• ShowCago
  • Posts
  • Amélie, Upcoming Shows, and a Playwriting Prize

Amélie, Upcoming Shows, and a Playwriting Prize

Author

Amanda Finn
August 08, 2025

 

Happy Friday, Everyone!

As Paramount Theatre announced the cancellation of the other two shows in their Bold series this week, we are again reminded of the very real consequences of budget/funding cuts.

I think it’s a good time to reshare my Be a Helper newsletter from a few weeks ago, giving us all some ways to support our local arts and entertainment venues. If we all collaborate, we can help these companies keep doing what they do best.

In these last few weeks of summer, try to support at least one neighborhood institution! See a show, enjoy a local lunch, or hit up the farmer’s market. When we put our money and time behind local folks, it helps keep our neighborhoods alive.

At the very least, engage with them on social media. Interactions can help them earn a small amount of money from the sites, and every little bit helps!

Au revoir,

Amanda

From Screen to Stage: Amélie

Photo by Michael Brosilow

Recommended

At least you'll never be a vegetable - even artichokes have hearts. - Amélie Poulain

With a mishmash of seating from high-top chairs to vibrant couches, the basement space at The Chopin Theatre transforms into Café des Deux Moulins—an intimate setting for a musical all about making connections. That is where we meet titular character Amélie Poulain (Aurora Penepacker) for the first time, just before she goes on a whimsical musical journey to cultivate love and happiness for others.

In true Kokandy Productions fashion, Amélie the musical bursts into the room with reckless abandon. The abundantly talented cast, many of whom double as musicians, immediately take command of the room. Penepacker and Joe Giovannetti (Nino Quincampoix) in particular are electric. As Amélie, Penepacker instantly charms the crowd with a smirk. She knows there is magic in store. While Giovannetti’s introverted nature as a collector of strangers’ photobooth pictures weaves through the space, begging us to follow along.

This musical, like Once or The Band’s Visit, belongs in spaces like The Chopin’s basement space. They warrant an intimacy and lose some of their magic in larger spaces. When Amélie’s charismatic cast can’t make eye contact with you, it’s easy to lose sight of the blue fly. If you blink, you may miss it. Those are the minute details that make theater so magical.

But those details may also be a faltering point for this show.

I love the work of Audrey Tautou, so I’m a bit ashamed to admit I have never seen the cult classic film Amélie. While I would ordinarily watch the movie before seeing the stage adaptation, I was curious how it would translate without having seen it. And that, my friends, is the problem with this musical.

For someone unfamiliar with the story, the musical can be confusing at times. Quickfire lyrics by Nathan Tysen and Daniel Messé buzz through the story, operating on the assumption that every audience member is intimately familiar with Amélie’s story. This creates an emotional dissonance between those specific audience members, like myself, and the cast. The musical gets caught up with exploring every facet of the film that it doesn’t dig into the things that matter most: the characters.

Although the show gave me good reason to connect with Amélie herself, it gave me little reason to connect with anyone else. Perhaps that lack of context is partly why the show wasn’t successful on Broadway. Even when adapting an existing story, creators have to be mindful that not all audiences will have seen that story—especially when it’s a foreign film. No matter how popular it may be.

Even so, Kokandy’s production was an absolute delight. I may not have caught every detail, but an important conclusion was not lost on me. Every one of us can make a difference in the lives of others. And we don’t even need a screenwriter’s fanciful storyline to prove it.

Amélie by Kokandy Productions is playing at The Chopin Theatre now through September 28. Tickets start from $39.19 and can be purchased online.

Chicago A&E News

  • American Blues Theater is hosting its annual Blue Ink Playwriting Festival on Saturday, August 9, 2025, featuring three new plays. The festival includes the 2025 Blue Ink Award-winning play, You Should Be So Lucky by Alyssa Haddad-Chin, as well as She Wore Those Shoes by Erlina Ortiz and Hurt People by LaDarrion Williams.

  • American Blues Theater is currently accepting submissions for the 2026 Blue Ink Award, which champions new, unpublished full-length plays. The winning play, along with finalists and semi-finalists, will be awarded nearly $20,000 in cash prizes and development. Submissions are free and must be received by August 31, 2025.

  • Kokandy Productions is reviving the gothic musical Jekyll & Hyde for the first time in Chicago in over 15 years. Playing from October 9 through December 21, 2025, at The Chopin Theatre, the production will feature a 15-piece orchestra and a full orchestration of the score. The show stars David Moreland in the dual roles of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, along with Ava Stovall and Emily McCormick, among others.

  • Steppenwolf Theatre Company announced that ensemble member Namir Smallwood will be joining the cast of the Chicago premiere of Mr. Wolf, replacing James Vincent Meredith due to a scheduling conflict. Directed by K. Todd Freeman, the play is written by ensemble member Rajiv Joseph. The show will run from September 11 to November 2, 2025, in the Downstairs Theater.

  • Steppenwolf Theatre will host award-winning Chicago standup artist Cameron Esposito for her new show, FEAT, on October 3 and 4, 2025. The comedy and storytelling show recounts a near-fatal foot surgery and its impact on her marriage, friendships, and path to motherhood. The limited engagement will run for three performances only in the Ensemble Theater.

  • The Factory Theater and Unheard of Company are presenting a workshop reading of Muffed: A Recounting of Farmington, Maine’s 43rd Annual Chester Greenwood Day, running from August 18 to September 20. Written by Zack Peercy and directed by Kayla Menz, the play follows a group of scatterbrained theatre artists trying to present a documentary about the inventor of the earmuff.

  • The Studebaker Theater will host the smash-hit musical comedy 44 - The Musical for a second run in Chicago from August 23 to September 21, 2025. Starring T.J. Wilkins as Barack Obama, Shanice as Michelle Obama, and Chad Doreck as Joe Biden, the show is a satirical look at the former president's rise. Written, composed, and directed by Eli Bauman, the musical will move to New York's Daryl Roth Theatre in October following its Chicago engagement.

    Do you have Chicago-based A&E news to announce?

Email me at [email protected]!

My Recent Reviews

Support ShowCago

Below, you will see a “buy me a coffee” link. I do not intend to put a paywall on this newsletter (though bonus subscriber content may be introduced in the future), so I’ve included this little "tipping” button.

Attending shows or events, in addition to my full-time freelance work, comes at a financial cost. Whether it's transportation fares or grabbing coffee after a long day to get me through a three-hour Shakespeare after an eight-hour day, every little bit helps.

Regardless, I hope you enjoy this newsletter!