Review: Alvin Ailey at the Auditorium Theatre (Through March 8th)

A Case of You (2005)

Choreography by Judith Jamison

AAADT'S Jamar Roberts and Jacqueline Green in A Case of You from Judith Jamison's Reminiscin'. Photo by Paul Kolnik (3)

Jacqueline Green, Jamar Roberts in A Case of You Choreography: Judith Jamison Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Credit Photo: Paul Kolnik studio@paulkolnik.com nyc 212-362-7778

Music by Joni Mitchell; Performed by Diana Krall

This is a very romantic duo dance. The woman wears a fantastic red dress. At one point, she runs up the man and jumps up onto this thighs in an impressive move. It is full of emotion. The piece starts with about a minute of no music. This may work well in other venues, but in the large Auditorium Theatre in the middle of winter, the sound of coughing is the soundtrack.

Fandango (1995)

Choreography by Lar Lubovitch

Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell and Richard Witter in Lar Lubovitchs Fandango circa 1995. Photo by Roy Volkmann

Music by Maurice Ravel

Alvin Ailey has another piece that also uses Ravel’s Bolero, Walking Mad (2016). This other piece matched the playful sound of the music much better than this one. This dance was athletic and strong, a complete mismatch with the music that resulted in a mixed experience.

Revelations (1960)

Choreography by Alvin Ailey

This is a full company piece that is met with a loud applause right when it starts. It’s gospel music that plays which gives the piece a religious feel. It’s happy, sad, and beautiful. Since its premiere, it has been performed continuously around the globe and it has become the most widely seen modern dance piece in the world.

This program will be repeated on Sunday at 3pm. The other performances will include different dances.

Get tickets now for Alvin Ailey through Sunday!

Cost of a ticket: $140 (Back Orchestra)

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Half Price –

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Good Jazz – Cyrille Aimee at City Winery Chicago (March 3, 2020)

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Cyrille Aimee is a very talented French jazz singer. She is joined by two other fantastic musicians. Ryan Hanseler is on piano and Alex Warshawsky plays the bass. They open with a Sondheim song from Follies. She sings a lot of Sondheim songs this evening which she recorded on her 2019 album, Move On: A Sonheim Adventure. Within each song, they always add a jazzy improv jam.

They also perform a few of her original songs. They blend right in with the covers showing her songwriting talents.

For the encore, she chooses a blues song, “Loud Talkin Woman” by Helen Humes. “Loud talkin woman, why don’t you keep your man at home.” “I live up five flights of stairs, and your man loves to climb.” It’s a scintillating song and a great closer.

Cost of a ticket: $36
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It –
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Funny and Bizarre! First Floor Theater Presents Plano at Steppenwolf Theatre (Through March 28, 2020)

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Three sisters are living in Dallas. One of these sisters (Elizabeth Birnkrant) is dating a man named Juan who she calls John (Christopher Acevedo). He is oddly always heading off to Plano. One of the sisters (Ashley Neal) is married to Steve (Andrew Cutler). It turns out there are multiple Steves. This leads to some really funny scenes where the actor leaves the stage in one spot and then reappears in another. The last sister (Amanda Fink) is seeing a man with no face (Andrew Lund). It is a very artistic piece that is open to the audience’s interpretation.

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A possible interpretation is that the characters are dealing with mental illness. For example, the multiple Steves could represent a multiple personality disorder. It’s also clear that none of the sister’s is having good luck with men

The entire cast does a great job with this fast paced and funny play. The dialog is quick and the time changes rapidly. A character will say “I’ll see you later. It is later.” In an instant, a few days has passed. It can be a bit disorientating but in a good way. The audience is fully engaged trying to figure out just exactly what is happening. It’s the kind of play you’ll want to see twice!

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Get tickets now for Plano through March 28^th!

Cost of a ticket: $28

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +

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Quinn Delaney

Review: Shear Madness at Mercury Theatre (Through April 26, 2020)

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A pair of hair stylists are working at a salon named Shear Madness. One of them is comically bad at his job. They often complain about the woman who lives upstairs. Two policemen arrive and announce that the woman upstairs was murdered. They have been casing the place and know that the killer must be either of one of the hair stylists or one of their customers. In the second half of the show, the audience must question the suspect to determine what happened.

