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Dan Zeff

  • Theater Review: THE TRAGEDY OF OTHELLO, THE MOOR OF VENICE (Court Theatre in Chicago)

    By Dan Zeff | October 22, 2021
    in ,

    IS LESS MOOR? The Court Theatre artistic management is giving William Shakespeare’s great tragedy Othello a startling makeover. The play has been condensed into a single 110-minute act. The physical and textual results may earn praise from many viewers for their unorthodox exploration of a complex drama. Others, myself included, may admire the risk-taking production…

  • Theater Review: AS YOU LIKE IT (Chicago Shakespeare Theater)

    By Dan Zeff | October 16, 2021
    in ,

    YOU WILL LIKE IT In As You Like It, the new production at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, the company unites William Shakespeare’s classic romantic comedy, with the Beatles songbook. And the setting has been shifting from Elizabethan England to hippy America in the 1960’s. Does it sound like a reach for still another way to…

  • Theater Review: TOGETHER AT LAST (The Second City’s 109th Revue in Chicago)

    By Dan Zeff | October 15, 2021
    in ,

    TOGETHER IN SPIRIT MORE THAN LAUGHS After an 18-month hiatus inflicted on Chicagoland theater because of the virus pandemic, the Second City has finally opened its 109th revue, the upbeat-titled Together at Last. Second City not only had to endure the COVID disruption, but organizational and backstage turbulence seemed at times to threaten the very…

  • Theater Review: SONGS FOR NOBODIES (Northlight Theatre)

    By Dan Zeff | October 4, 2021
    in ,

    SONGS FOR EVERYBODY In the spring of 2020 the Northlight Theatre was set to present Bethany Thomas in “Songs for Nobodies,” a one-performer show that would celebrate five iconic female singers of the 20th century. Then came the pandemic scourge and the show, like all theater activity in the country, was extinguished. Thomas and “Songs…

  • Dance: HOME: A CELEBRATION (The Joffrey Ballet in Chicago)

    By Dan Zeff | October 3, 2021
    in ,

    DANCING HOME The Joffrey Ballet opens its inaugural season at the Lyric Opera House and marks its return to live performances with Home: A Celebration, a triumphant mixed repertory program that spotlights original works by today’s rising stars including Brooklyn-based Chanel DaSilva, Joffrey Rehearsal Director Nicolas Blanc, and Joffrey Artist Yoshihisa Arai, plus a remount…

  • Theater Review: THE WORLD GOES ‘ROUND (Marriott Theatre)

    By Dan Zeff | September 23, 2021
    in ,

    DON’T STOP THIS WORLD The Marriott Theater is reopening for business with a revival of “The World Goes ‘Round,” a review (originally titled “And the World Goes ‘Round”) that features songs by the Broadway music and lyrics team of John Kander and Fred Ebb. Patrons expecting a predictable “and then they wrote” compilation of greatest…

  • Theater Review: KINKY BOOTS (Paramount Theatre in Aurora)

    By Dan Zeff | September 2, 2021
    in ,

    The Paramount begins the post-COVID pandemic theater scene with an exhilarating revival of Kinky Boots. We likely won’t see a better musical comedy production the rest of this season. The Paramount is offering area theatergoers the gift of a superlative revival of the musical Kinky Boots. This is the first staging of a major musical…

  • Las Vegas Theater Review: V – THE ULTIMATE VARIETY SHOW (V Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort)

    By Dan Zeff | April 3, 2019
    in

    A VIRTUAL VOLCANO OF VISCERALLY VIVACIOUS VARIETY Not every rewarding entertainment experience in Las Vegas tries to blow audiences’ minds with a massive cast, dazzling special effects, and topless dancers. Consider V – The Ultimate Variety Show at the V Theatre inside the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort. The variety show is housed…

  • Las Vegas Theater Review: JUBILEE! (Jubilee Theater at Bally’s Las Vegas)

    By Dan Zeff | January 2, 2016
    in

    THIS SHOWGIRL NEVER AGES For the typical visitor, Donn Arden’s Jubilee! is what Las Vegas entertainment is all about – spectacle, elegance, and acres of nubile topless young ladies descending a giant staircase. The show has been a staple of the Las Vegas scene for 30 years at Bally’s Hotel (excluding a remodeling hiatus) and…

  • Las Vegas Theater Review: ABSINTHE (Caesars Palace)

