All stories by Barnaby Hughes on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Opera Season Announced: CHICAGO OPERA THEATER (2021-22) by Barnaby Hughes

Fresh on the heels of a high-stakes digital season, Chicago Opera Theater returns with in-person performances for its 2021-22 Season. The company’s commitment to showcasing new voices, fre…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 09:49PM
Sunday, May 23, 2021

Opera: LYRIC OPERA OF CHICAGO’S 2021|22 SEASON by Barnaby Hughes

Tickets now on sale for Lyric Opera of Chicago’s 2021|22 Season Call 312-827-5600 or visit lyricopera.org Here are the shows: NEW PRODUCTION Verdi MACBETH Sung in Italian with projected E…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 09:00PM

Broadway-Bound: THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (A New Musical) by Barnaby Hughes

Broadway-Bound THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA, with music by Sir Elton John (Disney’s The Lion King, Billy Elliot), lyrics by Shaina Taub (Twelfth Night at the Public Theatre), and book by Paul …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 08:36AM
Friday, November 20, 2020

Opera Preview: RIMSKY REBOOTED (Chicago Opera Theater) by Barnaby Hughes

RIMSKY TO THE RESCUE As COVID-19 restrictions continue to evolve, Chicago Opera Theater is pivoting its November show digitally in order to honor commitments to artists while protecting the …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 06:40PM
Tuesday, March 6, 2018

Chicago Opera Review: FAUST (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

A FAUSTIAN BARGAIN OF SORTS Bold, eclectic and experimental, Lyric Opera’s new production (co-produced with Portland Opera) of Gounod’s Faust comes across as rather jumbled, a mishmash, …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 02:26AM
Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Chicago Opera Review: COSÌ FAN TUTTE (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

A PRODUCTION TO COSÌ UP TO A Lyric Opera season would not be complete without Mozart, so it was with great anticipation that I attended the opening night performance of Così Fan Tutte. Alt…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 01:48AM
Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Chicago Theater Review: MY FAIR LADY (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

STILL THE FAIREST OF THEM ALL This reviewer has a confession to make: I don’t particularly like musicals. I’ll happily laugh at the jokes and delight in the dancing, but the style …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 02:19AM
Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Opera Review: THE PERFECT AMERICAN (Chicago Opera Theater at the Harris Theater) by Barnaby Hughes

PERFECT IMPERFECTIONS Growing up on a steady diet of animated and live-action Disney films and in the shadow of the Disneyland theme park in Anaheim, which I visited every year until I was 1…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 05:57PM
Saturday, February 25, 2017

Chicago Opera Review: THE INVENTION OF MOREL (Chicago Opera Theater at the Studebaker Theater) by Barnaby Hughes

COPELAND’S MOREL LACKS INVENTION Four years ago, Long Beach Opera (Artistic and General Director Andreas Mitisek’s other company) staged Stewart Copeland’s The Tell-Tale Heart, giving …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 09:36PM
Thursday, October 27, 2016

Chicago Theater Review: LONGER! LOUDER! WAGNER! THE SECOND CITY WAGNER COMPANION (The Second City and Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

MAKING FUN OF OPERA FUN AGAIN This mostly satirical Lyric Opera/Second City co-production contains little irony apart from the title. For while it definitely IS about Wagner, it most certain…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 01:24AM
Monday, May 9, 2016

Chicago Opera Review: LA CALISTO (Haymarket Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

THE GODS MUST BE ARE CRAZY! It’s not often that one gets to see the same opera twice, especially when the opera in question is a delightful rarity like Francesco Cavalli’s La Calisto, wh…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 06:12AM
Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Chicago Opera Review: THE KING AND I (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

A ROYAL PRODUCTION The King and I is a rather curious bundle of contradictions and opposites. First, it’s based on a true story, but plays out more like a fairy tale. In fact, it doesn’t…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 02:13PM
Sunday, March 13, 2016

Chicago Opera Review: ROMEO AND JULIET (Lyric) by Barnaby Hughes

UNEVEN PRODUCTION COMBINES CARNIVAL AND ROMANCE As part of Chicago’s yearlong celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death, Lyric Opera has mounted a product…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 07:36PM
Thursday, February 11, 2016

Chicago Opera Review: DER ROSENKAVALIER (Lyric) by Barnaby Hughes

MAJESKI’S MAJESTIC MARSCHALLIN Lyric Opera’s new production of Der Rosenkavalier is beautiful, charming, and magnificent. It delightfully exceeded my expectations and gave me a new appre…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 12:37AM
Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Chicago Opera Review: LA VOIX HUMAINE & GIANNI SCHICCHI (Chicago Opera Theater at the Harris) by Barnaby Hughes

A DAMNED GOOD PAIRING What could be a more appropriate title for an opera than La Voix Humaine? What better source material for an opera than Dante’s Divina Commedia? Chicago Opera Theatre…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 04:12AM
Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Chicago Theater Review: VICES and VIRTUES (Profiles) by Barnaby Hughes

