Items filtered by date: November 2007

“A man came by chance, saw it, and destroyed it” repeats Chekhov in his psychological melodrama “The Seagull”. Such a simple phrase says so much about the ways humans can treat one another. Steppenwolf Theatre revives the classic play under the title “Seagull” in a new adaptation by company member Yasen Peyankov who also serves as the director. Steppenwolf invites audiences to their new impressive theater space for its inaugural production. The cast primarily features ensemble members in what feels like a celebration of Steppenwolf’s rich legacy.

“Seagull” is a great introduction to the impressive new building on Steppenwolf’s campus as well as a great introduction to Anton Chekhov. Yasen Peyankov worked on this script for many years, occasionally working with Russian language experts from Northwestern University to maintain Chekhov’s original intent. Audiences will be struck by how fresh this script sounds. Plays of this era can be a bit of a slog for the uninitiated, but this version has a stronger sense of immediacy to the lines. Peyankov focuses his script on the dark humor that often gets diluted out in tedious repetition and lengthy scene-work. The main points are easier to grasp here and overall serves the tragic ending more because the characters feel more relatable.

Peyankov’s script is peppered with a reality TV flare. Nobody perhaps better inhabits that flavor than Lusia Strus as Irina Arkadina. Her character is a fading stage actress who’s summering at a country house with her new beau and her adult son. Her adult son Konstantin (Namir Smallwood) is also struggling writer and loathes his mother’s successful writer boyfriend Trigorin (Joey Slotnik). He’s in love with Nina (Caroline Neff) but she much favors fame than love. Konstantin cannot return the love of the caretaker’s gothic daughter Masha (Karen Rodriguez) though she’s the only one who believes in his talent as a writer. Emotions run high and reactions run big, just like an episode of “Real Housewives.” Lusia is a bold, sexy and smokey voiced Irina, often walking away with most of the laughs in the play.

“Seagull” seems more focused on the female ensemble and that’s just fine because this is a stellar cast of actresses. Masha is arguably one of the best roles an actress can ask for. Karen Rodriguez doesn’t get bogged down in the angst of the role, but rather uses physicality to enhance the comic absurdity of Masha’s moroseness. Masha’s mother Paulina is played by Sandra Marquez who also does a great job of pulling out the humor of an otherwise pathetic character. This script brings the young starstruck Nina character to life more than previous versions. The play gets its name from her character afterall. Caroline Neff delivers a notably emotional performance. The beauty of the new in-the-round space is that in the final moments of the play audiences are able to see and experience the facial expressions of the actors in a way not possible in their existing spaces. Neff is devastating as she manically circles the performance space vacillating between clarity and delusion. Throughout the play Neff speaks the dialogue so naturally that it almost doesn’t feel like scripted words at all.

Purists will have their qualms with this new adaptation but there are only so many ways to use the same dusty old scripts. Yasen Peyankov’s script is definitely cheeky, but there’s real depth in his version. By cleaning up the clutter of words in traditional translations he makes room for the character ambitions to be clearer. When they don’t get what they want, it makes it all the more tragic. If you’re looking for a lighter dance through Chekhov, this is the version to see.

Through June 12 at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. 1650 N Halsted. www.steppenwolf.org/seagull

Hopes and reality rarely align. Fairytale marriages only exist in fairy tales, and parenting is not nearly as easy as television shows that wrap up family crises in a half hour including commercials would indicate. Yet people keep getting married and having children, and discovering that, while spouses and children are far more complicated and not nearly as perfect as the fantasies promise, they’re worth the investment. In Kristine Thatcher’s play, Emma’s Child, Rogers Park couple Henry and Jean Farrell have figured out how to make their marriage work despite the other’s flaws and have spent a decade and a half trying to bring a child into their lives, finally turning to adoption. The process exposes unexpected differences in expectations and when they finally meet the child they had intended to adopt, their marriage is threatened by their different approaches to confronting a reality that neither they nor the birth mother, Emma, anticipated. Thatcher’s play, under the direction of Terry McCabe, who also directed its 1996 premiere, explores what it means to be a parent, and the challenges that arise when the reality of parenthood strays beyond the bounds of any expectations. Raising a child with a profound disability is an overwhelming prospect and in Emma’s Child the difficulties are compounded by the question of motherhood—who is responsible for the care of an infant who is not the child that anyone was prepared to welcome into the world?

