Items filtered by date: November 2007

....a few minutes in, Human Nature welcomed us to the 'party'.  Their shiny shoes and bow tie look indicated to me to get ready for a class act!  From Sidney, Australia, these four men who referred to themselves as ordinary guys, proved within minutes to be 'extra ordinary'.  With a love for music and dance as teens they performed as a barber shop quartet, but soon shifted to Motown, loving the beat and soul of such groups as the Temptations.  Motown was birthed in the United States in the late 50's, but soon reached the ears of Mike, Andrew, Phil and Toby lighting a fire that never quit.

During the performance the highs and lows of harmony was done beautifully.  Music and rhythm aside, just watching four handsome men, suited up, brought class into the house and heightened the crowd with anticipation.  "Shop Around" brought back memories for me, and when "Stop in the Name of Love" filled the room it took you back in time when young people would escape into the fun of music.  This show was family friendly, but it wasn't a surprise to see the seats filled with older folks who related so much with the Motown sound.

Mike, Andrew, Phil and Toby have been together musically for twenty-five years.  The lead singer Mike, who initiated this 'dream' said it all began with "I'll Be There".  Their relationship with Smokey Robinson is genuine and productive in honoring Motown, and Human Nature is continuing to keep the heart and soul of Motown alive.  The energy level these guys had, the 'moves' and quality singing certainly is worth checking out.  Each performer is gifted, but the four together were amazingly entertaining. There was just the right mix of performance and audience participation to really keep the fun going.  Backed up by the Hollas Band Las Vegas, Human Nature brought home a sound that brought history back to life!  It just couldn't have been better!

Smokey Robinson’s Human Nature: The Motown Show is currently playing at The Sands Showroom inside Las Vegas’ glitzy Venetian Hotel and Casino. With hits from the Four Tops, The Supremes, The Temptations and Stevie Wonder you’ll find this show to be one of Vegas’ most fun and inspirational.

If you’ve ever wondered what may have filled in the omitted bits and fragments in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, First Folio’s “The Gravedigger” takes the mystery away while presenting its own mystery. Ingeniously creating a story within a story, “The Gravedigger” takes us to a heartbroken and devastated Dr. Victor Frankenstein who searches to destroy the monster who killed his family – a monster he breathed life into himself.

Meanwhile, as Victor hunts, the monster encounters a gravedigger, “Kurt”, when he tries to kill himself in a cemetery. Through reasoning and understanding, the gimpy gravedigger convinces the monster to live and the two develop a friendship. Kurt is dealing with his own past transgressions and we see similarities emerge between the two as the story continues. As time goes on, the monster learns to care and love because he is for the first time being accepted for who he is rather than hated and misunderstood. He even learns he has a soul despite the fact he is created form various corpse parts. When a woman, a self-proclaimed reader of the future, enters the monsters life he begins to become even more human.

Just in time for Halloween, the world premiere of “The Gravedigger” is a haunting, but heartfelt story written by Joseph Zettelmaier that keeps audience members engaged thanks to its flowing dialogue, eighteenth century costumes and memorable set that looks like a cemetery from an old horror flick. In fact, the play is held in the Mayslake Peabody Estate where rumors have its former owner Francis Peabody haunting the mansion, giving it an extra dose of creepy.

Craig Spidle is dynamic as “Kurt” and really grabs his character by the you-know-whats, anchoring a strong cast that includes Chicago acting veterans Doug MacKechnie and Simina Contras. Josh Carroll takes on the role of the monster otherwise known as “Anton” and does an admirable job as the simpleton who expresses many different feelings and emotions for the first time. At time inner beauty is so well defined and personified in Zettelmaier's characters, yet we see that sometimes we are just a vulnerable moment away from unleashing the primitive beast within ourselves. 

That horror can be intertwined with beauty and love makes this story penetrating. It is a story of hope, a story of what could be and a story of change, all the time testing human behavior.  “The Gravedigger” wins on so many levels and can be seen through November 2^nd at First Folio Theatre in Oakbrook. Joseph Zettelmaier is a young playwright to keep an eye on.

