Tag: theater

Black Comedy

I went to this show at Above the Law theater last Sunday (November 23), and forgot to post about it. They are still running this show until December 21, so if anybody interested, you still have a chance to see it.

Whenever I attend Above the Law shows, I try to take mom with me, because it’s very close to home, and the theater is tinym so she can always see well (especially because she is always the first to be seated by the staff).

They rarely publish their show synopsis, but this time, there was an email with the following description:

Struggling sculptor Brindsley Miller and his fiance, Carol, are having a party with the aim of impressing Carol’s bombastic father, Colonel Melkett, and millionaire Georg Bamberger. They hope the two men might purchase some of Brindsley’s sculptures. Without permission, they have borrowed the furniture of their fussy neighbor, Harold, to make their own flat more presentable. Just before the guests arrive, the main fuse blows, plunging the flat into darkness. What follows is a frantic romp with unexpected visitors, mistaken identities, and surprises lurking in every dark corner. Only we, the audience, can see the action that ensues in the dark. As you might expect, the results are chaotic, disastrous and downright hysterical.

If I won’t read this description it would be impossible to understand what’s happening on the stage, but to be honest, even with this description, it was confusing in the beginning.

The idea is that 90% of the show time things happen in a complete darkness, because the fuse is blown. Nobody would enjoy the show in a complete darkness, so the way the set it up was that at the time the lights were suppose to be on, they went off, and vise versa. So most time, there was light, but the actors acted as if they are in complete darkness. And at the time, somebody was turning on a flashlight, the lights were dimmed.

It was funny. Probably a little bit too grotesque:). Brilliant acting, as always.

Amadeus At Steppenwolf

There were no interesting concerts this weekend, so I suggested to Boris to go see Amadeus at the Steppenwolf Theater. Boris was skeptical, because he does not like the idea of the original play, because it’s based on unjust accusations, but he said he will go. As for me, I haven’t been to the Steppenwolf for a while, and wanted to go.

The Ensemble Theater before the show

During the first act, ot felt like a mock version of the movie, and during the intermission I asked Boris whether he wanter to go home. He said: no, the acting is great! Actually, I believe it was a new experience for him: I got the first row tickets, and because of how the Ensemble Theater is build, the acting was happening right in from of our eyes, so he could see most of it, was watching all the time with his eyes open 🙂

Then, during the second act, they started getting off the films score, and build something else, and that was much more interesting, so in the end, we both enjoyed it 🙂

Revolution(s) At Goodman

I am writing this post during the intermission, sitting in the first row of the Owen Theater in Goodman.

I am glad I decided to go, and made time to see the one before last performance,

I am glad I went on my own, not inviting any of my girlfriends.

The play is extremely loaded. A part of me wants to leave and not watch the second act, because I think it will be even more intense, but I won’t.

I worked from home today, so that I could see mom after work, and still go to Goodman. That scenario worked surprisingly well, so I think I will be doing it sometimes.

I am glad I am here. The second act is about to begin, unveiling a drama that’s way too close to what’s happening on the streets outside the theater. It’s a call for action, but I am not sure which one.

Glenwood Market

Today was my last market day of this season – I will be gone for the next two weekends. I had no time and no reason to go but went anyway, especially when I saw their Instagram post this morning:

I had breakfast at the Common Cup

Got my flowers at the market:

Made an apple tart:

Took my mom to the Above the Law Crimm Brothers:

As usual, my mom said that she didn’t understand anything, but enjoyed the acting. I told her that the plot is twisted enough so she might not have understood it even if it were in Russian 🙂

Weekend With Lena

Lena finally made it to Chicago – in September instead of July, and it turned sharply cold, and we could not go to the beach. Still, our interests are so much aligned that we made it an absolutely perfect weekend.

Lena arrived on Friday evening and met with her Chicago-based coworkers. We chatted for a bit before and drafted the plan of activities.

Saturday was chilly, and since Lena uses each of her Chicago visits as an occasion to dress nicely, and I am happy to join her, we ended up being dressed not precisely to the weather, and were moderately cold most of the time :).

We started the day in the Field Museum, and I was able to properly see all the exhibits (and the recent updates to the “Evolving Planet,” which Lena didn’t see yet).

Continue reading “Weekend With Lena” →

The Sentinels at Theo

Love it-love it-love it!!!

I am copying this review from the Evanston Round Table, because I think it will be removed from the newspaper website very soon!

Continue reading “The Sentinels at Theo” →

The Factory Theater

The Factory Theater was the last of our neighborhood theaters that was on my to-see list, and that was the first time I finally went to see a performance there. The play description looked incredibly appealing:

Also, I realized that the past Saturday was the last opportunity to see it, so I made an effort, even though I was tired and had a million things to do.

The theater foyer exhibited the history of the motion pictures and the invention of the camera

Probably because I had high expectations, it was a slightly disappointing experience. The show “didn’t hold,” which would be understandable if it were an opening night, but that was the closing. I can’t say anything in particular about what exactly was bad, but it felt less professional than three other neighborhood storefront theaters I patronize. I am willing to give it the benefit of the doubt: it could be just a one-off, or it could be that I was tired, so I am going to try it at least one more time next season.

The War of the Worlds at the Lifeline Theater

Ninety-five minutes of sitting still and holding my breath! This play, by and large, exceeded my expectations!

If you are wondering how much this play is related to the famous H.G. Wells book, the answer is – very little! Yes, it’s about the Marician invasion on Earth, but the action takes place in the US, and even more specifically in Illinois, at some fictional point in time. There are definite hints that the action takes place in the past, but at the same time, it’s a sharp satire on nowadays media, television, reporting, politicians, and what else. All the characters are unmistakably recognizable, so you can’t stop laughing (or crying)!

The previews just started, so you can still see it!

Last Week In Review

I had some events to attend every day of that week, plus trying to get six hours of sleep every day (hopeless), plus everything else.

Out of the six cultural events I attended last week, one was “above categorization” (the screening of the “20 Days in Mariupol), two were in the category “OK, but I won’t lose much if I didn’t attend,” and three were great.

The two were “The Fat Ham” in Goodman

and “Clue” at the CIBC theater.

The audience was ecstatic at both shows, so I guess I should attribute my ambivalence to “I am not in the mood for “just funny” things” these days.

The ones I loved.

Continue reading “Last Week In Review” →

Pictured From The ‘Secret Garden”

I knew, Theo would publish more pictures of the show 🙂