Author: Colin Douglas
When You Got It, Flaunt It
The Producers – Paramount Theatre
Glitzy, spectacular and filled with unstoppable laughs! That just about sums up Paramount’s new, high octane production. Out in Aurora, there’s a Broadway calibre presentation of Mel Brooks’ musical theatre adaptation of his popular 1967 film, that’s well worth the commute from Chicago. The movie originally starred Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. In Jim Corti’s fantastic, kaleidoscope of comedy, song and dance, he’s give audiences two dynamic new stars and a multitalented, energetic, 28-member company, many of whom play multiple roles, who award theatergoers with more than their money’s worth.
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A Helpless Rage
Nina Simone: Four Women – Northlight Theatre
When we first meet Nina Simone, she’s clothed in a smart sequined dress and singing her famous rendition of Gershwin’s, “I Loves You Porgy,” probably at a northern nightclub. Suddenly a deafening explosion shakes the theatre and plunges the room into darkness. When we next see the talented singer, she’s all in black. The dust is still settling as Ms. Simone enters through the charred doors of the demolished sanctuary of what was once the beautiful 16th Street Baptist Church, in Birmingham, Alabama. It’s September 15, 1963, following the horrendous bombing that maimed several of the church’s congregation and killed four innocent young black girls. Filled with a helpless rage, Nina Simone tries to find the words to express her nearly uncontrollable anger through her music.
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Heart-stopping Horror
On Clover Road – American Blues Theater
In order to not spoil the theatrical experience for future audiences, there’s really not very much that can be written about Steven Dietz’s heart-stopping horror story, now enjoying its Chicago premiere. This isn’t the first time that American Blues Theater has presented Mr. Dietz’s work. The prolific writer has more than 30 original plays and theatrical adaptations to his credit, but this one is unique.
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Telling Chicago Stories
Red Rex – Steep Theatre
Ike Holter is a talented, nationally known playwright, who also just happens to be one of our own. He’s a Chicagoan by choice, if not by birth, and Mr. Holter has earned his well-deserved fame by telling stories about the Second City through his plays. Of course, this gifted wordsmith first came to national attention when “Hit the Wall,” his riveting drama about gay history and the Stonewall riots, moved from the Steppenwolf Garage Theatre to Off-Broadway. But within six short years, Mr. Holter has added a number of additional tough, tenacious dramas to his repertoire, but these are genuine, gritty tales of the (Windy) city.
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Blood, Buffoonery and Brainless Burlesque
Evil Dead the Musical – Black Button Eyes Productions
There’s so many reasons to recommend this show that it’s difficult to know where to begin. But first, this definitely isn’t a musical for everyone. The more conservative audience member who prefers the classics of Theatre’s Golden Age may be put off by this show. Besides being a cleverly written satire of a B-level, cult supernatural horror film (which is itself a satire of the genre), the musical is filled with over-the-top characters, raucous rock songs, a plethora of profanity and gallons of guts and gore. Nowhere in sight is there a surrey with the fringe on top.
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The Chocolate Cream Soldier
Arms and the Man – ChicagoShaw Theater Company
Continuing their 25th season, which is celebrating “All Shaw, All the Time,” is this popular and charming classic. Considered to be one of the playwright’s most entertaining comedies, ShawChicago has included a new production of this play in a season that celebrates the company’s namesake. Audiences unfamiliar with this company’s superb handling of the playwright’s works are in for a real treat. The play truly is the thing, because ShawChicago’s productions consist primarily of the author’s words. Stripped of snazzy scenery, ponderous props and special effects, the actors receive all of the focus, all the while carrying scripts and portraying their roles upon a bare stage. Mary Michell, in the tradition of the company’s late founder and artistic director, Robert Scogin, guides her actors toward their discovery of the play’s dynamics and pitch. She draws their performances downstage and full front. Working from music stands, the cast focuses front, engaging the audience as their acting partners. The result is an intimate performance that truly focuses on the author’s text.
Comedy With a Capital C
A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder – Porchlight Theatre
The magnificent production that earned the Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League and the Outer Critics Circle Awards for the Best Musical of 2014 is now a glorious production at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts. This comedy, which borrows its plot from the 1949 British film, “Kind Hearts and Coronets,” and was, in turn, adapted from Roy Horniman’s novel The Autobiography of a Criminal, is as over-the-top as a play can be. With an operetta-like score, composed by Steven Lutvak, a book by Robert L. Freedman and lyrics by both gentlemen, this delightfully madcap musical is more fun than a day spent at Faulty Towers.
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Permission to Start Over
The Roommate
A pair of very talented Chicago actresses absolutely own the stage in Citadel’s excellent continuation of their sixteenth season. Ellen Phelps and Laurie Carter Rose star in Jen Silverman’s two-hander about a couple of middle-age women, each from very different backgrounds, who are about to share a house together in Iowa City. Sharon, a 55-year-old divorced empty nester, decided that her roomy, two-story house is big enough for another inhabitant. After she placed an ad for a roommate, it was answered by Robyn, a woman about the same age, who’s decided to leave her Bronx home for the peace and quiet of rural Iowa. What evolves throughout this entertaining one-act is a powerful character study of two women who are each searching for a new beginning.
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A Lesbian Love Story
I Know My Own Heart – Pride Films & Plays
At the age of 50, Irish-born Canadian novelist, short story writer, screenwriter and playwright Emma Donoghue is finally having her first theatrical drama premiered in the United States. Ms. Donoghue’s name may be familiar to some theatergoers as the author of the novel, and subsequent Oscar-nominated screenplay, for Room. She’s a prolific writer of various genres, whose works often explore the sometimes unnamed, hidden love between gay women. In this play, Donoghue was inspired by the secret coded diaries of early nineteenth century gentlewoman, Anne Lister.
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Great Balls of Fire
Million Dollar Quartet – Marriot Theatre
Inspired by a true story, and under the splashy and spectacular direction of James Moye, a slice of rock and roll history has been brought to life in the Marriott Theatre’s brilliant 2019 season opener. This joyful and infectiously likable show will introduce a lot of great music to younger audiences, but it’ll be a fond trip down memory lane for many other theatergoers. It’s chock full of nearly two dozen popular rock and roll and country-western hits. Based on an actual, previously little-known event from the archives of recording history, Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux created this little jukebox musical that has, since its 2006 Florida premier, taken on a whole life of its own.
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