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The Mercury Theatre is best known for doing big Broadway worth shows such as Avenue Q and Spamalot. So, this is a little bit out of their style and it shows. The Chicago references come off as corny and touristy. The jokes feel old fashioned. Perhaps it was because the audience was small, but the energy level was very low. It felt more like a small iO show than a big great production that Mercury Theatre is capable of making.

Get tickets now for Shear Madness through April 26^th.

Cost of a ticket: $44 and up

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Go for Free

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

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While this show doesn’t rate high, I still look forward to their next production starting on March 20th, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

Quinn Delaney

Impressive! Cirque du Soleil Presents Alegria (Through February 17 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami and June 5 – 28 at Soldier Field in Chicago)

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Very early in the show, a group of men come onto the stage with 15 foot long acro poles. Two men hold the end of the poles and fling the third into the air who then lands standing on the pole. It’s like the uneven bars in gymnastics, except the bars are controlled by people. It was very original and quite impressive!

Later on, a fire dancer takes the stage. He is holding sticks where both ends can hold fire. Only one end is lit at first, so he lights his hand on fire to transfer the fire to the other end. This is insane! He also puts the fire end of the sticks in his mouth and holds up the fire directly on his feet. He must be fire proof!

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The first half ends with a giant snowstorm. A plethora of white confetti is blown around with bright white lights shining everywhere. It would be better if the light didn’t shine directly into the audience’s face. Still, it is a cool scene.

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A man and a woman come out to do a performance with aerial straps. The exciting part is that only the man has his hand through the strap. The woman just puts her hands around his neck and off they go, up high above the stage. They do this again where he is just holding her by her hands. This looks very dangerous, which is what makes it so exciting to watch.

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At last, a giant net is set up about 15 feet above the stage. Up near the ceiling, a bunch of people are swinging around aerial high bars. Just beneath them, two men are swinging on a pendulum. Suddenly, one of them flips upside down. Simultaneously, one of the people flings off one of the bars into midair. They catch each other by the hands in an incredible feat. This trick takes incredible timing and must have involved many hours of practice.

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Get tickets now for Alegria through Monday at Hard Rock Stadium and June 5^th to 28^th at Soldier Field!

Cost of a ticket: $59 and up
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It
Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Broadway Quality! Slow Burn Theatre Company Presents Groundhog Day The Musical at Broward Center (Through February 16, 2020)

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Phil Connors is not happy that he has to go to the small town of Punxsutawney, PA to cover Groundhog Day. He thinks he is too important to have to cover such a small story. He spends the day being terrible to everyone. The next day he wakes up and discovers that it is Groundhog’s Day again. He is forced to live the same day over and over again. It’s a journey of self discovery mixed with a love story and a comedy.

This musical is based on the 1993 film of the same name starring Bill Murray. It truly captures the heart of the movie and so many of the great comedic moments. It also adds to the movie with the songs that really get at the emotions of the characters. The idea of a musical version of this movie sounds like a cheesy improv theatre show, but they have created a fantastic Broadway quality show.

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This production by Slow Burn Theatre is very impressive. It’s a must see! The sets are very professional and the crew does a great job swapping them in and out rapidly. The cast is excellent. Clay Cartland playing Phil Connors does a fantastic job. Also, the actor who plays Ned is great and looks just like him!

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Get tickets now for Groundhog Day The Musical through Sunday!

Cost of a ticket: $57

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Exceptional Value –

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Big Emotions! The Boys in the Band at Windy City Playhouse (Through April 19th, 2020)

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Michael has invited a bunch of his friends over to celebrate Harold’s 32^nd birthday. They are all having a grand time until an old friend of Michael’s, Alan, calls and announces that he will be swinging by. It’s 1968 the guests are gay. So, they must hide this fact from Alan in order to avoid being outed in a society that doesn’t accept them.

Ryan Reilly, Christian Edwin Cook, Denzel Tsopnang, William Marquez, and James Lee in Windy City Playhouse's The Boys in the Band, photo credit Michael Brosilow

The emotions get really big in this production. This is amplified by the immersive staging. The audience is seated within Harold’s large apartment. (Insider tip: The best seats are in the corner to left of the entrance. From there, you have a clear view of the kitchen and the upstairs bedroom.) This really makes you feel like part of the action, instead of just watching it up on the stage. It is worth the extra cost of the ticket for this immersive experience.

