Articles filed under Theater

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Prospect Heights man reinvents play while living out of his van May 21, 2013 12:00 AM
Perhaps Prospect Heights native Hans Fleischmann pours so much of himself into a daring production of Tennesee Williams' classic "The Glass Menagerie" because he developed the production's vision while living in a van on the street. “It's 2 in the morning, and there is this guy talking loudly right outside my van. He just sounds like this Hollywood jerk,” recalls the 37-year-old Prospect Heights actor and director, who had ventured to Hollywood to strike it big.
Tony nominations bittersweet for 3 actors May 18, 2013 12:00 AM
For three actors, the Tony Award nominations are somewhat bittersweet. Sweet, because they'd each gotten a prestigious nod. Bitter, because their shows were long gone. "It's frustrating to all of us," said Keith Carradine, nominated for best performance by an actor in a featured role in a musical for "Hands on a Hardbody," which closed faster than any other new musical this season.
Theater events: Drive to keep Buffalo Theatre alive May 17, 2013 12:00 AM
Buffalo Theatre Ensemble closes "Trumbo" and seeks donations to keep the theater company up and running. ShPieL-Performing Identity brings "The Invasion of Skokie" to its namesake community and Mary-Arrchie remounts its acclaimed production of "The Glass Menagerie" this week in Chicago-area theater.
Acts jumping in for Suburban Chicago’s Got Talent May 17, 2013 12:00 AM
More than 30 acts have signed up for the second edition of Suburban Chicago's Got Talent presented by the Daily Herald, produced by the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre and sponsored by the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce. And there's still plenty of time to test your talents as well.
Northlight’s formulaic ‘Stella & Lou’ benefits from fine castMay 17, 2013 12:00 AM
How good an actor is Francis Guinan? So good he commands attention even when he's silent. So good his role as a widowed bartender in Northlight Theatre's "Stella & Lou" seems tailored just for him. So good, his presence makes Bruce Graham's sentimental, pleasantly predictable dramedy a show worth seeing. Co-star and Emmy Award winning actress Rhea Perlman, certainly carries her share of the load, too.
Steel Beam efforts fail to dress up ‘Black Tie’ May 17, 2013 12:00 AM
On the surface, the conflicts in A.R. Gurney's 2011 off-Broadway comedy "Black Tie" can feel slight. But "Black Tie," now playing in its Chicago-area debut at Steel Beam in St. Charles, gradually takes on larger and more universal themes of tradition versus change that should resonate with anyone beyond the play's privileged East Coast family.
'Mormon' departs Chicago stage in October May 16, 2013 12:00 AM
"The Book of Mormon," the audacious comic musical by the creators of "South Park," will leave Chicago after its Oct. 6 performances, producers announced Thursday. By then, the show will have played in Chicago for 43 weeks and 344 performances.
Suburban man the standby star of 'Book of Mormon' May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
Eight times a week, Rob Colletti goes down to the Bank of America Theatre in Chicago, warms up his vocals, sits in the dressing room while the hit musical "The Book of Mormon" is performed, and then goes home. Colletti, a Wheaton native, is the standby for the lead role of the nerdy but lovable Elder Cunningham. And, "it's been incredible," he said.
Village Theatre Guild to stage avant-garde ‘Next Fall’ May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
The theater, perhaps more than any art form, is prone to explore topics that are both contemporary, relevant and controversial. In "Next Fall," the Village Theatre Guild's newest production opening May 24, no less than two provocative themes are the basis of the playwright's storytelling: gay relationships and fundamentalist religion.
Goodman’s ‘Vera Stark’ falls short of potential May 10, 2013 12:00 AM
The subject of Lynn Nottage's "By The Way, Meet Vera Stark" — an examination of racism in 1930s Hollywood — is certainly ripe for satire. The comedy is broad and the dialogue is funny. But Nottage's uneven dramedy about a fictional African American actress trying to break into the movies never comes together in a way that entirely satisfies.
What you need to know to sign upMay 10, 2013 12:00 AM
The rules and regulations for Suburban Chicago's Got Talent, presented by the Daily Herald, produced by the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre and sponsored by Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce.
Meet the judgesMay 10, 2013 12:00 AM
A look at the judges for the 2013 edition of Suburban Chicago's Got Talent, presented by the Daily Herald, produced by the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre and sponsored by the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce.
Theater events: ‘Black Tie’ closes out Steel Beam’s season May 10, 2013 12:00 AM
Steel Beam concludes its season with the wedding-centered comedy "Black Tie"; Metropolis celebrates romance over dinner; and Court Theatre presents the first of its two-production Moliere mini-fest this week in Chicago-area theater.
Buffalo Theatre Ensemble's 'Trumbo' a portrait of the artist as a patriot May 9, 2013 12:00 AM
Not a lot happens over the course of "Trumbo-Red, White & Blacklisted" — the two-hander about Dalton Trumbo, the blacklisted screenwriter responsible for "Spartacus," "Roman Holiday," "Papillon" and "Lonely Are the Brave" — running at Buffalo Theatre Ensemble in Glen Ellyn. More of a portrait than a play, this theatrical event unfolds as a series of monologues which reveal through Trumbo's own words, the convictions that led to his incarceration and the talent that made him a legend.
Liberty Town Productions to hold auditions for annual show May 9, 2013 12:00 AM
Liberty Town Productions is holding open auditions for our Fifth Annual Musical Summer Showcase.
Rolling Meadows High School stages ‘Grease’ May 8, 2013 12:00 AM
Rolling Meadows High School brings the high-spirited, rock 'n' roll fun of the '50s to the Gilbert Theater when its spring musical, "Grease," hits the stage for three more performances May 10-11.
Better than OK: Lyric's 'Oklahoma!' big and beautiful May 7, 2013 12:00 AM
You win some and you lose some when you produce a Broadway musical like Rodgers and Hammerstein's 1943 landmark “Oklahoma!” in Chicago's 3,600-seat Civic Opera House. Fortunately for the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the first outing of its multiyear American Musical Theater Initiative is a big and beautiful success.
Helen Mirren gives noisy drummers a royal rebuke May 6, 2013 12:00 AM
Silence for the queen, please. A troupe of street drummers got a shock when Helen Mirren, dressed as Queen Elizabeth II, emerged from a London theater to berate them for disrupting her show. Mirren told the Daily Telegraph newspaper that she used less-than-royal language in the rant during the intermission of Saturday's performance.
'Oklahoma!' launches Lyric’s musical theater initiative May 3, 2013 12:00 AM
The Lyric Opera of Chicago will see if the “wavin’ wheat can sure smell sweet” when it opens its new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s landmark 1943 musical “Oklahoma!” for a 16-performance run starting Saturday.
Clockwise Theatre announces new season of works by and about Midwesterners May 3, 2013 12:00 AM
Clockwise Theatre in Waukegan recently announced its 2013-14 season. On the bill is the Midwest premiere of Dorian Palumbo's "Carnegie Hill," John Green's modern-day religious drama "Doubting Thomas" and the world premiere of "A Fine Line" by Rob Winn Anderson.