Cabaret ZaZou’s “Luminaire”

Cabaret ZaZou’s “Luminaire,” an intimate, interactive cabaret/cirque production performed inside a European spiegeltent on the 14th floor of the Cambria Hotel in downtown Chicago, is one of Chicago’s best-kept theatrical secrets. Frank Ferrante, the legendary actor and comedian who co-created the show and plays your host “Forte,” discusses the origins of the piece; how one best describes this particular circus-music hall entertainment; not just playing but embodying Groucho Marx; the art of making audience “volunteers” look good; the mixed blessing of missing the glory days of vaudeville; receiving actual blessings from Groucho’s son; admiring both the truth and range of Zero Mostel; celebrating the anarchy of the Marx Brothers; drawing on one’s heritage for both comedy and truth; the ability to use all the skills in an actor’s toolbag; and the power of an entire audience saying, as one, “All is forgiven.” (Length 20:27) (PICTURED: Frank Ferrante as Forte in Cabaret ZaZou’s “Luminaire.”)

Celebrating ‘Lookingglass Alice’

David Catlin is a founding Ensemble Member, actor, writer, director, and former Artistic Director of the Tony-winning Lookingglass Theatre in Chicago, and, whose adaptations and productions, which include Moby Dick and The Little Prince, “has sculpted the Lookingglass aesthetic.” David discusses the origins of Lookingglass Alice and the art of combining multiple skillsets; how the show is reshaped to the specific skills of its cast members; how David’s less of a director and more of an air traffic controller; the challenge (and joy!) of creating theater that shatters boundaries and explores possibilities; a proposed title for a new reduced version of a Herman Melville classic; and how Lookingglass is one of several models of college kids forming a theater and making a go of it. (Length 23:57)

Episode 571. The Scary Clown

In this delayed Halloween episode, one scary clown discusses another. Former Ringling Brothers & Barnum & Bailey circus clown Reed Martin (right) reviews the new film adaptation of Stephen King’s It, paying particular attention to the accuracy and creepiness of the infamous Pennywise (played by Bill Skarsgård, left). Featuring apocryphal stories, the possible origins of coulrophobia (the fear of clowns), the difference between successful and unsuccessful adaptations of Stephen King novels, attention to detail, really scary online groups, and the realization that maybe some irrational fears aren’t quite so irrational after all. (Length 16:50)