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Chicago Tribune
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Review: Bri Sudia shines in ‘Always… Patsy Cline' at Drury Lane Theatre
Cowboy hats and Nashville-style dresses proliferated Thursday night in Oakbrook Terrace. Not the first time I've noticed that fans of country music are more common in Chicago's western suburbs than many people think. All had assembled at the Drury Lane Theatre for 'Always … Patsy Cline,' a remarkably resilient revue by Ted Swindley that now has enjoyed a longer life than did the actual Patsy Cline herself. (Cline died in a Tennessee plane crash in 1963 when she was just 30 years old.) Based on the real-life friendship between Cline and one of her fans, Louise Seger, the revue has a long and auspicious history in Chicago. It was a massive, late-1990s hit for Northlight Theatre with folk singer Megon McDonough appearing in the title role, before the late Hollis Resnik took over when the show moved into a commercial run at the Apollo Theatre. I've reviewed this two-person (plus live band) show several other times, too, most recently about five years ago when it was staged in an intimate setting by Firebrand Theatre. Over the years, I've found that its simplicity is its biggest asset. 'Always… Patsy Cline' avoids the usual jukebox tropes of record label suits and managers who don't understand and focuses instead on delivering Cline's greatest hits within the context of a simple female friendship. Louise tells the singer's story from a fan's perspective and Patsy delivers 27(!) of the hits, mostly in honkytonk-style settings. And at less than two hours with an intermission, the show doesn't outstay its welcome. All that said, and despite my familiarity with this material, I really had an uncommonly great time on Thursday night, mostly because of the presence of Bri Sudia in the role of Louise. Sudia, recently back from appearing on Broadway for a year in the Neil Diamond musical 'A Beautiful Noise,' is far and away the best Louise I've seen. She's funny, empathetic and just so very warm; it's easy to condescend to Louise, as to all superfans, but Sudia simply refuses to do anything like that. She honors her character's obsession — at one point, she leans so far and lovingly toward Aja Alcazar's Patsy that Sudia's body occupies a diagonal plane — but also never takes her character too seriously. As a result, she feels both like Cline's great protector and also one of us. I don't exaggerate when I say this is a truly fabulous performance, a piece of acting that wrestles with this little show and makes it seem so much more than it has felt in the past. Clearly, Sudia has learned that even jukebox revues need to have stakes and they have to be able to drive the action forward, too. On the night I was there, the audience simply adored her goofiness. Alcazar is the ideal foil for that: elegant, honest, and rich of voice but also self-protected and slightly unknowable, as is the case with all stars. I suspect the skilled director, Scott Weinstein, had a lot to do with that. He knew who the real star of the piece was, even though her partner is essential to the enterprise. Colette Pollard's set is like an A-frame, a lovely evocation of small-town Tennessee, even if the band (under the lively direction of Ellie Kahn) looks a bit scrunched. And Lee Fiskness knows where to shine the kinds of lights Cline never knew. I suspect lots of my readers already know and have seen this show and, if choosing whether or not to lay down the credit card and go and bathe once again in the pleasures of 'True Love,' 'Crazy' and 'Walkin' After Midnight,' perhaps with a sweetie on hand, will merely want to know that their affection for the piece will be protected (guaranteed) and that they'll have some fresh fun (yup). Aside from admiring the straightforward artistry here and enjoying the pleasure of others, I kept thinking about Taylor Swift's famously close relationships with her fans, turning up at their bridal showers and whatnot; maybe Patsy and Louise were far ahead of their time. Review: 'Always Patsy Cline' (3.5 stars) When: Through Aug. 3 Where: 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace Running time: 1 hour, 50 minutes Tickets: $75-$150 at 630-530-0111 and
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Get a taste of the blues this week in CT arts featuring legendary beats and new treats