Thatcher’s play, which takes place in 1990-1991, jumps quickly between locations and timelines, which sometimes leads to powerful juxtapositions, but other times serves little purpose and minimizes the dramatic tension as the end of scenes is already revealed in previous scenes set in the future. However, in general, the narrative is easy to follow and the Thatcher wisely avoids offering easy answers to questions that have none. The characters are all portrayed sympathetically, even as they sometimes try the patience of those around them and the audience. Director Terry McCabe keeps the action moving between locations including the neo-natal intensive care unit at Christ Hospital, the Farrell’s Rogers Park apartment, various offices and a wooded area in Michigan. Samantha Gribben’s unfussy set is dominated by an incubator which always keeps the theme of the play visually present; one cannot overlook the baby in the room. Lighting and sound designer Benjamin Dionysus helps fill in the minimal settings, and props designer Jeff Brain keeps the action grounded in the reality of each space. Costume designer Louise “Scout” Gregory uses layers and accessories to support shifts in time, while giving each character a look that suits their personality, from the slightly tweedy Henry, to Jean’s harried polish, her friend Franny’s looser flair, to various versions of scrubs and suits.

The large cast all give nuanced, grounded performances under McCabe’s direction, recognizing the truth portrayed in Thatcher’s play that no one really has the time or resources to care for Robin, the child at the center of the adoption. Kat Evans anchors the show as a tightly wound Jean, who is forced to confront the limits of her ability to parent a child with special needs. In early scenes, she comes across as someone who needs to maintain control to not fall apart. As she becomes more invested in Robin’s well-being, Evans’s performance shows Jean’s evolution into a powerful advocate and pragmatic parent, while constantly being confronted by the knowledge that the child is not hers, biologically or legally. As her husband Henry, James Sparling goes from charming to slightly prickly as he faces the fact that, not only does he not have the same capacity to deal with Robin’s disability, but he is losing his connection with his Jean as she insists on caring for the child. Sparling remains sympathetic even as his character insists that Robin should be left to institutional care. As Franny, Jean’s friend who steps in to lend support when Henry is struggling to do so, Rebecca Sparks captures both the affection of a long-time friend and the aloofness that is possible for an outside observer. Fran’s marriage is unsatisfying, and she is having an affair, while also playing intermediary between Jean and Henry, and trying to support Jean, who, in turn ends up trying to support her friend’s mid-life affair despite her misgivings about it. Sparks effectively balances caring and flightiness in a character that takes on too many roles. A standout in the supporting cast is Lee Wichman as Laurence, the NICU nurse charged with Robin’s care. Wichman injects much-needed humor into the intense care that Robin requires. Laurence understands more than anyone the needs of the infant and rallies his caretakers with a respectful disregard for protocol. He also initiates Jean into the care routine but recognizes her limitations more than she does. Wichman’s gentle, sardonic performance perfectly aligns with his role. As Mary Jo, Laurence’s heir-apparent, Maria Zoia brings a deadpan toughness to her role, using humor, enthusiasm and studied cluelessness to give Robin access to what he needs. marssie Mencotti brings down-to-earth warmth to both her roles, as the adoption agency representative who recognizes the limitations of prospective parents, but also the value of her work, and as the doctor who wants the best for the infant Robin, while being constrained by bureaucracy and caseload. Andrea Conway-Diaz toes the bottom line as hospital administrator Vivian Radmacher, rarely allowing her compassion to creep into decisions that she knows all too well could affect the future of the hospital. As Sam Stornant, Jamie Black brings aggrieved stoicism, tempered by late-emerging self-awareness to his role as Franny’s abandoned husband (though who abandoned whom is a point of controversy); his conversations with Sparling’s Henry allow both the characters and the audience another perspective on the questions of marriage and parenthood that the play explores. As two birth mothers, Katie MacLauchlan and MiKayla Boyd make the most of roles that seem deliberately pushed to the edges of the drama. MacLauchlan as Emma is practical and direct, revealing both her concern for the infant that she gave up and her relief at not having to add this responsibility to an already complicated web of caretaking. As the young Michelle, Boyd balances her understanding of the enormity of giving birth with her knowledge that she is not ready for the child she is carrying.

Thatcher’s play unsparingly examines both the familial and societal toll of caring for children, wanted or not, who require more care than most people can give, while also introducing the audience to the difficulties of placing children whose birth parents want to provide good homes but cannot do so. Thatcher avoids judgment, though the audience may not, recognizing that people have expectations and even prejudices that color their decisions (as evidenced in the pre-adoption interviews and Emma’s casual assessment of Laurence). There are a few subplots in Thatcher’s play that may occupy a bit too much time and distract from the central theme of parenting, especially the examination of the Stornants’ marriage as juxtaposed with the Farrells’ marriage, but McCabe’s straightforward direction, and the clear-eyed performances by the ensemble provide plenty of material for discussions of what responsibility parents, we as a society, and the medical community have to provide care for the most vulnerable among us. While not a cheerful play, Emma’s Child offers compassion and hope along with the hard questions it raises, and City Lit’s new production powerfully portrays the challenges and joys of parenthood.

