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A Chorus Line – Skokie Theatre Review

A Chorus Line – Skokie Theatre Review

This Madkap Production of “A Chorus Line” at the Skokie Theater, directed by Wayne Mell is on pointe, tapping into the essence of a story of love and dedication to the art of dance. “A Chorus Line” is an anthology of songs and monologues bringing 

Pippin Reflects Fosse’s Quest for Meaning of Life

Pippin Reflects Fosse’s Quest for Meaning of Life

Pippin was co-written and originally directed and choreographed by Chicago native Bob Fosse in 1972 who was at the very epicenter of his highly successful and frenetic career and possibly the pinnacle of his drug addiction that at least partly explains this bizarre tale of 

Asian-American rockabilly musical podcast review

Asian-American rockabilly musical podcast review

An entertaining Asian-American rockabilly musical at the Lookingglass Theatre, Lucy and Charlie’s Honeymoon by Matthew C. Yee is a light romp with a dark twist followed by a hasty, muddled ending wrapped up in a cloud of very good music all of which is performed by a remarkable cast of actor musicians.

There’s a lot to like about Lucy and Charlie’s Honeymoon but also a few things that troubled me. Listen to the entire podcast review to hear the details.

This adventure revolves around Asian identity, Asian stereotypes and the experience of being Asian in America. The following characters are all presented in the production as Asian or Asian-American: Charlie (Matthew C. Yee) and Lucy (Aurora Adachi-Winter), Grandma (Wai Ching Ho), Peter (Rammel Chan), Jeff (Daniel Lee Smith) and Bao (Harmony Zhang).

Characters presented as non-Asian are senior security professional agent Feinberg (Mary Williamson), and the bad guys Gabriel (Matt Bittner) and Martin (Doug Pawlik).

A tragic love story and cautionary tale of intolerance

A tragic love story and cautionary tale of intolerance

For a professional theater experience in Chicago you can’t do much better than the Lyric opera production of West Side Story. This Leonard Bernstein / Stephen Sondheim musical deemed cutting edge and somewhat avantgarde when first introduced is now a classic. West Side Story leans 

New Home for Lions at Lincoln Park Zoo

New Home for Lions at Lincoln Park Zoo

Sighted and visually impaired members of the Chicago Uptown Lions Club enjoyed a special tour of the new state-of-the-art Pepper Family Wildlife Center recently opened to replace the old Lincoln Park Zoo Lion House. Fans of the old Lion House originally built in 1912 will 

West Ridge / West Rogers Park Past and Future – Chicago Neighborhood

West Ridge / West Rogers Park Past and Future – Chicago Neighborhood

This is a very interesting and well done documentary produced by the Jewish Neighborhood Development Council about the West Ridge / West Rogers Park neighborhood that includes a fair amount of history as well as current activity driving the popularity of this neighborhood particularly among the Jewish Community.

Whether you are a past, current, or potential future resident you will no doubt enjoy learning about this vibrant far northside Chicago Community bounded roughly by Ridge on the east, Peterson on the South, Kedzie to the West and North to Howard.

Though this video centers on the Jewish influence as the area is home to the Midwest’s largest Hasidic community, West Ridge is also represented by a significant number of individuals who celebrate the Indo/Pak, Bangladeshi cultural traditions of South Asia as well as longtime Irish American and German-American residents plus  AssyrianRussian, and Korean immigrant communities.

Here is a video we produced of the India Independence Day Parade on Devon in 2017.

Discussion with Seven Time Jeopardy! Game Show Champion Brian Chang.

Discussion with Seven Time Jeopardy! Game Show Champion Brian Chang.

This podcast episode can be described as a day in the life of a Jeopardy! champion. As a huge fan of the popular game show I was very excited to talk with seven time winner Brian Chang about the behind the scenes action from a 

Interview with Maestro Constantine Orbelian at Kick-off of Mozart Immersive : The Soul of a Genius

Interview with Maestro Constantine Orbelian at Kick-off of Mozart Immersive : The Soul of a Genius

My wife Julie and I were on hand Friday, January 27th, 2023 at Lighthouse ArtSpace to celebrate the 267th birthday of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, which included a sneak peek kickoff of their newest experiential exhibit – –  Mozart Immersive: The Soul of a Genius. Before 

Chicago Gun Violence – Man Shot on Broadway in 48th Ward

Chicago Gun Violence – Man Shot on Broadway in 48th Ward


It’s a shame that too often these days, individuals resort to firearms to settle disputes. Certainly no one wants to be assaulted physically under any circumstances but people seems to turn to the use of deadly force quickly and easily and with little thought or care for the sanctity of life.

Reports of deadly violence permeates our nightly news. Sadly even now it’s found its way into our own news platform which has been dedicated primarily to lifestyle reporting. But sometimes news finds you and we can’t turn a blind eye as violence and the threat of violence creeps closer and closer to home.

*Update to this story. The victim was reported to be a 33 year-old male with a non life threatening wound to his leg.

** Listen to the full podcast story above. Thanks to Steve Solomon for the use of Foster Avenue Beach as our theme song.

Fletcher Smith
Lakeview resident Fletcher Smith works nearby and was buying cigarettes in the BP when the shooting occurred.
Ten Candidates Fight for 48th Ward

Ten Candidates Fight for 48th Ward

In 2011 Harry Osterman was elected alderman for the 48th Ward replacing the outgoing ward representative on the city council Mary Ann Smith. After three terms representing the northside ward that covers parts of Edgewater, Andersonville and Uptown, Osterman announced in July 2022 that he 

Chicago International Film Festival Opening Night Celebration

Chicago International Film Festival Opening Night Celebration

The management of the 58th Annual Chicago International Film Festival tried something new with a full blown outside Opening Night Block Party and Red Carpet Event. Luckily the weather cooperated providing neighbors and film patrons a glitzy and glamorous outside spectacular with trivia games, improv 

“Falling for Make Believe” a heartfelt story of hidden love

“Falling for Make Believe” a heartfelt story of hidden love

The duo of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart were the genius songwriters behind several hit Broadway musicals with many of their numbers going on to become standards in the Great American Songbook.

This Madkap Production of “Falling for Make Believe” at the Skokie Theatre purports to be “The Real Story Behind the Music of Rodgers and Hart,” but might more accurately be called the real story behind the suffering of Lorenz Hart.

Listen to the entire review below.

“Falling for Make Believe” is at the Skokie Theatre, 7924 Lincoln Ave in Downtown Skokie through Oct 16, 2022. Running time is about 2 hours including a short intermission. Tickets can be purchased online at SkokieTheatre.org or by calling 847-677-7761.