On stage: Memories, heads, apocalypse prep
Posted: July 6, 2013 Filed under: Chicago, Theater | Tags: Lookingglass Theatre, Mary Arrchie Theatre, Sideshow Theatre, theater, Theater Wit 2 CommentsComments on a few plays I’ve seen recently, including one full review.
The Burden of Not Having a Tail: Apocalypse When?
Sideshow Theatre is presenting this one-woman show at Chicago Dramatists. It’s an entertaining 70 minutes about the prospects of an apocalypse. Woman, the lone character, is a “prepper” and the audience (that would be us) is there to learn from her experience to prepare ourselves. There’s a sad thread to it (besides the grim one) about the death of her baby daughter.
All in all, the play fails to hold together as a play but I have to give the actor (Karie Miller), playwright (Carrie Barrett) and director (Megan Smith) props for a good try. It’s not easy to tell a dramatic story and hold a one-character play together. The successful ones I have seen are about the lives of riveting characters such as Clarence Darrow (by David Rintels from the Irving Stone biography) or Charlotte van Mahlsdorf (her story, I Am My Own Wife, was produced at Goodman Theatre in 2005). Or brilliantly written one-man plays, like Krapp’s Last Tape by Samuel Beckett.
Read my review of The Burden of Not Having a Tail on Gapers Block. You can see it until August 4.
Big Lake, Big City: Chicago noir
If you think “comic noir” is not an oxymoron, then you’ll love the new play by Keith Huff at Lookingglass Theatre. Huff wrote the gripping two-character cop play, A Steady Rain, which was a hit here at Chicago Dramatists and then went to New York where Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman starred in it. That earned Huff his writing cred and he’s been writing for great TV dramas such as Mad Men and House of Cards, the recent Netflix streaming series that I wrote about in February.
David Schwimmer directs this play about Chicago crime, with two hard-bitten police detectives (Philip R Smith and Danny Goldring), a guy who wants to go to Disneyland with a screwdriver embedded in his head (that’s right, he doesn’t make it through the metal detectors at O’Hare), and two morgue doctors who play golf with severed heads. Actually, heads get a lot of attention in this play and you can decide whether that’s symbolic or not. I left out the two corpses burned to a crisp while in flagrante delicto in a Lincoln Avenue motel and a dozen other delicious incidents.
The play has a lot of characters, a lot of plot threads and is probably more suited to TV, as a couple of critics have observed. Smith and Goldring are terrific as the two cops, and the acting and timing is very good. I suppose it’s not wholly successful as a theatrical exercise. However it’s really entertaining and stuffed with great Chicago jokes and references. My favorite scenic device is the Navy Pier Ferris wheel cab that I kept watching above me; it finally descended in one of the last scenes.
I recommend Big Lake Big City, although maybe not for out-of-town visitors. It runs until August 11 at Lookingglass Theatre at the Water Tower Water Works.
The Glass Menagerie: Memories in shards of glass
Mary Arrchie Theatre is presenting its distinctive version of the Tennessee Williams memory play in an extension at Theater Wit. It’s beautifully done and the acting makes you really appreciate Williams’ poetic language.
Tom, the poet, is played as a homeless man by Hans Fleischmann, who also directs. Tom wanders barefoot through a setting covered in glass shards. He’s the brother of delicate Laura and the son of Amanda (the southern belle who can’t believe the poverty of her current existence). There was something odd that I can’t quite put my finger on about Tom being played as a homeless man. The glass shards, of course, are reminiscent of Laura’s life with her glass menagerie and symbolic of their shattered lives. Basically, no one in the play accepts the reality of their own existence.
The play has a beautiful original score by Daniel Knox, which really enhanced the atmosphere.
I have seen The Glass Menagerie many times. My favorite still is the Court Theatre’s 2006 version, performed on an elevated set, mostly on the fire escape outside the Wingfield family flat in St. Louis. It captured the mood of Williams’ memory play beautifully, with fine acting in a minimalist setting. Jay Whittaker, an excellent Chicago actor who has left for other pastures, was a poetic Tom, longing for escape.
The Glass Menagerie runs until July 28 at Theater Wit, 1229 W Belmont.
