**** Recommended **** As we walked out of Broadway Playhouse after seeing “A Taste of Things to Come”, my friend Helen said she’d bet that that every woman in the audience loved the musical, and that the men probably thought it was just OK. Judging by the cheers at the curtain call, I’d have to agree with her. I thought it had a dynamite cast, a well-written original score, but not much of a story. 3 ½ Spotlights

***RECOMMENDED*** Initially, I was somewhat alarmed when I saw that Artistic Home was going to be producing Paula Vogel's 1998 Pulitzer Prize-winning play "How I Learned to Drive" as part of their current season. After all, this drama deals with pedophilia and the sexually abusive relationship between a teen-aged girl and her uncle. Is this really the right time to revisit this work and address these themes in the height of the #MeToo and Time's Up movements? After seeing director Kayla Adams' well-constructed production, it is clear that the answer to that question is a resounding "Yes." 3 SPOTLIGHTS

**RECOMMENDED*** "Merchant on Venice" is much more than just a simple adaptation of William Shakespeare's classic play. Playwright Shishir Kurup, who was born in Bombay, India but raised in Kenya and the U.S. has moved the setting for his version from 1598 Italy to present day Culver City, California. That city, located within sprawling Los Angeles County, is well-known for having a large mix of very diverse ethnicities. Kurup's play, which had its world premiere produced by Silk Road Rising in 2007 is now presented as a co-production between Rasaka Theatre and Vitalist Theatre companies. It is an engaging and engrossing look at the tensions between Hindu and Muslim Americans while also remaining as entertaining as a popular Bollywood film musical. 3 SPOTLIGHTS

**** Highly Recommended **** About 30 seconds into the performance, I realized that I’d never seen “Enemy of the People”. When I think that Henrik Ibsen wrote this play, which has so many recent parallels – think Love Canal or Erin Brockovich – in 1882, I’m in awe! The Goodman’s production is gripping, powerful and ultimately rather sad. Kudos to Director, Robert Falls. 4 Spotlights

★★★★★ Dark comedy is what we sort of expect when Irish playwright Martin McDonagh’s works go from paper to stage, and sure as that is the case, the latest production to grace the stage at Northlight, “The Beauty Queen of Leenane” surely satisfies! This is the story of a mother and her daughter and the love- hate relationship between them. The mother, Mag ( a marvelous portrayal by Wendy Robie) sits and watches the telly all day, waiting for the news and her daughter, Maureen ( Chicago favorite Kate Fry) to wait on her every need. The daughter is a 40- something, old maid, spinster, searching for the true love that will allow her to escape from the trap of being her mother’s care taker.

**** Highly Recommended **** How do you feel about salad? As a woman sitting in the audience during a performance of “Women Laughing Alone with Salad”, you might feel compelled to ask yourself that question, especially during a rather spirited tribute to all things lettuce. “Women Laughing Alone with Salad” is an acerbic, raucous, subversive and really funny riff on an internet blog of the same name. 4 Spotlights

****HIGHLY RECOMMENDED**** If you missed the pre-Broadway engagement of "On Your Feet!" in June of 2015, you now have a chance to see this electrifying musical biography of Emilio and Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine. Thankfully, Broadway in Chicago has brought this fervent crowd-pleaser back to where it all began, creatively, but be sure to get your tickets quickly. This rousing production is here for a very limited run, closing at the Cadillac Palace Theatre on April 8. Be forewarned: the rhythm is gonna get you! 4 BIG SPOTLIGHTS

****HIGHLY RECOMMENDED**** Many people may not be familiar with Frank Kameny. A U.S. veteran who later worked for the U.S. Army's Map Service in Washington, D.C., Kameny was fired from his job in 1957 for being a gay man. He later took legal action against the U.S. Civil Service Commission in a case which is widely believed to be the first known civil rights claim based on a person's sexual orientation in an American court. Someone who may have done quite a bit of research on Kameny's career is author Thomas Mallon, whose 2007 novel "Fellow Travelers" has been adapted into an opera and presented by Lyric Opera of Chicago's Lyric Unlimited series. 4 BIG SPOTLIGHTS