Auditorium Hunting for Topper in ChiCiting personal reasons, Dulcie Gilmore, the theater's executive director since 1987, has submitted her resignation to the Auditorium's governing council.8/10/1997 11:00pm PT
That's Christmas!Mandalay Live! has dropped a bundle of money into this new song-and-dance revue intended to offer Chicagoans something along the lines of what New York's Radio City Music Hall has provided for decades during the holiday season. And judged solely on its bigness, "That's Christmas!" more than justifies the pricey $ 60 top tickets. But for all its lavishness, "That's Christmas!" comes up short in providing what should be the most important part of any holiday show - some genuine heart and real sentiment1/4/1997 11:00pm PT
That's Christmas!Starring Sandy Duncan and Darlene Love.12/22/1996 11:00pm PT
Chi Awards: And the Winners AreThe change will begin with the 28th annual Jeff Awards on Nov. 11.10/13/1996 11:00pm PT
Doo Wop Shoo BopCo-creators Jackie Taylor and Jimmy Tillman have devised a peppy stroll down memory lane for fans of a particular style of 1950s music performed by black singers such as Dinah Washington, Ruth Brown, the Platters and the Moonglows.3/10/1996 11:00pm PT
The LibertineJohn Malkovich is back home at Steppenwolf, selling out the house nightly in the American premiere of Stephen Jeffreys' disappointing "The Libertine," which premiered in 1994 at London's Royal Court Theatre.3/10/1996 11:00pm PT
Pope JoanMusical numbers: "Pope Joan Overture," "Holy Ghost One," "This Church Will Stand," "My Priest," "Holy Ghost Two," "A Sad and Tragic History," "The Englishman's Daughter," "Stand With Me," "Alone Together," "The Forum in Rome, " "The Healing," "Only One," "Another Rome," "Man of the Moment," "Coronation," "This Is the Hour," "Les Enfants," "Pray With You," "A Thousand Years from Now," "A Hill Called the Vatican," "Finale."3/3/1996 11:00pm PT
CarouselThough the Royal National Theater's lauded revival of "Carousel" lasted less than a year on Broadway, it has nonetheless gone out on the road under Columbia Artists Management Inc.'s auspices. Audiences accustomed to taking their Rodgers and Hammerstein with lots of sugar will undoubtedly find director Nicholas Hytner's dramatic rethinking of "Carousel" a surprising departure.3/3/1996 11:00pm PT
Unmerciful Good FortuneEdwin Sanchez has attracted considerable attention on the East Coast with a couple of provocative, edgy works, including "Clean" and "Trafficking in Broken Hearts." But Sanchez's reputation certainly won't get a boost from "Unmerciful Good Fortune," a mess of a play that is being given its world premiere in a joint venture between Victory Gardens and Northlight theaters, with an assist from AT&T's Onstage program.2/11/1996 11:00pm PT
S/m: A Dream BiographyDirector-adaptor Mary Zimmerman is back with another literary adaptation of the type that has become an all-too-familiar staple on the Chi theatrical menu. Like most of Zimmerman's other work in this genre, "S/M" suffers from a wordy pretentiousness that deflates the production at every step along its twisted way.2/11/1996 11:00pm PT
Everyman"Everyman" is director Frank Galati's second major assignment with the Steppenwolf troupe in just six months. Last summer his stage adaptation of William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying" failed to generate much excitement, and his mostly lifeless take on this seldom-seen medieval text isn't likely to fare much better.12/17/1995 11:00pm PT
I Hate HamletPaul Rudnick's lightweight "I Hate Hamlet" has finally reached Chicago, where it will be up against some stiff competition in both the commercial and nonprofit arenas, to say nothing of the nightly TV offerings.12/10/1995 11:00pm PT
Losing Father's BodyWhether or not she sticks with playwriting, Constance Congdon almost certainly has a future in television. She is adept at creating the kind of flaky , wacky characters that make TV sitcoms so popular.12/3/1995 11:00pm PT
OthelloShakespeare Repertory artistic director Barbara Gaines has delivered an "Othello" that, among other things, attempts to interpret the play as a commentary on racism. In her production notes, Gaines say she "finds the pervasive and incessant clash of two cultures" at the heart of Shakespeare's tragedy.12/3/1995 11:00pm PT