Emma’s Child runs through May 29, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 3:00pm, with Monday performances on May 16 and 23 at 7:30pm. Tickets are $34, seniors $29, students and military $12. Performances take place at City Lit Theater, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., inside Edgewater Presbyterian Church. Tickets and information are available at www.citylit.org and by phone at 773-293-3682.

Fifteen years ago, boy band flavored ‘Spring Awakening’ took Broadway by storm. Promises of on-stage teen sex had lines wrapped around the block. Broadway blockbusters can be hard to predict, but typically breakout hits are shows that transcend the boundaries of traditional musical theatre. With a pop rock soundtrack by Duncan Sheik and sultry staging, ‘Spring Awakening’ connected to a broader audience.

Porchlight Music Theatre concludes their season with ‘Spring Awakening’ directed and choreographed by Brenda Didier. ‘Spring Awakening’ has become one of the most produced shows in the US, but Porchlight’s production feels like a discovery. While the staging and costumes are faithful to the original production, this version is full of bright young energy.

‘Spring Awakening’ is based on the 1891 German play by Frank Wedekind. The play shocked audiences and was quickly banned. The musical written by Steven Sater is a conceptual reinterpretation that combines modern elements of rock music with the classic story of sexual realization in repressive times.

The main story follows school children, Wendla (Maya Lou Hlava), Melchoir (Jack Decesare) and Moritz (Quinn Kelch). Each are naturally preoccupied with sex as they go through puberty. They implore their teachers and parents to be honest with them about sex, but the adults are uncomfortable speaking frankly about sex. Romance blooms between Melchoir and Wendla but Moritz struggles with his mixed-up feelings about sexuality. Through kicky ensemble-driven songs, many other angsty ideas are unpacked including themes of abuse and homosexuality.

‘Spring Awakening’ is an ensemble musical. With music direction by Justin Akira Kono, the music is the focal point. Hair-raising harmonies paired with inventive choreography make even the most unpleasant lyrical content as digestible as candy. The live band on stage gives this show a gritty rock sound that makes it impossible not to nod along.

There are many dark topics covered in this rock musical, but the staging and ensemble work make this show a lot of fun. Lighting design by Patrick Chan and scenic design by Christopher Rhoton lend themselves to the disco-ish vibe of the music. Chic costumes by Bill Morey help make this production sleek and stylish.

This is a strong cast. Though most of the characters aren’t fully developed on the page, company members make their characters distinct. Perhaps the most vivid performance comes from Tiffany T. Taylor as Ilse. Her voice rises to the top of the stirring finale, ‘The Song of Purple Summer’.

Not every popular musical ages well. ‘Spring Awakening’ can be one of those shows that when done badly is hard to sit through. Conversely when it’s done well, as is the case with Porchlight’s production, it’s not hard to see why this show swept the Tonys. Those who are returning to ‘Spring Awakening’ will be just as titillated by the staging. What shines through this production is the genuine sense of not only pathos, but enthusiasm from this talented young cast. Very little feels trite or cliché in this exciting new production.

Through June 2 at Porchlight Music Theatre at Ruth Page Center for the Arts. 1016 N Dearborn St. www.porchlightmusictheatre.org

Grab a glass of wine with me and journey with me to Paris, France 1904. We stumble in as guests to a local artist haunt in the Montmartre District and remain on the exterior of the room. It's a cozy, intimate, and simple bar, with witty, smart, and regular patrons who are tres amusant. We do not know what the evening will bring, but we’re welcomed by the barkeep and entranced by the colorful characters that enter the bar. This is The Lapin Agile.

The Lapin Agile is a comedy play written by the incomparable Steve Martin. The comedy imagines a meeting between a 23-year-old Pablo Picasso and a 25-year-old Albert Einstein at a real life artists’ hangout in Paris at the dawn of the 20th century. It’s 1904 and the two geniuses are about to complete their most significant accomplishments; Einstein’s theory of relativity and Picasso’s painting “The Young Ladies of Avignon.” They have a lengthy debate about the value of genius and talent which is often interrupted by colorful patrons of the bar.

