Category: Theatre Festival
Black Playwrights Initiative – A Retrospective
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7th Annual Black Playwrights Festival BE Theater Cultural Center |
Review: Oohrah! (LiveWire Chicago)
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Oohrah! Written by Bekah Brunstetter |
Review: Hit the Wall (The Inconvenience)
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Written by Ike Holter |
It’s here – the Chicago Sketch Comedy Fest! (Stage 773)
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Chicago Sketch Fest at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont (map) |
Goodman Theatre’s New Stages: Ask Aunt Susan
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Ask Aunt Susan Written by Seth Bockley Check for half-price tickets |
Steppenwolf Theatre’s First Look Repertory: Want
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Want Written by Zayd Dohrn Check for half-price tickets |
Chicago Fringe Festival schedule announced
Tickets are on sale for the Second Annual Fringe Festival, September 1-11, including such groups as Maximum Verbosity, Phil the Void and Hobo Junction. These are not the names of race horses or yachts. They are three of the 50 performance groups that will entertain, inspire and delight audiences during the second annual Chicago Fringe Festival, taking place September 1st through 11th in the Pilsen neighborhood.
The year’s theme, On the Map, Under the Radar, expresses that Chicago Fringe has carved out a strong identity as part of the worldwide Fringe theatre movement, yet remains committed to flying under the radar, offering audiences uncensored, unconventional theatrical experiences.
Entire schedule: http://tinyurl.com/2011fringe
More information: http://www.chicagofringe.org/
Sketchbook: Evolution (Collaboraction)
Some hits, some misses, lots of fun
| Collaboraction presents |
| Sketchbook: Evolution |
| through June 25 | more info |
Reviewed by Keith Ecker and K.D. Hopkins
Another year means another Sketchbook. This installment’s theme is Evolution, and, as usual, some plays used this theme as a launch pad while others appeared to completely ignore it altogether. It’s difficult to encapsulate the whole of Sketchbook. I consider the offbeat and eclectic theatrical event produced by Collaboraction a success, if only for bringing so much of the Chicago theatre community together for a festival of new and experimental works. What results is not always the height of performance art, but there are always a few gems that make a viewing worthwhile.
Below, myself (Keith Ecker) and fellow critic K.D. Hopkins have divvied up review duties. Here we describe both the good and the bad and the good enough.
| Termination of a Species |
| By Ken Urban Directed by Scott Illingworth |
| An unwitting man discovers he and the rest of the world’s population have been under the scientific watch of an extraterrestrial. But due to the discrepancies in perception of time (the alien, who can live billions of years, sees time pass much more quickly), the experiment is deemed a failure since the observer cannot keep up with the evolution of Earth life. Thus, he has decided to abort the mission and destroy all life on Earth. The sci-fi time relativity element is a neat little device, but it’s not used to full effect. Instead, we end up getting a melodramatic end-of-the-world rant from the man’s wife that is laughable more than it is haunting. The play culminates with audience plants gasping for air and then hunching over in mock death. However, it’s too subtle to be effective. In fact, I found myself moving to let one of the heaving performers pass by, mistaking them for an overheated patron (the air conditioning in the Chopin Theater was not working the night of the performance). Overall, the piece is little more than a clever premise. | |
| I and my iPhone |
| Written by Mat Smart Directed by Steve Wilson |
 This cutesy sketch features children and teens from Red Orchid’s Youth Ensemble. The short and repetitive piece is about a teenage girl who becomes the focus of an intervention after she displays an unhealthy addiction to her iPhone. Her sisters and best friends encircle her, explaining the hurt that her uncontrollable desires to text have caused them. The entire piece hinges on the ability for young children to be cute. That’s not all bad. Cute children are extremely engaging. But the preachy piece reads like an anti-texting public service announcement. There’s little characterization and heart in the work. It’s just a one-note joke that doesn’t even attempt to move much beyond the punchline. These children unquestionably have talent. I would rather see that talent put to good use rather than squandered on a hokey bit. |
| The Parasite |
| Written by Lauren Yee Directed by Sandra Marquez Featuring: Ilana Faust, Yadira Correa, Sam Quinn |
 In this romantic and funny piece of absurdist theatre, a woman becomes the host for a parasitic bot fly. According to the play, a bot fly implants its egg in a mosquito which in turn implants the egg into the flesh of a mammalian host. The woman enjoys the company of the parasite, who is portrayed as a fiery guitar-slinging Costa Rican. A friend desperately tries to convince the woman that the blood sucker is no good for her. But the woman refuses to listen, too in love and too easily wooed by the sugary sweet words of the bot fly. Directed by Sandra Marquez, the piece is visually engaging, cleverly using a plastic umbilical cord to represent the actual and metaphysical connection between parasite and host. The acting is excellent, too, with Sam Quinn stealing the scene as the bot fly. Even though Sketchbook’s "Evolution" theme seemed to be an afterthought with this piece, it is one of the most engaging of the festival. |
