Julius Ceaser is a tyrannical fascist leader. So, Brutus, Cassius, and the Senator crew conspire to assassinate him.
This musical by the Q Brothers Collective has many very fun songs, such as a very long one about sandwiches, since Ceaser has banned bread.Â
It includes many 90’s hip-hop references from just a line to a full song. It’s a very timely and satirical story about political violence.
Janyce Carabello is very versatile as the intern and many other characters. Curtis Bannister (Understudy) is excellently evil as Caeser. Victor Musoni (Fat Ham, Toni Stone) is an acting force as Brutus. Danielle Davis (Clyde’s, Fun Home) truly shines, especially on the sandwich song.Â
Cost of a ticket: $73 (Main Floor)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Starcrawler, from Los Angeles, have a great stage presence. The lead singer, Arrow de Wilde, has a great entrance as she immediately grabs the microphone and sings “Goodtime Girl”, a 2021 single. It’s a great opener as it instantly showcases their talents.
Midway into the set, they play “Stranded” from their 2022 album, She Said. “But now I wanna be with you … Shine on me”. It’s a great rocker that has everyone dancing along.
To end their short 30 minute set, they play “Bet My Brains” from their 2019 album, Devour You. At the end of the song, Arrow leaves the stage and the band continues with an extended outro which includes the lead guitarist going out into the crowd while playing a shredding solo. Starcrawler definitely left the audience wanting more.
Francis Guinan (True West, Downstate) is excellent as Pete, the owner of an old TV store on Ashland in Chicago. He really wants to pass along his business to his daughter, Sam, played by Jenna Fischer (The Office). She and her husband, played by Chike Johnson (Hymn), are considering moving to LA to escape the winters and find new business opportunities. Sam is quite similar to The Office’s Pam Beesly in that she is very nice and loving and doesn’t want to disappoint anymore. Â
Jess, played by Cordelia Dewdney, a former employee and mother of two, is living with Pete. The father of her children, a drug addict played by Will Allan (Campaigns, Inc.), has just come back into town.
This play is very funny and heartfelt. It’s a love letter to Chicago. Everyone really cares for each other and struggles between doing what is best for others or what is best for themselves. Also, they all keep secrets from each other that are gradually revealed, too slowly. Perhaps some of these secrets should be revealed earlier to the audience, if not to the characters, to make the play more exciting early on.
Cost of a ticket: $69 (Mezzanine)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Get tickets now for Ashland Avenue through October 12th!
X Ambassadors have launched this tour is to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their debut album, VHS.
Midway into their set, they play “Georgeous”. “You’re so gorgeous / ‘Cause you make me feel gorgeous.” They rerecorded the entire album and the new version of this song sounds even more beautiful.
They follow this up with “Unsteady”. “Hold, hold on, hold onto me / ‘Cause I’m a little unsteady”. The new version is very stripped down, so the old version wins on this fantastic song.
Up next is “Renegades”, which is their most popular song on Spotify with over 919 million streams. “And I say, “Hey, hey-hey-hey” / Livin’ like we’re renegades”. Both versions of this song are excellent. This one is a tie.
In the encore, they play “Friend For Life”. “I can hear them two kids in a basement / Singing Californication, and I know / We don’t talk now, but you’re on my mind”. This is a such a fun song about friendship. The lead singer, Sam Harris, says “Speaking of friends for life”, as he goes and sits down next to the keyboard player, his brother.Â
Together they play “Follow the Sound of My Voice”. It’s a heartbreakingly beautiful song written by the lead singer about his brother, who is blind.
Overall, it was a high energy night of music celebrating the 10th anniversary of VHS and more!
This fun musical is about Obama’s political career from 2004 to 2012 as remembered by Joe Biden. It pokes fun at many of the political figures of that era including Mitch McConnell, Sarah Palin, Hillary Clinton, Herman Cain, Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, and Michelle. It also includes Obama’s biggest accomplishments and failures.
The music is very catchy. You’ll definitely be singing the songs after the show, but watch out where you do, as a lot of the lyrics are full of profanity.
The New York cast is fantastic. You won’t want to miss your chance to see them in Chicago.
You can also find more videos of songs on their YouTube page that are not included in this version of the show including ones with John Boehner.
Cost of a ticket: $78.50 (Orchestra)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Discounted
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Get tickets now for 44 – The Musical through September 21st!
Lake Street Dive street dive kicks things off as the crowd arrives. One of their best songs is the title track from their 2014 album, Bad Self Portraits. “I’m taking night classes / I’m making sculptures / I’m painting bad self portraits / of a lonely woman.” It’s a heartbreaking song with such a joyful sound.
