Author Archives: Brian Murphy

The Actors Gymnasium celebrates its 10th winter circus with “All the Time in the World,” a daring and beautifully crafted show written and directed by Kerry Catlin.   The highly […]

What do you get when you cross a drive-in movie theater, earth-threatening solar flares, and a popcorn machine who has “recently gained consciousness?” Why, it must be “Journey for the […]

Seeing a well-staged, expertly performed circus show is like watching a Pixar film come to life.    The actions in both sometimes seem to defy the laws of physics.  There […]

The Actors Gymnasium debuted its latest performance, “Marnie & Phil: a Circus Love Letter,” on Feb. 13 before a packed house at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St.    […]

A green dot of light emits sounds similar to the grunts of “South Park’s” Eric Cartman. A sack of tentacles slowly transforms into a butterfly. Children manipulate multicolored pool noodles […]

“Luce,” the 34th season premiere from Next Theatre, is a devastating examination of culture, racial stereotypes and trust between parents and their kids. Director Keira Fromm’s staging of playwright JC […]

Playwright Amy Herzog and director Kimberly Senior have proven to be a formidable pairing. Ms. Senior has previously interpreted Ms. Herzog’s critically acclaimed works “After the Revolution” at Next Theatre […]

Kimberly Senior, Evanston resident and Joseph Jefferson-nominated director, is coming home. Having directed Ayad Akhtar’s 2013 Pulitzer Prize-winning play, “Disgraced,” both in Chicago (American Theatre Company) and New York (Lincoln […]

“Join the circus inside your mind,” sings actress/performer Lindsey Noel Whiting, strumming her ukulele, facing a mute dreamer played by professional clown Dean Evans. Daydreams and their physical embodiment make […]

“Luck of the Irish” is a triumph for Next Theatre Company. It is a production that not only serves its excellent source material well, but elevates it, with focused direction […]