For more show information, visit www.firstfolio.org.  

Granted, fans of the Evil Dead films starring our favorite B-list star, Bruce Campbell, will certainly enjoy this stage version more than most, having already consumed a taste for the unconventional humor that made the trilogy such a big cult following success.  Still, though maybe not for everyone, Evil Dead the Musical, is a raucous night of deadpan deliveries, inappropriate slapstick, splattering bodily fluids, sexual innuendos, campy stereotypes and jokes so bad you can help but laugh. All the elements of a winning production.

When over-the-top S-Mart store manager Ash takes to the woods to stay in an unoccupied cabin with a couple friends and his annoying sister, we get an immediate sense that this story will not end well. As, expected, all hell breaks loose once the foursome realize spirits of the dead inhabit the cabin and surrounding woods – and they’re not happy. Ash stumbles upon The Book of the Dead, or Necronomicon, and frantically searches its flesh made pages for some answers. One hilariously spirit enters after another to claim their lives and Ash has no choice but to resort to superhero mode in order to prevent a full on bloody massacre. If you are familiar with the Evil Dead film franchise, there is no more need for story description. If you are not, the plot is pretty simple – defeat evil or die.

Though some moments are overly laden with campiness to the point of plain silliness, the brunt of the show’s humor is right on. Many of the props, including a three foot high bridge that seems to be the only way in and out of the woods, are very comical in their own right. Each character contributes their share of funny moments and then some, especially Creg Sclavi who is exceptional as “Scott”. David Sajewich takes on the tough assignment of “Ash”, but takes the role and runs with it to the point one forgets to keep comparing him to Bruce Campbell.

The show is filled with corny songs like “Look Who’s Evil Now” as one character becomes possessed after another but really hits its stride with its cheesy special effects and one-liners. From graphic limb dismemberment to the splattering blood that makes its way across the theatre’s first few rows (yes, the “splatter zone”), there is more than enough in this show to entertain and deliver one hell of a funny adventure.

Evil Dead the Musical is playing at the Chicago Playhouse through just October 12^th, so be sure to fit this one in on your calendar. For tickets and/or more info visit www. http://broadwayinchicago.com/ or www. http://www.evildeadthemusical.com/.              

Tickets for international singing sensation Celtic Thunder’s upcoming North American Symphony Tour are on sale now. The shows 8^th US tour kicks off at the Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater, FL on November 14^th, following the 2^nd annual Celtic Thunder Cruise (sailing on November 8^th -12^th 2104). The Symphony Tour will introduce the show’s newest member Emmett O’Hanlon, an Irish American baritone who will be joining the show in the US this fall. Emmett O’Hanlon was born and raised in New York to Irish parents and is currently finishing his Master Degree in Voice at Julliard School of Music.

The tour will remain on the road through December 14^th, touring the East Coast and Midwest in the US, playing major venues such as the Symphony Hall in Atlanta (11/21), The Chicago Theatre, Chicago (11/30), MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods (12/5), Heinz Center for the Performing Arts, Pittsburgh (12/9), The State Theater in Minneapolis (11/28), NYCB Theatre at Westbury (12/7), Morristown PAC (12/6).

This will be the first ever Symphony Tour for Celtic Thunder, who will depart from their traditional and critically-acclaimed large set productions to perform songs from their new album Holiday Symphony in a dynamic live music experience accentuated by the instrumentals of a full symphony orchestra. Featuring holiday favorites ranging from traditional carolsAway in A Manger, and O Holy Night to the more contemporary Mary Did You KnowandFairytale of New York, Celtic Thunder’s five male soloists Keith Harkin, Ryan Kelly, Neil Byrne, Colm Keegan and Emmett O’Hanlon will also perform solo and ensemble numbers, signature Celtic Thunder hit songs Ireland’s Call and band favorites Cal/Local Hero.

The Celtic Thunder Symphony Tour will be the show’s 8^th tour of the USA since it was launched in 2008. The airing of their first Public Television special came that same year and Celtic Thunder has consistently remained one of the most popular musical shows for stations throughout the US.  Tickets for the Celtic Thunder Symphony Tour are available on the Celtic Thunder website http://www.celticthunder.com/tour. The Very Best of Celtic Thunder Spring 2015 Tour of USA and Canada Tour has also been announced and information on this tour is also on the Celtic Thunder website.

