Displaying items by tag: Elizabeth Taylor

The 1950s is easy to idealize. Men styled tailored suits, women dazzled in pleated dresses, and everything glimmered like it was in a commercial. Life’s troubles were solved with a talk from pop or a hug from mom – or that’s how it seemed. Drury Lane Theatre’s Father of the Bride transports audiences to that romanticized time, and it’s a welcome trip!

Published in 1949, Father of the Bride was adapted for the stage and screen, including two beloved movies starring Hollywood heavy-weights Elizabeth Taylor, Spencer Tracy, and, later, Steve Martin in 1991. While a wedding-gone-wrong may be a familiar story, director Michael Heitzman infused Drury Lane’s rendition with charm, laughter, and sincerity, making it feel fresh.

The play follows Stanley Banks, whose one-and-only daughter prepares for her big day, but she just wants a simple ceremony. Then again, she does want to invite all of her friends… and wants a beautiful dress… and well, by the time everything adds up, the small affair balloons into a whopping headache for dad.

Joe Dempsey’s portrayal of Banks, the set-in-his-ways father, is spot on, and his ad-libbed groans and physical comedy can’t help but make you laugh and empathize with poor, ol’ dad. He balances his old‑school bravado with the teddy-bear-interior so well, creating the heart of the story and avoiding the tired “dumb dad” troupes.

Aurora Penepacker and Jake DiMaggio Lopez in Father of the Bride. Photo by Justin Barbin.

Also making up the family is Rachel Sullivan, who plays the mother, Ellie Banks, with a gentle, confident air, and sons Ben and Tommy are portrayed by Kyle Ringley and Charlie Long, who bring charismatic Leave It to Beaver energy.

Aurora Penepacker plays Kay Banks, the soon-to-be bride with all of the charm of Elizabeth Taylor, and Jake DiMaggio Lopez is her moonstruck, in-over-his-head fiancée, Buckley Dunstan. Their chemistry is fun to watch as every emotion ping-pongs around as their nuptials draw near.

The ensemble also includes some fantastic performances. Michele Vazaquez portrays the tightly wound secretary, Miss Bellamy, who delivers a hilarious meltdown when every member of the family sabotages her efforts to finalize a guest list. Ed Kross brings quirky comedy as the caterer, Mr. Missoula, who steamrolls the Banks (and jumps like Super Mario), and Maya Hlava as Peggy Swift is an overzealous girl-next-door who plots to catch the bouquet.

The original compositions composed by Curtis Moore also deserve a shout-out. They serve as the perfect soundtrack during sequences which showed seasons changing or wedding gifts flooding in and add that extra something that makes you feel like you’re watching your favorite black-and-white sitcom.

Comedy can be tricky to tackle, but Father of the Bride makes ever beat work. It’s whimsical, playful, and a reminder that when things go awry, those you love will always be there. Father of the Bride is an invitation to a pure, wholesome evening, and it’s an invite you should not pass up.

Father of the Bride runs through May 31 at Drury Lane Theater. Click here for tickets and more information.

This review is proudly shared with our friends at www.TheatreInChicago.com. 

CALL ME ELIZABETH, a one-woman show about the life of Elizabeth Taylor, will be presented May 8-10 by PrideArts at the Hoover-Leppen Theatre in Center on Halsted. The critically acclaimed production, written and performed by Kayla Boye and directed by Michael Weber, returns by popular demand in an expanded two-act version. PrideArts presented the previous one-act version in May 2025.

Through an intimate conversation at the Beverly Hills Hotel, CALL ME ELIZABETH examines Elizabeth Taylor's life, career, and loves as she grapples with the culture of celebrity and embraces her greatest role as a humanitarian.

Boye has developed this new two-act versionin collaboration with dramaturg Guy Masterson, an Olivier Award-winner and Taylor's grand-nephew (twice) by marriage to Richard Burton. Act One, set in 1961, focuses on the formative events of Taylor's life and career leading up to the filming of CLEOPATRA. Act Two, set in 1985, focuses on Taylor's relationship with Richard Burton and her subsequent reinvention and entry into the fight against AIDS.

