On stage: SNL member Jay Pharoah hits Zanies

SNL's Jay Pharoah hits Zanies Rosemont

“Saturday Night Live” cast member and standup comedian Jay Pharoah, known for his impressions of Kanye West, Denzel Washington and Chris Rock, headlines Zanies' new Rosemont venue this weekend.

9 and 11 p.m. Friday, July 20, and 7 p.m. Saturday, July 21, at MB Financial Park, 5437 Park Place, Rosemont. $25, plus a two-item food or beverage minimum. (847) 813-0484 or zanies.com.

redtwist takes on 'Menagerie'

Skokie resident and Jeff Award winner Jacqueline Grandt stars as Amanda Wingfield in redtwist theatre's revival of “The Glass Menagerie,” Tennessee Williams' examination of dreams and illusions and the stranglehold memory holds over the members of a family. Redtwist literary manager Josh Altman directs a cast that also includes Ryan Heindl, Sarah Mayhan and Chris Daley.

Previews begin Thursday, July 26, at 1044 W. Bryn Mawr, Chicago. The show opens Saturday, July 28. $25-$30. (773) 728-7529 or redtwist.org.

'Wilderness' revived at Eclipse

Eclipse Theatre Company concludes its season devoted to the works of Eugene O'Neill with the comedy “Ah, Wilderness!” Set over the 1906 Independence Day holiday in small-town Connecticut, it centers on 17-year-old Richard Miller's first experience with love. Kevin Hagan directs the production which features ensemble member Cheri Chenoweth and guest artists Brian Parry and Alex Weisman as Richard.

Previews begin Thursday, July 26, at the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. The show opens Sunday, July 29. $18-$28. (773) 935-6875 or eclipsetheatre.com.

What's new

• Cirque du Soleil's “Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour,”an examination of Jackson's creativity set to his most popular songs, comes to the United Center, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago. Performances are on Friday, July 20, and Saturday, July 21. See cirquedusoleil.com/michaeljackson for more information.

• Citadel Theatre Company performs “Botanic Garden,” by Winnetka playwright Todd Logan, at 2 p.m. Friday, July 20, at the Lake Forest Senior Center, 100 E. Old Mill Road, Lake Forest. The play, which premiered at Victory Gardens Theater in 2008, is about a woman re-entering the dating scene after the death of her husband. The performance is part of the company's outreach program. (847) 735-8554 or citadeltheatre.org.

• Previews begin Friday, July 20, for The Factory Theater's “Red Faire! A Fistful of Ducats,” about what happens when the performers from a Renaissance faire get into a turf war with performers from a nearby Wild West show. The show opens Friday, July 27, at the Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston Ave., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or thefactorytheater.com.

• Riverfront Theater, 650 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago, presents the U.S. premiere of “La Soiree,” a combination cabaret, circus sideshow, burlesque and variety show. The show opens Saturday, July 21, and runs under the 70-foot circus tent through Sunday, Aug. 5. (888) 556-9484 or riverfronttheater.com.

• The Sea Beast Puppet Company and the Chicago Puppetry Guild team up for an evening of adults-only entertainment titled “Puppet Meltdown” at 9 p.m. Saturday, July 21, at Gorilla Tango's Skokie Theatre at 7924 Lincoln Ave., Skokie. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.

• Chicago Slam Works concludes its first season with a collaborative performance between Speak Easy Ensemble and German national championship slam teams Team Allen Earnstyzz and Team Totale Zerstorung at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 21, at Vittum Theater, 1012 N. Noble St., Chicago. Titled “In Any Tongue,” the spoken word performance consists of English translations of the German poems simultaneously. (866) 811-4111 or chicagoslamworks.com.

• Midwest New Musicals and Light Opera Works team up for North Shore Rhythms and Blues, a concert showcasing songs from the workshop productions of “PaddyCakes” by Patrice Peltier and Johanna Drew; “The Blood of San Gennaro” by Graziano Marcheschi, John David Nelson and Jessica A. Hunt; and “Rhythm and Wine” by Barbara Georgans and Bruce Warden. Performances are at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 22, at the McGaw YMCA, 1420 Maple St., Evanston and at 7:30 p.m. Monday, July 23, at McGuire Auditorium, Saint Xavier University, 3700 W. 103rd St., Chicago. (847) 920-5360 or lightoperaworks.com.

• Barrel of Monkeys debuts its all-new show, “That's Weird, Abuelita,” featuring sketches by Chicago students performed in English, Spanish and pantomime. It runs Wednesday, July 25, through Aug. 18 at the Logan Square Arts Center, 2800 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. The sketches center around a lucky mailman and a grandpa who makes piñatas and other characters. (312) 409-1954 or barrelofmonkeys.org.

