Review: One well might argue that Shakespeare’s “Measure for Measure” is a less than perfect play. But the neatly framed picture of hypocrisy at its core is so clear, indeed so ringingly universal in its human embrace, that it resonates in any culture. Witness the Russian-language production (with English supertitles) that officially popped the cork Jan. 27 on Shakespeare 400 Chicago, a yearlong aggregation of events dramatic and otherwise spearheaded by Chicago Shakespeare Theater. ★★★★
Read the full story »As German bombardment strands Leningrad, political fear feeds desperation in ‘Hunger’
Portrait of duress at Lifeline. 4 stars!
‘Meistersinger’ to ‘Streetcar,’ Lyric Opera’s new season offers scenic route with 9 stops
The Chicago Lyric Opera’s new season begins and ends with shows that should attract aficionados of opera and theater: “Elektra” and “A Streetcar Named Desire.” Here’s the show-by-show breakdown.
In Porchlight’s ‘Catered Affair,’ a musical about ordinary people proves a dramatic jewel
A play verging on opera. 4 stars!
Darn that ‘Dream’ – Chicago Shakespeare does double take on Bard’s lovers, fairies
It’s a midsummer night… 4 stars!
Wrestling with sins of the flesh, a porn star finds salvation comes at a cost in ‘Hesperia’
Sex and religion at Writers’. 4 stars!
Lyric Opera ventures into American musical with a ‘Show Boat’ that you can’t help lovin’
Song and dance on the Delta. 5 stars!
Riccardo Muti, Chicago Symphony unleash alternative energy of Mason Bates, Anna Clyne
Feature: Chicago Symphony Orchestra performances in California and at Carnegie Hall will introduce new works by young resident composers Feb. 14-19 and Oct. 4.
It’s all about the verbs, present and veiled past, as lies collide in ‘The Girl in the Yellow Dress’
Student-teacher clash at Next. 4 stars!
Forget brass ring, tenor Jay Hunter Morris appears from nowhere to grab Wagner gold
Interview: The Texas native talks about his unlikely mid-career burst into stardom at the Metropolitan Opera. Morris plays the hero Siegfried in the Met’s HD broadcast of Wagner’s “Götterdämmerung” at cinemas worldwide Saturday, Feb. 11.
To beat of song and dance, ‘Ameriville’ sounds cautionary tales of life on the short end
Stompin’ at Victory Gardens. 3 stars
Chicago Symphony’s 2012-13 plans highlight Wagner, Stravinsky and waterway themes
Complete season highlights, details.
Steppenwolf’s dark view of ‘Time Stands Still’ frames a close-up of war’s toll
Some wounds heal slowly. 4 stars!
When ethnic roots snag the American dream, idealism stumbles in ‘Disgraced’
Meltdown at Amer. Theater Co. 5 stars!
‘Aida’ at the Lyric Opera: Verdi’s tragedy hits the pitches but misses some dramatic notes
The Princess’ rival is her slave. 3 stars
In Orff’s earthy ‘Carmina Burana,’ Muti guides CSO and vocal force to Fortune’s throne room
Review: Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus with the Chicago Children’s Choir conducted by Riccardo Muti. Maria Grazia Schiavo, soprano; Max Emanuel Cencic, countertenor; Stéphane Degout, baritone. Through Jan. 28. *****
It’s Mamet, so nothing’s plain as black/white when Goodman taps the bitter humor of ‘Race’
Cynically, unbearably funny. 4 stars!
Honeck and the Chicago Symphony recall Dvorak on native soil with a dancing Eighth
Review: If Dvorak’s Ninth Symphony is a yearning postcard “From the New World,” his Symphony No. 8 in G major is redolent of a composer happily settled on native ground. The Eighth is decidedly of the Old World, as conductor Manfred Honeck and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra so generously demonstrated Jan. 19 at Orchestra Hall. ****
‘Mr. Rickey’ imagines a prelude to history, before Jackie Robinson joined the Dodgers
Full count at the Lookingglass. 3 stars.
Role Playing: Diane D’Aquila’s twice regal portrait as lover-monarch in ‘Elizabeth Rex’
Interview: Diane D’Aquila, who brings Queen Elizabeth I to regal and vulnerable life in Timothy Findley’s “Elizabeth Rex” at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, says acting in this gripping, keenly honed production “is a like a dance out there, and it’s scary as hell.”
Chailly lifts his quick baton, and Beethoven’s symphonies emerge from the veil of tradition
CD review: Conductor Riccardo Chailly’s new recording of Beethoven’s nine symphonies, with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, may finally be the document that changes the way we think of these seminal works – and the way the next generation of conductors approaches them. *****
Marriage of true minds: Chicago Shakespeare brings the Bard to Chicago Symphony’s party
Preview: Barbara Gaines directs actors from Chicago Shakespeare Theater in concerts Jan. 5-14 with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Mark Elder, featuring music inspired by the Bard.
HD sound check at the Berlin Philharmonic: Second look at stellar streaming concerts
The Berlin Philharmonic began live concert broadcasts over the Internet in mid-2009 amid some high-tech speed bumps. Is 2012 the year it all comes together?
Sip New Year’s bubbly at home, tune in to great performances from around the world
Our selective guide to the best national broadcasts, international radio streams, concert replays and festive downloads to help you ring in New Year 2012.
The holly and the ivories proclaim Yuletide in sparking keyboard riffs on old favorites
Review: “A Steinway Christmas Album,” a classy bundle of seasonal arrangements compiled and performed by pianist Jeffrey Biegel. (Steinway) ****
‘Penelope’ at Steppenwolf: Four guys in an empty pool, down to life’s last threads
And Odysseus is bearing down. 3 stars.
