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Articles tagged with: JoAnn Montemurro

Raven Theatre’s sharp image of ‘Vieux Carré’ evokes turning point for playwright Williams

May 18, 2014 – 11:42 pm
Jane (Eliza Stoughton) and her lover Tye (Joel Reitsma) are part of the motley band in the Vieux Carre. (Dean LaPrairie)

Review: Raven Theatre’s very fine production of Tennessee Williams’ “Vieux Carré” bespeaks that lyrical playwright in the long, sad twilight of his creative career and, indeed, his life. It is a look back into the predawn of Williams’ emergence as an important voice, a play filled with rich characters of meager means, and the lean, fierce eloquence of this account directed by Cody Estle gets it wonderfully right. ★★★★

Theater 2013-14: The lure of a different life links Raven trips to ‘Bountiful’ and beyond

Sep 4, 2013 – 2:25 pm
Millie Hurley as Carrie Watts in 'A Trip to Bountiful,' which opens the Raven Theatre 2013-14 season.

Tenth in a series of season previews: From the season opener, Horton Foote’s “The Trip to Bountiful” to the finale with Tennessee Williams’s “The Vieux Carré,” the 2013-14 lineup of plays at Raven Theatre centers on what artistic director Michael Menendian calls “that little ache in our heart, the secret longing for a different life.”

‘Brighton Beach Memoirs’ at Raven: A young man’s fancy swings from baseball to – sex!

May 20, 2013 – 11:22 pm
Sophia Menendian, left, with Elizabeth Stenholt in Brighton Beach Memoirs credit Dean LaPrairie

Review: ★★★★

The New Season: Raven Theatre cuts fresh loaf of Americana with Odets’ ‘Big Knife’

Aug 11, 2012 – 6:33 pm
Raven Theatre night banner credit Dean LaPrairie

Sixth in a series of season previews: Technically, it may not be a Chicago premiere, but Clifford Odets’ “The Big Knife,” which opens Raven Theatre’s 30th anniversary season, would be a rarity on any stage and artistic director Michael Menendian is eager to revive this sober tale of glitzy Hollywood’s dark side.

Raven Theatre sifts through debris and debate of ‘The Price,’ but can’t deliver the payoff

Mar 11, 2012 – 2:10 pm
The Price by Arthur Miller at Raven Theatre Chicago John Steinhagen Chuck Spencer credit Dean LaPrairie

Arthur Miller on memory’s attic. 3 stars.