Most of the acts are burlesque dancing by characters from Star Wars such as Princess Lea and C3PO. They also include others on the side such as Jabba the Hut and R2D2.
There are also hilarious performances such when The Emperor strips completely naked and then rides a Death Star wrecking ball as Miley Cyrus sings.
Also, Chewbacca dancing to “Fuck Her Gently” with Hans Solo was incredibly funny.
Dressed in a big Italian fat man suit, Victor proceeds to spin plates on a table. He starts with just one, but then builds up to an amazing 10 all at once. It’s quite a sight to see! He also helps out with the crossbow performance by Sylvia Syliva. They have been married for over 50 years!
Richard Del Canto, Maryi Del Canto, and Yocelynne Navas Stefano
This act features three performers. On about a 4-foot-wide circular platform, the performers spin up to 45 mph on roller skates. Then, the man picks up one of the women and spins her around just by her legs. Then, to increase the intensity, they use a figure 8 device that puts a loop over each of their heads. He then proceeds to spin her around without using his hands in a fantastic finale. The crowd gives them a standing ovation!
Early in Mustard Plug’s set, they play “Vampire” from their 2023 album, Where Did All My Friends Go? It’s an extremely catching song that gets everyone dancing along. “You let a vampire into your house!”
Later on, they play “Why Does It Have To Be So Hard?” This ska song captures a great question simply. “Why can’t things not be easy? / Why do they have to be so hard?”
Towards the end of the night, they play “Brain on Ska”, which was the first song they ever wrote in 1991. They have played it at every single show since then, making this number 2,077, according to the horn section.
They follow this with “Mr. Smiley”, which results in the biggest circle pit of the night as everyone sings along to their most popular song on Spotify, which has over 14 million streams.
To end the set, they play “Beer (Song)” from their 1997 album, Evildoers Beware! It features the fantastic sing-a-long: “Woah oh oh oh!”. It’s a great way to end this night of the Skalidays tour!
Cost of a ticket: $34
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Good Value
Rating Scale: Exceptional > Good Value > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
The Pernikoff Brothers open with “Shine” from their 2025 album, Ah Londres. It’s immediately clear that they are talented musicians. Often between songs, the brothers switch instruments, from the bass to the guitar. They joke that they can’t afford two guitars.
Later on they play “Colorado”. “Let’s never go home, never leave Colorado”. It’s a beautiful song about the Rocky Mountain state. The band is from St. Louis and their father is in the audience tonight. The lead singer comments on how when he would call his father when he is feeling down, he would tell him to stop being such a limp dick.
Midway into the set, they talk about trying to get a tour of Abbey Road Studios. The response is that they are a working studio, so they don’t do tours. Then they ask to book a session. The response is to send in their material, and they’ll be contacted if an engineer wants to work with them. Soon afterwards, they hear that there is one day available. So, they go and record a bunch of their original songs, which becomes the Ah Londres album, along with a Beatle cover, “Eleanor Rigby”.
Towards the end of the night, they play “Done With Love”. “Maybe I’m done with love / Maybe I’m done / For now / I didn’t expect you to come along / I didn’t expect you to be the one”. It’s a fantastic love song that showcases their talents.
Cost of a ticket: $40
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Good Value
Rating Scale: Exceptional > Good Value > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Amadeus was first performed in 1979 at the Royal Nation Theatre in London. In 1981, it opened on Broadway. In 1984, the film version starring F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, and Elizabeth Berridge was released.
In the fictional story, Antonio Salieri is jealous of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He doesn’t want to just be the second-best composer and his thoughts turn to murder.
David Darrow is outstanding as Mozart, full of life and energy. Ian Barford (Betrayal, Another Marriage) is excellent as Antonio Salieri, who does everything he can to thwart Mozart’s career.
Shannon brings her kids to the park early one morning and meets Leah. They get along very well, so they get together later on along with their husbands. Everything is going great until the topic of guns comes up. Leah and her husband own guns while Shannon and her husband are strongly anti-gun. Can these couples still be friends despite this issue?
Photos by Alex Albrecht
Stephanie Alison Walker has written an excellent play combining comedy with an exploration of this very topical and relevant issue. The audience is at full attention watching to see what will happen next. The play seems to give equal time to both sides, but the ending seems to lean slightly on one side.
Tonight is the understudy performance. Laura Michele Erle is superb as Shannon, who is open and willing to learn more about guns. Avery Kiefer is excellent as her husband, who is appalled by his wife even being open to learn more. Tierra Matthews is great as Leah, who is very friendly and calmly teaches Shannon about firearms. Malachi Marrero is so funny as Leah’s husband when he tries to make friends with Shannon’s husband.
