Displaying items by tag: Chicago events

Goodman's Centennial 25/26 Season concludes on a high note, with programming for all ages, interests and neighborhoods. The theater announces its 4th annual partnership with Chicago Park District's "Night Out in the Parks" to bring The Lizard y El Sol, a Theater for the Very Young (TVY) play, into 12 public spaces citywide. At the same time, famed longtime improvisers, actors and friends TJ Jagodowski and David Pasquesi (with musical guest Ike Reilly) return for a third summer in the Owen Theatre with their comedy show TJ and Dave. Plus, Chicago playwrights William Glick and Lachrisa Grandberry, The Goodman's 25/26 New Stages Residency playwrights, offer a first look at their new plays in free readings while The Goodman welcomes 60+ high schoolers for its annual youth summer programs—Playbuild Youth Intensive and Musical Theatre Intensive.

These events complement The Goodman's previously announced summer programming, including two musicals: Iceboy! or, The Completely Untrue Story of How Eugene O'Neill Came to Write "The Iceman Cometh," starring Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman in its world premiere, and Raven Theatre's hit Octet transferring to The Goodman following a sold-out run in its north side home. In addition, Dennis Watkins welcomes internationally celebrated magician Eric Jones to The Magic Parlour for a three-week residency next month, and Theater of the Mind continues through August 30 with a new $99 "Make It a Date Night" ticket package now available. For tickets and reservations, call 312.443.3800 or visit GoodmanTheatre.org. Media members interested in covering these events should contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for complimentary press passes. More info appears below. 

ABOUT THE SUMMER OFFERINGS

Iceboy! or, The Completely Untrue Story of How Eugene O'Neill Came to Write "The Iceman Cometh" 
Music By Mark Hollmann 
Lyrics by Mark Hollmann and Jay Reiss 
Book by Erin Quinn Purcell and Jay Reiss 
Directed by Marc Bruni | Choreographed by JoAnn M. Hunter 
Through August 9 | The Albert Theatre 
Tickets: $49-$209, subject to change 

Broadway's brightest star of 1939, Vera Vimm, is at the top of her game—until she adopts a 40,000-year-old Neanderthal discovered frozen in the Arctic. As Iceboy thaws, he unexpectedly becomes a theatrical sensation, inspiring Eugene O'Neill and challenging Vera for center stage. The world-premiere production stars Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman and features music by Mark Hollmann, lyrics by Mark Hollmann and Jay Reiss, and book by Erin Quinn Purcell and Jay Reiss—the Tony Award-winning creators behind Urinetown (Hollmann, with Greg Kotis) and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Reiss, with Rachel Sheinkin and William Finn)—with Grey Henson in the title role, Cedric Yarbrough, Sarah Stiles, Alex Goodrich and more. Directed by Marc Bruni with choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter, it's at once the capstone of The Goodman's Centennial Season and its latest in a long history premiering new large-scale American musicals. The Goodman is grateful for the support of Edgerton Foundation (New Play Award), Mayer Brown (Lead Corporate Sponsor) and Athletico Physical Therapy (The Official Physical Therapy Provider for Goodman Theatre). GoodmanTheatre.org/Iceboy

Guest Artist Eric Jones' three-week residency at The Magic Parlour 
July 10-26 | 50 W. Randolph 
Tickets: $76-$106 

A special guest star, a new block of tickets, and more magic comes to The Magic Parlour this summer. Acclaimed third-generation Magician Dennis Watkins announces a new block of tickets for performances through end of year, December 2026. In addition, "Chicago's premiere resident magician" (Chicago Tribune) welcomes Eric Jones—a fan favorite and semi-finalist on NBC's America's Got Talent who stunned the famed magicians on Penn & Teller: Fool Us—for a limited three-week residency this summer. Now in its third year, The Magic Parlour is a custom magic theater in the heart of the Loop that has welcomed more than 28,000 Chicagoans to 700+ performances and bespoke private events—including hosting some of the nation's greatest magicians as guest artists-in-residence and special performances. TheMagicParlourChicago.com

Raven Theatre's production of Dave Malloy's Octet 
Presented by The Goodman 
Directed by Kiera Fromm | Music Directed by Nick Sula | Choreographed by Laura Savage 
July 15-26 | The Owen Theatre 
Tickets: $44-94 

In an anonymous meeting room on the North Side of Chicago, a group of people—always eight—gathers to sing. Best known for the Broadway hit Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet Of 1812, Dave Malloy's Octet uses chamber-inspired a cappella music to explore the total impact of life online. Hailed by The New York Times as "the most original and topical musical of the year" for its 2019 Off-Broadway premiere, this inventive and acutely relevant piece reflects the perils of the digital age. GoodmanTheatre.org/Octet

The Lizard y El Sol 
Presented as part of the Chicago Park District's Night Out in the Parks Series, supported by the Mayor's Office and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) 
Co-Directed by Jamal Howard and Raquel Torre 
July 22 – August 9 | Appearing at 12 locations citywide 
Tickets: FREE; reservations encouraged but not required 

This summer, The Lizard y El Sol springs to life in 11 parks and 1 library across the city, bringing free outdoor theater adventures for children ages 0–5 and the grown-ups who love them. When El Sol (the sun) mysteriously vanishes from the sky, it's up to one brave Lizard to embark on a quest to find and bring back the light. Audiences of all ages will enjoy this enchanting retelling of a beloved Mexican folktale featuring interactive storytelling and Mexican-inspired music and dance. The play is presented primarily in Spanish, but is designed to be enjoyed and understood by both Spanish and non-Spanish speakers. All performances are one hour long followed by a hands-on workshop for audiences. The Goodman is grateful for the support of the Laura Sachs Foundation (Major Individual Sponsor), Wintrust Commercial Bank(Community Programs Sponsor), Kirkland & Ellis (Arts in Community Sponsor). GoodmanTheatre.org/Lizard

"Through our partnership with Night Out in the Parks, we're able to bring high-quality theatre directly into neighborhoods across Chicago, creating opportunities for children to experience the wonder, the joy and the connection that live performance offers," said Clifford Director of Education and Engagement Jared Bellot, who oversees Theater for the Very Young, PlayBuild and Musical Theatre Intensive summer youth programs. "At The Goodman, we believe that our youngest audiences deserve richly intentional artistic experiences, and this production reminds us that theater can spark curiosity, build community and help young people see themselves as active participants in the world around them."