| Dead Letters |
| Written by Danielle Littman Directed by Nathan Green Featuring: John Fenner Mays |
 Bad poetry and bad theatre have a lot in common. They both have a way of appearing important, but when parsed, are revealed to have said very little, or at least very little of anything revelatory. Dead Letters is bad theater. It is pompous, loud and trite. A postman prattles on about mailing the last tangible letter. He longs for the days before electronic communications made transmitting our thoughts an instantaneous action. He describes how we used to digest our words, mulling them over before taking action to correspond. Many before have bemoaned modern forms of communication and done a much more convincing job. The writing with this piece is atrocious. The self-importance and pretension is something only the playwright could love. There is imagery in the postman’s speech that will make logophiles cringe. However, John Fenner Mays’ performance as the post officer is commendable as he tries painstakingly hard to turn nothing into something. |
| Only Paradise |
| Written by Kristin Idaszak Directed by Bea Bosco Featuring: Jordan Lane Shappell, Teeny LaMothe |
 A predictable and tired premise makes this one of the more forgettable pieces in this year’s Sketchbook. A man sits in an airport awaiting his flight. He strikes up a conversation with a young woman who goes on about the afterlife. If you haven’t already guessed that we aren’t really in an airport, then you need to study up on your death metaphor cliches. Despite the tremendously overused premise of airport as passageway to the afterlife, the sketch is decently entertaining. There’s very little in the way of character and relationships. Instead, it’s really just a playwright thinking out loud in the form of two character vessels. Still, the afterlife, paradise and happiness will forever be engaging topics, if only for their elusiveness. |
| The Franchise |
| Written by Andy Grigg Directed by John Wilson |
 When it comes to the bite-size morsels that Sketchbook dishes out, the comedic tend to satisfy more consistently than the dramatic. That is certainly the case with The Franchise, one of the funniest laugh-out-loud pieces in this year’s festival. We see multiple iterations of a typical action-adventure hero movie called "Blazing Hearts" about a fireman who dutifully (you guessed it) puts out fires. Action-adventure staples such as vapid one-liners and the distressed female love interest are included, raising the comedic effect. We watch as the film’s franchise jumps the shark, taking what may have been a decent original and warping it into a moneymaking cash cow. Eventually, in meta fashion, the film’s characters become tired of their repetitive and seemingly implausible lives, creating a clever commentary not just on the unimaginative film industry but also on the unintended selfishness that sometimes accompanies fervent heroism. |
| Backbone |
| Devised by Marc Frost Featuring: Alice Decunha |
| In keeping with the theme of evolution Frost and Decunha delve into the primordial ooze and come up with a sexy and provocative sketch. Ms. DeCunha narrates from a desk about the development of mankind from the ocean to upright stance and modern consciousness. The question becomes how far have we really evolved or how much of the savage have we retained. Mr. Frost is a master of body movement. I previously saw him in Viaduct’s "War and Peace" where he demonstrated sharp comic timing as well as deft and graceful movement. "Backbone" breaks down the pretense that humans have any separation based on sex or ethnicity. The sparse setting and eerie music accentuate Frost’s every muscle movement as the character struggles to stand upright. The challenges of the territorial imperative and survival of the species are on humorous and sexy display. There is perfect chemistry between Frost and DeCunha as her voice increasingly intertwines with his movements. At the penultimate portion where Mr. Frost is attired in the corporate uniform of a suit jacket, Ms. DeCunha takes off her corporate rags and leaves the stage. It all goes back to primitive as Frost literally goes ape sniffing the jacket and scuttling after her. While there is nothing new being said in "Backbone", the interpretation is enchanting while maintaining the visceral and bas components of mankind’s survival. |
| It Came From The Third Dimension |
| Featuring: Zoe Schwartz, Dav Yendler, Kieran Kredell, Matt Rudy, Aaron Weissman, Kasey Foster, and Carly Ciarrocchi |
