Jeff Bouthiette Archives - Chicago Reader

Five cast members of Second Cityu stand onstage in a row. From left, a Black woman, a nonbinary white person, a Black man, a Filipino man, a white woman, and a white man. They are in purple lighting, striking "vogue"-type poses

The political is personal

by Kerry Reid June 15, 2022June 15, 2022

Like the rest of the world, Second City has been through its share of upheavals in the past two years. Longtime owner, CEO, and executive producer Andrew Alexander stepped down in June 2020 in the wake of increasing public allegations about institutional racism at the comedy powerhouse. Anthony LeBlanc stepped in as interim executive director, […]

Woman in Victorian dress stands with back to us in a backlit doorway, framed with foliage. On the right front, a man is kneeling.

Theater Review

Ghostly grief

by Albert Williams January 10, 2022March 3, 2022

In January of 2020, Black Button Eyes Productions presented the Chicago premiere of Duncan Sheik and Kyle Jarrow’s quirky musical ghost story Whisper House, about an 11-year-old boy living in a haunted lighthouse. Now the company—whose motto is “We help magic invade reality”—has returned to song-driven supernatural storytelling with Mary Rose, an original musical based […]

Illustration of a a young woman surrounded by ghostly figures, skulls, and trailing vines, with a beating red heart in the center of her body.

Arts & Culture

The lost girl

by Kerry Reid January 5, 2022March 3, 2022

J.M. Barrie’s most famous creation has become shorthand for all puckish men-children who refuse to grow up, entranced by a world of adventure and derring-do, where good and evil exist on an uncomplicated binary. But while Peter Pan and his fellow Lost Boys have found life in numerous adaptations since Barrie first introduced the character […]