Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...This year — following a three-year absence — it feels like this “Nutcracker” has both been vastly improved and yet also brought home under Tommy Rapley's richly creative direction. The Steppenwolf set-up was a standard proscenium. At the Chopin Theatre, House Theatre's new digs, the show is staged, much more intimately, in the round (the five-piece band is tucked away in the back). That allows this company to play to its strengths and focus its attentions on its audience."
Chicago Sun Times - Recommended
"...This philosophical battle rages on far too long, especially for a “family” audience. And the show would benefit from a trim of its two hours (including an intermission), down to 90 minutes. Yet the fervent performers throw themselves into their roles with great seriousness and agility. And with her in-the-round architectural set, Collette Pollard (who also created the superb environment for Writers’ Theatre’s “A Streetcar Named Desire” this year), once again makes the audience believe it is living inside the play."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...The wooden soldier comes to life at midnight, leading Clara and her dolls in a crusade to help the household recover from its loss by reclaiming Christmas. Giant rats, of course, resist. Witty, energetic and charming--with crackerjack stagecraft, some excellent songs, and a comic vision that borrows skillfully from the Toy Story movies--the show draws special power from its stark confrontation with grief. It was first staged in 2007, and I hope the House folks keep bringing it back so that my one-year-old son can see it someday."
Examiner - Highly Recommended
"...There’s more authentic, gleeful holiday spirit in the first three minutes of the House Theatre of Chicago's adaptation of The Nutcracker than you’ll find in an entire two hours traffic o’er the stage in many another holiday show. In re-casting E.T.A. Hoffman’s classic Christmas story, playwrights Phillip Klapperich and Jake Minton have created something wonderful, steeping a usually cotton candy frothy affair with dark psychological depths while maintaining a perfect balance between irreverence and joy. Moreover, instead of a generally beautiful but ultimately plot-less parade of scenes, the House Theatre’s Nutcracker, directed and choreoraphed with an agile hand by Tommy Rapley, is a story of complexity and suspense."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...For a kid and adult friendly holiday treat, get to Chopin Theatre to have some fun cheering for Carla and her friends to extinguish the Rat King so everyone can enjoy Christmas. The Nutcracker demonstrates the best attributes of The House Theatre of Chicago’s original formula – heart, whimsy, charm, rich humor, and clear storytelling utilizing puppets, music, terrific lighting and honest humor. This is a refreshing holiday treat!"
Reviews You Can Iews - Highly Recommended
"...This is not a show to miss, especially since Mike Przygoda is the sound guy and the House just truly did a much better job than the first time they did this play. You and your kids will love this. Seriously, one of my favorite House shows."
Chicago Theater Beat - Highly Recommended
"...The Nutcracker had some absolutely brilliant moments—one being the magical transition from inside to outdoors and the other being the terrifying Rat King (something that gave me a nightmare or two). With this show, the House finds the perfect content to match their style. Let’s hope they keep it up."