“The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey”

Highly Recommended ***** American Blues Theater Company never holds back ! For all the years I have followed their productions, I am always amazed at the quality they put on their stage ( no matter where that stage may have been), and their latest production, “The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey” is one that everyone should see. This is seventy-five minutes of story-telling and is done by one actor, Joe Faust, who I must say, truly shines in bringing the entire cast of players to the front. Yes, he plays them all for us. No costume changes, no set changes, just a combination of props ( Kevin Rolfs) , projections ( G. “Max” Maxin IV) and solid direction by Kurt Johns, who has become the “master of the solo show”, in my book.

Written by James Lecesne, “The Absolute Brightness of Leaonard Pelkey” takes us through a mystery, as this young 14 year old boy, living on the Jersey Shore, goes missing. What we see during the investigation and the people who had paths that crossed his, was a flamboyant young man, who chose to be “different” and as we follow the story, told thru a narrative that might fit an episode of “Law & Order”, we retain the heart and soul of who this young person was and how his being “different” in reality, helped the people of the small town were inspired by his actions.

One can only find the story to be inspirational. More than that, one listening to the words written by Lecesne, will find a warmth in their heart for a person that they will never know, yet will feel like an old friend. While the script is sensational and inspiring, it is the direction of Johns and the personalities of Foust ( yes he shows us many during this wonderful story) that truly make one feel that this may be one of the best 75 minutes ever spent in a theater.

“The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey” will continue at Stage 773 in the BOX THEATER, located at 1225 West Belmont thru April 27th with performances as follows:

Thursdays  7:30 p.m.

Fridays  7:30 p.m.

Saturdays  3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Sundays  2:30 p.m.

NO performance at 7:30 p.m. on 4/27

Extra show on 4/24 at 2:30 p.m. and on 4/15 at 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, April 14th is an open captioned performance

All Sundays have town hall discussions following the performance.

Tickets range from $19-$39 ( a bargain) and can be purchased at the box office, by calling 773-654-3103 or online at www.AmericanBluesTheater.com

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey”