On stage: 'Beauty' returns

‘Beauty' returns

Broadway in Chicago presents the return of “Disney's Beauty and the Beast,” adapted from the hit animated movie about Belle, a bright young woman who transforms the Beast (an enchanted prince) through the power of love.

Performances begin Wednesday, June 29, at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Oriental Theatre, 24 W. Randolph St., Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.

First ‘real housewives'

Designer Bob Knuth transforms Circle Theatre's stage into an art deco interior for the company's production of “The Women,” Clare Boothe Luce's comedy of manners about wealthy society mavens and the devastating impact gossip and pride have on their lives. Jim Schneider directs the all-female cast.

Previews begin Friday, June 24, at 1010 Madison St., Oak Park. The show opens Wednesday, June 29. (708) 660-9540 or circle-theatre.org.

Laughs on the house

Short on cash? Schaumburg's Laugh Out Loud Theater presents a free improv jam the last Saturday of the month. Also at LOL, Mammoth Comedy Productions hosts a free open-mic night every other Sunday.

The improv jam will be at 11 p.m. Saturday, June 25, at the Streets of Woodfield, 601 N. Martingale Road, Schaumburg. Open-mic night is at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, June 26. Signup begins at 6:15 p.m. (847) 240-0386 or laughoutloudtheater.com.

• The Neo-Futurists put a different spin on their Friday and Saturday, June 24-25, “Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind” shows consisting of 30 plays in 60 minutes. This time it's “30 Queer Plays in 60 Straight Minutes” with proceeds benefiting the Illinois Safe Schools Alliance which helps ensure the safety of LGBTQ youth in schools around the state. Performances are at 8 p.m. at 5153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. (773) 275-5255 or neofuturists.org.

• Barrel of Monkeys presents its neighborhood specific production, “That's Weird, Abuelita,” running at 7:30 p.m. Fridays from June 24 to July 15 at the Little Village High School Auditorium, 3120 S. Kostner Ave., Chicago. The show — performed in English and Spanish — showcases stories from student writers at Little Village Academy and Columbia Explorers Academy. See barrelofmonkeys.org for more information.

• Evanston's Piven Theatre Workshop celebrates its 40th anniversary with a benefit from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 25, at the MCA Loft, 1747 W. Hubbard St., Chicago. The evening includes dinner, cocktails and a live auction. Honorees include Joyce and Jeremy Piven, Joan and John Cusack and Aidan Quinn among others. (847) 866-8049 or piventheatre.org.

• The Italian Cultural Institute and the Milan Committee of the Chicago Sister Cities Program present a free performance of “The Betrothed,” a performance that combines words, music and dance, presented in Italian with English supertitles. The performance is at 6 p.m. at the Chicago Cultural Center Claudia Cassidy Theater, 77 E. Randolph St., Chicago. (312) 822-9545 or iicchiago.isteri.it.

• The Chicago Shakespeare Theater has postponed the U.S. premiere of “One Thousand and One Nights” that was to begin Saturday, June 25, due to a delay in the granting of visas to some company members. CST representatives say the performance will be rescheduled. Ticket holders may request a full refund or hold their tickets “on account” for the rescheduled performance. (312) 595-5600 or chicagoshakes.com.

• Previews begin Wednesday, June 29, for redtwist theatre's production of “That Face,” Polly Stenham's examination of an affluent family's demise in which roles are subverted, putting the teenage kids in charge. Michael Colucci directs the production, which opens on Saturday, July 2, at 1044 W. Bryn Mawr, Chicago. (773) 728-7529 or redtwist.org.

• Hobo Junction hosts its third comedy festival “Hobos in Space,” Monday, June 27, through Wednesday, June 29, at the Oracle Theater, 3809 N. Broadway, Chicago. The mini-fest features 10 short comedies (selected from 200 entries) centered around a science fiction theme. The audience will judge the productions with the wining director and writer receiving a cash award. See hobojunctionproductions.com for more information.