Gapers Block: Best local blog of 2013
Posted: June 27, 2013 Filed under: Theater Leave a commentHere’s a recap of what I’ve been writing for the A/C page at Gapers Block lately. Cruise on over and see what’s going on there. This 10-year-old Chicago website was just named Best Local Blog on the Chicago Reader’s Best of Chicago 2013 list. It’s chock full of news about our favorite city: politics, music, books, sports, architecture, and arts and culture of all types.
You’ll notice that all the section titles have a driving/traffic theme. Merge. Transmission, Tailgate. Drive-Thru. Slowdown. Don’t know what a gaper’s block is? Check the About page over there.
The Half-Brothers Mendelssohn at Strange Tree Group
My headline says “Strange Tree Creates Head-Spinning Trips in the Time Machine.” Here’s how my review starts.
“What year is it? The opening in 1929 is the only time you’ll be sure.
“The Half-Brothers Mendelssohn begins with a dignified scene. It’s a funeral. The corpse (Joseph Stearns) is at rest in a raised coffin. The mourners are dressed in black. The funeral program informs us that The Rev. Christopher Herbert (Cory Aiello) will give the eulogy and his daughter Margaret (Audrey Flegel) will play selections from Felix Mendelssohn on a piano that someone forgot to have tuned. There also will be “Words From Family Members.”
“Yes, there will be words. Dueling speeches from two widows, in fact (Kate Nawrocki and Jenifer Henry Starewich). And there, 10 minutes into the play, sanity ends.”
The Half-Brothers Mendelssohn is a funny, smart play that’s sort of about time travel but it’s really about love, families and surprising outcomes. I loved it and strongly recommend you check it out. The time-machine itself is a character in the play. My photo shows it in its glory.
Strange Tree is presenting this through July 20 at Signal Ensemble Theatre at 1802 W Berenice. It’s a nice venue in the West Lakeview/Ravenswood area and you might even find unmetered street parking.
Read my full review at gapersblock.com.
The Pride at About Face Theatre
My headline: “Time Shifts Emphasize Change in The Pride at About Face Theatre.” Here’s an excerpt from my review.
“The Pride is set in two eras, 50 years and eons of attitudes apart. The title reflects how societal and political changes have affected gay people and their straight friends over the years.
“The Pride takes place in London in 1958 and 2008; the players are two sets of characters who each have the same names in both time periods: Oliver (Patrick Andrews), Philip (John Francisco) and Sylvia (Jessie Fisher). The seeming emphasis on the names heightens our awareness of the societal changes that enable the modern Oliver, for instance, to live his life in a different way than the other Oliver could have.”
The Pride is being presented in the Richard Christiansen Theatre upstairs at Victory Gardens/Biograph at 2433 N Lincoln. It runs until July 13. Thought-provoking and very well acted and directed.
Read my review of The Pride on gapersblock.com.
See a real live playwright at work: The Storefront Playwrights are back
Nearly 40 emerging and established playwrights will demonstrate how their craft works Tuesdays through Saturdays in July. Each playwright will work for a half day in the storefront window at 72 E. Randolph. Viewers will be able to read the work in progress on a large screen. The League of Chicago Theatres initiated this project in December 2012. But July weather should be more conducive to lingering to read while the playwright writes.
See my preview at gapersblock.com.
June Jam: MDQ + MC Othello
Posted: June 21, 2013 Filed under: Music, Theater | Tags: kids' theater, rock and roll Leave a commentDid you think there was a midsummer night’s slowdown? Nope. Lots of stuff going on in my world. You might be interested in these. They’re suitable for family entertainment or music and theater regulars.
My grandson and I had a theater bash weekend, his belated 15th birthday treat. We saw Million Dollar Quartet at the Apollo Theatre Friday night and Othello: The Remix at Chicago Shakespeare the next day. Both shows gave us great music as well as compelling theater. We loved both and the next day couldn’t decide which was better.
MDQ is in an open run at the Apollo Theatre on Lincoln Avenue. Othello: The Remix by GQ and JQ runs thru July 27 at Chicago Shakespeare on Navy Pier.
A million-dollar quartet in 1956–that’s $8.5 million today
I saw MDQ when it first opened here in 2009 — and although I say I hate musicals–you gotta love two hours of rockabilly music. It’s a great show–a jukebox musical, certainly–but with elements of character insight and plot points that make it fascinating (especially if you’re a music geek). From the first chords of “Blue Suede Shoes” to the last notes of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On,” the music is infectious and unbeatable.
