Chicago Stage Review

By J. Scott Hill

The exponential growth of Chicago’s Burlesque scene over the last couple of years has made it possible for almost anyone willing to take their clothes off in public to find a paying audience. Just because someone takes their clothes off in public, however, does not make that person a Burlesque dancer. What an absolute delight it was to spend an evening with actual Burlesque dancers at The Belmont Burlesque Revue.

Our tour guides through this debauched aggregation of late night entertainments were MsPixy and her drink-slash-sidekick Giant Martini. MsPixy has been the golden goose of Chicago Burlesque for the last couple of years, writing and directing and choreographing brilliant Burlesque parody shows, such as Boobs and Goombas: A Super Mario Burlesque and Fellowship of the Boobs: A LOTR, D&D, WoW, RPG Burlesque Adventure. Back onstage with her home troupe, Belmont Burlesque, MsPixy did not perform striptease herself, though she did keep the crowd delighted as she plied her Transylvanian accent hosting and singing, and participating in another performer’s striptease (which will be discussed later). MsPixy was incredibly funny and quick with her wits, and she wrangled a difficult audience better than most local stand-ups could have.

Giant Martini, donning no less than four blue cheese stuffed olives, was not up to his straight man routine of egging MsPixy on to talk dirtier and slur her Transylvanian accent a bit as he got emptier and emptier. Ever the pro, MsPixy did manage admirably without Giant Martini’s usual eighty-proof injection of personality booster. It appears that Giant Martini is strictly on the wagon for a few months, since MsPixy is clearly knocked up. Congratulations to MsPixy and her husband, art photographer K Leo, on their pending offspring.

MsPixy and the other Belmont Burlesque Bombshells had the assistance of a gal who appears to be their new intern or apprentice, Trixi Kidd. While Ms. Kidd has done the old bump-and-grind elsewhere in other shows, she spent most of her time onstage picking up the castoffs of the other performers. She is clearly already a crowd-pleaser, even in these early stages of her, ahem, training. Given her learning curves, I predict that we shall be seeing a lot more of her very soon. (Note to self: update prescription for glasses now.)

Although the Bombshells of Belmont Burlesque pack enough of an entertainment wallop on their own to knock out any audience, the evening did include a few special guests. Lady Jack performed two slick numbers: one as the ultimate sexy maid and the other as a black-and-red clad Latin vision amped up on surf guitar music. The Amazing Tomás, a regular at many cabaret and Burlesque shows around town, brought his always-entertaining blend of comedy and magic to the party and did not disappoint. The devilish and darling Diva La Vida demonstrated that red wine is not only good for her heart, it also makes her clothing peel off and drop to the floor. Comedian Katie McVay played up the obsessiveness of her inner neurotic nebbish, falling somewhere between Willow Rosenberg and Rupert Pupkin.

The Belmont Burlesque Bombshells, however, would not be outdone in their own revue. Kitten Kaboodle seduced the crowd as she writhed around in a nightie (and progressively less) to the spy-and-surf sound of The Reverend Horton Heat’s “In Your Wildest Dreams” — me-OW. There is much more to Titi Touché than just a great pair of gams, and she showed most of that “much more” to awestruck onlookers when she stripped the light fandango to Ray Charles’s “The Nighttime is the Right Time.”

No Belmont Burlesque Revue would be complete without the lethal curves of Paris Green. Scantily costumed in a yellow-and-black nothing that made her look as much like an arch-villain as a sexy bee, Paris Green buzzed and swooped to protect her honey pot from a wily old bear (played by MsPixy), while the boogie-woogie music playing in the background gave her moves their classic rhythm. Burlesque dancing may be half role-playing, but you won’t ever find this much oomph and oolala while a-LARPing in the woods — put that in your beehive and smoke it!

The Belmont Burlesque Bombshells came together for their frilly parasol number, with the vivacious Hazel Hellbender making a guest appearance as the substitute for the preggers MsPixy. The Bombshells appeared to have just stepped out of A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte at the Art Institute and strolled over to the theatre. This tightly choreographed routine was one part Busby Berkeley and three parts Moulin Rouge, and one hundred percent charming.

If you just want to see exhibitionists bare all in a public forum, then any old Burlesque show around town will do. If, however, you want to see sensual, seasoned ecdysiasts ply their art by joyously titillating and teasing their fans with neo-vintage Burlesque hipster hip-sway, then The Belmont Burlesque Revue at Theater Wit is perfect.

4 STARS

(“The Belmont Burlesque Revue” runs monthly [next show June 22, 2013] at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave.773-975-8150)

TICKETS: The Belmont Burlesque Revue

Belmont Burlesque

Theater Wit

Belmont Burlesque Revue photos by Black Pearl Photo.

By Venus Zarris

What do we love? We love CREEPY. We love MAGIC. We love STORYTELLING. We loved a good old-fashioned POLISHED PERFORMANCE. And if that’s not enough, we love FREE. In short, we love OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW.