Theater for the Very Young (TVY) programming offers immersive theatrical experiences—produced and performed by professional artists—designed for children ages 0–5 years old to experience alongside the grown-ups in their lives. Created in 2023 by Goodman Walter Artistic Director Susan V. Booth in response to research demonstrating the profound impact the arts can have on early childhood development and long-term learning outcomes, TVY introduces Chicagoland's youngest audiences to live theater through storytelling, music, movement and sensory-rich play produced and performed by professional artists. Over the past three years, TVY has served thousands of children and families in Chicago parks, theaters, schools and community spaces with productions of the plays Splish Splash: A Day on the Lake (2026); Book Up! (2025); The Lizard y El Sol (2024); and Pearl Cleage's In My Granny's Garden (2023).

TJ and Dave 
With special musical guest Ike Reilly 
July 30-31, August 1 at 7:30pm | The Owen Theatre 
Tickets: $29-49 

TJ Jagodowski and David Pasquesi—"two of the world's finest practitioners of the art of long-form improv" (Time Out Chicago)—bring their unforgettable live performance back to The Goodman's Owen stage. Over the past two decades at venues across the country and overseas, TJ and Dave walk out on stage without characters, dialogue or plot. One hour later, their two-person completely improvised show leaves an audience with one of the funniest nights of their lives. Hailed as "Second City-seasoned masters of long form improv" (The New York Times) and "Zen masters of their art; improv virtuosos, blissful to watch" (The Guardian) serving up "the best improv comedy we've ever seen: brilliant, heart-breaking, mind-blowing and inspiring" (Time Out New York), Jagodowski and Pasquesi have become living legends in their field. Don't miss their limited three-night-only engagement—with special musical guest, Ike Reilly. GoodmanTheatre.org/TJandDave

Youth Intensive Education and Engagement Summer Programs 
PlayBuild Youth Intensive | June 22 – July 27 
Musical Theater Intensive | July 6 – August 10

Over sixty high schoolers join The Goodman's long-running summer youth programs—PlayBuild and Musical Theater Intensive—this summer. Both five-week programs are offered FREE and full-time, with participants attending Monday through Thursday working with teaching artists and local theater professionals. PlayBuild Youth Intensive (June 22 – July 27) immerses participants in the building blocks of live storytelling and performance, refining their skills in acting, playwriting, creative writing, improvisation, physical theater and ensemble work. Students learn a range of skills from local industry professionals and devise an original theater production created by the PlayBuild ensemble. Musical Theater Intensive (July 6 – August 10) is a pre-professional program that introduces and supplements musical theater knowledge in its participants, acquainting them with the demanding lifestyle of performance as they refine skills in acting, dancing, singing, storytelling and ensemble work, also culminating with a final performance on The Goodman stage. The Goodman is grateful for the support of the Quaker Oats Company (Corporate Support of PlayBuild Youth Intensive).

New Stages Residency Readings 
The Last Time We Saw Them by William Glick | July 20 | 7:30pm | Healy Rehearsal Hall 
Black-Eyed Peas and Collard Greens by Lachrisa Grandberry | September 17 | 7pm | Alice Center 
Tickets: FREE; reservations open three weeks prior to each reading 

Be first to experience the plays of tomorrow with staged readings of works-in-progress from this season's New Stages Residents—Chicago-based writers creating new pieces in collaboration with The Goodman. Established in 2010 as the "Playwrights Unit," the New Stages Residency supports multiple writers each season, offering tailored developmental support for works-in-progress and fostering close connections between Goodman staff and Chicago artists. Residency writers are embedded in The Goodman's artistic staff for the season and are considered artists-in-residence at the theater. The Goodman is grateful for the support of the Ruth D. And Ken M. Davee New Works Fund (Major Support of New Play Development), Pritzker Pucker Family Foundation (Major Support of New Work), and Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust (Major Support of New Work).

Theater of the Mind 
Co-created by David Byrne and Mala Gaonkar 
Directed by Andrew Scoville 
Through August 30 | Reid Murdoch Building, 333 N. LaSalle St. 
Tickets: Starting at $69; subject to change 

Directed by Andrew Scoville and Technology Director Heidi Boisvert, PhD, Theater of the Mind is a 75-minute mind-bending sensory journey for 16 audience members at a time. Led by a Guide whose stories are inspired by the creators' lives, audiences explore how they perceive the world through sensory experiments derived from both historical and current neuroscience research that reveal the inner mysteries of the brain. A new "Make it a Date Night" package is now available: $99 for two tickets, two complimentary drinks at the Theater of the Mind bar, and a free dessert-for-two with dinner reservations at Nonnina restaurant (340 N. Clark Street), valid for performance time slots starting at 8 pm on Wednesday and Thursday evenings (subject to availability). The Goodman is grateful for the support of Northern Trust, the Chicago Department of Planning and Development, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Illinois Office of Tourism, and Friedman Properties. Theater of the Mind is produced here in special arrangement with Arbutus, a not-for-profit founded by David Byrne to celebrate, re-present, and amplify ideas found in surprising places. TheateroftheMindChicago.com

ABOUT THE GOODMAN

Since 1925, The Goodman has been more than a stage. A theatrical home for artists and a gathering space for community, it's where stories come to life—bold in artistry and rich in history, deeply rooted in the city it serves.

Led by Walter Artistic Director Susan V. Booth and Executive Director John Collins, The Goodman sparks conversation, connection and change through new plays, reimagined classics and large-scale musicals. With distinctions including nearly 200 world or American premieres, two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards and nearly 200 Joseph Jefferson Awards, The Goodman is proud to be the first theater to produce all 10 plays of August Wilson's "American Century Cycle." In addition, the theater frequently serves as a production partner—with national and international companies to Chicago's Off-Loop theaters—to help amplify theatrical voices.

But The Goodman believes a more empathetic, more connected Chicago is created one story at a time, and counts as its greatest legacy the community it's built. Generation-spanning productions and programs offer theater for a lifetime; from Theater for the Very Young (plays designed for ages 0-5) to the long-running annual A Christmas Carol, which has introduced new generations to theater over five decades, The Goodman is committed to being an asset for all of Chicago. Education and Engagement programs led by Clifford Director of Education and Engagement Jared Bellot and housed in the Alice Rapoport Center use the tools of theater to spark imagination, reflection and belonging. Each year, these programs reach thousands of people (85% from underserved communities) as well as educators, artists and lifelong learners across the city.

The Goodman stands on the unceded homelands of the Council of the Three Fires—the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations—and acknowledges the many other Nations for whom this land now called Chicago has long been home, including the Myaamia, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Sac and Fox, Peoria, Kaskaskia, Wea, Kickapoo, and Mascouten. The Goodman is proud to partner with the Gichigamiin Indigenous Nations Museum (Gichigamiin-Museum.org) and the Center for Native Futures (CenterForNativeFutures.org)—organizations devoted to honoring Indigenous stories, preserving cultural memory, and deepening public understanding.