| This is my favorite of all of the sketches featured on the night I went. It is a hilarious spoof of 1950′s schlock films and a skewer of the science fiction fears and mentality of that era. Two mad scientists (are there any other kind?) are portrayed by the actors with cardboard puppets attached to their bodies. They are brewing something in the laboratory that will shock and amaze the world. If you get the chance, check out some of the films from the 50′s which was an uptight time in America, and you can see all of the fears displayed on the screen. How far would science go and would those same scientists be able to protect the nation from experiments gone horribly wrong? The fun is in the paranoia and goofy special effects. The scientists are attired in long lab coats and horn rimmed glasses. The creature that emerges is possibly part owl and part dragon. It recalls "Attack of the Killer Shrews" and I laughed until my side hurt. The audience was given 3D glasses to view the action and there were some kitschy special effects to enchant and amuse. When I looked around the audience, we all looked like a scene from a documentary on the 50′s in America. "It Came From The Third Dimension" is worthy of schlock master Ed Wood and a most enjoyable sketch. I could see this one expanded into a full play if they can maintain the cheeky sense of humor and great satire. This was the highlight of the evening. |
| Suspect Politic |
| Featuring: Meida McNeal, Felicia Holman, and Abra Johnson |
| I quite enjoyed this sketch for its honesty and brazen skewering of the roles that Black women have been relegated to in the entertainment industry. The trio of actresses alternately circle a detainee sitting on a chair with quotes from Black characters in the movies. Black women are always the sassy best friend, the downtrodden and abused servant, the strong character, and above all-the angry Black woman. This sketch is whip smart and well paced. Almost all of the offenders are featured here. The trembling character from "The Color Purple" cursing the offender for all of his horrible deeds drew a laugh of recognition. The self hating Negro passing for White from "Pinky" was probably less well known but was an excellent choice. I was quite impressed with the blatant and non-varnished truth of this sketch. The women featured gave spot on performances without any of the treacle and self consciousness that I have seen in similar treatments of this subject. This is a subject that a lot of people would love to eavesdrop on and here is the chance. I have been asked similarly ridiculous questions about being a Black woman couched in the relative safety of a film character. The fact that the Black woman is still considered an enigma in entertainment and someone to be treated as a curiosity goes back to Hottentot Venus at the Columbian Exposition. Sure, some women are exotic, angry, vengeful, strong, and yes the sassy best friend. This sketch illustrates that those qualities have become a societal mold expected and acceptable on the stage, screen, and in literature. Someone came up to my companion after the show and congratulated her on a fine job in this sketch. She wasn’t in the sketch and didn’t look remotely like anyone in the show except being Black. Seriously? There is the answer to why this subject needs to be kept on the burner. |
| Evolution |
| Featuring: Peter Sipla and Sean Ewert |
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The Playwright Strikes Back! This sketch is the story of Pulitzer nominated playwright Kristoffer Diaz and his war of the words with New York Times critic Charles Isherwood. The play in question is "The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity" a story of modern televised wrestling. While I have not seen Mr. Diaz’ play, his battle with Mr. Isherwood is understandable. The Diaz character in this sketch is played as the cool hipster playwright who is on an upward trajectory. The Pulitzer nomination and an excellent review from another NYT critic Ben Brantley. Diaz delivers his argument that Isherwood was wrong and illustrating the critic’s well known stuffy and pedantic style. Having not seen the play in question, I was amused by the smooth way that Diaz expressed his anger and impressed that he would take on Isherwood. The highlight of the sketch is when the characterization of Isherwood pops up from the audience and was seated next to me. Sean Ewert does a funny take on the critic as an uptight, bitter, and possibly repressed playwright. The exchange between the two is sharp and well written as well as acknowledging that they will never agree. The sketch took a weird turn by pulling two women from the audience to decide how the dispute would be settled. Two rather giggly hipster chicks were chosen and given a choice of scenarios including I believe a punch in the kisser for Isherwood. The girls were given a time limit but giggled and whispered to one another gong over the time. I know that I am middle aged an no longer prone to girlish behavior but I found them annoying. They finally settled on the characters of Diaz and Isherwood sharing a kiss which was a surprising and funny choice. It goes to prove that it’s a mixed bag when there is a war of the intellects such as this. Overall it was enjoyable in spite of the impromptu casting. |
The night that I attended, there was live music courtesy of the brilliant Fareed Haque and MathGames. It was an unexpected treat to have them open the show with a trippy blend of jazz and electronica. The brick wall behind them served as a projection screen with a kaleidoscope of Whirling Dervishes, numbers, and frequency blips. All of this combined for an enjoyable and stimulating evening of theater. Overall-an excellent collaboration from Collaboraction.
