Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended
"...Let us stipulate that the hugely talented director-choreographer Rachel Rockwell has improved the show greatly for this reworked version at the Marriott. There is now a company of five mostly strong singers (Carey Anderson, Brooke Jacob, the lovable Tammy Mader, Jessie Mueller and Raena White) and a number of appealing dancers (Lauren Nicole Blane, Giovanni Bonaventura, Jaclyn Burch, Jarret Ditch, Craig Kaufman, Trisha Kelly, Amber Mak, Sam Rogers and Melissa Zaremba). There's a staging so sufficiently fluid and effective that you could easily lift up this production and deposit it in Las Vegas or Branson, Mo., and I don't say that with any condescension."
Chicago Sun Times - Somewhat Recommended
"...The 90-minute show, which features an array of 1960s pop music, was created by Phillip George, David Lowenstein and Peter Charles Morris. It had a short Chicago run in 2008 and now returns to the Marriott Theatre stage in a resuscitated and reworked version. The dialogue between songs has been deleted and director/choreographer Rachel Rockwell instead lets the songs do the talking. And the talk is all about love."
Chicago Reader - Recommended
"...There's nothing in the least challenging, troubling, or even thought-provoking about this evening of song and dance. There isn't even a story to follow. Just one pop hit ("Downtown," "Windy," "Georgy Girl") after another, sung by five fabulous singers accompanied by eight high-energy dancers flawlessly executing Rachel Rockwell's often witty choreography. The result is entertaining as long as you check your brain at the door."
Windy City Times - Highly Recommended
"...What's not to like about Shout!? This colorful and joyous revue celebrates the chick singers who dominated 1960s pop music, in particular Brit chicks Petula Clark, Cilla Black and Lulu, the 1960s quintessential big-hair stars. It features five full-throated girl singers who perfectly capture 1960s-pop style, backed by seven agile dancers (the program lists nine, so they must rotate), an excellent ensemble company."
Centerstage - Highly Recommended
"...Get ready to throw your head back, kick your heels up and “Shout!” Five belting beauties and eight super fruggers entertain nonstop for 90 minutes, taking audiences on a voyage back to the Swinging Sixties. Originally, this show was a lackluster musical revue set in London and loosely joined together by dialogue between five Mod birds and a disembodied advice columnist from a teen rag called “Shout!” Marriott’s crackerjack artistic team has re-imagined this disjointed musical by making it a celebration of infectious pop hits, eliminating the dialogue and English references and filling the stage with an ensemble of multitalented singers and dancers. The result is a joyful evening that’s a real blast from the past, and the perfect theatrical equivalent of the summer beach novel."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Recommended
"...The Marriott's powerhouse cast gives their retro tunes a sparkling cover rendition that is as good or better as any of the original recordings, with terrific standouts from scrumptious songbirds Carey Anderson, Brooke Jacob, Tammy Mader, Jessie Mueller and Raena White. And the additional dancers are all sleek and sexy additions to this impressive quintet of delectable divas. A big "shout" out to Musical Director Ryan T. Nelson and the Marriott's fabulous orchestra, conducted by Patti Garwood. If "Shout!" cannot be classified as a great musical, this blast from the past is still refreshingly entertaining with an exceptionally talented and appealing cast. "
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...This show, in its original version was a nice evening of live entertainment with some nice memories of some of the top music of the era, but under Marriott’s creative eye with new arrangements(David Siegel) and of course the magic performed by Rockwell and the Lead Artistic Director Andy Hite ( who himself was a performer at one time) a new , modern version of the show is being presented. They have, with these new arrangements, also added 8 glorious dancers who add a new dimension to this little trip back to the sixties in a production that shows us, the audience, what took place during the “women’s movement”. The 60′s were an important part of this era, a time when women found that they could express their feelings outwardly and these wonderful songs take us on that trip."
Chicago Theater Beat - Highly Recommended
"...Shout!, in the end, is a glorious guilty pleasure. It makes no demands on its audience, requires no thought, and delivers one fantabulous song ‘n dance number after another, none of which require the sort of thought that, say, Sondheim or even Rodgers and Hammerstein might demand. The show is a fast-paced 90-minutes of escapist fun. Fear not if you suffered through Shout 1.0 in 2008. This time around, the artists involved got it right."