The Goodman was founded by William O. Goodman and his family to honor the memory of Kenneth Sawyer Goodman—a visionary playwright whose bold ideas helped shape Chicago's early cultural renaissance. That spirit of creativity and generosity endures today. In 2000, through the commitment of Mr. Goodman's descendants—Albert Ivar Goodman and his late mother, Edith-Marie Appleton—The Goodman opened the doors to its current home in the heart of the Loop.

Marsha Cruzan is Chair of the Goodman Theatre Board of Trustees; Diane Landgren is Women's Board President; and Kelli Garcia is president of the Scenemakers Board for Young Professionals. 

The musical Water for Elephants, presented by Broadway In Chicago and based on Sara Gruen’s 2006 novel, is the rare touring Broadway production that feels like two forms of live entertainment fused perfectly. It is a sweeping musical, yes, but it is also a full-blown circus spectacle – and, more impressively, it manages to blow you away on both fronts.

Told through the memories and ghosts of an elderly Jacob Jankowski, Water for Elephants follows a young Jacob who, under unfortunate circumstances, follows the age-old childhood dream of running away with the circus. The show brings to life the complicated realities behind that fantasy: the idea of stumbling into a secret, self-contained world where danger, wonder, chosen family, and reinvention all exist under one big top. From the moment Jacob enters that world, the audience is drawn in with him.

Particular standouts in the principal cast were Zachary Keller as Jacob Jankowski, whose vocal talent and charisma are matched only by Robert Tully as Older Jacob – the perfect pairing across time. As Marlena, Helen Krushinski commanded the theatre like a pure-of-heart ringmaster, capturing our attention both on trapeze and vocally. However, no one made the audience laugh harder than Tyler West as Walter, the gritty, spunky clown and knife-thrower whose physical comedy was unmatched, projecting every larger-than-life expression to the backs of the theatre.

The show’s creative engine fires on all cylinders: a soaring score from the acclaimed PigPen Theatre Co. (The Tale of Despereaux), a sharply crafted book by four‑time Tony Award nominee Rick Elice (Jersey Boys, Peter and the Starcatcher), and tour direction by Ryan Emmons, faithfully re‑creating Jessica Stone’s Tony‑nominated original staging (Kimberly Akimbo).

(left-right) Connor Sullivan, Helen Krushinski, and Zachary Keller in Water for Elephants. Photos by Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade. 

The most immediately astonishing element of this production is, unsurprisingly, the circus work. The show features a truly impressive range of skills, including aerial hoop and silks, Spanish web, trapeze, and dozens of genuinely death-defying acrobatic tricks and stunts. These sequences are not treated as decorative flourishes or occasional spectacle breaks; they are woven directly into the fabric of the show, pulling us behind the scenes of how the circus breathes, moves, celebrates, and survives.

Aside from their incredible acrobatic talent, it is the ensemble’s acting and collective presence that really bring the Benzini Brothers Circus to life. They do not just perform like a group of talented individuals; they feel like a community. Their presence gives the spectacle a lived-in quality, as if we are getting a glimpse into a strange, beautiful little village that existed long before Jacob arrived and will continue on after he leaves. The choreography only deepens that feeling, filling the stage with constant motion that still somehow feels purposeful, like the well-oiled machine behind a traveling circus, rather than chaotic. Even in the busiest moments, there is a sense of shared rhythm and collective trust among the ensemble that’s impossible to fake.

That trust extends beyond performance and into the technical construction of the show itself. Throughout the production, the cast quite literally assembles and dismantles the world around them. The big top is built, broken down, reconfigured, and rebuilt in front of us, using artistry to turn scene transitions into their own kind of performance. For a concept that presents so many obvious challenges – live animals, circus-scale theatricality, and the limitations of a traveling production, to name a few – Water for Elephants meets each obstacle with remarkable creativity and a steady grounding force.

The touring cast of Water for Elephants.

The production design is especially successful because it knows when to lean into abstraction. Rather than attempting to make every element literal, the show often suggests the world of the circus through movement, fabric, shadow, structure, the bodies of its performers, and some of the most beautiful puppets I’ve seen on stage. The amount of thought that went into creating something cohesive, theatrical, and fully transportable - without dulling any of its magic - feels less like standard Broadway stagecraft and more like a feat pulled off by a traveling chosen family.

All of this authenticity, however, at times feels at odds with the musical’s book and score. The ensemble feels so natural, so physically and emotionally connected to one another, that a few of the more dramatic scenes begin to feel noticeably staged by comparison. That is not a question of the principal cast’s talent, but rather a limitation of translating this story from novel to musical. There are moments when the circus – and even the puppets – feels startlingly real, and moments when you are reminded that you are very much watching a musical. Neither approach is inherently wrong, but the gap between them can be jarring. Still, that critique feels small compared to the scale of what the production accomplishes. It is also worth noting how vocally balanced the ensemble remains despite the wide range of performers on stage. In a show that combines musical theatre performers with circus and acrobatic artists, maintaining that level of cohesion is both a performance achievement and a technical one.

Water for Elephants captures the exact feeling it is chasing: awe. It is dangerous, romantic, inventive, and deeply theatrical, with a company that makes the impossible look effortless.

For anyone who has ever wanted to run away with the circus – or simply be reminded of what live performance can do when artists push it to its limits – Water for Elephants is running at James M. Nederlander Theatre through July 5th. Tour information and tickets are available at https://waterforelephantsthemusical.com/.

Overshadowed Theatrical Productions announced their 2026-2027 season entitled “Ordinary People, Extraordinary Moments,” which includes five main stage productions and special events.

Kicking off the season is an original play written by Artistic Director Reba Hervas entitled “Flame of Fire.” The story is inspired by "Operation Auca," a mission to make peaceful contact with an Ecuadorian tribe. Remembering the events 70 years later, this dramatic play follows missionaries Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Pete Fleming, Ed McCully, and Roger Youderian and their wives as they bravely prepare for what would change their lives forever. Auditions for this empowering tale will be held on Tuesday, July 28.

For the Christmas season, Overshadowed will present the beloved “It’s a Wonderful Life,” adapted by Jason LeBlanc from the film by Frank Capra. This cherished story follows George Bailey as he discovers the most precious gift thanks to some heavenly help by a quirky angel trying to earn his wings. The film turns 80 years old this year.

In January, the season continues with the family-oriented “James and the Giant Peach (TYA).” Adapted from Roald Dahl's book, this musical follows the adventures of a young boy and his strange new friends as they travel in a giant peach to New York. Book by Timothy Allen McDonald with music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, known for "Dear Evan Hansen."

The spring will feature a rare Agatha Christie mystery, “The Stranger.” Considered a lost play until 2019, this intriguing tale will have audiences on the edge of their seats as a woman’s whirlwind romance takes a turn when she discovers something about her husband’s past.

