Marriott to revive classic 'My Fair Lady'
Marriott Theatre ushers in 2010 with Dominick Missimi's revival of Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Lowe's classic "My Fair Lady." Kevin Gudahl plays Henry Higgins and Heidi Kettenring plays his protégé Eliza Doolittle in the musical adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion," about a phonetics professor who bets he can pass off a common flower girl as an aristocrat. The all-star cast also includes David Lively, Ann Whitney and Max Quinlan.
Previews continue through Sunday, Dec. 13. The show opens Wednesday, Dec. 15, at 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. (847) 634-0200 or marriotttheatre.com.
'Wonderful Life' radio style
Libertyville's Improv Playhouse presents a staged, radio-play adaptation of Frank Capra's "It's A Wonderful Life," about an Everyman who learns that a man rich in friendship is a wealthy man indeed. Libertyville's David Brian Stuart directs and stars as George Bailey in the production.
Runs Friday to Sunday, Dec. 11-13, at the Round Lake Beach Cultural and Civic Center, 2007 Civic Center Way; Thursday to Monday, Dec. 17-21, at 735 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. (847) 968-4529 or improvplayhouse.com.
Goodman showcases new works
Goodman Theatre presents staged readings of the latest works by playwrights including artistic associate Regina Taylor, Pulitzer Prize-winner Nilo Cruz and Chicago playwright Rohina Malike as part of its New Stages Series. Works by Kia Corthron, Carlyle Brown and Thomas Bradshaw also are featured.
Friday, Dec. 11, to Sunday, Dec. 20, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. Admission is free, but reservations are required. (312) 443-3800 or goodmantheatre.org.
What's new
• About Face Theatre's holiday party consists of a re-imagined version of a Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic. Titled "Oklahomo for the Holidays," About Face's version centers on a gay love triangle and runs Friday through Monday, Dec. 11-14, at the Hoover-Leppen Theatre at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or aboutfacetheatre.com.
• Wayne Messmer performs the solo show "Saint Damien" - a tribute to Joseph Damien De Veuster, the 19th-century Belgian missionary who tended to the lepers on the Hawaiian island of Molokai - at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12, at the Chapel Theater at the corner of Pine and Lincoln in Winnetka. The performance is a benefit for paralyzed high school athletes. (888) 673-7552 or damienplay.org.
• Lookingglass Theatre artistic director David Catlin ("Lookingglass Alice") adapted and directs the company's world premiere of "Icarus" in a co-production with The Actors Gymnasium. Inspired by the Greek myth, the play centers on the attempts of Daedalus and his son Icarus to escape prison using wings Daedalus constructed from wax and feathers. Larry DiStasi plays Daedalus and Lindsey Whiting plays his doomed son. Previews continue through Saturday, Dec. 12, at the Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago. The show opens Sunday, Dec. 13. (312) 337-0665 or lookingglasstheatre.org.
• Bailiwick Chicago veterans perform at the theater company's holiday benefit from 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 13, at the LaSalle Power Company, 500 N. LaSalle St., third floor, Chicago. The evening includes a silent auction, open bar, music and performances inspired by classic holiday TV shows. (773) 969-6201 or bailiwickchicago.com.
• The national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical "In The Heights," a snapshot of the people living in New York's Washington Heights neighborhood, comes to the Cadillac Palace Theatre for a brief run. Performances begin Tuesday, Dec. 15, and run through Jan. 3, at 151 W. Randolph St., Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.
• Raven Theatre welcomes students from Sullivan High School in Chicago for a one-night only performance of Jim Grimsley's "A Bird of Prey." The play about the harsh realities today's high school students face every day from dysfunctional family life to bullying at school, is a result of Raven's arts education outreach program targeting students touched by violence and giving them an outlet to express their feelings. The performance is at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 16, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. 9773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com.
• Comic actors Lori Holm, John Dryden, Jennifer Reeves-Wilson and John Quirk deliver "Comedy Condensed," a benefit to assist the Batavia Inter-Faith Food Pantry at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 16, at Steel Beam Theatre, 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. The show contains adult content. Tickets are $15, $10 with the donation of canned goods. (630) 887-7269.
• EP Theater's seasonal series comprised of three one-act holiday plays by Shawn Pfautsch, Scott T. Barsotti and Andrew Burden Swanson continue at 8 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays through Saturdays to Monday, Dec. 21, at 1820 S. Halsted St., Chicago. Pfautsch's "The Birthday of the Unconquered Sun" is about high school students performing a skit about the establishment of the Christmas holidays in ancient Rome. Barsotti's "Holiday Parade" is about how modern Americans celebrate the holidays and Swanson's "An Eve at McTavish's" is about an Irish pub owner struggling to keep his family together on Christmas Eve. Area bands play holiday cover songs each evening. (312) 850-4299 or eptheater.com.
• Eta Creative Arts Foundation's main stage show "A Fool Such As I," Gus Edwards' drama about a young man's life-changing affair with an older, married woman, continues through Jan. 24 at 7558 S. South Chicago Ave., Chicago. (773) 752-3955 or etacreativearts.org.