Items filtered by date: November 2007

If you’re finding that one of your brows is raised, if you’re bewitched, bothered, or bewildered, then you’ve probably yet to experience the work a compulsive ironist. The quotations cited above can be found in “The History Boys,” the Best Play Tony Award winner of 2006, which is now at TimeLine Theatre, under the splendid direction of Nick Bowling.

Taking cues from such bands as Tenacious D and Flight of the Conchords, members Vince Foss (guitar, vocals) and Miguel Matallanes (percussion, vocals) have a comedy routine that they expertly weave throughout their set. In between (and many times during) songs, most of the audience is grinning ear-to-ear from the on-stage dialogue.

Usually the last Tuesday night of each month at Bungalow Joe’s in Hanover Park can be described as a laid back, mellow night of fun and music. Regular performers, solo artist David Biggs and Beat Salad, usually share the bill, each dishing out heartfelt acoustic sets in which the latter also incorporates congas, bongos and looping effects into their songs. Though the two mentioned acts are certainly worth checking out in their own right, this past Tuesday was especially inviting as Almond stopped by for a special performance that will have show goers in the northwestern suburb buzzing for some time to come. In other words, the mellow was shaken up.

According to many patrons, Almond, a one-man music machine, was unlike anything they have ever heard before – and that’s a good thing. His atypical lyrics coupled with his aggressive presentation took the crowd by surprise but quickly sucked them in, as Almond’s raw energy and unpredictable time changes injected everyone with a taste for the unknown.

While some songs like “Many of Your Cares” and “Tired Cock” carried with them a more catchy and melodic feel to them, outside-the-box tracks like “Rubber”, Length” and “Summer Frog” kept the audience off balance just enough to keep them planted in the last car on Almond’s roller coaster Thrill Ride Bizarre.

Towards the end of his set, just when one thought they might be entering the mind of Almond, his alter ego, Girth Garden, took over to perform the insane 40-second freak cruise, “Schindler’s Wishlist”. Then, just like that, Almond reappeared, once again taking control by inhabiting the artist’s human shell where he went on to perform his finale number “Water Sadist”.

Accompanied by his guitar, Almond also relies on a laptop for his rhythm and backing tracks. Almond’s show is musically charged and it’s his abundant eccentricity that puts him in a league of his own – something that is never easy to do.

Missed him? Worry not. Almond will be playing dates to be announced all around Chicago this summer.

For more information on this artist go to www.myspace.com/yesalmond.

Twice a week, I drive 30 minutes in rush hour traffic to pet three, delicious doggies for about fifteen minutes. And why not, it’s the only fifteen minutes of pure unadulterated loving I get without fail each week. Before I even get to the door, the barking and howling begins. “YAY, she’s HERE! She’s here to love us!”

What a truly spectacular event it was that took place on this sixteenth day of April 2009. A raucous affair that shook some people’s worlds upside-down and put others back into their right places. If everything is relative, than it must be relative to something right? I humbly submit that everything is relative to Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, whose music shakes the very fabric of reality and shapes matter into being all around us.

Art gets underway when one of three friends purchases a very expensive painting  - a white canvas. To his chagrin neither of his two friends “get it” in the way he does. While one friend, Marc, is outraged at the acquisition and forthright about his opinion, the other, Yvan, agrees to an extent, but hides his true feelings when confronted by Serge, the buyer. Serge, who is absolutely taken with the painting’s beauty, cannot understand why his friends don’t see it through his eyes.

Ensemble member Tina Landau brilliantly brings the final work of William Shakespeare to life as Steppenwolf Theatre presents The Tempest thanks to her fantastic direction and strong performances by its cast. The performance, which runs through May 31^st, is an ideal blend of humor and powerful drama and is enhanced by its colorful wardrobe and magical scenery. This is the first time in its prestigious history that Steppenwolf has taken on the work of Shakespeare. 

Most “Rentheads” in Chicago probably thought they’d never get the chance to see “Rent” ever again with its original Broadway cast members. Now, for a limited time, they can. Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp and Gwen Stewart have all rejoined the cast while on its current national tour that can be seen here in Chicago at Oriental Theatre from March 31-April 12^th.

I was happy to see that Davy’s set included the great Monkees songs that he is known most for like “I Want to Be Free” and “Valleri”, but was also pleased to hear him sing songs in which Mickey Dolenz sang the leads such as “Steppin’ Stone”, “Last Train to Clarksville” and “Pleasant Valley Sunday”.

Insanely funny would be the first words that come to mind in describing New Millennium Theatre’s presentation of Police Academy: Insurgency Emergency. Whether you’ve seen any of the seven Police Academy movies or not, you’ll be sure to enjoy this live adaptation directed by Adam Rosowicz who wrote the script along with Matt Russell.