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Director David Zak steps down from post after community outcry
Pride Films & Plays (PFP) Executive Director David Zak stepped down from his longtime post July 3 after numerous members of Chicago's theater community voiced complaints about his working style in late June and began a ...
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Broadway suspends shows through 2020
The Broadway League announced June 29 that Broadway performances in New York City will be suspended through the remainder of 2020 due to COVID-19, media reports noted. Broadway theaters are also now offering refunds and exchanges ...
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'Magic Parlour at Home' during July
Magician Dennis Watkins is taking his experience The Magic Parlour online for a completely new virtual offering dubbed "The Magic Parlour at Home." The new virtual magic show, designed for group and family viewings, will offer ...
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Raven Theatre names new managing director
Following a nationwide search, Raven Theatre's board of directors announced Markie Gray as the company's new managing director, effective July 1. Originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Gray most recently was the associate director of marketing & ...
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THEATER Despite everything, there are shows for Pride Week
It's almost impossible to write about the indelible events of 2020 ( which is still not quite half over ) without diminishing them. Words fall short in describing—let alone analyzing—the failures of many government entities across ...
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CHF talk to feature Abby McEnany and Samantha Irby
Actor Abby McEnany and writer Samantha Irby will have a conversation in a Chicago Humanities Festival digital program that will take place Thursday, June 25, at 7 p.m. McEnany has adapted her Chicago's iO Theater one-woman ...
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47th Non-Equity Jeff Awards announces honorees
June 22, 2020 — Chicago — As part of the annual recognition of theater excellence, the 47th Non-Equity Jeff Awards has announced honorees in 21 artistic and technical categories. Recipients included 27 theater artists whose work ...
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COVID-19 Mercury Theater permanently closing
Executive Director L. Walter Stearns and partner, business manager Eugene Dizon, announced the permanent closure of Mercury Theater Chicago after 10 years and 25 productions, due to the loss of revenue following the COVID-19 shutdown. "A ...
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'That's Queer, Grandma' June 22-July 6
PlayMakers Laboratory ( PML ) celebrates Pride Month virtually with a free presentation of That's Queer, Grandma—a romp through student-written stories that at the heart are centered on inclusivity, equality and what it means to be ...
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Music Box, Kino Lorber hosting film 'Proud' starting June 19
To honor Pride Month, the Music Box Theatre and Kino Lorber are presenting Philippe Faucon's three-part episodic cinema event Proud as a Virtual Cinema presentation, beginning Friday, June 19. The Virtual Cinema experience was created to ...
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'Christmas Bingo: Summer Edition' online through July
Christmas Bingo: Summer Edition—written by Vicki Quade, one of the creators of the hit comedy Late Nite Catechism—is streaming through Friday, July 31. A portion of every ticket sold will go to help the Daughters of ...
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The Last Sunday in June online live reading June 28
Chicago, IL - Jonathan Tolins' look at gay life in the 1990s - THE LAST SUNDAY IN JUNE — will be performed via Zoom by a cast of socially-distanced actors on the actual last Sunday of ...
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Sideshow streaming 'Tilikum' June 19 for #LetUsBreathe Collective
Sideshow Theatre Company will present a one-night-only streaming revival of its 2018 hit Tilikum on Friday, June 19, at 7 p.m. CT. It will be a benefit for the #LetUsBreathe Collective in honor of Juneteenth and ...
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Out professor named NU school dean
E. Patrick Johnson has been named dean of Northwestern University's School of Communication, Interim Provost Kathleen Hagerty announced. Johnson—the Carlos Montezuma Professor of African American Studies and Performance Studies at the Weinberg College of Arts and ...
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'Come from Away' switched to 2021
In response to COVID-19 ( coronavirus ) pandemic, Broadway In Chicago announced that the upcoming engagement of Come from Away, originally scheduled for Aug. 25-Sept. 6, 2020, at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, will now play April ...