The season wraps with the Tony Award-winning “Titanic” with music and lyrics by Maury Yeston and a book by Peter Stone. This beautiful musical delivers powerful emotional moments and soaring songs that bring history to life.

The season will also include the return of Shakespeare on the Grass, a partnership with the City of Itasca. “A Midsummer Night's Dream” will be presented on August 15 at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. at 201-261 S. Walnut Street, Itasca, in the newly renovated gazebo. The event is free and will feature food and beverages for purchase from local vendors.

In February, Overshadowed will also present its annual Valentine’s Day show with a special performer to be announced at a later date.

Season subscriptions are available for purchase on Overshadowed’s website or by calling the box office at (630) 634-2100.

Production Dates:

• “Flame of Fire”: September 18 – October 10, 2026
• “It’s a Wonderful Life”: November 27 – December 19, 2026
• “James and the Giant Peach (TYA)”: January 22 – February 6, 2027
• “The Stranger”: March 12–20 and April 1–10, 2027
• “Titanic”: July 9–31, 2027
• Shakespeare on the Grass: “A Midsummer Night's Dream”: August 15, 2026 (1 p.m. & 4 p.m.)

About Overshadowed Theatrical Productions

For over 20 years, Overshadowed Theatrical Productions has provided high-quality, family-friendly theater that entertains, inspires, and promotes a Biblical message while fostering a positive community atmosphere. The company is also dedicated to training and encouraging the next generation of performers and theater technicians.

An extraordinary eight-person ensemble fuels the sweeping storytelling of A People - a production presented collaboratively by Arts Judaica and YI Love Jewish - shifting through nearly 80 characters across generations and geographies. Though only one cast member is Jewish, playwright LM Feldman intentionally assembled a diverse ensemble to reflect the many ways Jewish identity manifests - across culture, theology, race, queerness, and lived experience - underscoring that there is no single way to be part of a people.

The performance thrives on the versatility of this cast, featuring standout contributions from Douglas Levin, who provides an authentic and anchoring sincerity, and Charity Schultz, who illuminates her roles with magnetic charm. Daniel Boughton moves with ease between sharp humor and striking emotional depth, and Jin Ai anchors the production’s stillest moments with a quiet power, enriched by her beautifully integrated guitar work. Zach Kunde cuts through the space with sharp intellect and a commanding vocal presence, while Haley Schenk turns a single, piercing glance into some of the production’s most potent dramatic beats, and she even threads in flute playing that adds a surprising, delicate texture. The momentum never falters thanks to Xavier Mattison’s vibrant energy and tenderness, while Freya Churchwell rounds out the ensemble with impressive, wide‑ranging versatility and delivers some of the play’s genuine laugh‑out‑loud exchanges. Together, they weave a unified and deeply affecting tapestry of human survival.

This remarkable stage chemistry is guided by director Avi Hoffman, an acclaimed figure in global Jewish theater who recently directed and starred in a historic Yiddish production of Death of a Salesman in Bucharest, Romania. Having previously earned a Drama Desk nomination for playing Willy Loman in New York, Hoffman injects this local production with masterful artistic insight. Under his careful guidance, the non-linear, fragmented script by L. M. Feldman avoids confusion, gaining immense clarity and striking a perfect balance between epic historical weight and intimate human connection.

L-R: Jin Ai, Charity Schultz, Freya Churchwell, Zach Kunde, Douglas Levin. Photos by Logan and Candice Conner, Oonphotography.

Starting with the diaspora of the Jewish people that have become scattered throughout the world, the production explores several expressions of Judaism while ultimately reinforcing the idea that, despite their differences, they remain one people - and a remarkable people at that. It touches on beautiful threads of Jewish history, including the teaching that Moses received not only the written Torah referred to as “The Hand” at Mount Sinai but also the Oral Torah referred to as “The Tongue,” which was an interesting fact that I did not ever learn about the Torah in Hebrew school. I was also unaware of another phenomenon that members of the Jewish community called “tonals” actually memorized whole portions of the Torah to recite and sing so that the Torah portion could be performed for groups of students/scholars etc., to discuss and watch. The important thing that came out of this discussion of the Torah and the essential thing that makes Judaism different from other religions is that Jews learned and passed on the teachings of the Torah and the Talmud for the purpose of discussing them and learning from them and interpreting them and re-interpreting them -so as not to force them down anyone’s throat to be followed with blind faith. 

As a Jew, I appreciated how the piece pokes gentle fun at our tradition of spirited debate - a trait that can be both energizing and, at times, hilariously counterproductive.  

They are so intelligent at debating with each other that sometimes they nitpick each other to the end of a discussion that could otherwise forward the family or community or couple in a more positive way.

One of the production’s most profound scenes comes when a character asks a 90‑year‑old what history lives in the wrinkles of their face - how an entire lifetime, nearly a century of memory, can be held within one fragile human body. Another moment that stayed with me was the gentle but urgent insistence that nurturing future generations is vital to the continuity of the Jewish people.

Back row L-R: Freya Churchwell, Jin Ai, Charity Schultz, Xavier Mattison, Zach Kunde, Douglas Levin. Front L-R: Haley Schenk, Daniel Boughton.

The differences among them are many, yet a shared thread still binds them together. One character argues passionately for a two‑state solution, while another hopes her girlfriend will one day be fully embraced by her community. A rabbi even confronts a group of Jewish Christmas carolers, shouting, ‘Why are you doing this?’ as the story considers how and why some Jews celebrate Christmas - a reflection of how the holiday’s overwhelming cultural presence in America can blur the line between religious observance and simple seasonal participation. And still, beneath all these disagreements and divergences, the play returns to the same essential truth: that despite their varied beliefs, identities, and practices, they remain part of one people.

This production was perfect for me as a Reform Jew who has been struggling in recent years with the current rise in antisemitism and my own childhood feelings of being a “self-hating Jew”. I remember being told as a teenager by my talent agent applying for theater roles that I needed to change my last name from Katz to Cates, implying that I would not be cast with a Jewish last name.

The work also reminded me that many young women today - queer and straight alike - continue to push back against the patriarchal elements of Judaism. It echoes the long history of restrictions found in early texts, where girls as young as 12 years old were defined by their childbearing potential and barred from studying sacred writings. 

On the plus side, it brought me back to the beauty of the Yiddish language and how I hunger for the sounds of my great grandmother Fanny’s voice and my grandmother Lillian’s voice saying, ‘Have a little nosh!’ and, ‘We love you so much we’re kvelling!’” 

The set is intentionally simple: a large Star of David stretches across the floor of Theater Wit’s intimate in‑the‑round space, immediately grounding the production in its cultural and spiritual roots. A few risers punctuate the stage, giving actors elevated platforms for defining moments, while small prop boxes at either end glow when opened, revealing modest but striking items that carry surprising emotional weight. Puppets appear briefly as well, echoing the woodworking projects referenced in the story and adding a tactile, handmade quality to the world. It’s an effective setup for this play - the open space becomes essential as the ensemble moves fluidly around the stage, frequently breaking the fourth wall to bless a volunteering audience member, pass out challah, ask questions, or coax the crowd into clapping along.

