Items filtered by date: November 2007

Irving Berlin’s White Christmas at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie 

is an absolutely fantastic seasonal Christmas show that pulls out all the stops!

I am a huge fan of the original film White Christmas and this talented cast, which was well-directed by Sasha Gerritson, brings so much of the magic of Irving Berlin's amazing music and the fun romantic storyline to colorful life from beginning to end. 

Tommy Thurston (Bob Wallace) and Jimmy Hogan (Phil Davis) play two World War II veterans with a successful song-and-dance act who meet and fall in love with two performing singers, Kelly Britt (Betty Haynes) and Anna Marie Abbate (Judy Haynes) who are sisters traveling by train to perform at what they are hoping will be a snow filled, vacationer packed holiday crowd at a quaint but flailing Vermont Inn owned by the two men's previous commanding officer. When the snow doesn’t arrive, they have to think fast if they want to draw that big holiday crowd.

All four leads are great singers and dancers! Wallace as Tommy Thurston really hits his stride with a deep note of romance with "How Deep Is the Ocean" in a call and answer number withKelly Britt (Betty Haynes) belting out “Love, You Didn’t Do Right by Me”.Britt is a delight and wows the audience in several numbers including the comical "Falling Out of Love Can be Fun". 

Alicia Berneche (Martha Watson, the inn’s concierge), is a mature actress who blows the audience out of the water when she transforms from what we think is an amateur wanting to join in on the show to a powerhouse singer and comedienne with her jaw-dropping and heart soaring performance of “Let Me Sing and I’m Happy”.

The stage is a holiday feast for the eyes. The costumes and large moving set are colorful, festive, and exciting. The huge Christmas trees are all lit magically and draw you into their warmth and glow. 

ALL of the dancers/ensembleare fantastic and positively wow the audience with a variety of dance forms including a spectacular tap dance to “Blue Skies”.

I LOVE a huge cast and seeing this many dancers onstage at once is a holiday treat for the eyes and ears that every single member of your family will be dazzled by. 

I highly recommend seeing this Joyful Christmas extravaganza in cozy comfort with all your family and friends. This great production show will make you appreciate the season as we ourselves are snowed in by our own freezing cold White Christmas! 

"Bald Sisters," in its world premiere at Steppenwolf Theatre, tells of a Cambodian refugee who escaped the unspeakable terror of the Kmer Rouge with her daughter, and made a new life and birthed a second daughter in the U.S. But the play only touches that in passing, instead focusing on universal themes as it portrays very realistically the generational divides that affect us all.

With incredible performances across the board, Bald Sisters is must-see theater. But the biggest star just may be the script by Vichet Chum, a rising playwright gaining national renown. Bald Sisters was created under a new play development initiative by Steppenwolf Theater Company, which reliably discovers and delivers work by promising playwrights with fully realized productions, this one directed admirably by Jesca Prudencio.

Chum’s characters, who represent familiar Boomer, GenX, Millennial types, are fully dimensional, their speech realistic, fresh, and completely on key for the range of ages and personalities. He gives the actors convincing language to work with, and they deliver it powerfully.

We have the mother, Ma (Wai Ching Ho), a naughty sprite who has put all the bad memories behind her, living in the moment, and readily speaking her mind. Ma prefaces her most pointed remarks with, “I probably shouldn’t say this, but I’m going to,” eliciting laughs, while cueing the audience for the zinger to follow.

Ma generally directs the barbs at her eldest daughter, Him (Jennifer Lim), whom we deduce escaped with her from Cambodia. Him and Sophea (Francesa Fernandez McKenzie), Ma’s younger daughter, are planning mom’s funeral - a plot device that brings a clash between the daughters. Him has a darker view of the world, while her younger sibling Sophea - born in the U.S. - has traveled an easier path. Sophea was spared the trauma of Him’s past as a refugee, but she longs to be anchored in her culture, seeking her roots by meditation and styling herself as an eastern zen. Him, on the other hand, has assimilated into U.S. culture, marrying a white Christian minister.

The end-of-life hook is a convenient device for the siblings to confront unfinished business. The younger sister Sophea is living an extended adolescence, and is very judgmental about her older sister Him’s life and values. Him sees her sibling as an infantile bag of pretension and Buddhist wanna-be.Him, though seriously ill, lives a dutiful life, supporting Ma in her decline, and her husband Nate in his church career.