I assume you know the basic story. On a certain day in December 1956, four rock stars and almost-rock stars arrived at Sun Studios in Memphis. Each had his own issue to pitch or discuss with studio head Sam Phillips. The music that results is amazing. From Carl Perkins’ hot guitar licks on his Les Paul Gold Top and Jerry Lee Lewis acting up at the keyboard, to Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash singing and playing guitar in their inimitable styles. The great thing about this show is that the four performers are all musicians first as well as credible actors–so it ain’t faux piano playing when Lance Lipinsky hits the keys as Jerry Lee Lewis.
Near the end of the show, Sam Phillips wants to take a photo of his four artists. They pose around the piano and recreate the above photo of 57 years ago, which then appears on a giant screen.
James and I came home and watched YouTube videos of Jerry Lee Lewis.
Note for foodies: The Etno Village Grill
We wanted burgers before the show, so we went to a great little place just up the street from the Apollo. The Etno Village Grill, at 2580 N Lincoln, serves grass-fed burgers, and homemade soups and salads in addition to European-inspired street food such as Cevap sausages. Everything is made fresh and grilled to order. Sandwiches can be customized with 20 or so condiment options — most of them homemade — such as Etno Spread (feta cheese/sour cream/chilli pepper), great tsatziki, roasted garlic and chive spread (sour cream, roasted garlic, chive) and homemade dill or sweet pickles.. Highly recommended for excellent food quality. It’s a rather rustic, casual environment with counter service.
Othello: The Remix at Chicago Shakespeare
The next afternoon, we watched Shakespeare’s Othello in a hiphop setting. And you know what? It works. MC Othello is a musician who escapes the ghetto and rises to the top of the music industry. He’s in love with and marries a beautiful singer named Desdemona (whose voice we hear but never see). Iago, Cassio and Roderigo play roles something like Shakespeare wrote, transmogrified into the hiphop world. The four talented actors play all the parts, wearing coveralls and grabbing wigs, hats and props when they change characters. And they change characters frequently, with very convincing change of voice and physical demeanor.
The musical highlight of the show was surely “It’s a Man’s World” with topical humor merged into Shakespeare’s lyrical verse. The four actors perform it in glamour-gal style wearing gold lame “gowns” and nightclub-singer wigs and jewelry.
The plot twists and turns about jealousy and a fabricated affair are played in hiphop couplets with music. The play ends tragically, as the Bard wrote. It’s sharp and inventive and another star performance by the team that created and starred in Bomb-itty of Errors and Funk It Up About Nothin’.
Two theater reviews, one inspired by Bruce Springsteen
Posted: June 19, 2013 Filed under: Music, Theater | Tags: Bruce Springsteen, Gapers Block, theater 1 CommentTwo new theater reviews for your consideration. Both are excellent examples of why Chicago is such a great theater town. Homecoming 1972 only runs through this weekend but you can see Mine until August 11.
Homecoming 1972 at Chicago Dramatists
Chicago Dramatists is a fine, playwright-oriented theater company with a comfy small space at 1105 W Chicago Ave. Homecoming 1972 is a riveting play about the after-effects of the Vietnam war and its impact on those who served and those who stayed at home. As I note in my Gapers Block review, about halfway into the play I realized that it was based on the Bruce Springsteen song, “Highway Patrolman,” from the acoustic 1982 album, Nebraska. Frank, Joe and Maria? Those are the characters in the story Springsteen tells in that amazing song. Here are the lyrics, a summary of the play.
You’re probably thinking, “She’s obsessing again. Nancy thinks everything in life links back to Bruce Springsteen.” Well, I do think that. But in fact, the playwright Robert Koon is known to be a Springsteen fan too. I talked to some cast and crew members after the show and they confirmed that.
The Nebraska album is a mournful record of life in the late 1970s. Except for a few songs like “Atlantic City” and “Open All Night,” the album is basically a series of stories about downtrodden, lonely characters. Springsteen recorded it in his bedroom on a tape recorder, intending it to be a demo to be released with a full E Street Band treatment. But his manager convinced him to release it as his first acoustic album. Its initial reception was lukewarm but in the years since, it has been acknowledged as one of his finest albums.
