BOOTH ONE - Celebrating Culture and Conversation

Booth One first encountered Breon's work seeing The Total Bent, produced by Haven & About Face Theatres. We were all blown away by Lili-Anne Brown's direction and the marvelous performances, including friend of the show, Robert Cornelius and new friend, Breon Arzell, who also choreographed this great musical. Here are some of the rave reviews. The production design was extraordinary. We were especially wowed by the choreography and costumes, designed by previous guest and friend, Christine Pasqual. You can catch some of his brilliant work in the remote production of Kill Move Paradise. Absolutely not to be missed. We have seen a lot of attempts to capture great theatre on video and this is exceptional. A true masterpiece, directed by dear friend of the show, Wardell Julius Clark. Read one of the many great reviews here. Much more to say, but we want to get the audio published now. Will write more ASAP.

We always love our amazingly talented guests, but this time we were Star Struck! David Pasquesi is a brilliant artist and one of the nicest people you're ever likely to meet. He is a master improvisor and has created memorable performances in many movies and TV series. He was excellent as Julia Louis Dreyfuss's ex-husband, Andrew in VEEP and had a great role as the "local alchemist" on the weird and wonderful Lodge 49. He also has done some infamous and long running voice-over spots for clients like McDonalds and Anheuser Busch. We have included his remarkable commercial reel in this episode. You can also go to David's website to check out his work. David studied with the legendary improvisation pioneer Del Close, who created the Harold and was part of the first ever Harold team, Baron's Barracudas. David describes the Harold as a "long form group improvisation that was developed as a performance piece itself as opposed to using it to create material for revues...The aim is that the work is consistently good enough to be able to warrant a ticket price." We talk about Del's ideas about working genuinely in improvisation. Gary reads from David and TJ Jagodowski's book, Improvisation at the Speed of Life. "Del taught us to play slowly without worrying about entertaining the audience. He stressed the importance of playing at the top of our intelligence...Another big lesson I took from Del was not to talk too much because overusing words diminishes the power of each one. Del taught us to dare to be poets...Don't be afraid of silence." TJ & Dave have been doing long form performances at iO in Chicago and Barrow Street Theatre in New York since 2001. Stephen Colbert says of them, "One of these guys is the best improvisor in the world. And the other one is better." The New York Times calls their work, "...a creative tour de force, an intellectual high-wire act as astonishing as it is entertaining." They met on a team at the Chicago Improv Festival and found they shared a reverence for the same kind of work. They make it "more about discovery than invention...The work can be funny, but also sad, heartwarming, kind, scary, brutal. It's unlimited." David talks about the important role of the audience. TJ & Dave "requires interested people watching it." David and our co-host Frank talk about teaching improvisation. "The most important thing is listening and paying attention...Be genuine moment to moment and the rest of it takes care of itself." Gary asks about another of David's teachers and mentors, Charna Halpern, who built ImprovOlympic with Del, has taught so many magnificent actors and writers, and now owns the marvelous iO Theatre at 1501 Kingsbury. There are 4 performances there every night of the week, a nice bar, and good food. Charna gave us great backstory on a few things. Such as: David camped out at her place when he was a student without an apartment and cooked dinner in exchange for his room. She also told us about him juggling apples in his stand up act and that he does great impersonations (not). Learn more about the force of nature that is Charna on episode 47 of our show, performed live at Steppenwolf Theatre. Frank reviews the superb production of Sheepdog, directed by friend of the show and recent guest, Wardell Julius Clark. Frank says its is an important and powerful play that poses questions that lead to great discussions. Running through February 29. Gary is going to see it Feb. 13 and can't wait. David tells us about some of his other important influences. He took his first class with Judy Morgan. Then read Jeff Sweet's book, Something Wonderful Right Away. David tells us about the importance of the concepts of heat and weight. Heat involves the gravity of the situation and weight is about the emotional charge. Things that they discover about what's "already there" rather than making it up. Gary shares his love of a new book called, Life Isn't Everything,

Dennis Zacek, founding member and Artistic Director of Victory Gardens Theatre for 34 years, joined us in the Booth for a fascinating conversation about playwrights, directing, and the history of Chicago theatre. He shares his experiences directing over 250 productions, including his current production of Waiting for Godot, which runs at Victory Gardens through December 15. Dr. Z is an icon of the Chicago theatre community, having been at the forefront of the storefront theatre movement in the mid-1970s. In 2014, Victory Gardens received the special Regional Theatre Tony Award for outstanding contributions to the American theatre landscape. The Zacek Tapes is a fascinating book filled with interviews with Dennis about many aspects of his life in the theatre. We couldn't recommend it more highly! More notes to come... Kiss of Death Jessye Norman, American opera singer and recitalist. A dramatic soprano, Norman sang a broad repertoire and avoided being limited to one kind of genre. She famously stated that "pigeonholes are for pigeons” and that she was "attracted to the unusual". A towering figure on operatic, concert, and recital hall stages, Norman leaves a vast catalogue of recordings. NY Times music critic Edward Rothstein described her voice as a "grand mansion of sound”, and wrote that “it has enormous dimensions, reaching backward and upward. It opens onto unexpected vistas." Jessye Norman was 74. Read the full NYTime obit here.  

Wardell Julius Clark and Regina Victor are stars who just keep growing in our Chicago theatre community. We had an amazing time talking with them recently about all of their adventures. They are work and life partners and as Gary said, "extraordinary creative artists and human beings." They also did a beautiful job introducing the show. Voice over agents, take note. Regina Victor works as a theatre director, producer, dramaturg, arts journalist, and mentor. Regina is a non-binary femme who grew up in Oakland, now residing in Chicago. Regina attended boarding school at Phillips Exeter, then studied theatre, religion, and dance at Santa Clara University. They have worked with and been mentored by, among others, Phylicia Rashad, Anna Shapiro, Raelle Myrick-Hodges, and Danya Taymor. Victor has helped develop world premieres by Antoinette Nwandu (Breach:...), Brett Neveu (To Catch A Fish), Sarah Ruhl and Morgan McNaught (A Persephone Pageant), and Loy Webb (The Light, His Shadow). Regina will be direct a world premiere of Pro-Am at Sideshow in May. They have recently been named to be the first Associate Producer ever at Court Theatre. Regina founded an arts criticism platform called Rescripted in 2017. Rescripted’s mission is "to reprogram the way we critically engage with each other using an empathetic lens, while cultivating critics and adding new voices to the field." It is a collective of artists who engage with each other's ideas and opinions openly. Regina mentors young critics through a program called The Key, which has produced some terrific new critics. It is produced in partnership with the Chicago Inclusion Project and is hosted by Steppenwolf Theater Company. Wardell Julius Clark was raised in Fairfield, Alabama, where he toured the country as a child with the amazing Sparkle Dance Company. Read about their mission and programs here. He went on to audition for DePaul University's acting program, which is extremely competitive. He got in to the program, didn't get cut, and has been working here in Chicago ever since. He was a very successful actor for the first 10 years of his career, then asked Ron OJ Parsons if he could assist him on directing Gem of the Ocean at Court. He tells a wonderful story about his first (triumphant) directing gig on Insurrection at Stage Left. Next up was Wardell's hugely acclaimed production of The Shipment. He has been booked as a director since... We recently saw and were blown away by His Shadow, which Wardell (with Sydney Charles) directed, with Regina serving as Dramaturg. It was truly not to be missed. The good news is it was recorded for the archives at Harold Washington Library, so you can see it there. Wardell is a company member at one of our all-time favorite companies, TimeLine, and is a member of their amazing Living History Education Program. Regina is working on a wonderful project at Lyric Opera called "Empower Youth". More to say about these upcoming projects, but can't wait to publish their episode. So come back to this site for updates.  

We were thrilled to have Erica Daniels Strater join us in the Booth, starting our next 100 episodes off in style! She has been an agent, casting director, Associate Artistic Director, president, and now Executive Director. All at top-flight companies. Erica has so many dear friends in the Chicago theatre community. She helped us all out when we were with small companies who needed casting help and couldn't afford our own casting directors. Her email response would come back pronto with a list of really great suggestions for a role. Early in her career, she joined her close friend and mentor, Martha Lavey, in choosing to make the effort to pay attention to smaller companies and emerging talents and to lend a hand up. A graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Performance Studies, she studied with an amazing group of artists, including Martha Lavey, Frank Galati, Mary Zimmerman and Dwight Conquergood. When she graduated and was planning to start auditioning, Erica broker her foot. While she was recuperating, she thought maybe she could help out in a casting director's office. She worked in Jane Brody's office, then Shirley Hamilton's, two of the best casting people in Chicago. Then, after an exciting stint as the Theatre Department coordinator at William Morris in New York, she went to work for Steppenwolf as their in-house casting director. She was then promoted to Associate Artistic Director and did a wonderful job in that capacity while continuing to do their casting. She is providing great leadership at Victory Gardens, collaborating with her partner, Artistic Director Chay Yew. Erica is eloquent about Victory Gardens' mission to "be a leader in developing and producing new work and cultivating an inclusive theater community." We have seen so many marvelous productions there, most recently, Tiny Beautiful Things. Erica and Chay were listed as #1! in New City Stages' feature: Players 2019: The Fifty People Who Really Perform for Chicago.. Gary talks to Erica about getting her start in the business, what she looks for in an actor, the audition process, working with directors to cast just the right actor for the role, and what challenges an Executive Director of a Tony Award-winning Chicago off-loop theatre faces on a daily basis. You'll find Erica to be eloquent and forthright in her responses. Just a joy to have as a guest in the Booth. Kiss of Death: Franco Zeffirelli, Italian director with a penchant for excess. Renowned for his extravagantly romantic opera productions, immensely popular film versions of Shakespeare and an active and sometimes controversial social life. Wiki tells us he was one of the only living people traceably consanguineous with Leonardo da Vinci. Mr. Zeffirelli was 96.

We chose Michael and Mona Heath for our 100th episode because they are the most amazing angels to the Chicago theatre community. With backgrounds in applied mathematics and computer science, they have dedicated their time, energy, and savings to supporting Chicago theatre artists. Last year, they paid full price to see 336 shows! And that is while living part time in Champaign/Urbana. Not to mention building the mainstage theatre, dressing rooms, and lounge at The Den Theatre. They are the production sponsors of so much important work, including "His Shadow" at 16th Street Theatre, which opens tonight! So much more to say, but want to get this published today. Will add info and photos soon!

Christine has created beautiful designs for many of our all-time favorite productions! Check out this list of her recent projects! From Dutch Masters to La Ruta to East Texas Hot Links and To Catch a Fish. All great, great shows! The costumes we think were the most breathtaking were for The Total Bent. Robert Cornelius's suits (and shoes!) were just perfect, as were all the other costumes, especially the cape she made for Gilbert Domally's character. Much more to say. Want to publish the audio of this great interview and will update these show notes very son!

Jonathan Abarbanel, our first theatre critic guest, comes with great perspective not just as a theatre historian and scholar but also as an artist. He's been an actor, dramaturg, playwright, and producer, so he knows what it means and takes to bring work to the stage. He's the immediate past president of the American Theatre Critics Association. He's reviewed Chicago theatre for 50 years and continues as a great critic for the Windy City Times and Footlights magazine. He and Kerry Reid are the "Dueling Critics" on The Arts Section on WDCB public radio. This marvelous and nuanced conversation about Isaac Gomez's play, La Ruta, is a great example of their collaboration and a chance to hear some longer form criticism from two real pros. Frank tells us about his trip to the Dalmation Coast, including a visit to the "Museum of Broken Relationships" in Zagreb. Sounds like a must-see. Jonathan was an early member of the off-loop theatre movement and was part of exciting and important developments like working with Del Close on the Harold. He briefly worked as a copywriter and producer in advertising an came up with an iconic slogan "America spells cheese, K-R-A-F-T"! Another claim to fame was his appearance on the Antique Road Show with original artist boards of Winsor McCay's comic strip, "Little Nemo in Slumberland." Winsor invented animated cartoons with a character called "Gertie the Dinosaur". Jonathan was working summer stock and came across the boards in a barn. He offered to buy them from the property's owner who said just to take whatever he wanted...They were worth a lot of money when he went on the Road Show and are worth even more now. Picture here is one of the Little Nemo strips he owns, as it appeared in print in full color. Jonathan describes it as "a zoo on Mars and a Martian is showing Nemo and his gang around." We asked Jonathan about his philosophy of criticism and he responded that he does not believe in attack criticism. And since his review space in the Windy City Times is usually only about 450 words, he doesn't have space to show off his "style." He'd rather spend 10 words writing about a costume or sound design than trying to show off his wit. He is very direct. To Jonathan, every single word sounds. Especially when writing about new work. About 50% of the shows produced in Chicago are new work. He will generally approach the script first, rather than the production elements or acting. The question is, "Does it work?" He talks about how consistently excellent most of the performances in Chicago theatre are right now. Speaking of which, Gary, Frank, and Jonathan agree that the performances in Steppenwolf's production of the new play by Tina Landau and Tarell Alvin McCraney, Ms. Blakk for President, were just terrific! Jonathan quotes the famous New Yorker critic, John Lahr's book title, Astonish Me, Adventures in Contemporary Theatre about what he's looking for when he walks into a theater. "Make me walk out full of the wonder of your production." He looks for that show that "just hits him in the guts." Sometimes he just "puts his pen down and lets it happen to him."    

Seven-time Emmy award winner, WTTW producer, and documentary filmmaker Dan Andries joins us in the Booth! He arrived at the studio having just toured the Hamilton Exhibition on Northerly Island. Sounds like something we need to visit. We recently discovered that Dan was creating a series of pieces for WTTW called "Stage Players." They are very short interview pieces honoring all of the kinds of people who make Chicago theatre great. They appear between other programs and are excellent. It's amazing how much they convey in such a short period of time.  We have had some of the same amazing guests. Check them out! Dan's career so far is pretty remarkable. He has been at WTTW since 2000. He was the series producer of Artbeat Chicago for 5 years, and did stories on the arts off and on for Chicago Tonight.  In 2005 he began working on documentaries, which included “Beauty Rises:  Four Lives in the Arts” (2006), “Cannot Live Without:  Illinois Artists at Work” (2014) and nine documentaries on architects, including Chicago architects Jeanne Gang and Tom Beeby and the amazing French architects Marc & Nada Breitman. Here he is in Paris with Marc and WTTW's Geoffrey Baer: Beauty Rises is a wonderful documentary highlighting Laura Wiley, the co-founder of Albany Park Theatre Project, Orbert Davis, who created the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, sculptor Dessa Kirk, and poet Alison Joseph. All moving and compelling stories. Other documentary projects include co-producing and co-writing “DuSable to Obama:  Chicago’s Black Metropolis” and “Out & Proud in Chicago” as well as 2 Geoffrey Baer tour shows (River and the Southwest Suburbs) and a show about the Irish (“Irish Chicago”).  Dan created the four-part series “Art & Design in Chicago” that aired in the fall of 2018. Since 2006, he has also "had the great privilege of producing a multi-camera documentation of the work of Albany Park Theatre Project." He does that work with his wife, Anne Northrup. One of those pieces, “Feast,” was broadcast on WTTW and won an Emmy. He comes from a family of arts journalists.  His mother, Dorothy Andries was a music critic on the North Shore for Pioneer Press and his aunt, Wynne Delacoma, was the classical music critic for the Chicago Sun-Times for a number of years. I'll Be Seeing You: John Singleton: In our regular segment celebrating the life of someone who has recently left us, Gary shares the story of filmmaker, John Singleton. He was a huge talent and contributed so much to our history of film making. Read his obituary from the Washington Post here

Join our rollicking conversation with two of the most talented artists we know, Lili-Anne Brown and Robert Cornelius. Lili-Anne is the luminous director of many great productions and also an accomplished actor, singer, and educator. Robert, who has appeared on our show before (episode 67), is a brilliant actor, singer, educator, and designer. These are just some of their many gifts. Booth One has had the honor of witnessing two of their thrilling collaborations this season in The Total Bent produced by Haven and About Face and in Lottery Day, onstage now through April 28 at the Goodman. Gary and Frank talked about how much they loved The Total Bent on our last episode. Learn more about that show and Ike Holter's dazzling Lottery Day on this episode. We have so much more to say about the conversation, but are publishing it now while there are still some chances to get seats to see Lottery Day (11 more performances with just a few tickets left). Will update this page soon...

