Steadstyle Chicago
	November 2009 Theatre Review by Alan Bresloff
	Little Women At last, something new and different for the holiday season!  A new adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" has just had its World Premiere in the lovely little Circle Theater in the enchanting town of Forest Park.  This particular adaptation is called "Little Women, a play with music part one" so as not to be confused with the musical version that played on Broadway and at The Marriott Theatre in Lincolshire.  It is adapted and directed by Bob Knuth, who appears to be a man who can do everything.  He also did the set design, a marvelous piece of work, as well as the lighting.  This is a wonderful production that relates the story that Alcott tells of the March Family during the years 1862-1864. I believe that almost everyone knows the story of the March family and the four daughters, Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth aka The Little Women.  It was during the Civil War in Concord, Massachusetts.  Their father had gone off to the front serving as chaplain.  Money is tight, but the four sisters and their mother are making due and are learning that family is far more important than material things.  This is called "part one" as it deals with one year in the lives of this family and the struggles they endure during the period from Christmas to Christmas, making it a perfect show for the holidays. Knuth has assembled a first rate cast to bring this story to life.  Anita Hoffman is a wonderful Marmee, the mother.  Laura McClain plays Meg, the eldest.  Abigail St. John is delightful to watch as Amy the youngest, even though she does what most 5th graders do, speak too fast, we do get the gist of her lines.  Jill Sesson is Beth and the delicious Kieran Welsh-Phillips is Jo, who represents Ms. Alcott as the writer and woman who wishes she were a man as life is much easier for men.  The relationship between these four actresses is strong and one can feel the kinship between them as if they were in reality, sisters. The wealthy and lonely aunt, a comic touch with a morale, is played by veteran Mary Redmon, and the boy next door who changes their lives is deftly handled by Jeremy Myers.  Meg's love interest, Mr. Brooke is played by Kevin Anderson and the household's maid is played by Eileen Martin Ferguson.  Peter Espisito plays the wealthy Mr. Laurence, grandfather of Laurie (Mr. Myers) and Brian Rabinowitz handles the role of Mr. March, who only enters the story in Act Two with the warmth that one would want to make a holiday show indeed a holiday show.  The story deals with family problems, social issues, love and the importance of relationships.  When this novel was written it was the first time a young girl was allowed to express her own desires and individuality.  This new adaptation truly makes us see that Jo is a special young woman.  Part of this is the writing I am sure, but I am of the opinion that Ms. Welsh-Phillips' stage personality and character development added a great deal to making this seem very real. The set designed by Knuth is a wondrous sight as this is a small storefront theater with limited space and he utilizes every inch of the stage with every detail finely tuned.  Patti Roeder's costumes are far greater than one would ever expect in a smaller theater like Circle.  It appears that a big bravo should go out to her and her crew, who must have been sewing like crazy to create the masterpieces they did.  Peter Storms' sound design and music adds a special touch and while they do not list the prop master in the program, they are sensational.  This is indeed a sparkling production and a change of pace from the typical holiday fare.  How many times can one see "A Christmas Carol" or "Miracle on 34th Street" or even "A Christmas Schooner"?  Looking for a change?  This is it! "Little Women" will run through January 24, 2010.  Performances are Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m.  From 11/28-12/19 they will add Saturdays at 3 p.m.  No shows on 12/25 and 1/3.  Tickets range from $20 to $24 which is a bargain for theater this lovely and they even offer a $2 discount for students and seniors.  The Circle Theatre is located at 7300 W. Madison Street, just West of Harlem in Forest Park with lots of street parking available.  To order your tickets, and I strongly suggest you do so right away as this is a very small venue, call 708-771-0700 or visit www.circle-theatre.org.   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.