This week in Connecticut arts will 'blue' you away. A tribute to the late guitar legend George Baker at Cafe Nine reminds attendees of Baker's prowess in the R&B, jazz and blues genres, and the Connecticut Blues Challenge, which sends the victorious act to a national competition in Tennessee, is in its final round. Van Gogh and Monet, both known for their vibrant blues, are the subjects of a multimedia 'Beyond' art exhibit at Connecticut Convention Center and the String Queens feature a violin/viola/cello combo who delves into numerous styles, from classical to spirituals to 'Stand by Me.' Here are some of the top things to see this week. The late George Baker settled in New Haven in the 1990s after an astounding career as the music director for Marvin Gaye, a member of the house band at New York's Apollo Theatre and as the guitarist for dozens of pop, Motown, blues and R&B acts, from the Dixie Cups to The Drifters to Melba Moore to Earl Davis and the Upsetters. Former members of his band, the George Baker Experience, and many other friends and fellow musicians will be part of a tribute to Baker marking five years since his death. The celebration is March 18 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Cafe Nine. Hosts include Baker's longtime friend Jo Ann Haller, Cafe Nine founder Mike Reichbart and the event's music director Lou Ianello. The 2025 Connecticut Blues Challenge is holding its four-hour finals on May 18 at Black-Eyed Sally's starting at 3 p.m. The winner gets to go to the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee. No cover charge. Billy Sherwood, the multi-instrumentalist who succeeded Chris Squire as the bassist for Yes (a gig he's had for over a decade), also has nearly a dozen solo albums to his name and has worked with many other bands from World Trade and Lodgic to Prog Collective and Light Freedom Revival. Sherwood, who is the son of 1960s actor/singer/heartthrob Bobby Sherman, is at Toad's Place on May 20 at 8 p.m. $40, $35 in advance. Two long-serving pop/punk bands are on tour together, each playing one of their best-known albums (which also happen to be their respective second albums) in their entirety. For The Smoking Popes, it's their 1995 classic 'Born to Quit,' which featured the song 'Need You Around.' For the Minnesota punk legends Off With Their Heads, it's the album 'In Desolation,' released after the band signed with Epitaph Records in 2010. May 21 at 8 p.m. $32.34; $28.75 in advance. The New York-based New Orleans-rooted comedian Sean Patton, who's been on all the late night shows, is at Fairfield Theatre Company on May 22 at 8 p.m. $40, $35 FTC members. Little Theater of Manchester's regular script-in-hand reading series offers three one-acts: David Ives' 'Time Flies,' Murphy Guyer's 'The American Century' and Rich Or's 'The Whole Shebang,' directed by Bobby Schultz. May 23 at 7 p.m. Free; $5 suggested donation. Mayday Parade is on its 'Three Cheers for 20 Years' tour, marking two decades as a band. Not only that, the Florida rockers just released the first part of what will be a trilogy of new albums this year. Mayday Parade is joined on tour by Microwave, Grayscale and Like Roses. May 23 at 7 p.m. $50.35-$136.33. Septuagenarian horror rocker Alice Cooper, who is releasing a new album featuring the surviving members of the original Alice Cooper group in July, is doing one of his standard hits-filled shows with his usual backing band on May 23 at 8 p.m. at Mohegan Sun Arena. $61.85-$253.70. Three hot soul/R&B acts of the 1990s — 112 ('Only You'), Total ('Kissing You') and H-Town ('Knockin' Da Boots') — are on a nostalgic tour, groovin' at Foxwoods' Premier Theater on May 23 at 8 p.m. $78.55-$154.55. Cuban actor/comedian Faizon Love, who has appeared in everything from 'Elf' and the first 'Friday' film to 'The War with Grandpa' and the series 'Step Up: High Water,' does four sets at the Funny Bone in Manchester on May 23 at 7 and 9:45 p.m. and May 24 at 6:30 and 9:15 p.m. $32. The new exhibit opening on Memorial Day weekend at Mystic Seaport Museum is designed to show the massive scale and scope of the whaling industry in the United States at its peak in the 19th century. The exhibit includes a 51-foot whale-themed mural, harpoons and other tools used in whaling, items made from whale parts and much