|
WINDY CITY TIMES
|
|
|
THEATER REVIEW Scenes from the Big Picture
Special to the Online Edition of Windy City Times
by Mary Shen Barnidge 2008-09-03
|
|
This article shared 3391 times since Wed Sep 3, 2008
|
|
Playwright: Owen McCafferty. At: Seanachaí Theatre Company at The Storefront, 66 E. Randolph. Phone: 312-742-8497; $20. Runs through: Oct. 5
A factory foreman divides his attentions between his wife and his mistress. Estranged brothers discover a disturbing legacy on the day of their father's funeral. A drug dealer and his waifish girlfriend prepare to flee their sordid life. A lonely spinster pursues a pair of old bachelors. Mom-and-pop shopkeepers consider retiring. A hot chick plays with the bad boys, but ultimately opts for the honest lad with the honest job. And an old man gazes at the stars and remembers the happy times.
When we think of Belfast, that Irish city on the border separating the English-governed Ulster provinces and the island's independent counties, we usually envision pipe bombs, ruined buildings and civil strife. So it may come as something of a surprise to learn that its citizens are still capable of commonplace concerns—or so playwright Owen McCafferty hopes. He also gambles on our curiosity being piqued by their presentation in a series of interwoven scenes—40 in all, featuring a total of 21 characters—that, taken together, make up a look at one significant day in the lives of his representative countryfolk.
The multiple-plot roman à tiroirs originated with the novel, a narrative form allowing for leisurely perusal. Its adaptation to film and television's intimate scope and rapidly-shifting locales has likewise proved successful. But as frequently happens when this complicated narrative form is transferred to the real-time viewing of the stage, we waste precious time orienting ourselves amid our story's unfamiliar geography, dialects and relationships before we can attend to the characters' respective journeys ending in denouements that are too often inconclusive, when not drearily foreseeable.
But even granting McCafferty's academic text, the preview performance I attended was not without its entertaining moments. The Seanachaí Theatre Company has built its reputation on its prowess at hefting Victorian-weight epics, and under the briskly-paced direction of returning expat Scott Cummins, the actors' portrayals of generic archetypes engage us, however briefly, over the course of the production's three hours ( two intermissions ) . The visual and acoustical isolation exacerbated by Joey Wade's stark scenic configuration may disappoint audiences expecting the backside-to-belly action showcased in Seanachaí's 2007 staging of Roddy Doyle's War, but the industry and enthusiasm of the ensemble cannot be denied. |
|
|
|
This article shared 3391 times since Wed Sep 3, 2008
|
ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE |
---|
|
| | THEATER 'Mamma Mia!' returns to Chicago with 'Daddyhunt' star Jim Newman 2024-04-24 - "Who's your daddy?" That's the key plot question driving the global hit Mamma Mia! The global smash jukebox musical famously features the song hits of Swedish pop group ABBA, and it returns for a three-week run ...
|
| | Local queer opera composer premiering her first show, a coming-of-age tale with LGBTQ+ themes 2024-04-23 - A Lake View woman is debuting her first opera as a composer, a coming-of-age story with LGBTQ+ themes. Gillian Rae Perry, a fellow with the Chicago Opera Theater's Vanguard program for emerging artists, composed The Weight ...
|
| | The importance of becoming Ernest: Out actor Christopher Sieber dishes about the Death Becomes Her musical 2024-04-20 - Out and proud actor Christopher Sieber is part of the team bringing Death Becomes Her to life as a stage musical in the Windy City this spring. Sieber plays Ernest Menville, who was originally portrayed by ...
|
| | SHOWBIZ Celine Dion, 'The People's Joker,' Billy Porter, Patti LuPone, 'Strange Way' 2024-04-19 - I Am: Celine Dion will stream on Prime Video starting June 25, according to a press release. The film is described as follows: "Directed by Academy Award nominee Irene Taylor, I Am: Celine Dion gives us ...