By luck, I chose the seat that happened to be in the spotlight for participation, and I was delighted when one actor asked me to be his ‘bubbe’ - his grandmother. When I said, ‘Yes! I will be your grandma!’ He gently took my hand, giving me a grateful squeeze. At another point, one of the actors - dressed as a bride - asked if he could give one of the audience members a blessing. I immediately said, ‘Yes!’ and he came over and placed his hands gently on my head - he was wearing the traditional lace head covering the bride on her wedding day - and he wished me great life blessings of joy and to find a wonderful husband. It was a delightful, intimate moment, and I hope that everyone who sees the show volunteers to experience that.  

Throughout much of the play, the actors also wear small placards hanging from their necks, each bearing a single word such as “wrestle,” “struggle,” and “legacy.” These signs become a quiet but potent visual motif, suggesting the burdens, questions, and inheritances each character carries across time. They function almost like distilled themes of Jewish history itself - reminders that to be part of a people is to wrestle with identity, to struggle for continuity, and to consider what legacy one leaves behind. Other words appear as the ensemble shifts through eras, each one offering a compact window into the emotional or spiritual weight of the moment. 

Back row L-R: Douglas Levin, Jin Ai, Xavier Mattison. Front row L-R: Freya Churchwell, Daniel Boughton, Charity Schultz.

My only note - and this is for the author, not the cast or director - is that of all the various types of Jews included in this piece - Reform, Conservative, queer, self‑hating, Orthodox, even atheist - the one type of Jew that was not represented was the Messianic Jew, of which I am one.  

Messianic Jews (not to be confused with the organization Jews for Jesus) are Jews who believe that Jesus is the Messiah spoken of in the Old Testament - the ‘Christed One,’ meaning the one anointed with the oil of blessing. In those same scriptures, this figure is described as the blessed one who would be ‘pierced through his hands and feet,’ yet ‘whose bones would not be broken.’

Messianic Jews also believe that, regardless of his lineage - whether Yeshua was a descendant of King David or not - his purpose in allowing himself to be publicly killed, and then healing his own body three days later, was to show that this world is made of spirit, or ‘shimmering motes,’ as he called them. This was long before molecular structure or the effects of consciousness on physical matter were even theorized. All of his miracles were mitzvahs - acts of goodness - centered on healing and feeding the poor, the sick, and the disabled. 

At the very least, Jesus was a respected, super advanced, rabbi, rebel and healer who introduced the idea that women were worthy of learning the Torah and receiving healing from his touch whether they were Jewish or not. This Feminist thought alone was a very radical and world changing idea that women of all nations and all religions are eternally grateful for. 

Given all that Yeshua represents historically and spiritually to many Jews, I was surprised that his name never surfaced in a piece that explores so many branches of Jewish identity, its factions, and its many splintered paths. I compare his omission from Jewish studies when debating this with my friends to discussing basketball history without mentioning Michael Jordan or discussing physics without ever mentioning Albert Einstein - not a judgment, just an observation about the scope of the narrative. 

In any case, author LM Feldman has created a marvelously complex and deliciously enjoyable reminder of all the different expressions of Judaism, and of the lush intelligence and grace of Jewish people around the globe caught up in the current battle to stay alive and well. Le Chaim! 

A People was a very deeply inspiring and delightful experience for me, especially at this unprecedented time in history. This heartfelt production of A People helped this Jewish girl from Miami, Florida remember so many of the great things about my Jewish heritage; the sights, the sounds, the heated discussions, the music, the fabulous food, the funny family dinners, my own bat mitzvah… just so many things that make me proud to be a Jew today. 

With its blend of live music and rapid-fire storytelling, the production compresses five thousand years of Jewish history and cultural inheritance into a brisk, engaging evening. A People stands out as essential summertime theater, honoring its deep historical foundations while resonating powerfully with contemporary audiences.

Mazel Tov and Highly Recommended! 

Running through July 5 at Theater Wit. 

Anton Chekhov, a Russian playwright who was also a doctor, can claim a level of regard few writers achieve and maintain so long after their deaths.  Born in 1860, the same year the Republican Party nominated Abraham Lincoln for President, his plays are routinely produced on stages in America and around the world because of what they reveal about who we are.  That’s especially true for Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya, written in 1899, just a few years before the playwright died. Its popularity may be due to its mystery.  Is it about resilience or is it about failure?  Is it a comedy or a tragedy?  It’s the kind of work that leaves you with questions about not only its two main characters, Sonya and her Uncle Vanya, but also about us. 

A part of the city’s theater community since 2011, Astonrep Productions is a small Chicago company intent on “creating compelling and intimate experiences that challenge audiences”.  Their interpretation of Uncle Vanya that opened over the weekend at The Edge Off Broadway succeeds in doing so with some reservations. 

It’s the first American company to mount this commissioned 2024 Canadian adaptation of Chekhov’s classic.  Liisa Repo-Martell’s revamp of the play dutifully adheres to the structure, plot themes and character composition of the original.  But the play’s softer aspects, the features that define its essence and purpose, are less reliable and sure. 

Displeasure with self is one of first things we get a sense of when the play opens. But even before that awareness sets in, there’s a curiosity the audience notices while they’re selecting their seats before the play begins.  A man is slouched in an upholstered chair with one leg over its arm.  He’s at the back of the stage and asleep.  (We later learn he’s passed out drunk.)  Soon after and closer to us, a man and woman are talking.  They’re in the sprawling home of a rural Russian estate well over 100 years ago.  He’s Mikhail Astrov (Robert Tobin), the local doctor and she’s Marina, a housekeeper very ably played by Liz Cloud, who clearly possesses a warm motherly instinct and a sharp wit.   Astrov’s lamenting his fate as a country doctor.  It’s all tedium.  The people are gossip thirsty “savages”.  His life has no fulfillment.  He’s not married.  He’s not in love with anybody and his youth is behind him.  The demands of his work, a sour outlook and his liberties with vodka are catching up with him by slowly dismantling his good looks.

L-R: Robert Tobin, Natalie Hurdle. Photo by Paul Goyette.

By calling him a moron, the doctor’s antipathy for the sleeping man is made clear even before he wakes up.

