Steadstyle Chicago
	February 2010 Theatre Review by Alan Bresloff
	Wilson Wants it All The House Theatre of Chicago is known for its new and innovative works.  Their current production, "Wilson Wants It All," co-written by Michael Rohd and Phillip C. Klapperich, takes us into the future and the political unrest of 2040.  The story starts out with the death of a Senator running for President.  The year is 2010.  His wife is also killed and their baby Hope is saved.  Raised by the Senator's campaign manager and adviser Wilson (a strong performance by John Henry Roberts), the country looks at her as their hope for a better future.  He of course has his own agenda.  As the years pass and we get to 2040, the world is now overcrowded with vast unemployment and general chaos.  It needs to find new leadership.  Can the people allow a chip to be implanted that will not allow for any more children to be born?  That not helping the situation, do we need another Civil War? There are many questions in this story that has some possibilities and potential, but there are many holes as well.  Can Hope, being a senator make the difference in this seven part system of the future?  But there are more little surprises in the story.  Rather than divulge them all and take away the edge that the writers are attempting to produce, I will tell you that if you think about "The Man In The Iron Mask", "A Tale of Two Cities", "Dave" and other mistaken identity plays, movies and novels, you will see what they are trying to bring forward to make this story even more interesting.  Directed by Rohd with movement choreography by Tommy Rapley, the scenes move quickly. The set is very simple with chairs and tables weaving on and off stage, a stage that has several projection screens so that we the audience can see what the TV cameras are seeing (news reports) and the speeches that Hope makes as well.  The only problem with the design of these screens is that there are some special effect lights which are at the height of the videos shown and those can be distracting.  The lighting by Sarah Hughey and music by Kevin O'Donnell add to the overall experience and video projections by Lucas Merino are effective despite the aforementioned lights. The cast is solid, more so than the script, with very impressive performances by Kevin Barry Crowley as Wilson's right hand man, Carolyn Defrin as Meredith, Edgar Miguel Sanchez as Remy, Rebekah Ward-Hays as Hope and Leslie Frame as Ruth.  These are the main characters of the story, with Ruth and Hope being the focal point as well as their relationship with Meredith.  Since I do not want to give away the plot, I will let you, based on my previous comments figure out what this all means.  The ensemble cast of six play all the other roles, from newscasters, secret service agents, school kids etc and move about the stage, changing characters and costumes with sure swiftness.  Michael Smith, Abu Ansari, Emjoy Gavino, Maria McCullough, Elana Elyce and Joey Steakley, but the show belongs to Roberts, Frame Ward-Hays, Defrin and Sanchez along with a strong character developed by Crowley. While I cannot rank this show with others that this troupe has brought to Chicago stages, I am sure that as they perform this and get feedback from audiences, they will adjust and make changes that will complete what has been started.  For me, there is promise with what they have started and I look forward to seeing what transpires during the run.  The production will run through March 27, 2010 at the Chopin Theatre, located at 1543 W. Division Street in Chicago.  Performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 7 p.m.  Tickets range from $25-$29 and there are student discount tickets ($10 off) as well as actors discounts.  To order tickets call 773-251-2195 or visit www.TheHouseTheatre.com.   About Alan Bresloff Alan Bresloff, once an actor himself, has been covering the Chicago Theater Scene since 1993, first as the Theater and Arts critic for LaRaza newspaper, then with Salsachicago.com and then onto Extra Newspaper and The Epoch Times.  He also writes for ElImparcial and TeleGuia.  His reviews can also be seen on www.theatreinchicago.com.  Alan does not call himself a "critic" but a "reviewer" as he tries to educate the reader about theater itself, what is a good value, what to look for in a play or musical and more.  "Exposure to theater is a very important part of a young person's life" he says. "Learning about the arts and culture is in fact learning about life" and he tries to explain more in his reviews than just if it is good or bad.  Even some of the poor productions have some value, he often says and he would love your feedback on shows that you have seen.  You can write him here or at albresloff@sbcglobal.net.