Cast photos by Candice Conner, Oomphotography.com
Review: Where We’re Born (Steppenwolf Theatre)
An unforgettable, poignant dramedy
| Steppenwolf Theatre presents |
| Where We’re Born |
| Written by Lucy Thurber Directed by Brad Akin at Steppenwolf Garage Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted (map) through June 18 | tickets: $20 | more info |
Reviewed by Katy Walsh
A college student returns home on break. Beers, shots, joints: life is exactly how she left it. The escape to the comfortably familiar lulls her into trying something new. But once you disturb the balance, can you ever come home again? Steppenwolf Theatre, in collaboration with Northwestern University MFA’s programs, presents NEXT UP, a theatrical project that showcases direction and design of NU graduates performed by professional actors. Where We’re Born is one of three plays in repertory.
Tony has always been there for Lilly. He’s been her protector from classmates, her mother and her mother’s string of loser boyfriends. Despite their ambitious differences and geographic distance, the cousins still have a strong bond. They have no secrets. Lilly goes to college, Tony goes to work. When Lilly revisits Tony’s world of drunken drudgery, she is welcomed home by his friends. Their daily shtick parties on without interruption. As the music blares them all into a hazy high, an unexpected hook-up derails the locals’ routine. Sex and secrets redefine home forever. Where We’re Born has small town simplicity with residential complications.
Playwright Lucy Thurber, scenic designer Scott Davis and director Brad Akin plop the audience into an established blue-collar world. Thurber skillfully creates character camaraderie with inside jokes and easy, unimportant banter. Davis masterfully builds the home environment. Within the theatre set in the round, Davis constructs a home inside and out. Living room, bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and front yard, it’s all there with functional lighting, discarded beer bottles and a layer of filth. Akin expertly stages simultaneous scenes within the wall-less confines. Outside, people are shooting the shit. Inside, a couple is sneaking in a quickie. With Akin, there is no hiding the emotion. It’s visible at every angle. Aided by fight choreographer Matt Engle, Akin transitions home from playfully hang-out to house of pain.
Akin pivots the talented cast around in perfectly boozy avoidance. The friends are recognizable twenty-somethings stuck in dead-end lives. A hardened Audrey Francis (Franky) delightfully perks up from her doldrums. When Francis secretly flirts, her whole being radiates lively hope.
Playing an intoxicating tool, Shane Kenyon (Tony) rages with a scary intensity. Caroline Neff (Lilly) is a hot mess of emotions. Jealous, lustful, desperate, miserable, Neff gives a passionate performance. Watching the drama from the sidelines, Max Lesser (Drew) and Tim Musachio (Vin) are hilarious good buddies. The party ambiance authentically spirals from comfortable to angst with substance.
Where We’re Born is set in a familiar state. It’s any Hometown, USA. Childhood chums destined to live a lifetime in repetitive motion. It’s a heartbreaking story of the one who got away. Where We’re Born is an unforgettable poignant dramedy.
| Rating: ★★★ |
Running time: Two hours includes an intermission. All photos by Michael Brosilow.
2011 Theater on the Lake Festival
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Boho Theatre’s Big River |
2011 Theater on the Lake Festival Guide
at Theater on the Lake
2401 N. Lake Shore Drive
by Jason Rost
It’s that time again: Chicago theater’s way of letting us know summer has officially arrived. It’s the theatrical equivalent in Chicago to the Cubs/Sox series. Here comes the Theater on the Lake festival! Chicago area non-equity productions are handpicked to take the open-air stage in Lincoln Park. It’s an opportunity to see 8 shows in 8 weeks, many of which were highlights of the past season. Of course, with street festivals, concerts, and BBQ who has time to make it to all 8 shows? Here are my picks for what not to miss:
All performances begin at 7:30 pm, Wednesday through Saturday, and at 6:30 pm on Sunday.