    By Dan Zeff | June 22, 2015
    in

    DRINK PLENTY OF ABSINTHE BEFORE YOU ATTEND THIS FRAT PARTY Absinthe – an uneasy cross between terrific variety acts and a stag party – takes place near the entrance to Caesars Palace Hotel, in a 600-seat tent; it’s an in-the-round venue that brings viewers close in to the acts (and, for better or worse, to…

  • Chicago Dance Review: THE NUTCRACKER (The Joffrey Ballet)

    By Dan Zeff | December 8, 2012
    in

    A HOLIDAY CHESTNUTCRACKER The Joffrey Ballet is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its holiday production of The Nutcracker, which means audiences have enjoyed an evening of grace, beauty, charm, and magnificent dancing and music for a quarter of a century. The annual holiday event is back at the Auditorium Theatre, billed as “America’s #1 Nutcracker.”…

  • Chicago Theater Review: IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE: THE RADIO PLAY (American Theater Company)

    By Dan Zeff | November 29, 2012
    in

    IT’S STILL WONDERFUL In just a few seasons, It’s a Wonderful Life: The Radio Play has ascended to the top of the Christmas tree of essential local holiday entertainments. A show that could be corny and sappy turns out to be a triumph of warmth, humor, and nostalgia. There are two versions of It’s a…

  • Chicago Theater Review: POTTED POTTER (Broadway Playhouse)

    By Dan Zeff | November 19, 2012
    in

    HOGWARTS AND ALL The Harry Potter parody called Potted Potter is the joint creation of a couple of Englishmen named Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner (Dan and Jeff on the stage). The duo once worked for the British Broadcasting Corporation’s children’s network, which explains a lot. Potted Potter advertises that it will appeal to adults…

  • Chicago Theater Review: JAMES JOYCE’S THE DEAD (Court Theatre)

    By Dan Zeff | November 19, 2012
    in

    ANYTHING BUT DEAD James Joyce is not usually considered a source of Christmas cheer, but the great Irish author did write one Christmas piece of sorts, a short story called The Dead that appeared in his story collection Dubliners. The tale was adapted into a musical that had a decent run off and on Broadway…

  • Chicago Theater Review: HELLCAB (Profiles)

    By Dan Zeff | November 18, 2012
    in

    WORTH THE FARE Hellcab opened in Chicago in 1992 for a 12-performance run and the immediate audience buzz had the show playing for the rest of the decade. Now it is is back at the Profiles Theatre to celebrate the show’s 20th anniversary. To the legion of playgoers who flocked to the original production for…

  • Chicago Theater Review: THE ODD COUPLE (Northlight Theatre in Skokie)

    By Dan Zeff | November 12, 2012
    in

    NOT IN THE CARDS Northlight audiences should cut the theater’s revival of The Odd Couple some slack. The production took a major hit when co-star George Wendt was forced to drop out of the show only a few days before the scheduled opening for medical reasons. So the production pulled Marc Grapey out of the…

  • Chicago Theater Review: THE OPPONENT (A Red Orchid Theatre)

    By Dan Zeff | October 24, 2012
    in

    A FELLOWSHIP IN THE RING The Opponent is a play about the gritty world of small time boxing. Brett Neveu’s world premiere two-hander at A Red Orchid Theatre explores the relationship between Tremont (aka Tre), a white, middle-aged, ex-boxer who operates a  gym in Lafayette, Louisiana,  and Donell, a young black fighter who works out in the…

  • Chicago Theater Review: WASTELAND (TimeLine)

    By Dan Zeff | October 19, 2012
    in

    A POWERFUL WASTELAND AT TIMELINE Wasteland is a two-character play but the audience only sees one in this drama about two American soldiers held as prisoners during the Vietnam War, now receiving a gripping world premiere at TimeLine. The other character is separated behind a wall in a connecting room. The rooms exist an in…

  • Chicago Theater Review: SMOKEY JOE’S CAFÉ (Theo Ubique)

    By Dan Zeff | October 16, 2012
    in

    SMOKIN’ When Smokey Joe’s Café opened on Broadway in 1995, the critics were only mildly impressed, and suggested that this revue of rock “n” roll songs composed by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller would be better served  by a small club setting than a large Broadway theater. Audiences thought otherwise, and the show ran on Broadway…

  • Chicago Theater Review: BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON (Bailiwick)

    By Dan Zeff | October 12, 2012
    in

    NOT AS BLOODY AS THE TITLE IMPLIES Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson is an audacious rock musical tracing the life and times of Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States. The show is receiving its local premiere by the Bailiwick Chicago Theater, and at its best moments the production is a stimulating, challenging, theatrical,…

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