Jennifer Lim gives a most noteworthy performance, on opening night delivering one of those incredible Steppenwolf-style monologues, filled with fury and passion, so affecting that the audience burst into applause. Francesa Fernandez McKenzie, as Sophea, conveyed in her physical performance as much or more about this pouty, self-immersed girl-woman as the playwright’s fresh, dead-on millennial lines.

Also notable were Coburn Goss as Him’s husband Nate, and particularly Nima Rakhshanifar as Seth, a college student who mows lawns, and whose Middle Eastern and Muslim heritage showed the author is at home writing any type of character. Seth sings a Muslim song of mourning that transcending language, was viscerally moving. A shout out to Andrew Boyce for scenic design, and to Polly Hubbard, dramaturg, a role that serves as eyes and ears so theater companies stay abreast of trending talent and scripts like this one.

Highly recommended, Bald Sisters runs through January 15, 2023 in Steppenwolf’s new 400-set in-the-round Ensemble Theater.

‘Too Hot to Handel’ captures all the majesty of Handel’s baroque music masterpiece, but adds soul, infusing it with the power of equally classic jazz, gospel and blues interpretations. This annual tradition - it ran December 3-4 this year - was launched in 1992, and was first performed at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre two decades ago, where it returns for two performances each year. It never fails to surprise and delight—so much so this reviewer has seen it six times.

By reinterpreting portions of the classic work with treatments that include varieties of jazz, along with gospel, backbeats, and scat, “Too Hot to Handel” amplifies and highlights Handel's 1741 score. Purists may be tempted to scoff at any meddling with the original, but there are actually many variations in the canon, such as tempo, instrumentation (modern and original instruments), etc.

It is no accident that numerous jazz masters from Keith Jarett to Herbie Hancock move with fluidity between jazz and baroque musical forms. “Too Hot to Handel” shows why. It allows both performers and the audience to respond emotionally to Handel’s inspirational original through the free forms of modern music, relinquishing the intensive restraint imposed by baroque.

Perhaps chief among the numerous powerful performances is that of Rodrick Dickson, an opera star of international renown. His clarion tenor all alone equals in force and magnitude the combined power of the chamber orchestra, jazz combo, and symphonic choirs against which he performs. Dickson’s delivery of “Comfort Ye,” “For He is Like a Refiners Fire” and other sections, carries everything Handel had to have intended for it, and then amps it up with the departures from the work.

Likewise opera soprano Alfreda Burke, whose role hews tighter to Handel’s score, carrying it with clarity and power against the driving backdrop of a swinging orchestra and chorus. An accomplished principal in major productions of Puccini, Poulenc, Beethoven and many others around the world, Burke’s voluptuous voice delights in “There Were Shepherds Abiding in the Field.”

Then there is Karen-Marie Richardson, mezzo-soprano, bringing unabashedly jazz delivery to “Oh Thou that Tellest Good Tidings to Zion” and other sections with a style that contrasts distinctly from Burke and Dickson, and yet is equally as affecting.

There is much more to say about “Too Hot to Handel,” most importantly the tour de force performance by Detroit pianist Alvin Waddles, who at one point must improvise through 18 bars; the sheet music is simply blank, and he runs with it. And each year it seems another star performance emerges, which without question was principal saxophonist Greg Ward, whose stand-up solos were emotionally intense reveries on whatever had preceded them.

Created in 1992 as a collaboration between conductor Marin Alsop with orchestrators and arrangers Bob Christianson and Gary Anderson, “Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah” had its Chicago premiere at the Auditorium Theatre in 2006. The production has returned every year since, formerly during the weekend before Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This year, Too Hot to Handel landed right in the middle of the traditional Messiah season in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Using the original musical material from Messiah, Alsop, Christianson, and Anderson reinvented the basic melodic and harmonic outlines of Handel’s original by using scat, backbeats, jazz and gospel vocals, and instrumental improvisation. If you missed it this year, mark your calendar for December 2023 when “Too Hot to Handel” returns to the Auditorium Theatre.

In the world before, when the availability of musical theater was just a given, just another one of life’s perks I took for granted, there was a show that hadn’t yet been available, at least not to me. I’d been perked up, waiting to see it since it became the next big thing in 2016 or 2017, waiting for the national tour to hit Chicago. Missing the brief 2019 stopover, I was all set for the 2020 production…

…now, here in 2022 or whenever it is, that production is finally here…

And yes, the current run of Dear Evan Hansen at the James M. Nederlander Theatre was worth the wait!