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NUNN ON ONE TELEVISION Ariane Labed plays numbers game in 'Trigonometry'
Greek-born French actress Ariane Labed is currently starring in a new BBC eight-episode drama called Trigonometry, on HBO Max. The story is about a couple—Gemma, played by Thalissa Teixeira, and Kieran, played by Gary Carr—who bring ...
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Victory Gardens ED leaving amid rising tensions
Victory Gardens Theater Executive Director Erica Daniels—who was also named executive artistic director just last month—shared her decision with the board to leave the company This development followed weeks of escalating frustration and anger expressed by ...
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SHOWBIZ Ruby Rose, Tamron Hall, actors come out, Billy Porter, Sondheim
Out actress Ruby Rose finally spoke out on her shocking decision to leave Batwoman after one season, NewNowNext.com noted. "I didn't want to not acknowledge everyone involved and how big this was for TV and for ...
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THEATER Pride in Place Festival brings LGBTQ theater to stay-at-home audiences
The upheaval of the Stonewall riots had barely settled before the weekend preceding Independence Day was set aside to honor the right of every citizen to love without outdated restrictions. On that date ever since, Pride ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW Cymbeline: A Folk Tale With Music
Playwright: William Shakespeare. At: First Folio Theatre streaming online at FirstFolio.org. Tickets: $20. Runs through: June 14 If Shakespeare hadn't written it, would any theater still choose to grapple with the challenges presented by a ...
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Second City co-owner leaves after theater is charged with racism
The Second City co-owner Andrew Alexander stepped away from the improv theater after charges of institutionalized racism were leveled against the company, The Chicago Tribune reported. Dewayne Perkins, in particular, accused Second City of racism, On ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW Improv House Party
Playwright: Second City ensemble. At: Second City online, at SecondCity.com. Tickets: Free. Runs through: June 13 All of Chicago's theaters, along with those across the rest of the country, remain shuttered due to COVID-19, but ...
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47th annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards postponed
June 3, 2020 — Chicago — The 2020 Non-Equity Jeff Awards program has been postponed. Originally scheduled as a virtual gathering for Monday, June 8, the organization that promotes and recognizes theater excellence has joined other ...
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THEATER Larry Kramer (1935-2020), polemicist and playwright
Larry Kramer was an angry man and he made sure people knew it. The language of his public discourse—the hundreds of articles he wrote and speeches he made, his novels and plays—drips with venom, insult, sarcasm, ...
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Jeff Awards Nominee Night cabaret concert online June 1
The Non-Equity Jeff Awards Nominee Night concert, a version of the annual event at Sidetrack to showcase Jeff Award nominees, will be broadcast without charge Monday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. at www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VZs3TQGefc . The annual ...
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SHOWBIZ Rufus Wainwright, LGBTQ films, Billy Porter, Janelle Monae
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright unveiled the latest single from his eagerly anticipated new pop album, Unfollow the Rules, a press release noted. "Alone Time" is available now at all DSPs and streaming services; an official companion ...
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Chita: A Legendary Celebration to stream May 29
Chita: A Legendary Celebration , Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS' one-night-only evening of song and dance celebrating the legendary Chita Rivera , returns this Friday, May 29, 2020, in an exclusive stream benefiting Broadway Cares and its ...
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BAMtheatre starting virtual classes
In response to the stay-at-home and social distancing orders implemented by the COVID-19 pandemic, BAMtheatre has reimagined its musical theatre-focused programming through a host of virtual master classes, workshops, choirs and other activities to keep students ...
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THEATER Pride in Place Festival brings LGBTQ theater to stay-at-home audiences
The upheaval of the Stonewall riots had barely settled before the weekend preceding Independence Day was set aside to honor the right of every citizen to love without outdated restrictions. On that date ever since, Pride ...