Oracle Productions continues its remarkable mission of providing “More free art by more artists to more people.” with their intimately sensational B*SIDES presentation of Christian Cagigal’s OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW. Cagigal delivers a marvelously mesmerizing one-man oddity by way of tales of the macabre woven into enchanting parlor tricks.

We’ve all been shown a card trick or two and they usually come with a story but consider the “pick a card, any card” variety of slight of hand child’s play compared to Cagigal mastering of peculiar prestidigitation. He’s a snake charmer and we’re the snakes. He’s the Pied Piper and we’re the mice. He’s a slick salesman and we’re buying out his eccentrically enchanting merchandise; lock, stock and barrel.

Perhaps the most brilliant element of OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW is its sublime simplicity. There are no white tigers or water chambers, rather there is an unassuming man sitting at a table with some cards and trinkets. He is sneaky, charming and oh so smart. He is playfully silly and yet dead serious in his delivery. Cagigal’s performance harkens back to a day when restraint and control created more than bombast and bravado.

OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW mixes a bit of modern technology into the ancient arts of magic and storytelling to create a fascinating theatrical hybrid. It is no wonder that the SF Weekly-Mastermind named Cagigal one of the “Ten Future Bay Area Art Icons” or that he was voted Best of the Bay by the San Francisco Bay Guardian. His performance creates a captivating suspended animation of eerie alchemy and delightful drama.

It would be thrilling to see a “late night” incarnation of this unique interlude, perhaps darker and even more haunting. As it stands, OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW is freakishly fun and family friendly. It is also an absolute must see for lovers of both magic and devilishly tall tales. Part of Oracle Productions Public Access Theatre, OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW is a free offering that proves to be a priceless opportunity for Chicago to experience this incredible talent.

 3 ½ STARS

(OBSCURA ~ A MAGIC SHOW runs through June 2 – THIS WEEKEND ONLY! – at Oracle Theatre, 3809 N. Broadway, Chicago. 773-244-2980)

Limited Seating - Reservations Recommended

TICKETS – Christian Cagigal’s OBSCURA

Oracle Productions – Free Art For All » OBSCURA

Christian Cagigal ~ Official Website 

Christian Cagigal press photos by Gil Riego Jr.

Lyric Opera of Chicago

Oklahoma!

Music by Richard Rodgers

Book and Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

By Lori Dana

How can there be musical theater without live music? That is the question many theatregoers are asking themselves these days. With the outrageously high cost of decent seats to a Broadway show, the least a production could do is feature a real live orchestra, right?

Wrong. It has become standard practice in many theaters to use recorded music, and to distract from that fact with gratuitous special effects. In an effort to engage the Internet generation, which requires a fast moving plot and plenty of eye-candy, musical theater productions have, in many cases, done away with orchestras altogether.

Not so Lyric Opera’s new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s iconic Oklahoma! This is musical theater done Grand Opera style: a no holds barred production featuring the vast resources of one of the world’s great opera companies, including the peerless talents of The Lyric Opera Chorus and Orchestra. Marvelously detailed sets, lavish costumes, and a cast that features a mix of incredible talent (award-winning Broadway stars, acclaimed Chicago theatrical veterans and a group of spectacular dancers) all rest on this rock-solid musical foundation. One realized, even before the final notes of the overture had died away, what a great sense of immediacy and humanity a full orchestra added to the Lyric production. The whole experience would have been flat and lifeless without it.

And what an experience it was! To witness the show (that many consider the progenitor of American musical theater) as its creators intended it to be seen, including Agnes de Mille’s tour de force “Dream Ballet,” was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

If you grew up in the U.S. in the 50s and 60s, you couldn’t avoid knowing the music of Oklahoma! — a turn-of-the-century romance set against the pitched battle between cattle ranchers and sodbusters for primacy on America’s western frontier. If you hadn’t seen the show yourself or performed in a school production of it, your parents probably had watched the movie version with you on television — or perhaps they had an album of hits from the Broadway production in their record collection. Such was the cultural status of this musical.

As time has passed, Oklahoma! is still a popular production for community theatres and high school drama departments. Its universal themes of romance and hope in the future, combined with a uniquely American enthusiasm for growth and change continue to appeal, and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s incredibly expansive score is no less infectious and engaging than it was seventy years ago. In short, Oklahoma!  just never seems to grow old. An outstanding cast in the Lyric presentation brings new life and relevancy to a work that conceived of the musical as living history and the embodiment of American democracy and patriotism when it premiered in 1943 at the height of the Second World War. In addition to its relevance as historical depiction, it’s also good old-fashioned entertainment.