In the ensuing years, our whirlwind world’s made media and songs and moments come and go, and I’d totally forgotten about the show, about what I’d known about it before, about all the hype all those hype cycles ago. Which made me come into this production more in the dark than I think I ever have for a show. This was new, like if I’d walked into Broadway’s Music Box Theatre in 2016, before all the hype and the Tony awards and everything else, and I was just there to enjoy a really good musical. And this musical proved to be just that, thanks to a stellar cast and crew.

As the titular Evan, Anthony Norman transforms himself over the course of the show. At first, I wasn’t sure if his jitters were actual jitters or the character, even as he showed he could really sing. But Norman’s Evan really comes out of his shell, for better or for worse, as the story progresses. And what a voice—I’ve still got “For Forever” going through my head.

Because, despite the heavy subject material, and the light the show has shone on important issues, this show is less about its story than it is about the songs and the opportunities they give a cast of really skilled vocalists to sing them. And this cast sing the heck out of them.

The star of the show, for both me and my daughter, was Nikhil Saboo as Connor Murphy. Sullen and intimidating and scary in life, Saboo’s Connor as 21^st-century Jacob Marley is the exact opposite—providing a heavy show some of its lighter moments, especially when he leads Evan and a friend through the hilarious “Sincerely, Me.”

And Evan’s friends all get their moments, as well. Alaina Anderson’s Zoe Murphy transforms as the show goes on, much like Evan. And Pablo David Laucerica’s Jared and Micaela Lamas’ Alana bring both levity and humanity—both of them skilled character actors and both talented singers—as do John Hemphill and Lili Thomas as the Murphy parents.

But Coleen Sexton’s overworked and doing-her-best mother, Heidi Hansen, is perhaps the truest character, the heart of the play, looking in at others’ hurt while navigating her own, while navigating life. Maybe it’s me, as the dad there with his kid, but Sexton was the show’s heart and soul, and the show has a lot.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the show’s musicians, visible above and behind David Korins’ screentime set. Garret Healey leads the orchestra through all of these wonderful songs, including beautiful cello by Tahirah Whittington and great guitar work by Matt Brown and Eric Stockton.

When I wanted so badly to see Dear Evan Hansen all those years ago, I had no clue how long I’d wait to see it. But the waiting made seeing this current production, playing at the James M. Nederlander Theatre through December 31, all the sweeter.

Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme’s Christmas show truly rocks! And, lucky us, their show just made a quick stop in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre. There are dozens of holiday drag shows, but this one is Jinkx and DeLa! The above title quote (sung, appropriately enough, to the tune of “Grandma got Run Over by a Reindeer”) captures its spirit. 

Its substance (say wha?) is a time trip with Jinkx and DeLa, back to the 1960’s, reprising fave songs (and, naturally, fashions!) from each decade, searching for the thing that’s wrecking Christmas -- and, just incidentally, the whole fucking world. “We’ll know it when we see it,” DeLa assures Jinkx.

Co-written and created by Jinkx and Dela; BenDeLaCreme Presents does a lot of the rest. Video Production and Visuals come from Trojan Original, Luke Stemberger, Percolate Galactic, Lazy Susan, and Andrew Slade (I just wanted to get those names out there). Erik Andor/Andor Studio and Meredith Youngblood create the (adorable) puppets.

OK, so we go back in time, with appropriate music and fashion. I liked best the numbers that Jinkx and DeLa performed together, especially when they included Hunky the Elf (Gus Lanza). But I know a girl’s gotta get off those five-inch heels! 

The troupe (Chloe Albin, Mr. Babygirl, Elby Brosch, Shane Donahue, Jim Kent and Ruby Mimosa) are phenomenal. I really shouldn’t have been surprised at the pulchritude of their dance [I’ve been saving up that word for a time like this!] This is, after all, BenDeLaCreme Presents and Jinkx Monsoon!

Gotta shout out the costumes by The Lady Hyde, Mr. Gorgeous, Jamie Von Stratton, and Paris Original; also the lights, which were totally amazing. I reeeeelly loved the effect at the end when Jinkx and DeLa stood together and their red-and-green gowns formed a Christmas tree. It may have been a glitch when the tree / dresses lit up and part of Jinkx’ didn’t light: isn’t that what the tree always does when you first turn on the lights?!  Actually, it would’ve been fabulous if it ‘blew a fuse’ and plunged the Auditorium Theatre into blackness for just a second. Consider that, wouldja, Mike Fava?

