RECOMMENDED Where: Steppenwolf Upstairs Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St. When: through Oct. 20 Tickets: $20-$89 Phone: 312-335-1650 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic It takes a great leap of faith to buy the improbable plot of Lauren Yee’s “The Great Leap,” but the payoff is an engrossing examination of a cultural clash that combines the personal […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Dr., Lincolnshire When: through Oct. 20 Tickets: $50-$60 Phone: 847-634-0200 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic In the anachronistic alternative Elizabethan England of “Something Rotten!” struggling playwright Nick Bottom, desperate to knock Shakespeare off his “greatest ever” perch, seeks out a soothsayer to learn what’s going to be the next […]
SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED Where: Northlight Theatre, North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie When: through Oct. 20 Tickets: $30-$89 Phone: 847-673-6300 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic Twenty-four years after Joan of Arc was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431, her mother, Isabelle Romée, then in her 70s, appealed to the […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Goodman Albert Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St. When: through Oct. 20 Tickets: $25-$80 Phone: 312-443-3800 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic On May 20, 1899, Sarah Bernhardt, the most famous actress of her era, made her debut in the title role of “Hamlet” in a prose adaptation of Shakespeare’s play written for her by […]
RECOMMENDED Where: TimeLine Theatre Company at the Broadway Playhouse, 175 E. Chestnut St. When: through Oct. 20 Tickets: $35-$95 Phone: 800-775-2000 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic Most of us probably remember the iconic photograph of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat shaking hands in the White House Rose Garden […]
SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED Where: Shattered Globe Theatre at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. When: through Oct. 19 Tickets: $42 Phone: 773-975-8150 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic Can a generous spirit compensate for a contrived plot? If characters are caring, does it matter that they’re poorly motivated? How much repetition is acceptable in a 90-minute play […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis Ave. When: through Oct. 13 Tickets: $37.50-$84 Phone: 773-753-4472 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic After seeing director Ron OJ Parson’s revelatory take on August Wilson’s “Radio Golf” at Court Theatre last season, I was hopeful that he would bring the same brilliance to bear on “King Hedley II,” […]
RECOMMENDED Where: The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Navy Pier When: through Oct. 20 Tickets: $50-$90 Phone: 312-595-5600 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic Whenever Harry Hadden-Paton and James Frain appear on stage together in the North American premiere of David Seidler’s “The King’s Speech” at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, sparks fly. That’s the main reason to […]
SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED Where: American Blues Theater at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave. When: through Oct. 19 Tickets: $19-$39 Phone: 773-654-3103 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic As we were leaving the Chicago premiere of Rick Cleveland’s “Five Presidents” at American Blues Theater, my companion said that he didn’t really see the purpose of the play. […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Goodman Owen Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St. When: through Oct. 6 Tickets: $15-$45 Phone: 312-443-3800 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic Lucas Hnath’s “Dana H” is one of the most extraordinary experiments in documentary drama you’re ever likely to see. It’s also one of the most disturbing—and not only for the horrifying content. The […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Victory Gardens Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave. When: through Oct. 13 Tickets: $31-$65 Phone: 773-871-3000 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic I don’t know if people read advice columns to empathize with other people’s problems or to feel better about their own. I also wonder if the writers of those columns genuinely want to […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Remy Bumppo Theatre Company at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. When: through Oct. 5 Tickets: $37.75-$62.75 Phone: 773-975-8150 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic Adapting a novel for the stage poses many challenges. This is especially true if the stage is relatively small, and the novel covers more than a few locations, both […]
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Where: Greenhouse Theater Center Downstairs Main Stage, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. When: through Oct. 6 Tickets: $20-$25 Phone: 773-404-7336 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic The Midwest premiere of “Midsummer (A Play with Songs),” a co-production of the Greenhouse and Proxy Theatre, is proof that sometimes the actual story matters less than how it’s […]
RECOMMENDED Where: Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St. When: through Sept. 15 Tickets: $39-$106 Phone: 800-775-2000 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic When I first read about “The Band’s Visit,” long before learning that a touring version would be coming to Chicago, I wanted to rush to New York to see it just for David […]
SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED Where: Lips Chicago, 2229 S. Michigan Ave. When: Open run Tickets: $39.95 three-course dinner and show package (required Sat.); other covers and minimums vary Phone: 312-815-2662 By ANNE SPISELMAN Theater Critic If you’re looking for unusual entertainment for a bachelor(ette), birthday, or divorce party—or simply for a night out—Lips Drag Queen Show Palace […]