Results tagged “goodmantheatre”

We'll spare you the dramatic intro we laid on you in the last installment of this series - but if you've seen either of these shows, please tell us what you thought. more ›

We're feeling chipper this morning. Maybe it's the way the sun now stays up until almost 5:30 p.m., or maybe we've just started hallucinating to subconsciously cope with seasonal affective disorder, but gosh darn it if it doesn't feel like spring's right around the corner! more ›

When we think Eugene O'Neill, we think "long." When we think Samuel Beckett, we think "odd." Their respective one-act plays Hughie and Krapp's Last Tape, currently sharing the mainstage bill at Goodman, prove us wrong on both accounts. Though these two surprisingly accessible short pieces take two entirely different approaches in their exploration of loneliness and the inconsequential nature of life, the similarities are profound. Parallel conclusions are reinforced by contrasting, rich portrayals of the two main characters by one great actor, Brian Dennehy. more ›

Sad to say that once again this year the Chicagoist business office has refused to front us the money to attend Sundance. And we were really looking forward to mingling with Robert, Ethan, Maggie, and Ellen over a few bottles of organic champagne. Oh well. As consolation we'll head over to the Music Box. more ›

Is there anything U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley won't do? It seems carving a penguin out of ice wasn't enough because he also busted out his acting chops on stage at the Goodman. It was part of a benefit production of “A Christmas Carol” for Chicago-area servicemen and women and their families. U.S. Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky co-hosted the event and Schakowsky joined Quigley on stage. more ›

It would be fair to say that we’re not exactly “good tidings of comfort and joy” types. We eschew most things of the cheesy variety - excepting actual cheese, of course - and press releases for “fun for the whole family” shows meet our trash boxes more often than they’re flagged for further consideration. Although we’d heard good things, it was with a hearty amount of skepticism that we decided to check out Goodman Theatre’s 32nd annual production of A Christmas Carol. more ›

When you have a famous playwright headlining your show, it’s almost always a good thing. Steppenwolf has two. more ›

It’s that most wonderful time of the year (groan) when we force ourselves to once again face some hard truths: we will not be gifted with a Lexus adorned with a giant bow or (thankfully) a generic piece of jewelry designed by Jane Seymour, nor will we slip while ice skating and fall right into the arms of a stranger who turns out to be our soul mate. And for a special 2009 bonus, President Obama’s speech preempted our favorite Christmas special of all time. We’re hopeful that one of the many holiday shows on stage this month will lift our spirits. more ›

…but there’s way too much to dig through to find it. It’s an oversimplification, but our main problem with Goodman Theatre’s High Holidays, a new play by Alan Gross, boils down to this: it's overkill. Yes, some parts were cute and / or fun. Yes, there were some solid, touching moments, However, the good parts of this show were overshadowed by issues that made us feel alienated, rather than drawn-in. more ›

Remember Molly Brennan? That girl who played Harpo Marx? Remember how we wrote about her not so long ago? Well, we’re not going to hide the fact that we’re fans, which is why we’re writing again to say you should really check out Madame Barker’s Holiday Variety Show at the Prop Theatre. more ›

• With property tax bills set to arrive in mailboxes over the next several days, it looks like they're going up by double-digits, even higher than previously expected.
• John Ambrose, a deputy U.S. Marshal accused of leaking information to mob members involved in the Family Secrets investigation, has been sentenced to four years in prison. When he was convicted in April, it was reportedly the first breach of the Witness Protection program.
• Former Chicago Bear Tank Johnson testified today in the murder trial of Michael Selvie, charged with shooting and killing Johnson's boyhood friend Willie Posey at the Ice Bar in December 2006.

Molly Brennan wants everyone to stop being mad. She's playing Harpo Marx/The Professer in the Goodman Theatre's much-anticipated production of the Marx Brothers musical Animal Crackers, and despite what you may have heard, she has no gender-bending agenda. However, even Brennan was a bit skeptical at first. "The Goodman? A girl playing Harpo?" she says, remembering her initial reaction to the theater's proposition. "It never occured to me that they would think of that." And when she was actually cast, even after missing the first audition, she still couldn't believe it. "Really? Really? You want me?...It felt very much like a gift." more ›

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Rocco Landesman still prefers the Steppenwolf, even after his HUGE slip-up when he basically said the Steppenwolf and Goodman are better than whatever theater there is in Peoria, IL. (Well, he said he didn't know of a theater in Peoria and he wanted to fund the kind of art at the Steppenwolf and Goodman. Close enough.) more ›

Theatre Communications Group, the national organization for non-profit theater, named Steppenwolf Artistic Director Martha Lavey its new board president. TCG is also the U.S. center of the International Theatre Institute. Goodman Executive director Roche Schulfer joins the board for the first time, and Rachel Kraft, Lookingglass executive director, returns to the board. It’s great to see such strong Chicago representation in the national organization! more ›

A few days a go, new chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts Rocco Landesman couldn’t tell you whether there was theater in Peoria, Illinois and now, he’s probably going to have to visit to remove the taste of shoe from his mouth. In his first interview since his confirmation as chairman last Friday, Landesman told The New York Times, “I don’t know if there’s a theater in Peoria, but I would bet that it’s not as good as Steppenwolf or the Goodman.” more ›

Given the arduous task of humanizing a killer, Villa is hindered by the script's quick leap between his teenage self, a protective brother who loves acting, to a sociopath. We found ourselves pitying the murdered racist gas station attendants instead of the misguided anti-hero. Papo is most sympathetic when talking to Lulu, but unfortunately his best moments are delivered from behind prison bars. Regina Garcia's set, although supported by beautiful lighting from Jeremy Getz, is a physical barrier that kept him far away enough that we couldn't help but sit behind an emotional one. As Lulu, Delgado shoulders the bulk of the play with grace, sincerity and a charming quirkiness. However, some of that sincerity is lost in her interactions with boyfriend Ed (Josh Odor). We intellectually understood their struggles as a couple, but a lack of chemistry prevented us from feeling them. Their scenes are also written in somewhat of an incongruous style - a choice that might not have bothered us if there was more of a delineation from the "poetic memoryscape." more ›