It's Gary and Frank together in the Booth for a cavalcade of theatergoer notes on shows we've recently seen around Chicago. First off, Frank tells us about his adventures in speech competition judging that's kept him away from home the past month. By all accounts, the dazzling array of young talented actors and orators is promising news for the future of theater and performance in the Chicago area. Just this afternoon, our boys went to Northlight Theatre to see the world premiere play Landladies by Sharyn Rothstein, directed by Jess McLeod. As luck would have it, this sparkling three-hander features actress Leah Karpel, who Frank has known since she was a baby some 25-odd years ago. Leah was gracious enough to spend a few minutes with us after the show talking about her role and the privilege of appearing in a world premiere, and we bring you some of that remote interview in this episode. Running through April 20. Next, we traveled to the Den Theatre to see a truly inspiring and brilliantly produced musical show called The Total Bent. Written by the acclaimed singer, songwriter, founder and leader of the punk-rock combo The Negro Problem, Stew, and his writing partner Heidi Rodewald, The Total Bent traces the lives of an established Gospel and R&B singer (magnificently played by Robert Cornelius) and his upstart young son (a dazzling debut by Gilbert Domally) as they navigate show business and the total bent of their lives together and apart. Though closed now, this show was one of the finest productions Chicago has seen in many years, so keep your eyes peeled for a revival. Director Lili-Anne Brown does amazing work keeping the story and the tension moving. Teaser Alert: Robert Cornelius and Lili-Anne Brown will be our guests next time on Episode 96! Have you heard of the very smart fish that scientists think can recognize itself in a mirror? Until now, the only species to have passed the mirror test were great apes, bottlenose dolphins, killer whales, Eurasian magpies and a single Asian elephant. Add to that list the cleaner wrasse, a 4-inch fish that lives in coral reefs. Read the full story here. Along those lines, Gary wishes that some annoying theatergoers were more self-aware! A Caryl Churchill play called A Number is receiving a striking production at Writers Theatre this spring. Running through June 9 in the Gillian Theatre, this 65-minute show is about parenting, cloning and going back to try to fix mistakes in your life. Gary was a bit lost in the narrative at times, but the two performances by William Brown and Nate Burger are compelling. Directed by Robin Witt, it's a roller coaster ride through a strikingly familiar future. As always with Writers, the production values and quality are top-notch. You can't go wrong with an evening out at Writers Theatre. Former President Jimmy Carter has become the longest-living president in US history. This past week, Mr. Carter, the nation's 39th president, reached the age of 94 years and 172 days. He has enjoyed the longest post-presidency in American history. His tireless resolve and heart have helped to improve life for millions of the world's poorest people. God bless Mr. Carter and his continued work for those in need. I'll Be Seeing You (aka Kiss of Death) Stanley Donan - The director and choreographer of classic musicals such as Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Singin' in the Rain, Royal Wedding, The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees. Mr. Donan was frequently overshadowed by his collaborator Gene Kelly, but they made a grand team. By 1960, the Metro musical was no more and Donan became an accomplished director of comedy, romance and spoof thrillers, such as Charade and Two for the Road. Mr. Donan was married five times and is survived by his long-time partner, the writer, director and actor Elaine May. Stanley Donan was 94. Read the full Guardian obit by David Thomson here.  

Gary welcomes to the Booth two true Chicago theatre professionals - both long-time stage managers at Steppenwolf Theatre - Malcolm Ewen and Laura Glenn. No one has better behind-the scenes stories than great stage managers. Malcolm has been at Steppenwolf since 1987 and was most recently welcomed into the company's elite Ensemble, an honor he didn't even know was possible. He is the first stage manager to become an ensemble member. Malcolm has taken 4 shows to Broadway, including The Grapes of Wrath and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, which were both honored with Tony awards. He has also stage managed at the Goodman, Northlight, and Remains Theatres, among others. He has directed at the Weston Playhouse Theatre in Vermont during summers for 30 years. Laura has been with Steppenwolf for 25 years with an impressive resume of memorable shows including Buried Child, Superior Donuts, and The Rembrandt. From her Actor's Equity bio: "I was fortunate enough to work with and be mentored by many great stage managers, including my hero, Malcolm Ewen. I have been a part of world premieres, great revivals, taken shows to international festivals and Broadway – both with Steppenwolf and my other creative home, Northlight Theatre." Laura and Malcolm address the age-old question, "What does a stage manager do?", with wit, sincerity and personal insight. As Gary well knows, having started his career in the theatre as a stage manager in New York, being an SM involves a myriad of responsibilities, including establishing a safe and collaborative space in which the actors and director can feel free to create, fail and try new ideas. There are also the tangible elements of scheduling, communicating, and upholding the Actors' Equity rule book, which Malcolm describes as jigsaw puzzle work. The two colleagues and dear friends reminisce about past show experiences, including some of their most satisfying and rewarding projects - Bruce Norris' Downstate for Laura and Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolff for Mal.  Laura talks about the special bond she had with the late John Mahoney. As a teacher of stage management, Malcolm has reminded his students to find their own rewards and reasons for individual achievement in a profession that can have very few accolades or public job recognition. Laura likens stage management to being a catcher on a baseball diamond. While you direct the traffic on the field and may even call the no-hitter, it's likely most people will not see your face behind the mask. Malcolm discusses his most challenging project to date - Paul Simon's Broadway musical The Capeman. This 1998 Broadway show was a commercial and critical failure, and Gary compares it to his experience on the ill-fated Peter Allen musical Legs Diamond. The three stage managers recall how the most stressful projects are the ones where the many elements that go into making a stage piece either don't come together or were ill-conceived from the start. Large casts and financial risk are also contributing factors. In our "Good Times and Bum Times" segment, we learn about the ex-wife of a man who declined to take him back even after he won the $275 million Mega Millions lottery. "I have morals," Eileen Murray said. Then there's the story of the man who tried to strangle his Lyft driver for singing out-of-season Christmas songs. Silent Night indeed! Everyone loves to hear stories of theatrical near-disasters and Malcolm, Laura and Gary have their share of tales to tell. From The Grapes of Wrath (41 actors for starters) to John Malkovich in a scenery train wreck, these stories bring to light the backstage trials and tribulations of stage management and production. And they're hilarious to boot! Gary announces the 2019-20 Steppenwolf season of shows, which contains two basketball-themed plays, as well as a world premiere musical called Lindiwe featuring the music of Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Malcolm and Laura will both be working on that project,

Gary welcomes director Jonathan Berry and actor Jessica Dean Turner from the new hit play Red Rex to the Booth today. Written by Ike Holter as the newest in his Rightlynd series of plays, Red Rex is is receiving a world premiere by Steep Theatre and is being presented in their 55-seat space at 1115 W. Berwyn through March 30. Gary called it "one of the most moving, thought-provoking and beautifully produced plays he's seen in many a season." The production is about members of a Chicago storefront theater company who are working on a new play being presented by a Chicago storefront theater company. Jonathan discusses the meta nature of directing this project at Steep, where he's been an ensemble member for many years, having directed there since 2007. Jon describes one of the themes of the play: "The theatre community can create its own center of focus, obscuring, entirely, the actual world just outside the door." Jonathan and Jessica talk about the play's other themes, including equity and inclusion, inadvertent and subtle acts of racism, shining a light on the pretentiousness of some creative processes, and the deep humor and humanity with which Ike Holter treats each of his characters. It's a discussion that will make you want to run, don't walk, to the see Red Rex at the Steep. Jessica talks about her theatre training in the very intensive program at the University of Illinois - Urbana, and how the rigorous nature of the program prepared her for the life of a working actor. As a non-Equity actor striving to make a career in the burgeoning off-Loop theatre scene, Jessica is frank in her assessment of the challenges and struggles that entails. The commutes are long, the pay is low, and the competition is steep(!) But Jonathan and Jessica both emphasize what most audiences already know - the Chicago style of acting exemplifies a fierceness and passion fueled by the daily grind that is the nature of a life in the theatre. Gary offers a play idea with the news story of 183 Amtrak passengers stranded for 37 hours in a snowstorm in the Oregon wilderness. Jonathan has been on plenty of delayed Amtrak trips and describes the mounting stress among the passengers as "a Lord of the Flies mentality." The dramatic possibilities are endless! Jessica also teaches at the Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts), training young performers. ChiArts is a public 4–year college preparatory visual and performing arts high school located in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. Operated by the Chicago Public Schools district, the school opened for the 2009–10 school year. She's also worked as an actor-patient at Northwestern Medical School where she helped train doctors to treat a variety of conditions and symptoms. A great acting exercise. Kiss of Death: Ethel Ennis - Celebrated Singer Who Walked Away from Fame: Ms. Ennis was a highly respected jazz singer in the 1950s and 60s. Ella Fitzgerald stated that Ms. Ennis was her favorite young vocalist, and Frank Sinatra called her "my kind of singer". But Ethel grew disillusioned with the demands placed on young divas, and she eschewed national celebrity for a quieter life in her hometown of Baltimore, where she earned the unofficial title of Baltimore's "First Lady of Jazz." Ethel Ennis was 86. Read the full NYTimes obit here. Check out her beautiful rendition of My Foolish Heart on YouTube.      

We were thrilled to welcome Elaine Soloway to the booth for episode 92! Check out her bio here. She is something else. Between her two memoirs, her Roman à clef, the essays she writes for her blogs, and having part of her life fictionalized on the television show, Transparent, Elaine is "living out loud." Learn about her books and essays by going to Elaine's website. Or friend her on Facebook. At 80 years old, she regularly communicates on social media and has 4,000 FB friends!   Elaine grew up on Division Street in Chicago. Her memoir about those years is called Division Street Princess. We highly recommend that and all of her books! Elaine's "audacious" daughters are Jill and Faith Soloway, whose many remarkable accomplishments include creating the sensation called The Real Live Brady Bunch at Chicago's Annoyance Theatre. This project was a huge hit and wound up traveling the country with a first rate cast including Jane Lynch and Andy Richter. Check out this video rehearsal footage. Faith is a musician & producer of rock operas. She regularly works as a collaborator with her sister, Jill, who wrote created the ground-breaking and award-winning show Transparent. The character of Maura was inspired by their father and Elaine calls Judith Light's wonderful character a "version" of herself. Jill Soloway's other credits include writing for the TV show Six Feet Under. When Faith & Jill were growing up, their family lived in "South Commons" in Chicago for 10 years. The intention of this 30 acre community was to integrate people of different races, incomes, home styles, and ages. There was a K-3 school on the campus and a community center with tons of exciting activities. Elaine, who had been an unhappy housewife, was soon editor of the community paper and had started a musical theatre company. Her husband and daughters starred in some of those shows. Elaine thinks that community helped make her extraordinarily talented daughters who they are. GZ & Frank review the movie Cold War and give it a big thumbs up. Elaine tells us about a recent comedy pilot writing class she took at iO taught by Mike McCarthy. Gary shares the sighting of Deep Blue, one of the largest great white sharks in the world. more than 20 feet long and 2.5 tons at age 50. Check out this amazing story. Elaine appeared on Season 3, Episode 3 of Transparent and was fabulous. She talks about what a warm family the cast is and how much fun it is to be on the set. We ask about our favorite Chicago actors on the show, Alexandra Billings and Amy Landecker. She adores them. Season Five is going to be a 2-hour musical (!) and Elaine reports the entire cast can really sing. Faith is writing the music. To be released this year. We can't wait! Kiss of Death: Francis Grill - Founder of Click Model Management. Read the NYT obit by Rachel Felder here. Grill's story is remarkable. She founded the first inclusive modeling agency and the way she got her start is fascinating. Look up some of the images of models she represented.

We are thrilled to be part of the launch of the "Year of Chicago Theatre", helmed by the Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events (DCASE) Commisioner, Mark Kelly. Mark at the Chicago Jazz Festival Mark joined us to talk about this first-ever City initiative that is "calling on the world to recognize the power of Chicago Theatre." Partnering with the League of Chicago Theatres and all of the individual theatres, the goal is: "to be a Chicagoan, you are welcome into a Chicago Theatre." From the City's press release: "To truly fall in love with Chicago, you must go to our theaters. This is where the city bares its fearless soul. From joy to heartache and every feeling in between, Chicago theatre tells stories that evoke big emotions. Stories that take risks, inspire awe, ask tough questions – and dare audiences to do the same. Through Broadway musicals or storefront plays and improv, the energy of the city comes alive in our theaters. And with a diverse collection of over 250 dynamic theaters throughout our neighborhoods, there’s always a seat waiting for you...The Year of Chicago Theatre will also encourage dialog within Chicago’s theatre and philanthropic communities around inclusion and equity issues – and will seek to expand the geographic scope of Chicago theatre, especially on the city’s south and west sides." Sandra Marquez - photo credit Joe Mazza We also welcome to the show an important member of the theatre community, actress and director Sandra Marquez. Most recently we saw her brilliant direction of Isaac Gomez's play, "La Ruta" (episode 89) and her wonderful performance in Jen Silverman's "The Roommate" with Ora Jones. Marquez is a longtime member of Teatro Vista, the only equity Latino theatre company in the midwest. She has also been a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre ensemble since 2016. She is on the faculty at Northwestern University, teaching acting and voice. She is in rehearsal to play Nora in Steppenwolf's production of "A Doll's House, Part 2". Previews start Jan. 31. Can't wait to see her in this. Hear Sandra and Mark's takes on what makes theatre here so special. "We are doing new work all the time, everyone supporting and pushing each other to do gutsy and innovative work...We have more world premieres than anywhere else." Chicago Theatre Week is coming up from Feb. 7 - 17, with theatres of all sizes offering tickets from $15 to $30. Click on this link for a complete schedule of some really great shows. Learn about Mark's fascinating job at DCASE, which presents theatre, music, art, and other mostly free cultural events to 28 million people annually and awards grants across a wide spectrum of the arts. One of his goals is to encourage more support for the vitality of Chicago arts organizations, financially and otherwise. Hear some fascinating stories about Mark and Sandra's backgrounds and other interests. As in Mark is a drummer and Sandra once tried to join a convent. And you don't want to miss Mark's story about pretending to be a celebrity so he could sit in the actual Booth One at the Pump Room back in the day. Kiss of Death: Marc Hauser World-renowned photographer Marc Hauser was a friend and a guest on our show. Read about him in Mark Brown's excellent obituary for the Chicago Sun-Times, which surprisingly quotes Marc's Booth One interview. He was a remarkable talent and character. We will all miss him. Here is a link to our interview with him. If you check out the show notes, you will see several of his iconic images. The photo above is Marc with Gary and Roscoe in his studio.

Join us in a great conversation with brilliant artist and illustrator Tom Bachtell. Learn how this self-taught artist became the best thing about the New Yorker's "Talk of the Town".  He is still doing stunning caricatures and illustrations for the magazine 23 years later. Check out this wonderful piece Neil Steinberg recently wrote about Tom in the Sun-Times. Tom tells us that "People are bundles of ambiguity. That's what I try to capture in portraits."  