Thrice hailed as BILLBOARD’s Top World Music Artist and Top World Imprint (2008, 2009 and 2011), the phenomenon that is Celtic Thunder has achieved sales of over 2 million copies to date. Celtic Thunder also continues to extensively tour the USA, Canada and Australia, performing to more than 700,000 fans over the past seven years. Their mass appeal and devoted fan base continues to grow with impressive statistics to prove it. Celtic Thunder’s official YouTube channel, “Thunder Tube” has seen over 28 million-upload views since the channel’s inception in 2008. Celtic Thunder has performed at the White House for President and Mrs. Obama, at the Pentagon for the Chairman of the Joint Chefs of Staff as well as on the CBS Saturday Show’s Second Cup Café, the Today Show, and Fox and Friends.

For information about the Celtic Thunder – Symphony Tour of North America in fall 2014 please see www.celticthunder.com/tour For information on the 2^ndAnnual Celtic Thunder Cruise please see www.celticthundercruise.com for full details and reservation information.

For more, please see www.celticthunder.ie, www.facebook.com/celticthunder, vimeo.com/user12988579, www.myspace.com/celticthundershow,twitter.com/CelticThunder and www.youtube.com/user/TheThunderTube

Celtic Thunder US Symphony Tour 2014

I absolutely adored Theatre at the Center’s production of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown based on the Pedro Almodvar film of the same name from beginning to end.  Set in the 1980's in a part of uptouching and hilarious upper crust Madrid, "Verge" tells the hilarious and touching story of three women who are literally brought to the edge of sanity by their lovers. 

Cory Goodrich is dynamite in the lead role of commercial actress and singer Pepa who receives a phone message from her cheating lover Ivan that he is breaking up with her just as she discovers that she is pregnant with his child.  At the same time, Summer Naomi Smart is super sexy and funny as Pepa's nervous best friend and unwitting fashion model, Candela, whose boyfriend turns out to be an actual terrorist.

And Hollis Resnik as Ivan's ex-wife, who has actually been committed to an asylum because of Ivan's constant playing around with her mind and heart, is sheer delight in her portrayal of a woman who is still in love with her ex, partly because he keeps stringing her along. 

It’s just a complete and sensational cast assembled for this production.

To continue in praising this cast, Larry Adams is hysterical as Ivan, the wealthy Lothario who tells his son it is not important what you say to women but how you say it and then proceeds to sing "Blah, blah blah" to one woman after another in such a sexy seductive tone that they all drop at his feet.  Ivan also reveals that his secret to keeping women in love with him , even his ex-wife of twenty years who had been driven to madness by his loving is that he loves each woman at a distance "Forever and ever and will not let them out of his thoughts... forever." 

Sadly, the lead of this production, actor, Bernie Yvon, was killed in a car accident about two weeks before the show opened on his way to rehearsal. The performances in this run are dedicated to Bernie, who will certainly be missed in the Chicago theatre community. George Andrew Wolff, who plays the taxi driver and narrator did a great job in Bernie’s stead and had one of the best and funniest Spanish accents in the whole show. 

The set, period costumes and actual taxi driven around during the show were all beautiful, colorful and very interactive for the audience. There are all kinds of fabulous dance numbers and the songs are catchy and cleverly funny, especially “The Microphone” performed wonderfully by Larry Adams and “Model Behavior” where Naomi Smart really gets to show her comedic ability as an actress. There is even a handsome Spanish biker that cruises the stage on his motorcycle. 

Although the 1980's cocktail which helped fuel and then alternately slow down the characters frenetic actions through life was a milkshake made of "gazpacho and Valium", you will not need a Valium to relax and laugh at this wonderful woman driven comedy. I highly recommend seeing this rarely produced hit while it is here! 

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is playing at Theatre at the Center in Munster, Indiana (30 minutes from downtown Chicago) through October 12^th. For tickets and/or more information, visit www.theatreatthecenter.com.  

