Newcity’s Top 5 of Everything 2007: Stage

Top 5 Shows
“A Steady Rain,” Chicago Dramatists
“Another Day in the Empire,” Black Sheep
“Diversey Harbor,” Theatre Seven
“Impress These Apes,” Blewt
“Machos,” Teatro Luna
—Nina Metz

Top 5 Theatrical Experiences
“Massacre (Sing to Your Children),” Teatro Luna/Goodman
“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” Broadway in Chicago
“What the Butler Saw,” Court
“Passion,” Chicago Shakespeare
“Lunatic(a)s,” Teatro Luna
—Fabrizio O. Almeida

Top 5 Plays
“Doubt,” Broadway in Chicago
“Othello,” Writers Theatre
“The Crucible,” Steppenwolf
“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” Broadway in Chicago
“Golden Child,” Silk Road Theatre Project
—Dennis Polkow

Top 5 Musical Theater Productions
“The Color Purple,” Broadway in Chicago
“Passion,” Chicago Shakespeare
“Kiss Me Kate,” Light Opera Works
“Camelot,” Broadway in Chicago
“Ragtime,” Porchlight
—Dennis Polkow

Top 5 Opera Productions
“Die Frau ohne Schatten,” Lyric Opera
“Madama Butterfly,” Ravinia
“Return of Ulysses,” Chicago Opera
“Bitter Sweet,” Light Opera Works
“Julius Caesar,” Lyric Opera
—Dennis Polkow

Top 5 Solo Shows
Margot Bordelon, “Love, Valor, and Technology,” Live Bait
Brooke Bagnall, “Idiot: A Love Story in Pieces,” Annoyance
Arlene Malinowski, “Till Deaf Do Us Part,” Live Bait
Bob Kulhan, “Bing Faithful’s Very Merry Nondenominational Holiday Special,” i.O.
Hans Holsen, “Dennis Tar, High School Tennis Star,” Annoyance
—Nina Metz

Top 5 New Plays
“Passion Play,” Goodman
“Massacre (Sing to Your Children),” Teatro Vista/Goodman
“Lady,” Northlight
“The Busy World is Hushed,” Next
“Feast,” Chicago Dramatists
—Fabrizio O. Almeida

Top 5 Revivals
“What the Butler Saw,” Court
“Arcadia,” Court
“Othello,” Writers Theater
“The Diary of Anne Frank,” Steppenwolf
“Mrs. Warren’s Profession,” Remy Bumppo
—Fabrizio O. Almeida

Top 5 Memorable Productions by a Smaller Theater Troupe
“Katzelmacher,” The Side Project
“The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek,” Thunder and Lighting Ensemble
“Mr. Marmalade,” Dog & Pony
“Red Light Winter,” Thunder and Lightning Ensemble
“Sueño,” Greasy Joan & Co
—Fabrizio O. Almeida

Top 5 Female Performances
Amy Morton, “August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf
Danica Ivancevic, “Faith Healer,” Uma
Mechelle Moe, “The Bald Soprano,” The Hypocrites
Heather Tyler, “Dirty Diamonds,” Factory
Simone Roos, “Fool For Love,” Signal Ensemble
—Nina Metz

Top 5 Male Performances
Colm O’Reilly, “The Strangerer,” Theater Oobleck
Andy Hager, “It’s Only the End of the World,” TUTA
Randy Steinmeyer and Peter DeFaria, “A Steady Rain,” Chicago Dramatists
Sean Sinitski, “Another Day in the Empire,” Black Sheep
Dominic Green, “The Permanent Way,” New Leaf
—Nina Metz

Top 5 Guilty Pleasures
“Machos,” Teatro Luna
“The Hourglass in The Stop Time Chronicles,” Chicago Tap Theatre
“Tiger Prawn: The Mountain Mover,” Chicago Dance Crash
“The Baby Killers,” Dream Theatre
“Eva Peron,” Trap Door
—Fabrizio O. Almeida

Top 5 Set Designs
Melania Lancy’s ratty motel room for “Fool For Love,” Signal Ensemble
John Wilson’s honky-tonk bar for “Coronado,” Steep
Peter O’Keefe’s garbage-strewn flat for “Mercury Fur,” Broken Compass
Tom Burch’s police precinct for “A Steady Rain,” Chicago Dramatists
Brian Sydney Bembridge’s church meeting hall for “Faith Healer,” Uma Productions
—Nina Metz

Top 5 Productions I’d Rather Forget
“Dr. Atomic,” Lyric Opera
“The Fool (returns to his chair),” Neo Futurists
“Mirror of the Invisible World,” Goodman Theatre
“Lookinglass Alice,” Lookinglass
“Some Girl(s),” Profiles
—Fabrizio O. Almeida

Top 5 Theatrical Disappointments
“Thyestes,” Court
“The Sparrow,” House/Broadway in Chicago
“Three Sisters,” Gift
“Mercury Fur,” Broken Compass
“Scotland Road,” Oracle Productions
—Fabrizio O. Almeida