“Chelsea Lately" comedian Heather McDonald at Zanies

Zanies welcomes headliner Heather McDonald, the writer/comedian known for her wit and impressions on “Chelsea Lately.

8 and 10 p.m. Friday, Oct. 8, at Pheasant Run Resort, 4051 E. Main St., St. Charles, (630) 584-6342, and 7 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9, at 230 Hawthorn Village Commons, Vernon Hills. (847) 549-6030 or zanies.com.

Steel Beam has its day

St. Charles Mayor Don DeWitte named Sunday, Oct. 10, “Steal Beam Theatre Day in honor of its 10th anniversary and contributions to the city's arts and culture. The company offer tours of its facility and giveaways from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 10, at 111 W. Main St. Also, Steel Beam hosts a fundraiser beginning at 6 p.m. Oct. 23 at St. Charles Place Steak House, 2550 E. Main St., St. Charles. Tickets are $75 for dinner, dancing, entertainment and a silent auction.

(630) 587-8521 or steelbeamtheatre.com.

Drury Lane says ‘I do'

Drury Lane Oak Brook presents “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers in a revamped version that combines 1982's Broadway production and Paper Mill Playhouse's 2007 revival. Steven Blanchard (the Beast in Broadway's “Beauty and the Beast) plays Adam, the eldest of seven who marries the comely Milly (Abby Mueller) inspiring his brothers to seek brides as well. Bill Jenkins makes his Drury Lane directorial debut with this production, choreographed by Jeff Award winner Tammy Mader.

Previews begin Thursday, Oct. 14, at 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace. The show opens Oct. 20. (630) 530-0111 or drurylaneoakbrook.com.

What's new

• To celebrate its 10th anniversary season, New Leaf Theatre introduces its revamped Treehouse Reading Series that will assist in the development of new works for upcoming seasons. To that end, ensemble members are looking for plays that have had at least one reading and are in need of some polishing. The theater will accept submissions for the winter/spring series through Nov. 30. The fall series begins Oct. 23 with a staged reading of Bilal Dardai's “The Man Who Was Thursday, followed by A.R. Gurney's “The Dining Room and Arlene Hutton's “As It Is In Heaven on Dec. 5. For information and submission guidelines see newleaftheatre.org.

• Next Theatre's What's Next Series continues with a performance by the storytelling ensemble, 2nd Story. The show opens Friday, Oct. 8, and runs through Oct. 17, at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St., Evanston. (847) 475-1875, ext. 2 or nexttheatre.org.

• A psychiatrist tries to help a disturbed teenage boy accused of blinding six horses to which he has an unnatural affection in Peter Shaffer's psychological drama “Equus. Ludicrous Theatre Company's revival opens Friday, Oct. 8, at Boho Theatre, 7016 N. Glenwood Ave., Chicago. ludicroustheatre.com.

• Oracle Theatre debuts its new public access initiative in which it no longer charges admission to its productions with a revival of Federico Garcia Lorca's surreal “Blood Wedding, in which a former lover of the bride carries her off, followed by the groom who vows to reclaim his wife and kill her lover. The preview is Friday, Oct. 8, at 3809 N. Broadway, Chicago. The show opens Saturday, Oct. 9. (252) 220-0269 or oracletheatre.org.

• The Second Stage Theatre presents “Beyond Therapy, Christopher Durang's farce about two people who meet through a personal ad and whose romance is thwarted by a jealous boyfriend and therapists who are more troubled than their patients. The show opens Friday, Oct. 8, at 3408 N. Sheffield Ave., Chicago. See therapytix.com for tickets.

• About Face Theatre presents a new play by Carson Kreitzer inspired by the Thorne Miniature Rooms at the Art Institute of Chicago, which showcase European and American interiors from the 13th to the 20th century. “Tiny Rooms centers on two early 20th century socialites who have different ideas about how those rooms are used. It runs Friday, Oct. 8, to Sunday, Oct. 10, as part of the company's XYZ Festival of New Work at the Flat Iron Building, 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 784-8565, ext. 111 or aboutfacetheatre.com.

• “Boobs and Boombas: A Super Mario Burlesque, a live action, adults-only version of the video game in which a pair of plumbers tries to rescue a princess, opens Friday, Oct. 8, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.

• WBEZ's Richard Steele moderates a Remy Bumppo Theatre Company panel discussion titled “Is the Truth Front Page News? at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 11, at the Greenhouse Theatre Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. Members of the panel will discuss how major stories are reported as well as the state of journalism today. The evening will include excerpts from Remy Bumppo's production of “Night and Day. (773) 404-7336 or remybumppo.org.