With and WithoutJeffrey Sweet's new work is solid, craftsmanlike playwriting at its finest. "With and Without" isn't an ambitious piece likely to make a major mark in the theatrical world, but for a little more than 90 intermissionless minutes, Sweet's somewhat old-fashioned play deftly explores the tricky, often unpleasant dynamics of that demanding relationship known as marriage.12/3/1995 11:00pm PT
Resident - Tom and JerryRick Cleveland's "Tom and Jerry," a short, incomplete piece about two blue-collar Chicago hit men, has been given a first-rate world premiere by the American Blues Theatre.11/12/1995 11:00pm PT
Almost BlueIn "Almost Blue," playwright Keith Reddin has penned a work that mimics film noir in both style and subject matter. Weird characters, ominous settings and strange plot twists abound, though Reddin hasn't managed to tie it all together in a way that totally satisfies.10/15/1995 11:00pm PT
Never the SinnerJohn Logan's "Never the Sinner," a taut examination of the curious relationship between convicted killers Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, premiered in Chicago in 1985 in a superb production directed by Terry McCabe at the now-defunct Stormfield Theater. Victory Gardens Theater is reviving Logan's first and best play to date with McCabe reprising his directorial chores.10/15/1995 11:00pm PT
Celimene and the CardinalCourt Theater ended its 1994-95 season with fine productions of Moliere's "The Misanthrope" and Stoppard's "Travesties" in rotating rep. Court artistic director Charles Newell has opted to open the new season with the world premiere of an English-lingo adaptation of Jacques Rampal's "Celimene and the Cardinal," a play first presented in French in Paris in 1992.10/15/1995 11:00pm PT
Buried ChildWith new artistic and managing directors, the Steppenwolf Theater Co. has launched its 20 th-anniversary season with a high-strung revival of Sam Shepard's 1979 Pulitzer Prize-winning "Buried Child." Directed by Steppenwolf co-founder and rising Hollywood star Gary Sinise, the evening is in many ways a nostalgic throwback to what initially earned the talented Steppenwolf ensemble a prominent position in the theater world. Crackling with energy and full of splashy performances, Sinise's take on Shepard's grimly funny play is never boring.10/8/1995 11:00pm PT
Gertrude Stein: Each One As She MayReginald Robinson3/12/1995 11:00pm PT
Seven GuitarsWhat was growing increasingly apparent in some of August Wilson's recent works is clearly evident in his newest, "Seven Guitars." One of America's most gifted playwrights needs a good editor.1/29/1995 11:00pm PT
Once in a LifetimeCharles Newell says he chose this vintage 1930s Kaufman & Hart comedy to launch his tenure as the Court Theater's new artistic director because the play's themes of seizing opportunities and taking chances parallel his own excitement at taking the reins at the Court.11/13/1994 11:00pm PT
A Clockwork OrangeSteppenwolf's attempt to stage Anthony Burgess' cult classic novel is an unfortunate example of an abundance of theatrical spectacle masking serious performance problems.10/30/1994 11:00pm PT
The Merchant of VeniceAlso with: Tyrone Beasley, Lori Tan Chinn, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Del Close, David Anzuelo, Portia Johnson, Anjul Nigam, Ernest Perry Jr.10/23/1994 11:00pm PT
Angels in AmericaAmid much speculation about how it would perform at the box office here and elsewhere around the country, the first national touring company of Tony Kushner's impressively written epic "Angels in America" has begun its journey in the intimate Royal George Theater with an advance ticket sale of almost $740,000.10/16/1994 11:00pm PT
Talking HeadsAlan Bennett penned these three monologues for British television, where they aired in the late 1980s. But as evidenced in this Steppenwolf production of "Talking Heads," the exquisitely crafted material translates extremely well to the stage when placed in the right hands.7/30/1994 11:00pm PT
The Phantom of the Country PalaceGabriella/ Musical numbers:"La Forza del vino et morte,""Someone Is Calling Me Home, ""Did You Want to Hear a Country Tune?,""Hog Butcher's Daughter,""For Better, for Worse,""Antonio's Telegram,""Country Music Is My Home,""Two Roads Meet,""For Better, for Worse" (reprise), "Antonio's Telegram II,""Country Music Is My Home" (reprise), "Missin' Men,""Does Your Daddy Know You Like to Kiss the Cowboys?, ""Train of Adolescence,""If I Could Hold You,""Country Music Is My Home" (reprise), "Night of Terror,""An Open Door,""God Save Our Glorious Queen,""Ghost Town,""Mort's Telegram,""Spaghetti Western,""Hog Butcher's Daughter" (reprise), "Calling Me Home,""Maybe When You're Older,""If I Could Hold You" (reprise).7/24/1994 11:00pm PT
