Snow White at the Emerald City Theatre

Saturday morning we headed out in the frozen slush and drove to Lincoln Park to take the girls to lunch and a play. Lunch was at the very affordable Salt and & Pepper Diner, which is virtually across the street from the Emerald City Theatre. Not surprisingly, nearly all of the families we saw eating at the diner also ended up in the opening day audience of Snow White.

The schtick behind this particular performance, which is officially titled Snow White as performed by Professor TJ Barker's Troupe of Theatricals, is that the actors was running late and missing many of their fellow actors as well as their entire orchestra. But because they are a dedicated group, they pitch in by playing multiple roles and all of the musical instruments. Seven year old Zoe was intrigued and kept asking me if their train really was late or if that was part of the show. And because her brain has been washed by Walt Disney, she couldn't help pointing out the inconsistencies between this stage production and the animated film. (We had a post-show discussion of "artistic license.")

Four year old Ada was unfazed by the breaking of the fourth wall and unfamiliar costumes and songs. She was so completely rapt Josh and I had a hard time keeping our eyes on the show--it was so much more fun to watch her reactions--wide-eyed wonder at the beautiful princesses, lip-biting glee at the wicked stepmother's evil plotting and smiles at the silly antics of the ragtag dwarves.

And like all of the Emerald City Theatre performances we seen, this one is designed for children 3 and up, but totally tolerable for adults (in fact, this one was quite enjoyable). The show is 1 hour long with no intermission and snacks and drinks are allowed in the theatre. Tickets are typically $16 for adults and $13 for children, but Valentine's Day weekend kids can take their grown-ups for free with the discount code SNOW.

Disclosure: I received media passes to this show.

A reason to see Blue Man Group again

Blue Man Group enthralled me when I first saw it about a dozen years ago. Since then I've largely forgotten about the long-playing art-theatre-concert-comedy show, throwing it in the same category as Navy Pier and Brazilian steak houses--cool the first time you go, but pretty much just for tourists.

But Blue Man Group has reinvented its show for the era of iPads, text messaging and Lady Gaga. Josh and I went to see it Wednesday night and laughed pretty consistently throughout. It's a delightful performance (if a little heavy on the texting jokes) that flies by in flurry of audience participation, physical humor, pounding beats, flying marshmallows and a finale that includes dozens of rolls of toilet paper, dancehall lights, loud music, hi-def video and giant balloons.

I can't wait to bring my second grader. It is going to Blow. Her. Mind.

Disclosure: I was invited to see a press and concierge night at the Briar Street Theatre and my tickets were comped.