As more people enter the story, we find ourselves in the middle of a family crisis.  Vanya, the man who was sleeping in the chair, and his niece Sonya (Natalie Hurdle) have been the caretakers of the estate since her mother died.  Sonya’s father, Alexandre (Geoff Isaac), is a professor in the city who’s been forced out of his university position and has now returned to the homestead.  He’d been relying on income from the estate to support his lifestyle in town.  He’s not returned alone.  Joining him is his much younger and very beautiful second wife, Yelena, with Andi Muriel in the role. Things are tense.  Alexandre’s pompous and obliviously demanding.  And Vanya, played with visceral intensity by Rian Jairell, is demonstrably resentful. 

An appeasing conflict avoider, Sonya’s loyalties are split between the natural draw a child has to her father and her uncle who’s labored with her to keep the estate viable at tremendous personal sacrifice to them both.  Now a young woman, she seems to know it’s Vanya who’s been more the nurturing father presence for her and that other than each other, the estate is all that either of them have.   

Additional strain is added with the presence of Yelena.  Her beauty is like an intoxicant for both Vanya and the dissatisfied doctor, Astrov.  They’re both brazen in their desire for her.  Watching them shamelessly try to seduce her is equal parts comic and piteous.

With so much instability, friction and doubt in the air, you’d expect to feel the charge of that energy engulfing the air.  Directed by Derek Bertelsen, it doesn’t arrive with any real intensity until the second act when Sonya’s father floats the idea of selling the estate. And that’s despite the considerable investments Jairell as Vanya had been contributing up to that point.  Because It’s so transparent Alexandre wants the money from the sale to fund his return to the city and his refined form of living, Vanya’s resentment turns to rage.  Finally filling the production with heat.

It dials up too when Sonya confesses her attraction, indeed love, for Astrov to Yelena.  Unrequited never looked so vulnerable and fragile.  

Part of Repo-Martell’s adaptation included revising the language to be more contemporary and ostensibly more approachable.  It works in an essential way.  Both Jeremiah Barr’s handsome set and Natalie Shoch’s costume designs are ambiguous enough to blur any specific time reference.  But in the back of your mind you know this is all happening in a very distant time and place.  One where duty and tradition held much more sway.  That difference can often be found in the words used to express and explain obligations and choices.  Here there’s a nagging sense that you may be missing important steppingstones.

In the end, things aren’t much different from where we found them in the beginning.  Except everyone is much more depleted.  Drained.  But still tasked with shouldering their disappointments and continuing with their lives.  In Chekhov’s original script, the word “rest” is used to represent that place of willful resignation that amounts to acceptance of one’s inevitable destiny.  In this adaptation, the word “peace” is substituted.  They say the same thing about something we’ve all experienced. When we’ve had to pull ourselves up out of the ashes and push forward.  Uncle Vanya brings that feeling front and center and offers understanding through catharsis.  That alone will keep it in heavy production for a few more centuries at least.

Uncle Vanya

Through July 5, 2026

Astonrep Productions

Venue:  The Edge Off Broadway

1133 W. Catalpa Avenue

Chicago, IL  60640

For more information or tickets:  https://www.astonrep.com

This review is proudly shared with our friends at www.TheatreInChicago.com. 

Couch Penny Ensemble, in association with Theatre Arcana, presents the ambitious and experimental An Oak Tree, a raw, unconventional approach to theater that is sure to spark conversations on the nature of grief and the experience itself.

In writing An Oak Tree, playwright Tim Crouch wanted to replicate the disorienting nature of grief. The play features two actors - one who has rehearsed the script (the Hypnotist) and another who has neither seen nor read it (the Father). The Hypnotist acts as a dual guide both for the actor playing the Father and the audience, as this one-of-a-kind experience comes to life.

For each performance, a new, different actor takes on the role of the Father, and it’s their job to live in the moment, breathing life into this character through the use of real-time instructions (given via headphones) and script lines given to them on the spot. The result is an unpolished, raw theater experience. The format is intriguing and innovative - a reflection on grief itself. When tragedy happens, you aren’t prepared for it, and you suddenly find yourself wrestling with a script that is unrehearsed.

Under Bryce Lederer’s direction, the production leans into the play’s shifting dynamics, shaping its unpredictability into something sharply focused and theatrically alive.

Riles August Holiday anchors the evening as the Hypnotist, delivering a technically demanding and well-acted performance. Holiday does a fantastic job of drawing a sharp line between his moments in character - playing a defensive, fragile man - and his moments acting as an administrative guide, calmly steering both his co-star and the audience through the mechanics of the script.

On this evening, Suzy Krueckeberg played the Father, and one can only imagine the excitement and the nerves of taking on such a role. As the Father, she was required to relive the trauma of losing a daughter and process the deterioration of her family without rehearsing - no small task. Krueckeberg did a good job finding the part and taking the audience on the journey with her.

For all its ingenuity, An Oak Tree serves a very specific appetite. This is avant-garde, experimental theater through and through. If you are an audience member searching for that specific brand of rule-breaking performance art, there is plenty to analyze here. Personally, I felt the script left something to be desired. In an examination of grief, I felt at times it was too simplistic or trod ground others had covered more effectively.

That said, it was a unique and interesting experience to see an actor walk a tightrope, constructing a character in front of the audience’s eyes. Holiday’s emotional depth on stage was a treat as well.

An Oak Tree runs at Greenhouse Theater Center until July 5^th.

This review is proudly shared with our friends at www.TheatreInChicago.com. 

One of the things I have always thought that concerts and other live events had over theatre is the energy of the crowd afterward. While people certainly leave plays and musicals moved, impressed, or deep in conversation, there is often a certain reserve to the way theatre audiences spill out onto the sidewalk. That was not the case after Champions of Magic at Studebaker Theater.

Leaving the theatre, the crowd was electric. People of all ages and backgrounds were in full childlike awe, excitedly recounting their favorite tricks, debating the moments that scared or shocked them most, and trying (mostly unsuccessfully) to understand how any of it could have been done. At one point, while my friend and I were part of the herd heading toward the train, an older man turned to us mid-discussion and said, “Usually, I see tricks and, even if I don’t know exactly how they did it, I can wrap my head around it just being an illusion. That was true magic.” And it was – that’s the only explanation.

That reaction captures the biggest strength of the night: it makes magic feel genuinely special again. In an age when so much of our entertainment is filtered through screens, clips, and behind-the-scenes explainers, it is easy to think you have already “experienced” these kinds of illusions through television or YouTube. But seeing them live, in a room full of people gasping, laughing, screaming, and turning to strangers in disbelief, is a completely different kind of experience – one you can only get from the Champions of Magic, themselves.

The large-scale magic show runs upwards of 2.5 hours, including one intermission, and is loosely structured as a rotation between three featured acts: Young & Strange (Richard Young, Sam Strange), Liberty Laren, and Fernando Velasco. While each performer brings their own style and specialties, the show works best when it feels like a shared, collaborative spectacle. There is something especially exciting about seeing different magicians combine their individual strengths to create an experience that feels bigger, stranger, and more theatrical than a traditional magic show.

