Review: MR. PARKER at Open Space Arts
by Zac Thriffiley - February 04, 2025
Open Space Arts in Uptown is quickly establishing itself as the go-to “storefront” theater for plays and films that consider the many nuances of queer experiences, and their latest offering—MR. PARKER—is no exception. Elevated by the sophisticated performance of its leading actor, MR. PARKER present...
Review: FUN HOME at Porchlight Music Theatre
by Rachel Weinberg - January 31, 2025
Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron’s FUN HOME is a musical journey in sketches through the memories of Alison Bechdel. Based on the graphic memoir of the same name — and so called because the Bechdel family business was a funeral home — Porchlight director Stephen Schellhardt’s production brings each scen...
Review: JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING at Chicago Shakespeare Theater
by Rachel Weinberg - January 21, 2025
With JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING, Jocelyn Bioh pulls off a challenging theatrical feat: She makes a slice-of-life play consistently engaging and entertaining. Set in Harlem at a hair salon of the same name, JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING follows a group of West African immigrant women working there —...
Review: SHUCKED National Tour Presented by Broadway In Chicago
by Rachel Weinberg - January 09, 2025
SHUCKED is a corny musical...in the best way possible. Book writer Robert Horn and composer team Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally’s lyrics are chock-full (or should I say husk-full?) of puns, double entendres, and cringey punchlines. I was grinning ear-to-ear (of corn). SHUCKED is joyful, creative, a...
Review: TEATRO ZINZANNI at Cambria Hotel
by Rachel Weinberg - December 12, 2024
TEATRO ZINZANNI is still kicking it in the indoor Spiegeltent Zazou nestled on the fourteenth floor of the Cambria Hotel in the Loop. It’s still a reliably entertaining variety show, and this particular edition includes many returning performers....
Review: RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN'S CINDERELLA at Marriott Theatre, Lincolnshire IL
by Tina St. Angelo Wetzel - November 24, 2024
This is the crucial moment in the current childrens’ theatre production at Marriott Lincolnshire of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s beloved musical, Cinderella. The cast of ten, under the direction of Laura Rook, brings delight and joy to the littlest members of the audience, many of the girls dressed as ...