The spirited and funny characterizations in Oklahoma! are sure to be recognized by any American audience. John Cudia and Ashley Brown are Curly and Laurey, the dreamers striving to succeed on the wide-open frontier; Curtis Holbrook and Tari Kelley are Will Parker and Ado Annie Carnes, their loveable, more plebeian counterparts. All have sterling Broadway credits, Cudia in Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables, Brown originating the role of Mary Poppins in that long running hit. Cudia’s rich tenor and Brown’s somewhat operatic soprano complement each other in a most pleasing way and their lively sparring adds just the right amount of sexual tension to the mix, albeit in a sly 1950s way that is surprisingly refreshing. Will and Ado Annie are more unvarnished, and their hilarious banter adds earthy spice to the mix. Annie’s vacillating between the ardor of Will and the Persian peddler Ali Hakim (uproariously played to perfection by Usman Ally) adds levity to the story at all the right moments.

Supported with strong performances by Chicago veteran Paula Scrofano as Aunt Eller and David Adam Moore as the sinister Jud Fry, Lyric Opera has their Oklahoma! cast loaded for bear. Add to this the original Agnes de Mille choreography, performed by a full troupe of top-notch dancers, and you have a very unique musical theater experience.

Lyric Opera’s production has created the perfect balance: between sets that reflect the colorful but elemental aesthetic of a Grant Wood painting and richly detailed costuming, among singers and actors and dancers, between rousing chorus numbers and simple tender moments. One never feels that production values overwhelm the tremendous humanity of Oklahoma! What a great gift Lyric has given to Chicago audiences.

4 STARS

(“Oklahoma!,” presented by Lyric Opera of Chicago, runs through May 19 at the Civic Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive. 312-332-2244)

Lyric Opera of Chicago

Oklahoma! production photos by Dan Rest / Lyric Opera of Chicago.

 By J. Scott Hill

Of all of the theatre companies, Burlesque troupes, and cabarets I review, I am most frequently asked about Beast Women. “When and where can I see them?” or, more often, When and where can I see them again?” Beast Women have spent part of the last eight months on tour, but mostly they have been on hiatus. Rested and ready, the Beasties are back at the Greenhouse Theater Center for their 2013 Spring Series. Six years of fresh auditions for every Beast Women series have caused veteran performers to further refine their craft and have continually raised the bar for fresh talent.

Beast Women 2013 Spring Series was opened by the wonderful Kelsie Huff. Kelsie Huff is a standup comic on the brink of stardom. She has hours of tight material. Her narrative voice is clear. She is expert at playing off the audience. If comedians still got discovered in Chicago for anything outside of Saturday Night Live or monologue writers for talk shows, Kelsie Huff would have already been a star. See her in Chicago while you can: to further her career, she will soon enough have to relocate to either New York or Los Angeles.

Each of the dance-oriented performances on the opening night of Beast Women 2013 Spring Series combined various forms into unique art. Belly Fusion Dancer Brywn Arlwyn added elements of pop-and-lock to belly dance to create a whole new set of creative contortions. Sarah Heston brought ballet and modern dance together to construct powerful flashes of narrative, seeming to tell of a giving spirit upon whom the demand was both voracious and unceasing.

One number that really got the crowd stirred up was Miss Tamale Sepp’s performance art piece, a clever study in movement and sparks that brought striptease into the metal fabrication shop. I am not sure if she was trying to cut the lock off of her chastity belt or just adding a turbo-boost of grind to the old bump-and-grind, but her bodywork was expert.

Original Beast Woman Jillian Erickson took the audience on a rickety carnival ride through her brain in a preview of her solo show, 3:00 a.m.: Slipping Beyond the Boundaries of a Bruised Mind, which opens June 7 at Prop Thtr. Brand-new Beastie Amy Geist rocked the country with a voice that Nashville or at least American Idol should have already discovered.

Monologist and frequent Beast Women contributor Roberta Miles owned the evening among the solo acts. Roberta Miles most often performs monologues with sexual themes where nothing is off limits; this piece was about her bush starting to lose some of its, um, foliage. Earnest and hilarious, Roberta Miles was in her zone opening night.

The final act of the opening night of Beast Women 2013 Spring Series was the all-female Beastie Boys tribute band She’s Crafty. She’s Crafty is a supergroup of Chicago standups — Amy Sumpter, Maggie Jenkins, and Kendra Stevens — backed by DJ (and most excellent podcaster) Sara Tea. Somebody call a general contractor because She’s Crafty blew the roof off of the Greenhouse. A Beastie Boys tribute band comprised of Beast Women is a no-fail proposition from the start. She’s Crafty is the new MUST SEE band in Chicago. Find them. See them. Love them.

Every Beast Women show is different, so every night will have a substantially different lineup, but the Beast Women have demonstrated a consistent commitment of quality over time and genre. If the opening night of Beast Women 2013 Spring Series is an indication of most nights, you should show up every night.

3 1/2 STARS

(“Beast Women 2013 Spring Series” runs Saturdays at 10:30 p.m. through June 1 — with the new talent showcase Beast Women Rising on Sunday, May 19 at 7:00 p.m. – at the Greenhouse Theatre Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago. 773-404-7336.)

TICKETS: Beast Women 2013 Spring Series

Beast Women

Beast Women 2013 Spring Series performance images by Hunter Matthews.

