|
WINDY CITY TIMES
|
|
|
THEATER REVIEW
The Revel
Special to the online edition of Windy City Times
by Mary Shen Barnidge 2015-09-23
|
|
This article shared 1791 times since Wed Sep 23, 2015
|
|
Playwright: Damon Kiely. At: House Theatre of Chicago at the Chopin, 1543 W. Division St. Tickets: 773-769-3832; www.thehousetheatre.com; $30-$35. Runs through: Oct. 25
Audiences at the premiere of The Bacchae in 405 B.C. were well aware that the myth providing Euripedes his source material hearkened to an age safely removed from their own society, and that the charismatic spiritual leader depicted therein wasn't merely preaching the Divine Word, but was himself, Divine, rendering his exhortations to drink up and submit to his whim, however violent its expression, holy commandments to be obeyed without equivocation. Despite historical evidence of Christians likewise taking their gospel to literal extremes at timeswitch-burning, sayDamon Kiely's attempt to impose New Testament values on pagan sensibilities makes for a risky proposition.
The old-time religion, in this case, is that practiced in the Appalachian regions during the Great Depression of the 1930s, where Agatha's son, Peter, has inherited the clothing factory employing the women of the community, whose long hours of grueling toil barely produce enough to delay bank foreclosures on the business supporting the town's economy. One day, a traveling Deacon arrives proclaiming the hedonistic life as the way to eternal happiness. When the workers abandon their tasks to hear his sermon, Peter objectsreasonably at first, but gradually escalating in rancor until his fury approaches the authoritarian levels exercised by his late father. This abuse of power ( rather than the ancient Greek sin of hubris ) will prove his undoing during a fatal confrontation with a congregation steeped in whiskey and liberation.
Playgoers in 2015 are unlikely to fault the notion of laborers taking a holiday, or to ascribe wrongdoing to the communal exhilaration engendered by shared emotional experiences ( think rock concerts or pep rallies ), but crowd frenzy leading to murder is unacceptable. Since the Deacon piously denies responsibility for inciting his disciples to mob action, it's up to Kiely to ensure our sympathy for the perpetrators by emphasizing the sexist aspects of capitalistic inequities leading to physical conflict, and hinting at "battered wife syndrome" as a catalyzing factor in the bloody feminine uprising.
Fortunately, this House Theatre production encourages us to set aside contemplation of weighty issues in favor of immediate spectacle. Leslie Buxbaum Danzig's acrobatic direction makes the most of Grant Sabin's staircase-and-catwalk scenic design, permitting actors to "climb" rough mountain paths or dangle from cliffsides, while Christine Adair's dialect instruction and Barbara Silverman's foot-stamping ethnic dances, accompanied by Jess McIntosh's score of live-action string-band ditties, immerse us in ebullient pastoral revelry befitting new-world worshippers of Dionysos, the original prophet of Love and Intoxication, inventor of the arts and humanities that we celebrate today. |
|
|
|
This article shared 1791 times since Wed Sep 23, 2015
|
ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE |
---|
|
| | THEATER 'Mamma Mia!' returns to Chicago with 'Daddyhunt' star Jim Newman 2024-04-24 - "Who's your daddy?" That's the key plot question driving the global hit Mamma Mia! The global smash jukebox musical famously features the song hits of Swedish pop group ABBA, and it returns for a three-week run ...
|
| | Local queer opera composer premiering her first show, a coming-of-age tale with LGBTQ+ themes 2024-04-23 - A Lake View woman is debuting her first opera as a composer, a coming-of-age story with LGBTQ+ themes. Gillian Rae Perry, a fellow with the Chicago Opera Theater's Vanguard program for emerging artists, composed The Weight ...
|
| | The importance of becoming Ernest: Out actor Christopher Sieber dishes about the Death Becomes Her musical 2024-04-20 - Out and proud actor Christopher Sieber is part of the team bringing Death Becomes Her to life as a stage musical in the Windy City this spring. Sieber plays Ernest Menville, who was originally portrayed by ...
|
| | SHOWBIZ Celine Dion, 'The People's Joker,' Billy Porter, Patti LuPone, 'Strange Way' 2024-04-19 - I Am: Celine Dion will stream on Prime Video starting June 25, according to a press release. The film is described as follows: "Directed by Academy Award nominee Irene Taylor, I Am: Celine Dion gives us ...