Chicago’s Tympanic Theatre Company produced Deliver Us From Nowhere last year, a series of 10 short plays based on the 10 songs on Nebraska. It was an interesting attempt but less than successful theatrically.
You can read my review of Homecoming 1972 here. I strongly recommend it.
Mine at The Gift Theatre
The Gift Theatre performs in a tiny storefront on the northwest side. It’s a theater that I’ve been meaning to go to, since its work always gets outstanding reviews. I finally did that this week and reviewed a play called Mine that combines contemporary fears about parenting with reversion to medieval folklore. It’s a very intense and haunting play, made more intense by the small performance space. I often think when i see a play like this in a tiny space how much different it would seem if performed on a proscenium stage with a great deal of distance between players and viewers.
Read my review and try to see Mine — you have about six weeks to get there.
Moving north: A theater director’s odyssey
Posted: June 6, 2013 Filed under: Theater | Tags: Gapers Block, Interrobang Theatre Project, North Carolina Leave a commentMy newest article on gapersblock.com is about a theater director who moved to Chicago from Charlotte, NC, to find a more challenging and dynamic theater scene. As you may know, I have a strong North Carolina connection. I’ve been there many times to spend time with my son, his beautiful lawyer wife and their two darling cherubs. I’ve spent time mostly in Greensboro but also in Winston-Salem, Durham, Raleigh and Charlotte. I know a little about the arts scene in Charlotte from my time with the giant law firm that has an office there. And I’ve been to a whole bunch of Bruce Springsteen concerts in North Carolina since 2002. (Greensboro is one of my favorite places to see Bruce; the audiences there are great!)
I met Jim Yost, the director, when I attended his current production, Orange Flower Water, at the Raven Theatre a few weeks ago. (The play is a co-production of Jim’s company, Barebones Theatre Group, with his new Chicago company, Interrobang Theatre Project.) You can see a link to my review on the right. I thought his move to Chicago from Charlotte might make an interesting feature for Gapers Block, the website about everything Chicago. So Jim and I had a good conversation recently in my office away from my home office, a Panera Cafe, and the story, in interview form, went up today.
It’s been years since I recorded an interview, transcribed it and turned it into a story. (I did that a lot earlier in my career.) It’s not a quick process, as any writer will tell you. But it’s a rewarding one — and getting the subject’s voice and style just right in the interview is important.
So here’s the story of Jim Yost and his move north to Chicago. His closing remark, which I didn’t put in the story? “I really love Chicago, except for the winter.” I told him he would get used to it. That’s why stores sell mittens, earmuffs, scarves and big puffy jackets.
(Photo courtesy of Interrobang Theatre Project.)
Smudge, a parent’s bad dream
Posted: June 2, 2013 Filed under: Theater | Tags: Athenaeum Theatre, Gapers Block, Ka-Tet Theatre Leave a commentKa-Tet Theatre is presenting a very interesting, dark and challenging play at the Athenaeum. Smudge by Rachel Axler is a 90-minute odyssey from ultrasound to reality. Here’s the beginning of my review at gapersblock.com.
It’s a prospective parent’s worst nightmare: Will our baby be perfect? A missing finger or toe and many congenital diseases can be adapted to or treated, but in Smudge, Ka-Tet Theatre asks us to think about how we would deal with an even more dramatic birth–an infant that may not be quite human.
“This thing doesn’t need a mother,” Colby (Stevie Chadwick Lambert) says midway through this one-act, 90-minute play. “It’s got tubes.”
— *** —
Please read the review here. And check out this play for a rewarding evening of theater from one of our interesting small theater companies.
Stevie Chadwick Lambert (with Mr Limbs) and Scott Allen Luke. Photo by Andrew Cioffi
Orange Flower Water + Speech & Debate
Posted: May 22, 2013 Filed under: Theater | Tags: American Theatre Company, Interrobang Theatre Project Leave a commentNancy, the theater junkie, has been checking out local offerings lately. See my reviews of two new plays on Chicago stages at gapersblock.com. I recommend both. They’re interesting and enjoyable theater evenings.
Orange Flower Water: Breaking apart two families … at Interrobang Theatre Project
Orange Flower Water is a wrenching marital drama where the bed is the heart of the matter, both literally and metaphorically. The bed is the centerpiece of each scene, with quick changes of covering signaling changes of venue. The four characters are two couples who live in the same neighborhood and whose children play soccer together. One of the partners in each couple wants to end their marriages. James Yost, in his first Chicago directorial outing, directs this smartly written play by Craig Wright, author of television scripts written for “Six Feet Under,” “Lost,” “Brothers & Sisters,” and “Dirty Sexy Money.”