By J. Scott Hill

At five foot eight and three hundred and fifty pounds, I was proportionately the fattest person at the opening of The Whale. Opening night audiences are mostly made up of industry people, and there are a limited number of Santa Clauses, Tevyes, and Nicely-Nicely Johnsons among them. I rarely stay for post-show receptions, but I had to cut through the entire length of this one to use the restroom. As I struggled my way through the Victory Gardens’s tightly packed lobby, I felt many pairs of eyes upon me, watching what the fat guy would eat from the buffet (nothing), or how many doughnuts or bags of Doritos the fat guy would stuff into his satchel for later (none). At this reception after a poignant drama centered upon a six-hundred-pound man, serving doughnuts and bags of Doritos was not funny, not even in an ironic hipster way; it was mocking, prejudiced, and hateful. This may be the fault of the caterers, however, because Director Joanie Shultz obviously takes a very thoughtful, honest look at the effects of stress eating, obesity, and overeating as slow suicide in Victory Gardens Theater’s production of The Whale. Shultz is careful never to make this show about fat; fat is sometimes a symptom of the drama and fat is sometimes a cause of the drama, but fat is not really the subject of this show. Still, I hope that Victory Gardens’s Artistic Director Chay Yew fires the caterers on artistic grounds before the opening of Mojada in July. Otherwise, the opening night guests may be served Fritos and refried beans out of novelty sombreros because some mocking, prejudiced, hateful menu planner thinks that is funny in an ironic hipster kind of way.

The hand of a brilliant director is necessary (and Director Joanie Shultz is brilliant here, make no mistake) to tell the story contained within Samuel D. Hunter’s script. The script is a little too contrived at times — for example, the title The Whale comes from the notions that the six-hundred-pound main character just happens to be deeply affected by both an essay about Moby Dick and the biblical story of Jonah. But there are some wonderful surprises, too, which I won’t reveal here as not to spoil those surprises. Samuel D. Hunter excels at presenting many of the more predictable or cliché things in The Whale in unpredictable, non-cliché ways — and that writerly gift is the salvation and the strength of this script.

Director Joanie Schultz is careful not to let us see the morbidly obese main character, Charlie, eat very much. We do see him drink soda fairly often, however, and it is always out of a large McDonald’s cup. The cinderblocks that hold up Charlie’s sagging sofa are stuffed with crumpled-up fast food bags. Set Designer Chelsea M. Warren and Prop Designer Sarah Burnham were very careful to balance an unkempt, junky look with the open space necessary for a man as large as Charlie to get around.

Charlie is played by veteran Chicago actor Dale Calandra in an extremely convincing fat suit. Charlie is the role of a lifetime for Dale Calandra. Charlie teaches writing online without appearing on a webcam, so that his students can not see his physical form. Charlie was married with one daughter before he could admit to himself that he was gay. Charlie started down the path of extreme weight gain after his long-time lover died. Charlie is a sad man and is, on balance, getting sadder over time. His peaks get less high and his valleys get deeper. He lives in the pit of despair and he is filling that pit with cortisol and food. Calandra plays Charlie with purpose, so much purpose that it takes a while for the story to unfold to where the audience can see why he could live with so much purpose and still let himself deteriorate to such a terrible state. Dale Calandra’s Charlie feels everything. In Calandra’s portrayal, Charlie has worried himself into a corner, eaten himself into a wheelchair, and nearly grieved himself into the grave. This is a monumental performance by Dale Calandra: expect his name on all the Best Actor lists when awards season comes around.

The show has a terrific ensemble, with a standout performance by Cheryl Graeff as Charlie’s friend/nurse/enabler Liz. Graeff plays Charlie’s friend like she is Valerie Harper, his nurse like she is Thelma Ritter, and his enabler like she is Colonel Sanders. Cheryl Graeff does a tender and cantankerous dance of trying to keep Charlie happy and healthy — which have become seemingly mutually exclusive.

Patricia Kane as Charlie’s estranged ex-wife Mary and Leah Karpel as Charlie and Mary’s daughter Ellie are burdened with looking at Charlie’s enormity through society’s eyes. Patricia Kane does a lot with very few lines and displays a modicum of sympathy. Leah Karpel takes a lot of lines that do not seem like they should be coming out of this teenage girl’s mouth and owns them, displaying a seething contempt for difference that speaks volumes about her character’s own innermost concept of self.

As Elder Thomas, Will Allan displays exponentially more doubt here than the typical Mormon teen on their mission, at times channeling a frazzled Gene Wilder. Will Allan is one of several terrific actors who broke big in TimeLine’s 2009 mega-hit production of The History Boys. Allan is excellent as Elder Thomas, but he is too old for the part and he looks too old for the part. He was excellent as, but too old to be playing, Billy in Remy Bumppo’s 2011 production of The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? Allan is off to the Yale School of Drama this fall to pursue his MFA, so he may only have one or two more shows here in Chicago. Still, Casting Directors, Will Allan is a fine actor and a grown-ass man, so start casting him accordingly.

