Any given theater writer sees at most 250 shows in a year ( if he/she sees five shows a week, and that's a lot ) and most of us see far fewer.But Chicago's 200+ theater troupes offer 800 or so productions every year ( according to the League of Chicago Theatres ) , so the likelihood is high that Ior any other revieweractually missed the best show or shows of the year. My best/worst of the year, therefore, are selections made through a relatively narrow window. They are listed in the order in which they opened, beginning last January.
The best
These Shining Lives, Rivendell Theatre EnsembleMelanie Marnich's history play about young women who painted radium watch dials in the 1920s and 1930s featured fascinating and compassionate writing, given a caring and heartfelt production by Rivendell, which remounted the show late in the year.
The Shape of a Girl, Pegasus PlayersI waited for years to see a Chicago company produce this exquisite one-character work by Canadian playwright Joan MacLeod that concerns adolescent girl-on-girl violence and is based on real Vancouver headlines. The wait was long but worth it, as Alice Wedoff delivered a primo performance as a conflicted 15-year-old.
Playing with Fire, Bohemian Theatre EnsembleBased on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, this highly intelligent adaptation by Barbara Field recognized the work as a profound philosophical tract rather than a horror story. Boho's production, squeezed into a tiny storefront, offered an austerely beautiful look and superb lead performances by Kevin Cox ( Creature ) and Buck Zachary.
Ghostwritten, Goodman TheatreI'm in the minority of critics who really liked Naomi Iizuki's work of magic realism, freely based on the fairytale Rumpelstiltskin. Set in Southeast Asia and the United States, Ghostwritten is a contemporary of wishes granted and debts we owe with cultural identity thrown in as a major bonus. I really enjoyed Goodman's well-acted and atmospheric production.
Red Noses, Strawdog TheatreIgnored for years, Peter Barnes's large-cast and strange comedy about priests and plague in the Middle Ages enjoyed two back-to-back productions in 2009. I saw only the Strawdog staging, which was an unblemished triumph of low comedy and ensemble playing as creative as it was energetic. Despite its 14th-century setting, Red Noses is very much a contemporary work, with its message of the forces unleashedgood and notby profound social change.
The History Boys, TimeLine TheatreA run-away hit ( and deservedly so ) , Alan Bennett's clever play about a battle for the hearts and minds of adolescent boys ( and, more deeply, about the purposes of education ) is on everyone's "best" list for 2009. Superb ensemble performances ( with veteran Donald Brearly remarkable in the chief role ) and a clever environmental staging helped fuel this production's triumphant six-month run.
The Light in the Piazza, Marriott TheatreThis unusual chamber musical, based on the novel ( and film ) of the same name, featured a dazzling score by Adam Guettel and Jeff Award-winning performances by a fine cast. This vehicle started life at the Goodman Theatre, went on to Broadway success and then returned in a touring version that was swamped at the Auditorium Theatre. The all-new Marriott production restored the proper intimacy and passion.
Ballad of the Sad Cafe, Signal EnsembleCarson McCuller's tale of obsession, attraction and idolization is Southern Gothic all the way, and Edward Albee's talky stage version is dodgy at best, but Signal Ensemble's impressively staged and acted version overcame all obstacles to create a mesmerizing experience featuring intensely physicalized performances.
All My Sons, TimeLine TheatreEven as The History Boys still was running, TimeLine scored again with a scorching rendition of Arthur Miller's early domestic tragedy, drawn from World War II headlines about war profiteering. The familiar play became fresh, new and emotionally devastating under director Kimberly Senior, with the deeply moving Janet Ulrich Brooks and Roger Mueller in the lead roles.
The worst
Oedipus, The HypocritesThis ill-conceived comic strip version of Sophocles's noble tragedy robbed the work of all poetry, grandeur and profundity in a misguided attempt to make it relevant, hip, accessible and fun. Well, the pop-art environmental production WAS fun, but it sure wasn't Oedipus Rex.
Boom, Next TheatreNew Next artistic director Jason Southerland launched his first full season with a childish play about a new Adam and Eve, of sorts, after a modern Apocalypse destroys the earth. The downfall wasn't the improbable situation, but playwright Peter Sinn Nachtreib's vacuous characters and failure to establish them as believable individuals.
Fake, Steppenwolf TheatreEric Simonson overreached in both writing and directing this world premiere, which failed to be the poor man's version of Tom Stoppard to which it aspired. Set in two time periods, and purporting to be about the Piltdown Man ( a famous early 20th-century fossil fake ) and Arthur Conan Doyle, it wasreallyabout issues of faith and belief. That's OK, but Simonson shifted focus too many times, repeatedly lost his thread and set the audience up with red herrings.