No working-class hero in ‘Sweat,’ a powerful story of the working poor in a time of change

A review by Bob Chiarito The plight of the working poor has often been a subject in art, from the folk songs of Woody Guthrie to…

Ruth Bader Ginsburg-inspired dramatic concert to be performed in Chicago

Acclaimed composer-soprano Patrice Michaels will perform songs from her album Notorious RBG in Song, inspired by her mother-in-law, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in…

United Flight 232 to run again — A conversation with its director, Vanessa Stalling

Chicagoans who missed it the first time around are in for a treat. The House Theatre of Chicago is opening its 2017-18 season with a remounting…

Kelsie Huff, Chicago’s finest stand-up comic

  Sitting down with Kelsie Huff is a fun challenge because she often goes off on talents and hardly sits still. At a recent one-on-one meeting…

For Minita Gandhi, the journey to find ‘Muthaland’ is the destination

Minita Gandhi is a force. An actress, playwright and writer who was born in Mumbai, India and raised in California, Gandhi has been living and working…

Amy Thompson — Chicago’s next sketch comedy gift to the country?

By Bob Chiarito It’s a hard challenge to articulate what makes someone funny. Some comedians stand out for obvious reasons – often physical appearance or a…

Currently running in Jefferson Park, ‘Unseen’ definitely should be seen

A REVIEW BY BOB CHIARITO What has been seen cannot be unseen. Perhaps that’s a cliche, but believing you can “un-see” something is the lie that…

Two new Chicago plays tap into the high drama of the newspaper world

A REVIEW BY BOB CHIARITO Journalism is often a great source of intrigue and two new plays making their world premieres in Chicago use it well…

Chicago native and former Neo-Futurist Lusia Strus sounds off on the end of ‘Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind’

  Chicago born and raised actor Lusia Strus, who currently stars in the TNT series “Good Behavior,” recently came back to her hometown of Chicago to…

This Way Outta Santaland, Mitchell Fain’s new endeavor – Reviewed

A REVIEW BY BOB CHIARITO Going into “This Way Outta Santaland (and other Xmas miracles)” the biggest question I had was whether the audience would get…