Steadstyle Chicago
	April 2008 Theatre Review by Meghan Gillogly
	Looking for a Ticket Broker? Check out the hottest broadway tickets from Gotickets.com The Blue House Critical Evaluation: ** out of **** "The Blue House" at Adventure Stage Chicago starring Jasmin Cardenas, Donte Fitzgerald, Sarah Rose Graber, Eddie Jordon III, Mildred Langford and Isabel Quintero.  Photos by Johnny Knight. Chicago's racial past and historic neighborhoods have a haunting effect and theme in Adventure Stage Chicago's World Premiere of "The Blue House".  It is based around a 13-year old girl, Maricela (Jasmin Cardenas) who has dreams of people from the past that eventually come into her present for seemingly mysterious reasons.   It is a sort of ghost story with a twist at the end that is geared toward kids of all ages.  The story is told through part realism and part animated action to embellish the story. Creative use of spectacle representing a house burned to the ground by riots through a scrim on stage doesn't really appear until the end to create a dramatic arc.  It was useful and enjoyable to see but felt like too little too late to engage me in the storyline. Maricela (Jasmin Cardenas) failed at pulling me into her world or caring about her, making it hard to want to see the majority of the show through her eyes.  Her interpretation of a teenager seemed forced and unauthentic, not to mention a little annoying in some contexts throughout the production.  Ms. Betnorakate (Sarah Rose Graber) was an equally annoying character who also did not only have me believe she was who she was trying to be, but rather a strong stereotype of a business-driven white woman.  The rest of the cast was believable and enjoyable to watch.  Isom (Donte Fitzgerald) was a charming, crazy old man with  an eclectic essence about him even though the actor is a young man in real life.  Isabel Quintero's portrayal of a broken-hearted mother, Esperanza made for a good relationship between a matriarch and a child that made you feel the connection of family and home all at once.  Even though this was not my most enjoyable theater outing, I do believe the children in the audience enjoyed this show and I feel this would be a good one for young theater-goers. "The Blue House" is performed without an intermission and is about 90 minutes in length.  It runs through May 3, 2008 at the Vittum Theatre, 1012 North Noble Street in Chicago.  Tickets are $5-$17 and can be purchased at www.adventurestage.org or by calling 773-342-4141.    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!