Enjoyable, "kid friendly" performances are sometime hard to come by in Chicago's vibrant theater scene. For us, at least, it has often seemed that either we were fighting yawns and full out sleeping in our seats, or the kids were.

Enter Hephaestus, the Greek God of the Forge, whose life is brought to life by the Lookingglass Theater Company in a simply awesome performance at the Goodman. The children in our group - ages 2, 7, and 9 - remained enthralled and sat, literally, on the edge of their seats. Us adults wondered how humans can possibly perform such feats (think, swinging from the ceiling with a mere piece of silk tied to one foot, balancing a group of seven on a highwire). At several points during the show, all of us had our breath taken away after which we stood up with applause (and relief!).

The story of Hephaestus, whose tough life began when his mother threw him off a mountaintop, leaving him disabled, ties the story together (and will be of particular interest to children reading the Percy Jackson series). The intimate theater space leaves everyone feeling part of the action, and the joy and exuberance with which the ensemble members perform is infectious.

 
DON'T MISS Hephaestus, until June 20th, at the Goodman Theater. For tickets, visit www.lookingglasstheater

Amy Bizzarri is a mom of two living in Logan Square. She also blogs at tiramisumom.com.

See more of Amy's stories here.

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