Onstage: 'Mr. Lucky' back at Zanies in Vernon Hills

Dobie in Vernon HillsComedian Dobie Maxwell, also known as Mr. Lucky, returns to headline Zanies Vernon Hills. One of "Jerry's Kidders," Maxwell is a regular on Jerry Agar's WGN radio show and is a former WLUP-FM radio host. 8 p.m. today; 7 p.m. Saturday, April 3, at 230 Hawthorn Village Commons, Vernon Hills. (847) 549-6030 or zanies.comFoot-stompin' showCircle Theatre continues to showcase infrequently seen musicals with its production of "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." Written for mature audiences, the show centers around the attempts of the residents of a fictionalized town to close down a brothel owned by the comely Miss Mona. Look for director/choreographer Kevin Bellie to again work his magic on the Circle Theatre stage. Previews begin today at 7300 W. Madison St., Forest Park. The show opens April 7. (708) 771-0700 or circle-theatre.org.CST stages a favoriteSuburban theater veterans Sean Fortunato, Larry Yando, Mike Nussbaum and Marc Grapey are among the actors making up the cast of Chicago Shakespeare Theater's "The Taming of the Shrew." The production marks London director Josie Rourke's return to Navy Pier, where she'll helm the crowd-pleaser about a fortune hunter who intends to marry a firebrand for her dowry. Previews begin Wednesday, April 7, at Navy Pier, 800 E. Grand Ave., Chicago. The show opens April 14. (312) 595-5900 or chicagoshakes.com.bull; Bohemian Theatre Ensemble presents composer Michael John LaChiusa's musical "Hello Again," inspired by Arthur Schnitzler's late 19th century play "La Ronde," in which various characters couple and uncouple during each decade of the 20th century. The show opens Friday, April 2, at Heartland Studio, 7016 N. Glenwood Ave., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or bohotheatre.com.bull; A Chicago newcomer, RoShamBo Theatre Company, makes its debut with three original one-act plays written by artistic director Michael A. Rose and collectively titled, "Attack Ships on Fire." "Likely Targets in a Vacuum," is about two nearly identical women who deal with gunfire through their window. "No Pity" is about a girl who attends a boarding school that requires complete obedience and "Canary in a Mineshaft" is about a couple of absurdists examining their metaphorical history. The plays open Friday, April 2, at Studio BE, 3110 N. Sheffield Ave., Chicago. See roshambotheatre.com for more information.bull; Edna Ferber and George S. Kaufman's 1936 comedy "Stage Door," about aspiring actresses - a cynical veteran, a newcomer who pursues a career over her family's objections and one who has had a hard time following up her initial success - is the next revival by Griffin Theatre Company, an ensemble that's had success with rarely produced classics like "Dead End" and "Time and the Conways." Robin Witt ("Harper Regan," "Not a Game for Boys") directs. Previews begin Saturday, April 3, at the Theatre Building, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show opens April 11. (773) 327-5252 or griffintheatre.com.bull; "And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank," combines videotaped interviews with Holocaust survivors Ed Silverberg and Eva Schloss with recreations of scenes from their lives as part of Holocaust Awareness Month. Performances run Saturday, April 3 through April 7, at the Skokie Theatre. (847) 677-7761 or skokietheatre.com.bull; Victory Gardens Theater's Fresh Squeezed series examining awkward morning-afters continues with "Walk of Shame - Ladies" at 10:30 p.m. Saturday, April 3, at 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.bull; Salsation Theatre examines how technology impacts our lives in its sketch comedy revue, "Ctrl+Alt+Deport," running Saturday, April 3, to May 15 at Donny's Skybox Theatre, 1608 N. Wells St., Chicago (312) 337- 3992, and April 23 to May 28 at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago (773) 598-4549.bull; Gorilla Tango has a couple of new shows opening at 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. "TMI: A Hollywood Love Story," a satire on reality TV, opens Saturday, April 3. "The Legend of Ricky 'The Cat' Casio," about a musician, who supplies people with personal soundtracks, also opens Saturday, April 3. "Chekhov Kegstand," a day in the life of college coeds by way of "Uncle Vanya," opens Monday, April 5. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.bull; Members of a Christian family in World War II Holland risk their lives and freedom to save Jewish families from the Nazis in "The Hiding Place." Provision Theater Company concludes its season with the world premiere of artistic director Tim Gregory's adaptation of Corrie ten Boon's 1971 autobiography. Previews begin Wednesday, April 7, at 1001 W. Roosevelt Road, Chicago. The show opens April 10. (866) 811-4111 or provisiontheater.org.bull; Lookingglass Theatre remounts its riveting production "Hephaestus: A Greek Mythology Circus" at the Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. Creator and star Tony Hernandez has added a seven-person high wire pyramid to the show, which incorporates theater, circus arts and elements of Cirque du Soleil to tell the story of Hephaestus, who was cast from Olympus by Hera and became the god of the forge. Previews begin Wednesday, April 7. The show opens April 15. (312) 443-3800 or lookingglasstheatre.org.bull; "Hello Human Female," an oddball comedy about a virgin and an evil scientist who meet through an online dating service, whose romance is thwarted by her attraction to his henchman, opens Wednesday, April 7, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.combull; Previews begin Thursday, April 8, for Adventure Stage Chicago's Midwest premiere of "The Ghosts of Treasure Island," a musical inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson's adventure tale about a young boy with a treasure map who must battle beasts and villains to obtain the pirate's booty. Eric Schmiedl adapted the novel for the stage. Captain Bogg and Salty composed the music and Amanda Delheimer directs. The show opens April 10 at Vittum Theater, 1012 N. Noble St., Chicago. (773) 342-4141 or adventurestage.org.bull; The long-running "Million Dollar Quartet," the terrific jukebox musical that re-imagines an impromptu 1956 recording session at Sun Studios involving Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley, has been extended through Sept. 5 at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or ticketmaster.com. The Broadway production, featuring the original cast members from the show that opened in Chicago in 2008, is in previews for its April 11 opening.bull; Redmoon Theatre has again extended its critically acclaimed production of "The Cabinet," inspired by the silent film "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and staged in Redmoon's inimitable style. The run continues through April 25, at Redmoon Central, 1463 W. Hubbard St., Chicago. (312) 850-8440, ext. 111 or redmoon.org.