Articles

Jonathan Abarbanel | Retired and writing

Jonathan Abarbanel In June 2021 former ATCA ExCom chair Jonathan Abarbanel officially retired from the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Theatre & Music, after 14 years as an adjunct professor. He says his State of Illinois pension should "just about cover a daily Starbucks."...

Critic Spotlight: March 2022

Terrance Afer-AndersonNorfolk, VirginiaPrimary Outlet: The New Journal and Guide Terrance Afer-Anderson Basics first: where do you work (do reviews) and how long have you been there? I have written theater criticism and feature stories, off and on, for The New Journal and Guide, the third oldest African American...

Pam Harbaugh | Theater critic and “Casserole” playwright

Pam Harbaugh Pam Harbaugh, long-term ATCA member, critic, and arts writer at Florida Today, and administrator of Space Coast’s Junior Theatre Workshop program, now devotes much of her time to playwriting and directing. Her play Casserole was one of six winners in the 2020 national competition...

Critic Spotlight: February 2022

Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel (she/they)ChicagoPrimary Outlet: Chicago Reader Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel First, where do your reviews appear, and how long have you been there? I work as the Chicago Reader’s Audience Engagement Manager and previously freelanced with them as a theater critic beginning in 2019. What is your background in...

Richard Christiansen | Critic first gentleman of America’s second city

Richard Christiansen, critic and champion of the Chicago theater that Michael Billington called "alive, energetic, endlessly stimulating" and Linda Winer called simply "boisterous and thrilling" has passed away at age 90. The news was reported on January 28, 2022 by his Chicago Tribune colleague...

Terry Teachout | Critic, playwright, musician, and theater lover

Terry Teachout. WSJ illustration. Terry Teachout, a drama critic and cultural columnist at the Wall Street Journal two decades, died early Thursday, January 13. He was 65. As summarized by the editorial board of his publishing home base, Teachout had a wide range of interests and explored...

Critic Spotlight: January 2022

Martha Wade Steketee New York, New YorkPrimary Outlet: urbanexcavations Martha Wade Steketee, early in the pandemic. Basics first: where do you work (do reviews) and how long have you been there? I have been a freelance critic since 2006, writing for online and print publications based in Chicago, Philadelphia,...

Lindsay Christians | Conferences, events, and food

Lindsay Christians. Image by Ruthie Hauge. Journalist Lindsay Christians, whose professional home base is Madison, Wisconsin’s The Capital Times, has been a member of ATCA for almost 15 years. During that time, she has been deeply involved in playwright awards and conference planning committees. In recent...

Critic Spotlight: December 2021

Samantha Baird Idaho Falls, IdahoPrimary Outlet: Samantha Baird Performing Arts Services Samantha Baird Where do you write and how long have you been writing about theater? I don’t review as much as I’d like to be today because of the pandemic, but I was writing for Front Row Reviewers...

ATCA2021 From Where We Sit | “Flying Over Sunset” panel now on Sunday

Theater, that ephemeral artform, changes with the moment, the personnel available, contemporary tastes, even the weather. Events about theater, like our upcoming virtual convening ATCA2021 From Where We Sit, morph just as easily. ATCA2021 has adapted to many changes over the past few months and...