The Phantom of the Country PalaceGabriella/ #With: Curt Dale Clark, Maria Santucci, Joan Krause, Pamela Harden, Dale Morgan, Catherine Lord, Anne Gunn, Scott Fedderly, Elizabeth Heath Fauntleroy, Jonathan Weir, Guy Adkins.7/24/1994 11:00pm PT
Baby That's Rock 'N' Roll: The Songs of Leiber and StollerThis loud, Broadway-bound, intermissionless musical journey through the songs of rock 'n' roll tunesmiths Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller is badly in need of a director and choreographer with a better sense of theatrical staging.7/10/1994 11:00pm PT
Camel Gossip IIIAn improvisational theater company founded in the Netherlands in 1975, Dogtroep has performed in or on such unusual venues as airline terminals, barges , beaches and viaducts. The Intl. Theater Festival of Chicago invited the company to create an original theater piece in the newly opened Skyline Stage on Navy Pier, which juts out into Lake Michigan. The pier is in the throes of massive redevelopment, and the well-designed Skyline Stage is the first element completed.6/19/1994 11:00pm PT
Get Ready"Get Ready" is a limp script about the Doves, a '60s R&B group whose members are attempting a comeback after splitting up years ago. Jaye Stewart and Joe Plummer's book dwells incessantly on the petty, boring bickering that is hampering the Doves' efforts to regroup and hit the road again after an old tune recorded by the quintet has returned to the top of the charts.6/5/1994 11:00pm PT
Communicating DoorsAlan Ayckbourn's 46th play, receiving its North American premiere during the fifth biennial Intl. Theater Festival of Chicago, is a cleverly conceived but overly plotted work. As it now plays, Ayckbourn's excessively complicated and lengthy script is likely to frustrate audiences long before they reach the potentially satisfying conclusion of "Communicating Doors."6/5/1994 11:00pm PT
Libra Steppenwolf Theater; 500 Seats; $ 32 Top.)Serving as both adapter of Don DeLillo's acclaimed novel and director, Steppenwolf ensemble member John Malkovich has delivered what amounts to a stillborn new play.5/30/1994 11:00pm PT
Brutality of Fact"Brutality of Fact," Keith Reddin's newest work, is a good example of what is best and worst about his particular style of play writing. Reddin is a master of the facile and often funny turn of phrase, but in "Brutality" he tends to settle for superficial glibness instead of substance.3/20/1994 11:00pm PT
The Rise and Fall of Little VoiceIn its trip across the Atlantic, British playwright Jim Cartwright's "The Rise and Fall of Little Voice," a bravura study of a twisted mother-daughter relationship that debuted at the Royal National Theater in London, has grown funnier and much more poignant under the skillfully modulated direction of Simon Curtis.12/26/1993 11:00pm PT
Picasso at the Lapin AgileSteve Martin's "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" demonstrates the well-known actor/comedian/author can write funny. But Martin hasn't been able to get beyond the often corny jokes to create a satisfying play.10/24/1993 11:00pm PT
Legit Resident Cry, the Beloved CountryAlso with: Kingsley Leggs, McKinley Johnson, Dathan B. Williams, Ora Jones, Brandon Bush, Michael Bush, Bereniece Jones, JoNell Kennedy, Aisha de Haas, Ajay K. Naidu, J. Patrick McCormack, Frances Limoncelli, Michelle Elise Duffy, Raul E. Esparza, Deon Opperman, Tracy Hultgren, David Bonanno, Matthew Brennan, Anita Berry, Jeffrey L. Burish, Bonita Suzanne Hyman, Ellis Foster, Jonita Lattimore, Lyle Nicholson, Scot Reese, Robert Sims, Glen Washington, JoAnn Hawkins White and Sarah Underwood.8/1/1993 11:00pm PT
Hugh Hefner: Once Upon a TimeThis biographical documentary about Playboy Enterprises founder Hugh Hefner is a beautifully produced, respectful look at a man who succeeded beyond his wildest imaginings, living out many of the fantasies others only dream of. Though too fawning at times, the film from the production company that created "Twin Peaks" should amply satisfy audiences looking for an overview of Hefner's wild life minus much in-depth investigation of what also made it so controversial at times.10/27/1992 11:00pm PT