Category: Musical Revue
Chicago Theaters offer up stocking-full of Christmas Shows
| A Wonderful Life (info) | A Christmas Story (info) | |
| Theatre at the Center, Munster, IN | Noble Fool Theatre, St. Charles | |
| Nov 17 – Dec 14 | Nov 15 – Dec 27 | |
| Snowflake Tim’s Big Holiday Adventure (info) | A Very Neo-Futurist Christmas Carol (info) | |
| Lifeline Theatre, Chicago | The Neo-Futurists, Chicago | |
| Dec 14 – Jan 4 | Nov 22 – Dec 23 | |
| A Christmas Carol (info) | Dublin Carol (info) | |
| Goodman Theatre, Chicago | Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago | |
| Nov 21 – Dec 31 Half-Off Tickets! | Nov 19 – Jan 9 | |
| Radio City Christmas Spectacular (info) | Anung’s First American Christmas (info) | |
| Rosemont Theatre, Rosemont | Vitalist Theatre, Chicago | |
| Nov 19 – Dec 21 | Nov 18 – Jan 4 | |
| Meet Me In St. Louis (info) | 500 Clown Christmas (info) | |
| Drury Lane Water Tower, Chicago | North Central College, Naperville | |
| Nov 20 – Dec 7 | Dec 18 – Dec 23 | |
| Christmas Schooner (info) | The Santaland Diaries (info) | |
| Bailiwick Repertory, Chicago | Theatre Wit, Chicago | |
| Nov 28 – Jan 4 | Nov 22 – Dec 28 | |
| Tommy Guns Garage Holiday Show (info) | A Christmas Memory; The Thanksgiving Visitor (info) | |
| 2114 S. Wabash, Chicago | Provision Theater, Chicago | |
| Nov 28 – Dec 31 | Nov 10 – Dec 21 | |
| Snow Queen (info) | Black Nativity (info) | |
| Victory Gardens, Chicago | Congo Square Theatre, Chicago | |
| Nov 28 – Dec 28 $15 Tickets! | Nov 21 – Dec 28 | |
| Winter Pageant Redux (info) | 2nd City’s Holiday Show (info) | |
| Redmoon Theater, Chicago | Second City Improv, Chicago | |
| Nov 10 – Dec 21 | 24-hours non-stop, Dec 9 – 10 | |
| Jacob Marley’s Xmas Carol | Holiday Sing-Along (info) | |
| Theatre Wit, Chicago (info) | Porchlight Music Theatre, Chicago | |
| Nov 22 – Dec 28 | December 15th, 7:30pm | |
| A Holiday Evening of Mime | A White Christmas (info) | |
| The Mime Company, Chicago (info) | Village Players Theatre, Oak Park | |
| December 11 – 28 | December 13 – 14 | |
| Sexy Santa’s Spectacular | A Christmas Carol (more info) | |
| Gorilla Tango Theatre, Chicago | Writers’ Theatre, Glencoe | |
| Nov 28 – Dec 20 (more info) | Dec 13 – Dec 23 Tickets for $14 ! |
For WGN Radio – My summer picks…
For Kids and Families:
- Lyle, Lyle, the Crocodile, Lifeline Theatre
- June 13th -July 13th; Friday-Sunday at 1pm
- Tickets: $10
- Cirque Shanghai: Gold ; Navy Pier outdoor theater
- Runs all summer through Sept. 1st
- Performed at outdoor theater at Navy Pier (just east of Ferris Wheel), so take in the show, then experience the huge fireworks display every Wednesday and Saturday evening.
- Tickets: $12.50-$30
- Willy Wonka, Chicago Shakespeare at Navy Pier
- July 8th – August 17th
- Tickets: $18-$23
- Blue Man Group, Briar Street Theatre
- Super-fun for kids of all ages
- Tickets: $49-$59 (box office: 773-348-4000)
For Teens (and the young-at-heart):
- Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind, Neo-Futurists
- Experience Chicago’s longest running play – 20 years and counting!
- Days/Times: Friday-Saturday, 11pm, Sunday 7pm
- Price: $6 plus the roll of a dice (so $7-$12 – is that cool or what?!?)
