This is an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, & John Tiffany. It is much better than trying to convert one of the books into a play. It first premiered on the West End in June 2016 and won the Olivier for Best New Play. It premiered on Broadway in April 2018 and won the Tony for Best Play. And now, in September 2024, it opens in Chicago at the Nederlander Theatre.

Harry Potter sends his son, Albus, to Hogwarts. Albus decides to use the time turner to go back in time to save Cedric. The consequences of this attempt are much more than he expected.

This is truly a high level production. The story is fast paced and action packed which keeps the audience paying close attention. It is full of great magic enabled by high class special effects and pyrotechnics. The cast does an excellent job bringing the Wizarding World of Harry Potter to life.

John Skelley plays Harry Potter and Trish Lindstrom is Ginny Potter with Emmet Smith as their son Albus Potter. Matt Mueller plays Ron Weasley with Ebony Blake as Hermione Granger and Naiya Vanessa McCalla as their daughter Rose Granger-Weasley. Playing Draco Malfoy is Ben Thys with Aidan Close as his son Scorpius Malfoy. Julia Nightingale plays Delphi Diggory and Larry Yando (Champion, A Christmas Carol, Bernhardt / Hamlet) plays Severus Snape. The rest of the supporting cast is solid.

Cost of a ticket: $99 (Orchestra Sides)

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Get tickets now for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child through February 1^st!

Quinn Delaney

It’s the night before opening day and the cast is not ready. They’re forgetting their lines, which objects they are supposed to be carrying, and their cues. The director is getting very upset as he watches his cast fumble around. Then, the set starts malfunctioning with doors being unable to be opened and other others not staying closed. In addition, the secrets of who is sleeping with whom start to be revealed and everything truly goes nuts.

This is a very British style play in the same slapstick style as Faulty Towers,  The Doppelganger, and The Play That Goes Wrong. Usually, The Benny Hill song playing during the mayhem would fit right in during this roller coast ride of comedy. However, this production has failed to capture the frenetic energy and the high stakes required to make it funny.

This is a co-production with Geffen Playhouse, and the cast reflects this. Vaneh Assadourian is the assistant stage manager trying to hold everything together. Ora Jones (Familiar, The Roommate) is the bumbling maid Francis Guinan (True West, Downstate) is the drunken veteran of the stage. James Vincent Meredith (Describe the Night) with his pants around his ankles just may be the funniest sight of the night. Andrew Leeds (Barry) as Garry always wanting to just say one more thing during the rehearsal always draws laughter from the crowd. Max Stewart is great as the stage manager trying to fill in for actors last minute. Audrey Francis’ (The Thanksgiving Play) character is trying to making everyone happy, which is a very difficult task. Amanda Fink (Peerless, Plano) is the actress clearly hired for reasons having nothing to do with her acting ability. Lastly, Rick Holmes is the director trying to put this show together.

Get tickets now for Noises Off at Steppenwolf through November 3rd.

Cost of a ticket: $84
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Quinn Delaney

Inherit the Wind is based on the Scopes “Monkey” trial which took place in 1925. The play first premiered in Dallas in 1955. The first film version was released in 1960 starring Spencer Tracy, Fredric March, and Gene Kelly. Another film version was released in 1999 starring Jack Lemmon, George C. Scott, and Lane Smith. It was nominated for Best Revival of a Play in 2007 for it’s Broadway production. And now, in September of 2024, it opens at the Goodman Theatre.

A school teacher is giving a lesson about evolution to his young students. This is against the law in this small town, so he is put on trial. Henry Drummond, a high profile lawyer from Chicago, comes into town to defend him in this science vs. religion trial.

This production is outstanding. It’s funny and fully intellectually engaging. The two hours plus an intermission fly right by.

The cast is a venerable who’s who of Chicago actors. Harry Lennix (Purpose) is outstanding as Hammond, clearly and charismatically fighting for the right to think. Alexander Gemignani is excellent as the prosecutor, clinging to his long held beliefs and refusing to hear any other ideas. Christopher Llewyn Ramirez is great as the school teacher in his fight against this unjust law and trial against him. Tyler Meredith (The Penelopiad, Campaigns, Inc., Spinning) is splendid as a fellow teacher who shows the emotional toll that this trial is taking on the town. Thomas Murphy Molony is impressive as the young boy who is asked to testify about his teacher in the trial. Mi Kang (The Chinese Lady) is superb as the sassy journalist covering the story. The rest of the large supporting cast is solid as well.  

Cost of a ticket: $45 (Back of the Main Floor)

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Get tickets now for Inherit the Wind through October 20^th!

Quinn Delaney

Willow brings her girlfriend home to New Orleans with her during a break from classes at NYU. But, she just says it’s her friend as she hasn’t come out to her family. Her grandmother is trying to have her reconnect with her first love by inviting him to Sunday dinner. This is against the wishes of Willow’s mother. This all leads to an incredibly dramatic dinner table scene.

Isis Elizabeth has written an extremely powerful play. It’s full of great drama along with some very humorous moments.  It is an epic show coming in at three hours long (with an intermission). It’s similar in many ways to Purpose (which ran at Steppenwolf last spring), and has the potential to be just as big.

The entire cast puts on an incredible performance. Yahdina U-Deen is so strong and powerful as the grandmother trying to tell everyone how to live their lives. Sierra Coachman (Relentless Understudy) is superb as Willow, who keeps the audience guessing about what she’ll do next. Dylan Rogers (Relentless Understudy) is so very confident as the first love. Monique Marshaun is great as the mother who has some dark secrets. Lastly, Ash is so funny and self-assured as the girlfriend.

Cost of a ticket: $52

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Get tickets now for Beneath the Willow Tree through September 29!

Quinn Delaney

Mat Kearney has been coming to Chicago often since he released Nothing Left to Lose in 2006. He started at Schubas and has since played at the Metro, the Chicago Theatre, and the Riviera Theatre. This is his first time playing at the Vic Theatre. He has built his fan base solidly through all this touring and by releasing a solid stream of albums.

They open with “Headlights Home” from his brand new self titled album. It’s a beautiful song and it instantly proves that he is still writing great music.

He follows it up with “Anywhere With You” from his 2021 album, January Flower. “Found there’s only so much / You wanna see alone … I’d go anywhere with you / I know you feel the same thing that I do”. This is another lovely song that has the couples swaying back and forth together.

Later on he plays “Money” from his 2018 album, “CRAZYTALK”. “My girl is money, money / Dollar, dollar bill / Ain’t nothin’ like her, nah, nah, nah  / Can’t live without her, nah, nah, nah.” This is such a fun and sweet song.

Midway in the set, Kearney plays another song from the same album, “Wanted Man”. It’s just Mat on acoustic guitar. It’s so great when a band can switch gears like this. To have slow parts and fast parts really creates a full show. “I ain’t no Butch Cassidy or Sundance Kid / But I stole your heart with a-just one kiss / You were there by my side when the only reward / Was ridin’ shotgun in that Honda Accord / You’re my partner in crime when you take my hand / You make me feel like, a wanted man.” Wow, what a romantic love song for a wedding.

Towards the end of the night, he plays “Ships In The Night” from his 2011 album, “Young Love”. This is his most popular song on Spotify with over 61.5 million streams. It features his style of speak-singing on the verses.

At the end of the encore, he closes with the title track from his 2006 album, “Nothing Left to Lose” from 2006. It sounds just as fresh as it did 18 years ago!

See a similar setlist here.

Cost of a ticket: $51

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother Quinn Delaney

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Quinn Delaney

Pros:

The acting is great. Rebeca Alemán is excellent as Paulina struggling to recover her speaking ability and her memory. Erik K. Roberts is superb as Rodrigo, her co-worker and caretaker.

The subject matter is life or death.

Cons:

The main action doesn’t take place on stage. Instead, it is just talked about.

The subtitles are displayed on an uneven curtain which makes it difficult to read. Also, they are in both English in Spanish, depending on which language they are speaking. This is very confusing. The audience doesn’t know whether to listen or to read, so they try to do both, which is practically impossible. A good solution is to have the English subtitles displayed in a different location than the Spanish subtitles.

At 95 minutes, it is a bit long to not have an intermission. Join the Pro-Intermission movement here.

The listed start time of 7pm is not the actual start time. It starts about 20 minutes later.  

Cost of a ticket: $30

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Get tickets here for The Delicate Tears of the Waning Moon through October 4^th,

Quinn Delaney

[title of show] first premiered at the Musical Theatre Festival in NYC, in September 2004. It opened off Broadway in 2006. It premiered on Broadway in 2008. And now, in September 2024, it opens at the Pride Arts Center.

Two guys are writing a musical for a festival that has a submission deadline in three weeks. The musical they are writing is the musical that you are watching. This results in some very funny self referential material.  

At 90 minutes, it is a bit long to not have an intermission. Join the Pro-Intermission movement here.

Casey Coppess and Jonah Cochin are excellent as the two writers. They have great chemistry as they throw ideas off each other. Lexi Alioto and Shannon McEldowney are fantastic as the two friends brought in to help them finish this ambitious project. All of them are great singers and hilarious. Lastly, Robert Ollis is superb as Larry, the keyboard player.

Get tickets now for [title of show] through September 22^nd.

Cost of a ticket: $35
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney