Steadstyle Chicago
	May 2008 Theatre Review by Meghan Gillogly
	Looking for a Ticket Broker? Check out the hottest broadway tickets from Gotickets.com Around the World in 80 Days Critical Evaluation: **** out of **** "Around the World in 80 Days" by Lookingglass Theatre Company starring Philip R. Smith, Rom Barkhordar, Ravi Batista, Joe Dempsey, Kevin Douglas, Anish Jethmalani, Ericka Ratcliff and Nick Sandys. "Around the World in 80 Days" was written and directed by an ensemble cast member from the Lookingglass company, Laura Eason.  It was adapted from the novel by Jules Verne.  The creative design of the theater space itself as well as stellar actors and creative collaborators on and off stage helped bring the story of Phileas Fogg and his journey around the world to life.  The play opens with seeing the carefully regimented lifestyle of a man named Phileas Fogg (Philip R. Smith) and his daily occurrences.  You are introduced to everything from him waking up and having his morning tea to his encounters with the outside world itself.  He seemingly lives quite a boring way of life until a little wager is made among Fogg and his friends over a card game.  That wager and the pursuit of it is where the "magic" and true discoveries are made for Fogg and his eyes are opened to whole new way of thinking.  The wager of course is to travel the world in 80 days or pay a hefty fee if Fogg cannot fulfill his seemingly arrogant claims of being able to do so to his friends.  Philip R. Smith did an amazing job of bringing the idiosyncrasies of a creature of habit like Phileas Fogg to life in a loveable and often subtly funny way.  He had commanding stage presence and had very specific yet relatable relationships with his castmates.  Passepartout (Kevin Douglas) was equally as loveable and talented.  His interpretation of Fogg's "secondhand man" was a great counterpart for Fogg and often you could see little of an odd couple between them.  The story itself was a charming one that was visually stimulating due to Jacqueline and Richard Penrod's scenic design as well as Joshua Horvath's quirky yet perfectly fit sound design.  The mood of the story was captured in the sound deign and helped create an overall tone that complimented the work extremely well.  I enjoyed the set and sound design as much as the story and the actors on stage.  All the elements used to create this production were a perfect fit and made for a charming experience that made you leave the theater feeling highly entertained. "Around the World in 80 Days" is about 2 hours in length with one intermission.  The production runs April 16-June 1 2008 at Lookingglass Theatre Company located inside Chicago's Water Tower Water Works 821 N. Michigan Ave.  Tickets are $25-$55 and are available at the box office 312-337-0665 or lookingglasstheatre.org.   About Meghan Gillogly Meghan Gillogly was born and raised in Florida and has been involved with the arts since the age of two years old.  She started as a dancer in everything from tap, jazz, ballet  and some ballroom and taught in Orlando for a year.  She had the opportunity to study and perform with the Sarasota Ballet of Florida, with Frank Hatchett, a master choreographer from NYC, and danced on Disney's Cinderella castle stage.  She became involved with the theater at nine years old with a local community theater and was hooked ever since.  Throughout high school she performed  in many classic plays including "Guys and Dolls," "Me and my Girl," "Once Upon a Mattress," and "Good News".  After high school, she attended and studied musical theater at Florida State University, Florida Southern College, American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City, and is currently enrolled at Columbia College here in Chicago to complete her Bachelor's degree.  She also had the pleasure of studying with Michael Pieper at Second City, a talented and colorful director.  She moved to Chicago two years ago and loves it!  Meghan has had experience with creative and analytical writing most recently when reviewing "Massacre" at the Goodman Theatre this past spring for class.   Upon graduating from Columbia, Meghan plans to pursue a professional career as an actress on stage and film and is excited at the great opportunities Chicago offers to all of the arts professionally.   She is grateful for the opportunity to work with Steadstyle and see some of the world's best actors perform here in Chicago.  She also looks forward to not only experiencing the performances but becoming educated as she is a budding actress herself!