The overall effect of Victory Gardens’s production of The Whale is that Samuel D. Hunter’s hit-and-miss (but mostly hit) script is elevated by Joanie Shultz’s careful direction. In turn, Joanie Shultz’s direction is elevated by a dream ensemble, and that dream ensemble is led by Dale Calandra in a heart-wrenching, momentous performance. This production has a complicated relationship to the Ideal, but so does real life.

3 1/2 STARS

(“The Whale” runs through May 5 at Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 North Lincoln Ave. 773-871-3000.)

The Whale – Victory Gardens Theater

The Whale production images by Michael Brosilow.

By J. Scott Hill

The Second City is a victim of its own success. With more than fifty years as the world leader in improv-generated sketch comedy, The Second City has itself set the standards to which its shows must be held. If Let Them Eat Chaos were the new revue from the number one sketch comedy source in Wichita, Kansas, then this might have been a rave review. Let Them Eat Chaos, however, is the new revue on The Second City Mainstage, and, as such, does not live up to the standard that has been set for half a century upon those hallowed boards. Let Them Eat Chaos is like a typical graduation show from one of the Training Program classes. This is not to say that the show isn’t funny. Let Them Eat Chaos has a lot of laughs. The Second City should be a spa for the human soul, and a show there should feel like a mud bath: glorious, heavy, dirty, working its way into the dark recesses and uncomfortable places, some of it may even stick with you for a long time afterward. Let Them Eat Chaos is more like an alcohol rubdown: it feels cool, even refreshing at times, but it quickly evaporates into nothing leaving no residual traces at all.

The topics of the mostly tame sketches in Let Them Eat Chaos include: looking at how life can pass someone by while they are texting, the true origin of the Panama Canal, a sailor meeting a gal at a USO dance before going off to fight in World War II, telenovelas, and little kids drawing cats. While some of these sketches are a bit esoteric, none of them is particularly edgy. The most tightly written sketch in the show is a rap with two emcees — a socially conscious African American rapper (played by the supremely talented Edgar Blackmon), who lays down some deft rhymes only to throw to the privileged white emcee (solid utility player Ross Bryant) who raps about petty inconveniences faced by upper middle-class technophiles.

Sometimes, a revue at The Second City seems to be designed to showcase a certain player or players; if Let Them Eat Chaos can be said to have a star, it is Katie Rich, and it sure feels like she is being aimed directly at Lorne Michaels. Katie Rich is frequently charming, and dominates the better sketches in Let Them Eat Chaos. This is an ensemble heavy with performance skills. Unfortunately, the writing here is too safe to launch anyone’s career into the stratosphere just yet.

Let Them Eat Chaos is entertaining, but unfrenzied and certainly not chaotic. With no chaos being served up, the audience is expected to eat up the sketch comedy equivalent of pub grub in a venue that should never offer such standard fare.

2 1/2 STARS

(“Let Them Eat Chaos” is in OPEN RUN at The Second City Mainstage, 1616 North Wells Street. 312-337-3992.)

The Second City

Let Them Eat Chaos production photos by Clayton Hauck.

Lyric Opera of Chicago

A Streetcar Named Desire

By André Previn

By Lori Dana

If we are fortunate, the current revival of this San Francisco Opera production is a harbinger of more contemporary works appearing consistently at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Though some may consider A Streetcar Named Desire more akin to a stage play than to the traditional concept of an opera, American composer André Previn and librettist Phillip Littell have successfully distilled Tennessee Williams’s classic tale of passion and madness, memory and harsh reality into a compelling musical work of visual and literary power — without sacrificing any of Williams’s craft.

Played out on a set that seems very flat on the cavernous Lyric stage, Streetcar also presents the Lyric Opera Orchestra not in the pit as we might expect, but on the stage, creating what initially seems an odd backdrop for the drama unfolding in the foreground. Deftly negotiating Previn’s ominous score with it’s jazzy note-bending motifs and languorous passages of distinct longing, the orchestra acts as a Greek chorus witnessing the tragic events, as well as providing a physical sense of the Kowalski’s crowded tenement, simmering in the steamy New Orleans heat.

Because Tennessee Williams’s story of self delusion, fraternal love and sexual dominance is iconic in the American mind, Previn and Littell are free to further explore his characters, particularly Stella (soprano Susanna Phillips) and Harold “Mitch” Mitchell (Anthony Dean Griffey).

Phillips rich voice and earthy presence fit lusty Stella like a satin slip, and Griffey’s compassionate interpretation and warm, supple tenor bring new dimension to the role of Blanche Dubois’s would-be suitor, a character that has been more often played as hapless victim. Teddy Tahu Rhodes as Stanley Kowalski seemed an odd choice. Both physically (we found his shaved head disconcerting against a 1940′s backdrop) and vocally, the South African baritone was ill suited to the role. His pinched diction and tone were out of character for the bullish, brutal husband; and only when he demonstrated the full power of his voice during Stanley’s rages did his talents seem up to the task.