- That’s Weird Grandma, Barrel of Monkeys
- Monday nights, 8pm
- Adults: $9 // Kids: $4
Broadway In Chicago (the big downtown shows):
- Wicked, Ford Center for the Performing Arts (Oriental Theatre)
- After 4 super-successful years,Wicked, has announced that it will officially close in January 2009. So catch it while you can!
- Ticket Price: $30-$95 (Box Office: 312-902-1400)
- Jersey Boys, Bank of America Theatre (formerly Schubert Theatre)
- Open run
- Ticket Price: $30-$95 (Box Office: 312-902-1400)
- Shout!, Drury Lane Watertower
- Through July 20th
- Tickets: $45-$55 (Box Office: 312-902-1400)
For Date Night:
- Jacques Brel’s “Lonesome Losers of the Night”, Theo Ubique Theatre
- runs through July 20th
- Tickets: $10-$20 (Box Office: 773-743-3355)
My two-pennies worth:
You haven’t experienced Chicago until you’ve ventured north to The Heartland Cafe in East Rogers Park. First opened in the 1970′s, this earthy restaurant and bar jettisons you back to the late 1960′s and early 70′s (in a granola and incense kind-of-way). The musical review, Lonesome Losers of the Night, is performed in an intimate coffee house down the street from Heartland, so first grab a bite to eat at Heartland, walk down the block to the performance, then mosey back down to The Heartland for drinks and nightly live music.
Comedy
- Campaign Super Nova: or How Many Democrats Does It Take To Lose An Election?
- Second City’s newest review
- Open run, tickets: $19-$25 (Box Office: 312-337-3992)
- Dead Man’s Cell Phone, Steppenwolf Theatre
- runs through July 27
- Tickets: $20-$68 (Box Office: 312-335-1650)
- Co-Ed Prison Sluts, Annoyance Theatre
- Annoyance Theatre brings back their raunchy long-running hit of the 80′s and 90′s.
- Runs July 4th – August 29th
- Tickets: $15 (Box Office: 773-561-4665)
- Comedy Sportz – Comedy Sportz Theatre, Belmont and Clark
- audience-interactive comedy competition between two teams of improv comedians, who perform a series of scenes and songs, all based on suggestions from the audience
- Open run, now in their 21st year
- Ticket prices vary, (Box Office: 773-549-8080)
Drama
- A Steady Rain, Royal George Theatre
- extended through Oct 5 (then on to Broadway?)
- Tickets: $50 (box office: 312-988-9000)
- Taste of Honey, Shattered Globe Theatre Ensemble
- runs through July 5th
- Tickets: $15-$35, (box office: 773-871-3000)
- Hizzoner, Prop Thtr (performed at Beverly Arts Center)
- Running for over 2-years, this play eerily depicts the infamous Mayor Richard J. Daley and inner-workings of “The Machine”
- runs through July 29th
- tickets: $40
Musicals:
- Fiorello, Timeline Theatre
- runs through July 20th
- Tickets: $15-$30 (Box Office: 773-281-8463)
- Ain’t Misbehavin’, Goodman Theatre
- running June 21st – July 27th
- Tickets: not yet announced (Box Office: 312-443-3800)
- Jekyll & Hyde, Bohemian Theatre Ensemble
- through July 20th
- Tickets: $20-$27 (Box Office: 773-327-5252)
- Hunchback of Notre Dame, Bailiwick Repertory
- composed by Dennis DeYoung of the band “Styx
- runs through July 6t
- Tickets: $25-$45 (Box Office: 773-883-1090)
- Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story, Drury Lane Theatre, Oakbrook Terrace
- runs through July 27th
- tickets: $28-$33
Sondheim Master Class: “Send In The Clowns”
I really enjoyed coming across this video on YouTube. It’s amazing and enlightening to see Sondheim in action. I don’t know about you, but I would have been scared sh*tless knowing I was to sing one of Sondheim’s signature compositions in front of Sondheim himself! So who know that one ought to separate the t’s in “ought to”? This is great stuff….
