WBEZ 91.5 Chicago

- Strawdog is having a benefit on November 19 called The Phone Book, which will feature performances by people you know like SNL's Nora Dunn, Jonathon Berry, Sean Graney, and mem

Chicago Mayer Rahm Emanuel and his wife joined NATO spouses at the Joffrey on Sunday, where they watched a "short performance", which means that not even the arts could avoid this weekend's excitement. Guests received "a limited edition, Picasso-inspired silk scarf based on designs developed for the ballet Parade." 

Strawdog's The Petrified Forest is an old-fashioned show in the best sense of the term, developing its conflicts and characters leisurely so that by the time things come to a head, the audience is deeply invested.

1. Gilbert & Sullivan's The Gondoliers is up at Mandel Hall at the University of Chicago the weekend of March 9.

Best show of the year in any category: Gary Griffin’s Follies at Chicago Shakespeare. This flawless version of an underappreciated early Sondheim should be remounted somewhere and run forever; there’s not a false note or step anywhere in it.

1. There's not a ton of stuff to see this weekend with the family, and it's basically half getting into the holiday spirit, and the other half a motley crew.