Grief once touched all of our lives. This feeling couldn't be more real when seeing the rising number of deaths caused by COVID-19. Before the ready-made vaccines appeared, many people had to face this grief alone, and they could not even be with their families while spending the last time in a crowded hospital. Kokandy Productions was originally scheduled to premiere "Hundred Days" in Chicago before the pandemic in March 2020. But now that we are finally able to gather together, perhaps stories like "One Hundred Days" remind us that although death is inevitable, not having to bear grief alone is the perfect story right now.

"One Hundred Days" shows the musical memoirs of its creators Sean and Abigail Benson, who wrote music and lyrics, and wrote the book with Sarah Gancher. The story tells the story of Abigail and Sean quickly falling in love and getting married three weeks later. But more deeply, it tells the impact of Abigail's deep-rooted grief on their relationship, which stems from childhood trauma and the death of people close to her. This musical explores a simple question: what would you do when facing your loved one who may have only 100 days of life left?

The exploration takes place in the course of an essentially one and a half hour concert, which combines folk and punk music. Kokandy's work directed by Lucky Stiff is even set to feel like a music venue, with a cabaret table surrounding a thrust stage with a platform behind it. There are various musical instruments on the backstage, played by seven people, and the thrust stage is covered with layers of carpet.

Under the music guidance of Matthew Muñiz, Bengsons’ music is exciting, because Grace Bobber, David Gordon-Johnson, Lucas “Looch” Johnson, Brennan Urbi and Melanie Vitaterna each play a variety of instruments and contribute background sounds to support the central story. Millie Modoff (Abigail) and Alec Penn (he alternates with Ron Kent as Sean) led. The sheer talent of being able to go from accordion to guitar to upright bass is impressive enough, but the a cappella part of this show can be chilling.

But this performance is not just a concert, it is also a love story centered on Modaf and Pan. Phan is very charming as a restrained Shaun, and Modaff as Abigail is an absolute powerhouse. Through them, under Stiff’s guidance, especially the lighting design of Jackie Fox (she also designed the set), the concert feel has been elevated to a more magical feeling, because during the turbulent period of their relationship, it brought the audience into In the minds of Abigail and Sean.

One highlight is the montage of Abigail and Sean, as they try to extend their days as much as possible by taking psychological photos of all their adventures. The click of Johnson's drumsticks matched the flash, capturing every memory. When tragedy hit the couple, this effect gave way to terror. The bottom dropped because Abigail couldn't stop the indomitable click of Johnson's cane, because Abigail's retelling of their story gave way to a moment they might not want to remember.

The reason why this work cannot really take off is that there are few concerts that overwhelm the story being told. Although Stiff’s director can maintain the beauty and artistry of those psychological moments, sometimes, especially when part of Sean’s story is told, the actual plot becomes chaotic. This can be partly attributed to the mixing, which swallows Phan's low-key but beautiful singing voice. After all, this is a musical, even if the song can pulse and drive like a concert, if you don’t prioritize the lyrics and story, you will lose something.

Fortunately, the core of this story lies in Modaf's outstanding shoulders. Modaff is the floating device for this show. At any time the audience may forget the story as the music is strong, all they need to do is to look for the eager eyes of Abigail of Modav. This story is so powerful in their hearts that lines like "We will make 100 days last forever" are refreshing. It is impossible to know how much content this musical "Modaf" actually agrees with, and I will not risk guessing. But when they started saying that this was a true story, they told about the role of sadness in their lives-I believed them and never stopped.

Location: Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St.

Performance time: 75 minutes without intermission

Tickets: www.kokandyproductions.com or the ticket office of the Chopin Theater for $38

COVID Protocol: In all performances, a vaccination certificate or a negative COVID-19 test is required and masking is required.