Q Brothers Are Hopping At Navy Pier By Anna Hessel

Q Brothers Are Hopping At Navy Pier

By Anna Hessel

 

Chicago Shakespeare’s upbeat production of “Q Brothers Christmas Carol” is absolutely amazing, a perfect holiday one act with a fun pre-show.  The action takes place in Shakes’ The Yard theater, a cabaret style setting with wonderful acoustics, which makes for a delightful event.  The show begins by reminding us that celebrating the birth of Jesus should be done with unconditional love, not bigotry; a strong positive message in troubled times.  This modern day hip hop “ad-rap-tation” of the Dickens’ classic has an all male cast of five, appropriate for a Shakespearean theater.

Scrooge is masterfully portrayed by brother GQ – he is spot on, with just the right amount of drama and humour.  All the other roles are played by Jackson Doran (JAX), JQ, and Postell Pringle (POS); these three fabulous actors make each role unique and do so flawlessly, despite some very fast switches at times.   Jacob Marley is Jamaican and has a reggae vibe going on.  Scrooge’s former employer, Old Fezziwig, owns a wig factory.  Christmas Eve corn sniffing, charades all night, and the return of the Cratchits’ daughter from college, all further add to the insanity.

One stream-of-consciousness monologue about pizza, “spin the bottle”, and RC Cola, brings the house down with it’s hilarity; I can’t recall the last time I actually lol’d this hard.  Lil’ Tim has a bevy of illnesses including COVID-20 – another hysterical portrayal by the same gifted actor, JQ. The DJ handles the pre-show beautifully and keeps the energy up throughout the entire performance.

The illuminating lighting design by Jesse Klug is exceptionally excellent, especially during the finale.  Don’t miss this highly entertaining, captivating, and exciting romp, now only through December 23rd.  “God bless us, everybody…”  For tickets or more information, please hop to it – see their website at www.chicagoshakes.com.

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