Theater events: A 'Dinner Party' and a 'Dreamcoat'

Mystery ‘Dinner'

Five strangers are invited to a fancy Paris soiree by a mysterious and possibly threatening host in Neil Simon's comedy, “The Dinner Party.” Derek Bertelsen directs BrightSide Theatre's production at North Central College's Meiley-Swallow Hall. Audience members who donate nonperishable food items or make a monetary donation to Loaves and Fishes, a Naperville food pantry, will receive a raffle ticket for the chance to win a pair of tickets to the BrightSide's final production, “My Way: A Tribute to Frank Sinatra.” Opens Friday, March 2, at 31 S. Ellsworth, Naperville. $22, $18. (630) 637-7469 or brightsidetheatre.com.

‘New World' tunes

Theatre Nebula presents “Songs for a New World,” a pop/rock revue by Jason Robert Brown (music and lyrics) about a group of disparate people facing life-changing events. Opens Friday, March 2, at Cutting Hall Performing Arts Center, 150 E. Wood St., Palatine. $20, $17. (847) 202-5222 or theatrenebula.org.

New comedy

Spouses and business partners Steve and Cheryl have a company they care about and a marriage they can't stand. Cheryl's attempts to “take care of” her husband wreak havoc on everyone in the office except the intended victim in the new comedy “10 Ways to Kill Your Husband,” by Metropolis Performing Arts Centre resident playwright Scott Woldman. Buffalo Grove resident Lauren Rawitz directs the world premiere. Begins previews Thursday, March 8, at 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. Opens March 11. $27-$43. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com.

What's new

• Previews continue through Saturday, March 3, for redtwist theatre's Chicago-area premiere of “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later.” The epilogue to Tectonic Theater Project's 2000 play chronicling the murder of gay University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard in Laramie Wyoming. This follow-up, directed by Greg Kolack, grew out of interviews with some of the same Laramie residents featured in the original play. It opens Sunday March 4, at 1044 W. Bryn Mawr, Chicago. (773) 728-7529 or redtwist.org.

• Brian Bohr, who starred as Joseph in Paramount Theatre's “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” reprises the role for Marriott Theatre for Young Audiences' family-friendly production, opening Saturday, March 3, at 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. Matt Raftery directs. (837) 634-0200 or marriotttheatre.com.

• Spanish director Calixto Bieito directs Goodman Theatre's revival of Tennessee Williams' rarely performed “Camino Real.” Broadway's Andre De Shields, Remy Bumppo's David Darlow, Barbara Robertson and Matt De Caro are among the 13-member cast in this fantastical drama, populated by such literary and historical figures as Lord Byron, Esmeralda and Casanova, about the residents of a corrupt and indifferent, dead-end town. Previews begin Saturday March 3, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. The show opens March 12. (312) 443-3800 or goodmantheatre.org.

• Saturday, March 3, marks the return of the Waltzing Mechanics' “El Stories” to the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The show consists of the 12-member ensemble recreating memorable public transportation encounters they've collected from actual CTA commuters. The stories and cast members will rotate every three months. Performances are at 11 p.m. Saturdays. (773) 404-7336 or waltzingmechanics.org or greenhousetheater.org.

#8226; Writer/actor Carrie Bain brings her oddball, alter-ego Mrs. O to Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, to star in #8220;Mrs. O's Drinking Fundamentals,#8221; an adults-only show that opens at 11:59 p.m. Saturday, March 3, and runs through April 21. Also at Gorilla Tango, #8220;Ron Paul: The Musical,#8221; about GOP presidential candidate Congressman Ron Paul. The show opens Monday, March 5. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.

#8226; Playwright Tony Meneses, author of #8220;Las Hermanas Padilla,#8221; which opened recently at the Storefront Theater, 66 E. Randolph St., Chicago, will participate in a post-show discussion on Saturday, March 3. The Chicago Fusion Theatre production runs through April 1. (312) 742-8497 or chicagofusiontheatre.org.

#8226; Trap Door Theatre hosts a benefit performance of its show #8220;Me Too, I Am Catherine Deneuve,#8221; at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 4, at 1655 W. Cortland Ave., Chicago. The $10 donation will help offset the expenses of the ensemble's five-week tour of France. (773) 384-0494 or trapdoortheatre.com.

#8226; The Annoyance Theatre, 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago, remounts its show, #8220;Escape From Ground Zero,#8221; about the efforts of Michael Jackson, Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor to escape New York City after the attacks of September 11. Previews begin, Sunday, March 4. The show opens March 11. Also at the Annoyance, the original showbiz musical, #8220;Broads on Boards,#8221; about a couple of stage divas who reunite for a final trip down memory lane. The show opens Wednesday, March 8. (773) 561-4665 or theannoyance.com.

