Theater events: More than meets the eye in Goodman's world premiere 'Magic Play'

Magic time

After his partner leaves him, a rising young magician takes the stage, but his show - like his personal life - begins to unravel in "The Magic Play." Actor/magician Brett Schneider stars in Goodman Theatre's world premiere of the play by Andrew Hinderaker, a Gift Theatre ensemble member and Chicago Dramatists emeritus resident playwright. The Hypocrites' Halena Kays directs. Previews begin at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. The show opens Nov. 1. $10-$40. (312) 443-3800 or GoodmanTheatre.org.

Pinter revival

Northlight Theatre literary manager Lauren Shouse directs Raven Theatre's revival of "Betrayal." Harold Pinter's classic chronicles the long-running affair between a woman and her husband's best friend in reverse chronology. Shouse says she - and her mostly female design team - intend to tell the story from the perspective of Emma, the sole female character who "grows the most and has the most to lose." Previews begin at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 31. $29-$46. (773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com.

Hollywood classic

Broadway and Marriott Theatre veterans team up for the upcoming revival of Marriott's "Singin' in the Rain," directed by William Brown and choreographed by Tammy Mader. This sendup unfolds in 1927 as Hollywood transitions from silent films to talkies with some unintended results. Danny Gardner stars as silent screen star Don Lockwood and Mary Michael Patterson plays Kathy Seldon, the chorus girl tapped to supply the voice for leading lady Lina Lamont (Alexandra Palkovic), who can't sing a note. Previews begin at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26, at 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. The show opens Nov. 2. $50-$55. (847) 634-0200 or MarriottTheatre.com.

Other theater events

• Saint Sebastian Players open their 36th season with "Oliver!" the musical inspired by Charles Dickens' tale of an orphaned boy whose search for love and family takes him from a workhouse to a gang of pickpockets to the home of a wealthy benefactor. Performances begin Friday, Oct. 21, at St. Bonaventure, 1625 W. Diversey St., Chicago. (773) 404-7922 or saintsebastianplayers.org.

• "The Shako Mako" variety show takes the stage at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, at The Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. Sketch comedy duo Spooky Dookie's pop-culture sendup "Razzle Dazzle" runs Tuesdays through Nov. 8. Lastly, a simple picnic between two friends descends into a stream-of-conscious sketch comedy revue in "High and Mighty," written and performed by Reilly Willson and Shelby Quinn. Performances run Tuesdays through Nov. 15. (773) 697-9693 or theannoyance.com.

• Previews begin Friday, Oct. 21, for Pride Films and Plays' production of "Resolution," the winning entry in the theater's 2015 LezPlay competition. Nancy Nyman and Heather McNama's drama is set on New Year's Eve 1892 when the maid to a high-society couple discovers their long-held secret that could destroy their lives. The play opens Monday, Oct. 24, at Rivendell Theatre, 5779 N. Ridge Ave., Chicago. (800) 737-0984 or pridefilmsandplays.com.

• Experimental ensemble Cock and Bull Theatre presents "Lecherous Honey," Megan Breen's contemporary adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts," a morality tale exposing the sordid back story (adultery, STDs, incest) of a prominent family. Performances of the promenade production begin Friday, Oct. 21, at the Berger Park North Mansion (formerly the Gunder Mansion), 6219 N. Sheridan Road, Chicago. See cockandbulltheatre.org.

• Park Ridge native George Brant tells a fictionalized story of a female Air Force pilot who - after giving birth - is reassigned from piloting fighter jets to piloting drones from a trailer outside Las Vegas. Amber Kelly stars in Brant's solo play "Grounded," which previews Friday, Oct. 21, at Pride Arts Center, 4147 N. Broadway, Chicago. The play opens Saturday, Oct. 22. See theaterofthought.com.

• The Comedy Dance Collective, a movement-based ensemble, presents its Halloween-themed show Friday, Oct. 21 and 28, at iO Chicago, 1501 N. Kingsbury St., Chicago. (312) 929-2401 or ioimprov.com.

• Lifeline Theatre premieres a new version of Hans Christian Andersen's "Thumbelina," adapted and directed by ensemble member Amanda Demheimer Dimond in cooperation with Mariana Green, Brandi Lee and Liz Rice. It's about the efforts of a girl born from a flower and stolen by a toad to find a family she can call her own. Performances begin Saturday, Oct. 22, at 6912 N. Glenwood Ave., Chicago. (773) 761-4477 or lifelinetheatre.com.

• A graduate student travels to a small town to witness a murderer's execution in "Chagrin Falls" by Mia McCullough. Sommer Austin directs The Agency Theater Collective's production, which begins previews Saturday, Oct. 22, at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 28. (773) 680-4596 or wearetheagency.org.

