*** For those who have been around for a long time, Lookingglass Theatre has always been a creator of new and unique theater. This has been going on since the late 80’s and based on what is happening on their stage ( every show is unique in set as well as layout) with the World Premiere of “White Rooster” written by ensemble member Matthew C. Yee. The play is a unique mix of music, puppetry, ghosts and poetry along with typical dialogue that tells a folk story. It is somewhat based on folklore from China, back in the 1900’s, but has been transformed to a small town out west where mining becomes a major part of the tale.Our main character is June ( Noelle Oh is perfect). The play opens with a musical preamble where we meet the cast and begin to get a glimpse of what we are about to see, and it is within minutes that we realize that this is not a typical play at a typical theatre. This is Lookingglass doing what it does best- creating something that may not make sense at first, but will be something that will evoke thoughts that might have never entered your mind. June has some struggles with ghosts ( this is where the start of the puppetry makes its appearance. Understand, that there are different types of puppets for the stage; some are actual puppets, others are what I call “shadow puppets” where light and sheets allow you to see what the director ( in this case, Yee again).
I don’t want to give away the sub stories, so I will be very careful here. There is a love story where June meets and falls in love with Pong ( deftly handled by Reilly Oh). He works with June’s dad, John ( played to perfection by Mark Montgomery) a miner, and as the story goes, they are buried by a cave-in. Pong’s grandparents insist that June do the right and proper thing in marrying the White Rooster to symbolize this love and then stay with them and take on household duties. It gets a little crazy as one must pay close attention to the characters, the sub-plots and the wonderful puppetry so that we can stay with the saga dealing with love, loss, spirits ( seeking freedom), curses, traditions, customs, rites and rituals. If you lose any part of the story, you could lose out on a masterful performance art as presented by this amazing cast of players.
Elliot Esquivel, Sunnie Eraso, Karen Aldridge ( always amazing), Louise Lamson, Daniel Lee Smith and of course, the aforementioned Reilly Oh and Noelle Oh. These are extraordinary talents who move well, sing, handle puppetry and bring life to their characters. While I do not feel the play is for everyone ( in particular little kids who might want to see puppets) it is indeed a theatrical experience that a true theater person should make sure to see.
The creativity is not only on the stage with the performers, but indeed the cleverness of the set (Natsu Onoda Power), the costumes ( Mara Blumenfeld), the lighting ( Hannah Wien), the sound ( Justin Cavazos, who also composed music for the show), and props ( Amanda Hermann). The puppetry was designed by Caitlin McLeod and some of the shadow puppets were very special indeed. This is indeed a mixture of mythology ( Chinese), “the old west” and some folk rock that will keep your interest for the entire two hours ( one 10 minute intermission)
“White Rooster” will continue thru April 26th with performances as follows:
Wednesdays 7:30pmThursdays 2:00pm & 7:30pm
Fridays 7:30pm
Saturdays 2:00pm & 7:30pm
Sundays 2:00pm
ACCESSIBLE PERFORMANCES
Open caption April 3rd 7:30
Audio Described/touch tour April 19th 7:30 p.m.
(touch -tour at 6:30 p.m.)
Mask required audience March 25th at 7:30 p.m.
Lookingglass Theatre is located in the old Water Tower at 821 N. Michigan
They have done some slick remodeling and have some new accessories for sale
Discount parking is available at The Olympia Centre at 161 East Chicago Ave. ( less than a one block walk) at $12 for 6 hours
bring parking ticket to box office for validation.
Show Type: Comedy/Drama
Box Office: 312-337-0665
To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at ” White Rooster”.
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