#8226; The Scooty JoJo show present a concert reading of their show #8220;Rosemary Clooney's Baby#8221; a re-imagining of the film #8220;Rosemary's Baby#8221; set to Rosemary Clooney tunes, at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 4, at Mary's Attic, 5400 N. Clark St., Chicago. The performance is a benefit for the Scooty JoJo Show. See scootyjojo.com for more information.

#8226; A Red Orchid Theatre presents the Chicago area premiere of Mike Daisey's #8220;The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs,#8221; which the author has made available for free as a download from his website. Ensemble member Lance Baker performs the monologue at 8 p.m. Monday, March 5, at 1531 N. Wells St., Chicago. (312) 943-8722 or aredorchidtheatre.org.

#8226; E. Faye Butler, Hollis Resnik, Heidi Kettenring Alene Robertson, Michael Lindner Mary Ernster and Johanna McKenzie Miller are among the Chicago-area musical theater standouts performing in a concert to benefit the Sarah Siddons Society scholarship fund. The concert is at 8 p.m. Monday, March 5, at the Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. Tickets are $50. (800) 838-3006 or marriotttheatre.com.

#8226; Broadway in Chicago brings #8220;Bring It On: The Musical#8221; to the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St., Chicago, for a brief run beginning Tuesday, March 6. Set in the world of competitive cheerleading, the show features a book from Jeff Whitty (#8220;Avenue Q#8221;) and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda (#8220;In The Heights#8221;). (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.

#8226; Metropolis Performing Arts Centre teams up with F.A.M.E. (Foundation of Artists Mentored in Entertainment) for a fundraiser from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, March 8, at Rockit Bar Grill, 22 W. Hubbard St., Chicago. Proceeds from the fundraiser will benefit the Metropolis School for the Performing Arts in Arlington Heights. Tickets are $100 and include entertainment, appetizers and beverages. They're available online at fame-chicago.org.

#8226; Rivendell Theatre Ensemble opens its 16th season, the first in its new, permanent performance space at 5779 N. Ridge Road, Chicago, with #8220;Falling: A Wake,#8221; by Gary Kirkham. Inspired by the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland #8212; which claimed the life of the playwright's best friend #8212; #8220;Falling: A Wake#8221; examines how people reconcile grief and move on. Previews begin Wednesday, March 8. The show opens March 11. (773) 334-7728 or rivendelltheatre.org.

#8226; The Neo-Futurists present a mashup of two of literatures most familiar tales in their latest production, #8220;The Strange and Terrible True Tale of Pinocchio (the Wooden Boy) As Told By Frankenstein's Monster (the Wretched Creature).#8221; Written and directed by the company's founding director Greg Allen, the darkly comic show is exactly as its title describes, an examination of Carlo Collodi's 19th century tale through the eyes of Mary Shelley's nameless Monster, to address issues of love, betrayal and fatherhood. Previews begin Thursday, March 8, at 5153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. The show opens March 10. (773) 275-5255 or neofuturists.org.

#8226; Profiles Theatre has extended its Midwest premiere of #8220;Bachelorette,#8221; Leslye Headland's comedy about three high school friends who get together for a former classmate's less-than-perfect bachelorette party. Performances continue through April 29, at 4147 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 549-1815 or profilestheatre.org.

#8226; The musical that keeps on going, #8220;Million Dollar Quartet,#8221; has been extended again. The show, now in its fourth year, will run through Sept. 2, at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or milliondollarquartetlive.com.

#8226; Griffin Theatre has extended its American premiere of Simon Stephens' examination of adolescent life, #8220;Punk Rock.#8221; The show runs through March 11 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 975-8150 or griffintheatre.com.

#8226; Gorilla Tango Theatre, has announced that it will take over ownership and operation of the Skokie Theater, 7924 Lincoln Ave., Skokie, beginning in April. In a prepared statement, Gorilla Tango owner Dan Abbatte called the Skokie Theatre a #8220;beautiful venue in a great area#8221; and said GTT will run the theater similar to the group's Chicago venue. Expect irreverent, satirical comedy and musical productions mostly geared toward adults, but with some family-friendly programming. For more information, contact Kelly Williams at kelly@gorillatango.com.

#8226; Visa problems have forced the cancellation of the Peruvian Theater Company's production of #8220;Antigona (Antigone),#8221; scheduled to run March 8 to 10, at the Claudia Cassidy Theater in the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St., Chicago.