Though there was some grumbling among the opera faithful regarding the paucity of arias in Previn’s composition, we found the music compelling, and the vocal interpretations appropriate for the modern audience. The conversational cadence of sung dialog punctuated with spoken phrases, was particularly effective. In addition, the shadowy characters of Blanche’s dead husband and mother as vehicles for memory also worked well. Book-ended by outbursts of violence that defined Stanley for the audience, the story was well paced, with scene changes accomplished by skillful lighting and minimal moving of props by Stanley’s crew of bare-chested stevedores. These men also played a crucial role in the staging of Blanche’s rape, a heaving crowd bathed in red light. The visceral recoil of women in the audience was palpable.

Brilliant American diva Reneé Fleming was electrifying as Blanche, in this vehicle that was specifically crafted for her by maestro Previn. The consummate singing actress, Ms. Fleming’s understated performance in Act I built effectively to a stunning final act. Although her vocal range may not be what it was at the height of her career, her impressive interpretive skills, timing and deft physical acting proved a thrilling combination, and her voice still strong and velvety, did not disappoint. The sold-out status of these performances is testament to the audience both for Ms. Fleming’s considerable talents, and for more contemporary productions in the Lyric repertoire. We hope this is a trend to build future audiences, and one that in coming seasons will be offered not only to subscribers, but also to the rest of us.

4 STARS

(“A Streetcar Named Desire” runs through April 6 at the Lyric Opera, 20 N. Wacker Drive. 312-332-2244)

Lyric Opera of Chicago

A Streetcar Named Desire production photos by Todd Rosenberg Photography / Lyric Opera of Chicago.

By J. Scott Hill

As Julius Caesar closes at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, another production of Julius Caesar opens at Raven Theatre — the latter an all-female production from Babes With Blades Theatre Company. These two productions could not be more different from one another, yet complement each other well.

In my review of Chicago Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, I took issue with how the Battle of Philippi played itself out on Navy Pier; I have no such issue with how the Battle of Philippi plays itself out in Edgewater. The one guarantee at a Babes With Blades show is staged melee combat at its most ebullient. Violence Designer Libby Beyreis does an outstanding job guiding these galvanic gals through a series of brutal battles as the Triumvirs pursue the Liberators across northern Greece.

Costume designer Kimberly G. Morris has developed a completely original polycultural aesthetic for Julius Caesar. By combining classical Roman dress with elements borrowed from ancient Persia and from India (and elsewhere), Morris has helped to lift this production out of the story’s specific historical context, allowing this piece of theatre to exist beyond the usual restrictions of time and place.

The ensemble is solid, and several performers distinguish themselves, even in small roles. Jennifer L. Mickelson’s looming Cinna, Ashley Fox’s wide-eyed Lucius, and Kim Fukawa’s panicked Portia all stand out from the rich background of ancillary characters.

Alison Dornheggen’s refreshing take on Casca is more magpie than hawk. Antony is played by Diana Coates with the cunning of a mongoose, the duplicity of a used car dealer, and the ambition of Icarus.

Julius Caesar is nothing without Julius Caesar, and as Julius Caesar, Maureen Yasko is really something. Yasko gives Caesar the look and feel of a contemporary leader who is even more simultaneously beloved and divisive than the leaders of today. Maureen Yasko gets my vote.

If Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar could be said to have a single lead character, then it would be Brutus. Kimberly Logan gives a wonderfully dynamic performance as Brutus. From reluctant conspirator, to leader of the conspiracy, to persuader of an empire, to general in the field, Logan’s Brutus is constantly changing, constantly becoming. Without a strong Brutus, the last third of Julius Caesar would be reduced to an exercise in stage choreography; Kimberly Logan gives the Battle of Philippi scenes in particular the competent, confident authority figure needed to carry the dramatic weight of those scenes.

With a total budget no doubt less than what Chicago Shakespeare Theater pays its Artistic Director every month, Babes With Blades Theatre Company has created a production of Julius Caesar that is on balance equal to Chicago Shakespeare’s recent production of the same play. With fantastic fight choreography, an enchanting ensemble, and the praiseworthy performances of Maureen Yasko and Kimberly Logan, the Babes With Blades’s Julius Caesar rules.

3 STARS

(“Julius Caesar,” produced by Babes With Blades Theatre Company, runs through April 20 at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark St. 773-904-0391)

Babes With Blades – Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar production photos by Johnny Knight.

* Visit Theatre In Chicago for more information on this show. Julius Caesar - Raven Theatre – Play Detail – Theatre In Chicago

By Venus Zarris

Shakespeare’s plays are like magic spells that can be delivered in a way that is as benign as a nonbeliever flippantly saying “abracadabra hocus pocus” or as potent as Merlin conjuring dragon breathe. In Goodman Theatre’s beguiling reimagining of Measure For Measure, director Robert Falls does more than recite the familiar incantations. Rather, he travels through time to extract potent new ingredients and then boils them in an eccentric cauldron. Seasoned with mirth and whimsy, and charged with erotic decadence; this strange brew hypnotizes the audience before culminating in an unpredictable hex.