These nervous women deserve respect!

The romantic and richly textured tale of East versus West, THE KING AND I,comes toThe Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire, IL., previewing October 22, opening October 29, and running through January 4, 2015. Nick Bowling (Juno and The Normal Heart at Timeline Theatre) makes his Marriott Theatre directorial debut with a fresh take on this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, merging history and romance with today’s social and political issues. THE KING AND Itakes audiences on an uplifting journey of the power of education as characters transform from instructor to students themselves, learning from one another in the process. In consultation with the Thai Cultural and Fine Arts Institute of Chicago, Bowling and Choreographer Tommy Rapley will explore ancient Siamese customs, dance and traditions, and bring them to life on stage.

Set against a dazzling and exotic backdrop of 19^th century Siam, THE KING AND I follows the tumultuous relationship of the strong-willed British Governess Anna (Jeff Award-nominee Heidi Kettenring) and the larger than life King of Siam (Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte), as they try to find common ground between Siamese and British traditions. In an attempt to modernize his country, the King seeks Anna’s assistance in teaching his children and wives about Western culture. Conflicts arise, however, as both refuse to give up their respective traditions and values.  As the story unfolds, Anna and the King grow to understand and respect one another, and ultimately, fall in love in a truly unique romance. THE KING AND I takes audiences through a captivating journey of music, dance and enchantment with timeless Rodgers and Hammerstein classics “Getting to Know You,” “I Whistle a Happy Tune,” and “Shall We Dance?”

THE KING AND Istars Heidi Kettenring as "Anna" (National Tour of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Broadway in Chicago's Wicked, the World Premiere of Hero at the Marriott Theatre), Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “The King of Siam” (2G's World Premiere of Galois The Musical; Macbeth at Lincoln Center/Clarke Studio Theater; NAATCO'S Obie Award-winning production of Awake And Sing; New York and U.S. premiere of Immaculate at La Mama, World Premiere of Bunty Berman Presents at The New Group), Megan Masako Haley as “Tuptim,” Devin Ilaw as “Lun Tha,” Kristen Choi as “Lady Thiang,” Joseph Anthony Foranda as “Kralahome,”Michael Semanic as “Louis Leonowens,” Matthew Uzarraga as “Prince Chulalongkorn”, and Rod Thomas as “Sir Edward and Captain Orton.” Also starring in the production are Alexis Aponte, Audrey Billings, W. Blaine Brown, Nicholas Dantes, Jasmine Ejan, Lilly S. Fujioka, Monique Haley, Raymond Interior, Jillian Jocson, Scott Alan Jones, Dylan M. Lainez, Rika Nishikawa, Sayiga Eugene Peabody, Hanna Savella, Scott Shimizu, Yu Suzuki, Rose Le Tran, Zachary Uzarraga, Janelle Villas, and Sophia Woo.

THE KING AND Iproduction team is led by the Marriott Theatre’s Lead Artistic Director Andy Hite. Set Design is by Tom Ryan, Costume Design by Nancy Missimi, Lighting Design by Jesse Klug, Sound Design by Bob Gilmartin and Properties Design by Sally Weiss; with Dialect Coach Jill Walmsley Zager.

The performance schedule is Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., Thursdays and Fridays at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 4:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sundays at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Ticket prices range from $40 to $48, excluding tax and handling fees. On Wednesday and Thursday evenings, there are a limited number of Dinner and Theatre tickets available and can only be purchased through the Marriott Theatre Box Office. On Friday and Saturday evenings, dinner reservations can be made at the King’s Wharf restaurant. Additionally on Sundays, dinners in the Fairfield Inn are available. To make a reservation at either of these two restaurants, please call 847-634-0100.Free parking is available at all performances. To reserve tickets, please call The Marriott Theatre Box Office at 847.634.0200. Visit www.MarriottTheatre.com for more information.

