For musical theater die-hards (like myself), Porchlight Music Theatre’s concert reading of CHESS—a three-night-only engagement as part of the Porchlight Revisits series—is simply delightful. CHESS debuted in London in 1986 (which is the version that Porchlight has chosen to stage, in its Chicago premiere) and then was retooled, rather unsuccessfully, before moving to Broadway in 1988. This obscure musical, with lyrics and book by Tim Rice (though where the latter’s concerned, there’s not much to speak of) and music by ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, provides a great concert showcase for some very talented local Chicago actors. This sublime concert staging proves a logical vehicle for CHESS, which has an immensely complicated score but remains fuzzy plot-wise.

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Under the direction of Lee Blakeley at Lyric Opera (who originally staged this production for Paris’s Théâtre du Châtelet in 2014), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s classic musical THE KING AND I is heightened to the lavish and beautiful spectacle it deserves. This story of British school teacher Anna Leonowens who arrives in Siam to instruct the many children of the King has moments of sweeping grandiosity but also many of emotional intimacy—the Lyric’s production makes the full emotional arc a delight to watch. Visually, the creative team captures every inch of the musical’s opulence. Sue Blane’s costume designs are breathtakingly elaborate and incorporate an inspiring display of color; Anna’s magnificent hoop skirts are definitely a highlight. Jean-March Puissant’s set design also captures the grandiosity of a royal palace with many intricate details, while also giving the performers the space they need to execute Peggy Hickey’s choreography, and Rick Fisher’s lighting adds to the decadent atmosphere.

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Mercury Theater’s THE PRODUCERS Is an Uproarious Hit

As the secretary and wannabe stage actor Ulla sings in THE PRODUCERS, when you got it, flaunt it. And Mercury Theater’s production definitely got it. While the eccentric producer Max Bialystock and neurotic accountant Leo Bloom hope to put together a Broadway flop so they can take the money raised from their “little old lady” backers and run, THE PRODUCERS had me riveted in my seat and awing at the comedic talent on display all the way through. I honestly can’t remember the last time I laughed so hard at a musical, and L. Walter Stearns’s direction ensures the actors don’t miss a single potential punchline anywhere in Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan’s book.

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World Premiere of Ike Holter’s SENDER at A Red Orchid Theatre Paints A Smart, Entertaining Portrait of Emerging Adulthood

A Red Orchid Theatre’s world premiere production of SENDER, from playwright Ike Holter (EXIT STRATEGY), thrives on the contrast between order and chaos. Or, more precisely in the millennial world of the play, the tension between wanting to remain in childhood and the need to face the realities of adulthood. The crux of SENDER focuses on a group of four friends struggling with this very issue, all of whom are in various stages of growing up. One of the friends disappeared a year ago and has since been presumed dead. The twist? At the beginning of the play, he shows up–and completely offsets the balance that has been established in his absence.

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BULLETS OVER BROADWAY Supplies Rip-Roaring 1920s Fun

Porchlight’s Memorable DREAMGIRLS Will Never Leave You

Porchlight Music Theatre’s production of DREAMGIRLS is a musical theater lover’s dream. Under Brenda Didier’s direction, Henry Krieger’s score and Tom Eyen’s lyrics are delivered with a great deal of heart and power by the cast. And the intimacy of Stage 773’s Thrust performance space somehow manages to make the remarkable voices of the Dreams, the men in their lives, and their ensemble counterparts seem larger-than-life and undeniably potent. When DREAMGIRLS debuted in 1981 on Broadway, the show made Jennifer Holliday—who played the powerhouse role of the talented-but-slighted Effie White—a star. And in 2006, the film version introduced a new generation (including this reviewer) both to the musical and a new talent—Jennifer Hudson, who won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Effie. Fortunately, in Donica Lynn, Porchlight’s DREAMGIRLS has certainly found its own star.  Lynn sings the hell out of the famous Act One showstopper “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.” Her jaw-dropping take on that number alone makes this production worth seeing—Lynn delivers the song in a performance that combines vocal perfection with emotional vulnerability.

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Victory Gardens Theater’s world premiere of HILLARY AND CLINTON offers an intriguing, timely portrait of life in the public eye.

Victory Gardens Theater’s world premiere production of Lucas Hnath’s HILLARY AND CLINTON invites audiences to imagine an alternate universe, though similar to our own, in which a woman named Hillary Clinton is running for United States president. And in setting up the play this way, Hnath has crafted an intriguing, multilayered play that simultaneously is and is not about the Hillary Clinton recognizable to 2016 audiences. With direction by Victory Gardens Artistic Director Chay Yew, this play invites audiences to consider themes both intimate and expansive.

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KILL FLOOR at American Theater Company makes for bloody good theater. 

KILL FLOOR at American Theater Company is truly a killer production. Abe Koogler’s intense and poignant new play is in excellent hands in this Midwest premiere directed by Jonathan Berry. KILL FLOOR insightfully examines contemporary issues of humanity, race, and identity, and with its superb casting, also genuinely moves. This exhilarating production certainly merits the attention of any Chicago theater lover. 

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