While such a meeting between the two artists never took place, the play brings the imaginary encounter to life, giving it plausibility. Einstein, played by Mark Yacullo and Picasso, played by Travis Ascion, embodied the intelligent and charming men, exchanging witty remarks about the others’ occupation and trade. With smart jokes, witty comebacks, and hilarious moments, the play delves into meaningful conversations where two seemingly opposite geniuses in their own rights find commonality in the power of their imaginations and how their pens allow them to transcend modernity.

The Lapin Agile is a real bar in the heart of Paris. Located in the Montmartre arts district, this bar was famous as a local artist's haunt drawing in many famous names in art, music, literature, and more. The Citadel Theater brought the charming 20th century haunt from Paris to its modest stage, nestled in the charming town of Lake Forest just North of Chicago. The ensemble cast provided the perfect enchanting bartenders, servers, and patrons, much like one would encounter in a real Paris artist’s bar. The play was surprisingly and consistently funny, lose focus for a moment and you might miss a subtle joke about Euclidean geometry or a playful jest about the French. The ensemble cast skillfully breaks the 4th wall, never stepping out of character or the Paris district they were playing in, in fact you were tempted to ask the barkeep for a drink to share with the cast.

At its heart, The Lapin Agile imagines the possibility of sitting in a quiet bar at the turn of a century and allows you to imagine what could be. What could be beautiful, revolutionary, colorful, loud, and what could break through the realm of possibility, even transcending time and space. It’s a beautiful play, performed by a talented cast, in a surprisingly charming theater.  

The Lapin Agile is playing at the Citadel Theater, located at 300 S Waukegan Road, Lake Forest, IL through May 22, 2022. Santé!

Lifeline Theatre has remounted 'Middle Passage' for its return to live production. It is every bit as good, even better, than the run cut short by the pandemic in March 2020.

But this time around I was better able to appreciate the artfulness of the script. Adapted by Ilesa Duncan (who co-directs with David Barr II) from a best-selling National Book Award winning novel by scholar Dr. Charles Johnson. Middle Passage the book is a fictional first-person narrative set in 1830 by a 20-year-old freed slave, Rutherford Calhoun (Ajax Dontavius), who makes his way from Southern Illinois to New Orleans to sow his wild oats.

It is an exciting show: absolutely entertaining, well-produced, extremely well-acted. It would have been a crying shame if audiences didn't get another chance to see the inventive staging, a realistic ship's deck crammed into Lifeline's compact quarters at 6912 N. Glenwood in Chicago. It runs through June 5 so don't miss it.

Entertaining as it is, 'Middle Passage' also recounts the enslavement and transport of Africa’s Almuseri people, their inhumane treatment by a cruel ship’s captain, and plans by the captain to sell their most sacred possession, a statue of a living god kept stowed with the slaves below. How do these opposites co-exist in one play? Sadly, just as they do in daily life. 

Ajax Dontavius as Rutherford Calhoun carries the weight of the show, onstage nearly every minute, and he acquits hiimself exceptionally well as the wandering young man. Like a 19th century literary character (think Thackeray’s Barry Lyndon), we live his experiences through Calhoun's first-person point of view. As the good and bad pass before his eyes during his adventures, he makes frequent asides to speak directly to the audience—really very Shakespearean, with some of these in metered rhyme. As in life the lighthearted moments and the tragic co-exist, and at first, Calhoun drifts through them all, witnessing but unaffected.

Calhoun is on the make in New Orleans, and without means – courting young ladies, but also running up debts. This comes to the notice of Papa Zeringue (Lynsey Falls is excellent), a Creole mob boss holding 50,000 francs in Calhoun’s promissory notes. Papa Zeringue tells Calhoun he must pay, or he will be thrown into the deeps of the Mississippi. 

Thankfully for Calhoun, he has won the heart of the chaste school marm, Isadora (Shelby Lynn Bias is superb in the role), a very refined young Black schoolteacher from Boston, whose family has been free four generations. Isadora has some savings, and unbeknownst to Calhoun, negotiates to pay his debts to Papa Zeringue, on the condition Calhoun is forced to marry her.

Calhoun is not interested in marriage, and so escapes by stowing aboard the ship Republic. Discovered days after it puts out to sea, he joins the crew, but soon learns the Republic is an illegal slaver, on its way to Africa to pick up human cargo. With that, the story opens to an exciting seafaring tale with all the trappings—storms, cannon fire, mutiny, betrayals, culminating in a shipwreck following a slave rebellion. Here, as my companion noted the blocking is remarkable, the tiny stage presenting a ship tossed on the sea, conveyed by the carefully orchestrated movements of the crew and cargo tossed to and fro. 

