Wherein I attempt to rank every show I’ve seen this year, a running list as the year unfolds, regardless of genre (theater, music, dance). Note, the company I keep is not a factor, though it often redeems the lesser of such evenings. If I’ve written about them, links are provided. If I published a review, it is linked.
Previous Years: 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010
Twilight: Gods/Lyric Opera/April 26
The Last Pair of Earlies/Raven Theatre/November 1
Paradise Square/Broadway in Chicago/November 17
The Magic Flute/Lyric Opera/November 3
Home: A Celebration/Joffrey Ballet/October 13
Kinky Boots/Paramount Theatre/August 27
Her Honor Jane Byrne/Lookingglass/November 14
American Mariarchi/Goodman Theatre/October 3
What the Constitution Means to Me/Broadway Playhouse/October 29
Fannie, The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer/Goodman Theatre/October 25
Together At Last: Second City MainStage/October 14
8 Track: The Sound of the ’70s/Theo Ubique/December 12
Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski/Chicago Shakespeare Theater/November 4
A Recipe for Disaster/Windy City Playhouse/October 15
School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play/Goodman Theatre/August 2
Florencia en el Amazonas/Lyric Opera/November 13