'Frankie and Johnny' returns to Glen Ellyn
"Frankie and Johnny" back at BTEAmelia Barrett and Bryan Burke play the wary, wounded waitress and the determined short-order cook who loves her in Buffalo Theatre Ensemble's revival of Terrance McNally's "Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune," a nocturne to middle-aged romance. Connie Canaday Howard directs the BTE hit. Opens Friday, July 9, at the McAninch Arts Center, College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn. (630) 942-4000 or atthemac.org.Robin of Lisle Theatre-Hikes begins its season at the Morton Arboretum with "Robin Hood," the tale of a disgraced noble and his loyal band who try to prevent Prince John and the Sheriff of Nottingham from stealing King Richard's crown. Performances run Saturdays and Sundays, July 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25 and 31 at 4100 Illinois Route 53, Lisle. (630) 725-2066 or mortonarb.org.Staged readingMembers of the Janus Theatre Company participate in a free staged reading of "On My Boyfriends' Bicycles," a new play by Nina Wright this weekend. The play centers around a divorced woman who always rides away from relationships. 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 9 and Saturday, July 10, at the Elgin Art Showcase, 164 W. Division St., Elgin.What's newbull; "The Wonder Bread Years," Pat Hazell's reflections of his Baby Boomer childhood, returns to Noble Fool this weekend. Performances run Friday, July 9, to Sunday, July 11, at the Pheasant Run Resort, 4051 E. Main St., St. Charles. (630) 584-6342 or noblefool.org. bull; An upper-crust divorc#233;e's plans to marry a stuffed shirt are foiled by her ex-husband and a pair of news reporters in Philip Barry's classic comedy "The Philadelphia Story." Circle Theatre's revival begins previews on Friday, July 9, at 7300 W. Madison St., Forest Park. The show opens Wednesday, July 14. (708) 771-0700 or circle-theatre.org. bull; Victory Gardens Theater concludes its season with the world premiere of Joel Drake Johnson's "A Guide for the Perplexed," about a recently released convict who goes to stay with his sister, her husband and their teenage son. Steppenwolf Theatre's Kevin Anderson and Francis Guinan star in the dramedy directed by Associate Artistic Director Sandy Shinner. Previews begin Friday, July 9, at 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The show opens July 19. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.bull; Canadian playwright George F. Walker's "Escape From Happiness," a dark comedy about a dysfunctional family, concludes Infamous Commonwealth Theatre's season-long examination of redemption. The preview is Friday, July 9, at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. The show, directed by ICT founder Genevieve Thompson, opens Saturday, July 10. (312) 458-9780 or infamouscommonwealth.org.bull; Previews begin Friday, July 9, for Factory Theater's original comedy, "The League of Awesome" by Corri Feuerstein and Sara Sevigny, about superheros whose plan to trap an evil villain in a Hardy Boys book backfires. The show opens July 16 at Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston Ave., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or thefactorytheater.com.bull; "Shrek the Musical," the show inspired by the hit DreamWorks film, begins its national tour at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St. Chicago. Carol Stream native Eric Petersen stars as the titular ogre in the production which begins previews Tuesday, July 13. The show opens July 25. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.bull; A former porn star changes her name and embarks upon a new life with her youth minister fiancee until it's disrupted by a former colleague in "Hesperia," the second of a dramatic trilogy examining sexuality and the self by Chicago playwright Randall Colburn. The Right Brain Project presents the world premiere, featuring music by Jeff Award-winning composer Trevor Patrick Watkin. The preview is Wednesday, July 14, at the Rorschach Theatre, 4001 N. Ravenswood Ave., Chicago. The show opens Thursday, July 15. (773) 750-2033 or tickets@therbp.org. bull; Strawdog Theatre Company reprises its production of "Red Noses," Peter Barnes' dark comedy about a priest who uses laughter to bolster dispirited Europeans suffering through the Black Plague as part of the Chicago Park District's Theater on the Lake. The show opens Wednesday, July 14, and runs through July 18 at the theater at Fullerton Avenue and Lake Shore Drive in Chicago. (312) 742-7994 or chicagoparkdistrict.com. bull; The King of Navarre and his noblemen pick an inopportune time to devote themselves to scholarship, just as the Princess of France and her ladies-in-waiting arrive for a visit in Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost," the latest from the Oak Park Festival Theatre. Previews begin Thursday, July 15, at Austin Gardens Park, 150 N. Forest Ave., Oak Park. Artistic director Jack Hickey directs the production which opens July 19. (708) 445-4440 or oakparkfestival.com. bull; Marriott Theatre For Young Audiences presents Marc Robin's musical version of "Pinocchio," directed and choreographed by Rachel Rockwell. Performances begin Thursday, July 15, at 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. (847) 634-5909 or marriotttheatre.com. bull; Newcomer Two Pence Shakespeare opens "The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet" on July 22, at the Evanston Arts Depot, 600 Main St., Evanston. Previews begin Thursday, July 15, for director Tom Wells' version which is set in Italy between the two world wars. (312) 488-1128 or twopenceshakespeare.org.bull; Les Enfants Terribles' "Prom Night," an interactive theatrical production combining clowning, improvisation and physical theater, begins previews on Thursday, July 15, at Red Tape Theatre, 621 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show opens July 19. See redtapetheatre.org for information.bull; Northwestern University's American Music Theatre Project, founded in 2005 as an incubator for new musicals, presents "Not Wanted on the Voyage," a show by Neil Bartram and Brian Hill about a family caught up in the Great Flood. Performances begin Thursday, July 15, at the Ethel M. Barber Theater, 30 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston. (847) 491-7282 or notwantedonthevoyage.com. bull; Previews begin Thursday, July 15, for About Face Theatre's world premiere, "Queertopia: The Anti-Violence Project" by Paula Gilovich and the About Face Youth Theatre Ensemble, that examines violence within and against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people through a series of interconnected stories about the struggle with sexuality and the battle against prejudice. The show opens July 17 at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., Chicago. bull; GayCo Productions hosts a variety show benefit on Thursday, July 15, at the Annoyance Theatre, 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago. Entertainment includes standup comedians, short films and sketch comedy. Admission is $15. See gayco.com for information.bull; Gift Theatre has extended its critically acclaimed world premiere of "Suicide, Incorporated," Andrew Hinderaker's dark comedy about a company that encourages despondent people to take their own lives. The show, starring Gift artistic director Michael Patrick Thornton, runs through Sept. 12, at 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 283-7071 or thegifttheatre.org.bull; Drury Lane Oakbrook Theatre hosts Thursday specials in July during the run of its production of "Sugar," a musical inspired by the Billy Wilder film, "Some Like it Hot." The $100 four-pack includes four tickets to an 8 p.m. Thursday performance, dinner for four before the show, gift cards to Bianca Rose boutique and discount coupons to a boutique and a spa. (630) 530-0111 or drurylaneoakbrook.com.bull; "Fuerza Bruta: Look Up," the performance art/theater piece notable for its inclusion of female dancers frolicking in a translucent pool suspended above the audience, closes Sunday, July 11, at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress Parkway, Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.bull; The sex comedy "We All Die Alone," about senior ladies vying for the affections of the nursing home's youngest geriatric gentleman, runs through July 17 at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.bull; Chicago favorites Jacqueline Williams and Larry Yando are among nine actors honored as 2010 Lunt-Fontanne fellows during a week-long master class this week in Genesee Depot, Wisc.