St. Vincent is next up. She continues the theme of breakup songs with “New York” from her 2017 album, MASSEDUCTION. “Where you’re the only motherfucker in the city who can stand me / I have lost a hero, I have lost a friend / But for you, darling, I’d do it all again”. It’s an absolutely beautiful song.
The lead singer of the Lumineers says “Some people tell me they chose one of our songs as their wedding song. When I ask which song, they say ‘Ho Hey’ (Their most popular song on Spotify, with over 1.5 billion streams). That’s a breakup song! I’d like to nominate the following song, ‘Dead Sea’ instead.”Â
As a tribute to the lead singer’s younger brother who passed away, The Lumineers continue the New York theme by playing “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel. It sounds absolutely fantastic.Â
Cost of a ticket: $240 (Floor Seats)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Discounted
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Macseal starts the night off with a bang. Their best song is “Lucky for Some” from their 2019 album, Super Enthusiast. “Everyone’s fallin’ back in love / Fallin’ back in love / Good luck keepin’ your friends / ‘Cause nobody’s fallin’ for ya”. It’s an incredibly catchy tune. Later on, the lead singer of The Starting Line later says to watch as their popularity explodes.
Real Friends are up next. The lead singer, Cody Muraro, is constantly asking the audience for more movement and crowd surfing. The Vic is not an easy place for crowd surfing because of the different levels, but the crowd makes it happen to his delight. Their best song is the rocking “Six Feet” from their 2023 album There’s Nothing Worse Than Too Late. “I don’t wanna have to be six feet underground / To feel loved / I don’t wanna have to be a memory / To feel like I’m someone you thought of”. Muraro’s high level of energy throughout the show is quite impressive.Â
The Starting Line are the last to take the stage. Late in their set, they play “Ready” from their 2005 album, Based On A True Story. It’s a beautiful song that slowly builds. After the song, there is an extended crowd sing-along. It’s a fantastic moment of fans celebrating this excellent song.
They close with “The Best Of Me” from their 2002 album, Say It Like You Mean It. It’s their most popular song on Spotify with over 64 millions streams The entire crowd dances and joyfully sings along “Tell me what you thought about when you were gone and so alone / The worst is over, you can have the best of me / We got older, but we’re still young / We never grew out of this feeling that we won’t give up”. It’s a fantastic final song of the night that sends everyone out with a big smile on their face.
Cost of a ticket: $52
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Discounted > Go for Free > Don’t Bother
Dance for Life is an inspiring event that merges talent and philanthropy into one spectacular evening. It brings together the best Chicago dance companies and all proceeds go toward the Chicago Dance Health Fund; a resource which provides financial assistance to professional dancers in their time of need, including covering medical expenses. It is one of the many ways our vibrant dance community joins forces to care for its own.
As dance enthusiasts entered the Auditorium Theatre this year, one could immediately feel the infectious joy that carried through the evening with each performance. The joy and support from the audience radiated to the dancers who in turn delivered a magical evening filled with grace, beauty, precision, and undeniable talent.
This infectious energy carried on to the after party at Venue SIX10. It’s a sophisticated affair with an impeccable ambiance thanks to the decor executed by Kehoe Designs and Black Oak Technical Productions with lead caterer J&L Catering.
Below you will find a photo with the title of the performances along with information for upcoming shows by the dance companies that participated in this year’s Dance for Life.
All Photos by Michelle Reid
Deeply Rooted Dance Theater – Sacred Spaces Next Performance: TBD
A Great Big World are a musical duo from New York. Tonight, Chad King is not on stage due to some personal issues. So, Ian Axel has brought along a guitarist instead.
They open with “Can We Go Back Home” from their 2021 album, Particles. It’s an absolutely beautiful song. After finishing, Ian jokes “Please don’t go home”.
Later on, they cover Teenage Dirtbag by Wheatus. Instead of singing, “I’ve got two tickets to Iron Maiden, baby”, he swaps in Matchbox 20, in a nod to the headliner of the night. Kate Peytavin also covered this song earlier in the year at the Salt Shed.
The guitarist leaves the stage and then Ian plays “Say Something” solo from their 2014 album “Is There Anybody Out There?”. This is their most popular song on Spotify with a whopping 1.1 billion streams! This song was featured in South Park Season 19, Episode 6 “Tweek x Craig”. In this satirical animation and live tonight, the song strikes an emotional chord. The audience is on their feet singing along.
They close with the title track from their 2018 album, Younger. “Butterflies in my chest when I asked for your number / You smiled and said, “you’re funny” / Two words and I was gone / You wrote it on my arm / I swear, we set off the alarm”. It’s such a fun song about looking back at your childhood.
At just 25 minutes, this was just a quick taste of A Great Big World. Hopefully they’ll be back soon to play a full set.
Check out our review of Genevieve, who opened for them at Lincoln Hall in 2016.
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