Since premiering in the 2022 Hollywood Fringe Festival, CALL ME ELIZABETH continues to tour internationally following sold-out runs Off Broadway at 59E59 Theaters' "East to Edinburgh" Festival (2023), the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (2023), and Mexico's San Miguel Solo Theatre Festival (2024). Presentations of the piece have been awarded grants by the Arts Midwest Touring Fund and Illinois Arts Council. 

Boye states, "I am thrilled to return to PrideArts with the expanded CALL ME ELIZABETH. Working with dramaturg Guy Masterson, the material has deepened in its authenticity and immediacy, allowing audiences both new and familiar to Elizabeth's story to be inspired by her life. I am excited to explore the pivotal moment when Elizabeth found her purpose as an activist, and I hope Elizabeth's story can be inspiring for anyone seeking to make a positive impact on the world."

Performances are Friday, May 8, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, May 9, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, May 10, at 3:00 p.m. General admission tickets are available now for $35 and may be purchased by visiting pridearts.org or by calling the Box Office at 773-857-0222.

LISTING INFORMATION

CALL ME ELIZABETH

Written and performed by Kayla Boye  |   Directed by Michael Weber

Friday, May 8, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 9, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, May 10, 3:00 p.m. 

1 hour, 45 minutes with an intermission

Hoover-Leppen Theatre at Center on Halsted

3656 N. Halsted, Chicago, IL  60613

Tickets $35 (general admission), available at 

pridearts.org or 773-857-0222

"Like a cat on a hot tin roof” in English. UK old-fashioned “like a cat on hot bricks”. The phrase is used to describe someone who is in a state of EXTREME nervous worry.

Think about the above definition of the saying "cat on a hot tin roof". It really is descriptive of a type of animal cruelty to watch a cat struggling while its tender feet burn on a metal roof heated in the hot sun of the South. It is really quite extraordinary, the fact that gay playwright Tennessee Williams used this analogy so long ago to describe his character "Maggie the Cat's" precarious position in life having been born without money and being forced to kiss up to her husband, and her father in law, day and night due to their sexist selfishness. 

In Williams personal favorite piece of work, “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” focuses on a wealthy Southern family as the story goes behind closed doors to expose their deceptions, insatiability, sexual wants and superficiality. The 1958 film of the same name starring Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives and Madeleine Sherwood, quickly made William’s tale of dysfunctional familyhood one of his most popular, and one that has made waves on the stage ever since its premier date on March 24th, 1955. Drury Lane Theatre is the latest to mount this classic work and they do it just right. I thoroughly enjoyed this lavish and forward-thinking production from start to finish.
 
Director Marcia Milgrom Dodge does a fantastic job reviving this widely known, classic Tennessee Williams play so that it resonates with modern audiences on many levels. 

In the past, set in 1955 Mississippi, interpretations of the play seem to concentrate on whether or not Brick, the handsome but deeply depressed, alcoholic and unemployed ex-football star is a homosexual because his best friend killed himself over accusations that he might be "in love" with Brick.  

This energetic, fast moving production with the bright breezy, less tormented, "Maggie The Cat" played by Genevieve Angelson with a great sense of humor and normalcy, shows that the REAL issue here is that all of the women characters are equally devalued and left financially dependent in the most worrisome way. See the above definition of the saying " cat on a hot tin roof" whereas a woman such as Maggie is put into such a compromised position by the men in their lives whether it be their husbands, or, in this case, their father in law Big Daddy, played with real menace and ferocity by Chicago actor Matt Decaro. 

Big Mama, Big Daddy’s wife is played by Cindy Gold. Gold does a magnificent job of showing the audience that her character has been demeaned over the years by the completely selfish, ego-maniacal Big Daddy, who refuses to allow his wife of forty years one iota of control over their money, plantation (land) or life choices, even when faced with the prognosis that he has incurable cancer. 