more. Opening on May 24 in the Collins Gallery at the seaport's Thompson Exhibition Building, the exhibit is viewable daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Museum admission is $32, $30 seniors and $22 youth. The India Arts Foundation presents an adaptation by Rasa Dance Project of a classic romantic Indian play from the 5th century. May 24 at 6 p.m. $10-$20; $10 seniors and children. A violin/viola/cello trio that plays everything from classical chamber pieces to old-school jazz and present-day pop, The String Queens are at The Kate on May 24 at 7 p.m. $42. The Louisiana-rooted Latin pop duo Ha*Ash titled its sixth album 'Haashtag.' Now its seventh is out and it's 'Haashville,' with a country theme. Sisters Hannah and Ashley are at the Oakdale Theatre on May 24 at 8 p.m. $30-$86.50. The celebrated cellist Yo Yo joins Orchestra Lumos. The program includes Jean-Féry Rebel's Les élémens, Antonín Dvořák's 'Silent Woods' for cello, Jean Sibelius' Symphony No. 5 and Josef Haydn's Cello concerto No. 1. May 24 at 7 p.m., May 25 at 3 p.m. $25-$125. The multimedia 'Beyond Van Gogh' exhibit is back at Connecticut Convention Center (where it was first seen in 2022), and this time it's been joined by 'Beyond Monet.' These great artists' works are rendered not just in digital clarity but become the basis of fancy projection/lighting effects installations. May 24 through June 29. $29.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gail Houston's ‘Songs From the Soul' at the Kilmer Mansion
BINGHAMTON, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – A longtime soul, jazz, and pop singer is celebrating the launch of her new business by sharing her talents with the community. Gail Houston is presenting 'Songs From The Soul' on Sunday May 10th at the Kilmer Mansion in Binghamton. Houston was an accomplished recording artist in the 1960's who founded the girl group The Percells and performed at the legendary Apollo Theatre and on Dick Clark's American Bandstand TV show. Last year, she started working with Binghamton University's Small Business Development Center to create a business that combines education and entertainment. Houston says Morsecode Edutainment's mission is to inspire and educate through dynamic performances and interactive events. 'I'm looking for people to experience things outside of their normal things, to blend and to come together for one purpose, and that is to have some fun,' Houston said. The gospel, blues, and jazz brunch takes place from noon until 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 10th at the Kilmer Mansion. Houston will be accompanied by keyboardist Mike Melnyk as well as a bassist and a violinist. There will also be a brunch spread. Tickets are $45 and can be purchased at Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Wild weather expected Wednesday gets a rare 'high-risk' designation -- the most severe category
ATLANTA (AP) — U.S. government forecasters are using a relatively rare 'high-risk' designation — the highest category they use — to warn that a major tornado outbreak appears likely Wednesday in an area that's home to about 2.5 million people. That area most at risk of catastrophic weather on Wednesday includes parts of west Tennessee including Memphis; northeast Arkansas; the southeast corner of Missouri; and parts of western Kentucky and southern Illinois. The Norman, Oklahoma-based Storm Prediction Center says that 'multiple long-track EF3+ tornadoes, appear likely.' Tornadoes of that magnitude are among the strongest on the Enhanced Fujita scale, used to rate their intensity. Historically, the 'high-risk' designation has been used sparingly, but it did appear just a couple of weeks ago to warn of a deadly tornado outbreak in mid-March. Magenta marks areas at highest risk The Storm Prediction Center uses five categories to warn of expected severe weather, ranging from marginal to high. Its forecast maps are color-coded, with the lowest risk areas in green and the highest shown in magenta. The 'high risk' designation is used when severe weather is expected to include 'numerous intense and long-tracked tornadoes' or thunderstorms producing hurricane-force wind gusts and inflicting widespread damage, according to the agency. On many days when the 'high risk' designation was used in recent years, the forecasts became reality. 