Role Playing: Dean Evans, in clown costume, enters the darkness of ‘Burning Bluebeard’
Interview: His clown suit, a bit tattered and soiled with soot, looks like it once might have been pure white. But the character Dean Evans plays in the Neo-Futurists’ production of “Burning Bluebeard” is decidedly dark, one might even say spectral.
‘It’s a Wonderful Life,’ and a wonderful night when ATC revisits ‘radio’ parable of faith
Capra’s film as oldie broadcast. 4 stars!
Like composer on the podium, Salonen leads Chicago Symphony in brilliant Mahler Sixth
The Finnish conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen shares a peculiarity of temperament and genius with Gustav Mahler. Like Mahler in his time, Salonen today stands among the most important conductors in the world. And again like his great forebear, Salonen would really rather be composing than be saddled with the responsibilities of music director for any orchestra you could name. Even one that might be looking for someone to succeed James Levine in Boston.
New talents refresh evergreen tradition in sharp-shooting musical ‘A Christmas Story’
Debut tour at Chicago Theatre. 4 stars!
Early music vocalists Anonymous 4, bearing gifts from new CD, to offer Chicago concert
Profile: Anonymous 4, the vocal quartet renowned for its plainchant and medieval music recordings, celebrates 25 seasons with a holiday concert of favorites at Chicago’s Art Institute Dec. 18, and a new release called “Secret Voices.”
Chicago Wine Journal »
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Burgundy’s range is reflected in two beauties from Leclerc, Gille
Tasting Report: The power, the finesse and the sheer intellectual engagement that stamp top-quality red Burgundy wines were amply displayed in youthful, sharply contrasting examples I recently tasted from two producers in the famed Côte d’Or, Domaine Gille and Domaine René Leclerc.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Sbragia’s Merlot makes a regal splash from a bargain bottle
Tasting Report: It’s always such a smile-inducing pleasure to come upon a wine that exceeds all expectations in its price class. A terrific example is Sbragia Family Vineyards’ Dry Creek Valley Sonoma Home Ranch Merlot 2012, a wine stuffed with the goods to compete well beyond its modest price of $24.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Santa Duc draws arc of splendor with old-vines Gigondas
Mulling Wine: To glimpse the poor, stony soil is to wonder how it could ever produce the grapes that Domaine Santa Duc in turn translates into some of the most seductive wine in the Southern Rhône Valley appellation of Gigondas. But the proof was there in a palate-pleasing, indeed eye-opening vertical sampler of Santa Duc’s single-vineyard, old-vine Gigondas Prestige des Hautes Garrigues.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Brancaia delivers three Tuscans that are super and then some
Tasting Report: The wines of Tuscan producer Brancaia are well worth seeking out. There’s something exceptional here to meet budgets across a wide range. An array of Brancaia wines were served at an off-beat cheese party at the East Loop Chicago restaurant Tesori, when chef Danny Sweis sliced into a new 80-pound wheel of parmesan.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: With elegant 2014 Viognier, Darioush does a beauty one better
Tasting Report: One of the great pleasures of a visit to France’s Northern Rhone Valley is the luscious Viognier produced in Condrieu. I would have said it was matchless – until I had the equally happy experience of the Viognier from Darioush in California’s Napa Valley. The Darioush Viognier is a recent discovery for me. I first tasted it in the 2013 vintage – a lovely expression of white wine that in its combination of buttery depth and finesse evoked not only the Viognier of Condrieu but also the plush majesty of the top Chardonnays in Burgundy. And the newly released 2014 may prove to be even better.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Classic art of Jaboulet’s new Chapelle mistress
Tasting Report: Since my earliest forays into French wines, the brightest stars in my firmament have consistently included the patrician Hermitage La Chapelle produced by Paul Jaboulet Aîné in France’s Northern Rhône Valley. So it was little short of enchanting to step back through time at a vertical tasting of this great expression of Syrah at a recent Chicago seminar sponsored by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Aged Burgundian glory from three négociants
Mulling Wine: By chance or perhaps my natural gravitation, I just completed a sort of hat trick – meal accompaniments from three of my favorite Burgundy producers, all of whom fall into the somewhat misunderstood category of négociants.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: Burgundy-style Pinot Noir from an Oregon star
Tasting Report: Since its founding in 1989, Domaine Serene in Oregon’s Willamette Valley has emerged as one of the top producers of Pinot Noir in a region famous for that wine. In a horizontal tasting with friends of four different Domaine Serene bottlings from the 2011 vintage, it became readily apparent why this house continues to enjoy such high esteem.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: A new Spanish horizon for old-vine Garnacha
Tasting Report: With the dramatic emergence of Spanish wines in recent years, Grenache has gained familiarity in its Spanish robes as Garnacha – which might lead one to assume that the “two” grapes are one and the same. Indeed they are, and yet there’s a world of difference between them. That became clear during a Chicago seminar last week presented by Spanish producers of Garnacha from Cariñena, a small appellation long overshadowed by the likes of Rioja and Ribera del Duero.
CHICAGO WINE JOURNAL: The pleasures (and alluring price) of Chablis
Tasting Report: Somewhat to the northwest of the heart of what we think of as Burgundy – that is, the glorious Côte-d’Or with its world-famous Pinot Noir and Chardonnay — lies the appellation of Chablis. Technically, Chablis is part of Burgundy, though it’s more like an island. Or perhaps an unfavored stepchild. But for wine lovers, especially devotees of Chardonnay, Chablis is a discovery-in-waiting.
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