Rising stars Isaac Gomez & Karen Rodriguez join us in the Booth to talk about the rehearsal process for their world premiere production of Isaac's play, La Ruta, at Steppenwolf Theatre. Previews begin December 13 and the show runs through January 27. We are going to press opening on December 20 and cannot wait! This amazing project features a number of Steppenwolf debuts: It is Isaac's as a playwright, ensemble member Sandra Marquez's as a director, and Karen's as a new ensemble member! Director Sandra Marquez with Karen Rodriguez Isaac tells us that the play is "about a community of women who are living in the wake of unspeakable loss...About how resiliance takes form in various capacities and directions for each of them." La Ruta is a bus that takes women to the U.S. owned factories in Ciudad Juarez. Along this route, many women have disappeared, been attacked, and murdered. Steppenwolf Poster The eight Latina actresses in this play all represent real women Isaac has interviewed. As he describes it, "I made a promise to these women that their stories would be heard by as many people as humanly possible, and through this world premiere at Steppenwolf, we are one step closer to keeping that promise -- to bear witness and carry their stories forward. As a queer Mexicano from the border, I owe my entire existence to Mexican women. This play is for them. Para todas. Para siempre.” Gomez grew up in the border town of El Paso and Ciudad Juarez. Though he lived on the El Paso side, much of his extended family lived and still lives in Juarez. He visited Mexico every weekend. He was brought up by two "superheroes, who gave all of themselves when they had nothing to begin with." Gomez's motivation to write plays is to never forget. He wants to never forget the things that happen to him each day, the callouses on his father's hands when he would cook fajitas, the stories of the women he met in Juarez...  Karen Rodriguez is also from a Mexican border town, Matamoros, Tamaulipas, which is directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas. Her family moved for a time to Kokomo, Indiana because of her father's job. She spoke no English at that time. They moved back to Mexico and she applied to the University of Texas, Austin to major in marketing and business. She got interested in theatre and decided to double major. She met Isaac in a theatre class and they became best friends. Together, they moved to Chicago 5 years ago. Karen inspires Isaac's writing in many ways, both as a person and an actress. Gomez talks about her "willingness to go there, to explore unapologetically, unsure of the result." Isaac's plays inspire her work too. They "bring out the best in each other." You will hear the chemistry of their amazing collaboration in this interview. Kiss of Death: Kitty O'Neil Hear about the fascinating life of stuntwoman extraordinaire, Kitty O'Neil. She was absolutely fearless. And what makes her daredevil feats even more impressive, she was deaf. What a story!

Fashion world icon Nena Ivon joins us in the Booth to talk about her astounding career, her varied interests in all things cultural, and so much more! A legend in Chicago, Nena Ivon was the fashion and special events director at Saks Fifth Avenue from 1956 to 2009, where among other things, she produced all of the fashion shows, handled publicity, styled the windows and dressed the mannequins. She has worked with hundreds of the leading fashion designers and style icons of the 20th and 21st centuries, including many great models. Nena talked about the quality one-on-one time she got to spend with these designers, picking them up at the airport when they came to town for Saks events. She is currently a member of the executive board of the Costume Council of the Chicago History Museum, and a faculty member in Fashion Studies at Columbia College Chicago (where the Nena Ivon Collection is archived). She is also the author of a marvelous blog called Nena's Notes. We love the way she organized the blog. As you will learn in more detail on the episode, each day of the week has a different theme to reflect things she's passionate about. Monday is for profiles of people, starting with a Proust-like questionnaire, then an interview. A favorite topic for her is how people reinvent themselves when they leave one career, such as the models she worked with. Tuesday is for book reviews. Wednesday is musings, which can go in a number of different directions. Thursday is for collections, not just of fashion, but also other beautiful objects. Friday is for Fashion. Spotlights on designers she's worked with or the current season. Check it out. There is something for everyone. We are excited that she is working on a podcast and a book! Amazingly enough, Nena has a direct connection to the real Booth One and the impetus for our show. Back in the day at Saks, they would hold two fashion shows a week at The Pump Room at lunch time. Then there were conversations in Booth One with stars, Broadway tryout cast members, authors, and local personalities. Nena led a number of these interviews. Oh, how we wish those were recorded! Speaking of Booth One, she is a huge fan of theatre, ballet, and opera. Her favorite medium is musical theatre! Learn who Nena's favorite designers are, including the great Bob Mackie, who she says is a brilliant designer of clothes as well as costumes. Gary tells Nena that he has never missed an episode of Project Runway. Her favorite designer to come out of that show is Christian Seriano and she tells us why. Check out this glam photo of Nena with Christian LaCroix. The photographer, Robert Carl, said of the picture, "“I love this shot of two sophisticates, Nena Ivon and Christian Lacroix. It reminds me of Grant Wood’s “American Gothic,” even though she is the high priestess of Chicago fashion and he is the darling of Paris.”  We talk about the new Library of Congress National Screening Room, which has films from 1890-1999. They are being digitized so we can all check them out. The goal is to have their vast collection reach the largest possible audience. Nena talks about Guo Pei's collection at Paris fashion week. Wow. Check out her stunning and show-stopping designs on her website.   Kiss of Death: Dorcas B. Reilley     As you know, we end every episode with a celebration of a life. Our New York correspondent and good friend, Robbie Young, suggested Dorcas B. Reilley, the inventor of green bean casserole. She was a supervisor in Campbell's Soup test kitchen and led the group to come up with a great dish that could be made with things already in most people's pantries. Made with Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup, it offered "convenience with a touch of glamour." Here is the original recipe, still being made today. It is estimated that it will be served in 20 million homes this coming Thanksgiving. Our producer's grandmother added some Velveeta, which made it even better.

Gary and Frank welcome one of the finest actors we've ever had the pleasure to meet to Booth One! Francis Guinan has been with the Steppenwolf Theatre ensemble since 1979 and has appeared in a remarkable number of shows. Check out the list of past productions on his Steppenwolf bio. We have seen many of them and his work is simply not to be missed. Speaking of not to be missed...he is currently appearing in a world premiere of Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Bruce Norris's Downstate alongside a breathtaking ensemble cast. Beautifully staged by Tony award winner Pam MacKinnon, it is a co-production with the National Theatre of Great Britain and stars several actors from there, including the marvelous Cecilia Noble. The Steppenwolf ensemble members (Glenn David, K. Todd Freeman, Francis Guinan, and Tim Hopper) are all just astonishing. Our good friend, Laura Glenn is Downstate's fabulous stage manager. The production will travel to London in the spring of 2019. Here are a couple of Downstate production shots:           Fran's first show with Steppenwolf was The Real Inspector Hound. Learn more about his illustrious career there in this article from 2009. One of our favorite recent performances was in The Rembrandt, working opposite his dear friend, the late John Mahoney. Of his relationship with John, he told us they had worked together s0 often and that their 30 years of shared history was "present in every glance." Fran said John was immensely generous on stage and off...Check out this Chicago Tonight interview with John and Fran talking about the last show they would do together. A shot with the the great Audrey Francis in You Got Older: Francis talks about the magic that only happens in a theater. How sometimes you can say a line to an audience of 300 or more people and then there is total silence. A collective holding of breath. And that feeling is not like anything else. He talks about the vibrance and truth of the Chicago style that goes back to the Compass Players. He thanks "the Godfather of Chicago Theatre, Sheldon Patinkin for teaching so many people in our community to "Always Say Yes." That it's not about you. It is all to the benefit of the story. Whatever your fellow actor throws out there, accept it and play that moment, even if it's very different from the night before. Kiss of Death: Carol Hall Carol Hall, a songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas", which was about a brothel called the Chicken Ranch (because customers often paid with chickens), died on October 11 at age 82. Here is an excerpt from her NYT obit:"Staying behind the scenes remained her preference. She wrote three songs for “Free to Be … You and Me,” the 1972 children’s album (and television special) conceived by Marlo Thomas. One was “It’s All Right to Cry,” performed by Rosey Grier, a former professional football player. She also wrote for Sesame Street and Barbra Streisand.    

Booth One's Frank Tourangeau and his husband, filmmaker Dan Pal, who serves as Booth One's film correspondent, have just returned from a trip to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and have much to report! They have been going to film festivals for many years, including several trips to Telluride, Sundance, Toronto, and our very own Chicago Fest. The Chicago Film Festival is happening from October 10 through October 21 at the AMC River East. They also share secrets about how to have a Booth One experience at a festival! Let's cut to the chase. Dan and Frank both LOVED a movie called Roma, written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron, which won the prestigious Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival. A story about a domestic worker in Mexico City working for an upper middle-class family, it is said to be the most personal work of Cuaron's career. And also his best. It has a 98% Rotten Tomatoes rating. Dan, who says it's the best film he's seen this year, thinks it is a shoe-in for Best Foreign Film and also has a chance to win Best Picture. The actress playing the housekeeper has never been in a movie before. So many reasons we can't wait to see it! Frank and Dan saw 14 films in 5 days. The most thrilling thing for them is getting to see movies before anyone else does. Every director was there and did a Q & A. Lots of big time actors too. They shared their reviews and impressions about all the movies they saw, including: Ben is Back, directed by Peter Hedges and starring Julia Roberts & Lucas Hedges. Vox Lux starring Natalie Portman and Jude Law. (They did not like it.) If Beale Street Could Talk, based on a James Baldwin novel, adapted and directed by Oscar winner Barry Jenkins, made its world premiere at Toronto. Dan and Frank say it is an absolute stand-out. Very powerful and more dialogue driven than Moonlight. The score by Nicolas Britell is "spectacular!" One of the stars, Chicago actress Kiki Lane, was in Booth One favorite Byhalia, Mississippi and part of the ensemble of Definition Theatre Company. We are so excited for you. Go Kiki, go! While they weren't able to score tickets to A Star is Born, here's a fun photo of the stars in Toronto: Gary announces that sadly, the wonderful show public access television show, Theater Talk, has ended after 25 years. Because its station wanted to take over editorial control. :( And just after it won an Emmy award! Everyone who's anyone has appeared on Susan Haskins' great interview show, which we think has a lot in common with Booth One. Its last season was distributed to more than a hundred public television stations nationwide. Gary talks about an episode featuring James Grissom, an author who has written a great book called Follies of God: Tennessee Williams and the Women of the Fog, which is based on his many, many hours of conversation with the playwright about his close relationships with a number of women who influenced him.  Other films that are discussed in this episode: The Hummingbird Project starring Jesse Eisenberg The Front Runner with Hugh Jackman as politician Gary Hart Hotel Mumbai featuring Dev Patel and Armie Hammer. This American-Australian thriller was clearly Frank and Dan's front-running favorite. Gary and Frank attended opening night of Indecent at Victory Gardens Theatre, the Paula Vogal play with music, directed by local favorite Gary Griffin. Though they had a few reservations about the production, it's recommended as a piece of theatrical ingenuity and depth. And the Running now through November 4. Kiss of Death Andre Blay, who revolutionized the film industry by introducing the first consumer grade full-length movies on videocassette. His Magnetic Video Corporation created the Video Club of America where subscribers could buy a movie for about half the going retail price in stores. By 1987, home video was generating more revenue than movie-theater ticket sales. Mr. Blay was 81. Full Obit here.

We welcome to the Booth this week the very talented and vibrant Jerre Dye. Recommended by a recent genius guest, Cecelia Wingate, Jerre is a Southerner by birth, having grown up in a small town in Mississippi. He is a playwright, actor, director and opera librettist, now living in Chicago. Fellow Mississippi playwright Beth Henley, whose play Crimes of the Heart earned her a Pulitzer Prize in 1981, praises his lyrical voice and distinctly Southern sensibilities, proclaiming him "a vibrant force in the American theater." Jerre's plays Cicada and Distance were both nominated for Joseph Jefferson awards. First off, Frank tells us about seeing our friend Christine McHugh's one-woman play Parents Must Be Dead at the Greenhouse Theatre. By all accounts, the evening was a smashing success, with a full house and great audience response. Congratulations, Christine! We learn that the somewhat odd title refers to a friend of Christine's preference listing on a dating website. A bit maudlin, but at least he's honest. Gary reminds our listeners that they can hear the Booth One crew interviewed on the Rick Kogan After Hours radio program on the WGN website. To listen to Rick's jaw-droppingly generous words about our show, click here. Jerre takes us through his upbringing, his school days in Memphis, and his foray into acting in Hollywood. Big brother John Dye was his mentor, inspiration and role model. Highlights from his LA days include teaching Lily Tomlin how to clog(!?) and appearing as a dancer in the 1993 film of The Beverly Hillbillies with Jim Varney. His mentor at University of Memphis was Gloria Baxter, who was a classmate and friend of Frank Galati's at Northwestern. As film fans, we love a well-written movie review, even if it's a pan. A couple of snippets from the the recent Keanu Reeves/Winona Ryder film reviewed in the NY Times: "'Destination Wedding' is torture."; "Nothing is as ailing as the screenplay." Almost worth going to see it just for the train wreck! Jerre talks about becoming an opera librettist and how that writing style and process differs from, and is similar to, his playwrighting. He first got involved with opera six years ago doing a project in Memphis creating several different stories about the people who worked at a now-shuttered Sears distribution complex. His opera career has advanced from there to the point where he's now at work on a project called Taking Up Serpents with composer Kamala Sankaram to be presented by Washington National Opera at the Kennedy Center. The piece runs January 11-13 in Washington. Jerre has many other projects in the works and we're excited to see them come to life. As Jerre says, "Everybody's born with a story. It's like a spell." In our Good Times and Bum Times segment, you'll hear about the first raw-meat vending machine now operational in upstate New York (a dream invention for carnivore Gary), and you'll meet Jessie, the foul-mouthed Macaw who shocked rescuers on a London roof top with a barrage of F-bombs. Jerre and the boys play a little Chat Pack and we learn about Olympic dream events, books they would write, and least-favorite education courses they've taken. As always, this segment reveals some fascinating insight into our guest and hosts. Kiss Of Death: Nabi Tajima, recognized as the World's Oldest Person Born in 1900 in Araki, Japan, Ms. Tajima was the last known person born in the 19th century, and one of the few people who could recall a time before World War I. She had nine children and 160 descendents, including great-great-great grandchildren. Nabi Tajima was 117. Read the full Washington Post article here.    

While Frank is out of town, we welcome Ross Fraser, founding co-host of Booth One,  back to the studio. He is clearly excited to be back behind a microphone and in rare form. Gary and Roscoe revisit some favorite topics such as, "Where are the Movie Stars?" and a new shark attack on Cape Cod. Roscoe shares his favorite news story of prior week about a woman in a stolen car trying to elude police in (where else?) Florida, by jumping into a pasture with a herd of cows, who then take chase. You cannot make this stuff up. We talk about the recent passing of the great Aretha Franklin. In 2008, Rolling Stone named her the greatest singer of the rock era, ahead of Ray Charles, Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, and John Lennon. Check out this list! Friend of the show David Cromer will be appearing on Broadway in The Waverly Gallery this fall with Elaine May, Joan Allen, Michael Ceres, and Lucas Hedges. It previews on September 27 and opens October 27. We were already planning a trip to see Alexandra Billings in her Broadway debut in The Nap, but now have two great reasons to venture east. We have been invited to appear on After Hours with Rick Kogan on August 26. If you miss hearing it live, we'll post the link to the recording on our next episode. Both Gary and Roscoe recommend the book Something Wonderful, Rogers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution. Kiss of Death: Patricia Morison Learn about the actress Cole Porter discovered for his Broadway Production of Kiss Me Kate, who recently died at 103. From her NYT obituary: "The critics loved both her and the show — Brooks Atkinson of The New York Times praised her as “an agile and humorous actress who is not afraid of slapstick and who can sing enchantingly” — and so did the public."      

