“Danny Casolaro Died For You”

[rating=4]One thing is a constant when attending a production at Timeline Theatre. whether at their home base or another venue; quality story telling and a lesson in history. Currently, on their main stage located at 615 West Wellington is the Chicago premiere of “Danny Casolaro Died For You” written by Dominic Orlando and based on the true events relative to a high level conspiracy to hide information about these clandestine events. Orlando has based this mystery on the actual notes that his cousin left behind, unveiling the way in which our government and all of its arms plotted together in many instances to protect the parties they represented.

Directed by Nick Bowling on an open, multi purpose set )Collette Pollard), the audience is placed on three sides of the action as the story unfolds. We start the play in a flashback and then continue to move from one period of time to another swiftly and with great ease of understanding. This is not an easy task where many stories and sub-plots intertwine, but Bowling is expert at this and his cast of six actors are up to the task.If you enjoy mystery, intrigue, spy stuff (not James Bond, but of that ilk), this is a tight, energetic look at high level corruption as seen through the eyes of a man who may have, or may not have, committed suicide. Pay attention, read the wonderful articles that appear in the lobby and judge for yourself.

The two main characters in this story are of course,Danny (sharply played by Kyle Hatley) and his cousin Thomas ( deftly handled by Demetrios Troy). The other characters are played by a strong ensemble-Phillip Earl Johnson, Mark Richard ( a comical touch as “deep throat” Michael Riconosciuto),Dennis William Grimes and Jamie Vann. All top notch performers who keep this story moving and the audience on their toes. Miss a minute, you may be lost!

The special ingredients that make this type of show truly feel real are the lights(Jesse Klug), sound and music (Joshua Horvath), Props (Vivian Knouse) and costumes (Austin Pettinger) and even the fight choreography (Matt Hawkins at his best). Seeing a production like this one is as if all the ingredients of a famous recipe were mixed to perfection, only as a play instead of a meal. Politicians, beware! This one may be a little hard to take as the mysteries unravel, you may be thinking about your own pasts. Theater lovers, rejoice! Timeline, once again has brought some history from the page to the stage and ” Danny Casolrao Died for You” will be visible through December 21st at Timeline Theatre located at 615 West Wellington with performances as follows:

Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.

Fridays at 8 p.m.

Saturdays at 4 and 8 p.m.

Sundays at 2 p.m.

Tickets  range from $39- $52 and are available by calling 773-281-8463 or online at www.timelinetheatre.com where you can also see the special dates and discussion events. Timeline has a tendency to sell out, so do not put off your purchase and arrive early as it is open general seating.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-up and click at “Danny Casolaro Died for You”