|
| | Kokandy Productions now accepting submissions for Chicago Musical Theater Fest returning Aug. 8-11 2024-04-18 --From a press release - CHICAGO (April 18, 2024) — Kokandy Productions is pleased to open submissions for the 2024 Chicago Musical Theatre Festival, returning this summer following a four-year hiatus. Kokandy is thrilled to ...
|
| | THEATER Blue in the Right Way's 'Women Beware Women' offers feminist, trans take on a troubling Jacobean tragedy 2024-04-18 - "Problematic" is a great go-to adjective to describe Women Beware Women. This 1621 Jacobean tragedy is by English playwright Thomas Middleton, who is probably best remembered as a collaborator with William Shakespeare on their pessimistic tragedy ...
|
| | Hubbard Street Dance Chicago announces programs for May 17-19 season finale 2024-04-17 --From a press release - CHICAGO — Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC) announced program selections for Spring Series: Of Joy, the final installment of Season 46, Abundance. The engagement will include four unique works, once ...
|
| | LGBTQ+ film fest Queer Expression to feature Alexandra Billings in 'Queen Tut' 2024-04-12 --From a press release - CHICAGO — Pride Film Fest celebrates its second decade with a new name—QUEER EXPRESSION—and has announced its slate of LGBTQ+-themed feature, mid-length and short films for in-person and virtual events in April and May. QUEER EXPRESSI ...
|
| | Open Space Arts's COCK offers a complex but compelling take on relationships 2024-04-08 By Brian Kirst - Premiering in 2009, Mike Bartlett's COCK was a comic revelation, exploring notions about fluidity and sexual labelling long before they became commonplace discussions. Granted, conversations about these issues will always ...
|
| | Jeff Awards launches submission period for Impact Awards 2024-04-06 - The Jeff Awards announced the opening period for applications submissions for its 2024 honors to help inspire early career artists of color in the Greater Chicagoland area. Two recipients will be selected for awards of $10,000 ...
|
| | SHOWBIZ Outfest, Chita Rivera, figure skaters, letter, playwright dies 2024-04-05 - For more than four decades, Outfest has been telling LGBTQ+ stories through the thousands of films screened during its annual Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival—but that event may have a different look this year because ...
|
| | SHOWBIZ Dionne Warwick, OUTshine, Ariana DeBose, 'Showgirls,' 'Harlem' 2024-03-29 Video below - Iconic singer Dionne Warwick was honored for her decades-long advocacy work for people living with HIV/AIDS at a star-studded amfAR fundraising gala in Palm Beach, per the Palm Beach Daily News. Warwick received the "Award of ...
|
| | WORLD Israel court, conversion therapy, death sentences, Georgia bill, fashion items 2024-03-29 - Israel's Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Population Authority must register female couples as mothers on the birth certificates of their children they have together, The Washington Blade reported. The decision was made following a petition ...
|
| | City Lit Executive Artistic Director Brian Pastor talks theater, comics, queerness 2024-03-26 - City Lit Theater has announced its programming for the 2024-25 seasonwhich will be the company's 44th. It will also be the first season to be programmed under the leadership of Brian Pastor (they/them), who will assume ...
|
| | The Jeff Awards announces the 50th anniversary awards for non-equity theater 2024-03-26 --From a press release - A complete list of recipients can also be found online in the Non-Equity and News and Events sections at www.jeffawards.org. (March 25, 2024 - Chicago) — Celebrating its 50th anniversary awarding recognition for Non-Equity theater, the ...
| |
|
|
|
|
| New Title IX rules protects LGBTQ+ students...to a point | | NATIONAL Ohio law blocked, Trevor Project, Rev. Troy Perry, ICE suit, Elon Musk | | SHOWBIZ Celine Dion, 'The People's Joker,' Billy Porter, Patti LuPone, 'Strange Way' | | LGBTQ+ Intergenerational Dialogue Project set to hold its second annual exhibition | | WORLD Nigeria arrest, Chilean murderer, trans ban, Olivier Awards, marriage items | |
|
|
|
|