All stories by Bob Bullen on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

From Cats to Company: My musical influences by Bob Bullen

I guess this period of self-isolation has inspired me to self-reflect. I thought it would be a kick to outline shows that have influenced me throughout my 40 years on this earth, organized b…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 05:48PM
Friday, April 3, 2020

My dream ‘Sunset Boulevard’ benefit concert that will never happen by Bob Bullen

What better way to occupy one’s mind at these times than dream-casting projects that will in no way materialize? In this spirit, may I present The Actors Fund One Night Only Benefit Concer…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 09:54PM
Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Need your stage musical fix? What to watch online by Bob Bullen

Hey. I hope you’re doing well right now. We’re fine. A big thank you to our heroes right now: medical workers, service workers, essential workers. I salute you. SO, I’ve had a few peop…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 03:12PM
Monday, March 9, 2020

Thoughts on gender-swapped “Company” on Broadway by Bob Bullen

Want something. Want SOMETHING. I really wanted to see celebrated director Marianne Elliott’s revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s 1970 classic musical Company when it premiere…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 03:36AM
Saturday, December 28, 2019

The Light in the Piazza at Lyric Opera of Chicago by Bob Bullen

A year ago I’d read that Renée Fleming had signed on to play Margaret Johnson in The Light in the Piazza in London. I may have peed a little. One of our greatest sopranos singing one of t…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 03:24AM
Friday, December 27, 2019

Thoughts on CATS the MOVIE by Bob Bullen

Look. I love CATS. It was my first Broadway musical. It changed my life. Yaddayadda (which is also my Jellicle* name). This all comes out of respect of a show I know and love. Random mew-sin…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 08:54PM
Tuesday, December 17, 2019

New Podcast! by Bob Bullen

For anyone who may be reading this dusty, neglected blog… A few months ago my friend Eric and I created a new podcast: Exclusive Gay Moment. Sure. Everyone has a podcast these days. But, w…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 05:33PM
Wednesday, October 16, 2019

‘Sunset Boulevard’ at Porchlight by Bob Bullen

My 16th birthday proved transformative. No, it wasn’t being given the keys to the family mini-van with wood grain paneling after securing my driver’s license. Nor was it my Eagle Scout c…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 06:54PM
Friday, June 7, 2019

‘Queen of the Mist’ at Firebrand Theatre by Bob Bullen

“There is greatness in me!” When the unflappable Barbara E. Robertson – with her fiery eyes and large, expressive mouth – bellows this mere feet from a rapt audience, you have no cho…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 04:18PM
Monday, April 15, 2019

‘A Chorus Line’ at Porchlight by Bob Bullen

It’s hard to think of a show more iconic than A Chorus Line. Michael Bennett’s athletic, razzle-dazzle touch is all over it. Marvin Hamlisch’s pulsating score is peppered with tunes th…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 11:43AM
Saturday, March 30, 2019

Hands on a Hardbody – Refuge Theatre by Bob Bullen

Gypsy. Sweeney Todd. Chorus Line. Chicago. Great American musical theatre rallies around a common theme: Desperation – and the great lengths we go to get what we want. Hands on a Hardbody …

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 08:22AM
Thursday, October 25, 2018

“Hello, Dolly!” First National Tour at the Oriental Theatre by Bob Bullen

In a recent Chicago Tribune interview, the iconic Betty Buckley – who’s starring in the first national tour of Hello, Dolly! – told critic Chris Jones that even if she has to “put up…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 08:54AM
Thursday, October 18, 2018

Gypsy at Porchlight Music Theatre by Bob Bullen

Gypsy is my favorite show. I’ve seen dozens of performances and productions. I can confidently say I know this show inside and out. That is, until I saw E. Faye Butler as Madame Rose in Po…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 05:48PM
Saturday, September 15, 2018

Remembering Marin Mazzie by Bob Bullen

  It’s been a hot second since I’ve written here, but the passing of one of my very favorite performers awoke the muse. If you’ll indulge me… We all have those voices we’v…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 04:54PM
Thursday, June 14, 2018

Boho Theatre’s ‘A Little Night Music’ by Bob Bullen

I can’t imagine a more utterly charming musical than Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s A Little Night Music. Like a bubbly glass of crisp Champagne, even the most middling Night Music …

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 07:48PM
Sunday, April 22, 2018

Kokandy’s haunting “Grand Hotel” by Bob Bullen

The musical Grand Hotel is, in many ways, an anomaly. Based on a 1932 MGM movie about the inner dramas occurring in an opulent Berlin hotel in 1928, this relentlessly dark show did not feel …