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STREAMING
THEATER REVIEW School Girls; Or The African Mean Girls Play
Playwright: Jocelyn Bioh At: Goodman Theatre online at GoodmanTheatre.org/StreamSchoolGirls. Tickets: $20. Runs through: May 31 Ranking in popularity on the list of spectator sports just behind young men inflicting physical damage upon one another is the ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW To Master the Art
Playwright: William Brown and Doug Frew. At: TimeLine Theatre, streaming. Tickets: TimelineTheatre.com; $15-$25. Runs through: June 7 TimeLine Theatre commissioned To Master the Art in 2008 and presented its world premiere two years later. It was ...
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Steppenwolf names first woman Executive Director
Steppenwolf Theatre Company announced that Brooke Flanagan—who previously worked at Steppenwolf for seven years—will return to the organization in the role of executive director, and will become the first woman to hold the title in Steppenwolf's ...
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'SapphFest' to take place virtually May 28-29
On May 28-29 at 7:30 p.m., Violet Surprise Theatre will present SapphFest—a digital variety show celebrating queer women and non-binary artists from all over the country and internationally, through storytelling, comedy, music, poetry, performance art and ...
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Broadway In Chicago reschedules 'Frozen'
In response to the COVID-19 ( coronavirus ) pandemic, Broadway In Chicago announced that the upcoming engagement of Disney's Frozen—originally scheduled to run Oct. 21,-Jan. 3, 2021 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre—will now run Nov. 18, ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW The Happiest Place on Earth
Playwright: Philip Dawkins At: Sideshow Theatre online. Tickets: SideshowTheatre.org; $5+ ( pay what you can ). Runs through: Open run Playwright Philip Dawkins' many successful works—among them, Charm, Le Switch, Failure: A Love Story and The ...
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Hell in a Handbag updates season with 'Girls,' 'Tiger Queen'
Hell in a Handbag Productions announced several updates to its 2020 season, including a streaming production slated for this summer and a world-premiere musical parody set to debut this fall. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ...
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First Folio to stream 'Cymbeline' in June
As a way to help address the absence of live theater performances, First Folio Theatre will offer a streaming video recording of the award-winning Cymbeline: A Folk Tale with Music, directed by Michael Goldberg. Adapted from ...
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Victory Gardens announces IGNITION Festival of New Plays
Victory Gardens Theater outgoing Artistic Director Chay Yew and Executive Artistic Erica Daniels announced the lineup for the 2020 IGNITION Festival of New Plays. Productions include Black Like Me, by Monty Cole; North Star, by Georgette ...
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Broadway in Chicago updates show schedule
( Chicago — Friday, May 15 ) The safety and health of our patrons, staff and theatrical companies is our top priority. In response to the rapidly evolving COVID-19 ( coronavirus ), here is an update ...
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'Dear Evan Hansen' cancelled
With a ban on mass gatherings still in effect for the state of Illinois and the city of Chicago, Broadway In Chicago announced that the upcoming engagement of Dear Evan Hansen, originally scheduled for July 7-Sept. ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW To Master the Art
Playwright: William Brown and Doug Frew At: TimeLine ( sic ) Theatre, streaming. Tickets: TimelineTheatre.com; $15-$25. Runs through: June 7 TimeLine Theatre commissioned To Master the Art in 2008 and presented its world premiere two years ...
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'Six' postponed until November
In response to the COVID-19 ( coronavirus ) pandemic, Broadway In Chicago announced today that the upcoming engagement of Six—originally scheduled to begin Wed., July 8, at the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place— will now ...
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Brick by brick, Mark Larson talks about a life of LEGOs
Mark Larson has done a lot of things in his life, from being a theater actor to a bouncer at the now-defunct Boystown nightclub Spin. Now he's the "chief brick officer" at Brickworld, which embraces the ...
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Brown Paper Box announces final season
After 10 years, 16 venues and six Jeff Award recommendations, Brown Paper Box Co. ( BPBCo. ) announced that the upcoming 10th season will be its last. In a statement, artistic director Kristi Szczepanek said, "With ...
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'Teenage Dick' to now run through May 17
Chicago's Theater Wit announced another two-week extension of its current, critically acclaimed virtual production of Teenage Dick. It now runs through Sunday, May 17. Wit has sold more than 1,000 remote view tickets since launching its ...
