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The Chicago Reader

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Arts & Culture, Theater Review Dec 23, 2020
Recommended
Retail, resistance, and rebirth in Wally World and Kickback

Christmas Eve goes to 11 in Isaac Gómez's workplace comedy; About Face celebrates Black queer lives, past and present.
- By Kerry Reid
- Tags: Theater Review, Isaac Gómez, Wally World, Steppenwolf, Lili-Anne Brown, Sandra Marquez, Karen Rodriguez, Audrey Francis, Jacqueline Williams, About Face Theatre, Kickback, Mikael Burke, Rebuild Foundation, Robert Cornelius, Paul Oakley Stovall, Frankie Knuckles, Labi Siffre, ShaZah (Sh, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Ghost Light Jul 30, 2020
From Greenhouse to hotbed

A show reopens and closes under fire; plus new leadership and a new funding initiative for Black theater makers
- By Kerry Reid
- Tags: Ghost Light, Ghost Light, Greenhouse Theater, Judy and Liza—Once in a Lifetime: The London Palladium Concert—A Tribute, Nancy Hays, William Spatz, Julia Mayer, See Chicago Dance, Mikael Burke, About Face Theatre, Samuel G. Roberson Jr., League of Chicago Theatres

Arts & Culture, Feature Jun 24, 2020
COVID can't stop the Pride celebration

This year, queer performers dismantle digital boundaries while creating their own spaces.
- By Catey Sullivan
- Tags: Feature, Pride, Queer Performance, Marsha P. Johnson, The Vixen, About Face Theatre, Aimy Tien, UrbanTheater Company, Gwen La Roka, Shakespeare All-Stars, Christine Chang, Kory Wall, Jack Helbig, Cutlass Artiss, Dance For Life, Mark Ferguson Gomez, Hanna Brictson, Randy Duncan, Fr, Pride 2020

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jan 21, 2020
Recommended
A couple faces a becalmed relationship in The Gulf

About Face's two-hander boasts stellar performances.
- By Josh Flanders
- Tags: Theater Review, The Gulf, About Face Theatre, Audrey Cefaly, Megan Carney, Kelli Simpkins, Deanna Myers, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Nov 12, 2019
Recommended
Packing follows one gay man's journey to confront his midwestern ghosts

Scott Bradley's solo show for About Face creates an important document of queer life.
- By Dan Jakes
- Tags: Theater Review, Packing, About Face Theatre, Scott Bradley, Chay Yew, Steven Strafford, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jul 17, 2019
Recommended
20/20 celebrates being young, gifted, and queer

About Face Youth Theatre turns 20 with this contemporary look at LGBTQ history.
- By Albert Williams
- Tags: Theater Review, About Face Theatre, 20/20, Center on Halsted, Megan Carney, Donny Acosta, Angelíca Grace, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jan 25, 2019
Dada Woof Papa Hot shows that modern parenthood's not just for straight people

"Isn’t being normal the most radical thing of all?" God no!
- By Dan Jakes
- Tags: Theater Review, Dada Woof Papa Hot, About Face Theatre, Jos N. Banks, Peter Parnell, Keira Fromm, LGBTQ, parents, parenting

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Nov 15, 2018
An interracial couple struggles with differing levels of activism in This Bitter Earth

Harrison David Rivers's new play looks at love in the time of Black Lives Matter.
- By Albert Williams
- Tags: Theater Review, This Bitter Earth, About Face Theatre, Harrison David Rivers, Sheldon Brown, Daniel Desmarais, Black Lives Matter, political activism

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jul 19, 2018
Recommended
LGBTQ young people reimagine their autobiographies as Scary Stories to Save Your Life

Vampires, stalkers, monsters, and other horrors included.
- By Albert Williams
- Tags: Theater Review, about face youth theatre, lgbtq, about face theatre, donny acosta, vampires, monsters, center on halsted, claire sangster, spencer meeks, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jun 7, 2018
Recommended
Two badass early 20th-century feminists shatter convention like a Bull in a China Shop

Meet the indomitable Mary Emma Woolley and Jeannette Marks.
- By Marissa Oberlander
- Tags: Theater Review, about face theatre, bull in a china shop, theater wit, Bryna Turner, Mary Emma Woolley, Jeannette Marks, Mount Holyoke College, Kelli Simpkins, Emjoy Gavino, Aurora Adachi-Winter, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Performing Arts Feature Nov 16, 2017
No Blue Memories, Significant Other, and seven more stage shows to see now

