Tuesday, 14 February 2023 16:23
Review: Memorable Show About Online World Asks: Do We Have a Right to Be Forgotten?
Written by Bill Esler
‘Right to Be Forgotten ' is a play for our times, in contemporary language and a production at Raven Theatre that is laser-focused on an issue of our day—the inability of the average person to remove online content about themselves that is damaging or even life-threatening. Directed by Sarah Gitenstein…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
Monday, 13 February 2023 12:54
'Trial In the Delta' not about Trauma – Sadly, It’s American History
Written by Wesley David
The start of the civil rights movement was not Rosa Parks refusal to leave her seat on a bus. The civil rights movement started when the photo of 14-year-old Emmett Till, laying in his coffin beaten beyond recognition was graphically published on the cover of Jet Magazine for the world…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 08 February 2023 12:37
Goodman's 'Toni Stone' – Big League Production for a Big-League player
Written by Wesley David
Decades before the enactment of Title IV, famous for its impact on expanding opportunities for women and girls in sports and well before the inaugural game of the WNBA, an African American women became the first to play for a professional baseball team. “Toni Stone”, written by award winning playwright…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Friday, 10 February 2023 12:31
Review: Dramatic Road to a Historic Oscar Win in ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams’
Written by Bill Esler
Sometimes a deceivingly "small" story can pack a wallop, and that is the case with LaDarrion Williams’ ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams,’ premiering at TimeLine Theatre before it moves on to Boston. Set in 1940, this finely crafted script quickly establishes fully fleshed out characters Arthur (Charles Andrew Gardner), a bartender…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tuesday, 07 February 2023 22:33
Skokie Theatre's "The Book of Merman" Sings Out Praises to Be Your Own Star!
Written by Kimberly Katz
The Book of Merman is a delightful musical theater piece that beautifully spins the popular Broadway hit, The Book of Mormon. When doing home-to-home missionary work, I’m sure no one can predict how the day will go. So many different situations can present themselves whether the expected or least expected.…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 05 February 2023 21:53
What We Do For Love; A Chorus Line at Drury Theatre
Written by Kendall Royzen
Like most things in our lives, what once was old can be new again (looking at you wannabe fanny packs). But some things can stand the test of time and find a resurgence, not to be duplicated but merely rediscovered by a new generation. A Chorus Line, now playing at…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Thursday, 02 February 2023 11:30
Review: Andy Warhol Was in Tehran. This recount is Both Funny and Moving
Written by Bill Esler
‘Andy Warhol in Tehran’ is a delight, an incisive comedy packaged with a serious exploration of art, history, and political values. Rob Lindley as Warhol captures the artist exactly as he was seen in his public persona, somewhat vapid, seemingly desultory, with a passion for attaching to others’ fame, while…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 25 January 2023 13:13
Pools of emotions spoken and unspoken in Goodman’s “the ripple, the wave that carried me home”
Written by Wesley David
Like Christina Anderson, the Tony award nominated playwright of “the ripple, the wave that carried me home” I too was naively unaware of the history of segregation of public pools. Growing up in Brooklyn, NY, at the same time as the play’s timeline, public pools were more likely segregated by…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
Thursday, 26 January 2023 13:15
‘The Birthday Party’—A Comedy of Menace from a Master of the Genre
Written by Bill Esler
CityLit Theater’s ‘The Birthday Party’ opens with a load of laughs, seducing the audience with its low-key humor, then shaking us up as sinister overtones are gradually revealed. We are introduced to the middle-aged operators of a British seaside boarding house: Meg (Elaine Carlson is delightfully comedic) and her dead-pan…
Published in
Theatre in Review
More...
Monday, 23 January 2023 13:12
It's delightful, it's funny, it's Oil Lamp's 'Almost, Maine'!
Written by Kimberly Katz
Have you ever fallen in love – or out of love? Have you ever lost the love of your life only to find the new love is waiting for you right around the corner at just the perfect moment? Have you ever found love when you weren’t even looking for…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Friday, 20 January 2023 14:28
Review: 'Cabaret' at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts
Written by John Accrocco
Fewer theatrical experiences are more thrilling than a Kander and Ebb musical done well. Porchlight’s revival of ‘Cabaret’ delivers the exact kind of razzle-dazzle audiences expect when they think of the Kit Kat Club. Directed by Artistic Director Michael Weber and choreographed by Brenda Didier, this production scrubs off some…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
Tuesday, 17 January 2023 15:19
The Edge’s Tick, tick...BOOM! Understood the Assignment
Written by Anne Rakowiecki
If you love Rent, you’ll really like tick, tick…BOOM! If you don’t like Rent, you’ll probably still really like tick, tick…BOOM!, because what’s not to like about a great story and a talented cast? If you’ve ever struggled, strived, or attempted to create anything — or even just faced existential…
Published in
Theatre in Review
As a child of the 80s, I fondly remember sitting up on weeknights and watching tv sitcoms with my folks. Many of them—Murphy Brown, Designing Women, etc.—proved a bit too mature for my (still) juvenile sensibility. But one “old people” show I always loved (and still do) was The Golden…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
Register
Login
Latest Articles
-
Midsommer Flight to present free production of Shakespeare’s ROMEO AND JULIET, June 28 – August 4 in six Chicago parks
Written by Buzz Center StageMidsommer Flight, a company that has brought free performances of Shakespeare's plays to Chicago Park District parks since 2012, will present a fully staged ROMEO AND JULIET - one of the Bard's most popular tragedies - as its 2024 free Shakespeare… -
LEAGUE OF CHICAGO THEATRES HIGHLIGHTS SUMMER 2024 PRODUCTIONS
Written by Buzz Center StageChicago continues to produce some of the most exciting work in the country this Summer, offering a wide variety of plays and musicals, as well as comedy, dance, festivals, and more. To highlight these productions, The League of Chicago Theatres is publishing its Summer…
-
Token Theatre to produce new play directed by Emmy winner Alan Muroaka
Written by Buzz Center StageToken Theatre, Chicago's Asian American theatre company, announces the company's first full production, ZAC EFRON, written by Artistic Director David Rhee, co-written by Managing Director Wai Yim and directed by two-time Emmy Award winner Alan Muraoka ("Sesame Street"). ZAC EFRON plays at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N Wells St, June 20-July 21,…
-
Review: Murder in the Cathedral at City Lit Theater
Written by Sarz MaxwellI arrived at City Lit Theater’s MURDER IN THE CATHEDRAL expecting a heavy, serious, doubtless thought-provoking but rather intimidating major work of literature. By the end of the performance, I wanted to rush out, buy the book and read it…
Does your theatre company want to connect with Buzz Center Stage or would you like to reach out and say "hello"? Message us through facebook or shoot us an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
*This disclaimer informs readers that the views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to Buzz Center Stage. Buzz Center Stage is a non-profit, volunteer-based platform that enables, and encourages, staff members to post their own honest thoughts on a particular production.