Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...The all-Equity touring version of director Bart Sher's 2015 Lincoln Center revival of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's "The King and I" is a magnificent, genuinely revelatory production that you do not want to miss."
Chicago Sun Times - Recommended
"...Directed by Bartlett Sher, the production flows easily between dialogue and song, with the singers' phrasing bringing a relaxed colloquial touch to the lyrics. Michael Yeargan's elaborate set, lit by Donald Holder, includes everything from the prow of a ship to a giant golden Buddha (but too many between-scenes curtains). And Catherine Zuber's lavish costumes are a fine mix of Victorian hoop skirts and traditional Thai silk tunics."
Daily Herald - Highly Recommended
"...Director Bartlett Sher restores more of the original text and music for the Broadway revival. There's more pointed political dialogue about land-grabbing colonialism (the Siamese King's outburst about building a wall around his country feels uncomfortably prescient). The often-cut Act II opener "Western People Funny" is smartly reinserted here to question oppressive European women's fashions being foisted upon the royal wives."
Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended
"...Based on the most recent Broadway revival of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein's 1951 musical, this Equity touring production offers visual beauty, fine dancing, gorgeous voices, and ethnically sensitive casting (Asian roles played by actors of Asian descent). What it lacks, though, is crucial: a properly explosive relationship between the leads."
Time Out Chicago - Recommended
"...Not having seen Lincoln Center's production on Broadway, where it was rapturously received in 2015, I thought perhaps Sher and company had found something remarkable and new in the material. But perhaps there's nothing new to be found. And presumably reduced for the touring version, even the supposedly grand visuals of Sher's production underwhelm. See this production if you feel sentimental about The King and I, but what appeal it holds for new and future generations is a puzzlement indeed."
Chicago On the Aisle - Highly Recommended
"..."The King and I" holds up a revealing mirror to our better selves. The Rodgers & Hammerstein musical, now at the Oriental Theatre in an enchanting tour production run, is enormously popular for its wealth of wonderful songs and magnificent visual possibilities. But its real importance lies in its message of cultural transcendence, and we as Americans have never had greater need of that message."
ChicagoCritic - Recommended
"...The King and I has everything a classic Broadway musical must have: a memorable score-spectacular lighting, sets and costumes-terrific cast with strong leads and excellent supporting players-talented dancers-and-a splendid orchestra. Rodgers and Hammerstein would enjoy this production-I know I did. At 2 hour and 50 minutes with intermission, it is a full evening of spectacle."
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...The cast of this production is one of strong vocal abilities. They are of course not like last year’s Lyric production, but are more “musical theater” and that, for most audiences , is what this show needs to be."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...At almost three hours in length, this production is a thoughtful, unhurried production, somewhat in the style of the 1951original, but with its own individual personality. Whether theatergoers are paying a return visit to this lovely, timeless tale of culture shock and romance or enjoying a first-time encounter with Anna and the King, Bartlett Sher’s mellifluous, visually stunning and handsomely executed production of an American classic is both affectionate and grand. A sweeping bow of gratitude to Broadway in Chicago for bringing another excellent, Tony Award-winning production to the Windy City."
Chicagoland Theater Reviews - Highly Recommended
"...We had heard in advance that the Bartlett Sher revival would show us a “The King and I” with a freshness and intelligence that gives the vehicle a virtual makeover. And so it does, without any deconstructing that violates what is brilliant in the Rodgers and Hammerstein original. It’s not a new version, just better, right down to the king’s death scene that ends the show. It’s a manipulatively emotional moment I knew was coming, and as usual, I choked up."
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Highly Recommended
"...Laura Michelle Kelly (Anna) is perfection in this role. With a voice as beautiful and warm as summertime in Chicago and emotional depths that squeeze the heart, Kelly takes this character into uncharted territory. The actress' Anna is as sensitive as she is loving. She displays more frustration and disappointment than anger as she brilliantly navigates Anna through the East/West culture clash and the sexism and classicism of the late 19th century. Her nuanced portrayal pays incredible homage to the real woman who inspired this story."