There's a raft of recommended new plays this week.
- By Tony Adler, Justin Hayford, Jack Helbig, Dan Jakes, Marissa Oberlander, Dmitry Samarov
- Tags: Performing Arts Feature, The Belle of Amherst, Court Theatre, Emily Dickinson, Breath, Boom, Kia Corthron, Eclipse Theatre, Mignon McPherson Stewart, BrittnneyLove Smith, Elana Elyce, Death and the Maiden (La Muerte y la Doncella), Auguijón Theater, Ariel Dorfman, Sándor Menéndez, Marcela Muñoz, No Blue Memories: The Life Gwendolyn Brooks, Manual Cinema, Eve L. Ewing, Nate Marshall, Jamila Woods, Ayanna Woods, House Theatre of Chicago, The Nutcracker, E.T.A. Hoffmann, Chris Matthews, Haley Seda, Shakin' the Mess Outta Misery, Pegasus Theatre, Shay Youngblood, Ilesa Duncan, Significant Other, Joshua Harmon, About Face Theatre, Keira Fromm, Alex Weisman, Amanda Drinkall, Emerald City Theatre, 'Twas the NIght Before Christmas, Kirra Silver, Nora Lise Ulrey, Alejandro Tey, Youth Group: A Skit Comedy Show, Jonny Nelson, Eli Weatherby, Jess Mitolo

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jun 7, 2017
Recommended
The gripping Bright Half Life shows small choices with cataclysmic consequences

Tanya Barfield’s clear-eyed play follows two women over the course of their five-decade-long lesbian relationship.
- By Dan Jakes
- Tags: Theater Review, Bright Half Life, Tanya Barfield, Keira Fromm, About Face Theatre, Patrese D. McClain, Elizabeth Ledo, William Boles, Christine Binder, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Performing Arts Feature Nov 17, 2016
After the Dance, End of the Rainbow, and ten more new theater reviews

A Chicago premiere from Runcible and another success from Porchlight are among this week's best bets.
- Tags: Performing Arts Feature, After the Dance, Terence Rattigan, Runcible Theatre Company, Layne Manzer, Andrew Root, The Amish Project, Charles Roberts, Nickel Mines, Jessica Dickey, Sarah Gise, David Connelly, Interrobang Theatre Project, First Floor Theater, Deer and the Lovers, Emily Zemba, Jesse Roth, Dirty Butterfly, Halcyon Theatre, Leah Raidt, Debbie Tucker Green, Genevieve VenJohnson, Reginald Robinson Jr., Azar Kazemi, Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, Eclectic Theatre, David Belew, Kirk Osgood, Peanuts, End of the Rainbow, Judy Garland, Porchlight Music Theatre, Angela Ingersoll, Jon Steinhagen, Peter Quilter, About Face Theatre, I Am My Own Wife, Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, Doug Wright, Andrew Volkoff, Delia Kropp, In De Beginnin', Oscar Brown Jr., Fania Bourn, Kemati J. Porter, Barton Fitzpatrick, ETA Creative Arts, La Gringa, Carmen Rivera, Miranda Gonzalez, UrbanTheater Company, Sofia Tew, The Nutcracker, The House Theatre of Chicago, E.T.A. Hoffman, Ariana Burks, Curious Theatre Branch, Beau O'Reilly, One Boppa: Two Acts, Julia Williams, Vicki Walden, Meredith Lyons, Matt Reiger, Las Piedras, Puerto Rico

Arts & Culture, Fall Preview Sep 4, 2016
Ten best bets for fall theater

A satanic hand puppet, a live version of Cheers, and a Twelfth Night in Hindi are among this season’s highlights.
- Tags: Fall Preview, Mary Zimmerman, Doug Peck, Goodman Theatre, Candide, Leonard Bernstein, Wonderful Town, My Sister Eileen, Bri Sudia, Lauren Molina, Sophocles, Electra, the House of Atreus, Agamemnon, Iphigenia in Aulis, Nicholas Rudall, Court Theatre, Sandra Marquez, Michael Pogue, Kate Fry, Amiri Baraka, LeRoi Jones, Dutchman, American Blues Theater, Darren Canady, TRANSit, Shattered Globe Theatre, True West, Sam Shepard, Black Button Eyes Productions, Amour, Michel Legrand, Shakespeare 400 Chicago, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Shanghai Jingju Theatre, Peking opera, The Revenge of Prince Zi Dan, Hamlet, Company Theatre Mumbai, Piya Behrupiya, Twelfth Night, Eduardo Pavez Goye, Foro Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, The Complete Deaths, Spymonkey, The Happiest Place on Earth, Sideshow Theatre Company, Philip Dawkins, Scooby Don't, Hell in a Handbag Productions, David Cerda, Andrew Hinderaker, The Magic Play, Calamity West, Give It All Back, Idris Goodwin, How We Got On, Haven Theatre Company, Kristiana Rae Colón, Octagon, Jackalope Theatre, I Am My Own Wife, Doug Wright, About Face Theatre, Delia Kropp, Nothing Without a Company, [Trans]formation, the Living Canvas, Cheers Live on Stage, Amy Poehler, Broadway in Chicago, Mat Smart, Naperville, The Royal Society of Antarctica, the Gift Theatre, Jeff Award, Aguijón Theater, Romeo y Julieta, Sándor Menéndez, Gerardo Cárdenas, Hand to God, Robert Askin, Victory Gardens Theater, Alex Weisman, Gary Griffin, Seret Scott