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Arts funding faces challenges in new landscape
Equality Illinois invited local advocates to address the implications of the coronavirus pandemic for the state's arts community for a May 5 online discussion. The talk was part of Equality Illinois' weekly town hall meetings series, ...
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FILM Eric Rosen, from About Face to the movie 'Netuser'
Eric Rosen is entering the world of movies with his short-film thriller, Netuser. However, theater fans in the Midwest, and especially Chicago, will remember Rosen from his time as co-founder and artistic director of About Face ...
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'Seize the Stage' benefit May 21
"Seize the Stage: A Musical Revue Benefit for Epilepsy" is back for its ninth year, but in a different form—online, via Zoom—and the event's fundraising focus will be the theatrical community. "Seize the Stage" ( STS ...
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Mercury Theater Chicago remote video content to include "On the Road to Priscilla"
Chicago, IL — L. Walter Stearns, Executive Director of Mercury Theater Chicago, announced today an ongoing lineup of three video series featuring past and present Mercury talent, to include actors, musicians and members of several creative ...
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Victory Gardens has new management model, names new ED
The Victory Gardens Theater board of directors announced a new management design for the 46 year-old institution. When Artistic Director Chay Yew departs at the end of June, Victory Gardens will adjust its executive structure to ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW All-One! The Dr. Bronner's Plays
Playwright: Beth Hyland At: The Passage Theatre on-line at ThePassageTheatre.com. Tickets: pay-what-you-can ( suggested donation $15 ). Runs through: May 17 You can still see Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps displayed in drugstores today, albeit not ...
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Actors Gym to stream original production Isolated
Actors Gym to stream original production 'Isolated' Actors Gym has announced Isolated, its annual spring youth circus that, this year, has been devised through an innovative online rehearsal process. It features 28 of its top youth ...
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Second City streaming free improv shows
The Second City has now adapted its improvisation-based shows to create real-time, interactive and socially "together" virtual experiences available to audiences worldwide. Current online shows include Improv House Party ( Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 7 ...
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'Teenage Dick' virtual run extended through May 17
Chicago's Theater Wit announced another two-week extension of its current, critically acclaimed virtual production of Teenage Dick. It now runs through Sunday, May 17. Wit has sold more than 1,000 remote view tickets since launching its ...
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Nominations announced for 47th annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards
April 28, 2020 — Chicago — With the conclusion of the 2019-2020 Chicago non-Equity theater season, the Jeff Awards announces the nominees for the 47th annual awards for theater excellence that include 120 theater artists across ...
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League fights to help save Chicago venues
As the effects of COVID-19 continue to devastate businesses and communities around the world, the Chicago Independent Venue League ( CIVL ) has continued to fight for the survival of Chicago's independent music venues, and is ...
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NU professor among academy's new members
Performer, author and Northwestern University professor E. Patrick Johnson is among an esteemed group of individuals named as the newest class of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. The members were elected by 276 artists, ...
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Ravinia's production of Bernstein's 'Mass' on PBS on May 15
Ravinia's 2019 presentation of iconic conductor Leonard Bernstein's little-seen music theater masterwork Mass will be shown as an installment of the PBS series Great Performances on Friday, May 15, at 9 p.m. on PBS ( including ...
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Victory Gardens unveils 2020-21 season, streaming 'Fun Home'
Victory Gardens unveils 2020-21 season, streaming 'Fun Home' Victory Gardens Theater, under the leadership of Artistic Director Chay Yew and Executive Director Erica Daniels, announced the lineup for its 2020—21 season. The venue's 46th sSeason will ...
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Brown Paper Box announces final season
After 10 years, 16 venues and six Jeff Award recommendations, Brown Paper Box Co. ( BPBCo. ) announced that the upcoming 10th season will be its last. In a statement, artistic director Kristi Szczepanek said, "With ...
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MOVIES About Face co-founder writes, directs 'Netuser'
Eric Rosen—a co-founder of Chicago's About Face Theatre who was also its first artistic director—wrote and directed the LGBTQ short film Netuser, which will be released online Friday, April 24. In the movie, Tony winner and ...