• After a three-year absence, Pine Box Theater returns with a world-premiere production of “A Girl with Sun in her Eyes,” Joshua Rollins' version of a police procedural about a missing female police officer and the primary suspect in her disappearance who's grilled by a couple of veterans. Performances begin Saturday, June 25, at The Second Stage, 3408 N. Sheffield Ave., Chicago. For more information, see pineboxtheater.org.

• “Unscripted Romance,” an examination of modern romance, returns to the Annoyance Theatre, 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago. The show runs at 8 p.m. Saturdays beginning June 25. Also at the Annoyance is “The Ambassadors,” a live, scripted sitcom about two childlike roommates who meet an array of folks from all walks of life. It runs Wednesdays through July 20. (773) 561-4665 or theannoyance.com.

• Lookingglass Theatre's Junior Board hosts the company's 10th annual Madhatter's Ball beginning at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 25, at the John Hancock Observatory, 875 N. Michigan Ave., 94th floor, Chicago. The benefit includes music, dancing to a DJ, food and beverages and a silent auction. Tickets range from $65 to $100 and are available at (312) 337-0665 or lookingglasstheatre.org/events.

• Adventure Stage Chicago and Chicago Dramatists team up to present a short-play workshop from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, June 26, at Vittum Theater, 1012 N. Noble St., Chicago. The plays were written by Chicago Dramatists playwrights and are family friendly. Admission is free, but seating is limited. (773) 342-4141 or adventurestage.org.

• The Chicago Park District's annual Theater on the Lake showcasing some of the best productions of 2010-11 continues at Fullerton Avenue and Lake Shore Drive in Chicago. Chicago Dramatists' and At Play Productions' production of Laura Jacqmin's comedy “Dental Society Midwinter Meeting” runs Wednesday, June 29, through Sunday, July 3. The play centers around a scandal that occurs at the fictional North Shore Regional Dental Society conference which forces the members to consider the role of morality in their profession and their personal lives. (312) 742-4786 or chicagoparkdistrict.com.

• Performances begin Thursday, June 30, for Cirque du Soleil's big top production “Ovo,” at the United Center parking lot, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago. Ovo, which means “egg” in Portuguese, centers around a gawky insect who falls for a fabulous ladybug. (800) 450-1480 or cirquedusoleil.com/ovo.

• National Pastime Theatre presents Naked July: Art Stripped Down, its third arts festival beginning Thursday, June 30, at 4139 N. Broadway, Chicago. This year's event centers on the theme of purity and the featured works include Oscar Wilde's “Salome,” a retelling of the biblical story of John the Baptist, Herod and his beguiling stepdaughter Salome, and “The Living Canvas: Rain” which examines the relationship between water and flesh. Also appearing is the all-female cabaret, Beast Women. Performances run Thursday to Sunday through Aug. 6. (773) 327-7077, ext. 502, or npt.com

• The Neo-Futurists' 10th annual staging of the worst-ever films runs Thursdays through Aug. 18, at 5153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. “It Came from the Neo-Futurarium X: Battle for the Neo-Futurarium” continues with 1979's “The Black Hole,” about a space crew that discovers a derelict spaceship on the edge of a black hole. The performance is at 8 p.m. Thursday, June 30. (773) 275-5255 or neofuturists.org.

• “Cirque Shanghai Extreme,” whose opening was postponed because of weather-related damage to the Skyline Stage roof, will begin performances on Thursday, June 29, at Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave., Chicago. The show — which features a motorcycle aerial act, Shaolin Kung Fu sword fighting and other spectacular visuals — opens on Thursday, July 7, and runs through Monday, Sept. 5. (800) 745-3000 or cirqueshanghai.com.

• Threesixty Entertainment has extended once again the run of “Peter Pan.” Performances of the theatrical spectacle run through Sunday, Aug. 21, at the Freedom Center, 650 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago. (888) 772-6949 or broadwayinchicago.com.