Please continue reading this review and see ticket info at the end. Orange Flower Water runs through June 9 at the Raven Theatre Complex, 6157 N. Clark St.
Speech & Debate speaks to a wide audience … at American Theatre Company
Group interpretation, original oratory, extemporaneous commentary. These are some of the graphic titles projected to introduce new scenes throughout Speech & Debate at American Theatre Company (ATC). That may sound like a yawnfest for speech majors but in the hands of four talented performers, they signal funny but searing explorations of teenagers trying to sort out their identities. This is doubly tough in an era where online activities further complicate the growing-up process.
Please continue reading this review and see ticket info at the end. Speech & Debate runs through June 23 at American Theatre Company, 1909 W Byron at Lincoln Ave.
On stage: Chicago history, Middle East ambiguity
Posted: May 15, 2013 Filed under: Theater | Tags: A Red Orchid Theatre, architecture, Bathhouse John Coughlin, Chicago history, Mike Hinky Dink Kenna, The Hypocrites 2 CommentsTwo intriguing plays at two of my favorite small theaters: Ivywild: The True Tall Tales of Bathhouse John at The Hypocrites and In a Garden at A Red Orchid Theatre. Both are still running; details below.
Ivywild: Part Carnival, Part History Lesson
Ivywild: The True Tall Tales of Bathhouse John, the new play by the ever-audacious The Hypocrites http://www.the-hypocrites.com, is part carnival, part Chicago history lesson, and it is a delightful 90 minutes of fact mixed with fantasy. The play is written by Jay Torrence and directed by The Hypocrites’ artistic director, Halena Kays.
When you walk into the lower-level performance space at Chopin Theatre, you know you are in for some fun. The set is a carousel with swings, made of faux antique materials, and light bulbs are festooned everywhere. Platform pieces move around and provide performance space. Before the performance begins, two audience members are asked to don white pinafore dresses so they can participate in simulated rides in the amusement park. The audience, seated close to the action as usual in this space, feels like part of the show. (Photo courtesy of The Hypocrites. Clockwise from bottom left: Ryan Walters as Kenna, Anthony Courser as Princess, Jay Torrence as Bathhouse John, Tien Doman as The Amusement and Kurt Chiang as little Walt.)
Torrence plays “Bathhouse John” Coughlin, the First Ward Alderman of Chicago during the 1890s, when the 20-square block area around Cermak and Michigan was the levee district, populated by saloons, brothels, gambling houses and plenty of corruption to fund it. Michael “Hinky Dink” Kenna, the precinct captain and later the second First Ward Alderman, is played by Ryan Walters. (Until redistricting in 1923, each Chicago ward had two aldermen.) The two amass great wealth through the levee district businesses, political corruption and general debauchery.
Ivywild is the amusement park and zoo that Bathhouse John actually built on a tract of land near Colorado Springs, where he has bought a second home. Coughlin meets young Walt Colburn (Kurt Chiang) there and makes him his personal assistant. Colorado, at that time, was home to hundreds of tuberculosis sanatoriums, where patients from all over the country would go to seek relief. Those are the factual threads that are woven throughout the play.
The other characters are Anthony Courser as Princess, an alcoholic elephant in a pink tutu with a deformed trunk, and a fantastical symbolic character named “The Amusement,” a lovely tubercular mime on a respirator, played by Tien Doman. (All the cast members also perform with the NEo-Futurists http://neofuturists.org, where Kays formerly directed. This connection suggests we might see some interesting future possibilities for these two innovative companies.)
The playbill includes a timeline of the Ivywild/First Ward Chicago story. Even if you know that period of Chicago history or read the timeline before the play starts, you may find it hard to follow the non-linear thread of the story. But no matter. Just enjoy the flow. Accept the fact that Princess may address the audience and tell the story of how she lost her trunk. (“The elevator door chopped off my nose.”)
Torrence’s Bathhouse John as a song and dance man—a pol who sees himself as a poet and songwriter, as well as the creator of a grand amusement park. His sartorial flamboyance was legendary. Hinky Dink Kenna was more conservative in dress and demeanor, and tries to push his partner to return to Chicago and pay attention to First Ward business. This Chicago duo suggests how Chicago won its reputation as a center for crime and corruption, even before the arrival of Al Capone.