|
| | Kokandy Productions now accepting submissions for Chicago Musical Theater Fest returning Aug. 8-11 2024-04-18 --From a press release - CHICAGO (April 18, 2024) — Kokandy Productions is pleased to open submissions for the 2024 Chicago Musical Theatre Festival, returning this summer following a four-year hiatus. Kokandy is thrilled to ...
|
| | THEATER Blue in the Right Way's 'Women Beware Women' offers feminist, trans take on a troubling Jacobean tragedy 2024-04-18 - "Problematic" is a great go-to adjective to describe Women Beware Women. This 1621 Jacobean tragedy is by English playwright Thomas Middleton, who is probably best remembered as a collaborator with William Shakespeare on their pessimistic tragedy ...
|
| | Hubbard Street Dance Chicago announces programs for May 17-19 season finale 2024-04-17 --From a press release - CHICAGO — Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC) announced program selections for Spring Series: Of Joy, the final installment of Season 46, Abundance. The engagement will include four unique works, once ...
|
| | LGBTQ+ film fest Queer Expression to feature Alexandra Billings in 'Queen Tut' 2024-04-12 --From a press release - CHICAGO — Pride Film Fest celebrates its second decade with a new name—QUEER EXPRESSION—and has announced its slate of LGBTQ+-themed feature, mid-length and short films for in-person and virtual events in April and May. QUEER EXPRESSI ...
|
| | Open Space Arts's COCK offers a complex but compelling take on relationships 2024-04-08 By Brian Kirst - Premiering in 2009, Mike Bartlett's COCK was a comic revelation, exploring notions about fluidity and sexual labelling long before they became commonplace discussions. Granted, conversations about these issues will always ...
|
| | Jeff Awards launches submission period for Impact Awards 2024-04-06 - The Jeff Awards announced the opening period for applications submissions for its 2024 honors to help inspire early career artists of color in the Greater Chicagoland area. Two recipients will be selected for awards of $10,000 ...
|
| | SHOWBIZ Outfest, Chita Rivera, figure skaters, letter, playwright dies 2024-04-05 - For more than four decades, Outfest has been telling LGBTQ+ stories through the thousands of films screened during its annual Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival—but that event may have a different look this year because ...
|
| | SHOWBIZ Dionne Warwick, OUTshine, Ariana DeBose, 'Showgirls,' 'Harlem' 2024-03-29 Video below - Iconic singer Dionne Warwick was honored for her decades-long advocacy work for people living with HIV/AIDS at a star-studded amfAR fundraising gala in Palm Beach, per the Palm Beach Daily News. Warwick received the "Award of ...
|
| | WORLD Israel court, conversion therapy, death sentences, Georgia bill, fashion items 2024-03-29 - Israel's Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Population Authority must register female couples as mothers on the birth certificates of their children they have together, The Washington Blade reported. The decision was made following a petition ...
|
| | City Lit Executive Artistic Director Brian Pastor talks theater, comics, queerness 2024-03-26 - City Lit Theater has announced its programming for the 2024-25 seasonwhich will be the company's 44th. It will also be the first season to be programmed under the leadership of Brian Pastor (they/them), who will assume ...
|
| | The Jeff Awards announces the 50th anniversary awards for non-equity theater 2024-03-26 --From a press release - A complete list of recipients can also be found online in the Non-Equity and News and Events sections at www.jeffawards.org. (March 25, 2024 - Chicago) — Celebrating its 50th anniversary awarding recognition for Non-Equity theater, the ...
| |
|
|
|
|
| New Title IX rules protect LGBTQ+ students...to a point | | NATIONAL Ohio law blocked, Trevor Project, Rev. Troy Perry, ICE suit, Elon Musk | | SHOWBIZ Celine Dion, 'The People's Joker,' Billy Porter, Patti LuPone, 'Strange Way' | | LGBTQ+ Intergenerational Dialogue Project set to hold its second annual exhibition | | WORLD Nigeria arrest, Chilean murderer, trans ban, Olivier Awards, marriage items | |
|
|
|
|