Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

HARRY LENNIX as AUGUST WILSON- in "How I Learned What I Learned" at The Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place." 3.jpeg

Theater

Sublime ‘How I Learned What I Learned’ delves into life lessons that shaped August Wilson the writer and his works

Actor Harry Lennix wears August Wilson’s persona with ease and grace. As he weaves together anecdotes from the playwright’s eventful life, the audience gets a direct look at the power within the man behind the pen.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

Pepe Nufrio and Erica Stephan in Guys and Dolls. Photo by Brett Beiner.jpg

Theater

'Guys and Dolls' delivers plenty of camp, comedy and the usual lovable characters in Drury Lane staging

Director/choreographer Dan Knechtges pushes the show to the outermost boundaries of broad comedy.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

In "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead," the title characters (Erik Hellman, left, and Nate Burger, right) banter with the leader of a traveling acting troupe (Lorenze Rush Jr.).

Theater

In riveting Court production, 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern' captures worries, wit of Hamlet's stooges

Nate Burger and Erik Hellman have a chemistry that crackles in Charles Newell’s staging, which plays up the meta-theatrics of Tom Stoppard’s absurdist take on Shakespeare.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

Marc Akinfolarin (from left), George Knapper, Mark Loveday, Ifan Gwilym-Jones and Cal T King are among the ensemble cast of "The Choir of Man." Michael Brosilow Photo.jpg

Theater

'Choir of Man' is a rollicking good time filled to the brim with song, suds and sentimentality

The atmosphere is part after-hours St. Patrick’s Day celebration, part frat party, and — once the music starts — part cover-band concert.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

ThePENELOPIAD_3.jpeg. Tyler Meredith, Helen Joo Lee, Amira Danan, Aja Alcazar, Elizabeth Laidlaw and Allison Sill and Jennifer Morrison. (In front) .

Theater

Goodman Theatre's masterful 'Penelopiad' gives powerful voice to the women of 'The Odyssey'

Artistic director Susan V. Booth shapes a production of furious impact and impeccable ensemble work from the all-female, 13-strong cast.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

5 Celeste Williams, Cindy Gold, Meg Thalken.jpeg

Theater

Hope springs eternal at all stages of life in Rivendell Theatre Ensemble's poignant 'Wipeout'

Three women share the laughter and tears that come with surviving seven decades of all that life can dish out in Aurora Real de Asua’s drama.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

Theater

Sting's music, Kate Prince's electrifying choreography weave mesmerizing tale of hope and survival in 'Message in a Bottle'

In shaping this combination of dance concert/juke-box musical, director-choreographer Kate Prince uses everything from break dancing to ballet to tell the story of a family forced into a perilous journey.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

Manny Buckley, Jon Hudson Odom. Photo by Michael Brosilow (1).jpg

Theater

Two lives intersect amid one president's legacy in the searing 'Reclamation of Madison Hemings’

American Blues Theater’s taut, troubling tale de-deifies a nearly mythic figure in U.S. history while giving voice to the millions the Founding Fathers didn’t include as equals.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times

_Mark David Kaplan and Company. Brett Beiner Photo.jpg

Entertainment and Culture

Minimalist 'Fiddler on the Roof' eschews traditional staging and loses too much of its charm

For starters, there’s no fiddler.

By Catey Sullivan | For the Sun-Times