Calhoun is there for selfish reasons - “Of all the things that drive men to sea, the most common disaster, I've come to learn, is women” – as one character puts it. As an “everyman” character, we watch Calhoun try to avoid dirtying his hands in a mutiny, and later negotiating with the slaves who seize the ship. But Calhoun changes through his experience, befriending the slaves and shifting from aloof observer to their advocate. convincing the slaves to spare the helmsman who alone can guide them back to their homeland. Calhoun develops his moral compass through the trials, and as my companion suggests, is like the hero in the tale of Gilgamesh, back where he started as the boat finally returns to port in New Orleans, but a changed man, and a beautiful resolution of the series of plot points follows.

In addition to Baily and Dontavius, the cast is uniformly good - really good - and most play multiple ensemble roles, as well as their principle character: Hunter Bryant (Calhoun’s brother Jackson), also, notably plays the role of a young slave learning English who bonds with Calhoun. All the players are good: Patrick Blashill (Captain Falcon) and Christopher Vizurraga (Peter Cringle); Benjamin Jenkins (Santos), Monty Kane (Jackson/Ngonyama), Robert Koon (Josiah Squibb), MarieAnge Louis-Jean (Baleka), Kellen Robinson (Tom), and Gerrit Wilford (McGaffin).

The production team are also stars, kudos to Alan Donahue (Scenic and Properties Designer), Elise Kauzlaric (Dialect Coach), Maren Robinson (Dramaturg); Amelia Ablan (Production Manager), Noah Abrams (Master Electrician), Kyle Bajor (Co-Lighting Designer),, Barry Bennett (Sound Designer), Connor Blackwood (Assoc. Sound Designer), Alex Gendal (Projections Designer), Galen Hughes (Asst. Stage Manager), Harrison Ornelas (Technical Director), Nicole Clark Springer (Choreographer/Movement Designer), Mattie Switzer (Stage Manager), Scott Tobin (Co-Lighting Designer), Shawn Wallace (Composer/Music Director), and Anna Wooden (Costume Designer).

Alan Donohue's gives us a lovingly crafted sailing vessel with multiple decks, stowage, working winch, mast and beam – all integrated to the projection design and sound design makes us feel for all the world we are at sea, particularly during storms and battles. 

The play originated at Pegasus Players in 2016 as 'Rutherford’s Travels.' But this version seems very strongly rooted in African storytelling culture, which taps a type of magical realism, to my mind (like Colson Whitehead’s Underground Railroad). Its title is far more resonant today: Middle Passage also refers to the slave shipping route that represents the crucible of emotional and spiritual transformation of human beings from free, cultured Africans to impoverished American slaves.

Highly recommended, see 'Middle Passage' at www.lifelinetheatre.com.

As a reviewer I've attended many productions of Rock of Ages and Paramount Theatre’s current production with its talented cast, wide-ranging set and rockin’ hair band rates right up there with some of the best I've seen.

For me, it was especially exciting to return to the gorgeous and comfortable Paramount Theatre after the long pandemic-based hiatus. And just like with most productions at this classic theatre, I was not disappointed.

Rock of Ages, also made into a movie starring Tom Cruise, Russell Brand and Alec Baldwin (to name a few) is a tongue-in-cheek love story about two Hollywood hopefuls, Drew (Kieran McCabe) and Sherrie (Taylor DiTola), one a rock singer and one an actress, who hope to make it to the big time in the 1980's. Multiple story lines also surround its main love story as The Bourbon, a long-time staple in the rock scene, is in danger of being shut down to make way for a modern chain store. The Bourbon is a gritty rock club (and really looks the part) that is run by Dennis (Karl Hamilton) the stereotypical club owner who only lives to rock another day, along with his animated sidekick Lonnie (Shea Coffman), who also narrates the story – and is hilarious doing so. The blend of humor and music is weaved together flawlessly. 80’s rock hits are showcased throughout by the show’s talented cast takes us from one scene to the other. From Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take it” to Nightranger’s “Sister Christian” to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” to Warrant’s “Heaven” the timeless classics seem endless. Each number is uniquely arranged and tremendously choreographed on the show’s super colorful and brightly lit set.

Taylor Ditola as Sherrie has a great voice and displays a fine sense of humor in her role and Kieran McaCabe, as the lead rock singer Drew, really stands out with his remarkable vocal range and delightful stage presence. Both really look the part and have a nice chemistry together. Though excellent performances in this production were many, I’d like to specifically point out the absolutely outstanding dancing of Christopher John Kelly, who is also the understudy for Franz. I simply could not take my eyes off his amazing dancing whether he was soloing or in the ensemble.  

