NEW YORK — Of all the love songs in all the Broadway musicals, few compare to the one in William Finn and James Lapine's "Falsettos" sung by a nerdy man named Marvin to a handsome man named Whizzer, for whom Marvin has left his wife and adolescent son, despite seemingly having nothing in common...
In the interest of truth in titling, one or more of the exclamation points in "Longer! Louder! Wagner!," Lyric Opera's latest collaboration with Second City, could be removed without inflicting damage on the product. But it's still a pretty funny show. Subtitled "The Second City Wagner Companion,"...
Made of spit and spirit, cunning and chaos, deliverance and destruction, Kristiana Rae Colon's "Octagon" takes apart the world of slam poetry with bravado and brio. Though at times self-indulgent, self-conscious and insufficiently clear in its exploration of sexual politics — well, that too feels...
Which Broadway musical from 2015 profoundly altered the form and style of the American musical, diversified the genre, took huge risks when it came to content, and propelled its audience along a profoundly emotional journey? If you answered "Hamilton" you would not be alone and your answer would...
On a night when the Chicago Cubs shook off their doubts and oppressors and hit their way back into contention, the most profound theatrical experience in a generation — a vibrant celebration of a country founded on the fervor of freedom and built with the mental and physical sweat of cursed outsiders...
When Yale University historian Joanne Freeman attended the musical "Hamilton," a stranger approached her at intermission, keen to know the historical accuracy of the production. Freeman's students love the show, and her nieces have memorized it. When speaking at high schools about it, Freeman has...
"You could have been anywhere in the world tonight, but we are so appreciative that you are here with us in the great city of Chicago," said "Hamilton" producer Jeffrey Seller at The PrivateBank Theatre on Monroe Street on Wednesday night. Since the Chicago production of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical...
"Hand to God" star Alex Weisman and Rachel Christianson of Puppet Mechanics show how the puppets for the show were created.
UPDATE: Zanies Comedy Club announced Oct. 3 that Richard Lewis has postponed his Chicago-area appearances until 2017. He was scheduled to perform Nov. 16-19 at the Chicago and Rosemont locations. The fall stand-up comedy season begins in a hurry in the Chicago area. Hannibal Buress Each time hometown...
For Chicago artist Barak ade Soleil, the term "disability" describes a "social model," he says, "the construct of oppression brought on by society — not referring to my body per se, but to the world I live in," governed by everything from inaccessible buildings to the tropes projected on the disabled....
Maybe it's the season, but Zephyr Dance's "Valise 13" made me think of the ghostly chemistry between buildings and their inhabitants, whose histories threaten to combine and combust. Maybe it was the slow gliding of the two performers, wraiths swathed in white, from one space to another in a gallery...
Nora Chipaumire's "Portrait of Myself as My Father," running at the Dance Center through Saturday, was in full swing when we walked in Thursday, everyone armed with earplugs supplied by the venue. And, truly, it's impossible to overstate the work's noise and confusion, created by pounding music,...
After 10 years of bringing free dance performances to Chicagoans, the Chicago Dancing Festival will not return for an 11th round. The organization announced Friday that the festival was shutting down, stating that its mission was complete; during the 10-year run, "nearly 200,000 seats were filled...
NEW YORK — He had the advantage of the John the Baptist that is Robert Morse and, in his wily partner John Slattery, the oldest, driest and most cynically unlikely Hildy Johnson that ever snagged a scoop. But at the Broadhurst Theatre on Thursday night, America's master farceur grabbed Ben Hecht...
The Goodman Theatre’s production of "War Paint," the new musical that stars Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole and paints the story of the famous rivalry between cosmetics giants Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, is to open at New York’s Nederlander Theatre on April 6, 2017, it was announced...
With the dominance of "Hamilton" receding (a little), the U.S. Open reaching its climax and the thick early September air demanding relief, Broadway is firing up for the fall season. Here — in alphabetical order — are 10 exciting openings all happening between now and your holiday chaos. "A Bronx...
"Jersey Boys" has reached its final season of Broadway performances. The Tony-winning jukebox musical, now in its 11th year of bringing Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons' music to the stage, will play its final performance Jan. 15 at the August Wilson Theatre. The production opened on Nov. 6,...
This has been the year of the king. With theaters across the country celebrating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death, productions of the playwright's mighty tragedy, "King Lear," have come thundering one after another like hurtling boulders. The trend continues into the autumn, with the...