• The New Millennium Theatre Company hosts its fundraiser "Halloween Hellraiser" beginning at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, at The Globe Pub, 1934 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago. Tickets cost $25 at the door and include an open bar from 7 to 8 p.m., a performance of the comedy "Whitehairs on Elm Street," a raffle, a costume contest and Bingo. See nmtchicago.org.

• Wanna hear something really scary? Check out WildClaw Theatre Company's "Deathscribe: An Evening of Radio Horror" at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, at Steppenwolf Theatre's 1700 Theatre, 1700 N. Halsted St., Chicago. Part of Steppenwolf's LookOut Series, the show consists of five "stories of terror" taken from the last eight years of WildClaw's radio horror theater series. See steppenwolf.org or wildclawtheatre.com.

• Emerald City Theatre remounts its popular holiday comedy "Junie B. Jones in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells!" Based on the children's book by Barbara Park, the story follows a girl's discovery of the joy of giving. Performances begin Saturday, Oct. 22, at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or EmeraldCityTheatre.com.

• Shakespeare 400 Chicago's yearlong commemoration of the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's birth continues with ShawChicago Theater's U.S. premiere of "Shakespeare's Legacy." Penned more than 100 years ago, James Barrie's absurdist comedy centers on newlyweds who discover Shakespeare's best bed and with it answers to questions about the Bard's nationality and lost writings. The ensemble performs the play as part of a double bill that includes Shakespeare's most popular monologues and scenes under the title "Shakespeare's People." The show is at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 24, at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. (312) 587-7390 or shawchicago.org.

• The Lyric Opera of Chicago and The Second City reunite for "Longer! Louder! Wagner!" A humorous look at the life and work of composer Richard Wagner, Timothy Sniffen's show is a comedic companion piece to Lyric's ongoing Ring Cycle. The production runs Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 27-30, at the Civic Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago. (312) 827-5600 or lyricopera.org/secondcity.

• City Lit Theater hosts its fall gala beginning at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, at The Cliff Dwellers, 200 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago. The event includes buffet dinner, cash bar, awards and entertainment featuring music by P.G. Wodehouse and Jerome Kern. (773) 293-3682 or citylit.org.

• Porchlight Music Theatre announced the third and final extension of its hit production of Lin-Manuel Miranda's "In the Heights." Performances of the musical, about the residents of New York City's Washington Heights neighborhood, run through Dec. 3 at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 327-5252 or PorchlightMusicTheatre.org.

• Steel Beam Theatre in St. Charles recently received a $15,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Fox River Valley to assist with upgrades to the theater's lighting system. "We had struggled for the past few years with an antiquated system and this grant has made it possible for us to truly upgrade our lighting capacities," said artistic director Marge Uhlarik-Boller in a prepared statement. Founded in 1948, the foundation distributes grants to benefit Aurora-area residents. Since its inception, the foundation has distributed more than $60 million in grants and scholarships.

• Director/producer Lisa Portes, whose work has been seen at Steppenwolf, Goodman, American Blues and Victory Garden theaters among others, is the recipient of the 2016 Zelda Fichandler Award. The award recognizes the efforts of a director or choreographer of "singular creativity and artistry." Steppenwolf Theatre artistic director Anna D. Shapiro will present the award to Portes on Oct. 30.

• Idle Muse Theatre Company's 11th season begins Nov. 19 with the Athena Festival, celebrating plays written and directed by women. It runs through Nov. 20 at Jackalope Theatre, 1106 W. Thorndale Ave., Chicago. The Chicago premiere of Joseph Zettelmaier's "The Scullery Maid," a medieval thriller about a lowly servant who plots to assassinate England's king, runs March 16-April 9, 2017, at The Edge Theater, 5451 N. Broadway Ave., Chicago. The season concludes with the Midwest premiere of Conor McPherson's "The Veil" about an Irish woman whose impending marriage to a British lord is imperiled after a defrocked minister intervenes. It runs Aug. 17-Sept. 17, 2017, at The Edge Theater. (773) 340-9438 or IdleMuse.org.

• Quest Theatre Ensemble's 2016-2017 season began earlier this month with "The People's History of the United States," which runs through Nov. 6 at The Blue Theater, 1609 W. Gregory Ave., Chicago. It continues Dec. 17 and 18, with the company's 15th annual holiday touring production of "Blue Nativity," featuring large-scale puppetry and music. Next up is the Harvey Schmidt-Tom Jones chamber musical "The Fantasticks" (Feb. 17-March 26, 2017) about two fathers who plot to get their son and daughter together by pretending to keep them apart. The season concludes with "Carnival Tales" (April 29-30, 2017), a co-production with the International Chamber Artists Collaboration featuring Quest puppets and music by Maurice Ravel, Camille Saint-Saens and Cliff Colnot, who recently retired after 22 years as the Civic Orchestra of Chicago conductor. Performances take place at the Blue Theater. Quest productions are free, but donations are accepted. See questensemble.org.