Steel Beam's "Carol"

Steel Beam Theatre reprises a musical version of "A Christmas Carol" by composer Alan Menken ("The Little Mermaid," "Beauty and the Beast"). Elizabeth Margolius directs Crystal Lake's Stephen Connell who plays Ebenezer Scrooge.

Opens Friday, Nov. 20, at 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. (630) 587-8521 or steelbeamtheatre.com.

Enchanted in Rosemont

Critics used words like rapturous, beguiling and overwhelming to describe Bartlett Sher's 2008 Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific." The national tour makes its Chicago debut not at one of the downtown theaters but in Rosemont. Rod Gilfry and Carmen Cusack star as Emile de Becque and Nellie Forbush.

Opens Tuesday, Nov. 24, at the Rosemont Theatre, 5400 N. River Road, Rosemont. (800) 745-3000, southpacificontour.com or rosemonttheatre.com.

LOL presents standup

Laugh Out Loud Theater shifts briefly from improv when a group of comedians known as the Stand-Up Knights host an evening of comedy showcasing area comics along with members of the LOL ensemble.

8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 25, at the Streets of Woodfield, 601 N. Martingale Road, Schaumburg. (847) 240-0386 or loltheater.com.

• Actor Larry Yando and director William Brown team up once again for Goodman Theatre's annual production of "A Christmas Carol," featuring sets by Tony Award-winning designer Todd Rosenthal ("August: Osage County"). Joining the cast this year are suburban residents Christine Sherrill (St. Charles) as Mrs. Cratchit; Lauren Patten (Downers Grove) as Martha Cratchit, Jessie Mueller (Evanston) as Bell and Alex Weisman (Evanston) as the Ghost of Christmas Past. Previews begin Friday, Nov. 20, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. (312) 443-3800 or goodmantheatre.org.

• The Side Project Theatre Company begins its 2009-2010 season with the world premiere of "Rewind," Laura Eason's drama about the relationship between the members of a rock band hammered by the music industry. Eason, a onetime regular on the Chicago club scene with the band Tart, examines the mysteries of why mediocre musicians make it big and great musicians never make it at all. The show opens Friday, Nov. 20, at 1439 W. Jarvis Ave., Chicago. (773) 973-2150 or thesideproject.net.

• Porchlight Music Theatre debuts its stage adaptation of "Miracle on 34th Street," based on the 1947 film about a cynical, single mother and her equally unmoved daughter, neither of whom believe in Santa Claus. The show features holiday music arranged by Chicago composer Jon Steinhagen ("The Teapot Scandals"). Jeff Award winners L. Walter Stearns and Eugene Dizon provide direction and music direction. Previews continue through Saturday, Nov. 21, at the Theatre Building, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The musical opens Sunday, Nov. 22. (773) 327-5252 or porchlighttheatre.com.

• Redmoon Theatre, whose members recently returned from a command Halloween performance for President Barack Obama and his family, holds its annual, family-friendly "Winter Pageant" celebrating the change of seasons from Friday, Nov. 20, through Dec. 27, at 1463 W. Hubbard St., Chicago. (312) 850-8440, ext. 111 or redmoon.org.

• "Hunky Dory," The Factory Theater's comic thriller about the dubious ways some folks from Haneyville, Texas, live the American dream circa 1975, opens Friday, Nov. 20, and runs late nights through Dec. 19, at the Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston Ave., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or thefactorytheater.com.

• Redtwist Theatre tackles Martin McDonagh's "The Pillowman," an engrossing, brilliantly disturbing tragicomedy about a writer whose violent short stories have made him the primary suspect in a series of unsolved child murders. Kimberly Senior directs Andrew Jessop who plays the writer Katurian, and Peter Oyloe as his damaged brother, Michal. The show opens Saturday, Nov. 21, at 1044 W. Bryn Mawr, Chicago. (773) 728-7529 or redtwist.org.

• Three short stories comprise "Patchwork U.S.A.!" the world premiere children's show written and directed by Raven Theatre's Michael Menendian. "How I Love to Read" is about an elderly black woman whose folklore fairy tales connect her to her ancestors. "Pepito's Story" is about two children trying to maintain their friendship when one of their families rises in social stature. "The Happiest Day of My Life" centers on a young Armenian boy who moves to America and attends his first baseball game. The show opens Saturday, Nov. 21, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. (773) 338-2177 or raventtheatre.com.

• Victory Gardens Theater's Fresh Squeezed series continues with a performance by Michael Kearns on Sunday, Nov. 22, at 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. Kearns came out as a gay actor and announced that he was HIV positive nearly 20 years ago. His solo show "intimacies" consists of a half-dozen monologues detailing his experience with HIV/AIDS. Showtime is 7:30 p.m. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.

• Broadway and film veteran Peter Gallagher ("sex, lies and videotape," "The Player," "American Beauty") brings his one-man musical "Don't Give Up on Me" to Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower Place in advance of its national tour. The show offers a behind-the-scenes look at famous actors Gallagher has worked with - including Jack Lemmon and Peter O'Toole - and is peppered with American Broadway standards. It runs Sunday, Nov. 22, to Dec. 14, at 175 E. Chestnut St., Chicago. (312) 559-1212 or petergallagher.com.