Sunday, August 17, 2014

The Problems With the Ice Bucket Challenge by Monica Reida

By now you’ve probably seen videos of people having buckets of ice dumped on their heads, be it on the news, on Twitter or on Facebook. The challenge is part of an effort to raise awar…

SOURCE: Fragments at 03:58PM
Friday, June 13, 2014

Some Thoughts On Same-Sex Marriage in Wisconsin by Monica Reida

A United States district court judge overturned Wisconsin’s same-sex marriage last Friday, which initially seemed like a really great thing. In various counties same-sex couples have a…

SOURCE: Fragments at 02:07PM
Sunday, April 6, 2014

Someone Let Me Talk on the Radio for 10 Minutes About an Abandoned Hospital by Monica Reida

It’s now no longer recent, although it could qualify as semi-recent, but I appeared on WBEZ’s The Morning Shift back in February to talk about Edgewater Medical Center, a long-em…

SOURCE: Fragments at 05:55PM
Tuesday, March 11, 2014

The Disney Princess Project: “Frozen” by Monica Reida

Previously: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Beauty and the Beast Pocahontas Hercules Atlantis: The Lost Empire The Little Mermaid The Princess and the Frog Brave T…

SOURCE: Fragments at 11:57PM
Monday, December 23, 2013

An Ode to “Mass Text” by Monica Reida

Every year I write for Punching a Jayhawk about the worst music videos of a given year. Last year’s choice for the worst music video of the year, “Stupid Hoe,” was so delig…

SOURCE: Fragments at 08:37PM
Sunday, December 22, 2013

(pause) by Monica Reida

I was a weird kid. When I was in high school, I discovered Harold Pinter and fell in love with his plays. When I auditioned to get in to Rockford College’s theater program I did the en…

SOURCE: Fragments at 02:41PM
Friday, December 20, 2013

Creepy Guys in Dive Bars by Monica Reida

It was evening and I decided to go to a bar in Milwaukee I had read on Yelp had a good karaoke night. The bar is located in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood, home of the A…

SOURCE: Fragments at 01:36AM
Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Hospital Architecture and You by Monica Reida

“Why hospital architecture, in particular?” I looked at that question on my Blackberry as my train sped through middle-of-nowhere Michigan. The question came from Neil Steinberg,…

SOURCE: Fragments at 08:40PM
Saturday, December 7, 2013

The Night I Went to Miller’s Pub by Monica Reida

Among the more interesting things I’ve written in my life is a post for Punching a Jayhawk, the blog I write with my sister, entitled “A Review of Drinking a Non-Alcoholic Bevera…

SOURCE: Fragments at 03:09PM
Thursday, December 5, 2013

AIDS and the Theater: “Rent” by Monica Reida

This is the second part in a series of blog posts examining major works of theater that handled AIDS. The previous parts looked at “Angels in America” and “Falsettos.” Th…

SOURCE: Fragments at 11:56PM
Tuesday, December 3, 2013

AIDS and the Theater: “Falsettos” by Monica Reida

This is the second part in a series of blog posts examining major works of theater that handled AIDS. The previous part looked at “Angels in America.” Other blog posts will exami…

SOURCE: Fragments at 01:22AM
Monday, December 2, 2013

AIDS and the Theater: “Angels in America” by Monica Reida

This is the first part in a series of blog posts examining major works of theater that handled AIDS. Other blog posts will examine “The Normal Heart,” “Rent” and R…

SOURCE: Fragments at 01:43AM
Monday, November 18, 2013

A List of the Five Best Disney Villain Songs by Monica Reida

I decided to actually update my blog and since there is a new Disney film being released this month a Disney-related list felt appropriate. (Note: I’m still trying to figure out if I w…

SOURCE: Fragments at 10:35PM
Sunday, September 1, 2013

“Red Angel” Versus “The Blue Angel” by Monica Reida

My two main activities this weekend are reading plays and reading about Jane Byrne for a play I’m writing. Among the plays I checked out was “Red Angel” by Eric Bogosian. I…

SOURCE: Fragments at 12:02AM
Sunday, August 18, 2013

Thoughts on Music Videos by Monica Reida

After a couple of years of writing about bad music videos for Punching a Jayhawk, the blog I write with my sister, I have learned there are things people consistently do in music videos that…

SOURCE: Fragments at 05:35PM
Monday, August 12, 2013

Geek Bars Are a Thing Now by Monica Reida

WBEZ has an article on their website about a Kickstarter to create a geek bar in Chicago. (thanks to Anna Tarkov for tweeting about it.) This is a bar for “geeks” to enjoy geeky …

SOURCE: Fragments at 07:40PM
Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Monica Goes to Teavana by Monica Reida

I went to Teavana on Thursday while at the mall and after trying tea I found a tea I wanted to get a cup of to go. Plus, Starbucks bought Teavana so my Starbucks card works there. I told the…

SOURCE: Fragments at 02:11PM
Sunday, June 30, 2013

The Disney Princess Project: “Mulan” by Monica Reida

Previously: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Beauty and the Beast Pocahontas Hercules Atlantis: The Lost Empire The Little Mermaid The Princess and the Frog Brave T…

SOURCE: Fragments at 09:02PM
Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Will Rahm Really Be a One Term Mayor? by Monica Reida

For a while there’s been talk on the internet of making Rahm Emanuel a mayor who only serves one term because people are displeased with what he’s done while mayor, most recently…

SOURCE: Fragments at 12:00PM
Sunday, June 2, 2013

“Kinky Boots” or “Matilda”? by Monica Reida

The Tony Awards are a week away and I’m more excited than usual for the Tony Awards because something I saw is nominated. (Well, I saw it in Chicago) As people who watch the Tony Award…

SOURCE: Fragments at 01:59PM
Saturday, June 1, 2013

Some Thoughts On the End of the Congress Plaza Hotel Strike by Monica Reida

The Congress Plaza Hotel strike ended on Wednesday, almost ten years after it started. The strike is believed to be the longest strike in American history. The end of the strike is a bit of …

SOURCE: Fragments at 03:29PM
Wednesday, April 17, 2013

A Brief History of Kickback Schemes at Chicago Hospitals by Monica Reida

News broke yesterday that six have been arrested in an alleged kickback scheme at Sacred Heart Hospital on Chicago’s West Side. According to the Tribune, the hospital was performing un…

SOURCE: Fragments at 06:55PM
Friday, April 12, 2013

Musicals That Move You (But Not in a Fosse Sort of Way) by Monica Reida

Good theater moves you. When I was a theater critic I always asked myself if the play moved me emotionally. (The last play to move me emotionally was “The Birthday Party” at Step…

SOURCE: Fragments at 09:20PM

Fear of New Flu by Monica Reida

(I read this at The Paper Machete on March 10, 2012. With the news of a new strain of bird flu, I felt the time was right to finally post this on my blog.) According to an article in Tuesday…

SOURCE: Fragments at 06:52PM
Wednesday, April 3, 2013

A Look at Data on Chicago Hospitals by Monica Reida

(All data for this post comes from the Illinois Department of Public Health.) The graph above looks at the amount of charity care given by teaching hospitals in Chicago during the 2011 Fisca…

SOURCE: Fragments at 10:09PM
Friday, March 29, 2013

The Disney Princess Project: “Tangled” by Monica Reida

Previously: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Beauty and the Beast Pocahontas Hercules Atlantis: The Lost Empire The Little Mermaid The Princess and the Frog Brave F…

SOURCE: Fragments at 11:09PM
Monday, March 25, 2013

The CTA’s Ventra-Sized Problem by Monica Reida

Over the past two weeks the Chicago Transit Authority has been dealing with a backlash and revelations regarding their new fare system, Ventra. At first glance, Ventra seems like a great ide…

SOURCE: Fragments at 08:30AM
Sunday, March 24, 2013

Alternatives: “The Thief and the Cobbler” (Miramax Release) by Monica Reida

This post, which you are currently reading, is on the Miramax Release of “The Thief and the Cobbler,” which is the one that I imagine most people will leap for since it’s a…

SOURCE: Fragments at 09:42PM
Saturday, March 23, 2013

The Disney Princess Project and The Films of Pixar: “Brave” by Monica Reida

Previously: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Beauty and the Beast Pocahontas Hercules Atlantis: The Lost Empire The Little Mermaid The Princess and the Frog As time…

SOURCE: Fragments at 10:54PM
Saturday, March 16, 2013

The Disney Princess Project: “The Princess and the Frog” by Monica Reida

Previously: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Beauty and the Beast Pocahontas Hercules Atlantis: The Lost Empire The Little Mermaid Disney released “The Prince…

SOURCE: Fragments at 11:22PM
Sunday, March 3, 2013

The Disney Princess Project: “The Little Mermaid” by Monica Reida

Previously: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Cinderella Sleeping Beauty Beauty and the Beast Pocahontas Hercules Atlantis: The Lost Empire “The Little Mermaid” was the first film …

SOURCE: Fragments at 11:54PM

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