I am not a theater critic but I have been devoted to covering theater since my early 1980s reports on the explosion of Chicago storefront theaters for National Public Radio. On The Mara Tapp Show in the 1990s, I was honored to host weekly conversations about and offer scenes from some of Chicago’s best shows, and delighted when those interviews filled houses for our local theaters.
In 2015, at the request of friends, I started a series of emails with recommendations for shows I thought worthy of patrons. Some years later, actors, directors and publicity people in Chicago’s theater world prevailed on me to share these raves, a request I accepted, especially in light of the increasing tensions in the theater world and need to keep Chicago theaters healthy. Read more…
Find out what the critics think at the Review Round-up on the website of TheatreInChicago.com.
Breaking News
Opera Fans Alert: Catch the June performances in the 2025 Opera Festival of Chicago. It concludes with the iconic Pagliacci June 27 and 29 at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie.
The festival also encourages young artists. On June 5th, the festival’s rising stars will perform Italian operatic standards by Mozart, Rossini, Verdi, Puccini, Weill and other composers that highlight the connection between Italian food, wine and song at Chicago’s Artifacts Events.
More seasoned singers will honor the festival’s theme in the June 14th Love is a Triangle featuring the music of Verdi, Puccini and others in the Jarvis Opera Hall at Holtschneider Performance Center at DePaul University School of Music.
Get the details on all of these performances at https://operafestivalchicago.org/
In other news, I’ve stepped into the 21st Century and you can find me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/tappraves/. Please follow me to shine a spotlight on the excellent performing arts organizations and artists I am honored to cover.
Raves
An Iliad
Court Theatre through June 29
Highly recommended
There isn’t a more ideal time to see An Iliad. Court Theatre’s presentation of Homer’s classic epic poem makes it contemporary, regardless of your views on what’s happening in the Middle East. It doesn’t matter that the legendary Trojan War is part of Greek mythology. What matters is what this Iliad tells us now.
The way this story is told is critical. Timothy Edward Kane is The Poet and he owns this role. “Every time I sing this song,” he says, “I hope it’s the last time.” Alas it is not. Kane is reprising his portrayal for the fourth time in 14 years. I remain awed by how he deepens the role with each iteration. One of the most gripping moments is Kane’s recitation of the list of human wars, starting with the 10-year Trojan War and updated to include the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and Gaza.
This one-man tour-de-force never falters in showing us the pain, loss and pointlessness of war, especially when it is driven by the egos, jealousies and other failings of the powerful. Kane’s message, delivered with clarity, rage and despair is clear: It’s all too much. It’s too painful. Haven’t we learned yet?
An Iliad’s power also comes from its authors, Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare. They combine Homer’s poetry with modern references into a seamless whole that reaches out to modern audiences, perhaps not familiar with this classic. Some examples offer lighthearted humor, like the comparisons of the contemporary road rage. Others, like the substitution of American states for the communities of the Greek soldiers in the Trojan War, hit harder. As necessary as these bows to our times are, Homer’s lines remain the most moving ones. An Iliad’s playwrights, Kane and Charles Newell, who has directed each production with excellence, honor the original and make the new parts work.
Court Theatre’s An Iliad is a testament to how timely this piece remains. It has achieved the classic status of great art. The tragedy is that by the next iteration, the list of wars will be even longer. Regardless, I will turn to it again and again, knowing that, like truly great art, it has more to offer. I urge you to see this version before it closes.
Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues
American Blues Theater through June 29
Highly Recommended
Two men stand in what should be a spotlight. One is dressed as a clown; the other in bright red long underwear. Like old pros, they start their vaudeville act but what makes us laugh quickly makes us want to cry because our man in red cannot remember his lines. Again and again.
This is how memory loss works, whether it’s from Alzheimer’s, dementia, brain cancer, stroke, grief or other causes. Many of us have experienced this devastating decline in someone we love, which makes this scene hard to watch. Fortunately, as is sometimes the case with mental declines, Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues offers moments of connection and joy.
These two men are Pompey and Ollie. Ollie is telling Pompey that they can’t continue their longtime partnership because Pompey can’t recall his lines. Pompey’s response to such news is frustrated despair, halted by the arrival of his daughter, who is also concerned about his decline. They are soon joined by her son, and that is when Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues moves into the sphere I associate with Playwright Charles Smith. It turns out daughter Marsha is a social worker who is fostering and considering adopting her son Jet, whose real name is J’Taurius – there’s a lovely exchange about the importance of names that’s not to be missed – but his presence rankles Pompey, whose racism goes on high alert. The bulk of Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues revolves around Pompey and J’Taurius’ uneasy relationship, and their difficult dance of acquaintance. What’s refreshing here is that that every time this play seems like it’s heading for stereotypes Smith pulls it back and offers insights about aging, racism and the borders of our divided city that are arresting, authentic and fresh.
How excellent to have a play by Charles Smith back on a Chicago stage. His Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues has the hallmarks of his earlier works that examined race, politics and our identities in plays about W.E.B. Dubois, Marcus Garvey and others. Most premiered at Victory Gardens Theater, where the playwright, who grew up in Chicago’s South-side Bronzeville neighborhood, was part of the much-lauded and sadly defunct Playwrights Ensemble, a diverse-by-every-measure corps started in 1974.
Director Chuck Smith, not to be confused with Playwright Charles Smith, is the dream partner here, partly because of their long affiliation. Justin Banks shines as, an intelligent, street-wise teenager who defies the stereotypes with a perfect mix of rage, grief and wisdom about the realities of foster homes and lack of justice in our legal system – all acquired way too young. I was struck by how true his portrayal rang, matching my experiences with foster children in systems plagued by ineptitude, needless bureaucracy and racism. I was also grateful for Banks’ portrayal, which brings out for the persuasive and unique personality of Smith’s character. Dennis Cockrum is ideal as Pompey, making his moments of anguish, prejudice and connection equally moving. My brilliant redheaded companion noted that each of these characters are disempowered in a system that offers them bad institutional choices, and punishes them for the perfectly human response of rage. I credit Charles Smith’s script for these sensitivities, and Banks and Cockrum for making us see their similarities.
Dawn Bach as the harried and humorless Marsha strikes the right notes of a daughter trying to cope with an aging father, and a social worker trying to do good in a flawed system. Each of these three characters go through revealing changes in Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues. James Sherman, himself a former member of VGT’s Playwrights Ensemble, portrays Ollie with a fine mix of sorrow and wisdom, allowing us to understand the old days and new realities.
You couldn’t have a better set than the run-down room with cracked walls, piles of dirty clothes, cans of empty SpaghettiOs and stacks of junk thanks to the creative collaboration of Shayna Patel and Tyson Carter. Lilly Walls’ costumes enhance their wearers, from Pompey’s red long johns to Ollie’s patched jacket over demin overalls to Marsha’s no-nonsense pants suit to J’Taurius’ teen uniform of jeans, white t-shirt and zippered jacket.
What could be a classic story about aging or racism or the wisdom of youth is elevated thanks to Charles Smith’s typically insightful script and a talented, well-directed cast. We come to better understand the foster care system, as well as the value of cross-generation connections, the pain of being alone and the dangers of racism. Golden Leaf Ragtime Blues is a play to be savored for all that and it bittersweet hopefulness. Don’t miss it.