Tuesday, 03 February 2026 10:53
COSI FAN TUTTE or ‘Thus Do They All’ - In other words: ‘Wimmin are like dat’
Sarz Maxwell
COSI FAN TUTTE translates loosely as ‘Thus Do They All’, referring to the inconstancy – fickleness, even infidelity – of women. ALL women. The opera, composed by Mozart with libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, begins with two infatuated men, Ferrando (Anthony Leon) and Guglielmo (Ian Rucker) extolling the virtues of…
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Theatre in Review
Sunday, 01 February 2026 14:23
Matters of the Heart: Patti LuPone’s Evening of Memory, Mischief, and Grace
Written by Wesley David
Patti LuPone’s long-running concert piece Matters of the Heart unfolded on the stage of the National Historic Landmark The Auditorium Theatre not as a greatest-hits parade, but as a seasoned artist’s intimate conversation with her own past. Premiering some 25 years ago at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater in New…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 31 January 2026 14:23
Chaos Checked In: Unnecessary Farce Brings Down the House at The MAC
Written by Kimberly Katz
Paul Slade Smith’s Unnecessary Farce - a 2006 comic whirlwind that is fast becoming a modern staple of the genre - lands with full force in Buffalo Theatre Ensemble’s lively production at The McAninch Arts Center in Glen Ellyn. The show is a reminder of how exhilarating a well‑constructed farce…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Friday, 30 January 2026 11:26
Little Shop of Horrors at Marriott Theatre: Somewhere That’s Green
Written by CJ Burroughs
Back in simpler times, what seems like decades ago, during a global pandemic, I remember watching an NPR Tiny Desk Concert featuring the Broadway cast of Little Shop of Horrors. In the middle of the string of incredible songs from the show, the songs’ composer Alan Menken sat down at…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 29 January 2026 11:23
Broadway in Chicago’s Stereophonic is Full of High-Stakes Drama and Emotional Performances
Written by Lauren Katz
“There’s a fine line between compromise and losing yourself.” So many of us have that story of a favorite band. A group brought together by a shared passion and realizes they have that special something that can make them huge. So often that passion takes a dramatic turn, and the…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 28 January 2026 16:52
Beautifully Performed, This Outrageous 'Salome' Made Musical History
Written by Bill Esler
“Salome” is an opera with an amazing backstory, and comes to us at the Lyric Opera with a content advisory (“adult themes, brief nudity, and disturbing imagery”), especially novel considering this work was first mounted in 1905. No wonder, given the beheading and necrophilic kiss that are at the center…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Monday, 26 January 2026 12:28
My Life As a Cowboy at Open Space Arts: A Yeehaw-Fueled Joyride
Sarz Maxwell
I WANNA BE A COWBOY is a song by Boys Don’t Cry (lovin’ that band name!). MY LIFE AS A COWBOY is a play by Hugo Timbrell playing its American premiere at Open Space Arts Theatre. Yippee yo ky yay! and similar assertions of glee and approval! Art is intersectional, and…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 22 January 2026 18:37
Timeline Theatre’s Biting Production of EUREKA DAY Astounds and Intrigues
Written by Lauren Katz
Let’s face it – in today’s world, “vaccinations” are a hot-button topic. More than ever, anything around health has become highly politicized, and for some, can elicit a deeply emotional reaction. Therefore, consensus is even harder to come by, and for some, even entering the debate feels impossible. Despite all…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 10 January 2026 13:21
Echoes in the Opera House: BrightSide's 'Phantom' A Concert Triumph
Written by Kimberly Katz
As a lifelong Phantom of the Opera devotee in every form it takes, I was genuinely delighted to see BrightSide Theatre tackling Phantom in Concert. As the title promises, this version reimagines Gaston Leroux’s classic novel as a sweeping musical experience. With actors reading from scripts accompanied by a full…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Monday, 15 December 2025 11:24
Review: Couch Penny Ensemble's 'Everybody' at Greenhouse Theater Center
Written by Maddie Burroughs
A quick disclaimer for this review: Couch Penny Ensemble's Everybody, by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, is written with a caveat for anyone who dares to perform it. At the start of each performance, the actors are randomly assigned their roles by lottery, creating 120 possible cast combinations. In other words, the Everybody I…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 15 December 2025 11:14
Review: Manual Cinema’s Christmas Carol at Studebaker Theater
Written by Maddie Burroughs
As someone who is ever the cynic about telling the same old stories every year under the guise of tradition, A Christmas Carol rarely draws me in. Manual Cinema’s latest production, however, takes a Christmas classic and makes it new again. Told through the eyes of a narrator who shares…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
Monday, 08 December 2025 12:14
Outrageous, Heartfelt, and Hilarious: Jinkx & DeLa’s Holiday Magic Lands in Chicago
Written by Maddie Burroughs
Now in its eighth year, global drag icons and RuPaul’s Drag Race stars BenDeLaCreme and Jinkx Monsoon are back on tour with The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show – a hilarious, unhinged, and queer production that pushes the boundaries of the holiday spectacle. The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show has touched…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 08 December 2025 13:42
Bah Humbug, Here We Go Again! Charles Dickens Begrudgingly Performs “A Christmas Carol” Again at Theater Wit
Written by Ken Payne
At Theater Wit, a Jeff Award–winning solo performance reimagines Charles Dickens with both comic absurdity and aching humanity. The great author, improbably alive more than two centuries after his birth, finds himself trapped in a ritual that has long outlived him: the annual retelling of A Christmas Carol. Since 1853,…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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