Theater Review

CHICAGO – The internet has invented news ways to harass people, and the category of celebrity has taken the brunt force of it all. Dana Delany is one such A-lister, who began an online communication with a anonymous teen, and tells about it live in “Highway Patrol,” at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre through February 18th. For information and tickets, click HIGHWAY.

CHICAGO – Marriage is a complex dynamic, and the subtle but effective “In Quietness,” currently at Chicago’s Red Orchid Theatre through March 10th, jumps the nuptial institution through some unusual hoops in exploration of religion, fidelity and promises made/broken. For information and tickets, click IN QUIETNESS.

CHICAGO – The great and lofty Steppenwolf Theatre of Chicago has brought the current political season right on target with “POTUS: Or Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive,” now extended through December 17th. Click POTUS.

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com Audio Theater Review of “Spank Bank Time Machine,” an uproarious journey created by monologist John Michael, opening November 2nd, 2023, at the Neo-Futurist Theater in Chicago. For info and tickets, click SPANK BANK.

CHICAGO – Society, or at least certain elements of society, are always looking for scapegoats to hide the sins of themselves and authority. In the so-called “great America” of the 1950s, the scapegoat target was comic books … specifically through a sociological study called “The Seduction of the Innocent.” City Lit Theater Company, in part two of a trilogy on comic culture by Mark Pracht, presents “The Innocence of Seduction … now through October 8th, 2023. For details and tickets, click COMIC BOOK.

CHICAGO – What began in Chicago in 2016 … as a preview to its eventual Broadway run … comes back to where it now belongs. The passionate and ebullient Kokandy Productions presents “The SpongeBob Musical,” and yes, it will satisfy fans of the cartoon series with flash, dash, and since it’s under the sea, SPLASH!

CHICAGO – The Opening Night ovation certainly acknowledged that the audience “Saw, Felt, was Touched and Healed” by the passionate and celebratory performance of “The Who’s Tommy.” Adapted from the iconic rock opera created by The Who in 1969, the Goodman Theater revival … with 1990s origins … was written by Pete Townsend and Des McAnuff (also director).

CHICAGO – Theatrical satires of the Star Wars Universe are like the number of TV series the universe has wrought … too many to figure out if anything is worthwhile. But “Trade Federation” (subtitled “Or Let’s Explore Globalization Through the Star Wars Prequels”), presented by Otherworld Theatre in Wrigleyville Chicago, gets it right on.

CHICAGO – Time to get back to live stage shows! The Otherworld Theatre of Chicago (Wrigleyville Neighborhood) presents an immersive sci-fi experience – AKA audience participation – on a space station, enticingly titled “Murder on Horizon.” The audience is part of solving the mystery as a futuristic gumshoe goes from suspect to suspect to find the killer of a prominent scientist.

CHICAGO – Love is a powerful enough force to transcend any obstacle that you may put in its path.