We welcome the remarkably talented actress and stage director Cecelia Wingate to Booth One this week. Hailing from Memphis, TN, Cecelia is a driving force in the vibrant theater scene there. Gary recalls seeing her breathtaking performance in Chicago in the marvelous new play by Evan Linder Byhalia, Mississippi directed by Tyrone Phillips a couple of seasons ago, a performance for which Cecelia won a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Supporting Actress. Here is a photo from the triumphant opening night at Steppenwolf, which we were so lucky to get to be part of. Cecelia recounts her upbringing in the South, from Georgia to Mississippi to Tennessee. Frank and Gary comment on her smooth and sexy southern drawl, an accent that Americans find the most appealing, according to a YouGov Poll. In aquatic news this week, a trio of thieves pulled off a "shark-napping" at a Texas aquarium by disguising the stolen horn shark as a baby and wheeling it out in a stroller. Known as Miss Helen, the relatively harmless 1.5 foot creature was eventually found in a mock-up aquarium in a local garage and returned unharmed to her home tank. The two men and one woman heist-ers are being held on charges of theft in a San Antonio jail. Before her tremendously successful career as a director took off, Cecelia was the founder and one of four lead singers in a band called The Bouffants for 21 years. The "Premier Party Band of the South", the group has played throughout the United States, including New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Minneapolis. The troupe started out as a girl-group cover band but has since added R&B, Motown and classic Rock & Roll to their repertoire. There's no current plan for a reunion of the original members, but Cecelia won't rule out a comeback should the circumstances arise. We give a shout out to our friend Christine McHugh, who will perform her one-woman show Parents Must Be Dead at the Greenhouse Theater Center, Chicago, on Thursday, August 30. When her parents died within three years of each other she thought she had weathered this milestone life passage as an adult with some measure of ease and grace. Little did she know that the death of parents comes in many forms and with many reverberations. Some of them seismic. In her solo show, Christine explores this landscape that all of us will eventually navigate with raw humor and tender vulnerability. Click here for tickets and information. Cecelia's Porch is a Memphis institution, where creative types and artists gather for informal dialogue, exchange of ideas and just plain fun. Open 365 days a year, it's a come-as-you-are drop-in destination. BYOB and food but be prepared for anything to happen, including singalongs with the neighbors. Gary, Frank, and Betsy are considering a field trip to Memphis to check out this Bloomsbury Group of the South. The boys and Cecelia play a few rounds of Chat Pack, where we learn about the things that make them happiest, and what they'd like to have delivered to their homes each morning. Listeners are reminded that for a donation of $100 or more to the Booth One non-profit in support of fascinating guests and scintillating conversation, legendary journalist and radio host Rick Kogan (Episode 82 guest) will provide an autographed copy of his true-crime book Everybody Pays. Just click the "Donate" button on our website for a quick and easy contribution. Thank you to those of you who have already donated. Your book is on the way!And it's a thriller. Kiss of Death Kathy Kriger - 'Madame Rick' at her Casablanca Cafe During her stint with the American Diplomatic Service, Ms. Kriger found that Rick's Cafe, the cinematic gin joint from the 1942 movie Casablanca, did not actually exist. So she opened her own Rick's Cafe in a converted house in Casablanca's old city, creating "a sanctuary of tolerance," which she felt the cinematic night club represented. Ms. Kriger said that Rick's had been good for her.

Legendary Chicago newspaperman, radio host, and author Rick Kogan joins us in the Booth to share some great stories and lively conversation. He's a big fan of our show and has listened to a number of past episodes that he's told us are terrific. High praise from a master interviewer who was a close friend of Studs Terkel and is carrying on in his brilliant tradition. Rick says he may be our only guest so far who has gotten drunk in the original Booth One at the Pump Room back when real movie stars sat there. Check out the list here. Rick talks about growing up in a remarkable family - his father, legendary author and journalist Herman Kogan; his mother, reporter and publicist Marilew; and his brother, major league rock band tour manager Mark. He tells us an amazing story about Mark, Elvis and Sinatra. Their parents met at Riccardo's, a restaurant behind the Wrigley Building, and he is named Rick (not Richard) after the owner. A legendary hang out for newspaper people, artists, and musicians, our producer spent some time there back in the day just to eavesdrop on the always interesting conversations. He talks about the kind of people who were hanging around his parents' apartment growing up. A list that includes Studs & Ida Terkel, Nelson Algren, Marcel Marceau, and Mort Sahl. Can you imagine? We learn about his early career driving a cab, then moving to Spain and eventually submitting a travel piece about Dover, England to the Tribune, which sold for the then thrilling price of $160. He returned to Chicago and began an incredible career in journalism. Gary announces that on August 1st, the National Comedy Center will open in Jamestown, NY, the birthplace of Lucille Ball. Check out this video that will make you want to visit. Frank is an expert on Lucy, and will probably be going to represent. One of the cool things is that on a touch screen, you create a "sense of humor profile" to personalize your experience. They have acquired the archives of a very impressive array of comedians, including Lenny Bruce and George Carlin. Gary asks Rick about favorite guests on his radio show. He starts with Studs Terkel, who was not just the all-time great interviewer, but also a really fun guest. They talk about the WFMT Studs Terkel archive and Rick describes a favorite - Studs interviewing a very young Bob Dylan. You don't want to miss his spot-on impression of Studs and hilarious summary of the episode. The digital audio of this is not yet public, but will be soon. Rick graciously invites us to come on his radio show, After Hours, which airs on Sunday nights from 9:00 - 11:00pm CST on WGN. What an honor! The boys are excited about this opportunity. A Red Orchid Theatre is currently running a Eugene Ionesco play called Victims of Duty, a lesser known work not often produced. It stars a wonderful group of actors, including Michael Shannon and AROT co-founder Guy Van Swearingen. It's an absurdist play that deals with memories and the concept of "non-theatre". Gary and Frank admit to being somewhat puzzled by the play's themes and structure, but praise the performances and the production design by Danila Korogodsky along with excellent direction by Shira Piven. Running through August 5, this show will keep you laughing, guessing and thinking. And pondering the absurdities of life and love. Rick regales us with tales of baseball, Riverview amusement park, Mike Royko, John Wayne, and Bushman the gorilla. We discuss his fascinating true-crime book Everybody Pays, co-authored with Maurice Possley. A real page-turner and we are hoping destined for a movie deal some day. One of the most generous people we've ever met, Rick tells our listeners that he will send a signed copy of Everybody Pays to anyone who donates $100 or more to the Booth One non-profit. So look for the Donate button on our web site and receive your free book! In addition to writing columns and stories for the Chicago Tribune,

Gary and Frank catch up and discuss a couple of recent theatrical viewings. First off, we get an inside look at Frank's eastern European trip which took him away from Booth One for a couple of episodes. He tells of his experiences in Warsaw, Krakow, Prague, Vienna and Budapest, how the architecture and city centers have changed, and why Prague is one of the most stunning cities he's ever visited. He is grateful to friend of the show and two-time guest, Stuart Dybek, for his great suggestions for things to do in Prague. He also let us know that Warsaw is booming and beautiful. While on the continent, Frank sampled a Porn Star Martini, ate at iconic local restaurants, and ogled the naked people on building facades in Prague. Other than Vienna, the entire trip was a bargain and the direct flights on LOT between both Warsaw and Budapest & Chicago made travel a breeze. A trip that Frank highly recommends.   The boys visited the Steppenwolf Theatre to view their new main stage show The Roommate, featuring knock-out performances from Ora Jones and Sandra Marquez, both Steppenwolf ensemble members. Written by the up and coming and very talented playwright Jen Silverman and directed by Phylicia Rashad, The Roommate is a comedy/drama centered around two women who become housemates somewhere in Iowa. Gary and Frank share their thoughts and opinions on the play, and suggest that it is perfect summer fare for those seeking a great night out at the theater. The Roommate runs through August 5. We discuss writer-performer Amanda Duarte's Guide to Theater Etiquette. Standing, talking, eating, drinking, clapping and cell phones are among the topics she shares her opinions on in this New York Time Out article. Enjoy. Next up is our take on The Cher Show, which recently had its pre-Broadway tryout here in Chicago at the Oriental Theatre. Containing 35 hit songs and a flurry of thrilling Bob Mackie gowns, this biographical musical gives us three versions of Cher - Babe, Lady and Star - at different points in her life and career. Played by three actresses - Micaela Diamond (in her professional debut), Teal Wicks, and the always amazing Stephanie J. Block - the show is framed as a TV special being made about Cher's life. The three "Chers" interact with each other throughout, even having musical numbers as a trio, something Gary found to be an oddly disconcerting choice by the writers. Nevertheless, the opening night audience was very responsive and cheered wildly at many of the show's high points and at the curtain call. By the way, Jarrod Spector as Sonny is marvelous. Both Frank and Gary feel there is a bit of work to be done by the creative staff prior to the November 1 preview at the Neil Simon Theatre in New York. But they agree that they were highly entertained and that the show has great promise. Especially considering the box office success of the current Summer - The Donna Summer Musical now on Broadway. Kiss of Death: Gillian Lynne - Choreographer of Cats and The Phantom of the Opera The renowned British ballerina who turned choreographer created the sinuous dances in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats. Gillian Barbara Pyrke began dancing at an early age and by 15, was dancing at the Ballet Guild, whose artistic director gave her a new surname. She appeared in films, onstage and on television throughout the 1950s, and choreographed The Roar of the Greasepaint - the Smell of the Crowd in 1965 on Broadway. This past June, the New London Theater, where Cats opened in 1981, was renamed for Ms. Lynne. She was carried to the stage on a golden throne surrounded by dancers from the musical. Gillian Lynne was 92. Read the full NYT obit here.  

Today we welcome to the Booth acclaimed artist, author, and actor Tony Fitzpatrick, and his son and podcast partner, Max. They are quite a team. Max also manages Adventureland Gallery at 1513 N. Western. Where there is great art and free beer! Tony's stunning drawing collages can be found in museums such as MOMA and Chicago's MCA, along with a lot of private collections. He has also done cover art for many musicians, including friend of the show Steve Earle, jazz saxaphonist Frank Catalano, Ike Reilly and Sarah Borges. Tony has amazing taste in music, so check out these brilliant artists. In 2009, New City magazine named Tony Fitzpatrick the "best iconic Chicago personality now that Studs Terkel is gone." That is quite an honor and we agree. Tony and his son are now producing a great podcast called The Max & Tony Show. Tony has lots of radio experience from doing a show on the Loop and Max brings a lot to the table as a younger actor and producer. They have amazing friends who often appear on the show. Check it out. We talk about all the opportunities we now have in the very personal medium of podcasting. Tony is hilarious making fun of us who are Cubs fans for bringing up our world series win every chance we get. He is a long time White Sox fan. Steven Conrad, creator of the television show Patriot, tapped Tony to play a wonderful character named Jack Birdbath. Not only is it an amazing show, but Max and Tony describe a creative process that sounds like a dream come true. AND...they filmed season two in Paris! Max was able to be on set every day and get a "master class in acting for camera." Not too shabby. Check out season 2 in the fall. Tony can do it all. When Gary asked him about that he said, "I've always found that the best respite from one creative pursuit is another one. Which is why I've always written poetry....A good, nimble, and limber way to keep yourself engaged creatively all the time." Tony recently published Dime Stories, a collection of columns and drawings he did for New City. He reads the first piece, about bird watchers, for us. What a treat! How about this description from the great Chicago filmmaker, Andrew Davis: "This brilliant view into the wild world of Tony Fitzpatrick will move you. His art is astounding and relevant, his writing gutsy, funny, and unafraid. In the tradition of the the great Chicago and Illinois icons—Terkel, Twain, Royko, and Sandberg—Tony Fitzpatrick takes on the phonies and con men and elevates the humanity in us all. From beautiful birds to bar room brawls, Dime Stories exemplifies the work of a true renaissance man. Grab this book and cherish it." —Andrew Davis, director of The Fugitive, Code of Silence, and Holes Gary mentions Tony's prescient column about Donald "Chump," written in 2014. Another good one to check out. Have you heard about the League of Kitchens? They are cooking workshops led by immigrants in their homes. An immersive experience. You leave with a booklet of their family recipes and a shopping guide. What could be better? Max, who is the manager of Adventurleand, talks about the joy he feels making things happen for artists. Tony tells us about creating posters as part of his activism, the most recent for the women's refugee project. "The most potent thing I can do with my particular skill set." We appreciate this so much, Tony! Michele and Tony's daughter Gaby is living in Greece, receiving and helping rafts of refugees from Syria. What a family. Kiss of Death: Bill Gold Gary celebrates the life of Bill Gold who designed more than 2000 movie posters. Read his amazing legacy here. What a legend!              

Long time friend and Gary's collaborator on the legendary Klub Kokomo joins us in the Booth to talk about that amazing production and his career as an actor, director, producer, and coach to trial lawyers. Richard directed and Gary was the stage manager for Paul Stanley's production of this wild show in 2000. Read about it here. Our producer was there and has never seen anything like it. A few highlights: They transformed the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts into a nightclub. The show was environmental and interactive (including working bars). Mark Lindsay of Paul Revere and the Raiders fame played a 15 minute set at each intermission. Wish you could have seen it. Richard draws on his background as a theatre artist to train lawyers on presentation skills for the courtroom and depositions. In his business, Speaking Legally, he works with partner Kevin Theis  (episode 58) on coaching performance skills. Chicago Litigation Consultants brings actors into law firms or law schools to portray clients or witnesses to train lawyers in trial practice. Sounds like fun and interesting work. Gary asks him if he's ever had a hopeless case. No, but Richard describes a very interesting challenging client. Thanks once again to awesome friend of the show, Nancy Needles, we learned about an amazing "Urban Glamping Experience" at The Gwen Hotel here in Chicago. You must check out the glamorous details. We think $5,500 per night is extreme, even if you are allowed to share it among 7 people. Still, it's a fun thing to imagine doing. Gary tells us about our friend Jennifer Engstrom's marvelous performance doing exerpts from her Dorothy Parker show at A Red Orchid's fund raiser (which we attended the night after she was on the show).  Jennifer is the real deal, in so many ways. We were thrilled to get to witness some of Frank's mentorship of Jen in action. Richard is an official Tony award voter - first on our show! He and Gary did some fun predictions and we will let you know how that went. Big love to The Band's Visit! A heartfelt thank you to Carnegie Mellon and the Broadway League for recognizing Melody Herzfeld, the remarkable drama teacher at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas high school, with a Tony award. Will write more about that next episode. We, like so so many others, loved Rachel Rockwell. The point of this part of our show is to celebrate and honer someone we admired. Listen to his lovely tribute that includes some beautiful quotes about who she was and her work from her dear friend and collaborator, Rick Boynton, as well as from her dad. Read Chris Jones' obituary here. We were fortunate to be able to spend an afternoon with her as our guest on episode 57.                    

