January 2024 Issue: Players 50 (Digital Edition)

Coming of Age Sufjan Stevens' “Illinois” is brought to life at Chicago Shakespeare Theater "Sufjan Stevens’ song “Chicago” on his 2005 album “Illinoise” only mentions Chicago once, but it embodies both the city’s promise and the way it can break your heart. It is a song about hope, making mistakes and starting over. The title is specific, but the themes are universal, and the music with its pulsing drums, horns and strings that sound like going down a highway, can’t be categorized. Both the poetry and the genre-defying nature of “Illinoise” made it a favorite of Tony Award-winning choreographer Justin Peck." (Mary Wisniewski) Home Delivery My father and the midcentury house contest that launched his career"Single-family homes with modern amenities were an obsession of young Americans following the war. Home building had all but stopped during the Great Depression and World War II, and even without the influx of G.I.s ready for independent adult life, the region was destined to be