The Theater Loop

Bill Cosby on 'The Dentist' and No. 2 pencils ...

leisureblogs — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:50:00 -0600

Bill Cosby is coming to the Genesee Theatre in Waukegan on Nov. 14. (Tickets are $39.50-$75 at 800-982-2787 or www.ticketmaster.com.) He still does "The Dentist," carries a No. 2 pencil and hates Twitter: Read his interview with Tribune contributor Nina...

Behold the new Spidey

leisureblogs — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:25:26 -0600

Herewith Reeve Carney, who was announced Friday as the actor playing Peter Parker in the epic on/off/on Broadway musical "Spider-Man, Turn Off the Dark" at the Hilton Theatre in New York. Music is by Bono and The Edge, with Julie...

Million Dollar Quartet: Still-electrifying sound in need of a better story

leisureblogs — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:32:00 -0600

Levi Kreis is Jerry Lee Lewis, Rob Lyons is Carl Perkins, Eddie Clendening is Elvis Presley and Lance Guest is Johnny Cash. REVIEW UPDATE: "Million Dollar Quartet" ★★★1/2 Open run at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave.; Running time:...

Illinois Gov. celebrates with 'Million Dollar Quartet'; it's to be Tracy Letts day in Illinois

leisureblogs — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:20:20 -0600

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn made a late-night appearance Thursday at an event in honor of the first birthday of "Million Dollar Quartet," a Chicago rock 'n' roll musical the Illinois governor has seen twice already. "I support the cause" the...

Attention theater-lovers: Keep your December nights open

leisureblogs — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:59:00 -0600

Nathan Lane will star as Gomez in “The Addams Family Musical,” here attending a press event at the Oriental Theatre. (Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune) If you love live entertainment in Chicago, you don’t want to be out of town during the...

Second City tickets sell out in 15 minutes

leisureblogs — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:25:19 -0600

Potential ticket-buyers lined up on Wells Street, jammed Second City’s phone lines, and overwhelmed its Web site Thursday morning. Comedy fans were trying to snag one of the roughly 400 tickets available to the public for “The Second City Alumni:...

Tracy Letts unfettered. In Canada?

leisureblogs — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:45:56 -0600

Tracy Letts has a lot of interesting things to say in this interview with Toronto theater critic J. Kelly Nestruck.

'Young Frankenstein' in Chicago: Puttin' on the low comedy

leisureblogs — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:59:28 -0600

THEATER REVIEW: "Young Frankenstein" [★★] Through Dec. 13 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St.; Tickets: $30-$95 at 800-775-2000 and www.broadwayinchicago.com. Roger Bart and Shuler Hensley are Dr. Frederick Frankenstein and The Monster. Cory English is Igor, Beth...

Get in line for Second City's $125 tickets ...

leisureblogs — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:14:00 -0600

The hottest tickets in town go on sale this morning at 10 a.m. — for “The Second City Alumni: One Night Only." This is the big, headlining show of the Second City's 50th anniversary weekend, starring famous alumni (Carell, Colbert,...

Craig Lucas, Neil LaBute, Greg Kotis, David Henry Hwang, Maria Irene Fornes, Itamar Moses, Regina Taylor, Rolin Jones among writers penning new short works for ATC

leisureblogs — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:50:55 -0600

American Theater Company says it will present a year-long festival that will premiere 30 short plays in honor of the theater company's 25th anniversary in 2010. Dubbed "The Silver Project," the event will feature 30 dramatic works by different writers,...