Theater events: A Haunting we will go with magician David Parr

Posted October 23, 2015 6:00 am

<h3 class="briefHead">Adult tricks & treats</h3>

Magician and author David Parr incorporates magic into his guided tours of Evanston's Dawes House as part of his Haunting History Halloween celebration. Designed for visitors 13 and older, the tours combine magic, folklore, urban myths and ghost stories. 7, 8 and 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 23-24 and 30-31, at the Evanston History Center, Dawes House, 225 Greenwood St., Evanston. $20. No one younger than 13 admitted. See davidparr.com.

<h3 class="briefHead">Haunted happening</h3>

Steel Beam Theatre collaborates with the St. Charles Park District to produce "GRIMrose Farm," its fifth annual Halloween haunted house running weekends through Oct. 31. In addition to "monster-free" performances for young patrons, the historic haunt event includes hayrides, a bonfire and refreshments. Proceeds benefit Steel Beam. 7 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 23-24, and 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, through Oct. 31 at Primrose Farm, 5N726 Crane Road, St. Charles. A children's version runs from 5 to 6:30 p.m. each night. $16, $22. (630) 587-8521 or grimrosefarm.com.

<h3 class="briefHead">Holiday tale</h3>

A couple of army buddies turned Broadway stars team up with singing sisters to save a failing Vermont inn in "White Christmas, The Musical" by David Ives and Paul Blake with music by Irving Berlin based on the 1954 film. Drury Lane Theatre's revival stars Sean Allan Krill, Matt Raftery, Gina Milo and Erika Stephan. William Osetek directs and Matthew Crowle choreographs. Previews begin at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, at 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace. The show opens Nov. 5. $45-$60. (630) 530-0111 or drurylane.com.

<h3 class="briefHead">Other theater events</h3>

• Saint Sebastian Players opens its 35th season with Joseph Kesselring's dark comedy "Arsenic and Old Lace," about a pair of seemingly virtuous, elderly Brooklyn sisters who are actually knocking off elderly men with their homemade elderberry wine. Performances begin Friday, Oct. 23, at St. Bonaventure, 1625 W. Diversey Parkway, Chicago. Steven Walanka directs. (773) 404-7922 or saintsebastianplayers.org.

• Just in time for Halloween, Dream Theatre Company presents the latest in its immersive, adults-only Audience Annihilated series "The Trouble With Angels." In this combination horror show and haunted house by Jeremy Menekseoglu, audience members may participate or observe. Performances begin at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 23, last about 20 minutes, and run through Nov. 1 at 5026 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. See dreamtheatrecompany.com.

• Chicago Dramatists hosts its first Blue Moon Mystery Ball, an interactive performance and fundraiser in which patrons solve a crime during a soiree at a historic mansion. The event, which includes refreshments, beverages, a fortuneteller and a silent auction, runs from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 23, at the Cheney Mansion, 220 N. Euclid Ave., Oak Park. The company's resident playwrights participate along with artistic associates in the acting ensemble. Tickets cost $150 with proceeds going to the company. See chicagodramatists.org.

• Theater historian Charles Troy and the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band team up for the Chicago premiere of "The Whole Megillah: The Story of the Yiddish Theatre," which chronicles the evolution of the art form. The performance is at 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Skokie Theatre, 7924 Lincoln Ave., Skokie. (847) 677-7761 or skokietheatre.org.

• Previews begin Saturday, Oct. 24, for "The Firestorm," the first production in Stage Left Theatre's 34th season. Developed through the company's Downstage Left Playwright Residence and its new play festival, Meredith Friedman's play is about Paul and Gaby, an interracial political couple on the campaign trail who are forced to confront a racially charged incident from Paul's past. The show opens Oct. 30 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 975-8150 or stagelefttheatre.com.

• Leigh Fondakowski, head writer of Tectonic Theater Project's "The Laramie Project," chronicles the effects of the 2010 explosion of the BP-owned oil rig Deepwater Horizon that killed 11 workers and sent millions of barrels of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico for months. Drawn from more than 200 hours of interviews with fishermen, cleanup workers, scientists, oil industry employees, politicians and the families of the victim, Fondakowski's "Spill" receives its Midwest premiere courtesy of TimeLine Theatre Company. Previews begin Saturday, Oct. 24, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show, directed by Fondakowski, opens Oct. 30. (773) 327-5252 or timelinetheatre.com.

• Red Theater and Oracle Productions debut director Aaron Sawyer's unique adaptation of William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" beginning Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Oracle Theatre, 3809 N. Broadway St., Chicago. Titled "R+J: The Vineyard," Sawyer and co-adapter Janette Bauer's dual-language, 90-minute adaptation is set in late 19th-century Martha's Vineyard and is comprised of ASL and spoken word. Admission is free and reservations are recommended. Donations are accepted. See publicaccesstheatre.org or redtheater.org.

• The Chicago League of Lady Arm Wrestlers hosts CLLAW-O-Ween 2, a benefit for Sideshow Theatre Company and Ayodele Drum & Dance beginning at 10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Logan Square Auditorium, 2539 N. Kedzie Ave., Chicago. The Halloween-themed event includes arm wrestling, music by The Fox & The Hounds, a costume contest and prizes. Tickets are available at cllaw.org.

• A new circus-theater collective that goes by the name Collectif and Then introduce a work in progress titled "No Man's Land" at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at Aloft Circus Arts, 2041 W. Carroll Ave., Chicago. Advance ticket sales only. See brownpapertickets.com.