Arts & Culture, Performing Arts Feature May 19, 2016
A Full House musical, Sara Ruhl’s Eurydice, and 11 more new stage shows to see

How about a joyously trashy revival of Porn Minus Porn?
- Tags: Performing Arts Feature, At Mister Kelly's, Three Cat Productions, Attend the Tale of Danny Tanner: A Full House Musical, Bob Saget, Clued In, Beat Lounge, Second City, Dennis T. Giacino, Disenchanted!, Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place, Broadway in Chicago, Vanessa Leuck), Eurydice, BoHo Theatre, Sara Ruhl, Amanda Jane Cross, Heartland Studio Theater, Charles Riffenburg, The Gospel According to Thomas Jefferson, Charles Dickens, and Count Leo Tolstoy: Discord, Scott Carter, Northlight Theatre, My Solo Show of All Duets, Shirley Lame, C.J. Shanoff, Annoyance Theatre & Bar, Dorota Masłowska, No Matter How Hard We Try, Max Truax, Trap Door Theatre, Under the Gun Theater, Porn Minus Porn, Life on Top, Ben Bowman, Genesis Theatricals, Satie et Cocteau, Erik Satie, Jean Cocteau, Mike Czuba, Five Lesbian Brothers, The Secretaries, About Face Theatre, Bonnie Metzgar, Kelli Simpkins, The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window, Lorraine Hansberry, Goodman Theatre, Anne Kauffman, Twisted Knots, Dave Danner, Royal George Theatre, Mary Cross, Ryan Kitley, Hard Rock Hotel

Blogs, Bleader Apr 15, 2016
Logan Square bar and restaurant crawl, Record Store Day, and more things to do in Chicago this weekend

Tattoos for Tails, About Face Theatre's Wonka Ball, and more happenings from April 15-17
- By Brianna Wellen
- Tags: Arts, Do This, Rodrigo Lara Zendejas, La Paz, Hyde Park Art Center, Brian Costello, Hideout, About Face Theatre, Wonka Ball, Ravenswood Event Center, Pop-Up Record Shop, Boiler Room, Record Store Day, Passport to Pilot Light, Lula Cafe, Billy Sunday, Fat Rice, Parson’s Chicken & Fish, Tattoos for Tails, Insight Studios, The Empty Bottle, El Rescate, Bull and Bear Market

Arts & Culture, Performing Arts Feature Mar 23, 2016
Butler, United Flight 232, Christina, the Girl King, and ten more new theater reviews

Queen Christina of Sweden a black lesbian? Why not?
- Tags: Performing Arts Feature, Cor Theatre, Christina, the Girl King, Toya Turner, Laura Resinger, Afro-Futurism, Second City, Felonius Munk, Marcel “Mr. Greenweedz” Wilks, About Face Theatre, After All the Terrible Things I Do, A. Rey Pamatmat, Andrew Volkoff, Colin Sphar, Lisa Tejero, The Bachelors, Caroline V. McGraw, Cole Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Butler, Tosin Morohunfola, Greg Vinkler, Stuart Carden, Major General Benjamin Butler, Richard Strand, Queen Christina of Sweden, Michel Marc Bouchard, The Chicago Mammals, Clay Continent, Robert Louis Stephenson, Bob Fisher, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, TUTA, Adam Rapp, The Edge of Our Bodies, Carolyn Molloy, Trap Door Theatre, How to Explain the History of Communism to Mental Patients, Matei Visniec, Lifeline Theatre, Lester's Dreadful Sweaters, Sam Button-Harrison, Elizabeth Levy, Aly Renee Amidei, Adapt Theatre Productions, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen, Lane Flores, Amanda Lautermilch, Aja Wiltshire, Theo Ubique, Rent, Jonathan Larson, The House Theatre of Chicago, United Flight 232, Laurence Gonzales, Vanessa Stalling, Echaka Agba, Where Did We Sit on the Bus?, Brian Quijada, Chay Yew

Arts & Culture, Performing Arts Feature Jan 29, 2016
Le Switch, The Mutilated, and nine more new reviews worth your notice