Jackson Evans and WIlliam Marquez in Windy City Playhouse's The Boys in the Band, photo credit Michael Brosilow

The game that they play really racks up the drama. Each member of the party must use the landline to call the person that they love and tell them that they love them over the phone. For most of them, this is something they have never said to anyone.

Jackson Evans (Avenue Q, Bunny Bunny) is great as the host, Michael. He shows some really strong emotions as he bares his soul. Christian Edwin Cook is excellent as Alan, who has a few secrets of his own. James Lee is superb as Larry, who is very intelligent and up front about his needs. In fact, the entire cast is solid in this ensemble piece.

Get tickets now for The Boys in The Band through April 19^th!

Cost of a ticket: $95 (On Weekends)

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Police Drama: Shattered Globe Theatre Presents Sheepdog at Theatre Wit (Through February 29, 2020)

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Amina and Ryan are two young police officers. They fall in love and move in together. Everything is going great until Ryan, a white male, shoots a young black man to death. He says the young man drew a knife and stepped towards him. A knife was found on the young man. Amina, a black female, questions the course of events. She starts an investigation to find out the truth.

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The play is narrated by Amina. She describes the events taking place and then steps into the scene she has created. It’s a bit too much narrating. It’s better to show rather than tell. By adding one more actor to the play, a lot of the narration could be removed. Still, the story is gripping as she digs deeply into the events of that night. She questions if Ryan is racist and if he planted the knife. This puts a huge dramatic toll on their relationship.

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Leslie Ann Sheppard is excellent as Amina. It’s an impressive feat to narrate the entire story and act in it as well. Drew Schad (Crime and Punishment, Born Yesterday) is great as Ryan. He is so fun and caring with Amina and then very intense when he is on the job. The audience doesn’t know whether to root for him or against him.

Get tickets now for Sheepdog through Febuary 29^th!

Cost of a ticket: $42

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Electric Jam Rock with Soul! Robert Randolph & The Family Band at City Winery Chicago (February 6, 2020)

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“I need more love everyday of my life!” sings Robert Randolph. With these words on top of an incredibly funky bass line accompanied by Randolph shredding on the steel pedal guitar, it’s impossible to not to start dancing. It’s such a great uplifting song.

During a long jam, Robert gets up and switches instruments with the drummer. Then, the bassist switches instruments with the keyboard player. This is all done without stopping the song. It’s a very cool moment that really adds to the intimate jam atmosphere. They all sing “Sunset coming. Walk of shame coming!”

It really is a family band. The bassist Danyel Morgan and drummer Marcus Randolph are his cousins. The backup vocalist is his sister, Lenesha Randolph. Also, Brett Andrew Haas plays the guitar.

For the encore, as they play, the entire room is singing “Thank you for letting me be myself again”. They are truly a great live band.

Also see our review of The Word featuring Robert Randolph here.

Quinn Delaney

World Class! Bug at Steppenwolf Theatre (Through March 15, 2020)

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A waitress is living alone in an Oklahoma motel room. One day her friend introduces her to a drifter. They get along so she invites him to sleep on the floor. Slowly, they develop a relationship and get to know each other. One night, the man exclaims that he has been bitten by a bug. He kicks her out of the bed as he very carefully searches everywhere for bugs. Later on he tells her that the bugs are in his blood and that he is infected. The drama builds from there.

(Trailer from the 2006 film adaptation)

The first half of the play is a slow build. And then in the second half, things really pick up as they dive into conspiracy theories. This is truly live theatre at it’s best. The acting and production are at such a high level that the audience completely loses themselves in the story. It is very cinematic and it’s no surprise that they made it into a movie in 2006.

Carrie Coon (Mary Page Marlowe, The Leftovers) is fantastic as the waitress. She completely becomes this lonely character searching for connection. Namir Smallwood (True West, BLKS) is superb as the drifter. He expertly transforms from mostly normal to a paranoid schizophrenic. Randall Arney, Jennifer Engstrom, and Steve Key are all great in their supporting roles. Tracy Letts (The Minutes, Linda Vista, Mary Page Marlowe) is a master writer. Every play he writes is a must see. He wrote this one in 1995 and it still feel completely fresh.