IF BREVITY WAS THE SOUL OF ETHICS… One of the advantages of one-act plays is that if they’re bad, you don’t have to wait long for them to be over. (I can’t ever remember wishing a go…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 10:34PM
Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Chicago Opera Review: NABUCCO (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

STAGNANT STAGING AND CRAZY COSTUMES, BUT THE CAST AND CHORUS CAPTIVATE There’s a good reason why Verdi’s operas are typically described as “grand opera.” They’re big and bold, req…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 03:02PM
Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Chicago Opera Review: BEL CANTO (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

DISAPPOINTING DEBUT DELIVERS DAMAGED GOODS Lyric Opera’s world premiere production of Bel Canto fails to live up to its name (translation: beautiful singing). While first-time opera compos…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 06:05AM
Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Chicago Opera Review: THE MERRY WIDOW (Lyric) by Barnaby Hughes

A MERRY WIDOW MAKES FOR A MERRY AUDIENCE After the unbearable ugliness of Berg’s Wozzeck, Lyric Opera’s beautiful production of Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow (Die Lustige Witwe) comes…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 10:43AM
Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Chicago Opera Review: AMADIGI DI GAULA (Haymarket Opera Company) by Barnaby Hughes

HURRAH FOR HAYMARKET’S HANDELIAN HERO Appropriately enough, Haymarket Opera Company (HOC) is kicking off its fifth season with a Handel opera that premiered on London’s Haymarket Street …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 04:56PM
Monday, November 2, 2015

Chicago Opera Review: WOZZECK (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

WHAT’S UP WITH WOZZECK? Alban Berg’s Wozzeck must have been quite shocking in 1925 at its first public performance in Berlin. Why? Musically, it’s regarded as the first opera in the 20…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 10:30PM
Thursday, October 15, 2015

Chicago Opera Review: THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

A MARRIAGE MADE IN CHICAGO Lyric Opera’s season-opening production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro celebrates love and beauty with vibrant colors, light-hearted laughter and sublime m…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 03:32PM

Chicago Opera Review: CINDERELLA (Lyric Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

A CINDERELLA FOR ALL AGES You might think you know the story if you’ve seen Disney’s animated version, but Rossini’s Cinderella (or La Cenerentola, literally “little girl of the cind…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 03:32PM

Chicago Theater Review: GOOD FOR OTTO (The Gift Theatre in Jefferson Park) by Barnaby Hughes

WHAT’S GOOD FOR OTTO ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH FOR GIFT Seldom have I sat through such a long-winded play (nearly three hours!) that said so little. I struggled in vain to find some deeper meani…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 10:53AM

Chicago Opera Review: LUCIO SILLA (Chicago Opera Theater at the Harris Theater) by Barnaby Hughes

LUCIO SILLA REVELS IN YOUTH’S BEAUTY Mozart’s early chamber opera Lucio Silla, written at the precocious age of sixteen, is an excellent example of the bel canto style. Not only is the s…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 10:53AM
Monday, April 27, 2015

Chicago Theater Review: THREE SISTERS (The Hypocrites at The Den Theatre) by Barnaby Hughes

SISTERS AND SOLDIERS Following their rather loose and unconventional takes on Greek tragedy and Gilbert and Sullivan, The Hypocrites return to a more classic approach with Anton Chekhov’s …

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 02:51PM
Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Chicago Theater Review: THE GOOD BOOK (Court) by Barnaby Hughes

GOOD BOOKS? The world premiere production of a new play about the Bible by Denis O’Hare and Lisa Peterson, The Good Book is impressive, complex, informative, and entertaining, perhaps even…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 11:18AM
Sunday, March 15, 2015

Chicago Opera Review: DON QUICHOTTE AUF DER HOCHZEIT DES COMACHO (Haymarket Opera) by Barnaby Hughes

HAYMARKET TRIUMPHS WITH TELEMANN RARITY Closing out their fourth season with Georg Philipp Telemann’s Don Quichotte auf der Hochzeit des Camacho (Don Quixote at the Wedding of Camacho), Ha…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 02:59AM
Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Chicago Theater Review: JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (Theo Ubique) by Barnaby Hughes

BETRAYED BY THE KISS OF BROADWAY In the small confines of the No Exit Café in Rogers Park, one might have expected a more intimate, low-key version of Jesus Christ Superstar, especially con…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 11:06AM
Monday, March 9, 2015

Chicago Theater Review: THE HAMMER TRINITY (House Theatre of Chicago) by Barnaby Hughes

GRASP THIS HAMMER WHILE THE IRON IS HOT! Considering the popularity of fantasy epics The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, it is a wonder that more theaters aren’t performing them. Wh…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 12:45PM
Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Chicago Theater Review: THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF ANTARCTICA (The Gift Theatre) by Barnaby Hughes

SMART DRAMA REVEALS POLAR ATTRACTION A world premiere production, Mat Smart’s The Royal Society of Antarctica at The Gift Theatre is easily one of the year’s best new plays. Smart, who w…

SOURCE: Stage and Cinema at 02:34AM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards