All stories by Emily McClanathan on BroadwayStars

Monday, October 2, 2023

'The Man Behind the Trumpet': A Wonderful World Aims to Tell Louis Armstrong's Story by Emily McClanathan

The new musical stars James Monroe Iglehart as the famed musician, and begins its pre-Broadway performances this month.

SOURCE: Playbill at 10:43AM
Tuesday, September 19, 2023

Review: All-Asian American cast shines in ‘Baked! The Musical’ at Theo Ubique by Emily McClanathan

“Baked!” is a sweet, funny, coming-of-age show about a bright-eyed valedictorian who finds herself short of tuition for Harvard.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:30AM
Thursday, September 14, 2023

Review: ‘Cat’s Cradle’ at Lifeline Theatre is Kurt Vonnegut’s satirical tale about the end of the world by Emily McClanathan

While this offbeat world-building is entertaining, I was left uncertain of why “Cat’s Cradle” is being revived in 2023.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:15AM
Monday, September 11, 2023

The Tony-winning ‘Lehman Trilogy’ arrives in Chicago as a TimeLine production: What do we give up for capitalism? by Emily McClanathan

This is very much the story of one family and its experience of coming to America in search of a better life.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:00AM
Wednesday, September 6, 2023

Review: ‘Taste of Soul’ at Black Ensemble Theater works up an appetite by Emily McClanathan

In the second half, this show about soul music, food and memories takes a personal turn.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:00AM
Monday, August 7, 2023

Evanston native Jacqueline Williams stars in touring ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’: ‘We still need this story’ by Emily McClanathan

Jacqueline Williams is Calpurnia in the national tour of “To Kill a Mockingbird,” and the Evanston native still considers this story to be as important as ever.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:00AM
Wednesday, August 2, 2023

Review: ‘Marie and Rosetta’ at Northlight Theatre takes an intimate look at the ‘Godmother of Rock ‘n’ Roll’ by Emily McClanathan

Sister Rosetta Tharpe's music and the story of her cherished relationship with Marie Knight are revived for a new generation at Northlight Theatre.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:15AM
Monday, July 31, 2023

Review: Fun just oozes from ‘The SpongeBob Musical’ by Kokandy Productions by Emily McClanathan

This is a show about never giving up. Sure, it’s geared toward kids, but not exclusively so.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:05AM
Thursday, July 27, 2023

Review: This lovely outdoor ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ by Oak Park Festival Theatre adds some up-to-date casting by Emily McClanathan

While changing little of the text, director Peter G. Andersen transforms several of the key relationships, shaking up the power dynamics and exploring complex layers in a play written more t…

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:00AM
Tuesday, July 25, 2023

Review: ‘Beauty and the Beast’ at Chicago Shakespeare is a straightforward, bite-sized bit of Disney by Emily McClanathan

Despite my quibbles with the production, this bite-sized “Beauty and the Beast” is a good candidate to help youngsters catch the theater bug.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 01:15PM
Monday, July 3, 2023

Review: ‘Lane Call: A Night of Closing’ at Factory Theater is a throwback to the heyday of discount retail by Emily McClanathan

The nostalgic workplace comedy captures the absurdities of working at a Midwestern discount department store chain.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:00AM
Wednesday, June 21, 2023

This New Musical Features a Modern Bonnie and Clyde, Who Are Also Asian by Emily McClanathan

Matthew C. Yee's Lucy and Charlie’s Honeymoon challenges Asian Americans stereotypes.

SOURCE: Playbill at 01:37PM
Wednesday, June 14, 2023

‘Hadestown’ is returning to Chicago. Actor Nathan Lee Graham talks about why retold ancient myths still resonate. by Emily McClanathan

If you missed the first Chicago run of “Hadestown” last year, June marks your chance to catch this tale of Greek gods and star-crossed lovers.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:45AM
Friday, June 9, 2023

Review: ‘Shaw vs. Tunney’ explores a formative friendship but offers little for modern audiences by Emily McClanathan

While Shaw fans likely will appreciate this world premiere, it doesn’t make much of a case for broader audience appeal.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:15AM
Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Review: ‘Agnes of God’ at Redtwist Theatre doesn’t shy away from a difficult story by Emily McClanathan

This play is part whodunit and part psychological thriller, with a dash of philosophical discourse.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:15AM
Friday, May 5, 2023
Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Review: ‘We Are Proud to Present’ is a brave beginning for Theatre Y in North Lawndale by Emily McClanathan

After several years of working to relocate from Lincoln Square to North Lawndale, Theatre Y finally has a new home a block south of the Pink Line’s Central Park stop.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 03:30PM
Monday, April 17, 2023

Review: ‘Is God Is’ is a dark revenge tale in its Chicago premiere at A Red Orchid Theatre by Emily McClanathan

In the small storefront A Red Orchid calls home, the violence of "Is God Is" is always in your face and content warnings are plentiful.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 12:55PM
Wednesday, April 5, 2023

White saviorism: the musical! by Emily McClanathan

The Book of Mormon is back in Chicago, slightly rewritten since it last played here in 2018 but still the same wildly irreverent take on that most quintessential of homegrown white American …

SOURCE: chicagoreader.com at 09:00AM
Thursday, March 30, 2023

Soviet slapstick by Emily McClanathan

Heading into opening night of Dying for It at Artistic Home, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Moira Buffini’s adaptation of The Suicide, a 1928 satire by Soviet playwright Nikolai Erdma…

SOURCE: chicagoreader.com at 12:03PM

Broadway star Norm Lewis says you have to find a sense of hope in ‘A Soldier’s Play’ by Emily McClanathan

The play is much more than a crime drama, it sheds light on the history of segregation and racism in the U.S. Army and broader American society.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:15AM
Tuesday, March 28, 2023

Review: In ‘Babel’ at Redtwist Theatre, expecting couples face eugenics and AI in a dystopian future by Emily McClanathan

The play raises important questions but is less successful in its attempt to capture the human cost of striving for utopia.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 03:22PM
Monday, March 6, 2023

They both play the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll in ‘Tina - The Tina Turner Musical’ by Emily McClanathan

Naomi Rodgers and Zurin Villanueva lead the North American tour of the biographical jukebox musical, arriving at the Nederlander Theatre in March.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:30AM
Thursday, March 2, 2023

Quantum romance by Emily McClanathan

Simon Stephens’s play Heisenberg: The Uncertainty Principle is set up as a classic story of culture clash: a quirky, talkative woman from New Jersey strikes up a conversation with a reserv…

SOURCE: chicagoreader.com at 04:55PM
Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Review: ‘The Kelly Girls’ is set in Northern Ireland and explores what drives people to violence by Emily McClanathan

“The Kelly Girls,” in its world premiere at The Factory Theater, is a politically charged family drama that takes place during the early years of the Troubles.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:00AM
Thursday, February 9, 2023

Review: Black Americans wrestle with their identity in ‘Alaiyo’ at Definition Theatre by Emily McClanathan

“Alaiyo” is billed as a choreopoem, a loosely defined genre often incorporates elements of poetry, dance and music.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:15AM
Tuesday, February 7, 2023

After more than 25 years, a fond farewell and a final show for First Folio Theatre in Oak Brook by Emily McClanathan

“What I would like to be remembered for is for bringing joy to our patrons and to our actors and directors and designers,” said executive director David Rice.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:45AM
Monday, January 23, 2023

Chicago Puppet Theater Fest’s first week had a whale of a ‘Moby Dick,’ tiny figures and a marionette made of ice by Emily McClanathan

Chicago's big, ongoing festival presents an excellent opportunity to sample a vast range of artistry from around the world. Not just for kids.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 03:20PM
Thursday, December 15, 2022

Searching for an emotional connection with Dear Evan Hansen by Emily McClanathan

I’ve now seen the North American tour of Dear Evan Hansen twice in Chicago, and both times I’ve come up short trying to feel the emotional connection that so many fans have with this sho…

SOURCE: chicagoreader.com at 04:17PM
Tuesday, December 6, 2022

Review: ‘A Christmas Carol’ at the Goodman Theatre tells Scrooge’s lesson anew every year by Emily McClanathan

In Larry Yando's hands, it's Scrooge’s transformation from hardhearted miser into “as good a friend … and as good a man, as the good old city knew” that makes makes this a classic.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 06:45AM
Monday, December 5, 2022

Review: ‘Elf: The Musical’ at Drury Lane Theatre: The cast does its best with a misguided coal lump of a musical by Emily McClanathan

On paper, the 2003 holiday movie comedy starring Will Ferrell seems like a great candidate for a screen-to-stage adaptation.

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune Subscription at 02:05PM

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