On the off-Loop scene: the latest from local playwright Philip Dawkins, an obscure Tennessee Williams one-act, and a Neil LaBute funfest
- Tags: Performing Arts Feature, Bye Bye Birdie, Tammy Mader, Drury Lane Theatre, Michelle Aravena, Leryn Turlington, Signal Ensemble Theatre, The Consultant, Heidi Schreck, Courtney Jones, Aguijón Theater, Epopeya, Hecuba, Euripides, Abel González Melo, Oracle Theatre, The Hairy Ape, Eugene O'Neill, Julian Parker, Monty Cole, The Mutilated, Tennessee Williams, Mierka Girten, Jennifer Engstrom, A Red Orchid Theatre, Dado, Steep Theatre Co., Posh, Laura Wade, Dash Barber, Christopher Borek, Jonathan Barry, Bruce Norris, Domesticated, Sunset Baby, AnJi White, Kelvin Roston Jr., TimeLine Theatre Company, Dominique Morisseau, About Face Theatre, Le Switch, Philip Dawkins, The Homosexuals, Charm, Northlight Theatre, Steppenwolf Garage, [Title of Show], Jeff Bowen, Hunter Bell, Open Door Repertory, Ashton Byrum, Kellye Howard, Transparent, Vices & Virtues, Profiles Theatre, Neil LaBute, Betsy Bowman, Tom McGregor, 10-K, Swallowing Bicycles

Blogs, Bleader Jun 2, 2015
Bonnie Metzgar to step in at American Theater Company

Bonnie Metzgar has been appointed American Theater Company's interim director.
- By Deanna Isaacs
- Tags: Theater, Arts, American Theater Company, Bonnie Metzgar, PJ Paparelli, About Face Theatre, Goodman Theatre Playwrights Unit

Blogs, Bleader Jun 2, 2014
Reader's Agenda Mon 6/2: Pride Performance Series, Peep Show, and D.R.I.

What's on the Reader's Agenda for Monday, June 2
- By Taylor Tolbert
- Tags: Do This, Arts, Pride Month, About Face Theatre, Pride Performance Series, Greenhouse Theater, Jonathan Tolin, The Last Sunday in June, Michael Urie, Ryan Spahn, Striding Lion, Links Hall, Peep Show, Honey Pot Performance Group, Adriana Durant, Striding Lion Performance Group, James Falzone, Reggie's Rock Club, D.R.I., SVLPHVRVS, Spare Change, Dead Split Egos

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Apr 9, 2014
A play about a stand-up of ambiguous sexuality ends up prisoner to its premise

A comedy club setting doesn't do justice to the complexities of this hijra's tale.
- By Tony Adler
- Tags: Theater Review, Brahman/I, Silk Road Rising, About Face Theatre, Aditi Brennan Kapil, Georgia, Ramayana, West Side Story, Galileo Galilei, Hinduism, Fawzia Mirza

Columns & Opinion, On Culture Sep 30, 2013
The Chicago Commercial Collective wants to give off-Loop shows an afterlife

And make a profit in the act.
- By Deanna Isaacs
- Tags: On Culture, theater, Chicago Commercial Collective, off-Loop theater, CCC, nonprofit theater companies, nonprofit theater, theater season schedules, Brian Loevner, Chicago Dramatists, Broadway funding, theater funding, commercial theater, Commercial Theater Institute, Aurelia Cohen, About Face Theatre, Metropolitan Opera, theater production, TimeLine Theatre, Broadway Playhouse, Monty Cole, theater venues, Theater Wit, Stage 773, Victory Gardens Theater, Royal George Theater, Apollo Theater, P.J. Powers, Russ Tutterow, economics of theater, touring theater, office space

Arts & Culture, Theater Review Jun 19, 2013
Recommended
About Face stages The Pride—just in time for Pride

Alexi Kaye Campbell's play juxtaposes gay couples in London 50 years apart.
- By Albert Williams
- Tags: Theater Review, Alexi Kaye Campbell, The Pride, Royal Court Theatre, Dominic Cooke, The Pride, John Whiting Award, Wole Soyinka, Ben Whishaw, About Face Theatre, Harold Pinter, Tom Stoppard, Bonnie Metzgar, Patrick Andrews, John Francisco, Jessie Fisher, Benjamin Sprunger, Terence Rattigan, Terrence McNally, William Boles, Becca Jeffords, Stephen Ptacek, Recommended

Arts & Culture, Performing Arts Review May 11, 2012
His life and times

Concurrent stagings of Tick, Tick . . . Boom! and Rent play out the passion of Jonathan Larson
- By Albert Williams
- Tags: Performing Arts Review, Jonathan Larson, AIDS, American Theatre, About Face Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Puccini, David Cromer, Diana Lawrence, Anna Henson, Rasean Davonte Johnson

Blogs, Bleader Mar 6, 2009
About Face Update

About Face Theatre is one-third of the way to survival.
- By Deanna Isaacs
- Tags: Performing Arts, Onstage, Arts, About Face Theatre, Stupid Kids

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