• Porchlight Music Theatre hosts a benefit concert, By Popular Demand, at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 11, at the Mayne Stage, 1328 W. Morse Ave., Chicago. Among the singer/actors and Porchlight veterans scheduled to perform are Rebecca Finnegan, Jayson Brooks and Jeremy Rill. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $40. (773) 325-9884 or porchlighttheatre.com.

• The Artistic Home begins the 2010/2011 season with “Sweet Bird of Youth, Tennessee Williams' drama about a charmer from the wrong side of the tracks who returns to his hometown with a boozy, fading movie star in an attempt to win back his onetime love. Previews begin Tuesday, Oct. 12, at 3914 N. Clark St., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 17. (866) 811-4111 or theartistichome.org.

• Previews begin Tuesday, Oct. 12, for Raven Theatre's revival of Tennessee Williams' “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, starring Liz Fletcher as Maggie and Jason Huysman as Brick. Triple-threat Jon Steinhagen plays Big Daddy, and co-artistic director JoAnn Montemurro plays Big Mama in the production directed by founder and co-artistic director Michael Menendian. The show opens Sunday, Oct. 17, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. (773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com.

• Steppenwolf Theatre celebrates the 50th anniversary of the publication of Harper Lee's “To Kill a Mockingbird with a production of Christopher Sergel's stage adaptation of this coming-of-age tale about siblings who witness the effects of racism and morality in Alabama. Hallie Gordon directs and Philip R. Smith stars as Atticus Finch in this young adults production, beginning previews on Tuesday, Oct. 12, at 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 16. (312) 335-1650 or steppenwolf.org.

• Three teenage girls rehearse “Hamlet with terrible results after they become too deeply enmeshed in the tragedy in Patrick Shaw's “Hamlettes. The play opens Tuesday, Oct. 12, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.

• A brilliant, young woman who has spent years caring for her genius father as he mentally deteriorates worries she may have inherited some of his madness in David Auburn's “Proof. Chicago Fusion Theatre's production of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize winner begins previews on Wednesday, Oct. 13, at the Royal George Theatre, 1641 N. Halsted St., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 15. (312) 988-9000 or chicagofusiontheatre.org.

• Chicago City Creatives presents “Shakespeare's Roses, in which the middle-aged playwright meditates on his life and legacy. Jeffrey Baumgartner plays the title role in the solo show opening Thursday, Oct. 14, at 3C Gallery, 2955 W. Lyndale St., Chicago. (312) 391-8740 or chicagocitycreatives.com.

• A pair of residents of a home for seniors discover a shared hobby in “The Gin Game, D.L. Coburn's tragicomedy. Previews of Lincoln Square Theatre's revival begin Thursday, Oct. 14, at 4754 N. Leavitt St., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 15. (773) 275-7930 or lincolnsquaretheatre.org.

• iO Chicago adapts the Coen brothers film “The Big Lebowski as a full-fledged musical, “The Dude Abides. The show opens Thursday, Oct. 14, at 3541 N. Clark St., Chicago. (773) 880-0199 or ioimprov.com.

• Cock & Bull Theatre gets into the seasonal spirit with a pair of macabre, adults-only farces inspired by Paris' horror theater, the Grand Guignol. The plays are “Axe Lizzie, an hallucinogenic take on the Lizzie Borden tale, and “The Possession of Alice Von Truskin, which examines whether possession saves or destroys. The double bill runs Oct. 15 to 31 at Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston Ave., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or cockandbulltheatre.org.

• The 42nd annual Jeff Awards ceremony recognizing excellence in Chicago area equity theaters takes place Monday, Oct. 25, at Drury Lane Oak Brook, 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace. The black-tie-optional event begins with an appetizer buffet from 6 to 7:30 p.m. followed by the awards presentation. Tickets are $75, $55 for members of Actors' Equity Association. jeffawards.org.

• The terrific jukebox musical “Million Dollar Quartet marks its third year in Chicago with the announcement that it will be around a while longer. Tickets will be on sale through May 30, 2011, for the hit show, which re-imagines a 1956 jam session between Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley. Performances are at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or ticketmaster.com.

• "Bernhardt on Broadway, a one-woman show with music, book and lyrics by Carol Dunitz, runs Thursdays, Oct. 21 and 28, at Maxims, 24 E. Goethe St., Chicago. Dunitz stars as the legendary performer, considered one of the leading actresses of her time. (312) 742-8497 or maximschicago.org.

• Theatre Momentum's improvised theater piece, “Fractal, continues at 8 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 23 at the Emerald City Theatre School, 2933 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. E-mail tickets@theatremomentum.com.

• After producing online shows, Visual Edge Entertainment has moved into live theater with “A Night of Dramedy: Outlaw and Bar Stories, centered around a local watering hole. The show runs Thursdays through Oct. 28 at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.