Local theater: ‘Dracula’ as radio play
Radio drama
In a nod to the season, Improv Playhouse will perform Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” as a radio play directed by executive producer David Stuart from a 1938 script by Orson Welles for the Mercury Theatre. Michael Scott Blackman plays the count while Stuart takes on the role of Van Helsing in the production, which incorporates performed and recorded sound effects.
7:30 and 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, at 735 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. (847) 968-4529 or improvplayhouse.com.
No chills
There’s nothing scary about comedian Tim Walkoe, a veteran Las Vegas performer and grand prize winner of ABC’s “America’s Funniest People.” He headlines Zanies this Halloween weekend.
8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 28-29, at Pheasant Run Resort, 4051 E. Main St., St. Charles. (630) 584-6342 or zanies.com.
‘Amazing’ in Aurora
The Paramount Theatre’s inaugural Broadway series continues with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bible-inspired musical, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” West suburban native and Northwestern University senior Brian Bohr stars as the titular favorite son sold into slavery by his brothers. He goes on to win the favor of the Pharaoh played by Vasily Deris. Stacey Flaster directs.
Previews begin Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 23 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora. The show opens Friday, Nov. 4. (630) 896-6666 or paramountaurora.com.
Ÿ Long known for its singular street spectacles, Redmoon Theatre hosts a free, adults-only Halloween bash from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday, Oct. 28, at Redmoon Central, 1463 W. Hubbard St., Chicago. The costume-optional event is for ages 21 and older and includes unique Redmoon creations and a DJ. (312) 850-8440, ext. 100, or redmoon.org.
Ÿ Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, presents its latest burlesque parody, “Temple of the Boobs: An Indiana Jones Burlesque,” running Fridays, through Dec. 16 at the theater, (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.
Ÿ Speaking of seasonal events, Raven Theatre hosts a free, family festival from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, at the theater at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. The family-friendly “Boo Haha!” includes bounce houses, games, trick-or-treating, face painting and a costume parade. (773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com.
Ÿ Mary Shelley’s cautionary horror tale of scientist Victor Frankenstein, who creates a life only to abandon it and then pays dearly for his folly, inspires Inconceivable Theatre’s adaptation of “Frankenstein.” The company performs the play at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, at Grace Episcopal Church, 924 Lake St., Oak Park; 7:30 p.m. Sunday Oct. 30, at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago (773) 935-6100; and 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 31, at Illinois Theatre, Center, 371 Artist’s Walk, Park Forest (708) 481-3510 or inconceivabletheatre.org.
Ÿ Natalie Kossar and Homer Marrs play original tunes like “The Vampire Alphabet” and “Zombie Jamboree” as part of their Halloween-inspired “Tunes of Terror” at 8 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 30, at the Annoyance Theatre, 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 561-4665 or theannoyance.com.
Ÿ Lookingglass Theatre hosts a free panel discussion in conjunction with its current production, “The Great Fire,” beginning at 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 30, at the theater at the Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago. Panelists Andy O’Donnell, Ken Little and representatives from the Chicago Fire Museum discuss “The Great Chicago Fire and the CFD Today.” (312) 337-0665 or lookingglasstheatre.org.
Ÿ The Side Project presents a repertory series feature two world premiere plays along with Brett Neveu’s “twentyone.” The series begins Tuesday, Nov. 1, with Louis Cancelmi’s “Through the Middle Ground” about an American soldier returning home after a tour of duty in Iraq. Neveu’s “twentyone,” about five people who find themselves doing a little self-reflecting and soul-searching during spring break in Mexico, opens Monday, Nov. 7. Iraq War veteran Mike Nowacki’s one-man show about his military training, “An Interrogation Primer,” opens on Friday, Nov. 11. Performances take place at the Side Project’s theater at 1439 W. Jarvis Ave., Chicago. For a schedule and tickets, see thesideproject.net.
Ÿ Sketch comedy, music, magic and famous figures from history who come together for a “time warp talk” comprise the American Demigods’s “Magnificent Old Tyme Variety Hour.” The vaudeville-inspired show runs at 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays from Wednesday, Nov. 2, to Wednesday, Nov. 30, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.
