Chicago Tribune - Recommended
"...For the Goodman audience Saturday night, of course, the pleasures of seeing and hearing Ebersole and LuPone, even with the unstinting latter hidden behind a thick accent, were understandably considerable. Frankel's score and Korie's dry, unstinting lyrics represent an extensive, lush and ambitious composition that embraces melancholy and truly borders on the operatic — it's a weighty and complex suite of writing that mostly needs more interwoven scenes, not least to provide some prose to allow its musical highlights to pop, as demanded by a show featuring such bravura stars of the musical stage. The score is especially appealing as it moves into more contemporary idiom, reflecting the turning of the years. But the "Mad Men" era feels reluctantly embraced. It is a score that still needs to make an entrance, fully made up."
Chicago Sun Times - Highly Recommended
"...Now, with "War Paint," the world premiere musical at the Goodman Theatre about the rivalry between mid-20th century cosmetics moguls Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, two terrific female roles have been added to the canon courtesy of the "Grey Gardens" team. And putting their indelible lipstick marks on these titans of face creams and other beauty potions are Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole, a pair of Broadway divas uncannily suited to their characters: fierce rivals who turn out to be two faces of the same coin engaged in a "civil war" that raged from the 1930s through the early 1960s."
Daily Herald - Highly Recommended
"...Tony Award winners Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole play longtime rivals Rubinstein and Arden. Their presence likely assures Michael Greif's fluid, elegantly directed production a Broadway berth."
Chicago Reader - Recommended
"...But to watch the work of Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole is to see artistry so formidable and secure that you can't help but be sated. No one lands a laugh like LuPone. Her palpable edge makes it doubly heartbreaking when she melts. Christine Ebersole's cheerful energy has informed all of her roles, which makes her moments of quiet insistence chilling. If both ladies occasionally use their stock tricks-LuPone's scoop up to the pitch, Ebersole's childlike gurgle that snaps into operetta soprano-land-their emotionally centered solo numbers are still thrillingly sung and delivered."
Time Out Chicago - Recommended
"...When Helena and Elizabeth finally meet, aged, retired and unexpectedly respectful in the show's final scene, Ebersole and LuPone, pros that they are, milk it for every drop of delayed comic gratification. But I'm afraid it's not enough. It may be true to life, but it feels almost criminal to put these two talents on the same stage and keep them away from each other at every turn. Even if it's a fantasy number to end Act I, War Paint needs to find a way to get these actors interacting more. The mere fact of their joint brilliant presence should win the battle to get this show to Broadway. But for real transcendent status, it's war out there."
Chicago On the Aisle - Recommended
"...To put - what is the phrase? - the best face on it, the new musical "War Paint," now in its world premiere run at the Goodman Theatre, is a guilty pleasure, a gossip magazine yarn set to music and legitimized chiefly by the stellar performances of Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole."
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...War Paint details a catalogue of self-defeating struggles, outsized egos, and signature symbols (Arden's fuschia-painted diamonds and Rubinstein's rhinestone-ridden presents). The show works equally well as an unspooling period piece: Frankel's pastiche-laden score evolves melodically from anti-Depression chic ("Behind the Red Door") to opportunistic patriotism on the homefront (the title number) to 50s' vulgarity ("Fire and Ice"). Two 11 o'clock numbers suit the headliners' individualized magic: Ebersole endures a conscience crisis in "Pink," a matronly mad scene that-as a nod to Gypsy-can pass for "Elizabeth's Turn." After Arden embraces, then rejects her favorite color, LuPone likewise agonizes over a gallery of her portraits, sadly the sole way a woman can be "Forever Beautiful.""
ChicagoCritic - Recommended
"...War Paint needs some cuts and more dialogue. As it plays now, the stars carry the show but with some tightening and fewer minor songs, War Paint would reach a wider audience. It is a noble attempt at a 30-40's old -time Broadway musical, Too bad those genius composers from that era aren't available."
Around The Town Chicago - Recommended
"...The long anticipated opening has arrived. The Broadway bound musical, “War Paint” with a book by Doug Wright and music by Scott Frankel and lyrics by Michael Korie has opened at The Goodman Theatre on its journey to Broadway. This biography ( with poetic license to be sure) of two amazingly powerful women in the business world, Helena Rubinstein ( played to perfection by Patti Lupone) and Elizabeth Arden (gloriously brought to life by Christine Ebersole) , who brought us glory in the color “pink” ,takes us back to a time when women were not running businesses and in particular cosmetics and make-up. Both of these women were motivated to reach new heights and to help other women recognize that they had more in them, if only they could show the world."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for Chicago audiences to revel in the power and artistry of two of Broadway's legendary superstars. The show belongs to Patti Lupone and Christine Ebersole. That, alone, makes this production a stellar occasion. Yet in telling the story of two of the toughest, smartest women of their day, Arden and Rubinstein challenged the establishment as entrepreneurs and creative geniuses. They're story is inspirational and provides a sound lesson, learned late in the musical, that the strongest individual can become even greater when working and sharing with others. Loneliness surfaces every so often in their stories, and it's in those instances that we see ourselves in these powerful, talented ladies."
Chicagoland Theater Reviews - Recommended
"...The look of the show is straight out of the top drawer of Broadway design. David Korins suggests an aura of elegance in his deceptively simple set. There is nothing deceptively simple about Catherine Zuber’s colorful costumes, whether in the wardrobes of the ladies of the show or in the production numbers choreographed with eye grabbing zest by Christopher Gattelli. The first-rate design team is rounded out by Kenneth Posner (lighting) and Brian Ronan (sound). Lawrence Yurman directs the proficient pit orchestra."
The Fourth Walsh - Recommended
"...WAR PAINT is about the ultimate makeovers. Two women, from meager beginnings, growing into corporate moguls in a male-dominated world. Although the story, itself, is engaging, the book by Doug Wright isn't. Despite focusing on the rivalry, the tension is minimal. The women are often seated at their opposing desks for contemplative singing. Although the singing is stellar, the lackluster positioning isn't engaging. And the occasional 'her' barb isn't enough to sustain the supposed contention between them. These women were dynamos. They fought their way to the top. Wright's script needs more pluck and less gloss. His foundation is a little light."
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Highly Recommended
"...This amazingly talented, formidable, iconic, Tony Award winning actress playing Helena Rubinstein is all you need to know in order to have a reason to see this show."
Third Coast Review - Recommended
"...The performances by the much-hyped stars, LuPone and Ebersole, are excellent. They are truly pros and will be ticket bait when the show is taken to Broadway, as it surely will be. The two male featured actors also do an excellent job. John Dossett plays Tommy Lewis, Arden's husband and marketing adviser, and Douglas Sills plays Harry Fleming, Rubinstein's marketing genius. The two men are poached and end up working for their competitors."
