Theater

All posts tagged Theater

Review: it’s been ten years…

Published April 3, 2025 by biggayhorrorfan

Move over, Regina George! It’s now Alexis Queen’s Betsy that may just be the most manipulative ex-schoolgirl to ever breathe, creatively. 

Indeed, this former cheerleader, one of the main characters in Cesario Tirado-Ortiz’s it’s been ten years since everyone died. a play about final girls is not only seductive, often destroying the hearts of her fellow survivors, but she just might be hiding one of the juiciest secrets to ever hit the stages, as well. 

To be specific, the stage in question here is the Open Space Arts in Chicago, where Ortiz’s deeply psychological, yet truly fun horror piece is running until April 6th. As directed by Teri Talo, Queen imbues this love letter to our magnificent heroines of terror with an edgy sweetness that always makes you wonder just exactly what Betsy is truly hiding.

With the show’s major plot points taking place at a deserted psychological retreat in the woods, – nothing bad is going to happen there, right?!? – Queen is, unsurprisingly, joined by a strong group of castmates – Julia Toney. Noah Hinton and Alex Marusich. Nicely, the majority of Ortiz’s remaining characters are nonbinary and transgender, giving the show a very DIY, LGBTQ+ energy. 

Naturally, our favored genre can only benefit from this type of exciting inclusivity and one hopes that there is more to come from Ortiz and their ilk.

For those living in or visiting the Midwest, be sure to check out https://openspacearts.org/ to find out more about this love letter to slashers and the powerful, sometimes deeply damaged women who make them so relatable.

Until the next time, SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

http://www.facebook.com/biggayhorrorfan

Va-Va-Villainess: Mary Anne Bowman

Published February 16, 2025 by biggayhorrorfan

For those celluloid buffs who have never set foot into a black box theater and witnessed a play come to life, be plentifully assured, the theater world has seen many a scarlet diva scamper across its stages, as well. From Hamlet‘s Gertrude to The Little Foxes‘ Regina Giddens, wicked dames have been making the velvet curtains flow a bit more dramatically and the footlights glitter just a tad brighter for eons. 

Currently, Open Space Arts, one of the Chicago’s most intimate performance spaces, is providing a home to one of those delicious divas of emotional mayhem. The vehicle providing this bratty bossa nova is Mr. Parker, a critically acclaimed look at middle-aged love and grief from a queer perspective. But it is Midwest entertainment veteran Mary Anne Bowman who is bringing this occasionally manipulative, always dramatically spot on creature into glorious existence.

In fact, as Cassandra, the sister-in-law of the titular character, Bowman is giving a once in a lifetime performance. Whether deliciously eviscerating anyone who poses a threat to her carefully mapped out plans or, honestly and deep heartedly, confessing her deepest fears in the show’s penultimate moments, this skilled thespian fully gives playwright Michael McKeever’s words a brightly animated glow.

That audiences get to experience her doing this in a OSA’s almost churchlike 25 seat space only adds to the magical power of her glorious execution here.

Mr. Parker runs through March 2nd at Open Space Arts, 1411 W. Wilson in Chicago. More information is available at https://openspacearts.org/.

Review: Trash

Published May 6, 2016 by biggayhorrorfan

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You’d have to book a flight to Tampa Bay to catch a sight of former burlesque queen Chesty Morgan, the star of Doris Wishman’s iconic exploitation spy films Deadly Weapons and Double Agent 73. Lucky Chicagoans, though, need only travel to Wicker Park’s Den Theatre to earn a glimpse of Jinx Malibu, the fictional empress diva featured in the Rocket Pussy films, in New American Folk Theatre’s Midwest premiere of Trash.

Playwright Johnny Drago’s take on the Anna Nicole legacy and Tennessee Williams’ classic The Glass Menagerie finds a celebrity blogger arriving on the garbage laden doorstep of the reclusive Malibu. There he discovers Loogie, Malibu’s underwear clad oldest son, the crotchety Othermomma, Malibu’s sarcastic, domineering mother, and Smudge, Malibu’s dreamy yet sheltered daughter. Mistaking him for a Hollywood producer, Malibu and her family act out her deluded version of a comeback film. The horrified blogger plans to escape with the adventure seeking Smudge in tow, but the violence that has been lurking between the cracks of Drago’s setup eventually erupts with one of the cast members, in a moment worthy of an ‘80s slasher flick, reenacting the circumstances of Patsy Cline’s “I Fall to Pieces”, in graphic detail, in Jinx’s front yard.

Thankfully, director Derek Van Barham, who is immeasurably assisted by Clint Greene’s layered scenic design, highlights both the humor and the tension inherent in the lurid reality show circumstances on display here. He is helped, as well, by Anthony Whitaker’s commanding take on Jinx. Whitaker brings a sympathetic edge to the character’s most garish demands and is never less than compelling when on stage. Nicely, the divine Caitlin Jackson, known for her powerhouse portrayals of such icons as Bette Midler and Bette Davis, is allowed to show a more sensitive and hopeful side as Smudge, the show’s one true ray of light, while Kirk Jackson brings a nice sense of physicality and puppy dog energy to Loogie. Meanwhile, Carrie Campana fills Othermomma with a wisecracking weariness, a nice balance to Jamal Howard’s (momentarily) enthusiastic writer.

Trash runs through May 15th at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee in Chicago. More information is available at www.newamericanfolktheatre.org.

Until the next time – SWEET love and pink GRUE, Big Gay Horror Fan!

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