“Tis one thing to be tempted, another thing to fall.”

Measure For Measure has been labeled one of Shakespeare’s problem plays, as it falls under the classification of a comedy yet deals with deeper subject matter than his other comedic offerings. The Duke takes a sabbatical from his post, leaving his deputy in charge. Angelo is a judge known for his righteous severity and is determined to clean up immorality during his tenure. He sentences Claudio to death on a technicality for impregnating his fiancée. Claudio then asks his sister Isabella, a novice nun, to beg Angelo for mercy. Isabella is articulate and sincere. Angelo is smitten with lust and offers her the deal of Isabella’s virginity for her brother Claudio’s life.

The Duke has never actually left town. He disguises himself as a priest to spy on the city and Angelo. When Isabella tells him of Angelo’s vile plea bargain, the Duke sets a twisted trap. After much mayhem, the Duke reveals himself and ultimately resolves Claudio’s crisis but presents a new one for Isabella. Shakespeare is not kind to the character of Isabella and rather than letting the play’s final twist fade, Falls inserts a Tarantino turn that leaves the audience flabbergasted. It is a shockingly sublime conclusion to this irreverently enticing interpretation.

From the unprecedentedly obscene opening to the dear-caught-in-the headlights finale, Goodman’s Measure For Measure is a perfectly bizarre and lavishly lewd theatrical feast. The atmosphere is set with menacing camp that supports the humor and enhances the wicked vice. Composer/Sound Designer Richard Woodbury does more with disco to set the strange mood than any other single element of the production, striking a mesmerizing balance between sordid sex and stylized silly that builds the dramatic tension to its explosive climax.

The ensemble is outstanding but the three main ingredients of humor, morality and corruption are brilliantly embodied by Jeffrey Carlson, as Lucio, Jay Whittaker, as Angelo and Alejandra Escalante, as Isabella.

Carlson’s comic timing and irreverent interpretation of Lucio, a meddling man-about-town, infuse the production with hysterically intelligent laugh-out-loud comedy. He plays Lucio with broad eccentricity and sophisticated naughtiness.

There is nothing new under the sun about the internal corruption of a self-righteous leader, but Whittaker gives Angelo just enough soul to be something more than simply a lecherous two-dimensional villain. His genuine personal conflict is simultaneously funny and pathetic, but does not diminish his dangerous depravation.

Isabella is the moral compass of his immoral story and Escalante grounds the wild-eyed production with emotional fidelity. Without her, Measure For Measure might be little more than questionable characters behaving badly. Isabella possesses absolute integrity in this playground of delinquency and Escalante creates a fully realized saint. Functioning with moral authenticity in an environment of absolute baseness, she could easily be played as a stoic prude but Escalante realizes a wonderfully warm, intelligent, genuine and troubled soul. As much as we love the sinners, miraculously we love Isabella even more.

Director Robert Falls has shockingly thrown convention by the wayside and in doing so, uncovered a more emotionally rich and theatrically enchanting Measure For Measure than one might believe to be possible. If you are a purist that pains at the thought of tampering with the Bard, then this Measure For Measure will be a nightmare of scandalous excess. If your mind is open to the magic of mixing stagecraft with depravity, then this Measure For Measure will be a dark deviation into delightfully resplendent debauchery. Do not miss this rare and wonderful theatrical triumph. This is Goodman Theatre at its bravest and best.

4 STARS

(“Measure For Measure” runs through April 14 at Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn Street, Chicago. 312-443-3800)

Measure for Measure ~ Goodman Theatre

Measure For Measure production photos by Liz Lauren.

Goodman Theatre marquee image by Venus Zarris.

Lyric Opera of Chicago

La Bohéme

By Giacomo Puccini

By Lori Dana

Mounting a production of La Bohéme must be a little like doing a remake of a classic Hollywood film. Because the material is iconic, there is always the risk of disappointment. Will the production measure up to its legendary predecessors or more to the point, can it possibly measure up to the audience’s expectation of what the ultimate romantic opera should be? Lyric Opera’s current production of Puccini’s ageless work answers that question with an emphatic “yes”.  Oh yes, it can.

Lyric has lined up an impressive artistic team in director Louisa Muller and conductor Emmanuel Villaume. Muller, who makes her Lyric directorial debut with this production, has worked alongside international talents like Sir David McVicar and Giancarlo del Monaco at the Metropolitan Opera, and Villaume, the conductor of two esteemed European orchestras is an opera specialist, having directed countless productions of French repertoire, as well as several recent productions of La Bohéme. Into their capable hands Lyric has delivered top-notch vocal talent, including the outstanding Lyric chorus, and the wonderfully fresh voices of the Chicago Children’s Choir. And then there are the stars.