Ivywild runs through June 16, so please be sure to see it. The Hypocrites perform at the Chopin Theatre, 1543 W Division St. Shows are at 7:30 pm Monday, Friday and Saturday and at 3pm Sunday.
A Gazebo Among the Lemon Trees
A Red Orchid Theatre http://www.aredorchidtheatre.org is presenting In a Garden by Howard Korder, a fast-moving and smartly written play in nine scenes spanning 15 years from 1989 to 2004. The play portrays the frustration of an ambitious American architect (played by Larry Grimm) proposing a design for a fictitious Middle Eastern country named Aquaat, which might be Iraq.
Director Lou Contey keeps the action moving well, with quick scene changes made by a stage assistant, veiled and silent — the only woman who appears. Broadcast news snippets between scenes set the time line. The tiny Red Orchid space is the office of the minister of culture (a strong performance by Rom Borkhardor), a man enamored of American pop culture and American architects. The architect and the minister develop an uneasy friendship over the years–but the play, which starts out like a satire with many clever lines about truth and beauty, becomes darker as the scenes progress. (Photo courtesy of A Red Orchid Theatre. Left, Borkhardor as the minister, and Larry Grimm as the architect.)
The architect has not had a successful career; he has several proposed and unbuilt projects in different countries and the minister refers to him as a second-tier architect. He is desperate to see one of his designs built, which may explain why he suffers through years of ambiguity and misdirection from his client (or patron, as the minister prefers). It’s never clear who is making the decisions or if in fact a decision will ever be made to build the gazebo in a peaceful garden of lemon trees so desired by the minister.
In the final scene in 2004, everything has changed: the space, the architect’s professional goals and the minister’s status. The gazebo was finally built, but now is gone. The lemon trees remain – to be enjoyed by the office’s new occupant: an American army officer.
In a Garden runs through Sunday, May 19, so you still have a chance to see it. Shows are at 8pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 3pm Sunday. A Red Orchid Theatre performs at 1531 N. Wells St.
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Slightly different versions of these reviews appear at gapersblock.com, a Chicago website, on the A/C or Arts page.
Kids’ theater: Build the next audience
Posted: May 2, 2013 Filed under: Theater | Tags: children's theater, Click Clack Moo, House Theatre, Lifeline Theatre, Our Town, The Hypocrites 3 CommentsI love live theater. I go to many plays, sometimes two or three a week, but rarely fewer than one. Theater isn’t just entertainment. Real theater — straight plays as they’re sometimes called — gives you new insights on people, issues and life past and present and may even give you a new understanding of contemporary issues. (When I say real theater, I’m excluding fluffy musicals and silly comedies.)
Sometimes I look around at a theater audience and worry because we’re all too old. Theater audiences skew old, unfortunately. So I consider it my responsibility to get kids used to going to the theater when they’re young.
Last weekend, I was in Greensboro, North Carolina, visiting my son and his family. One day we took the 5-year-old, who has gone to the theater since he was a toddler, to the Children’s Theatre of Winston-Salem. http://www.childrenstheatrews.org We saw If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, which is made up of six short playlets, each based on a children’s book.
That’s a clever form for children’s theater. Each playlet is short – no more than 10 or 12 minutes – so the young audience’s attention is maintained. And they build familiarity with new books, which the children may read later at the library or at home. My grandson Meyer was enthralled with all the plays; this usually squirmy kid was totally still. We both especially liked Imogene’s Antlers and Borreguita and the Coyote.
The Winston-Salem theater has an eight-play season; most of its productions are performed by visiting companies. TheatreWorks USA performed this play. http://www.theatreworksusa.org The acting, music and production values were smooth and well done without being silly or slick.
My oldest grandson, James, lives in the Chicago area, so I get together with him more often. We’ve been going to the theater since James was 3 or 4. He’s now a teenager, so we’ve been through all the permutations of pre-K, grade school, tween and silly sci-fi theater. One of the first plays we saw portrayed one of our favorite books: Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin. We saw that and many other plays at Lifeline Theatre in Rogers Park, which does a great job with children’s plays. http://bit.ly/10WqZR5
More recently we’ve seen Lion King, Animal Crackers at Goodman Theatre, Our Town at The Hypocrites, and Death and Harry Houdini at House Theatre. Oh and Bruce Springsteen at Wrigley Field.
