New and notable on stage

Scary tale

Maintaining the tradition it established several years ago with its seasonally appropriate "The Madness of Edgar Allen Poe," First Folio Theatre opens its 2008-2009 season (which also includes Noel Coward's "Design for Living" and Eugene O'Neill's "Moon for the Misbegotten") with the Chicago-area premiere of Bob Hall and David Richmond's off-Broadway hit, "The Passion of Dracula." Ben Werling stars as the cursed count. Opens Saturday, Oct. 4, at Mayslake Peabody Estate, 1717 W. 31 St. St., Oak Brook. (630) 986-8067 or firstfolio.org.

Apple Tree at Metropolis

Apple Tree Theatre returns to the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, where it stages its Theatre for Young Audiences production of "The Giver." The coming-of-age-play centers around a young boy living in utopia whose world turns upside down when he's chosen as the receiver of all its bad memories. Opens Wednesday, Oct. 8, at 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com.

Sondheim salute

Light Opera Works' season continues with a salute to composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim comprised of his own music from "Company" and "Follies" as well as his collaborations with Leonard Bernstein ("West Side Story"), Jule Stein ("Gypsy") and Richard Rodgers ("Do I Hear a Waltz?"). LOW artistic director Rudy Hogenmiller directs and music director Jon Steinhagen conducts. Opens Friday, Oct. 3, at 1420 Maple Ave., Chicago. (847) 869-6300 or lightoperaworks.com.

Elsewhere

• Fresh off its New York transfer of "The Strangerer," Theater Oobleck embraces its quadrennial tradition of producing themed plays in conjunction with presidential election with its 2008 offering, "The Trojan Candidate" in which Vice President Dick Cheney looks at the men who would be president. The play opens Friday, Oct. 3, at the Neo Futurarium, 153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. (773) 347-1041 or theateroobleck.com.

•" In the Curious Hold of the Demeter: Count Orlock at Sea," The Incurable Theater Company's world premiere incorporating puppetry, shadowplay, projections and live actors opens Friday, Oct. 3, at the Studio Theater, Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St., Chicago. Inspired by the silent film "Nosferatu," this adults-only play follows the famed count's attempt to remake his life. (312) 742-8497 or incurabletheater.org.

• A modern-day fairy tale inspired by our passion for Botox and silicone, "Gregor and the Squonk" is about a man desperate to find the creature who can grant his vain wife eternal beauty. Tympanic Theatre Company's production of the play by ensemble member Daniel Caffrey opens the company's second season today at the Bailiwick Arts Center, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 883-1090 or tympanictheatre.org.

• Chicago Danztheatre remounts its production of "The Yellow Wallpaper," based on a story about a 19th century woman losing her sanity to postpartum depression. The play opens today at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or danztheatre.org.

• "Splatter Theatre," Annoyance Theatre's comedic parody of slasher movies, opens Saturday, Oct. 4, at 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 561-4665 or annoyanceproductions.com.

• Also at the Annoyance, "Night Falls," an homage to classic TV shows like "The Twilight Zone" and "The Outer Limits" comprised of several short plays, opens Sunday, Oct. 5, at 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 561-4665 or annoyanceproductions.com.

• Griffin Theatre, a company that has a knack for producing smart, thoughtful productions of shows that address the concerns of young adults, presents the U.S. premiere of Simon Stephens' Olivier Award-winning "On The Shore of the Wide World," which examines the struggles of a family. Previews continue through Oct. 4. The play opens Sunday, Oct. 5, at the Theatre Building Chicago, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (772) 327-5252 or griffintheatre.com.

• Premiere Theatre & Performance presents the U.S. premiere of "Seven Doors (Sieben Türen)." Botho Strauss' dark comedy consists of several tales including one about a couple so caught up in each other they forget to invite guests to their wedding and another about an insignificant person who holds the key to world power. The play opens Sunday, Oct. 5, at Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston Ave., Chicago. (773) 250-7055 or ptapchicago.org.

• Red Tape Theatre's artistic director James Palmer adapts 16th century writer Lope DeVega's "Dog in a Manger," about a winged man who invades the home of a countess and seduces her and her handmaiden. Previews begin today at St. Peter's Episcopal Church, 621 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The play opens Monday, Oct. 6. For tickets see redtapetheatre.org.

• Sharr White's "Six Years," a 2006 Humana Festival entry, marks New Leaf Theatre's first show of the 2008-2009 season. The play examines the experiences of a couple living during the latter half of the 20th century by returning to them every six years. It opens Wednesday, Oct. 8 at the Lincoln Park Cultural Center, 2045 N. Lincoln Park West, Chicago. For tickets see newleaftheatre.org for ticket information.

• Chicago writer Jason Wells' "Men of Tortuga," a play about shadowy men scheming to eliminate their opposition that had its premiere as part of Steppenwolf Theatre's First Look Series, gets its first Midwest production since its debut courtesy of Profiles Theatre. The comic-drama opens Thursday, Oct. 9, at 4147 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 549-1815 or profilestheatre.org.