The title, too frequently applied in a perfunctory manner, is rarely as appropriate as in the case of Lyric Opera’s current Rodolfo and Mimí. Maltese tenor Joseph Calleja’s prominent vibrato gives his voice a distinct Italianate quality, and his musical sensitivity and dramatic vocal personality seem uniquely suited to Puccini and to his costar. In her eagerly anticipated Chicago debut, reigning international diva Anna Netrebko is nothing short of spectacular. With a smoldering beauty and emotional resonance more than reminiscent of the legendary Callas, this Russian soprano is justifiably the hottest thing on the boards right now. With 13 Met roles (as well as acclaimed performances at virtually all the major European opera houses) to her credit, she exudes an intoxicating calm on stage. She inhabits her role with such a disarming natural grace, that when the time arrives for her voice to take center stage, it literally takes our breath away as we are caught off guard again and again by it’s passion and beauty. These two singing actors and their talented peers make us feel as though their story is being told for the very first time, and they make it sparkle. Although exceptional vocal prowess is at the forefront of this Bohéme, it becomes immediately evident that what gives this production its heart and soul is a captivating blend of the golden voices and effortless, genuine emotion of its characters. Drawing us further into their world is the incomparable Lyric Opera Orchestra, at their very finest interpreting this beloved score, under Emmanuel Villaume’s fresh and impassioned direction.

The first scene opens with a quartet of superlative male singer-actors, comprising the group of young bohemians who surround Rodolfo. In addition to Calleja’s poet, Lucas Meacham (baritone), Joseph Lim (baritone) and il divino Andrea Silvestrelli (bass), are his writer and artist buddies. It’s Christmas Eve in Paris and the mood in Rodolfo’s tiny Latin Quarter garret is lighthearted and playful. As Rodolfo sacrifices his latest manuscript to stoke their fire, the young men debate how they might celebrate with the meager resources at hand. Younger audience members will recognize their easy camaraderie and convivial banter as something akin to say, Friends, or even The Big Bang Theory. They are just a bunch of young guys getting by and having a good time. Schaunard, the musician in the group (Lim), has scored a Christmas Eve gig and is flush with a little cash. He has convinced Rodolfo, Marcello and Colline to pool their money and enjoy an evening’s repast at a local café. Rodolfo stays behind to finish writing, promising to meet his friends later, and that is the moment when his downstairs neighbor, the lovely and fragile seamstress Mimí, comes into his life. In the world of opera, love always seems to hit like a thunderbolt. Mimí has come looking for someone to relight her candle, but as she turns to leave, she realizes she has dropped her key. A breeze through the open door of Rodolfo’s garret extinguishes her candle a second time. Fumbling in the dark for the key, their hands touch. Rodolfo suggests they wait for the moon to come up, in hopes that its light will make the search for the key easier. In the skilled hands of lighting master Duane Schuller and set designer Michael Yeargan, the shabby garret gradually becomes a glowing lantern floating in a moonlit sky. All it takes is a glimpse of Mimi’s fragile beauty under the moon’s gaze and Rodolfo is smitten! The enraptured duet that follows (O soave fanciulla) is one of opera’s most beloved, and is surely one of the reasons we fall in love with the great tenors. The lightness of the director’s hand is evident here, letting the lushly romantic setting and Puccini’s magnificent score carry the scene without soggy sentimentality.

Rodolfo, who suddenly can’t bear to be parted from Mimí, invites her to dinner with his friends. Soon, the happy couple has been swept up in the tumble of Christmas Eve shoppers crowding the narrow streets and alleys of the Latin Quarter. In sharp contrast to the intimacy of the garret scenes, this is full-blown Grand Opera; a huge, richly detailed street scene populated by the singers of the Lyric Chorus and the sweet, happy voices of the Chicago Children’s choir, street vendors, jugglers and pickpockets. Rodolfo and Mimí join Marcello, Colline and Schaunard in the warm glow of the café. It is here that we are introduced to Marcello’s former love, who has arrived at the restaurant with her patron, an elderly gentleman. Ryan Opera Center alum Elizabeth Futral (soprano) is a charming and coquettish Musetta, full of vinegar and sexual bravado. Futral sashays through her signature, Quando m’en vo, with admirable panache. Sending her sugar daddy out into the crowd to buy her some shoes, Musetta dances into the night with Marcello and his friends, leaving the old man to pay their bills.

Of course, the magic of Christmas Eve cannot last, and the final acts find the young men disgruntled, and the young ladies in search of wealthier patrons to support them. But Mimí’s fragile health is failing and she wants nothing more than to die in the arms of her true love. After many months apart, Rodolfo still cannot forget her, and he is relieved when Musetta appears at his door with the desperately ill Mimí. We all know she is dying, all but Rodolfo who is blinded by his love.  The tears that appeared in the audience as the lovers sang their first duet are in evidence again now, both women and men openly weeping. Real desire, real passion, real emotion flow from the stage on a wave of incomparable music. This is the transformative power of art. Brava, Lyric.

4 STARS

(“La Bohéme” runs through March 28 at the Lyric Opera, 20 N. Wacker Drive. 312-332-2244)

Lyric Opera of Chicago

La Bohéme production photos by Dan Rest.