New theater company calls St. Charles home

New company debuts

Actor Factor Theatre Company makes its suburban debut with “The Miracle Worker,” William Gibson's adaptation of Helen Keller's “The Story of My Life.” Actor Factor's inaugural production stars 13-year-old Aurora resident Christina Zaeske as Helen and Carrie Hardin as Annie Sullivan, the woman who opens up Helen's world by teaching her to communicate.

Opens Friday, June 10, at Steel Beam Theatre, 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. (630) 893-8362 or actor-factor-theatre.org.

SC's best in Rosemont

The Second City brings its “best of” sketch comedy revue to the suburbs. The adults-only shows feature classic SC bits as well as more current fare.

9 and 11:30 p.m. Saturday, June 11, at the Montrose Room in the InterContinental Chicago O'Hare, 5300 N. River Road, Rosemont. (847) 544-5300 or montroseroom.com.

Marriott gets in the groove

Marriott Theatre goes retro with a revamped version of “Shout!” a musical salute to the 1960s and the women who made pop music popular. Jeff Award winners and Marriot veterans Tammy Mader and Jessie Mueller are joined by Carey Anderson, Brooke Jacob and Raena White in this groovy show featuring music made famous by Petula Clark, Nancy Sinatra, Lulu and Dusty Springfield. Rachel Rockwell directs the production featuring new arrangements and a dance ensemble.

Previews begin Wednesday, June 15, at 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. The show opens June 24. (847) 634-0200 or marriotttheatre.com.

• Munster, Ind., native Kevin Burke (“Defending the Caveman”) chronicles his journey from standup comedian to Las Vegas headliner in his one-man show, “What Happens in Vegas ...” Burke, who the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino named its 2008 Entertainer of the Year, performs at 8 p.m. Friday, June 10, and Saturday, June 11, at the Theatre at the Center, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, Ind. (219) 836-3255 or theatreatthecenter.com.

• Infamous Commonwealth Theatre continues its season devoted to the theme of sacrifice with “Fifth of July,” the second in Lanford Wilson's Talley Trilogy, about four former 1960s radicals who reunite in the late 1970s to re-examine their lives and relationships. Edward Morgan, former artistic director of Milwaukee Rep, directs the production which opens Saturday, June 11, at the Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. (312) 458-9780 or infamouscommonwealth.org.

• Previews begin Saturday, June 11, for About Face Theatre's world premiere of “The Homosexuals.” Philip Dawkins' coming-of-age play examines the issues facing the gay community through the eyes of Evan, a young gay man and the new friends who impact his life. About Face artistic director Bonnie Metzgar directs the production, which opens June 18 at Victory Gardens Theatre, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 871-3000 or aboutfacetheatre.com.

• American Theatre Company, 10 Star Theatre, LiveWire Chicago Theatre and Stockyards Theatre Project are among seven arts organizations participating in the University of Chicago's summer incubator program to promote the creation of new theater works. Performances begin Saturday, June 11, at the Reynolds Club, 5706 S. University Ave., Chicago. (773) 702-9315.

• The n.u.f.a.n. (No Use For A Name) ensemble presents a combination workshop/theater festival showcasing scenes from unfinished plays. The audience will vote for the scene they like best and the playwright will develop the scene into a full-length play, which n.u.f.a.n. will stage next season. “We're Causing a Scene,” opens at 3 p.m., Sunday, June 12, at the Side Project Theatre, 1439 W. Jarvis Ave., Chicago. Performances continue June 12, 19 and 26. (773) 973-2150 or nufanensemble.com.

• Just Passing By Theatre Company presents “Topdog/Underdog,” Suzan Lori-Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about a pair of sidewalk hustler brothers named Lincoln and Booth, which examines sibling rivalry, the challenge of being black in America and the inevitability of fate. The show runs Sundays, from June 12 to 26, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.

• The Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, presents two, free staged readings of plays by Rohina Malik and Lisa Dillman. Malik's “The Mecca Tales,” about five women preparing for a pilgrimage to Mecca, will be staged at 7 p.m. Monday, June 13. Dillman's “American Wee-Pie,” about a disillusioned textbook editor who discovers a talent for cupcake baking on a trip back home, follows at 7 p.m. June. 20. Reservations are required. (312) 443-3800 or goodmantheatre.org.

• Raven Theatre presents a workshop production of John Weagly's “Tales of the Twinkling Twilight (13 Short Plays and Playlettes)” populated by spacemen, surfers and werewolves looking for love and acceptance. Performances are at 8 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, June 13-15, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. (773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com.

• LeapFest 8, Stage Left Theatre's annual new play showcase, begins Tuesday, June 14, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The event begins with a preview of the five featured plays at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 14, at Cuna, 1113 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. Featured plays include: Randall Colburn's “Blessed Assurance: The Story of Boston Corbett, Slayer of Booth” which suggest Lincoln's assassin may have escaped to Texas and that another man died in the burning barn and Kate Wenner's “Make Sure It's Me” about soldiers returning from Iraq with brain damage sustained from “the concussive force of repeated IEDs.” Also featured is Steve Spencer's “The News All The Time,” a comedy about a top TV reporter facing personal challenges as she's about to make it big and “Anita Chandwaney's “Thirst” (produced in association with Rasaka Theatre Company), about a reporter investigating corruption in an Indian village, whose sister suddenly goes missing. Lastly, there's Rob Smith's “Underneath” about a female cancer survivor, whose cancer returns prompting her to make an unusual request from her husband. For a complete schedule, call (773) 975-8150 or see stagelefttheatre.com.