The endlessly fascinating Jennifer Engstrom graces us in the Booth today. Jen is a long-time ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theatre (as is our last guest, playwright Brett Neveu). She has appeared in over a dozen productions there and at many other great Chicago theaters (as well as in productions in London and New York). She grew up on a farm outside of Huxley, Iowa and made her way to the big city via the College of DuPage theatre program, where she soon became active in the speech department. And who coached and encouraged her in a career in the performing arts? None other than our own Frank Tourangeau! Frank was a professor and head of the speech department during Jennifer's time there and served as her mentor and teacher. Frank relates how he cast her in the play Whose Life is it Anyway? as the lead made famous on Broadway and the West End by Tom Conti, and revived some years later with Mary Tyler Moore in the starring role. By all accounts, Jen was luminous in the part. BTW, when Gary was working in Emanuel Azenberg's office, he was a stand-in for Tom Conti for several rehearsals on the Broadway production. In addition to her numerous acting roles, Jennifer has had an interesting career as an understudy around Chicago. We discuss her going on as Blanche DuBois at the last minute in a Writers Theatre production of A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by David Cromer. Though she knew the blocking and the lines well, her costumes had not been finished and there was a mad scramble to devise a proper wardrobe track for that performance (which Gary and producer Betsy were privileged to see!). She also stepped in for Amy Morton in the Steppenwolf Theatre production of Taylor Mac's HIR when Ms. Morton turned her ankle on stage prior to the first preview. Jennifer had learned all the lines and after a rushed blocking rehearsal, kept the curtain up for the first preview audience in stellar fashion. To quote the wonderful stage manager, Laura Glenn, "She was a total professional and I was so grateful she was there." Among Jennifer's favorite playwrights are Tennessee Williams, Edward Albee and newcomer Jen Silverman, whose play Witch will get a world premiere production at Writers Theatre in the fall. Two items of show biz interest - The Play That Goes Wrong is closing on Broadway in August. One of the most hilarious shows that Gary and Frank have ever seen, a national tour is scheduled so don't miss this gem of a show if it comes to your town. And the five-and-a-half hour adaptation of Roberto Bolano's mammoth novel 2066 can be seen on streaming video soon. In an unusual arrangement, a filmed version of the Goodman Theatre's production will be available free, unlimited streaming for at least two years. Frank was a big fan of this production. You may have to watch in installments given it's extraordinary length, but you're unlikely to see another production of it anywhere any time soon. Jennifer has created and performs a one-woman show called Excuse My Dust, A Dorothy Parker Portfolio, in which she embodies the writer and humorist in an evening of theatrical monologues from Parker's writings. Dorothy Parker was an original member of the Algonquin Round Table and a unique coiner of the cutting remark. Gary and Betsy are going to the Red Orchid spring fundraiser at which Jennifer is performing selections from Excuse My Dust. More to report on our next episode. We play a little Chat Pack with Jennifer and find that she would like to be a rock star for a month, a la Beyonce. And people often ask her how she learns all those lines! Kiss of Death: Anne V. Coates, Admired Editor of Acclaimed Movies One of the most celebrated film editors of her era, Ms. Coates won an Oscar for her work on Lawrence of Arabia directed by David Lean and starring Peter O'Toole. The film editor's craft is often called "the invisible art," but is one of the most vital ingredients in the alchemy of filmmaking.

We were thrilled to welcome Brett Neveu to the booth just two days after being in the audience for the press opening of his marvelous new play, To Catch A Fish at Timeline Theatre. This production, masterfully directed by Ron OJ Parson, features one of the best ensemble casts we've ever seen, with standout performances by  Geno Walker, Al'Jaleel McGhee, Tiffany Addison, and Linda Bright Clay. We recently saw Al'Jaleel and Linda in Antoinette Nwandu's Breach at Victory Gardens. What a treat to see their work again so soon! Based on a true news story set in Milwaukee, Brett's play is about family and love and explores different types of love in a profound and very moving way. Timeline's 99 seat theatre makes for an intimate experience.  All the seats are good. The show runs through July 1 and is an absolute must see! This play came out of the Playwrights Collective at Timeline, which sounds like a very cool process for the writers. Brett, like our friend and recent guest Stuart Dybek, teaches writing at Northwestern University. He teaches classes in writing plays, television, and films. We are hoping to sit in on a class! Brett is a member of A Red Orchid's ensemble and has done 10 world premieres there. He has been interviewed by Booth One friend and guest, Mark Larson, for his book about Ensemble in Chicago Theatre and shares some of his insights about being part of an ensemble. A Red Orchid's theatre space is quite small and intimate, which sparks Brett's inspiration. As he says, "It challenges the actors and audience to communicate in a dangerous and interesting way." He studied writing at the University of Iowa along with some other amazing playwrights who are his good friends, such as Rebecca Gilman and Naomi Wallace. Brett plays in a band called The Last Afternoons. Multi-talented much? Kiss of Death: Florence Berman:         What a story! Florence Berman and her husband Maurie, started SuperDawg in 1948 as a way to pay the bills as they were going through school at Northwestern. All these years later, it is iconic. And we are happy to report that Brett Neveau and his daughter consider it to be an all-time favorite place. Read her beautiful obit by Maureen O'Donnell here.

Gary reports on the wonderful time we had at the Writers Theatre Gala at the Four Seasons. We were guests of Mary Pat & Andy Studdert. It was such a fun evening, featuring sensational entertainment with a Motown theme. Our table mates were all a blast, including great Chicago actor, Rob Lindley. Gary also profiles Mary Pat, who is Booth One's Creative Consultant. We met her doing a live podcast at Writers during their production of Company. Hear excerpts from that event on episode 39. Mary Pat was in the audience and was excellent at the Sondheim trivia contest. She's been a friend, fan, and extremely helpful advisor ever since. She is also a magnificent photographer and has taken some unforgettable shots of elephants (our favorite) in Africa as well other wildlife and nature photos. She mounts these photos on greeting cards and has started to make boxed sets. Mary Pat is launching a business with these cards as well as totally unique gift tags (also made from the photos). You'll be the first to hear how you can purchase those. Speaking of photos, Peggy Vagenius, who shot Gary and Betsy's wedding (beautifully and was so much fun!), is in the studio to do a photo shoot with Gary and Frank (their first together). "The Cher Show" is running in Chicago from June 12 - July 15 before moving to Broadway. Frank is a huge fan and has tickets for July 1st. We look forward to his report! Did you know that Cher's Mom was an actress who appeared on "I Love Lucy"? The episode he describes which was filmed in Paris sounds fabulous! Check out Georgia Holt's Wiki. What a story! For starters, her mother was 13 when she had her. Stormy Daniels is coming to the Admiral in Chicago in June as part of her current strip club tour. Gary is hoping to go and do a remote broadcast. Details to follow. Frank will be in Prague, so GZ will be looking for another date. We talk about the ritual of "The Gypsy Robe", a great Broadway tradition for long-serving chorus members. Check out the really interesting description of the rules here. Frank has a good friend Brian O'Brien, who has been a robe recipient! Basking sharks have recently been seen aggregating in the Atlantic from Nova Scotia to Long Island. They are HUGE, but Gary of course does not believe they are not dangerous to humans. One of our listeners, Mary Lesch, has been spotted wearing a T-shirt that says, "Lake Michigan - no sharks".  Another statement Gary is leery about. Frank reviews a play called "Women Alone Laughing Eating Salad", which features his friend and former student Jen Engstrom, someone we have long admired for her work as an ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theatre and with director David Cromer. Frank recommends it highly. Running through May 12. Kiss of Death: Milos Forman, One of Gary's heroes! "A filmmaker who challenged Hollywood with his subversive touch and twice directed movies that won the Oscar for best picture, died on Friday in a hospital in Danbury, Conn. He was 86."      

Booth One proudly welcomes back to the program writer and teacher Stuart Dybek. Stuart previously appeared on Episode 37, where he spoke about the art of the short story and his approach and inspirations for writing fiction and poetry. During that podcast, Stuart referenced a number of notable stories that have come out of his Northwestern University undergraduate writing course called "Fabulous Fiction." Here is the NU course description: ENG 307 – Advanced Creative Writing: Fabulous Fiction Course Description: Fabulous Fiction focuses on writing that departs from realism. Often the subject matter of such writing explores states of mind that are referred to as non-ordinary reality. A wide variety of genres and sub-genres fall under this heading: fabulism, myth, fairy tales, fantasy, science fiction, speculative fiction, horror, the grotesque, the supernatural, surrealism, etc. The aim in 307 is to discern and employ writing techniques that overarch these various genres, to study the subject through doing—by writing your own fabulist stories. Many of these genres overlap. For instance, they are all rooted in the tale, a kind of story that goes back to primitive sources. They all speculate: they ask the question, What If? They all are stories that demand invention, which, along with the word transformation, will be a key term in the course. The invention might be a monster, a method of time travel, an alien world, etc., but with rare exceptions the story will demand an invention and that invention will often also be the central image of the story. In discussing how these stories work we will also be learning some of the most basic, primitive moves in storytelling. To get you going I will be bringing in exercises that employ fabulist techniques and hopefully will promote stories. These time-tested techniques will be your entrances—your rabbit holes and magic doorways—into the figurative. You will be asked to keep a dream journal, which will serve as basis for one of the exercises. Besides the exercises, two full-length stories will be required, as well as written critiques of one another's work. Because we all serve to make up an audience for the writer, attendance is mandatory. This time, Stuart has brought two short stories written by Fabulous Fictions students - "Come Up Here" by Rex Shannon and "Mirror" by Katilin Jennrich - and we offer the rare and thrilling treat of having Stuart reading these works during the episode. First, though, we discuss Frank's recent trip to downstate Illinois where he judged the State Drama Finals in Peoria. While there at the Civic Center, Frank stumbled upon the National Alpaca Show presented by the Alpaca Owners Association. After spending time among these furry animals, Frank is now somewhat of an expert in types and breeds. No souvenirs were brought back, but Frank does have a new-found appreciation for these warm and fuzzy creatures. Gary is happy to say that the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities have been refunded by Congress, despite the efforts of the Trump White House to gut these cultural organizations, which as Stuart says are critical to our humanity. Both endowments saw a slight increase of about $3 million dollars in their funding levels, to about $153 million dollars each for the fiscal year. Great news indeed for these necessary and vital organizations and the art institutions they support. Read more about this story here. Stuart discusses in detail some of the key tenets of his course, including the universal themes of fairy tales along with the use of  magic objects and magic portal concept. He tells us that the active use of "symbolism" be restricted to the reader, not the writer. Stuart believes reading is a separate and equally important art form from writing. As in Episode 37, Stuart talks about "transformation" being a key term in his course and how it is the cornestone of fiction writing.

Gary welcomes back to the Booth author Mark Larson, whose oral history is a chronicle of the past, present and future of Chicago Theatre. Having recently turned in his manuscript to date, Mark had interviews come through with Pulitzer Prize winning playwright and actor Tracy Letts, and actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus. It truly is a never ending story. Julia attended Northwestern University and worked briefly at Second City before being scooped up by Lorne Michaels for Saturday Night Live, along with her husband Brad Hall and the two other members of their storefront Practical Theater Company. Four people asked at once is remarkable. Check out some footage of this here. Woven throughout this update of Mark's progress on his book, "Ensemble - An Oral History of Chicago Theatre" are anecdotes and quotes from amazing artists about what it's like to have Chicago roots. And how the fun part was really before big success for many of them. Gary and Mark also discuss seeing recent productions of Traitor at A Red Orchid, An Enemy of the People at the Goodman, and The Beauty Queen of Lenane at Northlight. Michael Shannon directed Brett Neveu's Traitor, which was an adaptation of Enemy of the People. Mark describes the trip the audience took for this performance and we are very sorry to have missed it. He also talks about Michael, who was a major supporting actor in Best Picture award winning movie, The Shape of Water, skipping the Oscars to come to the closing night performance of Traitor, then watching the awards on mute at the legendary Old Town Ale House. Gary and Mark talk about theatre in these times of Trump. Mark points us to an excellent article in the New York Times in which Rachel Schteir describes several productions of An Enemy of the People as "timely as a tweet." Mark will teach a seminar to the 10 winners of the Golden Apple awards. If you haven't read about this amazing project, started by Mike and Pat Koldyke, it is absolutely inspiring. Speaking of inspiration, Mark was blown away when he sat in on one of Studs Terkel's interviews at WFMT. His astonishing archive of radio interviews, what Gary and Mark call "A walk through the 20th century" will be available to the public on May 16. The website will be studsterkel.org. Gary shares a New Yorker Talk of the Town piece about Extreme Theater Goer and hoarder of shows, Joanne Veniziano, along with excellent commentary from friend of the show, Nancy Needles. Mark speaks eloquently about Emma Gonzalez and the other student speakers at March for our Lives. Listen and watch these breathtaking speeches. Kiss Of Death: Russ Solomon, Founder of Tower Records. His legacy was so great for so many of us. Read his NYT obit here.                

Aerialist, circus performer and actor Javen Ulambayar visits Booth One this week with Gary and Frank, as we celebrate our 3rd Anniversary on the air! Javen is a native of Mongolia and emigrated to the United States when he was 17 with his parents. His mother is world-famous contortionist Oyunchimeg "Oyuna" Yadamjav, one of Mongolia's most decorated contortionists, winner of the Silver Clown Award at the International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo. Javen became interested in the circus arts only after moving to the US, where he first studied at the famous Circus Juventas school in St. Paul, MN. After receiving a degree in Kinesiology from the University of Minnesota, Javen continued his training and has been hooked on circus performance ever since. Now a resident of Skokie, IL and a faculty member at the famed Actors Gymnasium in Evanston, Javen's specialties are the Straps and the Chinese Pole. He put both these skills to remarkable use while performing in the Lookingglass Theatre's production of Moby Dick. Javen was integral to incorporating circus arts into the production, working with Moby Dick's choreographer Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi and Lookingglass director, David Catlin. Sylvia and David have both been featured guests on Booth One. Gary and Frank discuss the new Antoinette Nwandu play Breach, which they just saw at Victory Gardens Theatre. Nwandu describes the play as "a love letter to black women." From the author of the recent Steppenwolf play Pass Over, Nwandu's Breach is a funny, moving and revealing look at the life of a young black woman as she navigates the ups and downs of relationships and life. With marvelous and memorable characters, she takes us along as Margaret "recovers from self-hate" (from the sub-title). Beautifully staged by director Lisa Portes, Breach cements Nwandu's reputation as one of America's best emerging playwrights. She recently won the 2017-2018 Paula Vogel Playwriting Award. This production runs through March 11 and is highly recommended. Listen to a great interview with Antoinette and Pass Over Director Danya Taymor on episode 59 of Booth One. Honorable mention goes to the August Wilson Monologue Competition, held at The Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place. The regional competition is open to all students from Chicago Area High Schools. Producer Betsy Ingram reports that all 21 competitors were stellar! The number one and two finishers will be competing in the National Finals held at the August Wilson Theatre on Broadway on May 7 and are open to the public. Best of luck to these two wonderful performers who will represent Chicago. Friend of the show and previous guest Robert Cornelius coached Chisom Chima, who finished second and he is ecstatic for her. We break out the Chat Pack for a couple of rounds of probing questions. Kiss of Death: Rick McKay, Who Documented Memories of Broadway. Mr. McKay recorded hundreds of hours of interviews with dozens of actors about their recollections of New York theater, turning them into the 2004 documentary "Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There". Click here to see the remarkable list of people he interviewed. McKay was a convivial, sympathetic interviewer, getting stars like Bea Arthur, Shirley MacLaine, Carol Burnett and Angela Lansbury to open up about their lives, always making it about them and their stories. Rick McKay was 62.    

It's Oscar season, and Gary and Frank delve into the nominees, snubs and surprises for the 90th Annual Academy Awards. On a sad note, Gary announces that our dear Roscoe, founding co-host, will not be re-joining us in the Booth any time soon. Life happens and Roscoe continues to deal with some health challenges. We are wishing him the best and hope he can appear as a guest sometime soon. Gary gets down on one knee to propose to Frank Tourangeau that he becomes our new permanent co-host. And guess what? He said "Yes"! Frank is the best and we hope you enjoy this partnership. BTW, Frank was our producers's theater mentor...How lucky are we that he is willing to be our new co-host. Though snubbed for Best Director consideration this year for The Post, Steven Spielberg has announced a casting call for a remake of the classic musical, West Side Story. All you aspiring Marias, Tonys, Bernardos and Anitas, get yourselves out to Hollywood and you too could make movie history by starring in the new Tony Kushner adaptation. Jets and Sharks wanted! We address the recent dismissal of long-time (34 years!) Chicago Sun-Times theatre critic Hedy Weiss. Sun-Times officials are apparently not going to replace this position, and instead use stringers and freelancers to cover the theatre scene in Chicago moving forward. This will undoubtedly result in reduced coverage for off-Loop companies and those trying to create a niche for themselves. This is a void that we at Booth One are anxious to fill with more episodes devoted to the burgeoning Chicago theatre scene and the artists who create it. But the crux of today's episode is devoted to reviewing the Oscar nominees and those that missed out. Frank and Gary have seen all the nominated Best Pictures and several other films of note throughout the year.  We cover the following categories: Best Actor and Actress in a Leading Role Best Actor and Actress in a Supporting Role Best Director Best Adapted Screenplay Best Original Screenplay Best Picture We do our best to give our listeners a glimpse into each nomination, and our personal takes on what we think and who we feel will win. Frank's own favorite picture is Call Me by Your Name, though he's skeptical about it winning the big one. Gary's choices are Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and Get Out. The Shape of Water appears to be the current front runner. Gary's biggest snub? Holly Hunter in The Big Sick. Frank's? Martin McDonagh as best director for Three Billboards. And they both agree that I, Tonya was robbed of a Best Picture nomination. Kiss of Death Bob Smith - Widely regarded as the first openly gay comic to perform on "The Tonight Show" Mr. Smith's humor was gentle but smart. What he brought to his stand-up comedy was the point of view of a gay man that wasn't a victim, wasn't the butt of the joke. He was making the joke. Born and raised in Buffalo, Mr. Smith made his groundbreaking appearance on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" in July 1994. He had the audience laughing from the start. Bob Smith succumbed to Lou Gehrig's Disease. He was just 59. Read his remarkable obituary here.  

