It’s 1963, and things are not all well in the Roman household. Billy’s Bar Mitzvah is coming up, and the kid can’t memorize his lines. His older brother has announced he’s quitting college to become a folk singer. His dad is mad at both kids, and his mom is, well, just plain mad. The play is a sort of homecoming for writer Alan Gross, who penned a series of hits in Chicago in the late ’70s and early ’80s before moving to LA. Here to tell us if the magic, as well as the man, is back to his roots, are Eight Forty-Eight’s dueling critics, Jonathan Abarbanel and Kelly Kleiman.

On Stage:
High Holidays
Goodman Theatre
Through Nov. 29

Kelly’s Pick:
Gossamer
Vittum Theater
Through December 5

Music Button: Señor Coconut, “Tour De France”, from the CD El Baile Aleman, (Nacionál)