"Stories in Motion” is a beautifully selected trio of individual story ballets performed at the Auditorium Theatre on Congress.The first "Prodigal Son" with choreography by George Balanchine tells the well-known biblical tale of the rebellious and curious son who leaves his home only to be beaten down by life and love in the city. Although Balanchine is one of my very favorite choreographers I found the movements in this piece to be somewhat slapstick and jarring. However, Christine Rocas as the Siren who lures The Son, Alberto Valazquez was a petite delight, moving sinuously and majestically through the piece. And the final moment when the Prodigal son returns broken and crawling to his father masterfully played by Ashley Wheater, and crawls/climbs up his father’s legs and into his arms to be carried offstage is a satisfying heart wrenching finale. 

“Lilac Garden" is completely and refreshingly different and is set in the Edwardian period where two lovers are forced to have their last dance before retiring into the loveless marriages arranged for them by society. The characters, simply called Caroline, Her Lover and The Man She Must Marry are all subtly, beautifully and delicately danced by Victoria Jaiani, Dylan Guitierrez and Miguel Blanco.

Raku, which means “pleasure” in Japanese, is the stunner of the evening. Based on the tragic tale of a Princess who is stalked by an evil Monk who rapes her, kills her lover and sets fire to the temple she lives in, is a devastating ballet full of acrobatics and sword play that really moves the audience with well-played melodrama. 

Victoria Jaiani as the Princess has a real tour de force performance here and does something I have never seen before in a classical ballet program. After the horrifying rape scene, after her servants/ guards have been beaten and dispersed and her temple is burning to the ground, the Japanese Princess takes down her long flowing hair. 

The Princess has had everything taken from her, her lover, her guards, her virginity, and her home are all destroyed by the evil Monk. Finally, Jaiani’s tightly wrapped bun of hair is pulled out to reveal her waist length, shining black hair.

As Jaiani crawled, shaking with rage and despair across the stage, half on pointe and half on her knees, she pulled her long, beautiful black hair out and away from her face with her hands like a lions mane and scooped up the ashes of her burning temple to pour them over her head and face in a final dramatic gesture of complete destruction and loss of sanity. 

I highly recommend seeing an ever dynamic and always richly staged Joffrey Ballet production. Swan Lake begins October 15^th. 

*photo - Lilac Garden: #362 (Victoria Jaiani) 

Death Tax by playwright Lucas Hnath is about a wealthy 70-something woman who believes that her daughter is paying off her nurse to kill her before the New Year's death tax kicks in thereby reducing her inheritance significantly. When the play opens, Maxine, played ferociously if not sympathetically by Tony Award winner, Deanna Dunnagan states a truism that I found touching, about the fact that people who have money late in life are "preserved" while those that do not have money are not "preserved."

Dunnagan is absolutely riveting, and beautiful to look at. Even her hand gestures resemble those of a ballerina, very sparing and graceful.

I had hoped that the play would demonstrate more of the very real danger to senior citizens who find themselves deteriorating physically and mentally due to subpar care because of their financial situations, as this happens every day in this country and indeed many elder citizen's deaths are hastened for financial reasons. Unfortunately, Maxine's delusions and combative personality which are common in patients with dementia are treated as the main problem instead of the system of health care in this country that often pits patients and family against the nursing home or hospital in a race to save money or make money off the dying person.

There are several great, rapid fire speeches in the play for all four actors, and Louise Lamson as her hapless estranged daughter, and J. Nicole Brooks, as the nurse Maxine attempts to bribe into her loyalty do a great job delivering them in a way that makes the audience constantly ask themselves, "What would I do in that situation?'”

Hnath is a popular young writer at the moment with two plays in production at once, but in this play he misses the mark when he chooses to make Maxine the villain of the piece. However, there is not enough warmth either in the characters or the staging that cause you to really care much what happens to each character. Instead we are asked to believe that a nurse and her supervisor would easily accept large bribes from an obviously paranoid and overmedicated patient without thinking they would be caught. 

Overall this was still a compelling, quickly moving piece of theatre that raises many important questions about how aging Americans are placed at the mercy of their relatives and caregivers at the very time they need support the most.

Death Tax is playing at Lookingglass Theatre through October 12^th. You can find out more about tickets and other dhow information at www.lookingglasstheatre.org.