• Silk Road Theatre Project salutes playwright David Henry Hwang this summer with productions of three Hwang plays running in repertory through Sept. 4. Kicking off the mini-fest is “Yellow Face” an autobiographical satire examining racial identity chronicling the experiences of a character named Hwang who's staging his (fictional) play “Face Value.” Performances begin Tuesday, June 14, at the Historic Chicago Temple Building, 77 W. Washington St., Chicago. (312) 857-1234 or srtp.org.

• Route 66 Theatre Company hosts its annual benefit Milemarkers, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 14, at the Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. The evening includes a live and silent auction, appetizers and entertainment courtesy of Chicago area performers. They will perform tunes by Michael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler — the actors and composer/lyricists who penned the charming family musical “How Can You Run With a Shell on Your Back?” Proceeds benefit Route 66, whose hit show “A Twist of Water” runs through Sunday, June 26, at the Mercury Theater. See route66theatre.org for information on the benefit. Call (773) 325-1700 for “A Twist of Water” tickets.

• The Chicago Park District's annual Theater on the Lake showcase featuring some of the best productions from the 2010-2011 season begins on Wednesday, June 15, and continues through Aug. 7, at Fullerton Avenue and Lake Shore Drive in Chicago. The season opens with The Improvised Shakespeare Company creating a Shakespearean tragedy on the fly. The show runs through Sunday, June 19. (312) 742-4786 or chicagoparkdistrict.com.

• The Neo-Futurists 10th annual staging of the worst-ever films runs Thursdays, from June 16, through Aug. 18, at 5153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. “It Came from the Neo-Futurarium X: Battle for the Neo-Futurarium” begins with 1972's “Night of The Lepus” about genetically enhanced rabbits who terrorize townspeople. (773) 275-5255 or neofuturists.org.

• Chicago Dramatists hosts its annual fundraiser, the Blue Moon Ball from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday, June 16, at Galleria Marchetti, 825 W. Erie St., Chicago. The event celebrates the 25-year tenure of artistic director Russ Tutterow. The gala features dinner, silent auction, dancing to Lynne Jordan and the Shivers. Proceeds benefit Chicago Dramatists' playwright development program and its educational outreach program. (312) 633-0630 or chicagodramatists.org.

• A woman moves to a small town to enjoy its comfort and camaraderie, but finds that bucolic burg underscored by anxiety and a touch of despair in “Middletown” by Will Eno. Les Waters, of the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, directs Steppenwolf Theatre's production featuring ensemble members Alana Arenas, Tim Hopper, Ora Jones, Martha Lavey and Tracy Letts along with guest artists. Previews begin Thursday, June 16, at 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago. The show opens Saturday, June 25. (312) 335-1650 or steppenwolf.org.

• Pride Films and Plays presents a free performance of lesbian literature as part of its Women's Work series. “Dangerous To Ourselves” takes place at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 16, at the Gerber/Hart Library, 1127 W. Granville, Chicago. (773) 250-3117 or pridefilmsandplays.com.

• Northlight Theatre has extended its hit production of “The Outgoing Tide” starring John Mahoney, Rondi Reed and Thomas J. Cox. Performances run through Sunday, June 26, at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie. (847) 673-6300 or northlight.org.

• Broadway in Chicago and Threesixty Entertainment have extended once again the run of “Peter Pan.” Performances of the theatrical spectacle which combines computer visuals, aerial stunts, puppetry and live action run through Sunday, July 31, at the Freedom Center, 650 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago. (888) 772-6949 or broadwayinchicago.com.

• “Cause & Affection,” a sketch show that examines relationships, continues Fridays through June 24, at Donny's Skybox, 1608 N. Wells St., Chicago.

• Dads and grads pay only $10 for a ticket to the improvised musical “Baby Wants Candy” through the end of June. The show runs at 10:30 p.m. Fridays at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or babywantscandy.com.

• UrbanTheater Company (UTC) has extended the deadline for submissions to its “Festival of Cordelias” until Aug. 31. The company seeks Latina and Latino writers to submit sonnets and/or monologues that riff on the character of a Puerto Rican mother of 16 from Jose Rivera's “Sonnets for an Old Century.” The works selected will become part of a new work titled “Festival of Cordelias” to be staged by UTC. Interested writers should contact co-artistic director Marilyn Camacho at marilyncamacho@urbantheaterchicago.org.

• The Chicago Community Trust recently awarded Governors State University a $50,000 grant to bring Chicago productions to the south suburbs. Companies participating in the projects dubbed “One More Night,” are African American ensembles eta Creative Arts Foundation and MPAACT and Silk Road Theatre Project, a company that showcases works by Asian, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean writers. The program also includes pre and post-show seminars and talkbacks. The first season begins the weekend of Nov. 12, with eta's “One More Night,” followed by MPAACT's “Tad in the City” on the weekend of Jan. 21 and Silk Road's “Broadway Sings the Silk Road” at a date to be determined. Call (708) 235-2222 or centertickets.net for more information.