1. The Trib’s Best in Theater for the year is out. (We’re halfway through the year, so it’s apparently time.) He includes Porgy and Bess, The Outgoing Tide, Festen, A Twist of Water, and The Big Meal. Thoughts? Our bloggers called Porgy and Bess “less a production than an event,” and Kelly Kleiman admits she “saw many family dinners pass before [her] eyes” while debating the merits of The Big Meal.

2. I’m convinced: See 5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche. This New Colony production launched at Sketchbook last year as a 15-minute comedy sketch; the expansion sounds even better. The new version opened this past weekend and runs through July.

3. Eric Ziegenhagen talks about using the phrase “The Critics Love Us!” to promote a play, when in fact, the critics plural definitely do not love you. “The reviews are out there,” says Ziegenhagen. “Quote the best parts, fine—but lying to your audience can bite you back. It’s BS-ing.” He also wonders about how to reach those many individuals “who are indifferent to reviews.”

4. Author Jessica Hopper reads at the Harold Washington Library Tuesday evening. The Girls’ Guide to Rocking: How to Start a Band, Book Gigs, and Get Rolling to Rock Stardom encourages young women to get involved in music from the perspective of a woman who did so herself.

5. Less theater, more spectacle: Russell Crowe was in Naperville, and people freaked out. Or, the people who saw him are freaking out; other people may have seen him and are less sure what’s happening.

Questions? Email kdries@wbez.org.