2024 Kansas and Oklahoma tornado outbreak On May, 6, 2024, the Storm Prediction Center assigned the high-risk category to parts of Kansas and Oklahoma, warning of 'multiple significant tornadoes along potentially long paths.' The forecast was prescient, as dozens of tornadoes gouged the landscape. One of the strongest twisters tore through the small town of Barnsdall, Oklahoma and then struck the larger community of Bartlesville. Aerial video showed many homes reduced to piles of rubble. About 25 people were rescued from homes where buildings had collapsed on or around them, the town's mayor said at the time. 2023 Mississippi River Valley tornadoes On March 31, 2023, the Storm Prediction Center outlined two areas along the Mississippi River Valley at high risk for tornadoes. Hours after that forecast was issued, multiple twisters collapsed a theater roof during a heavy metal concert in Illinois and shredded homes and shopping centers in Arkansas. A roof collapse at the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere, Illinois, killed one person and injured more than two dozen others. About 260 people were in the venue at the time, the local fire chief said. In all, 146 tornadoes from the 2023 outbreak were confirmed, making it the third-largest tornado outbreak on record in the U.S., the National Weather Service said. More than two dozen people were killed and dozens of others injured.
The Independent
02-04-2025
- Climate
- The Independent
Wild weather expected Wednesday gets a rare 'high-risk' designation -- the most severe category
U.S. government forecasters are using a relatively rare 'high-risk' designation — the highest category they use — to warn that a major tornado outbreak appears likely Wednesday in an area that's home to about 2.5 million people. That area most at risk of catastrophic weather on Wednesday includes parts of west Tennessee including Memphis; northeast Arkansas; the southeast corner of Missouri; and parts of western Kentucky and southern Illinois. The Norman, Oklahoma-based Storm Prediction Center says that 'multiple long-track EF3+ tornadoes, appear likely.' Tornadoes of that magnitude are among the strongest on the Enhanced Fujita scale, used to rate their intensity. Historically, the 'high-risk' designation has been used sparingly, but it did appear just a couple of weeks ago to warn of a deadly tornado outbreak in mid-March. Magenta marks areas at highest risk The Storm Prediction Center uses five categories to warn of expected severe weather, ranging from marginal to high. Its forecast maps are color-coded, with the lowest risk areas in green and the highest shown in magenta. The 'high risk' designation is used when severe weather is expected to include 'numerous intense and long-tracked tornadoes' or thunderstorms producing hurricane-force wind gusts and inflicting widespread damage, according to the agency. On many days when the 'high risk' designation was used in recent years, the forecasts became reality. 2024 Kansas and Oklahoma tornado outbreak On May, 6, 2024, the Storm Prediction Center assigned the high-risk category to parts of Kansas and Oklahoma, warning of 'multiple significant tornadoes along potentially long paths.' The forecast was prescient, as dozens of tornadoes gouged the landscape. One of the strongest twisters tore through the small town of Barnsdall, Oklahoma and then struck the larger community of Bartlesville. Aerial video showed many homes reduced to piles of rubble. About 25 people were rescued from homes where buildings had collapsed on or around them, the town's mayor said at the time. 2023 Mississippi River Valley tornadoes On March 31, 2023, the Storm Prediction Center outlined two areas along the Mississippi River Valley at high risk for tornadoes. Hours after that forecast was issued, multiple twisters collapsed a theater roof during a heavy metal concert in Illinois and shredded homes and shopping centers in Arkansas. A roof collapse at the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere, Illinois, killed one person and injured more than two dozen others. About 260 people were in the venue at the time, the local fire chief said. In all, 146 tornadoes from the 2023 outbreak were confirmed, making it the third-largest tornado outbreak on record in the U.S., the National Weather Service said. More than two dozen people were killed and dozens of others injured.