You’ll definitely be thinking and discussing this play long after watching it.
Cost of a ticket: $37
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Exceptional Value
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Good Price > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Get tickets now for Friends with Guns through December 7th!
Arthur is running a donut shop in Uptown. He’s looking to hire someone new when Franco walks in with a whole bunch of ideas about how to improve it. Arthur hires him, but he is resistant to any changes. As times goes on, Franco opens up and shares the novel he has written. They both keep secrets from each other which are slowly revealed.
Photos by Joe Mazza, Brave Lux
This is a fantastic production. Firstly, it’s a great ensemble play written by Tracy Letts (Bug, Linda Vista) . Secondly, it’s right in The Artistic Home’s wheelhouse, a character driven plot.
Scott Westerman is great as Arthur, who is very comfortable with his routine. John N. Williams is great as Franco, who urges him to make some changes. Reid Coker is excellent as the owner of the store next door who wants to expand by buying the donut shop. It’s really funny when he brings in his cousin, John Wehrman, as backup for a fight. Kristin Collins (Witch, The Pavilion) and Kevin Aoussou are superb as the local police officers investigating a break-in. Barbara Roeder Harris (Rasheeda Speaking) is funny as the donut shop regular. Adam Schulmerich (A View From the Bridge, Rasheeda Speaking) and Michael Bayler are intimidating as the “friends” of Franco.
The stage is set up in the middle with the audience on opposite sides. See it twice to experience both angles!
Cost of a ticket: $42
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Exceptional –
Rating Scale: Exceptional > Good Value > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Ali is a 17-year-old growing up in Hell’s Kitchen, a neighborhood on the west side of Midtown Manhattan. She lives with her mother, who is very protective of her. When Ali starts dating a man older than her, her mother calls the police which results in the man being arrested. At the same time, Ali is taking piano lessons from an older lady in the building which she develops a passion for.
The story is semi-autobiographical. Alicia did live in Manhattan Plaza with her single mom, but her father wasn’t in her life at all. Also, Alicia began learning piano at 6 years old, not 17 like in the musical.
The music is the highlight of the show. “Girl on Fire” is the first big hit in the first half and it’s a truly joyous moment.
In the second half, when the father sings “Fallin'” to the mother, it is a fantastic showcase of Desmond Sean Ellington’s vocal talent.
Towards the end of the show, the mother sings “No One” to her daughter. It’s a beautiful song used expertly. This song has over 1.1 billion streams on Spotify.
At the end, Ali sings “Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down”. It’s an impressive performance by Maya Drake. It would have been nice if they could have used the Jay-Z version of the song, but it probably wouldn’t make sense in the story.
Cost of a ticket: $182 (Orchestra Center)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Good Value –
Rating Scale: Exceptional > Good Value > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Get tickets now for Hells Kitchen through November 30th!
P.O.D. takes the stage and jumps right into “Boom” from their 2001 album, Satellite. “Here comes the Boom!” sings the lead singer, Sonny Sandoval, as the audience dances along.
They follow this up with “Rock the Party (Off the Hook)” from their 1999 album, The Fundamental Elements of Southtown. “We came to rock the party all night long!” This song features fantastic guitar work that fully energizes the crowd.
Later on, they play “Youth of the Nation”, which is their most popular song on Spotify with over 337 million streams. “We are, we are the youth of the nation!” The whole band shines on this classic track that still sounds excellent today.
Sandoval comments on how this is the smallest crowd they have played for on this tour. This is likely because their set started so early at 5:40pm. However, he says, your energy matches the larger crowds!
They close their set with “Alive”. “I feel so alive, for the very first time, and I think I can fly!” This song and the band are iconic. They are still going strong after 30 years together.
A divorced mother receives a notice in the mail that she must appear at a hearing where her deportation will be discussed. This has come up because she applied to be a US Citizen while she has two minor drug convictions on her record. She has lived in Chicago since she was a child and can’t even imagine leaving her daughter, father, and friends behind.
Sandra Delgado has written a great start and middle with this play, but the ending feels abrupt. It’s not satisfying and it leaves the audience wondering what happens next. Perhaps an intermission should be added followed by a jump forward in time which could provide more resolution. Join the Pro-Intermission movement here.
Sandra Delgado (La Havana Madrid, La Ruta) is superb as the mother who is on stage for the entire play going through a whole range of emotions. Ramon Camin is solid as the grandfather. Brian King is very kind and caring as the father, which makes the audience wonder why they broke up. Charlotte Arias is very impressive as the daughter.
Cost of a ticket: $82 (Main Floor)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Discounted
Rating Scale: Exceptional > Good Value > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
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