But the very best part was the very end, when DeLa and Jinkx remind us that there is still a lot of shit out there, and LGBTQ people are not safe on American streets. The antidote is, of course, love. We need more love in the world.

Here’s hoping Jinkx and DeLa return next year for the holidays!

For more show information, click here.

MidsommerFlight is a not-for-profit theatre company committed to presenting Shakespeare’s plays to everyone in an IDEA manner: Inclusive, Diverse, Equitable, and Accessible; and to bringing the Shared Joy that results to underserved communities about Chicago.

MidsommerFlight has staged productions of ‘As You Like It’, ‘The Tempest’, ‘Macbeth’, ‘Hamlet’ and others, in various parks around the city. TWELFTH NIGHT has been its Holiday production since 2015 (skipping 2020) and is held in the lush Chicago Conservatory. Admission is pay-what-you-can (suggested donation $30).

Though TWELFTH NIGHT is MidsommerFlight’s perennial production, directors are rotated to offer a range of conceptual approaches to the comedy. This year’s Director, Bex Ehrmann (they/them) is queering up the Bard with a cast of diverse, trans and non-binary actors of various and sundry genders, races [albeit all human], and body types. Jack Morsovillo (he/him/his) is the Musical Director.  

The basic plot is (relatively, for Old Will) simple: twins Viola and Sebastian are separated when their ship is wrecked. Then as ever, it’s hard for women to find a good job, so Viola undergoes non-surgical gender reaffirmation, renames herself Cesario and is hired by bluff and blustering Orsino to woo the Lady Olivia on his behalf. Lady Olivia contrarily falls for Cesario, (who is Viola in disguise), who in turn pines for Orsino … Oy!  Hilarious antics unfold.

Every member of the MidsommerFlight troupe is a superb actor, dancer, and singer, and the cast of TWELFTH NIGHT is extensive. The cast is authentic and features an incredible amount of talent - Rusty Allen (he/him/his, Malvolio), Laurel S. Barrett (she/her/hers, Antonia), John Drea (he/him/his, Orsino), Becca Duff (she/her/hers, Fabian, U/S Feste), Courtney Feiler (she/her/hers, Valentine/Officer/Musician, U/S Olivia), Caleb Gibson (he/him/his, swing, u/s Orsino, Antonio, Sir Toby), Rae Hamilton-Vargo (they/them/theirs, Sebastian, u/s Malvolio), Reginald Hemphill (he/him/his, Sir Toby Belch), North Rory Homewood (he/him/his, Feste), Jessica Love (she/her/hers, Maria), Ebby Offord* (she/they, Olivia), Victoria Olivier (she/her/hers, swing, u/s Viola, u/s Sir Andrew, u/s Sea Captain/Priest/Musician, u/s Curio/Valentine/Officer/Musician), Travis Shanahan (he/him/his, Sir Andrew Aguecheek), Maddy Shilts (they/he, Viola/Cesario), Noelle Simpson (they/them/theirs, swing, u/s Sebastian, Curio, Valentine, Officer, Musician, u/s Sebastian), Natalie Welber (she/her/hers, Sea Captain/Priest/Musician, u/s Maria and Fabian).

The crew is just as superb. Text Captain Bobby Bowman (he/his) makes iambic pentameter accessible to ears still ringing from Janis, Jimi, and Mick, and further manages to enact the story despite ejaculations like “But soft!”  As ever with Shakespeare, the tasks of Fight and Intimacy Directors Thomas Russell (he/his), (Fight), and Charlie Baker (he/they), (Intimacy) tend to overlap.  

Cindy Moon (she/her) does a terrific job with costumes, and the music, composed by Elizabeth Rentfro and Alex Mauney, with additional composition by Music Director Jack Morsovillo along with Becca Duff, Courtney Feiler, North Rory Homewood, Victoria Olivier, McKell Rae, Noelle Simpson, and Natalie Welber is a delight – flutes and lutes and mandolins, oh my! Alyssa Mohn (she/her) (Scenic and Props), exploits the wondrous backdrop of the Chicago Conservatory.  

TWELFTH NIGHT is being performed Thursdays-Sundays through December 18th at the Lincoln Park Conservatory (2391 North Stockton Drive, Chicago).  For tickets, performance times and more show information click here. 

The month of December means one thing for ballet companies across the country: The Nutcracker. To audiences, this holiday classic brings the classic story of Clara and her Nutcracker Prince coming to life and journeying to the land of sweets. For young dancers, however, The Nutcracker is a culmination and celebration of a year of hard work; hours of work in the studio, rounds of auditions, and weeks of preparation, ending in a handful of performances amidst the glittering lights of the stage. For the Ruth Page Center for the Arts dancers, their company shined bright as they performed the holiday favorite on the NEIU stage, kicking off the holiday season with bright and burgeoning talent.

The Ruth Page Center for the Arts is a Chicago ballet company developing great artists and connects them with audiences and the community.  With a primary focus on dance as a necessary art form, its programming ensures that children and dance artists have a place to train, work and perform at the highest level of excellence. This year's performance of the Nutcracker was a full-length production choreographed by Ruth Page herself and featured the elite Ruth Page Civic Ballet Training Company along with international guest artists.

Growing up I spent most of December in the wings, watching our prima ballerinas dance The Arabian Coffee, The Mirliton, and The Waltz of the Flowers, but this December I sat next to an excited grandfather who whispered feverishly when his granddaughter took the stage as a young BonBon with Mother Ginger. His pride and excitement watching her dance was magical, and more wholesome and heartwarming than I’ve ever felt during a professional performance. The youngest dancers in the company performed as young soldiers battling with The Nutcracker against the Mouse King, while some of the elite and guest artists performed as the Sugar Plum Fairy, the thrilling Russian dance, and Spanish Hot Chocolate. The corp supported each number well with effortless performances throughout the two acts. Dancers of all ages, races, and sizes were represented in this production and audiences whooped, cheered, and applauded loudly and proudly for their stars.  I can only imagine what my own mother felt when she watched me perform when I was younger. 

Ballet is one of the hardest arts, not only for the dancer physically and mentally but also for family budgets and time commitments. The thousands of dollars a year for premier training are daunting and dancers now need to commit young to develop the requisite skills the art demands. It can be taxing on the dancer and the family for different reasons. But in the end, The Nutcracker is a challenging ballet to put on stage with planning often beginning mid-year and dancing roles auditioned in early fall. Foundational training continues with the addition of extra rehearsals to learn and understudy The Nutcracker roles. By the end of November, ballet members and staff are exhausted. But as the holiday season ushers in, and the final dress rehearsals wrap, the company takes to the stage and all the hard work, sacrifice, and dedication to this craft is brought center stage.

There are always options to see incredible companies such as The Joffrey perform this classic, but nothing brought about the holiday spirit more than the young artists of the Ruth Page Center for the Arts. Make it a part of your holiday tradition in the future to support this charming company. Now, more than ever, we owe it to our youth, to the arts, and to the ballet, to shine back the light they bring to us each holiday season. Here’s wishing The Ruth Page Center for the Arts, their dancers, and you and yours, a most magical holiday season.

For more information on the Ruth Page Center for The Arts and tickets to upcoming performances, including their Grayslake Dec 17th performance of The Nutcracker, visit http://www.ruthpage.org/.

Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley now playing at the Northlight Theatre in Skokie offers the third and final installment of Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon’s trilogy which follows some of the most cherished characters from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. 

For those who enjoy the Jane Austen themed material but have not seen the first two installments, have no fear, this play stands just fine on its own and is a lighthearted delight from beginning to end.

Janyce Caraballo takes on the role of Georgiana Darcy, the younger sister of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, who is a feminist musician before her time. Janyce Caraballo is a beautiful ingenue who plays the role with charm and grace. Kitty Bennet (played by Samantha Newcomb), the younger sister of Mr. Darcy’s wife Elizabeth, is her best friend and supporter. Mr. Henry Gray, played by Erik Hellman, makes a nervous but inwardly passionate admirer - and the chemistry between Caraballo and Hellman is the romantic cement that holds the whole show together as the audience is really rooting for them to succeed as a couple. 

Gray has met Darcy at one of her concerts and the two flirt with each other using the language of love in obscure musical terms that only they both fully appreciate which is a delight and shows how much he loves her despite the times being unwelcoming to female musicians and songwriters of any kind. 