Ÿ Steppenwolf Theatre’s 7th annual First Look Repertory of New Work, showcasing in-development productions in repertory, continues with a free readying of “fml: or how Carson McCullers saved by life” by Sarah Gubbins. The story centers around a young gay teenage girl in LaGrange, IL, who’s assigned to read “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter” and identifies with the central character of John Singer, the misunderstood outsider. The reading is at 3 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3, at the Steppenwolf Upstairs Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago. A reading of Philip Dawkins’ “Miss Marx: Or the Involuntary Side Effect of Living” about a sexy revolutionary in Victorian England who happens to be Karl Marx’s daughter, follows at 3 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 4. Finally, a reading of Marisa Wegrzyn’s “Mud Blue Sky,” about a couple of middle-aged flight attendants on a layover in a downscale motel near O’Hare International Airport, takes place at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 5. steppenwolf.org or (312) 335-1650.
Ÿ “Love Sucks,” which follows six philanderers through a 48-hour journey through the bars of New York’s Lower East Side, opens on Thursday, Nov. 3, at Hydrate, 3458 N. Halsted St., Chicago. The comedy, directed by John Nasca, marks the first staged production from Pride Films and Plays. (800) 838-3006, (773) 250-3117 or pridefilmsandplays.com.
Ÿ Writers’ Theatre has extended its production of “The Real Thing,” Tom Stoppard’s drama about a middle-aged playwright whose personal and romantic lives are upended by infidelity. Performances continue through Sunday, Nov. 27, at 325 Tudor Court, Glencoe. (847) 242-6000 or writerstheatre.org.
Ÿ American Theater Company has extended its production of “The Amish Project,” about the 2006 murders of five Amish girls in a Pennsylvania schoolhouse by a disturbed 31-year-old man. Performances continue through Sunday, Oct. 30, at 1909 W. Byron St., Chicago. (773) 409-4125 or atcweb.org.
Ÿ “Sizzle: A Global Warming Comedy” adapted by New Suit Theatre from a Randy Olson’s documentary/mockumentary continues through Sunday, Nov. 13, at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. The comedy follows scientist turned filmmaker Olson who’s determined to make a film that will end global warming, except that things don’t go as planned. See newsuittheatre.com for more information.
Ÿ A talent agent exploits the son of his former partner in the new rock musical “Eye Inside: The Rock-N-Roll Allegory of Vance Barrett,” which runs through Saturday, Nov. 5, at the Viaduct Theatre, 3111 N. Western Ave., Chicago. The multimedia show is the product of the Texas-based Biophiliac Collective. (773) 269-2064 or viaducttheatre.com.
Ÿ Shadow and the Wall Productions presents the original thriller “Between the Shadow and the Wall,” written and directed by Jaimie-Lee Wise. The play is about a scientist staying in a rundown hotel inhabited by an array of scary guests on Halloween night. Performances run through Sunday, Nov. 13, at the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6860 or shadowandthewall.com.
Ÿ Goodman Theatre veteran and Chicago actress Sandra Delgado (“El Nogalar,” “Massacre,” “Mariela in the Desert”) has been named a 2011 Fox Foundation Resident Actor Fellow. The $15,000 fellowship is accompanied by a year’s worth of international study and training for her new work “para mis Madres.” Before that, Delgado will appear in “Chicago Boys” at Goodman through Sunday, Nov. 6, and will appear in Goodman’s “A Christmas Carol” from Friday, Nov. 18, to Saturday, Dec. 31.
Ÿ Composer/lyricists Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who penned the music for “A Christmas Story, The Musical!” have received 2011 Songwriter’s Fellowship Award established by Ann Hampton Callaway to recognizers songwriters. The musical plays the Chicago Theatre from Wednesday, Dec. 14, to Friday, Dec. 30, as part of its holiday tour. See christmasstorythemusical.com for more information.
— Barbara Vitello