Review – “Songs for a New World”
Production: Songs for a New World
Producers: Bohemian Theatre Ensemble
Whazzit About? Songs for a New World is a musical review with a very loosely-connected theme, first performed in 1995, featuring songs written by young composer Jason Robert Brown, a precursor to his highly-acclaimed epic musical Parade. Bohemian Theatre first presented this show in late 2007, selling out its last two weeks. Because of this success, they have (thankfully) reprised the production at the Theater Building for a limited run.
Strengths: Chicago has always been a great musical-theater town, and this fact is largely evident in this show – the four young performers (Jayson Books, Michael Arthur, Jess Godwin and Alanda Coon) offer up soaring vocals and dead-on ensemble singing. Jayson Brooks (seen recently as Colehouse Walker in Porchlight’s award-winning Ragtime) is at his best in the energetic second act opener “King of the World”. Mezzo-soprano Jess Godwin brings sweetness and vulnerability to the lovely “I’m Not Afraid”. Michael Arthur brings an edginess to the contemplative “She Cries”. And Alana Coon champions the show with the most variant musical styles, from the punchy “Surabaya-Santa” to the determined “The Flagmaker 1775”. Though all have great solo voices, the talents of musical director Andra Velis Simon are apparent in the impeccable blend of their group vocals, many of the chords are tight, with dissonant intervals. In addition to the vocal work, the show looks great, with the set built with wooden ramps and floors, and interwoven slats as a backdrop, giving one the feeling of being inside the hull of a wooden ship.
Weaknesses: There is little here not to like. As one of my favorite Chicago theatre critics, John Olson of TalkinBroadway.com, so eloquently put it: “The performances only disappoint in that there still seems to be not enough time to hear each of the four performers sing as much as we’d like. With voices like these in performers who can act the heck of our Brown’s character-driven songs, it’s tempting to wonder why we need dialogue in musical theater at all and to resent it for taking time away from hearing more of these four in their previous musical theater work.”.
Summary: Thankfully for Chicago, Boho has reprised this gem of a show, following their sold-out run at Heartland Studio. No, it’s not an evening of revelatory aha moments, but the glorious voices and performances of the character-driven material makes for a wonderful evening. Recommended.
Rating: «««½
Personnel and Show Times
|
Composer: |
Jason Robert Brown |
| Director: | Elizabeth Margolius |
| Music Director: | Andra Velis Simon |
| Musicians: | Kevin Brown, Sean Burke, Nick Sula |
| Set Designer: | John Zuiker |
| Lights: | Julian Pike |
| Costumes: | Theresa Ham |
| Stage Manager: | Meg Love |
| Featuring: | Jayson Brooks (Man 1) |
| Michael Arthur (Man 2) | |
| Jess Godwin (Woman 1) | |
| Alanda Coon (Woman 2) | |
| Dates: | Through February 10, 2008 |
| Location: | Theatre Building (map) |
| Show Times: | Thursday through Saturday, 8:00pm. Sunday matinee at 2pm. |
Chicago Tribune’s Top Plays of 2007
In alphabetical order, here are the Chicago Tribune’s choices for the top 10 plays of 2007:
The Adding Machine
(Next Theatre – and soon Off-Broadway)
August: Osage County
(Steppenwolf – and now receiving rave reviews on Broadway)
Between Barack and a Hard Place
(Second City)
The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow
(Collaboraction)
Joe Turner’s Come and Gone
(Congo Square)
Merchant on Venice
(Silk Road Theatre Project)
Othello
(Writers Theatre)
Shenendoah
(Marriott Theatre)
The Sparrow
(House Theatre)
A Stead Rain
(Chicago Dramatists)
To see further discussion regarding each show, go to Chris Jones’ The Theater Loop blog posting.
Review – GayCo Production’s “iHole”
Production: iHole
Producers: GayCo Productions
Synopsis: iHole finds the uproarious hilarity of a nation and a queer community taking separate but equal journeys as they are sucked into the powerful force of the iHole. Through it all, GayCo learns what politicians have known for years: it’s hard to resist being pulled into The Center.
Pros: Energetic, funny skits about gay life in Chicago, great location, low ticket price of $15
Cons: Uneven, a few segments fall flat
Overall: iHole is a great compliment to a fun evening out in Lakeview. Take in the revue, and then go out for dinner and drinks.
Rating: «««
