“The Moors”

Highly Recommended ***** Due to health conditions,  I had to wait a full week before experiencing the Chicago Premiere of “The Moors”, a charming  100 plus minutes of sheer theatrical magic.  The show is both dark and comical. Written by Jen Silverman and smoothly directed by Kirsten Fitzgerald, you will find yourself brought into the story of two spinster sisters, trying to work out how the remaining years of their lives will be. They also have a Mastiff ( Guy Van Swearingen is hilarious in this role) who is looking at being noticed and finding love.. During the play, which unravels several stories, cleverly designed to interact, he does meet his love. She is a Moor-Hen ( played to perfection by Dado).

The sisters, Agatha ( as always, brilliantly brought to life by Karen Aldridge) and Hilday ( a wonderful  comic touch by Christina Gorman). Agatha has her own agenda, believing that she is far better than anyone else and Hilday is tired of her sister, so she plans something special. The play begins with the household preparing for the arrival of their new nanny Emile ( Audry Billings plays this tole to perfection- her timing is perfect) and we learn all about the father of these two ladies who allegedly hired the nanny for a child no one ever sees.

There are many strange twists and turns to the plot and I prefer not to let any of them out of the bag. The surprises are many and wonderful. Let’s face it, after almost two years of little or zero theater, it is great to be entertained again and if you are only going to see one play, I think THIS IS THE ONE!

I must not forget about the last of the cast members, Jennifer Engstrom as Mallory or Marjory, or both. She is amazing, switching characters constantly and her characters are both hysterical. Silverman hits the nail on the head with this masterful suspenseful

The set by Milo Bue is amazing and part of the storyline has every room in the mansion appear to be the same room ( so only one set). It is a running joke that works! As I said, each character has their own agenda and each character pulls it off perfectly.

A Red Orchid Theatre has always been one of my favorite places to see a play. Their ensemble is composed of some of Chicago’s finest and the venue itself, with its intimacy is perfect for a chamber piece like “The Moors”. We can feel the wind and hear the wind (Jeffrey Levin) and the lighting effects ( Kali Story) are amazing. The costumes (Myron Elliott-Cisneros) are unique , with great  period dresses and a bird suit that will impress you. All of the main characters in this black comedy are searching for love and what happens in this play is powerful and will make you think. The ending is very special and not what you might think will happen. As I said- you MUST see this one and have until February 27th to do so:

“The Moors” will continue at A Red Orchid Theatre located at 1531 N. Wells Street ( in the heart of Old Town) thru February 27th with performances as follows:

Thursdays  7:30 p.m.

Fridays  7:30

Saturdays  3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Sundays  3 p.m.

Tickets  range from $30-$40 a true bargain for theater of this quality and can be purchased by calling 312-943-8722 or www.aredorchidtheatre.org

Covid Procedures /city of Chicago are followed and masks are to be worn for the full show. Seating is open and all id’s and covid vac info will be shown prior to checking in for your performance. There are no late seaters, so once the show begins, that is it!

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “The Moors”. I see a number of Jeff Awards heading to Old Town!