Noble Fool to salute doo-wop girl groups in 'Taffetas'
Circle Theatre artistic director Kevin Bellie returns to Noble Fool to direct "The Taffetas," a salute to doo-wop girl groups from the 1950s, about a quartet of singing sisters trying out for "The Ed Sullivan Show." The cast includes St. Charles native Courtney Rioux, Samantha Dubina, Meredith Freyre and Danielle Plisz.
Facts: Previews begin Wednesday, Feb. 4, at Pheasant Run Resort & Spa, 4051 E. Main St., St. Charles. The musical opens Saturday, Feb. 7. (630) 584-6342 or noblefool.org.
Another by Neveu
Brett Neveu concludes his three-play trilogy centered on Americans' response to the war in Iraq with "Old Glory," about the emotional devastation war inflicts on six people. William Brown directs Writers' Theatre's world premiere production.
Facts: Previews begin Tuesday, Feb. 3, at 325 Tudor Court, Glencoe. The play opens Thursday, Feb. 12. (847) 242-6000 or writerstheatre.org.
New play skewers capitalism
The suburbs are well represented in Raven Theatre's world premiere of "Misamerica," Tom Patrick's sendup of cultural ignorance and insensitivity about a shoe company's attempts to "liberate the oppressed feet" of a Middle Eastern nation, which lands them in the middle of a conflict. Downers Grove's Greg Kolack directs a cast that includes Steve Ratcliff (Wheeling) and Greg Caldwell (Des Plaines).
Facts: Previews continue through Saturday, Jan. 31, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. The play opens Monday, Feb. 2. (773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com.
what's new
•Griffin Theatre Company's production of the family-friendly "Frindle," about a kid who creates his own world, begins performances Thursday, Feb. 5, at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. The production runs through Friday, Feb. 13. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com.
•The Neo-Futurists brew their latest production "Beer" away from their home at (where else?), the Metropolitan Brewery, 5121 N. Ravenswood, Chicago. Writers and creators Sean Benjamin and Steve Mosqueda put their longtime examination of beer and its effects to theatrical use in this world premiere about a young boy transported to a strange land where he must successfully brew a batch of beer to find his way home. The play opens Saturday, Jan. 31. (773) 275-5255.
•Playwright Gloria Bond Clunie pays tribute to Lorraine Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun" with her new play "Living Green," which has its world premiere at Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 N. Broadway, Chicago on Monday, Feb. 2. Set in 1995, the play centers around a black family who moved out of their old neighborhood in order to provide more opportunities for their children, who consider moving back to the inner city to help improve their former community. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.
•"Slaphappy," Chicago playwright Gary Slezak's romantic comedy about four Americans getting a taste of love in Paris, opens Monday, Feb. 2, at the Theatre Building Chicago, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. Half the proceeds from the performance on Thursday, Feb. 5, benefit the Anti-Cruelty Society of Chicago. (773) 327-5252 or slaphappyplay.com.
•About Face Theatre artistic director Bonnie Metzgar fulfills a promise to late friend and playwright John C. Russell with her multimedia adaptation of "Stupid Kids," Russell's play about teenagers in love and in high school during the late 1980s. Metzgar and co-director Megan Carney will encourage audience members to leave on cell phones during the performances so that they become part of the action. Previews begin Wednesday, Feb. 4, at the Hoover Leppen-Theatre at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., Chicago. The show opens Thursday, Feb. 12. (866) 811-4111 or aboutfacetheatre.com.
•"An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein," a play whose title describes its content (taken from his writings for Playboy magazine), begins performances Thursday, Feb. 5, at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. The Shadowmen's production runs through Saturday, Feb. 28. (866) 811-4111 or theatremania.com/Chicago.
•One man. 18 characters. 90 minutes. Thus describes this one-man version of "Hamlet," adapted, directed and performed by Guy Roberts, artistic director of the Prague Shakespeare Festival. Roberts' performances at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, mark the production's American premiere. It opens Friday, Feb. 6, and runs through Sunday, Feb. 15. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.