Actresses Delia Kropp and Penny Slusher join Gary and Frank in the Booth this week. Penny, a longtime favorite of ours, recently appeared in the Steppenwolf Theatre production of The Minutes, the new play from Tracy Letts. Delia was seen last season in a remarkable re-imagining of the Doug Wright play I Am My Own Wife at About Face Theatre, where the 30 characters were played by four actors rather than just one. Hers was a tour-de-force performance as Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, born Lothar Berfelde, who survived the Nazi and Communist regimes in East Berlin as a transgender woman, and the first time the role had been played by a transgender actress. Listen to hear the great story about how and why Delia proposed changing the way this Tony & Pulitzer prize winning play was presented. Penny talks about growing up in Bristol, Tennessee, the "birthplace of country music", and the one-woman show she is writing about her childhood experiences and the extended family that raised her. With a working title of "A Porch Song", Penny hopes to capture the essence of Appalachian Bristol and her amazing upbringing among an apartment building full of relatives. Including her Memaw, who was the best friend of Mother Maybelle Carter. Click on the Bristol link above to read about all the cool things happening there. Penny is an acting and auditioning coach with an approach that sounds like it would be not just effective, but fun too. She also does Intuitive Readings, using her innate gift for intuition and the things she learned watching her grandmother do "fortune telling." She is down to earth and positive about people's opportunities and challenges. If you'd like to schedule a session with Penny, go to www.pennyslusher.com and send her an email. Readings are usually done in her home, and she hopes you like cats (she has 2!). Delia speaks candidly about her gender transition, her 10-year hiatus from acting, and the types of roles and opportunities she is now pursuing. Having known Penny since 1991, Delia credits her with helping ease and facilitate her transition, particularly within the Chicago theatre community. The group discusses gender in casting. Here at Booth One, we wonder whether there might be a place for Delia on Amazon's Transparent alongside her friend, the brilliant Alexandra Billings. Delia is at work on an exciting web project to help trans and cisgender theater artists to meet. An online resource site for actors and other members of creative teams to learn about each other. Find out more about Delia on her website Therealdelia.com. Though we didn't talk about it on the episode, part of our Booth One research was to watch a great National Geographic documentary called The Gender Revolution. It is just excellent and we learned so much. Highly recommended! Kiss of Death: Mary Adelman, Fixer of Broken Typewriters, Owner of Osner Business Machines For decades, Mrs. Adelman's shop was an emergency room for typists with bent keys, problematic platens and ruined ribbons. She attended to the typewriters of Isaac Bashivas Singer, David Mamet, Nora Ephron, Philip Roth, Joseph Heller, Peter Shaffer and Murray Schisgal. The shop at 393 Amsterdam Avenue became an Upper West Side fixture in the lives of people desperate to keep the words flowing, and Mrs. Adelman was its centerpiece. "Every time you’d go there, it was always filled with people, that little shop — crammed with people,” one longtime customer, the playwright Peter Shaffer, the author of “Equus,” said in 2001. “It was like the cabin scene in ‘A Night at the Opera.’ You couldn’t get in the door.” She was 89. Read James Barron's full NYT Obit here.    

Gary and Frank welcome two of the great leaders of Chicago's Pride Films & Plays to Booth One. Nelson Rodriguez is Artistic Director of Pride Films and Plays. Filmmaker Dan Pal is running the Pride Film Fest, which happens on the second Tuesday of each month. Check out the line-up for February's festival here. Pride Films and Plays brings a 4-show season of excellent LGBTQ programming to the Chicago theatre community. Housed at the Pride Arts Center at 4139 N. Broadway, PFP also hosts the aforementioned Pride Film Fest and rents its two spaces to other theater companies. Dan Pal is an award-winning filmmaker and professor at DePaul and Moraine Valley Community College. Check out his website to see the fabulous Scotty & Josh trilogy and more. Here is Dan winning an award for his direction of Counting, which is the first film produced by Pride Films & Plays. It is on the festival circuit now and headed to the Santa Fe Film Festival in February, where it will open for Melanie Mayron's new movie. We got a chance to screen this beautiful and moving short film. We'll keep you posted when it becomes available to the public. Nelson recently starred in a feature film called En Algun Lugar, which we can't wait to see. He has performed in a one-man show depicting 7 gay immigrant characters called "Men on the Verge of a His-Panic Nervous Breakdown." Would love to see this and hoping for a remount. Nelson has been featured as one of "30 Under 30" in the Windy City Times. Looking forward to all he will continue to bring to our community. Pride Films and Plays was founded by David Zak, longtime artistic director of Bailiwick, who brought us so many memorable productions, including The Christmas Schooner, in which Roscoe, our founding co-host, created the role of Gus. Chita Rivera and Seth Rudetsky did what sounded like an amazing show at Steppenwolf. We had to miss because of a conflict, but sent our friends and loyal listeners with only one request: that they write a short review. Gary shares the a few observations made by Virginia Gerst, Nancy Needles, and Kay Ellwein. We appreciate the excellent reporting and wish we'd been there with you. BTW, we interviewed Chita in episode 32. Check it out. Frank Tourangeau, our new regular guest host, geeks out on I Love Lucy in a fascinating way. If you didn't already know how the DesiLu empire started, you'll hear it on this show. They also invented the rerun. Geniuses both. Kiss of Death: We close each episode with a tribute to a fascinating person who has recently passed away. Learn about Johnny Fox, sword swallower. Ick. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/19/obituaries/johnny-fox-sword-swallowing-showman-dies-at-64.html                      

Mentor, Educator and Theatre aficionado Frank Tourangeau (Episode 54) returns and joins Gary as this week's co-host in the Booth. Gary and Betsy have just returned from a glorious Thanksgiving week in New York, and we recount the shows we saw and get Frank's take on his recent Broadway experiences. In addition, we look in on the Chicago theater scene with such shows as Escape to Margaritaville (the Jimmy Buffett musical); Tracy Letts' new play at the Steppenwolf Theatre, The Minutes; a local Victory Gardens production of Fun Home; Significant Other at the Theatre Wit; and A Red Orchid Theatre's production of Wallace Shawn's Evening at the Talk House. But back to Broadway - we first tell about seeing Donna Murphy, Bette Midler's alternate, in the splendid and beautiful Hello,Dolly! Frank and Gary both agree that this is one of the finest productions of a classic musical they have ever seen, regardless of who's playing the lead. The Band's Visit, recently opened at the Barrymore Theatre, elicits slightly conflicting opinions from Gary and Frank - Gary was a bit underwhelmed from his front row seat, while Frank from the mezzanine found the show charming and very moving. They agree that it may have been a difference of perspective. Other New York shows we discuss are Time and The Conways with Elizabeth McGovern; Torch Song starring Michael Urie and a luminous Mercedes Ruhl; and the unseen but well-reviewed revival of Once on This Island by Flarety and Ahrens. Frank tells us about his experiences at Film Festivals (he goes to a lot of them), like Toronto and Telluride. And he relates a brush-with-greatness story about running into Meryl Streep while standing in line to see one of her latest pictures. The Golden Globe nominations will be out just after this episode publishes. Gary and Frank talk about their choices for front-runners. Christmas in San Diego will bring Frank close to one of his life-long dreams - SUMMER: The Donna Summer Musical, now playing at the La Jolla Playhouse. LaChanze stars as Diva Donna in this pre-Broadway engagement. Frank's excitement for this show is audibly palpable! Kiss of Death: Jim Nabors - Goofy Gomer on The Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle - U.S.M.C Nabors, a native Alabaman, found an entertainment niche playing clubs like The Horn in Santa Monica in the 1960s, with an act that mixed folksy Southern charm with a rich and unexpected baritone singing voice. Andy Griffith decided he would be perfect for a new character on his already-hit show, and Gomer Pyle, cousin of Goober, was born. Gomer proved immensely popular with the viewing public and appeared on and off for four seasons before being given his own show in a spin off. He later hosted a variety show on CBS, showcasing his splendid voice with songs like The Impossible Dream from Man of La Mancha. Mr. Nabors lived in Hawaii for nearly thirty years and owned a macadamia nut ranch in Hana on Maui. Jim Nabors was 87. Read full obituary here.  

Gary's guest this week is photographer, explorer, and theatre artist Stephan Mazurek. Stephan  is a storyteller - on screens, on stages, on buildings and on the web. He is a director of photography, still photographer, playwright, theatre director and projection designer. His clients include The Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, Food Network and ESPN, as well as spot work for Skittles, Nikon, Oscar Mayer, McDonalds and Goo Gone! Stephan is an acclaimed documentary photographer. His favorite long form documentary project was the award-winning Louder Than a Bomb, which followed 10 Chicago area high school students for a year as they prepared for a poetry competition. He also spent more than a year in Turkey, Somalia, Iraq and Bosnia shooting Love is a Verb, which tells the fascinating story of Fethullah Gulen, the exiled religious leader of the transnational social movement that began in Turkey in the 1960s, and bears his name. Gulen has been in the news recently because Mike Flynn was offered $15 million if he could bring him back to Turkey. Here is a photo of Stephan filming in Somalia with an armed body guard. Documentary film-making has taken Stephan all over the world. He tells Booth One about a favorite place - Northern Ireland. He says there is something about "the pace, the color, the light" that make him feel comfortable there. Though he has never taken a photography class, still photography remains Stephan's first love because "I know when I have it." He tells us how he gets inspired "just walking around." As a theater artist, Stephan has worked on numerous productions, designing projections for plays and musicals, including Shining Lives at Northlight Theatre. He also designed projections for The Remembered City, part of the Tim Evans' Traffic series at Steppenwolf, which featured Tony Fitzpatrick and Steve Earle and was directed by our producer, Betsy Ingram. Stephan is currently working on a screenplay. We can't wait to hear what it's about and see the film! Gary and Stephan discuss the infinite variety of theatre experiences available these days in Chicago, and what memorable stage encounters stay with them through the years. Stephan's was in Spain, Gary's in Hamburg, Germany. Stephan admits to being highly selective when choosing to take on a theatrcal project, knowing that he will want to fully dive into the work. He's looking to be challenged, inspired and wholly committed to the process. Having gone to some of the more troubled spots in the world to "get the shot", Stephan relates a harrowing story about his interpreters in southern Turkey near the Syrian border while filming Love is a Verb. After getting him lost and then lying about their exact location, Stephan has decided that in future, he will demand translators instead - someone who will repeat his conversations word for word and not "interpret" what he is saying or asking. A good lesson learned. Kiss of Death: Frances Hansen, Who Wrote Poetry Across and Down The New York Times published 82 of Mrs. Hansen's crossword puzzles, starting in the 1960s. The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times and book publishers like Dell, Random House and Simon & Schuster also printed puzzles she constructed. A diabolical cruciverbalist, Hansen often used her own original poems and limericks as answers in the 21x21 grid that makes up the Sunday NYT magazine crossword puzzle. Many times clues were given backwards, and answers were to be entered back to front. She said that puzzles came to her in her sleep, left there by the "idea Fairy." Mrs. Hansen was 85.

Our guest in the Booth this week is the multi-talented Robert Cornelius. Singer, Actor, Songwriter, Band Leader, Educator, Activist, and Writer - he excels at them all! And...we learn that he can design and construct costumes as well. A long-time friend of the show, we were finally able to work it out with his busy schedule to have him on. Robert grew up on the South Side and studied theatre and psychology at Western Illinois University. When he came back to Chicago, he got cast in Rosencrantz & Gildernstern Are Dead at Stage Left. He quickly became a company member. Other highlights of his career include acting and designing costumes for A Member of the Wedding (also at Stage Left), and playing the lead in Blues for an Alabama Sky by Pearl Cleage at Madison Rep. Robert tells us about recent favorite acting projects, including appearing in a new play called Lottery Day by Ike Holter for the Goodman Theatre's New Stages project. Robert is also a successful musician, whose "unattainable goal" when he was young was to become a backup singer. When Poi Dog Pondering's band leader Frank Orall met Robert when both were performing in Brigid Murphy's Milly's Orchid Show, Frank asked him to come sing a couple of lines for a Poi Dog recording. Soon after, he was asked to join the group for a show outside of the Field Museum in Chicago. There were 10,000 people in attendance! Later he went on tour with the band for several years. Robert is still a proud member of the Poi Dog Pondering collective. They'll be performing five shows this December at City Winery in Chicago. Their live shows are joyous and not to be missed! On this episode, you'll hear a couple of short clips from one of Poi Dog Pondering's great albums, Pomegranate. Robert is the founder and leader of the musical group RC7, which started as a Soul and R & B cover band. Later, Robert started writing songs and they've produced a CD called To Your Soul. Both Poi Dog Pondering and RC7 have performed marvelous outdoor free shows at Petrillo Music Shell and at the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, one with the Grant Park Music Festival's sublime orchestra. The great Don Cornelius, creator of Soul Train, was Robert's uncle. Robert and a friend won one of the weekly dance contests with a cash prize, but he had to give it back because it was his uncle's show. Still he earned a place as a regular (unpaid) dancer for 2 1/2 years. The legend King of Soul Sam Cooke was married to Robert's dad's step sister. So being around huge talent and fame was par for the course when he was growing up. Director of Arts Education for Victory Gardens Theater, Robert and his staff go into the Chicago Public Schools to bring theatre training and fun to 600 kids a year! Gary and Robert talk about Victory Garden's magnificent production of Tony Award winning musical, Fun Home, running through November 19. Watch a great short video that introduces you to some of the staff and advisors to VG here. Kiss Of Death: Roy Dotrice, who started acting when he was a POW in World War II, has an amazing story. After the war, he performed in hundreds of productions. He did audio book narration and was perhaps best known for his one-man shows, holding the Guinness Record for most non-consecutive performances (1,782) for Brief Lives, about John Aubrey until Hal Holbrook eventually beat that number with his portrayal of Mark Twain. Dotrice became part of the precursor to the Royal Shakespeare Company, and introduced baseball to his fellow actors. You won't BELIEVE the team he fielded. Mr. Dotrice was 94.        