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 05:06PM
Saturday, April 7, 2018

Refuge Theatre Project Presents an Earthy, Earnest “The Spitfire Grill” by Bob Bullen

As a hard-worn musical theatre nerd, it’s a very rare thing when I encounter a nearly two-decade old, critically praised musical in which I’ve neither seen the source material nor heard …

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 10:02PM
Tuesday, March 13, 2018

A foggy ‘Sweeney Todd’ at Theo Ubique by Bob Bullen

I love me some Theo Ubique – the scrappy, award-winning storefront that’s made quite a name for itself (and also a new home, opening shortly up the road from its current residenc…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 01:24PM
Tuesday, March 6, 2018

I saw Patti LuPone spill tea for three hours, and lived to tell the tale by Bob Bullen

I tried to hold myself back.  I really did. Out of the two shows presented Monday evening as part of Steppenwolf’s “Lookout” series, I very reasonably bought tickets for t…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 05:43PM
Saturday, February 17, 2018

An Unapologetic ‘Love Never Dies’ in Chicago by Bob Bullen

It’s a rare thing where a show you’ve literally been anticipating for a decade arrives as a full-out, first-rate tour in basically your back yard. Yes, back in 2008 my friends and I wild…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 10:14AM
Saturday, February 3, 2018

Porchlight’s ‘Merrily’ Packs a Punch by Bob Bullen

Growing up. Trying things, being flexible, bending with the road. Adding dreams when the others don’t last. Growing up, understanding that growing never ends. Like old dreams, some old…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 11:43AM
Sunday, May 21, 2017

Follow me on Huffington Post by Bob Bullen

If anyone is reading this, check out my blog on The Huffington Post for the latest reviews and such. xoxxoox

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 08:24PM
Thursday, April 20, 2017

#EduHam: Inspiring Young Minds Through the Power of ‘Hamilton’ by Bob Bullen

Perhaps you’ve heard about a little show taking the world over by storm. And Chicago is lucky enough to have it, eight nights a week for the foreseeable future, at the PrivateBank Theatre.…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 09:12PM
Sunday, November 6, 2016

“Fun Home” at Broadway in Chicago by Bob Bullen

Fun Home is a special show. The 2015 Best Musical Tony winner features a female, lesbian protagonist (the remarkable Kate Shindle playing graphic novalist Alison Bechdel), and an emotionally…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 01:48PM

‘Wonderful Town’ at the Goodman by Bob Bullen

They just don’t write ’em like that anymore. This phrase could be aptly applied to the classic musical comedy Wonderful Town, now getting a major revival at the Goodman Theater, …

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 01:48PM
Friday, July 22, 2016

‘War Paint’ at the Goodman Theatre by Bob Bullen

I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been salivating at seeing the new musical War Paint, which is based on the PBS documentary The Powder and the Glory celebrating makeup moguls and…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 05:28PM
Thursday, May 12, 2016

‘The King and I’ at Lyric Opera by Bob Bullen

Gilded scenery, an exquisitely sung classic American songbook score, parades of hoop skirts and exotic Eastern textiles, and an unconventional love story. What’s not to adore in Lyri…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 07:48PM
Tuesday, April 19, 2016

‘Dreamgirls’ at Porchlight Music Theatre by Bob Bullen

I almost skipped Dreamgirls at Porchlight. I’ve seen and enjoyed the movie, I saw a very decent (if emotionally neutral) touring production 6 years ago, I’ve watched Jennifer H…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 06:58PM
Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Thoughts on ‘Matilda the Musical’ by Bob Bullen

When I visited London around five years ago, I made the grave mistake of choosing Ghost: The Musical over a newer show which I inaccurately assumed as a twee, commercial-friendly childr…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 11:37PM
Tuesday, December 8, 2015

‘Beautiful – The Carole King Musical’ at the Oriental Theatre by Bob Bullen

Abby Mueller stars in “Beautiful – The Carole King Musical” Jukebox musicals. Such a phrase makes those who love musical theatre shudder with a wave of disgust, as it exemp…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 09:22PM
Monday, December 7, 2015

A Buoyant ‘Merry Widow’ at Lyric Opera of Chicago by Bob Bullen

Renee Fleming and Thomas Hampson star in Franz Lehar’s “The Merry Widow” Ooh-la-la! As John Oliver mentioned in response to the recent attacks on France’s capital, Pa…

SOURCE: Chicago Theatre Addict at 08:00AM

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