Solitary Solidarity: Theatre Reviews from the Present to the Past

     On the evening of May 24th, 2019, I saw the first preview performance of Phil Timberlake's stage adaptation "Emma," which was based on the book by Jane Austin.  I saw this stage play at the Lifeline Theatre in Chicago, IL.  The play officially opened on June 6th, 2019 and ran until July 14th of that year.  At the time, I still lived within walking distance from the Lifeline Theatre, bought my ticket on the day of the performance, and walked over there again to see the show when evening rolled around.  While it was great to be able to walk to a theatre from my apartment, I was yet again at a point where I needed to get my life together.  Unfortunately, this affected how I felt while watching the play, and I left during intermission.       The cast of this production of "Emma" included Peter Gertas (Mr. Elton, Frank Churchill, others), Jeri Marshall (Jane Fairfax, others), Madeline Pell (Harriet Smith, others), Emma Sipora T...

      During the summer of 2005, my grandma and I went to see the off-Broadway musical comedy "Altar Boyz" at Dodger Stages in New York City.  The venue is known as New World Stages today.  Doger Stages became New World Stages in 2006, the year after my grandma and I saw "Altar Boyz."  But the show didn't close then.  Rather, it continued to run until January 10th, 2010.  It had been running since March 1st, 2005 (preview performances began February 15th of that year).  Dodger Stages opened in September of 2004.  With "Altar Boyz" having just opened a few months before Grannie and I saw it, it goes without saying that we saw the original cast.      The cast of "Altar Boyz," when Grannie and I saw the show, included Ryan Duncan (Juan), David Josefsberg (Abraham), Andy Karl (Luke), Tyler Maynard (Mark), Scott Porter (Matthew), and Shadoe Stevens (Voice of G.O.D).  Kevin Kern and Daniel Torres were the two understudies o...

      In August of 2012, I went to see the Al Kaplan / Jon Kaplan musical, or unauthorized musical parody of "Silence of the Lambs," called "SILENCE! The Musical."  We saw the production at the Elektra Theatre.  "SILENCE! The Musical" began previews at Theater 80 St. Marks on June 24th, 2011.  It officially opened on July 9th of that year and ran until July 15th, 2012.  On July 18th, 2012, "SILENCE! The Musical" reopened at the Elektra Theatre and ran until July 7th, 2013.  When I saw the show, the cast included David Garrison (Hannibal Lecter), Jenn Harris (Clarice Starling), Stephen Bienskie (Buffalo Bill), and Randy Harrison (Dr. Chilton).  The cast was funny and so was the show.  Some of the songs were pretty explicit and inappropriate.        This cast of "SILENCE! The Musical" also featured Ashlee Dupré, Annie Funke, Howard Kaye, Nick McGough, Topher Nuccio, Ronica V. Reddick, Pamela Bob, and Doug Trapp....

      In April or May of 1997, when I was almost done with 5th grade, we went on a field trip to see a performance of Chicago Playworks' "Tuck Everlasting" at the Merle Reskin Theatre of DuPaul University (formerly called the Blackstone Theatre).  This production was Mark Frattaroli's stage adaptation of Natalie Babbit's novel, and performed from April 1st through May 24th, 1997.  Ric Murphy directed the production, and his minimalist  stage techniques were inspired by Japanese Noh theater.  A term for it here was called "Handmade Theater."  What the Tuck?  Utilizing that technique was to bring magic and harmony to the storytelling.  Of course, it could also have been a way to cut production costs and save money.           Surprisingly, or maybe not-so-surprisingly, I did not keep the Stagebill from this show.  We had read the novel "Tuck Everlasting" for class, prior to going on the field trip to see the pl...

      On April 30th, 2019, I saw the opening night performance of "American Girl Live!" at the Broadway Playhouse in Chicago, IL.  The production was in town until May 12th.  I wouldn't have seen this show, but I won the Broadway in Chicago ticket lottery, and my dad only had to pay $30 for my theatre ticket.  Still, I don't usually see shows like this.  Then again, this show was a musical, so who was I to discriminate?  Strange, though, how the last show I had seen at the Broadway Playhouse was "Cruel Intentions."  It was quite a contrast.  What made the Broadway Playhouse a perfect venue for "American Girl Live!" was its close proximity to Water Tower Place, where an American Girl Place store is located.        The musical "American Girl Live!" involves girls who bring their American Girl dolls with them to an American Girl themed camp.  At the same time, the campers personify their dolls while singing mus...

    In December of 1997, my grandparents took my sister and I to see the Chicago Premiere of the "Radio City Christmas Spectacular" (starring The Rockettes) at the Rosemont Theatre in Rosemont, IL.  I was on winter break from the sixth grade of school.  I had seen the First National Tour of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" just a few weeks before.  The Chicago Premiere of the "Radio City Christmas Spectacular" was originally scheduled to perform from December 11th through 17th, 1997.  But, due to popular demand, the schedule of performances changed to December 12th through 27th, of 1997.  I don't know why December 11th was no longer a performance day.  Maybe The Rockettes needed to answer fan letters that day.  Or maybe they needed to do Christmas shopping.  Or possibly they had to celebrate New Year's Eve on December 11th because they were performing in another city that day...or...night.      The 1997 Chicago (Rosemont) E...