Colin Cordwell, proprietor of the The Red Lion English pub, brings his uncanny insights and encyclopedic knowledge to Booth One this week. Colin has seen it all in his 40 years watching "a conveyor belt of humanity go past me" behind one of Chicago's great bars. He regales Gary with tales of his father John, an architect who became a POW in WWII. John designed a theatre in his prison camp and became a forger who was part of The Great Escape. Colin describes some of the many memorable characters who have walked into the Red Lion, including Christopher Hitchens, with whom he had an extended conversation about WWI poetry. Calling the exchange "a labyrinth of obscurata," it's an astonishing glimpse into just one small corner of Colin's ability to speak eloquently about so many subjects, including history, poetry, philosophy and war. A fine actor earlier in his career, Colin has a soft spot for those who walk the boards. Colin and his father have generously given free rehearsal space to nascent theater companies over the years. When Barbara Gaines brought them her vision for a major Shakespeare company in Chicago, they believed in her and provided a venue for her first project back in the early 80's. That memorable production of Henry V started Shakespeare Repertory, now known world-wide as Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Colin talks movingly about how he could see that Barbara's "soul was ignited" by Shakespeare's work and how proud he is that his dad and he helped her get CST off the ground. Gary gives a glowing recommendation to go see the Goodman Theatre's production of A View From the Bridge, the stunning Ivo van Hove conception that played on Broadway a couple of seasons ago. Done in the style of a Greek tragedy, this interpretation gives deeper meaning and understanding to one of Arthur Miller's most famous plays. An absolute must see - running only until October 22! Looking for a "higher" education opportunity? Look no further than Northern Michigan University in Marquette, MI. This small Midwest college is offering the first degree of its kind at a four-year undergraduate college in "medicinal plant chemistry", effectively a major in marijuana, that will prepare students for careers in the burgeoning marijuana industry. Now's your chance to make that career change you've dreamed about! Read more here. Like many properties and buildings that date to the 19th century, The Red Lion has its stories of haunting, ghosts and inexplicable events. Colin chillingly recounts a few encounters over the years with specters, voices and objects moving by themselves. Gary talks about what a magical place the Red Lion is and how he learns something every visit. It's a place that awakens the imagination. Want Harry Potter and the Cursed Child tickets on Broadway next year? You'll have to register as a "verified fan" with Ticketmaster and give up your personal information for their marketing use - forever! While consumers surely benefit from these anti-bot techniques, producers benefit even more by creating Amazon-like databases. The Chicago Tribune lays the story out pretty clearly. Kiss of Death: Arthur Janov, Psychiatrist who caught the world's attention with "Primal Scream" "The Primal Scream" in 1970 became a cultural phenomenon, embraced by celebrities as a treatment that could cure a multitude of ills and neuroses. Janov's Primal Center in Los Angeles still practices the technique, though it has been debunked and discredited as a treatment option for mental health. It managed to outlive the 70's by a considerable margin. Arthur Janov was 93. Read Margalit Fox's obit.

We welcome actor, director, audiobook narrator, and author Kevin Theis back to Booth One to talk about his new book, Invading Nirvana, A Chicagoan in the City of Angels. This hilarious and informative book serves as a blueprint for any actor considering moving to L.A. to try to get work in show business. It's available at bookstores or on Amazon. Kevin has also narrated the audiobook. Longtime Chicago critic and theatre professor Albert Williams has this to say about it: "A smart, witty, but also incisive and candid chronicle of Theis's experiences and observations as a Chicago actor who decided to head west to crash the TV, film, and surprisingly lucrative audiobooks markets." In this book, Kevin explores every aspect of the entertainment industry, including stand-up comedy. Treating the project like a journalism assignment about what it's like to live there, he also talks about other L.A. weirdness, such as the pervasiveness of Scientologists and cannabis. Check out this site to see the big blue Scientology Center and one of the videos Kevin saw in person. Kevin has a book signing on October 20 at City Lit Books and on October 24 at the Den Theatre. Gary and Kevin have just seen The Rembrandt at Steppenwolf, starring John Mahoney and Francis Guinan. They, along with their 3 supporting actors, are sensational. As Kevin says, go to this show to see "two pros get up on stage with the right material and the right director and just knock it out of the park!" In his "Good Times & Bum Times" segment, Gary recounts two amazing tales of woe and good fortune. The bum times is particularly astonishing. Gary has recently done an audio book narration workshop with Kevin, which was a lot of fun. Kevin will come to your home to do the workshop! Go to this site if you'd like to sign up. Our producer gave Gary a shark picture book as a "present." It includes graphic photos and "danger ratings", along with proof that at least one 5 star danger-rated shark can live in fresh water. Good to have your phobias validated. Kevin announces a new project he is doing at Oak Park Festival Theatre. A world premiere play called "A Dickens Carol" by Ned Crowley. The premise is that A Christmas Carol is based on actual events from Dickens' life. Opens November 26. Speaking of A Christmas Carol, this will be the  40th anniversary of Chicago's Goodman Theatre production. Kevin enjoyed being part of that cast for seven years. Kiss of Death: Celebrate the life of magician Eugene Burger. What a story. A master of close-up illusions and mentor to many at the The Magic Castle. Gary has been lucky enough to get invited in the past and recalls it as one of the great experiences of his life.  

It was thrilling to welcome to the Booth two of the stars and the Assistant Director of Writers Theatre's world premiere production of Trevor the Musical. Eli Tokash, who plays Trevor, is magnificent on stage and off. He just lights up the room. He has met his match with co-star, Tori Whaples, who is terrific as Cathy in the show. And what can we say about Tyrone Phillips, who is doing amazing and exciting work in every aspect of his career. Trevor began as a monologue written and performed by James Lecesne for his Drama Desk award-winning one man show Word of Mouth, directed by Eve Ensler and produced by Mike Nichols and Elaine May. He then adapted it into a screenplay for a short film directed by Peggy Rajski that won an an Oscar! Watch the film on YouTube here. This story, set in 1981, is about Trevor, an exuberant middle school kid who is wild for Diana Ross. He has a great "cool" friend, Pinky Faraday (Declan Desmond), who likes him a lot. When one of Pinky's friends insinuates Trevor may be gay, he tries to prove he's not by making out with Cathy, who has a huge crush on him. However, when Trevor's adoration for Pinky (documented in a notebook) is revealed to classmates by his best friend, Trevor gets bullied and shamed at school. Trevor's emerging sexuality is confusing for him and he is getting no support. This kid who is so full of light winds up attempting suicide. When James and the film's producers realized that a resource for kids dealing with the issues Trevor raises didn't exist, they started the Trevor Project, a life saving non-profit organization. The goals of the project are "to provide crisis intervention and suicide prevention services for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13–24, as well as to offer guidance and resources to parents and educators in order to foster safe, accepting and inclusive environments for all youth, at home and at school." Since it's inception in 1998, The Trevor Project has helped hundreds of thousands of kids. This world premiere musical is produced by Writers Theatre by special arrangement with U Rock Theatricals, a group of young producers making new shows aimed for Broadway. Director Marc Bruni has done a wonderful job of leading this tremendous ensemble and creating a vibrant and important piece that is full of so much heart. We are so lucky to have seen it here first and to have had a chance to talk with these three superstars. They give us an inside look at the process of creating a new musical. The immensely talented writing team of Julianne Wick Davis and Dan Collins were in the room for rehearsals. New pages every day, all different colors. Eli says their notebooks became a rainbow, "Pride scripts!" The Major Production Sponsor for this show is Booth One's friend and Creative Consultant, Mary Pat Studdert. Here's to Mary Pat for doing so much to make it happen. Eli, Tori and Tyrone tell us about director Marc Bruni's exciting and collaborative style. Tyrone talks about how professional this cast of young performers has been, calling them "the best in the business!"He says there was so much play in the room and it was all about them finding their voices. He goes on to say that this piece is about "anyone who has felt awkward, embarrassed or excluded. It's about being different, an outsider." We can all relate to that. Finally, learn some sort of random and fun things about our guests by listening to them answer a few Chat Pack questions.

Booth One welcomes Mary Jo DuPrey, who recently visited Chicago from Los Angeles for some meetings about possible directing projects. Mary Jo trained as an actress at Vassar. She then worked with her sister Katie Agresta, a legendary vocal coach, managing her "rock & roll vocal studio" on the upper west side, where she also learned how to teach singing with Katie's amazingly effective approach and exercises. Check out this list of notable students! Mary Jo then moved to L.A. where she had a successful acting career. She also taught acting and singing in UCLA's musical theatre program, and tells us about how she came to be such a sought-after vocal coach for spoken and singing voices. She tells great stories about working with her clients, including how she got connected with Daveed Diggs through their mutual friend and collaborator, composer and sound designer Jonathan Snipes.  Mary Jo worked closely with Daveed while Hamilton was being developed. Read his description of working with her here. Don't miss her spellbinding story about being invited by Alex Lacamoire to Hamilton's  first music stand read! She made two bold predictions that day that came true. Mary Jo gives Gary a short voice lesson and offers to work with him via Skype! She is a master at her craft and approaches the voice in a totally holistic manner. Interested in scheduling some lessons? Contact her here. Mary Jo is the only certified West Coast teacher of the Katie Agresta Vocal Technique. She cites Patsy Rodenberg, Head of Voice for the Royal National Theatre as another major influence. Mary Jo recently got an MFA in Directing at UCLA and is loving directing there and at professional theaters in L.A., such as the beautiful outdoor repertory theater in Topanga Canyon, the Theatricum Botanicum. She directed our friend and recurring guest co-host Paul Stroili in August: Osage County and he thinks the world of her. We are looking forward to her first Chicago-based project and will let you know when that happens. Other topics of interest in this week's episode: Elephant Rescue at Sea off the coast of Sri Lanka 36 Questions - The Musical Podcast The Fair Maid of the West in Oak Park directed and adapated by Kevin Theis Kiss of Death: Barbara Cook - Legendary actress, cabaret and concert star receives a final musical tribute on her deathbed from some of the great entertainers she worked with during a 7-decade career. Read about Ms. Cook's final days.  

Gary and popular co-host Paul Stroili, welcome special guest Mark Larson to the Booth. Mark is an educator, writer and oral historian, currently working on a book of interviews called Ensemble Chicago: The Making of a Theater Town, An Oral History. Mark has spoken to literally hundreds of theatre professionals, spanning the Chicago theatrical eras from the early 1950s to the present. From Joyce Piven and Alan Arkin to Michael Shannon and Evan Linder, Mark has recorded the stories of playwrights, actors, critics, designers, stage managers, teachers, comedians, artistic directors, producers, executives, and everyone in between. We know you will enjoy hearing our lively discussion about the birth and growth of the Chicago theater scene and the players who made it possible. Mark's book will be released in 2018. You might also enjoy reading more about the incredible story of the rise of theater in Chicago in legendary critic Richard Christiansen's book A Theatre of Our Own, A History and Memoir of 1,001 Nights in Chicago. A follow up to last episode's teaser on Michael Phelps swimming against a Great White Shark. Sadly, Phelps didn't win! - no limbs were sacrificed, but he lost by 2 seconds! More from the Hollywood Reporter here. The 36 Questions - also know as the Experimental Generation of Interpersonal Closeness study - is now a MUSICAL PODCAST! Starring Jonathan Groff (of Hamilton fame) and Jessica Shelton. Gary, Mark and Paul play some of the questions from the study, designed to make the participants fall in love! Learn more at Entertainment Weekly, and listen to the full musical at the Two-Up Productions podcast studio. Kiss of Death: Dr. Shigeaki Hinohara, Japanese Longevity Expert, Dies at (or Lives to) 105. What a remarkable life. Not only was he a pioneer in Japanese medicine, but he wrote a best seller at 101! Read the full NYT Obituary here.

Chill out with a mid-summer edition of Booth One! Gary's good friend and storyteller extraordinaire Julia Maish joins us in the Booth this week. Julia is Manager of Media Relations for WTTW and WFMT and has worked as an actress and jazz singer in Chicago. We ask Julia about her early days working with The Second City. She was the sole administrative employee when she was there and tells an hilarious story about how on her last day, her boss swept all the cash from the safe into a paper bag to compensate her for the many vacation days she never took. A dramatic and thoughtful gesture. Though she never had the desire to jump into the improvisation scene, Julia made a fine career out of doing scripted theater with the likes of Frank Farrell and Paul Sills. She relates her experiences with site-specific Shakespeare and the physical demands and dangers of acting. Also the 24-hour Shakespeare Marathon, the first of its kind in Chicago. Julia talks about her meeting President Barack Obama on several occasions, including during his run for Senate. At a debate organized by Julia, Obama arrives late and is ascended upon by a gaggle of press. There is apparently a photo of Julia and the aspiring senator out there somewhere, but alas, a lengthy search proved fruitless. Listeners, please forward to us if you should come across it. For many years, Julia was part of a vocal jazz trio know as Three A.M., and later changed to Moonglow. Her suggestion to the group that they change their name again to Cakes Men Like (from a cookbook title that was given to her by a friend) was met with little enthusiasm. Gary praises a marvelous new play called At The Table, produced by Broken Nose Theatre Company at the Den Theatre. It's one of the finest examples of ensemble acting we've seen in a long while, and though the extended production is sold out through its current run, this fine piece is sure to find a long life in regional theaters across the country. Broken Nose is a "pay-what-you-can" company, where you set your own ticket price, which makes seeing this great work affordable for many more people. You can read the rave reviews of the play here. After falling for his voice on American Idol, Julia spent many years as a Clay Aiken fan, traveling the country to see him in concert with a group of like-minded Aiken-ites. She fell into this group almost by accident, but after seeing nearly 40 concerts, and ten performances of Spamalot when Aiken was in the Broadway cast, she grew to appreciate his talent, showmanship and wit. Julia was selected to read one of her stories on stage several times during various Aiken performances, and by all accounts stopped the show with her rendition of the time her dress caught on fire while performing with Moonglow. Gary recalls seeing Julia do her story at the historic Genesee Theatre when he booked Clay some years ago. It was a memorable performance. Watch for Clay in the next Sharknado movie on the Syfy Channel. On a related note - you can now see the 1975 Spielberg thriller Jaws on the big screen - while sitting in a shark-logo inner tube at night on an inky-black lake in Texas! It's the ultimate test of nerves and shark-phobia, fulled by food and liquid refreshment, including local beers. Probably not something that Gary is willing to do anytime soon. Jaws on the Water is presented by the Alamo Drafthouse at Volente Beach Water Park outside of Austin. Tickets are $55. Speaking of stories, Gary asks Julia to read one of her other stories on the air - a piece called Kissing Frogs and Other Amphibians. It's a recollection of Julia's varied dating history, particularly of the blind type. Funny and touching, it's a good example of Julia's insight and attention to detail that make her storytelling so compelling. Don't miss this season's Grant Park Music Festival Broadway event, A Broadway Romance, July 21 & 22. Gary will be doing the pre-concert presentation before each performance of thi...

Gary welcomes actor, director, producer, choreographer, casting and teaching professional Stephen Schellhardt to the co-host chair of Booth One this week. Longtime listeners to the program may remember Stephen as a panel guest when we recorded our all-things Sondheim Episode 38 before a live audience at Writers Theatre. His recent production of Urinetown received glowing notices. See a review here. Stephen will next be seen as Melman the Giraffe in Madagascar The Musical at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, directed by friend of the show, episode 57 guest Rachel Rockwell. More details. Stephen is about to begin a position at Northwestern University where he'll be teaching Musical Theatre. We're going to put that knowledge to the test in this Episode 60! Gary and Producer Betsy just returned from a whirlwind trip to New York City where they saw 6 Broadway shows in 5 days! Here's a rundown of the cavalcade: Sweat - Terrific play with a fine ensemble cast. Khris Davis! This show will have a lot of legs on the regional circuit with one set and important timely subject matter. Sadly, the 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning play just closed in NY, but it will have a long and profitable life after Broadway. Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 - Lavish, interactive spectacle of a production, but we found it curiously un-engaging, despite having the best seats of our trip. Gary never found the emotional heart of the piece, though the last 20 minutes are very moving. Still, it's a long slog to get to those final moments and it's not a show we can highly recommend, except for the fact that you'll not see anything else as lavish as this anywhere, and Josh Groban is exceptional as Pierre. A Doll's House, Part 2 - Laurie Metcalf deserves all the acclaim she's received for this performance in Lucas Hnath's imaginative sequel to Ibsen's classic. The rest of the cast - Jane Houdyshell, Chris Cooper and Condola Rashad, all nominated for Tony's - round out this genuinely entertaining and thought-provoking dramedy. Maybe a bit too short and some unexplored themes, but it's for Metcalf that one should see this particular production. Gary likens her star turn to what it might have been like to see Hepburn or Davis on the stage in their heyday. A true American theater treasure! The Little Foxes - Seeing Laura Linney and Cynthia Nixon in this searing Lillian Hellman play was to see acting at it's finest. Perfectly cast and superbly staged, Gary and Betsy were also very impressed by Richard Thomas and Michael McKean's performances. We saw the version for which Linney and Nixon were nominated - Regina and Birdie respectively. Stephen comments that the two actresses believe this combination plays against their types. That's what acting is all about, and what a pair of powerhouse actors they are! As of this publication, this show is also now closed, but it's a theater-going memory that will live in our minds for a long time to come. Come From Away - Words cannot describe the heartfelt joy and spontaneous enthusiasm this show engendered in us. It's a musical that shouldn't really work, given its subject matter and minimalist plot. But it was perhaps our favorite show of the whole trip. This as well will play beautifully in "the provinces", and crowds should certainly adore it as much as the one on the night we saw it. A terrific score and fantastic staging. With a cast of ordinary-looking townsfolk and air passengers, the show utilizes just a single stationary set (with a small turntable), a couple of tables and a dozen or so chairs. When it comes to your town, run, don't walk to experience this gem of a musical! The cast album is on repeat in Stephen's car! The Play That Goes Wrong - For sheer fun and entertainment, here was a show that we went to on a whim with half-price tickets from the TKTS Booth. This play features a great ensemble of physical comedy actors and a set that fully deserves its Tony Award for Best Scenic Design.

Gary interviews playwright Antoinette Nwandu and director Danya Taymor during rehearsals of Nwandu's play Pass Over, on site at the Steppenwolf Theatre. We are attending a press performance on June 13 and cannot wait! They share fascinating insights about the process of creating a world premiere, with Antoinette developing the script throughout the rehearsal period. These two are absolutely inspiring as artistic collaborators. So much mutual respect, affection, and humor. Booth One would love to be in the rehearsal room! Antoinette describes Pass Over: “At its core, this play asks us collectively to consider the value of black lives, specifically the lives of young black men who are not extraordinary, who are not entertainers, they’re not athletes, they’re not secret math geniuses. They're young men who might never get better, who might never be different. This play challenges us to envision a society that does not ask these young men to prove their worth.” Inspired in part by two young black men Antoinette taught in community college, she riffs on ideas and themes from both Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot and the Book of Exodus. The cast includes friend of the show, Jon Michael Hill; co-founder of Definition Theatre Company, Julian Parker; and Ryan Hallahan, from the acclaimed cast of Straight White Men, also at Steppenwolf. Ms. Nwandu tells us the Cinderella story about how this play came to be produced at Steppenwolf. Thrilling! Not only a great director, Danya is also a translator. Her story about the translating partners she works with is fascinating. Antoinette also tells us Danya has "world class knowledge of all theater." Our producer is wanting a trivia contest between Danya and Gary... A couple of our favorite quotes from the interview: Danya: "The truth of this play can shift on a dime." Antoinette: "I write with a lot of jagged tonal shifts." When asked who they would like to spend a month being mentored by, Danya chooses European director extraordinaire Romeo Castellucci. Antoinette chooses the remarkable playwright Caryl Churchill. Good calls! Danya and Antoinette are two theatre artists that are without a doubt "going places". Booth One is so excited to follow their skyrocketing careers.        

Booth One welcomes back co-host Paul Stroili, and special guest Kevin Theis, actor, writer, director and audio book narrator, for some wild and wacky conversation. Kevin recently directed The My Way Residential, a world premiere play by Geraldine Aaron for the Irish Theatre of Chicago, running though June 25, 2017 at the Den Theatre. Can't wait to see it! In our ongoing fascination with shark stories, we discovered this: When porn star Molly Cavalli dropped down under water into a shark cage wearing a "white hot swimsuit," her presence apparently enticed a 10-foot lemon shark. The next thing you know she's screaming as she clutches her bloody foot. Check out the video. Further evidence to never get out of the boat! Kevin describes his audio narrating career reading some of the world's great books, like Jack London's Call of the Wild, the Autobiography of Charles Darwin, Sun Tzu's The Art of War, and of course the classic, Bigfoot and Frankenstein! Kevin records for Audible, and has newly formed his own audio book company, Fort Raphael Publishing Company. Booth One gets health conscious by reporting on gluteal amnesia, commonly known as Sleeping Butt Syndrome. Sitting all day can lead to a flat butt because muscles are disengaged for so long they forget how to wake up. The cures? Walk around for 30 seconds every half hour. Get a standing desk like most Scandinavians have (of course). Use a foam roller. Vary your workouts to include donkey kicks, squats and planks. Testing for sleeping butt syndrome is easy - squeeze each butt cheek to see if it engages. Keep moving and stay healthy! The world's oldest person has died....again! Emma Morano, 117, the last person known to have been born in the 1800s. Born in Piedmont, Italy in 1899, Morano credited her longevity to ending her abusive marriage in 1938 and a diet of raw eggs and cookies. She held the Guinness World Record titles for oldest living person and oldest living woman. Stay tuned for more updates on the world's oldest living humans. Paul Stroili's first feature film begins shooting in Long Beach in June. We are excited for him and will keep you posted! Gary, Paul and Kevin take a crack at 36 Questions Designed to Help You Fall in Love with Anyone. Asking thirty-six specific questions plus four minutes of sustained eye contact is purportedly a recipe for falling in love, or at least creating intimacy among complete strangers. After sampling select questions, the guys feel increased familiarity and trust, though 4 minutes of silent eye contact is bad for the podcast medium. Try this technique the next time you're out on a date or to create sparks between you and your companion. Or just as a parlor game! It's a marvelous alternative to Chat Pack. Kiss of Death: Lawrence Anthony, who grew up in the bush and was known as the "Elephant Whisperer." Following his death on March 2, directed by no one, two herds of wild South African elephants slowly made a 12-hour journey to the home of Mr. Anthony in a stirring procession to make a call on the bereaved family at the deceased man's home. Known for his unique ability to calm traumatized elephants, Anthony had become a legend for rescuing and rehabilitating "rogue" elephants. You can buy The Elephant Whisperer book through Amazon.            

Booth One welcomes the amazing Rachel Rockwell to our studios amidst her action-packed schedule. Her beautiful production of Shakespeare in Love has just opened at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, and she has about a million other irons in the fire. As a choreographer, Rachel was nominated for Joseph Jefferson Awards for The King & I (2007) and A Chorus Line (2011). As a director, she received Jeff Award nominations for Miss Saigon (2009); The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee—Best Musical (2009); Ragtime (2010) and 42nd Street (2011). For her acclaimed Drury Lane Oakbrook Theatre production of Ragtime (11 Jeff nominations and seven awards), she received the Joseph Jefferson Award as Best Director of a musical. As Director, Jeff Award nominations (2012) for Best Director and Best Musical: The Sound of Music and Sweeney Todd at Drury Lane Oakbrook Theatre; and Best Play: Enron at Timeline Theatre Company. In 2013, her production of Oliver! received a Jeff nomination for Best Musical. In 2014, she received Jeff Award nominations (Director, Choreography and Best Musical) for the revival of Brigadoon at The Goodman Theatre and Les Miserables at Drury Lane Oakbrook. Her production of Brigadoon was named Best Musical and she was named Best Choreographer for that production. She won the Jeff Award for Best Choreography for her production of Billy Eliot in 2015. In 2016, she won the Jeff Award as Best Director for her production of Ride The Cyclone at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre.[22] She has directed notable Children's Theatre productions at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. At CST, she also choreographed productions of The Merry Wives of Windsor, Romeo and Juliet, and Measure For Measure. Since the mid-nineties, Rockwell has directed and choreographed dozens of productions for such theaters as: Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Drury Lane Theatre Oakbrook, Marriott Theatre Lincolnshire, Paramount Theatre, Noble Fool Theatricals, Fox Valley Repertory, Apple Tree, The Little Theatre on the Square, SIU Summer Theatre and McCleod Summer Playhouse. Rachel is also working on writing and developing new musicals. Look out world!!! Booth One has a couple of ideas we may be passing by her desk. Rachel is the third musical genius to come on our show who hails from Indiana. Beckie Menzie and Danni Smith, both past guests and friends of the show, cultivated their talents in the Hoosier State. We're wondering what's in the water over there!? Rachel credits her success to a long line of mentors and teachers, including Buzz Miller, who danced Bob Fosse's brilliant choreography in the seminal "Steam Heat" on Broadway and in the film of The Pajama Game. Rachel was Dance Captain in Mamma Mia on Broadway and the National Tour, and she gives us some backstage insight about what a difficult and important job this is. She choreographs in her car(!) and counter-clockwise in her living room to avoid the coffee table. So yeah, kind of a genius. Deb Acker, the production stage manager at Chicago Shakespeare, says Rachel is the most prepared director she's ever worked with. Rachel tells us why she prepares so thoroughly. Gary and Rachel talk the 2017 Tony Award nominations and Rachel particularly recommends Come From Away. Martha Lavey,  a mentor to us all and a huge force in the Chicago theater community, is our Kiss of Death segment this week. There are no words. But these journalists come close: Hedy Weiss for the Chicago Sun Times Chris Jone for the Chicago Tribune New York Times        

Gary and the Booth One crew are pleased to welcome award-winning artistic director of Court Theatre, Mr. Charles Newell to the program. Court is the resident professional theater company of the University of Chicago in Hyde Park. Charlie has been AD at Court since 1994. Under his leadership, Court has, in the words of playwright Tony Kushner, "developed a spectacular reputation as one of the most important theaters in the country." Charlie's directing credits span a spectrum from classic Shakespeare to world premiere dramas and comedies, from musicals to opera. He is the recipient of four Joseph Jefferson Awards for directing, and has been honored by TCG and the League of Chicago Theatres for artistic achievement. Charlie is one of the finest theatrical artists working in America today and refers to himself as "the luckiest man in show business." Newell grew up in the Washington, DC area and first fell in love with theater when he saw an Arena Stage production of Death of a Salesman as a young boy. He studied at Wesleyan University, then honed his craft through a series of professional apprenticeships with some of the country's most outstanding theater artists, including Garland Wright at the Tyrone Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. Charlie's most recent work is a production of Tom Stoppard's The Hard Problem. The title comes from philosopher David Chalmers' term to describe scientific efforts to understand consciousness. We discuss this play in depth as well as Newell's close relationship with Mr. Stoppard. Charlie and Tom have consulted personally on a number of other Stoppard productions Charlie has directed. For this one, they had almost daily conversations about the play during rehearsals. In his early career as a stage manager, Gary had the great privilege to work on the Broadway and National touring productions of Stoppard's The Real Thing. He and Charlie trade stories about working with Stoppard and what a true man of the theater he really is. Much like Stoppard's other works, The Hard Problem is a tricky play to fully comprehend on a single viewing. Charlie talks about the way Stoppard's focus is centered on the emotional connections between the characters rather than the intellectual ideas. "If one can find the heart of it, the rest will fall into place." We think you will find the discussion illuminating and fascinating. Court Theatre takes full advantage of being part of the University of Chicago. In 2010, with the support of some very generous members of the Board of Trustees, Court created The Center for Classic Theatre. "A new way of approaching what it means for a professional theatre to be in residence at a major university. It is an approach to producing that fully accesses the amazing intellectual resources that surround the theatre. This vision influences how Court Theatre builds seasons and serves its audience and community." The results have been exciting. For instance, this season Court produced the widely acclaimed world premiere of Man in the Ring. Playwright Michael Cristopher won the best new play award from the American Theatre Critics Association. Still to come this season at Court is a rare production of Mary Chase's Harvey. Recently announced for the 2017-18 subscription season: Five Guys Named Moe; The Belle of Amhurst directed by friend of the show  Sean Graney and starring Kate Fry; All My Sons; Guess Who's Coming to Dinner; and The Originalist with Edward Gero as Supreme Court Judge Antonin Scalia. Some final personal information about Charlie - Favorite City? Chicago (no surprise there!); Other career he would have liked to pursue? Basketball Coach or General Manager. The Chicago Bulls may be looking! Kiss of Death: Gilbert Baker, a self-described "gay Betsy Ross," and creator of the original Rainbow Flag that has become an enduring and universal symbol for inclusion, peace and love. The original banner, created for the 1978 Gay Pride parade in San Francisco,

April Fools' Day finds us recording our 55th Episode! Returning friend of the show Paul Stroili co-hosts this toe-tapping episode with Gary in Booth One. Paul reveals that he is a motorcycle enthusiast and that his father once raced motorcycles in Europe. Riding a "Hog" is a skill that Gary has long wanted to acquire, though driving a Vespa is probably closer to his ability levels of balance and coordination. Paul gives an update on his hit interactive theatrical production of Tony n' Tina's Wedding. Some cast changes are in store, at least through the summer, and the good news is that the show continues to sell strongly and bookings are being confirmed for well into the fall of 2017. Congratulations to the entire Tony n' Tina's team and best wishes for a long and prosperous run! Our friends at Broadway In Chicago made sure that both Gary and Paul got to see the recent Circus 1903 spectacular at Chicago's Oriental Theater, and they loved both the production and the talented performers. Some of our favorites are Ringmaster Willy Whipsnade (David Williamson), aerialist Lucky Moon (Elena Gatilova), The Cycling Cyclone (Florian Blummel), Elastic Dislocationist Senayet Asefa Amare, and juggler extraordinaire Francois Borie. The highlight of the show are the life-size faux elephants, manipulated by a team of expert puppeteers and designed by the same folks who brought War Horse to life on stage. These pachyderms are so life-like and majestic that you can feel the awe and amazement from the crowd. Their presence, and the focus on the artistry and athleticism of the performers, make this nostalgic homage to the golden age of circus a wonderous experience for young and old alike. Check out the Circus 1903 website for their touring itinerary and don't miss this performance if it comes to a city near you. On a sadder note, producers of the long-running musical The Fantasticks have announced its closing in New York....again! Seems that the money from anonymous donors that has kept the show alive the past couple of years has run out and ticket sales are flagging. This is one of Gary's favorite shows, so if you plan to be in New York before June, try to catch this landmark musical before it closes. Who knows? Your ticket purchase may just contribute to another extension of this beloved show. You can buy tickets here. Speaking of contributions - if you want to support the Booth One mission of bringing you the best in the art of lively conversation and fascinating guests, go to our DONATE button on this web page and you can make a fully tax deductible donation to our cause. It's quick, it's easy, and it would be deeply appreciated by all of us at Booth One. Including Gary's imaginary teacup pig support animal. Down, Jeanette! Gary and Paul reminisce about their splendid dinner the night before at friends Nancy and Arne's Big Night party. It was a recreation of the famous over-the-top dinner from the Stanley Tucci/Tony Shaloub 1996 film Big Night, complete with a heavenly appetizer course followed by the centerpiece of the evening, a homemade Timpano (or Timballo in some references). This was a night of laughter, sparkling conversation and sumptuous food. A truly Booth One experience, with an eclectic guest list in a gorgeous setting in our hosts' Chicago loft with great city views. If you want to try your hand at throwing your own Big Night dinner party, start by getting Lidia's Mastering the Art of Italian Cuisine cookbook or The Tucci Cookbook.  Here's a good recipe example for Timpano from the New York Times. Go to this link to see photos and a short video of the timpano presentation from our dinner party. Buon appetito!! Gary revives his Good Times & Bum Times segment with two stories - the "good time" of a Minnesota man who drove his car off an embankment, soared 210 feet over Lake L'Homme Dieu, and landed safely on the partially frozen surface; and the "bum time" of defense attorney Stephen Gutierrez whose pant...