Theater events: Rob Schneider hits Chicago Improv
Schneider does standup
“Saturday Night Live” veteran Rob Schneider (“Deuce Bigelow: Male Gigolo,” “Grown Ups”) headlines Schaumburg’s Chicago Improv this weekend. The Emmy Award-nominated actor/comedian returns to standup comedy 25 years after getting his start opening for comedians such as Jerry Seinfeld and Jay Leno.
8 and 10:15 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21; 7 and 9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 22; and 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 23, at Woodfield Mall, 5 Woodfield Road, Schaumburg. $33, plus a two-item food or beverage minimum. (847) 240-2001 or chicago.improv.com.
‘Poe’ returns
Ensemble member Christian Gray stars as the master of the macabre in First Folio Theatre’s “The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe: A Love Story.” David Rice adapted the original play that examines, through Poe’s writing, his life and marriage to his younger cousin Virginia. She’s played by Diane Mair, who reprises the role she created. Michael Goldberg, who starred in First Folio’s “The Merchant of Venice” last summer, directs.
Previews begin at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 26, at the Mayslake Peabody Estate, 1717 W. 31st St., Oak Brook. The show opens Sept. 29. $22-$37. (630) 986-8067 or firstfolio.org.
‘Sunday’ at Navy Pier
Gary Griffin, the director behind Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s spectacular revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Follies” last season, returns to his artistic home to direct “Sunday in the Park With George,” the musical by Sondheim and writer James Lapine inspired by Georges Seurat’s “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte-1884.” Jason Danieley and Carmen Cusack make their CST debuts in the rolls of Georges Seurat/George and Dot/Marie.
Previews begin at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 26, at Navy Pier, 800 E. Grand Ave., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 3. $48-$78. (312) 595-5600 or chicagoshakes.com.
— Barbara Vitello