The entire cast does a great job and occasionally a character bursts out with a voice that startles with its power and intensity as Melody Betts, for one, succeeds to do as Justice/ Mother.

Even if you've seen Rock of Ages before you will absolutely be blown away by the huge amount of ability and energy in every member of this seasoned cast and the spectacular presentation created by director/co-choreographer, Amber Mak, co-choreographer, Annie Jo Fischer and the entire production team. In the opening night performance, the audience was filled with people of all ages, and many hard-core fans of the show gleefully held up the flameless lighters and sang along with their favorite hits, screaming with laughter, as this is first and foremost a musical comedy. 

I highly recommend this production to everyone who has been eagerly waiting to return to seeing live theater as this tragic pandemic wore on. Rock of Ages at Paramount Theatre has all the raucous humor, big stage numbers, eye catching costumes and joyous energy that only live theater done right can provide. This Jeff Recommended production runs through May 29^th. For tickets and/or more information visit https://paramountaurora.com/events/rock-of-ages/.

On a final note, as one who appreciates having dinner before a show, I was very thankful to be invited to discover the offerings at Stolp Island Social Kitchen and Steakhouse. The experience was as impressive as it was convenient and cozy thanks to its tasty seasonal cuisine, super friendly service, and proximity to the theater - right next door to the Paramount. It was such a pleasure to be able to park once, and then enjoy a perfectly timed and delicious pre-show dinner in this lively atmosphere with lots of comfortable booth seating. Just like the Poison song says, “It don’t get better than this.” 

“Intimate Apparel” by Lynn Nottage is a story about 35-year-old Esther, a skilled seamstress in New York City. The year is 1905. She lives in a boarding house owned by Ms. Dickerson, a widow. This boarding house houses other women who are passing thru on their way to marriage. Esther has been living in the boarding house the longest with no proposal of marriage coming her way. She makes beautiful corsets and other intimate apparel for two of her clients, Mayme, a well-paid prostitute, who dreams of becoming a concert pianist and Mrs. Van Buren, an uptown married women in a childless, loveless marriage. There is a mutual attraction between herself and fabric merchant, Mr. Marks, an orthodox Jewish immigrant. They understand this relationship can never be more than what it is. Esther also has dreams. She has been saving her money over the years in hopes of owning her own beauty salon. She also dreams of being married and is afraid that she is getting too old. Her pastor’s nephew, while working on the Panama Canal, give her name and address to fellow co-worker, George Armstrong from Barbados. After an epistolary relationship, where Esther, not being able to read or write was helped by the other ladies, George proposes to Esther in one of the letters and she accepts. What a beautiful story if it ended there.

“Intimate Apparel” is one of my favorite plays. It reminds me of my family who immigrated from the Caribbean to New York City in the 50’s.

I am first generation to be born in America. My maternal Grandmother is from Barbados, my aunt was a seamstress in the garment district. Looking at faded pictures in a photo album I imagined how these people, my people, lived. I was hoping they lived in vivid color. The entire production of “Intimate Apparel” at Northlight Theatre was bathed in muted, faded, pastel tones. The set looked like the inside of a pale pink/baby blue corset. There is a full-sized bed in the middle of the stage with a sewing machine in front of it. This is Esther’s room. Left of the bed is a pink vanity set, signifying Mrs. Van Buren’s room. On the right of the bed, there is a pink upright piano, this Mayme’s room. Lights denote where the action was takes place. Nothing suggest New York City, 1905. It was a beautiful set, but this could have been Los Angeles, 1950. In addition Esther carries a leather handbag in her travels. Leather handbags real or fake didn’t come into vogue until the 1930’s. In 1905 Esther would carry a cloth bag possibly made by her. A small thing but it kept popping up.

There was nothing muted about the acting in this production. Mildred Langford is unforgettably poignant as the sorrowful, painfully shy Esther. In Langford’s eyes we see the strength and vulnerability, dignity and hurt, joy and pain of Esther. We suffer and rejoice with her, she becomes ours.

We want to protect her. Yao Dogbe has the best Caribbean accent I have heard on stage. He excels at portraying George Armstrong as a rough around the edges but good-hearted laborer and then revealing Armstrong’s more complex nature in Act 2. We want to feel for George’s plight, but our loyalties lay with Esther. Dogbe must be careful not to telegraph his intentions in Act 1 as I think he may have done at press opening. George is delivering his lines from a non-descript place behind scrim. Again, A design issue in my opinion. We, the audience, need to see George Armstrong’s face. We need to see his eyes. We need to believe and like George. The way it is presently staged, we, as audience members, are as much in the dark about George as Esther. Rebecca Spence does an excellent job portraying Mrs. Van Buren as a spoiled rotten, sex starved woman of privilege.  The beautiful Rashada Dawan as Mayme gives clear voice into the insecurities of her profession and a different point of view about marriage. The chemistry between Sean Fortunato’s Mr. Marks and Esther is apparent and heartbreaking. We wish that times were different, and this romance can be realized. Fortunato creates a man who appreciates fabric he cannot wear and admires a woman he cannot touch.