• “Dreamworks How to Train Your Dragon Live Spectacular” comes to the United Center, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago, for a limited run. Inspired by the animated film, the high-tech show incorporates circus artists and acrobats along with large-scale projections and animatronics. Performances run from Thursday, July 26, through July 29. See dreamworksdragonslive.com.

• Theater on the Lake continues its 60th season on Wednesday, July 25, at the theater at Fullerton Avenue and Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, with The Inconvenience's production of “Hit the Wall,” Ike Holter's drama with live music about the night in 1969 Greenwich Village that sparked the gay rights movement. The show runs through Sunday, July 29. (312) 742-7994 or chicagoparkdistrict.com.

• Teatro Vista and Collaboraction team up for the inaugural Yo Solo Festival of Latino Solo Shows featuring six pieces by Latino writers from the Chicago area and around the country. They're presented in repertory from Thursday, July 26, through Aug. 12, at the Flat Iron Building, 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. The mini-festival consists of three programs comprised of two solo shows. Tickets are $15 per program, $10 for students. Program A consists of Febronio Zatarain's “La Risa de Dios,” about the challenges of being an immigrant in Chicago, and Lisandra Tena's “Guera,” comprised of monologues drawn from her family experiences. Program B consists of KJ Sanchez's “Highway 47” about her family's involvement in a New Mexico land grant war and Chicago native Sandra Delgado's “para Graciela” about a woman making peace with her recently deceased father. Program C consists of Juan Francisco Villa's portrait of a family and a neighborhood, “Empanada for a Dream,” and Rey Andujar's “Antipoda,” an examination of racial identity, crime and sexuality through mime and spoken word. For a schedule, call (312) 226-9633 or see teatrovista.org or collaboraction.org.

• A high school teacher haunted by memories of his naval officer father who suffered from post-traumatic stress, attempts to help a student reconcile with his father in “Adrift,” a new play by David Alex developed through Polarity Ensemble Theatre's Dionysus Cup Festival of New Plays. Previews begin Thursday, July 26, at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The show, produced by Polarity in association with Azusa Productions, opens July 27. (773) 404-7336 or petheatre.com or greenhousetheater.org.

• Previews begin Thursday, July 26, for Idle Muse Theatre's season-opening production of “The Monument,” Colleen Wagner's drama about a soldier held responsible for war crimes that “everyone was doing.” Ensemble member Brian Bengtson and Babes With Blades ensemble member Amy Harmon star in the production, which opens July 28 at The Side Project Theater, 1439 W. Jarvis Ave., Chicago. (773) 340-9438 or idlemuse.org.

• The finalists in Pride Films and Plays 2012 Women's Work Contest for plays written by women and featuring lesbian characters or themes will be showcased from Thursday, July 26, through July 29, at the Hoover-Lleppen Theater at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., Chicago. (773) 250-3112 or pridefilmsandplays.com.

• Goodman Theatre has extended its production of the gospel musical “Crowns.” Performances continue through Sunday, Aug. 12, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. Additionally, Chicago area gospel vocalists and local church choirs will perform preshow concerts in the Goodman lobby on select days. (312) 443-3800 or goodmantheatre.org.

• “Million Dollar Quartet,” the jukebox musical inspired by a 1956 jam session with Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley at Sun Records in Memphis, has been extended to its fifth year. Performances continue through Jan. 6 at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or milliondollarquartetlive.com.

• TimeLine Theatre Company recently announced the addition of actresses Mildred Marie Langford and Mechelle Moe and dramaturge Maren Robinson to the company. They join current members Nick Bowling, Janet Ulrich Brooks, Lara Goetsch, Juliet Hart, David Parkes, PJ Powers and Ben Thiem. For information on the company's upcoming season or its current production of investigative reporter John Conroy's “My Kind of Town,” see timelinetheatre.com.

• Goodman Theatre reports that artistic director Robert Falls' acclaimed revival of “The Iceman Cometh,” starring Nathan Lane, Brian Dennehy and Canada's Stephen Ouimette, is the most successful production in the company's 87-year history, playing to 100 percent capacity during its extended run. Attendance topped 42,000. “I am enormously proud of what Nathan, Brian and our brilliant ensemble case have achieved with this once-in-a-lifetime experience that is certainly one of the highlights of my life in theater,” said Falls in a statement.

• The Ten Chimneys Foundation named Chicago area standouts E. Faye Butler, Susan Moniz and Hollis Resnik as 2012 Lunt-Fontanne Fellows. The leading ladies will join Tony Award winner Joel Grey in participating in masters classes centered on musical theater at the Wisconsin estate of Broadway greats Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.