The entire cast, that also includes Yousof Sultani, Amanda Drinkall, Emma Jo Boyden, Andrea San Miguel, Preeti Thaker and Nate Santana, is full of both newcomers to the Northlight stage and mature actors who do a great job in all the supporting roles keeping the pace and humor of the piece moving along nicely. 

There is a wonderful message about women, music as a career and freedom of human rights for women to publish music when the two friends create a society to help budding female musicians that gives the entire play a decidedly feminist bend while not detracting at all from the love story unfolding. 

The costumes designed by Raquel Adorno are very colorful and lush and give each scene a lovely period feel. Richard and Jacqueline Penrod designed the set, which is simple but effective, although I would have liked to see some movement in the set, and some change between the first and second act which occurs on Christmas day in their home that celebrates the lights and colors of the holiday. The only set decoration that indicates this wealthy home has been decorated for the Christmas day concert event are three little poinsettia plants set gingerly on the edge of the stage. A fully pre-lit Christmas tree or even a projection of Christmas lights and colors would have given the second act the Christmas joy that the title implies will be included. 

Marti Lyons directs this very talented cast well and moves the large cast aptly around the beautiful, if static, set design in a way that shows off the best lines of each character. The intimate theater setting at Northlight is a three-sided thrust stage, wherein every seat is a great seat is perfect for this romantic and cheerful holiday offering. 

I highly recommend this cheerful, funny, romantic show for audiences of all ages who would like to enjoy a pleasant evening revisiting some of the most beloved Jane Austen characters in a classic yet freshly presented production set in turn of the century London. 

Wonderfully directed by Marti Lyons, Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley is being performed at Northlight Theatre through December 24^th. For tickets and/or more show information, visit northlight.org.

The Joffrey is always amazing so I was happy to be assigned this show to review, but I have to admit I wasn’t totally thrilled – I’ve seen Nutcracker several times and I’m just a little bit over it.

Imagine, then, my delight as the curtain opens, not in the familiar opulent parlor; rather, we see ragged children grouped excitedly before posters of the 1893 Columbian World Exposition – a new background story! The Joffrey premiered Christopher Wheeldon’s(he,him)  new choreography six years ago; my companion had seen the new show but they’re a good friend and didn’t spoil it by telling me. I’m not going to be so considerate of you. Spoilers to Come!

It's Christmas Eve 1892, and families of the immigrant construction workers for the World’s Fair meet for revelry in one of their hovels. There they receive a surprise visit from The Great Impresario (Dylan Gutierrez(he,him)), magical designer of the Fair, with his lovable assistant Peter (Hyuma Kiyosawa(he,him)). Gifts are delivered to the children but Marie’s is missing! With a swirl of his red silk cloak, The Great Impresario produces her gift: a beautiful nutcracker.

The party winds down, but Marie (Yumi Kawasawa(she/her)) wakes at midnight to see her little brother Franz (Elliot King(he,him)) being kidnapped by Rodents of Unusual Size! The Nutcracker, now alive and lifesize, battles and defeats the Rat King.  This victory transforms him into the dashing Prince Peter. 

The Great Impresario sails up in a gondola, and the Queen of the Dream Fair (Jeraldin Mendoza(she,her)), resplendent in a gown of gold, grants Marie and the Prince permission to enter the Dream Fair. There, at the various pavilions, we see the familiar dances from countries around the world. 

This recreation changes the entire story of the Nutcracker in several important ways. One detail that’s always bothered me is ‘why is this rich little girl so excited about a nutcracker, of all things?  Surely she’s also received dolls, ice skates; a dozen other gifts’. But here, the Nutcracker is her only Christmas gift, and it comes from none other than The Great Impresario himself, and nowMarie’s excitement makes far more sense, yes? 

But the most important change is that THE NUTCRACKER is now a Chicago story! this version of NUTCRACKER won’t play in New York or Memphis or San Francisco; this is our very own NUTCRACKER, from our very own Joffrey Ballet Dance Company. How fabulous is that?! Thank you for this gift of a NUTCRACKER, choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and Assistant Jacqueline Barrett(she,her).

Jeraldine Mendoza and Dylan Gutierrez in Joffrey Ballet's 'The Nutctracker' at Lyric Opera House

There are a score of others to thank for this extravaganza, beginning, of course, with the company. NUTCRACKER is a great production for showcasing Joffrey’s many superb dancers. Victoria Jainani(she,her) once again performs the Arabian Dancer in her characteristic sinuous mode, partnered this year by Edson  Barbosa(he,him). And the final pas de deux with The Great Impresario and the Golden Queen is stunning on many levels; not the least of which is that Gutierrez, after two hours constantly onstage, still manages to make Mendoza float effortlessly.