The Improvised Shakespeare Company, 
Best Bet
June 15th – June 19th
| Prepare to be astounded! Due to popular demand, the long running Improvised Shakespeare Company will spin a tale worthy of the Bard on the shores of Lake Michigan. Still enjoying sold out crowds every Friday night at iO, this troop excels at not only creating an improvised play based on an audience suggestion (last Friday night I took in a side-splitting rendition of “The Merry Wives of Orange County"), but they also use Shakespearean lingo, structure and references. Oh, and it’s definitely the most laughs on the lake this summer. | |
A Doll’s House, Infamous Commonwealth Theatre Company (our review)
June 22nd – June 26th
| This Infamous Commonwealth production directed by Chris Maher takes the classic Henrik Ibsen play out of 19th century Norway and sets it in 1962 New York. While the concept plays out visually in its ‘Mad Men’ style aesthetic, it doesn’t tie to the themes of the play and ultimately the casting bogs down this retelling. | |
Dental Society Midwinter Meeting, At Play Productions and Chicago Dramatists June 29th – July 3rd (our review)
| Finally a play for dentists! Chicago Dramatists presented this new play by Laura Jacqmin last summer. The story is a collection of fictional accounts all taking place at an actual event, The Chicago Dental Society Conference. Adultery, blackmail and scandal are at the center of this impressive display of the dental subculture. | |
Letters Home, Griffin Theatre Company
July 6th – July 10th
| The Afghanistan and Iraq wars are brought to life through actual letters written by soldiers serving in the Middle East. The Griffin Theatre production is inspired by The New York Times article "The Things They Wrote;" subsequent HBO documentary Last Letters Home; and letters and correspondences from Frank Schaeffer’s books Letters Home From America’s Military Family, Faith of Our Sons and Keeping Faith. The play gives audiences a powerful portrait of the soldier experience in our ongoing wars. | |
After the Fall, Eclipse Theatre Company (our review)Best Bet
July 13th – July 17th
| Say goodbye to Norma Jean with Arthur Miller’s semi-autobiographical account of his tumultuous relationship with Marilyn Monroe. This is a perfect outing for some mid-summer drama. Marilyn’s drug addiction spirals downward alongside the country entering the era of McCarthyism. But instead of Arthur and Marilyn, let’s call them Quentin and Louise. Director Steve Scott hits all the right notes of pain, sex and confrontation in this charged Eclipse Theatre Company production. | |
1001, Collaboraction (our review)Best Bet
July 20th – July 24th
| Based on the stories of “The Arabian Nights”, Jason Grote’s mash-up up of politics, humor, relationships and philosophy is an invigorating epic. The brilliant direction by Seth Bockley commands a quick-fired pace from his talented cast. Set amidst the backdrop of anti-Arab sentiments in Manhattan, Scheherazade’s tales are intertwined with the story of an Arab Jewish interracial relationship amidst a visual buffet of references from Osama bin Laden to Michael Jackson. | |
Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Best Bet
Bohemian Theatre Ensemble, July 27th – July 31st (our review)
| Here you get another chance to catch the Jeff award winner for Best Principal Actor in a Musical, Andrew Mueller. Big River is one of the most successful dramatizations of the classic Mark Twain novel, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn".” This Tony award winning musical received a heartfelt revival from BoHo this year under the direction of P. Marston Sullivan. The country music score by Roger Miller will have you stompin’ your feet under the open sky. | |
Sweet and Hot: The Songs of Harold Arlen, Theo Ubique (our review)
August 3rd – August 7th
| Going out with a Theo Ubique musical revue is a pretty wise choice by the Theater on the Lake organizers. This one is full delight as they take on the songbook of Harold Arlen, most famous for penning sons to “The Wizard of Oz.” Add that to songs such as “I’ve Got the World on a String” and “Stormy Weather” and you’ve got a lovely evening. This revue may not play as intimate in the open-air space as it did in their tinderbox cabaret, but if nothing else David Heimann’s choreography and Fred Anzevino’s directing will project this ditty-packed show somewhere “Over the Rainbow.” | |
Ticket Information: Subscribers may purchase a season pass for $110 and see each performance each week. Subscriptions are available May 1 through June 1st OR Individual tickets may be purchased for each performance for $17.50. The Box Office opens for single ticket sales, June 7 at 2:00 pm. Box Office: (312) 742-7994. Beginning June 7 at 2:00 pm, Box Office hours are Tuesday – Saturday, 2:00 – 8:00 pm, Sunday, 3:30 – 7:30 pm. Closed Monday.
Getting There: Theater on the Lake is located at Fullerton Avenue and Lake Michigan in Lincoln Park.
Getting there Green: Walk or bike along Chicago’s lakefront path directly to our front door. Not only will you BE green, but you’ll also SAVE some green!
By car: Pay parking is available at the Lincoln Park Zoo, located at Fullerton Avenue and Cannon Drive. Metered parking is sometimes available along Cannon Drive.
By bus: CTA bus routes 151 or 156 both serve the area.