The company of Champions Of Magic - photo by Bill Axell.

The variety of tricks is especially impressive. Champions of Magic includes everything from classic illusions, like the classic woman-sawed-in-half, to large-scale and death-defying stunts, to more intimate pieces of sleight of hand with audience interaction. Some tricks are quick and funny; others are story-driven and beautiful. The show also includes bits of magic history, particularly through fourth-generation magician Liberty Larsen’s family history as the founders of the Magic Castle. This was one of the most interesting threads in the evening, and I found myself wishing there had been even more of that magical history woven throughout the show.

The production is also extremely audience - and family-friendly, with plenty of built-in participation. Volunteers are selected in playful ways, such as by launching ping-pong balls into the audience, and several children are brought onstage as assistants. That said, parents should be warned before intermission: the glowing “red light, green light” magic toy promoted during the show costs $30 in the lobby – much more than I expected and not advertised until kids were already next in line for their new toy.

Aside from the occasional product placement, the show’s biggest issue was with pacing. I understand that a production of this scale needs slower, smaller tricks for both budget and timing reasons, and not every moment can or should be a massive illusion. Still, for a show pushing two and a half, there were stretches that felt extensively padded with smaller-scale filler. Ironically, the grand finale had the opposite problem. It was packed with multiple incredible tricks, but they came so quickly - back-to-back - that there was barely time to absorb one astonishing moment before the next was already underway. A little more breathing room there would have made the ending feel even more satisfying, without risking exposing the secrets at play.

Even with those pacing issues, Champions of Magic is a very fun, very unique night out. It is bigger, more surprising, and more communal than I expected, and it reminded me how powerful live spectacle can be when experienced with an audience fully willing to believe in what they are seeing. Whether or not it was “true magic,” it certainly felt like it.

Originally scheduled to run through July 5th, Champions of Magic was extended before opening due to popular demand – now running at Studebaker Theater through August 23rd. Tickets are available at https://championsofmagictour.com/.

*Extended through September 2nd

Lookingglass Theatre Company continues its tradition of staging visually inventive and thought-provoking world premieres with its latest production, Untitled Vampire Play. Written by Lookingglass Ensemble Member Kevin Douglas - who has previously crafted well-received work for the company, including Thaddeus and Slocum: A Vaudeville Adventure - this comedy-drama uses supernatural lore to dissect the vulnerabilities of modern relationships.

The story centers on a delightfully bizarre “meet the parents” scenario. Dom (Jordan Anthony Arredondo), an everyman bartender, introduces his parents to his new girlfriend, Val (Courtney Rikki Green). The twist? Val is a centuries-old vampire. But don’t worry - she gets her blood from ethical sources, not human victims. Dom’s parents laugh it off, though, thinking their son’s girlfriend has a few screws loose.

Meanwhile, Val’s “brother” Roderick (Walter Briggs) resurfaces, wanting to reconnect. In reality, they are former lovers, but after his betrayal, she ran away. Val doubts that he’s changed, but her progeny, Rose (Jin Park), gets sucked into his orbit despite being under Val’s supernatural control. As Roderick carelessly makes kills in Chicago, bodies begin piling up, drawing the attention of Dom’s mother - a police detective - and a vampire hunter descended from Van Helsing. Who said love was easy? The result is a look at relationships in all of their messy, bloody glory.

Briggs turns in an excellent performance as Roderick, playing the charismatic bad boy with ease. He channels the classic Hollywood vampire aesthetic with immaculate fashion and a distinct, formal vocal cadence that commands the room. Sure, he’s a villain, but he’s fun to watch, especially with the little flairs he adds to his characterization.

Kareem Bandealy is another standout, tackling two completely contrasting roles. He plays Dom's father, Louie, with a relentless barrage of corny vampire dad jokes, then completely transforms into Lance Tardis Van Helsing, a fierce vampire hunter with an equally fierce hair flip.

Courtney Rikki Green as Val inUntitled Vampire Play at Lookingglass Theatre. Photo by Justin Barbin.

Anchoring the whole cast, though, is Green, who brings immense emotional weight to her performance as the complex Val. Serving as the real window into this hidden world, Green charts her character's profound transformation, as Val wrestles with whether she is seeking genuine love or simply trying to outrun eternal loneliness.

Beneath the fangs, the play asks a deeply human question: What does it mean to love someone? It explores the underlying selfishness that often masks itself as romance. Val wants Dom to turn into a vampire so they can be together forever, viewing his reluctance as a rejection of her identity rather than a defense of his own humanity. Meanwhile, Dom uses Val as an emotional security blanket to quiet his own intense insecurities. Through these characters, Douglas examines how control, weakness, danger, and even lust can taint love, or at least the illusion of it.

The script could use a bit of trimming in its exploration, as there are moments that feel repetitive, alongside a few minor plot weaknesses. For instance, it seems odd that a police detective would wait so long to investigate self-proclaimed vampires once gruesome deaths with animal-like attack marks begin happening. Furthermore, one thing I certainly could have gone without was a gruesome scene where the vampires feast on a victim, using gummy worms to simulate intestines. Still, beneath those rough edges, the play’s core story has real spark, offering a fresh, funny twist on vampire mythology that keeps the audience engaged.

I’d be remiss not to praise the play’s design. The technical execution is a masterclass in atmospheric world-building. Scenic designer Alyssa Mohn delivers an expert landscape featuring coffins that seamlessly rise from and sink into the stage floor. This clever staging pairs beautifully with Andre Pluess’s precise sound design and Jason Lynch’s lighting choices - ranging from moody washes to stark spotlights and flashing accents - to wrap the theater in an escalating sense of intrigue and peril. The atmosphere creates moments when you’re not sure if you might be the next victim.

Inventively directed by Devon de Mayo, the production also incorporates fun moments of audience engagement, whether it’s handing theatergoers caution tape to hold at a crime scene or a rather messy vampire kill that sprays stage blood into the front row.

While it doesn’t entirely break new ground, Untitled Vampire Play is creative and visually arresting. At a time when modern relationships are being heavily dissected in media - such as in the hit Obsession - Untitled Vampire Play tosses its fangs into the conversation, leaving the audience to wrestle with what should encompass the core tenets of love.

Recommended.

Untitled Vampire Play is being performed at Lookingglass Theatre through July 12^th.

This review is proudly shared with our friends at www.TheatreInChicago.com. 

What would you do if you found out your heritage wasn’t what you thought it was? In Tom Stoppard’s case, he wrote a sweeping, epic play about it. Glencoe’s Writers Theatre brings Leopoldstadt to the Chicago area for the first time since its West End and Broadway runs in the early 2020s. Directed by Carey Perloff, a longtime friend and collaborator of Stoppard’s, this final stage play proves to be among his best.