I already spoke of choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, who was assisted by Story Adaptation Director Brian Selznick(he,him). Thanks, of course, to composer Piotr Ilyich Tchiakovsky and to the Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Music Director Scott Speck, with Asst director Michael Moricz. Artistic Director Ajhley Wheater MBE(he,him)  orchestrated the talented production crew, including Staging by Nicholas Blanc(he,him), Adam Blyde(he,him) , and Suzanne Lopez(she,her), and Lighting Designer Natasha Katz(she,her). Katz et al created the staging in 2016 when this Chicago version opened at the Auditorium Theatre. Decisions had to be made about ‘downsizing’ the staging to accommodate the smaller stage at the Civic Opera House (a brilliant venue, by the way). I am charmed that Lighting Recreator Chris Maravich(he,him), with Projection Designer 59 Productions simply projected the “too large” lighting design onto the smaller stage, creating imagery above and to either side of the stage. It felt to me as if we were enclosed – embraced, even – by the entire production. This cozy and inclusive quality suits the new story perfectly. Assistants were Asst Scenic Design by Frank McCullough, Asst Lighting Design by Jon Goldman; and I have to give a shout-out here to 

Basil Twist designed the Puppetry and it can’t be easy for Tandem Otter Productions  to construct  a Nutcracker head that will withstand multiple tours in l’aire and cabriole! The children’s cast requires several directors (talk about herding cats!): Suzanne Lopez, Adam Blyde, Michael Smith, and Caitlin Meighan.

To fully credit THE NUTCRACKER I have to include the audience: scores of little girls – infant balletomanes – in their best Christmas dresses, seeing live ballet for the very first time. What could be more festive?

My heartfelt thanks to all for this enchanting spectacle, a splendid introduction to the 2022 Holiday Season.

Goodman Theatre pulled up the curtain on the 45^th opening night of their legendary adaptation of ‘A Christmas Carol’. Undoubtedly there are likely thousands of productions of ‘A Christmas Carol’ opening all over the country this week, but Goodman’s holiday tradition feels like a homecoming for the Chicago stage community. It’s become a rite of passage for Chicago actors to grace the Albert stage, and that helps keep this show fresh for audiences year after year.

Veteran Scrooge Larry Yando is reliably visited by three spirits and learns the error of his ways, but if that’s all there was to it, there’s no way the entire run of this show would continue to sell out each year. Goodman artistic staff includes new additions to the script, staging and costumes. You’ll never see the same production twice.

Goodman could easily phone it in for this yearly cash-grab, but they don’t rest on their laurels. ‘A Christmas Carol’ is treated with as much enthusiasm as the hottest new play from Broadway. The artistic team maintains a sense of discovery, asking audiences to see this familiar story from new perspectives. For the true meaning of ‘A Christmas Carol’ to be derived, audiences need to be able to identify with Victorian England. That can be hard to do in an era of smart phones and Tik Tok.

The spirits are recast every season and with the new casting comes a new aesthetic. The Ghost of Christmas Present is a fun and festive role for any actor, but Bethany Thomas is a wonderful addition to this year’s cast. When you’ve got a voice like Thomas’ in your company, it’s best to put it to use. More music has been added to this year’s script to showcase her talents. Additionally, a quartet of musicians has also been added this year, providing an extra layer of charm.

With the retirement of longtime Goodman artistic director Robert Falls, Chicago heavy-hitter Jessica Thebus directs this year’s ‘A Christmas Carol’. She does a great job honoring the beloved production but brings in some modern flare of her own. This production seems to lean into the spooky. Afterall, this is a Christmas ghost story.

Goodman cultivates a sense of inclusivity that stretches beyond their standard seasons. In creating programming for students and young theatre makers, Goodman has become a pillar of the Chicago arts community. Nowhere is this more exemplified than their ‘A Christmas Carol’.

From a risky investment in the late 1970s, to the holiday institution we see this year, ‘A Christmas Carol’ at Goodman has become part of Chicago’s Christmas landscape. Next to Christkindlemarket in Daley Plaza, it’s hard to find a more quintessential Chicago tradition. Through December 31 at Goodman Theatre. 170 N Dearborn St. www.goodmantheatre.org