another night at the theater

This most recent foray was to lookingglass theater at Water Tower in the old pumping station.  We have seen a number of excellent productions there and loved some of them.  Actually among my all time favorite plays is the North China Lover which we saw here a few years back and I also found Title & Deed a terrific and thought provoking play.

http://blog.semifreelife.com/2015/05/a-question-of-genius.html

http://blog.semifreelife.com/2013/10/north-china-lover-must-see.html

This time we were there to see Thaddeus & Slocum and I would say it was overall a positive review with a some criticism.  The performances were fabulous all around- a terrifically talented cast.

"Thaddeus and Slocum: A Vaudeville Adventure tells the story of two friends, one black and one white, who are Vaudeville street performers trying to make it to the “big time” in segregated 1908 Chicago.

"It’s 1908 and Chicago’s Majestic Theatre is the jewel of the vaudeville circuit. The only thing stopping Thaddeus and Slocum from becoming the next great stage act is as simple – and complicated – as black and white. Will laughter triumph and friendship endure as racial boundaries threaten to destroy their dreams of making the “big time?”

"Lookingglass dives deep into the divided heart of American culture and show biz for a daring cavalcade of slapstick, song and dance, and burlesque as two best friends risk everything to make it to the top together."  Here is a link to an article about early African-American theater in Chicago-
http://www.robertloerzel.com/2011/01/01/early-african-american-theater-in-chicago/

of course from the point of view of 2016 there was much that was disturbing in the play surrounding the issue of race- wish we could say it was all ancient history but it is just less obvious now-

the characters of Thaddeus and of Isabella are both wonderfully portrayed by the actors and extremely sympathetic and on that basis alone I would recommend seeing the play (before 7/17- when the current Isabella leaves and is replaced).  I found the ending logical (if somewhat abrupt) but Phil found it completely jarring.

Overall - a mild thumbs up - enthusiastic for the actors but less so for the structure of the play.  Next up - a post on one of the reasons we will always be Chicagoans - if only for part of the year...

far from a travesty

So last night we kicked off round two (the spring semester) of the Chicago theater season.  Because of our winters away we end up with a sandwich of Sarasota theater in the middle of two ends of Chicago theater.  And yet, because the theater season in Chicago is drawing to a close we have a very full week of catching up to do...

Our first play this week was Travesties by Tom Stoppard. Stoppard won an Academy award for Shakespeare in Love and its brilliance shows up in early form here.  I will go on with more information from the theater and then give you our reviews after that - so you have the background for our two views...

and they were hawking subscriptions to next years productions - which we already have signed up for-  with the exception of the Noel Coward :-( which is while we are away- in NYC/Cuba/FL

so here are our thumbnail reviews- I liked it very much - found it witty and fast paced and I loved the fun the actors were having with the material- especially the two male leads - Greg Matthew Anderson (the amazing Jeff winner for Chesapeake from a couple of years back - a tour-de-force of a one man show) and Jeff Cummings - with a shout out to James Houton.  They were respectively the Dadaist, the civil servant and Joyce.  The ladies in their Wilde-esque roles also added verve to the evening's entertainment.  Phil found it mildly amusing but had no time for the inherent "discussion" of what is art - especially in relation to the "modern- shock of the new"...  So I would give it a solid thumbs up and Phil a tepid one.

Up next, in order - for theater evenings-

Sunday-

the Tuesday play- with John Mahoney-

the Wednesday outing- my favorite film from the Sarasota Film Festival- playing one night in Chicago.

the Thursday dinner-

and Friday dinner with friends-

so more as the week progresses.... and then we are off to see family and friends in NYC before heading to Europe for two weeks.... lots to report back on... stay tuned

Death Tax

Today we saw the Lookingglass Theater production of Death Tax... an enjoyable afternoon for contemplating the issue surrounding the American way of dying in today's political environment. Here is a brief overview of the story line- a run down of the cast and then my thoughts on the play.

so- lots going on here- the play is quite intricate and the black comedy/drama/life issues work on a lot of levels... things are not exactly as they seem and I will not spoil the ending but let me say- things are certainly not predictable! I would give this a thumbs up for the intelligent scripting. The cast was excellent (as usual) and staging was all it needed to be- sparse but evocative of the settings.  The action and ultimate outcome are about the intersection of family dynamics and money - and boy, you sure could spend a couple of lifetimes exploring that! So I would give it a thumbs up overall.

The play was presented in one act of multiple scenes with no intermission - which I love when it can be accomplished (intermissions are just a waste of my time in my opinion.) And speaking of wasting time- I have noticed a trend (and experienced it again today) of theaters not beginning their productions ON TIME... I find this annoying and not respectful of the audience's time. I manage to be there on time and in my seat before the appointed hour, I think the least they can do is start on time.   Today the tickets gave the time of the play as 3 PM ... 3:05 rolled around and then 3:07 and then 3:09 and finally at 3:10 they dimmed the lights... should we all start arriving ten minutes late? If they don't want that then perhaps they should set the example of promptness... I remarked about this at the theater three times in the last week alone and also at the last production we went to of this theater (Cascobel) - so while it is not just them - although I did notice that the show at the Old Town School on Saturday started at 8 PM on the dot and I give them credit for that! Sadly - they seem to be becoming the exception rather than the rule.... and yes #crankyoldwoman is a good hash tag for me on this subject....

next up for reporting back to you - fall menu at 42 grams! coming Wednesday... then Senza on Friday night... and company for the weekend- guest room sheets changed and ready!