywhere and the sirens are directing everyone to take shelter. Wading through the debris, everyone heads down the hole into the Tube Station for safety. It’s 1941 and the London Blitz of WWII is in full force. The English refugees are a mixed lot. They include a no-nonsense Doctor, a brusque Red Cross Nurse, a spoiled young man and woman, who are clearly of the upper crust, as well as a variety of British commoners. But when teenaged Alice Spencer and her dear friend Alfred join the group seeking shelter, we learn that the young man is very sick and must be quarantined. Alfred is afflicted with incurable tuberculosis and, unfortunately, doesn’t have much time left in his young life. Thus, the fragile and filmy quality of Time weaves throughout the theme of this new musical, now enjoying its Midwest Premiere in Chicago.
Read More
Ginger Minj Presents
Big Gay Cabaret
Ring out the news! Two of Chicago’s most famous and best-loved LGBTQIA+ cabaret performers are performing for only two nights at the Mercury Theater in their monthly Big Gay Cabaret series. This time, the shows are practically sellouts, with two performances scheduled, not in the more intimate Venus Cabaret venue but, due to popular demand, in the mainstage theater. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the lovely, cleverly comic, multi-gifted Alexandra Billings and Honey West. These two hilarious storytellers and talented songsters appear together in a wonderful cabaret show, presented by Ginger Minj, from “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
Read More
Magic Soaring Up into the Sky
Peter and the Starcatcher
Are you a fan of magic that soars up into the sky? Of books, films and plays that, like “Wicked,” provide a backstory for characters from other classic stories? If so, you’ll be excited and totally enchanted by this hilarious, highly imaginative play, which is the opening production of Paramount’s 2024-25 Bold Series at the Copley Theatre. The 2012 multi-Tony Award-winner was based upon a novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson entitled Peter and the Starcatchers. But in addition to presenting a captivating new story, theatergoers will learn how a character named Boy gained his new name, Peter Pan, who is Molly and what’s her relationship to Wendy, how the Mermaids and Tinker Bell came to be, who were the Lost Boys, how Hook really lost his hand and earned his new moniker, whence came Mister Grin the ticking crocodile, how Peter decided to call his island Neverland and how Peter Pan learned how to fly.
Read More
A Much-Loved Musical Classic
Les Miserables
It’s said that Alain Boublil became inspired to adapt Victor Hugo’s sweeping 1862 novel of injustice, forgiveness and survival to the musical stage while watching a production of “Oliver.” The character of the Artful Dodger reminded him of young Gavroche at the barricade. From there this much-loved Musical Classic, with a gorgeous, lush score by Claude-Michel Schonberg, became a concept album followed by the French theatrical premiere in Paris in 1980, and then a brilliant 1985 English production in London’s West End.
Read More
The Power of Friendship
Lord of the Rings—A Musical Tale
As this sprawling saga begins to unfold, the audience is warmly welcomed into the realm of Middle-earth by a joyous ensemble of characters. Theatergoers are invited to join the community of Hobbits gathered to celebrate the eleventy-first birthday of the Shire’s patriarch, Bilbo Baggins. Without further ado, Bilbo announces at his party that he’s about to leave the Shire on a journey of personal reflection. However, Bilbo has decided to bequeath to his favorite young nephew, Frodo Baggins, his house, all his possessions and, most especially, a mysterious golden ring. From the beginning, the audience, even those unfamiliar with the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, will sense that there’s something magical and ominous about the ring. As Frodo accepts the One Ring, his odyssey commences in which he will learn the enduring power of friendship and how love can conquer evil.
Read More
Memories Are Made of This
Million Dollar Quartet
Who could guess that an historical moment in early rock/country music history would eventually become a popular, highly-acclaimed jukebox musical? On a cold afternoon in Memphis, Tennessee, back in December of 1956, four of the top names in American music happened to stop by Sun Studio. They included Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and a new kid on the block named Jerry Lee Lewis. Sam Phillips, who singlehandedly turned a deserted auto repair shop into a successful recording studio, had a role in launching the careers of all four of these musical giants. That day, Phillips goaded his Fab Four into singing some of their greatest hits as he recorded the session for posterity. He dubbed this gathering of stellar musical talent his “Million Dollar Quartet.” The rest is musical theatrical history proving that “Memories Are Made of This.”
Read MoreRECOMMENDED SITES