Stoppard passed away late last year but he left a decades-long cannon of seminal stage and screenplays. When his semi-autobiographical play “Leopoldstadt” began performances in the West End in early 2020, he was sure it would be his last. Though he wrote it in a year, it took nearly 30 years to find the narrative. Stoppard, who was raised as a gentile most of his life, was told by a family member in 1993 he was of Jewish heritage and that many of his family members were murdered in the Holocaust. Stoppard escaped Czechoslovakia as a child and was raised in the UK entirely unaware.

A blended Jewish-Catholic family’s history in 20th century Vienna is divided neatly into four pivotal scenes with a sizeable cast of some of Chicago’s best. In the first scene, a Christmas party (1900), we’re shown a Vienna in which Jews were considered equals. Families had interfaith marriages and shared holiday celebrations. By the second scene (1924), WWI has redrawn the maps of Europe. Austria, as well as the family, finds itself in a precarious place. Scene three (1938) portrays an Austria fully committed to the Third Reich and family alliances are put to the test when the family is forced out of their home by the Nazis. The final scene (1955) happens in the aftermath of Austria’s reunification following WWII. This last scene mirrors Stoppard’s own life and serves as an emotional climax to a play that is often dense with political and historical theory.

The cast of Leopoldstadt. Photo by Michael Brosilow.

Writers Theatre’s production is as faithful to the original as you can get. Carey Perloff directed the Boston and D.C. premieres too. Along with an all-star cast of Chicago heavy hitters, Perloff’s production will likely be remembered as the definitive Midwestern revival. Between Ken MacDonald’s set and Alex Jeager’s costumes, audiences are sure to be swept away to a different time and place that can feel eerily reminiscent to the present.

As the eras change so do the actors playing the characters. Stoppard’s script trusts that the storytelling is so engaging that audiences will figure out who’s who by the context clues, and he was right. Some may find the story hard to follow but thankfully a helpful lobby installation catches everyone up on the history of Austria during this time period.

Writers Theatre favorite Kate Fry plays a Catholic woman, Gretl, who marries into a prominent Jewish family. Her performance is at first charming but by the end heartbreaking. Jessie Fischer delivers a transformative performance, particularly during the final scene. Rounding out the male ensemble is Ian Barford as Hermann who plays a converted catholic, but it’s his deterioration that is unforgettable. Justin Albinder is given the meatiest part of the final scene and his ability to switch from one emotion to the next is some of the most natural acting of the evening.

Leopoldstadt is every bit as epic as something like Gone with the Wind. Much like the famed novel and movie, this play tells the story of a civilization, a family, lost to the tragedy of war. It’s a story of a family’s near extinction. Stoppard’s brilliance is on full display and how lucky are we to have this capstone for his illustrious career?

Through August 16 at Writers Theatre. 325 Tudor Ct, Glencoe, IL.  847-242-6000

https://www.writerstheatre.org/events/leopoldstadt

This review is proudly shared with our friends at www.TheatreInChicago.com. 

Join the fun this summer as PlayMakers Laboratory (PML) celebrates a major milestone at That's Weird, Grandma's 25^th Birthday, marking a quarter century of the company's long-running original sketch comedy show. Directed by Program Director Brandon Cloyd, the family-friendly comedy extravaganza will play five performances only August 23 – September 6, 2026 at the Neo-Futurist Theater, 5153 N. Ashland Ave. in Chicago. Tickets go on sale Wednesday, July 1, 2026 at www.playmakerslab.org. The press opening is Sunday, August 23 at 2 pm.

That's Weird, Grandma's 25^th Birthday will feature current Company Members with PML emeritus members making cameo appearances throughout the run. The cast currently includes Company Members Linnaea Groh, Barry Irving, Lucas Johnson, Indi Gutierrez Marrero, Sam Nieves, Yongwoo Park, Lee Peters, Allison Sokolowski, Brad Stevens, Lex Mann Turner and Tyara Whitted, with emeritus Company Members Nancy Casas, Allison Grischow, Ricky Harris, Jasmine Hernri Jordan, Tom Malinowski, Kate Staiger, Mary Tilden and more!

That's Weird, Grandma features adaptations of stories written during PML's creative writing residencies in Chicago elementary schools. PML's ensemble of professional actors, comedians and musicians bring the young authors' stories to life as raucous sketches, songs and movement pieces, performing first for students in their schools and then for the public. These stories – from hilarious dialogues between unlikely characters to poignant pleas for social change, along with holiday-inspired stories – resonate with adults while celebrating the imaginations of young people.

Production team: Daniel Parsons (Stage Manager).

Performance Schedule:

Sunday, August 23 at 2 pm

Saturday, August 29 at 2 pm

Sunday, August 30 at 2 pm

Saturday, September 5 at 2 pm

Sunday, September 6 at 2 pm

Ticket Prices: adults: $26.06*; youth (aged 4 – 15) $15.76*; Children 3 and under: free **Ticket prices include a processing fee Tickets go on sale Wednesday, July 1, 2026 at www.playmakerslab.org.

About the Director

Brandon Cloyd joined PlayMakers Laboratory in 2007 and has been deeply involved in many facets of the company ever since. Prior to joining PML, Brandon graduated from Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and a minor in Business Institutions. Brandon has held many roles in PlayMakers Laboratory before becoming the company's Artistic & Program Director in September 2017. He served with PML as an actor, teaching artist, lead teacher, a member of Teacher Corps, as well as directing shows for schools and public performances of That's Weird, Grandma. Outside of PML, he worked as the Associate Director of Camp Echo, where he has spent 13 summers managing campers and staff at a co-ed sleepaway camp in Upstate New York. Brandon has worked with other theatre companies including Urban Theatre Company, American Theater Company, Filament Theatre, InGen Productions, ACLE's Teatrino in Italy and a founding director with Purple Crayon Players at Northwestern University. Brandon is also a former board member for the League of Chicago Theatres.

About PlayMakers Laboratory

For 29 years, PlayMakers Laboratory has served Chicago Public School students by providing a creative writing residency program aimed primarily at elementary schools. Our company of over 60 teaching artists utilize creative drama and storytelling to promote literacy and self-esteem during our in-school residencies and park district programming. Each year, our programs serve more than 4,000 young people across Chicago. In our six-week writing residencies, a whopping 88% of students improve writing scores by at least one level over the course of our residencies. Plus, 100% of classroom teachers report that our program supports their student's writing and improves confidence and self-esteem.

PlayMakers Laboratory is sponsored in part by Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, The Crown Family Philanthropies, The Field Foundation, The Mardi Gras Fund, Illinois Arts Council, Paul M. Angell Foundation, The Polk Bros Foundation, Siragusa Family Foundation, S&C Electric and generous individuals like you!