I also go to the theater whenever possible with my grandnieces, who are now 7 and 11. Recently we enjoyed a fine production of The Wizard of Oz at the Arts Center of Oak Park. http://www.spotlight.org/oakpark
James is 15 now and this year we’re going to see Book of Mormon. (We both love sophomoric humor and I figure he’s heard all those naughty words anyway.)
James loves theater and he participated in summer theater camps for many years until he aged out. He probably won’t major in theater in college and he may not join a community theater when he’s older. But I think he’ll go to the theater as often as he can and see that his own children go too. Unfortunately, parents don’t always have the time or money to take their children to the theater.
That’s why I say it’s Grandma’s responsibility. Grandparents can ensure that the next generation learns the joys of live theater and makes it part of their lives.
Coriolanus on stage and screen
Posted: April 3, 2013 Filed under: Movies, Theater | Tags: Coriolanus, Ralph Fiennes, Shakespeare, The Hypocrites Theatre Leave a comment
The Hypocrites is presenting an inventive version of a not-often-performed Shakespeare play, Coriolanus, at Chopin Theatre. The audience sits around the small performing space and feels very much involved in the verbal and physical confrontations that occur. (I’d call it theater in the round, but that suggests a stage with people separated from the actors. We were really on stage. I had to keep my feet tucked under my chair to keep them out of the action.)
You get a real sense of the combination of warmth and animosity from the verbal and physical byplay between the Roman warrior Caius Martius (later Coriolanus) and Aufidius, general of the Volscians, enemy of Rome. The cast is uniformly good and the fight choreography is well done, if occasionally threatening to the audience. One aspect of costuming looked strange to me. The Roman elites are wearing suits that made them look like carnival barkers or English skiffles musicians. Plaid trousers, big patterned lapels and even some cummerbunds. Very odd look. Or perhaps I was missing the meaning that the costume designer intended.
The play is trimmed from its Shakespearean length to a tight hour and 45 minutes, with no intermission. Coriolanus runs at The Hypocrites until April 23, so you have no excuse for missing it.
So I went home that day, after a Sunday afternoon performance, thinking of the film version of Coriolanus that I had seen recently. And I found it was streaming on Netflix. So I watched Coriolanus for a second time that day. The film is just over two hours and stars Ralph Fiennes* as Coriolanus, Gerard Butler as Aufidius and Vanessa Redgrave as Volumnia, Caius Martius’ ferocious mother.
The film is terrific and I recommend it highly, either with or without the stage version. The film is set in the current era, with soldiers in camouflage wear and characters viewing battlefield coverage and Roman protestors on Fidelis TV. It was filmed mostly in Serbia and has the film advantage of showing Caius Martius, banished from Rome (yes, I’ve skimped on the plot details here), trudging down highways and fields toward the Volscians.
Coriolanus is one of Shakespeare’s last plays but it is not usually ranked among his best, even though T.S. Eliot famously preferred it to Hamlet. But the film version is gripping and worth watching.
Caius Martius is not a reflective person. He is dominated by his mother, who treats him like a child warrior. Harold Bloom describes him as a “battering ram of a soldier” and does not include him in his description of Shakespearean characters who “invent the human.” Bloom describes Hamlet as the avatar of the man who reflects upon and celebrates his inner self. Caius Martius does none of that.
Book note for Shakespeare fans. I strongly recommend Harold Bloom’s insightful book Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human (Riverhead Books, 1998), in which he devotes a chapter to each of the Bard’s plays and explores leading characters. It’s a book you will always want to consult after viewing Shakespeare – on stage or screen.
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* I had seen Fiennes portray Coriolanus before. I quote from my post celebrating the magic of live performance, Live or Memorex, November 2012: “One of my cherished theater memories is seeing Ralph Fiennes play Coriolanus at the Almeida Theatre in London. It was a very warm June and I got a last-minute front-row seat. Fiennes was wearing a heavy wool uniform and dripping sweat. I was mesmerized by the sweat as well as by the performance.” https://nancybishopsjournal.com/2012/11/10/live-or-memorex/#more-236
nancy bishop's journal 