Anthony Bowden has much of the sexy, languid appeal needed for the role of Big Daddy's favorite son, Brick, one who can do no wrong yet sometimes comes off as too young to really convey the desperate nature of his position in life, having no money, no heir and no job prospects. 

I really liked that Angelson’s portrayal of "Maggie the Cat" is played to show that Maggie the cat is NOT evil just because she does not want to have a brood of children like her sister in law with her "five screaming brats with no necks". Nor is her "Maggie" a raging nymphomaniac just because she keeps urging the husband she loves, Brick, to let go of his morbid preoccupation with his friend’s death and make love to her again.  

A wonderful scene which I had not really noticed before occurs between Big Daddy and Brick wherein Big Daddy tries to tell Brick that even if Brick did have relations with his best friend, it doesn't mean he is gay (as if that will comfort him) and Brick finally makes it clear that he is not angry with Maggie so much as he is with himself.

The real reason for Brick's depression and withdrawal from life is that when his friend called him in distress, obviously suicidal over the fact that Maggie called him out on whether or not he was "in love" with Brick or not, Brick does the unthinkable and hangs up on his best friend - just hangs up the phone without a word. Brick feels that his final cold betrayal of his friend’s urgent plea for understanding that day was what prompted his best friend’s suicide - and he may just be right. 

I highly recommend this production for those who enjoy the beautiful, ageless Pulitzer Prize winning writing of Tennessee Williams and for the well thought out performances of many of Chicago's great character actors and actresses. 

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is currently being performed at Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook through August 26th and carries with it as much heat as Chicago’s 90-plus degree summer days. Full of engaging exchanges, powerful performances and a brilliantly designed set of a dilapidated plantation mansion interior that subtly predicts its occupants impending doom, this play entertains from Maggie’s opening monologue to its very end. For more show information, visit www.drurylanetheatre.org.

There’s something special about tuning into a b-movie on a summer night. Kitschy tales of shlock and horror are as American as baseball, and who better to tell them than Tennessee Williams? The much-esteemed playwright is better remembered for Pulitzer Prize winners like ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ and ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ but the minor works of Williams are as thrilling.

Raven Theatre revives Williams’ 1958 play ‘Suddenly Last Summer’ under the direction of Jason Gerace. Perhaps more memorable for the film adaptation starring Elizabeth Taylor and Katherine Hepburn, ‘Suddenly Last Summer’ is pure Williams. There are southern drawls, sexual intrigue and a boiling plot.

Raven’s production is lush and radiant in their intimate space, but it’s the performances that are this production’s strongest asset. The first scene is a somewhat tedious introduction to Violet Venerable (Mary K Nigohosian), the aging mother of the deceased Sabastian whose mysterious death is at the play’s center. Nigohosian is deliciously evil. There’s a sweetness in her performance that makes her sinister intention just melt in your mouth. One could listen her to monologue all night.

Violet’s young niece Catherine Holly (Grayson Heyl) holds the answer to the untimely death of Sebastian, as she was the only witness. Her version is graphic and disturbing and Violet will stop at nothing to keep her quiet. Heyl is well cast. She sways deftly between manic and rational. Her physicality is transfixing. It’s impossible not to be glued to her final monologue. A good marriage between Williams’ way with stories and Heyl’s talents.

‘Suddenly Last Summer’ is not Williams’ most important work, but remains a testament to his gift with language. This production is arguably more entertaining than the 1959 film. ‘Suddenly Last Summer’ is anything but boring and a summer audience will appreciate that Raven is performing it without an intermission. It pushed envelope for a mid-century Broadway audience, but nowadays it stands out among his plays for its riveting and twisting plot. If you’re in the mood for some drive-in style chills, ‘Suddenly Last Summer’ will scratch your itch.

Through June 17th at Raven Theatre. 6157 N Clark Street. 773-338-2177