Sunday, 20 September 2026 02:02
Chicago Shakes' Play On!: With a Syncopated Harlem Beat
Written by Wesley David
There are some productions you watch, and then there are productions that make your heart swoon and your toe tap. Sheldon Epps’ Play On! is definitely the latter. Now playing at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, this exuberant musical takes Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, moves it to 1930s Harlem, adds the extraordinary music…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
- Play On
- Musical theatre
- Sheldon Epps
- Chicago Shakespeare Theater
- Chicago Shakes
- Duke Ellington
- Shakespeare
- Harlem
- Hailee Kaleem Wright
- Edred Utomi
- Krystal Joy Brown
- Cheryl L West
- African American
- Twelfth Night
- Edgar Godineaux
- Luther Henderson Jr
- Theodis Rodgers Jr
- live theatre
- on stage
- Chicago events
- chicago theatre
Tuesday, 22 September 2026 16:29
STEP RIGHT UP AND RIDE THE CYCLONE (THE MUSICAL) AT METROPOLIS ARLINGTON HEIGHTS
Written by Anne Rakowiecki
If anyone has ever told you to buckle up and enjoy the ride, they were talking about life—and even if they didn’t know it, they were talking about Ride the Cyclone, the musical. When six teenagers die in a rollercoaster accident and end up in purgatory, each arguing their case…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Erik Gernand is resident playwright at Redtwist Theatre, and his Prayer Circle is absolutely laugh-out-loud funny. The strength of this script is the characters—who are clearly defined and familiar types—and the performances, directed by Dusty Brown, are uniformly outstanding. Set in the cramped loft of a church (with stained glass…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 19 September 2026 01:34
The Attic at Goodman Theatre Redefines Memoir Through Breathtaking Physical Storytelling
Written by Maddie Burroughs
At intermission, I sent Ken, Buzz Center Stage’s managing editor, a text: “So thankful I made it!! It’s intermission, and if there’s one show anyone sees it should be this.” By the time the lights came up at the end of The Attic, I couldn’t have agreed with intermission-me more.…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Wednesday, 16 September 2026 16:32
Chicago City Opera presents Chicago premiere of Der Vampyr October 7-11
Written by Buzz Center Stage
Chicago City Opera (CCO) presents the Chicago premiere of gothic horror opera Der Vampyr by composer Heinrich Marschner to a libretto by Wilhelm August Wohlbrück. Just in time to kick off the Halloween season, Der Vampyr is presented in three performances only Wednesday, October 7 at 7:00 PM at Colvin…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Monday, 21 September 2026 12:18
Definition's How We Got On: A Mixtape for the Stage
Written by Wesley David
What happens when three young people discover hip-hop and realize they might have something to say? Idris Goodwin’s How We Got On, directed by Definition Theatre Artistic Director Tyrone Phillips, answers that question with rhythm, humor, attitude and plenty of heart. Think of it as a mixtape for the stage…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 20 September 2026 15:07
Northlight Delivers a Headline-Making, Hilarious Front Page
Written by Angelo Campos
Northlight Theatre opened its new venue with Jeffrey Hatcher’s smart, rejuvenated adaptation of The Front Page. Commissioned by Artistic Director BJ Jones, this world-premiere production is the first play to be performed in their new Evanston home and proves to be the ideal piece to launch the company’s exciting new…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 19 September 2026 16:10
Overshadowed's Flame of Fire Finds Humanity, Strength, and Forgiveness in a Tragic Chapter of Missionary History
Written by Ken Payne
Overshadowed Productions’ Flame of Fire revisits one of the most polarizing true stories in mid‑century missionary history, and the result is a tense, deeply human portrait of faith, conviction, and consequence. Written by Artistic Director Reba Hervas, the play draws not only from the well‑known documentary Beyond the Gates of…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
- Overshadowed Theatrical Productions
- Flame of Fire
- Jim Elliott
- Elisabeth Elliott
- Nate Saint
- missionaries
- Operation Acua
- Reba Hervas
- Through Gates of Splendor
- Wheaton College
- Justin McHugh
- Leah Johansen
- Jacob Starr
- Emily Starr
- Andrew Dille
- Madelyn Jones
- Alex Kretschmer
- Olivia Orsag
- Benjamin Nelson
- Betsy Richman
- Medinah
- live theatre
- on stage
- Chicago events
