Column: Why I loved Dolly Parton and her Dollywood
Everybody loved Dolly Parton. That sounds like a cliché, but think for a second about how few people in the entertainment business that truly could be said about.
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Chicago Theater Report: Robert Falls returns to Chicago storefronts, ‘Downstate’ heads to Broadway and a tribute to Kurt Ehrmann
Robert Falls will direct a Chicago storefront show for Redtwist Theatre and Shattered Globe Theatre has announced its 36th season.
Review: Hopelessly gaslighted by you: Witty ‘Vape!’ parodies ‘Grease’ to lively effect at Apollo Theater
"Vape! The Grease Parody" is very funny. This show from New York has arrived in Chicago, ground zero for "Grease."
Review: ‘Sisters’ offers a nightmare view of AI companionship
"Sisters," penned by Matthew Libby and directed at Writers Theatre in Glencoe by Jessica Thebus, is about the intrusion of artificial intelligence into the emotional landscape of our lives.
Chicago Theater Report: New life in Chicago’s spiegeltent, Kokandy musicians unionize, Writers Theatre scores at the box office
The former home of Teatro ZinZanni is getting a new show, Dennis Watkins' Magic Parlour has a new look and Anna D. Shapiro has a new job.
Review: ‘Laura Benanti: Nobody Cares’ is sharp-elbowed satire from a recovering ingenue
"I'm a little nervous about doing an autobiographical one-woman show," Laura Benanti said Friday at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre. "Because, first of all, gross."
Review: ‘The Notebook’ touring musical is for lovers who dance in the rain
Now in the Loop for a short run at the Nederlander Theatre, this musical adapted from the novel and movie has only become more sensual over time.
Chicago Theater Report: Nora Dunn to headline Victory Gardens return, Goodman has record-breaking summer
Also in theater news, J. Harrison Ghee will play the title role of Mary Todd Lincoln in the national tour of "Oh, Mary!," in Chicago in early 2027.
Review: In Gift Theatre’s ‘Marble,’ sex dreams do their damage on a pair of Irish marriages
Gift Theatre delivers its usual intense, Chicago-style production of this Irish play that has not been seen here before. Brittany Burch and Cyd Blakewell are devastating as the wives.
Review: ‘Les Misérables’ becomes ‘The Arena Concert Spectacular’ — and what other musical could?
Look down! This glorious crowd-pleaser by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg has been scaled up for an arena-sized audience. Some intimacy is lost, but much is gained.