Stop the Presses! SCOOPED Delivers Front-Page Fun at The Palace
- Izzy Siebert
- Sep 28
- 3 min read
Extra, extra, read all about it! The Front Page: SCOOPED makes headlines as it opens the Palace Theatre’s 2025-2026 season. Directed by Dinah Watts, this gender-bending twist on a classic play charms audiences with fast-paced comedy, juicy corruption, and slick characters. Get the full story (and your tickets) before the show closes on Oct. 5!
In a chaotic Chicago newsroom, reporters from the city’s top papers gather to gamble, gossip, and grab the next big scoop before their competition. Outside, a convicted man awaits hanging, and the men hope the big event happens early so the execution can make the morning paper!
The premise may sound grim, but make no mistake—Scooped is a comedy at its core, with dynamite character dynamics, crooked politicians, and larger-than-life personalities. The chaos ramps up in the second act when the convict escapes. Suddenly, folks find a big story on their hands!
Even though the show is all about the thrill of breaking news, The Front Page isn’t new. The script, written by Ben Hecht and Charlie MacArthur, was first produced nearly 100 years ago in 1928. Since then, it has received Broadway revivals and inspired movies, most notably His Girl Friday with Cary Grant.
“I decided to check out the original script,” says director Dinah Watts. “It was… dated. Offensive, really. But it featured a lot of fabulous roles—for men. So I got this idea: why not cast women as the men?”
The public domain script underwent an intensive adaptation process as Watts tweaked and cut. The result doesn’t sacrifice the source material’s snappy slang or wisecracking dialogue, but it shapes a production that modern audiences will find more palatable.
Watts’ bold casting is what really sets this production apart. Rather than gender-swapping the characters, she has cast non-men to play the male roles as written. It’s satisfying to see the actors take up space on stage and find tongue-in-cheek irony in lines that reference gender roles. A 100-year-old script may have been a difficult watch otherwise, but this production proves that breathing fresh life into old stories is possible if you’re not afraid to dig in and make changes.
With such a large ensemble cast, it’s impressive how many distinct personalities emerge. Danika Tipping delivers a standout performance as Hildy, a reporter for The Examiner ready to quit it all and head to New York with his sweetheart. Tipping’s charisma shines in opposition to Martha Zimmerman Ross’ formidable Walter Burns, Hildy’s ex-boss. The corrupt mayor (Mary Jane Walzak) and sheriff (Norah Cuzzocrea) led several entertaining sequences that earned some of the night’s loudest laughs.
Scooped is all about how addictive a good story can be, a theme that comes to the forefront when Hildy must choose between the story of a lifetime and a future with his fiancée. The audience will end up gripped in the same thrall and swept up in the plot as it barrels on. Chasing a good story is always a gamble and, in the case of the Palace’s production, it’s one that pays off.
Don’t sleep on this story! Get your tickets before the show closes on Oct. 5. And, if you made it to the end of this review, thank you. As Walter says, “Who the hell’s going to read the second paragraph?!”