I love Felicia Fields; she brings vitality and life to every show I’ve seen her in. I hate to say this but, Felicia Fields was mis-cast. It appears that Northlight wanted some insurance of a packed house, so they hired someone who has a following. I can’t believe there was an open audition of equity actresses and ……..  . Fields is wonderful but not in this role. Mis-casting isn’t new, Denzel played Walter Lee at 60, David Alan Grier played Sgt. Waters…all to fill seats and these were on Broadway.

May 3, The role of George Armstrong will be taken over by the accomplished Al’Jaleel McGee. I know Al’Jaleel’s work. He will bring a new energy to this role making a return visit to Northlight more than worth it.

Director Tasia A Jones has directed a strong moving piece of theatre. The unidentified persons in the photos are brought to life. It is recommended for the beautiful acting

Intimate Apparel By Lynn Nottage at Northlight Theatre

April 14 – May 15

Tuesday: 7:30 May 3 only

Wednesday: 1:00pm and 7:30pm

Thursday: 7:30pm

Friday: 8:00pm

Saturday 2:30pm and 8:00pm

Sunday: 2:30pm and 7:00pm May 15 only

9501 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, IL 60077

(847) 673-6300

For most of us—those reviewing theater or those thinking about attending or just about anyone, I guess—Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music is omnipresent. Just a part of our existence. The original soundtrack in everyone’s grandmother’s vinyl collection, with all of those songs. The 1960s film version that once played on television annually, a family event (at least for mine). And all of the attached memories. It’s like The Wizard of Oz or The Bible or The Beatles. It just is and always has been, and we all have some kind of connection to it.

So, with that in mind, I was both excited to see the Marriott Theater’s new production of The Sound of Music, but also wondered how anyone might put on a production that can compete with memory, with perfection, with Julie Andrews. But, like so many other wonderful Marriott shows, Nick Bowling’s The Sound of Music delights.

The level of talent on the stage becomes clear right from the start. Nuns from an Austrian abbey parade down the theater-in-the-round’s four aisles with candles, then launch into the show’s opening “Preludium.” With all the beloved classic songs to come, this is still the moment of the show that stuck with me most—the cast throws down the gauntlet, announcing they can sing, and do they ever. I got chills from the acapella chorus. I’ve got chills remembering it as I type.

And then we meet Maria. While no Julie Andrews, Marriott newcomer Addie Morales doesn’t need to be. She’s herself, and she charms as soon as the spotlight first hits her. A lovely singer who shows off her range, it’s her overall being that shines from the stage just as much as her voice. Again, while all her own woman, Morales shares Andrews’ ability to draw the eye and ear whenever she’s onstage.

But the rest of the cast, those not in the nunnery, are every bit as good. The children, who I worried might be hamming or annoying, were all very genuine. Campbell Krausen, who plays 16-year-old Leisl, not only shows awkward teenage chemistry with Emmet Smith’s Rolf, she really seems to encourage and mother-hen her onstage siblings. Brody Tyner as Friedrich has not just astonishing vocal chops, but accompanies on guitar on a couple numbers. Erik Hellman plays Captain Georg Von Trapp, family patriarch with a rough edge that eventually softens.

Marriott’s ensemble, as always, is consummate. Heidi Kettenring and Rob Lindley really work as the two on-the-fence Nazis who provide a bit of drama and plot to this story that’s really about all those songs. And those songs... Again, the entire cast can sing. And they’re made all the better by conductor Patti Garwood’s orchestra. And, if you want to realize just what songs they are, what a show this is, and what a wonderful production that The Marriott Theatre is presenting of The Sound of Music, find out for yourself, now through June 5 in Lincolnshire.

It’s not often that Goodman Theatre imports plays from other theatre companies. It’s also an exciting moment when a frequent Goodman actress gets to showcase her newest play on the mainstage. “Relentless” by Tyla Abercrumbie was originally developed and produced by TimeLine Theatre in Chicago as part of their Playwrights Collective. The past year was still tricky for most theatre companies, and many had to reconfigure their seasons on short notice. Directed by Ron OJ Parson, “Relentless” premiered at TimeLine in early 2022 to rave reviews and has since been moved to the Owen stage at Goodman.