If you didn’t get tickets for the midnight showing of Harry Potter, there’s other ways to tickle your film fancy than seeing Daniel Radcliffe fight Voldemort for the sixth time. The Chicago Outdoor Film Festival opens tonight, and each following Tuesday, Grant Park will become Chicago’s very own drive-in, minus the cars and backseat make-out sessions. more ›

Marital disputes make great theater, and Rebecca Gilman’s latest play, The Crowd You’re In With, is no exception. However, while the play, making its Chicago premiere at the Goodman, opens with talk of periods and baby showers, it evolves into a complex look at how our friends, and others around us, can dictate the course of our lives. more ›

It’s no secret that theaters are trying to find a way to engage audiences in the recession, i.e. get people to come to their shows so that they then make money. (It’s not rocket science.) Theaters like the Goodman are probably struggling less than the low-budget storefronts since they have access to more marketing dollars to attract audiences, but we imagine they’re in a similar predicament. The Goodman just launched a new website, which while attempting to be innovative is really nothing more than a large marketing ploy. more ›

Academics and dramaturgs are trained to worship Stoppard. The mere allure of complex ideas that can be BS’d in every which way is what keeps them employed. However, when the average theatergoer gets a taste of Stoppard’s genius served up on a beautiful silver platter in Rock ‘n’ Roll at the Goodman, he tends to get confused. more ›

The Pulitzers love us, but the Tonys apparently hate us. The Goodman rushed its recent revival of Eugene O’Neil’s Desire Under the Elms to Broadway, with days to spare for Tony consideration, only to receive NO Tony nominations. What is this madness, American Theatre Wing? Did you not see the house land on the stage? Did you not weep at Carla Gugino’s mesmerizing performance? Did you not witness Robert Falls breathtaking direction? Why no love? more ›

We know Chicago is famous for the intimate storefront scene and the omnipresent itinerant theaters, but the powerhouses also have some good stuff to offer. And no, you’re not selling your theatrical soul if you actually enjoy Broadway In Chicago. We do, but sometimes it’s cost, not quality, that prevents us from attending, as we’re sure you understand. So here’s a handful of ways to get cheap cheaper tickets to some of Chicago’s iconic thespian hangouts. more ›

Chicago theater has done it again. After the international success of Tracy Lett’s Pulitzer Prize-winning August: Osage County, Lynn Nottage won the 2009 Pulitzer for her play Ruined, which premiered at the Goodman Theatre last fall. We don’t like to brag, but two Pulitzers in two years is a pretty good record. more ›

Drum roll, please: Lynn Nottage's play "Ruined," which premiered at the Goodman Theatre, is the winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. “Ruined” is set in Congo and details the horrors of wartime rape and brutality while still finding affirmation of life and hope amid despair. more ›

Today marked the third and final performance of Greg Allen's take on the Eugene O'Neill epic Strange Interlude. We saw it last night and it was not your typical evening at the Goodman Theatre, involving as it did the singing of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and a sex scene with a Cabbage Patch Kid. In true Neofuturist fashion, Allen's adaptation took the play completely apart and then put it back together in ways that a lot of audience members found shocking. In fact hecklers attempted to disrupt the first two performances, shouting "Why are you butchering this play?" and "You don't know how to do O'Neill!" Yet at the end of Saturday's show there was a standing ovation. more ›

Just as the hullabaloo surrounding last year’s “it” play August: Osage County dies down, Chicago takes on the Great White Way for a second time with the Goodman Theatre’s production of Eugene O’Neill’s Desire Under the Elms. The show is scheduled to start performances on April 14 at the St. James Theatre with opening night on April 27, making the Tony Award eligibility cutoff by 3 days. more ›

The Wooster Group's production of Eugene O'Neill's 1920s play The Emperor Jones opened last night at the Goodman Theatre to a sold out crowd, despite the boycott initiated hours earlier by local publishing company and African-American activist group, Third World Press. The organization objects to the use of a white actress in blackface playing the leading role, which they believe mimics 19th century-style minstrelsy. more ›

The timing of this Goodman Theatre production sure is right on the money. "The gas station that inspired the play----which was on the corner of Lincoln and Berteau Streets on the North Side--closed, and I was sort of flabbergasted. I'd lived in the neighborhood for a long time, and Gas For Less was a landmark," explains playwright Brett Neveu. "When the station closed, I asked around to find out what happened. I heard that the owners couldn't afford to buy gas anymore." Neveu's play centers around his fictionalized version of this gas station; but it could take place in a neighborhood bar, or an indie coffeehouse, or any other homegrown business that's threatened with extinction when an area starts to gentrify. What do people do when a neigborhood landmark that's been there for decades suddenly disappears? Where do they go? more ›

Love fades. Existence kills our dreams. It’s all shite in the end anyway. more ›

In his new memoir/cookbook Tastes Like Cuba: An Exile's Hunger for Home, author and playwright Eduardo Machado spins a nostalgic account of the Cuban exile experience, framed by meals he remembered as a child in Cuba, as an exile entering the States during the Peter Pan airlifts, as a young actor and writer and, later, on return visits to Cuba as an adult. "All my life I've been trying to get food to taste like I remembered it as a kid", Machado told Chicagoist in an interview last week. "To me, the smell of food like roast pork and tamales is my childhood." more ›