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Hamilton's Cervantes new addition to April 19 concert
Miguel Cervantes ( Hamilton ) will perform live during the April 19 Chicago Offstage! Live from Home virtual concert benefiting Season of Concern, the emergency fund for Chicago's theater artists. Cervantes is a late addition to ...
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Jeff Awards going virtual June 8 UPDATE
Please see http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/lgbt/47th-annual-Non-Equity-Jeff-Awards-postponed/68655.html for an update dated June 3. The Jeff Awards—the Chicago theater community's annual awards recognizing non-Equity theater productions—will be presented in a virtual format on Monday, June 8. In preparation for this ...
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Virtual reading of Terrence McNally work on April 16
In honor of Terrence McNally, who recently passed away at age 81 of complications from COVID-19, four actors—each participating from a remote location—will perform a live online reading of Mothers and Sons on Thursday, April 16 ...
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Victory Gardens cancels 'Forgotten,'will stream 'Fun Home'
Victory Gardens Theater is cancelling Right To Be Forgotten, which is written by Sharyn Rothstein and slated to be directed by Devon de Mayo. Right To Be Forgotten, scheduled to play May 29-June 28, was the ...
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NUNN ON ONE THEATER Jordan Dell Harris strikes up the 'Band'
The production The Boys in the Band is a lesson in gay history. Set in 1968, a party is held for a group of friends where one of them is having a birthday. A game of ...
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COVID-19 Broadway closed through June 7
Broadway will remain closed through June 7—an extension of the current coronavirus shutdown that would seem to retroactively end the 2019-20 season. "Our top priority continues to be the health and well-being of Broadway theatergoers and ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW Masque of the Red Coronavirus
Playwright: Ed Rutherford At: Black Button Eyes Productions online at BlackButtonEyes.com/masque-of-the-red-coronavirus. Tickets: Online donations accepted. Runs through: Open run* It was easy to forget, last month, that playhouses in London were once shuttered for EIGHTEEN YEARS! ...
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Virtual reading of Terrence McNally's Mothers and Sons April 16
In honor of Terrence McNally, who recently passed away at age 81 of complications from COVID-19. Four actors, each participating from a remote location, will perform a live online reading of Mothers and Sons on Thursday, ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW Methtacular!
Playwright: Steven Strafford Via: 16th Street Theater, 6420 16th St., Berwyn. Tickets: 708-795-6704 or 16thStreetTheater.org; . $12 per person/on your honor. Available through: April 4 The show cannot go on for so many live theaters ...
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Arts for Illinois launches with grants for artists, groups
Arts Alliance Illinois joined Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot in launching Arts for Illinois—a collaboration between the State of Illinois, the City of Chicago and members of the philanthropic community to support ...
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Court Theatre reschedules The Gospel at Colonus to the 2020-2021 season
Chicago, IL - Court Theatre, under the continuing leadership of Charles Newell, Marilyn F. Vitale Artistic Director, and Angel Ysaguirre, Executive Director, announces new dates for its production of The Gospel at Colonus, featuring book and ...
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THEATER Mourning Terrence McNally
The prolific Emmy and Tony Award-winning writer Terrence McNally passed away at the age of 81 in Florida at a Sarasota hospital on Tuesday, March 24. The cause of death was due to complications of the ...
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STREAMING THEATER REVIEW Teenage Dick
Playwright: Mike Lew At: Theater Wit ( on line streaming only ) Tickets: TheaterWit.org; $28. Runs through: April 19 In a smart move before shutting down, Theater Wit video recorded a live performance of Teenage Dick, ...
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Raven Theatre postpones world premiere of Eden Prairie, 1971 due to COVID-19
CHICAGO ( March 25, 2020 ) — In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Raven Theatre today announced it will postpone its upcoming world premiere of Mat Smart's Eden Prairie, 1971, directed by Henry Wishcamper, originally scheduled ...
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