This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Playbill magazine in January 2008. Are ghosts real? Or do these apparitions spring out of the human psyche? Are they supernatural beings from another world or merely manifestations of our own emotions? Robert Falls, artistic director of the Goodman Theatre, has never seen a ghost, but in… Continue reading Playbill feature: ‘Shining City’
Category: Theater
Play review: ‘Othello’ at Writers’ Theatre
This review by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on May 31, 2007. Iago is one of literature’s greatest villains, and a new production of “Othello” shows this infamous schemer as a fascinating and charismatic agent. John Judd’s performance as Iago at Writers’ Theatre is so remarkable that, at times, one thinks this play should be… Continue reading Play review: ‘Othello’ at Writers’ Theatre
Play review: ‘The Adding Machine’
This review by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on February 8, 2007. Evanston’s Next Theatre took on a daunting task when it decided to turn Elmer Rice’s 1923 expressionist play “The Adding Machine” into a musical. After Sunday’s opening performance, it’s hard to imagine “The Adding Machine” without the music. Elmer’s play was… Continue reading Play review: ‘The Adding Machine’
On props and prop masters
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Playbill magazine in the summer of 2007. Last spring, as Lookingglass Theatre held tech rehearsals for the African war drama Black Diamond: The Year the Locusts have Eatern, freelance prop designer Rachel Jamieson sat in the theatre pondering fake blood. “There’s a lot of it,” she says.… Continue reading On props and prop masters
A map of David Mamet’s Chicago
Play review: ‘Bus Stop’
This review by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on February 2, 2006. Pay close attention to the faces if you see “Bus Stop” at Writers’ Theatre — and not just the faces of the actors speaking at any particular moment. Look at the actors sitting at the other tables or standing behind the… Continue reading Play review: ‘Bus Stop’
Play review: ‘Arms and the Man’
This review by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on June 2, 2005. Like most Americans, I am totally ignorant of whatever traits the people of Bulgaria possess. So it’s hard to say whether George Bernard Shaw was being fair to Bulgarians when he set his 1894 satire of love and war, “Arms and the… Continue reading Play review: ‘Arms and the Man’
Behind the scenes of Mary Zimmerman’s ‘Silk’
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on April 28, 2005. It’s late March, and Mary Zimmerman has one month to go before her newest play, “Silk,” opens at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre. The Goodman’s publicists are busy putting out press releases about the Tony Award-winning Evanston resident’s latest effort. Full-page advertisements for “Silk” are… Continue reading Behind the scenes of Mary Zimmerman’s ‘Silk’
Edward Albee interview
This article by Robert Loerzel originally appeared in Pioneer Press on February 18, 2004. Edward Albee, one of the most famous living playwrights, says he never writes second drafts. “I don’t do rewrites,” said Albee, who will speak Saturday at Dominican University in River Forest. “I don’t do drafts. There’s a danger present in doing draft… Continue reading Edward Albee interview