- Jubilee Bible Church
- moving drama
- true life events
- Pete Fleming
- Ed McCully
- Roger Youderian
Saturday, 19 September 2026 00:30
Class is back in session with Victory Gardens’ World Premiere of The Humanities
Written by John Accrocco
Coincidentally (or not), Victory Gardens’ new play about a controversial campus speaker opens just days after the one-year anniversary of Charlie Kirk’s assassination. Returning from a lengthy hiatus, Victory Gardens once again lights up the Biograph Theater with the world premiere of Zayd Ayers Dohrn’s new play “The Humanities”. This…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Thursday, 17 September 2026 01:25
Kokandy Productions’ Jekyll & Hyde: A Fearless Reworking Elevated
Written by Ken Payne
Kokandy Productions’ Jekyll & Hyde, now presented by Broadway In Chicago at the Broadway Playhouse, arrives with the momentum of a bona fide Chicago phenomenon. After its run at Chopin Theatre was extended again and again - an almost unheard of feat for an intimate, homegrown musical - the show…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Tagged under
- Jekyll Hyde
- Kokandy Productions
- Broadway Playhouse
- Robert Louis Stevenson
- Dr Jekyll Mr Hyde
- Derek Van Barham
- Nick Sula
- Brenda Didier
- David Moreland
- Ava Lane Stovall
- Emily McCormick
- Quinn Kech
- Nathan Calaranan
- Kevin Webb
- Musical theatre
- live theatre
- on stage
- Chicago events
- Broadway in Chicago
- classic
Monday, 14 September 2026 16:24
BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA - Do we listen to each other as much as birdsongs?
Written by Mary Beth Euker
Birds of North America, written by Anna Ouyang Moench, is a story of a father daughter relationship spanning a decade and weathering personal and worldwide conflicts while sharing their love of birdwatching. Admittedly family relationships can be tricky at best. Especially as children age into adulthood and make their own…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Sunday, 13 September 2026 13:38
Gwydion Theatre Delivers More than a Satire in Lynn Nottage’s Por’ Knockers
Written by Bill Esler
Lynn Nottage is a skilled playwright, and prolific especially considering the high quality of her works: Pulitzer winners Ruined and Sweat. Or the remarkable By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, a kind of All About Eve with the starlet’s Black maid in the Eve role. And then Intimate Apparel, which…
Published in
Theatre in Review
Saturday, 12 September 2026 15:03
The Dancing Delivers What the Dialogue Doesn’t in Dirty Dancing: The Musical
Written by Maddie Burroughs
In a world of theatrical adaptations, there really are two kinds: some reinvent their source material, becoming their own “new” art, while others understand that the real pleasure they provide is in the audience seeing some beloved thing from the past brought back to life. Dirty Dancing: The Musical falls…
Published in
Theatre in Review
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Latest Articles
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Chicago Shakes' Play On!: With a Syncopated Harlem Beat
Written by Wesley DavidThere are some productions you watch, and then there are productions that make your heart swoon and your toe tap. Sheldon Epps’ Play On! is definitely the latter. Now playing at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, this exuberant musical takes Shakespeare’s Twelfth… -
STEP RIGHT UP AND RIDE THE CYCLONE (THE MUSICAL) AT METROPOLIS ARLINGTON HEIGHTS
Written by Anne RakowieckiIf anyone has ever told you to buckle up and enjoy the ride, they were talking about life—and even if they didn’t know it, they were talking about Ride the Cyclone, the musical. When six teenagers die in a rollercoaster… -
Funny ‘Prayer Circle’ Is Loaded With Laughs
Written by Bill EslerErik Gernand is resident playwright at Redtwist Theatre, and his Prayer Circle is absolutely laugh-out-loud funny. The strength of this script is the characters—who are clearly defined and familiar types—and the performances, directed by Dusty Brown, are uniformly outstanding. Set… -
American Blues Theater hosts its annual costumed fundraiser HALLOWEEN BOO BASH October 25th
Written by Buzz Center StageAmerican Blues Theater, under the continued leadership of Executive Artistic Director Gwendolyn Whiteside, presents Halloween Boo Bash, its annual costumed fundraiser benefiting artists' wages during Season 41. This popular, all-ages celebration features live performances and ghost stories, trick or treating in the theater, contests,…
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