• Improv veterans Molly Miller and Brad Kemp debut their book musical "Tribulation: The Musical." An irreverent take on the Book of Revelation, it centers on an aspiring poet who leaves her boring desk job and joins prophets, middle managers and students attempting to prevent the apocalypse. Performances run Sundays, beginning Oct. 25, at io Chicago, 1501 N. Kingsbury St., Chicago. (312) 929-2401 or ioimprov.com.

• Filament Theatre's ongoing concert series continues at 7 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, with a performance by "Queen of Louisiana honky-tonk music" Kim Carson. The theater is at 4041 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. See filamenttheatre.org/2015concerts.

• Members of Route 66 Theatre Company perform the music from Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" live in concert at 8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 26, at the Mayne Stage, 1328 W. Morse Ave., Chicago. The event includes a costume contest and prizes. Tickets range from $25 to $50. Proceeds benefit the company's upcoming productions. (773) 381-4551 or maynestage.com.

• Williams Street Repertory hosts a free staged reading of "Technicolor Life" by Jami Brandli at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 26, at the Raue Center, 26 N. Williams St., Crystal Lake. See wsrep.org.

• Previews begin Wednesday, Oct. 28, for Windy City Playhouse's revival of the Neil Simon comedy "Chapter Two," about George, a widowed novelist whose efforts to date again prove disastrous until he meets soap opera actress Jennie. The show, directed by Jessica Thebus, opens Oct. 31 at 3014 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago. (773) 891-8985 or windycityplayhouse.com.

• Performances for Goodman Theatre's 12th annual New Stages Festival - showcasing three fully-staged in-development works running in repertory and four staged readings - begins Wednesday, Oct. 28, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. Fully staged productions include "Mother Road," by Octavio Solis, which re-imagines John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath"; Charles Smith's "Objects in the Mirror," about a Liberian man who gains a new perspective after losing his home; and Lauren Yee's "King of the Yees" examining San Francisco's Chinatown. The staged readings, which will appear during the festival's final weekend (Nov. 13-15), include: Dael Orlandersmith's "Lady in Denmark," a one-woman show about how music shapes a life; Jordan Harrison's "The Amateurs," a tale that examines the origins of creativity; Rebecca Gilman's "Rodvinsvanster (Red-White Leftists): 1977," about ideologies colliding in 1977 Sweden; and Martin Zimmerman's "On the Exhale," about society's complex relationship with guns and violence. Goodman director of new play development Tanya Palmer pointed to this year's diverse lineup of plays describing them in a prepared statement as "each ambitious in scope and theatrical in its storytelling, from a mix of established and emerging artists." Admission is free, but reservations are recommended. (312) 443-2800 or goodmantheatre.org.

• Victory Gardens Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, invites patrons to go behind the scenes of its current production "Never the Sinner" to sort out fact from fiction in the notorious Leopold and Loeb 1924 murder case. The free event begins at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29. Reservations are required. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.

• "Angela of Death," a dark musical comedy about a girl whose ex-boyfriends die under mysterious circumstances, continues Fridays through Oct. 30 at The Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 697-9693 or theannoyance.com.

• Assassination Theater has extended by 12 weeks its production of reporter Hillel Levin's "Chicago's Role in the Crime of the Century," which examines the city's connection to the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Performances continue through Jan. 31, 2016, at the Museum of Broadcast Communications, 360 N. State St., Chicago. (800) 838-3006 or assassinationtheater.com.

• Theater Wit has once again extended its long-running production of "Bad Jews," Joshua Harmon's comedy about young Jews grappling with faith, tradition and identity. Performances continue through Dec. 10 at the Royal George Cabaret, 1641 N. Halsted St., Chicago. (312) 988-9000 or badjewschicago.com.

• Chicago Shakespeare Theater has extended its U.S. premiere of "Ride the Cyclone," a musical by Brooke Maxwell and Jacob Richmond about six members of the Saint Cassian chamber choir killed in a roller coaster accident who compete in song for a second chance at life. Performances continue through Nov. 15 at Navy Pier, 800 E. Grand Ave., Chicago. (312) 595-5600 or chicagoshakes.com.

• Broadway in Chicago announced an extension for "Unspeakable," described as a "dramatic fantasia" inspired by the life of seminal comedian Richard Pryor. Performances continue through Nov. 8 at the Broadway Playhouse Water Tower Place, 175 E. Chestnut St., Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.

• Quest Theatre Ensemble opens its 2015-2016 season on Nov. 20 at The Blue Theatre, 1609 W. Gregory Ave., Chicago, with the Alan Menken-Lynn Ahrens musical version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" with sets and puppets by Dennis Murphy. The world premiere of Arthur Feinsod and Andrew Park's courtroom drama "The Trial of Abraham" (Feb. 12-March 20, 2016, at The Blue Theater) examines the complicated, sometimes violent relationship between Christianity, Islam and Judaism. The season concludes with a large-scale puppet and music performance of "Passion Play" (May 14 and 15, 2016, at St. Gregory the Great Church, 5545 N. Paulina St., Chicago) in collaboration with International Chamber Artists and set to the music of Antonin Dvorak. All performances are free, but reservations are recommended and donations are accepted. Also, the company announced the addition of new associate members including actors Kent Joseph, Molly LeCaptain, Kirk Osgood, Jomar Ferreras and Justin Burns along with choreographer Dennis Murphy and lighting designer Eric Vigo. (312) 458-0895 or questensemble.org.

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