Set in 1919, “Relentless” tells the story of two Black sisters who return to their family home in Pittsburgh following the death of their mother. Janet (Jaye Ladymore) and Annelle (Ayanna Bria Bakari) are two bourgeois young women who live in Boston. Janet and Annelle see the world differently. Annelle sees the bright side of things, which seems easy from her perspective as a doctor’s wife. Janet is unmarried and doesn’t see much use for marriage. It’s when Janet begins reading her mother’s diary that she considers keeping the house and staying in Philadelphia.

For many Americans, the year immediately following WWI and the 1918 flu pandemic, was a time of great optimism. For those still reeling from the horrors of slavery, seemingly very little had changed in the 60 years since the Civil War.

In fluidly moving scenes, Janet is transported by her mother’s diary to the twilight years of slavery. As middle-class characters, her and Annelle have been somewhat shielded from some aspects of discrimination, but the details of their mother’s journal pull back the veneer on the gilded life they live. Annelle would rather not know anything at all, but the injustices spurn Janet to rage.

Abercrumbie’s story has the look and feel of an August Wilson play, but with a unique perspective. This is a story about Black women, told by a Black woman. Female characters are dimensional here, they swear, they drink, and they talk about sex. Culturally we assume previous generations were somehow more innocent but that couldn’t possibly be true. Though like Wilson’s plays, “Relentless” underscores that every generation of Black Americans has had to deal with the same issues of violence, racism and oppression. “Relentless” asks if anything has really changed.

Performances by Jaye Ladymore and Ayanna Bria Bakari are what this play hinges on. Both actresses fill the space with their characters, both giving them distinct personalities and similarities that create a sisterly chemistry on stage. Demetra Dee as the mother, Zhuukee, in the years of slavery is the discovery of the evening. There’s a fragile yet strong delivery in her lines. She’s soft in situations that would make others harsh. “Relentless” is a play with anger at its core, but perhaps Zhuukee represents a sense of forgiveness, or healing.

Through May 8 at Goodman Theatre 170 N Dearborn Street www.goodmantheatre.org

There are plenty of holiday plays, but how many plays are specifically about Passover? For that matter, how many people really know what Passover signifies? Victory Gardens premieres Ali Viterbi’s new play “In Every Generation”, which tells the story of one Jewish American family’s journey from 1940s Europe through the new century.

The play jumps time between various Seder dinners. Director Devon de Mayo makes a wise staging choice with the performance space at Victory Gardens. Including a seating section on stage asks the audience to look at one another, the same as though you were sitting around a Seder table.

While the family isn’t given a last name, we know from the grandmother, Paola’s (Camen Roman), thick Italian accent that this is as much an Italian-American home as it is Jewish. The first act takes place in the present day as the granddaughters argue over the modern elements of Judaism and slowly reveal why their own mother Valeria (Eli Katz) would rather avoid Passover altogether.

The second act probably can’t function without the first, but the play really gets going after the intermission. In the second act, there are three distinct time jumps. The most charming vignette tells the story of Paola and Davide’s first Seder in America, ten years after they survived the Holocaust. Carmen Roman is the heart of this play, and each scene she commands nearly all the attention. This scene in particular is the warmest moment of the play. The action then moves to 2050 and we can only assume by the conversations between now middle aged Yael and Devorah that being Jewish has become dangerous in America. This is a bleak and unpleasant prediction by the playwright, but it’s no question that Jewish institutions are being targeted by hate groups and supremacy organizations. The third vignette takes us back to the inception of Passover, in the desert, on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. This is a nice counter for the somewhat unresolved nihilism of the second vignette.

Playwright Ali Viterbi makes a really interesting choice by blending Italian American heritage with Jewish heritage. The popular assumption is that Italy is a Catholic country, and while the Vatican does sit in Rome, it’s not to say there aren’t Jewish people in all regions of the world. It helps builds empathy. Adopted daughter Devorah is Asian American, this is another interesting aspect of how Viterbi builds empathy. Just because you’re not born Jewish, doesn’t mean you can’t be accepted by the community.

If nothing else, this play asks for understanding. Through understanding we build tolerance. If audiences can see themselves, Jewish or not, in these characters then more can be done to protect the future of Judaism. Viterbi also points out that apathy within a minority group ultimately leads to its demise. “In Every Generation” might just be the definitive Passover play in that it fully contextualizes the history of Passover but it also gets to the point of all holidays, and that’s family and celebration.

Through May 1^st at Victory Gardens. 2433 N Lincoln Ave. www.victorygardens.org