Theatre & Stage reviews by SalsaChicago.com critic Al Bresloff

"Of Mice and Men" (thru March 19)

Shattered Globe Theatre, one of Chicago's "off loop" theater troupes is kicking off it's 14th season with their presentation of John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men", a timeless tale of friendship, desperation and the love of two men who travel together, one the care-taker, the other the cared for. These men are itinerant workers who have a dream of someday owning their own little place, a place to call their own. They are both men of loneliness and cling to their roles as caretaker and cared for along the way. George (a solid performance by Brian Pudil) while stuck with Lennie (handled with perfection by John Harrell) his simple-minded friend, needs him as much as Lennie does him. Trouble seems to find Lennie wherever they may go. While he is a hard worker, he loves to touch tings that are soft- Mice, rabbits, puppy dogs and women (therein lies the problem) and with his great strength, and his not knowing just how strong he is, things happen. The story line is their arrival at a new ranch in California where they meet the old hand, Candy (deftly handled by Richard Baker) who it appears has saved some money and wants to be a part of their dream. While the three men begin to make their plans for their future, their hopes, like "the best laid scheme o' mice an' men, go often awry."

This is a fine production directed by Eileen Niccolai who utilizes the Studio Theater located at Victory Gardens Theatre located at 2257 N. Lincoln Ave. to its fullest capacity Kevin Hagan has designed a usable set and lights it to capture the moods. Andrew Hansen's sound needs to be worked on as some of the offstage sounds appear to be in another area altogether. But in all, Ms Niccolai makes this production work, despite some weaker performances by the rest of the cast members, with the exception of Brian McCartney's Carlson (his Boss was a little off), one of the hands and of course Sunny Kahler as Candy's dog, who handled the role with ease. This show depends on George and Lenny, and these two characters are handled so well, the show cannot go bad. To watch Mr. Harrell's Lennie is to watch a masterpiece and is worth the price of admission.

"Of Mice and Men" will run through March 19th with performances as follows: Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 8 p.m. Sundays at 3 p.m.

Tickets are $25 and seating is open. You can purchase tickets by visiting the Victory Gardens box office (perhaps while seeing one of the other shows) , by phone at 773-871-3000 or online at www.ticketweb.com For info on the troupe checkout www.shatteredglobe.org.