Theater events: Light Opera Works revives 'South Pacific'

Enchanted evening

Sarah Larson stars as cockeyed optimist Nellie Forbush and Larry Adams reprises his role as dashing plantation owner Emile de Becque in Light Opera Works' production of the Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein classic "South Pacific." Director Rudy Hogenmiller and music director Roger L. Bingaman helm the production, which LOW last revived in 2006. Also reprising her role as Bloody Mary from that production is Yvonne Strumecki. Opens at 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15, at Cahn Auditorium, 600 Emerson St., Evanston. $34-$94. (847) 920-5360 or lightoperaworks.org.

Marriott premiere

The creative team responsible for Marriott Theatre's charming "Hero" (composer/lyricist Michael Mahler and writer Aaron Thielen) returns to Lincolnshire with the world premiere of "October Sky," the true story of a coal miner's son that inspired the 1999 Universal Pictures film. Nate Lewellyn plays Homer Hickman, a teen inspired by 1957's Sputnik launch to design and build his own rocket. Jeff Award winner Rachel Rockwell directs. Previews begin at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19, at 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire. The show opens Aug. 26. $50-$55. (847) 634-0200 or marriotttheatre.com.

'Tartuffe' in Naperville

Following a Chicago run, the Organic Theater Company remounts its production of Moliere's "Tartuffe" on the campus of North Central College. Artistic director Alexander Gelman helms the play about the hypocrite Tartuffe, who ingratiates himself into the good graces of a husband and disrupts the entire family. Opens at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 20, at Meiley-Swallow Hall, 31 S. Ellsworth St., Naperville. $20, $30. (630) 637-7469 or organictheater.org.

Strindberg retold

Strawdog Theatre opens its 28th season with "After Miss Julie," Patrick Marber's retelling of August Strindberg's drama, which Marber sets in 1945 England on the night Winston Churchill's Conservative Party suffers its defeat. The action centers around complex, sexually charged negotiations between Julie (Maggie Scranton) and her employee John (John Henry Roberts) regarding master-servant relations while under the watchful eye of John's former fiance, Christine (Anita Deely). Previews begin at 8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 20, at 3829 N. Broadway St., Chicago. The show opens Aug. 24. $28. (866) 811-4111 or strawdog.org.

Other theater events

• First Floor Theater hosts Kafkapalooza, its third annual literary festival showcasing plays by Chicago playwrights including Ike Holter, Brett Neveu, Karen Kressler, Kristiana Colon and others. This year's inspiration is Franz Kafka and his brooding meditations on alienation, brutality and bureaucracy. The festival opens at 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 14, and runs through Saturday, Aug. 22, at Collaboraction's Pentagon Theatre, Flat Iron Arts Building, 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. Tickets cost $15. See firstfloortheater.com.

• Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company hosts its 27th annual Abbie Hoffman Died for Our Sins Theater Festival consisting of three days of nonstop theater beginning Friday, Aug. 14, at Angel Island, 731 W. Sheridan Road, Chicago. Created to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Woodstock Music and Art Festival, the festival showcases more than 40 ensembles performing comedy, drama, stand-up, music and improvisation. They include City Lit Theater, Hobo Junction, Jackalope Theater Company, Mary-Arrchie, Revolution Theatre Company, Whiskey Rebellion and others. The festivities begin at 3 p.m. Friday, Aug. 14, with a rally at Daley Plaza followed by a march to Angel Island where Mary-Arrchie artistic director Richard Cotovsky, as political activist Abbie Hoffman, presides over the opening ceremonies. Tickets are $10 for a one-day pass and $25 for a weekend pass. See maryarrchie.com for a list of performers.

• Previews begin Friday, Aug. 14, for No Stakes Theater Project's revival of "The Rise and Fall of Little Voice," Jim Cartwright's dark comedy about a shy young woman from a small factory town in Northern England who's able to impersonate famous singers. Her relationship with her mother is tested when a talent scout sets her up at a local cabaret. The show opens Monday, Aug. 17, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 975-8150 or theaterwit.org.

• The Hitch*Cocktails host a fundraiser performance at 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 14, at The Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, of their improvised production "Dial M for Money." The event includes a silent auction. Proceeds will help the ensemble take the show to the Out of Bounds Comedy Festival in Austin, Texas. (773) 697-9693 or theannoyance.com.

• Sideshow Theatre presents an excerpt from its current show "Stupid (expletive) Bird" and Kokandy Productions presents an excerpt from its show "Loving Repeating" at noon Friday, Aug. 14, as part of the League of Chicago Theatre's 45-minute summer showcase at the Water Works Building at 163 E. Pearson Ave., Chicago. Performances are free. See chicagoplays.com.

• Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, presents "The Road Ahead" about young adults struggling with "the real world." It runs at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 15-16. Also at Gorilla Tango, the adults-only "Ghostbusty: A Ghostbusters Burlesque" opens at 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15. Huggable Riot's sketch revue "Emotional Baggage Check" opens Wednesday, Aug. 19. "Turn That Thing Around: A Manic Narrator's Longest Ride," an autobiographical play by Aaron Harris, opens Thursday, Aug. 20. (773) 598-4549 or gorillatango.com.

• BoHo, The Factory, Lifeline, The Side Project and Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre - all of them located in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood - team up again to offer a flexible subscription pass that allows theatergoers to see a variety of productions from Sept. 1 through Aug. 31, 2016. The $50, five-show pass is good for one adult or one kids show anytime during the upcoming season at any of the participating theater companies: Boho, at Heartland Studio, 7016 N. Glenwood Ave.; The Factory, 16223 W. Howard St.; Lifeline, 6912 N. Glenwood Ave.; Side Project, 1439 W. Jarvis Ave.: Theo Ubique, at No Exit Cafe, 6970 N. Glenwood Ave. A $45 discounted flex pass is available Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 15-16, at Lifeline Theatre, 6912 N. Glenwood Ave., Chicago. (773) 761-4477, ext. 701, or glenwoodave.org.

• Porchlight Music Theatre launches its 21st season with a concert titled Chicago Sings the Best of Motown at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 17, at City Winery, 1200 W. Randolph St., Chicago. Artistic associates Rob Lindley and Doug Peck welcome E. Faye Butler, Felicia P. Fields, Rebecca Finnegan, Bethany Thomas, James Earl Jones II, Adrian Aguilar, Marya Grandy and others. Proceeds benefit Porchlight Music Theatre. Tickets are $60 and are available at the City Winery box office, (312) 733-9463 or citywinery.com.

• Barrel of Monkeys presents "That's Weird, Grandma: Back to School" edition made up of stories conceived and written by Chicago public school students and adapted for the stage by Barrel of Monkeys ensemble members. It begins at 8 p.m. Monday, Aug. 17, at 5153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. (312) 409-1954 or barrelofmonkeys.org.

• "Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story on Stage" returns to Chicago for a brief run beginning Tuesday, Aug. 18. The national tour of the show, adapted from the hit film starring Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze, runs through Aug. 30, at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St., Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.

• Previews begin Tuesday, Aug. 18, for TimeLine Theatre's revival of Arthur Miller's "The Price," about estranged brothers meeting to sort through and dispose of their later father's belongings. The show, which stars Mike Nussbaum and is directed by Louis Contey, opens Aug. 27, at 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. (773) 281-8463 or timelinetheatre.com.

• A woman reveals under interrogation, she experienced erotic violence at the hands of a former lover forcing her to examine her attraction to cruelty in Harold Pinter's "Ashes to Ashes." The Citizens' Relief revival opens Thursday, Aug. 20, at Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art, 756 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. (312) 243-9088 or art.org.

• The innocents become aggressors and the aggressors become victims in Joan Schenkar's "The Universal Wolf," a menacing, unpredictable revision of the "Little Red Riding Hood" fairy tale. Trap Door Theatre's production opens Thursday, Aug. 20, at 1655 W. Cortland St., Chicago. (773) 384-0494 or trapdoortheatre.com.

• The Neo-Futurists perform their signature show, "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind," consisting of 30 plays in 60 minutes at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Aug. 20-21, at Harrison Park, 1824 S. Wood St., Chicago, as part of the city's Night Out in the Parks program. Admission is free. See chicagoparkdistrict.com.

• The Side Project has extended its world premiere of Robert Tenges' "Whatever," about teenagers navigating love, anger and young adulthood. Performances continue through Aug. 23 at 1439 W. Jarvis St., Chicago. (773) 340-0140 or thesideproject.net.

• Former Apple Tree Theatre production manager Tim Stadler announced Northwestern University will be the home to the Apple Tree Theatre collection. Founded by late Northwestern University alumna Eileen Boevers in 1983, Apple Tree Theatre, which called Highland Park home, closed in 2009. The collection includes papers, photographs, media and other documents from the company. Donors who want to submit items to the collection can contact Kevin Leonard at archives@northwestern.edu. The collection will be housed alongside collections from other companies founded by Northwestern alums, including Next and Piven theaters.

• Steppenwolf Theatre Company, 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago, has introduced a simpler way to purchase group tickets. Every person in a group of 10 or more people receives a unique code that he or she can use for purchasing tickets on the show date. (312) 932-2422 or steppenwolf.org.

• Jessica Rae Olsen and Adam "Roz" Rosowicz have taken the artistic reigns at New Millennium Theatre Company. Alex B. Reynolds joins them as managing director.

• Provision Theatre announced its 2015-2016 season - dubbed "A Season of Forgiveness" - beginning Sept. 9 with previews for the world premiere of "Heaven, How I Got Here." Based on the book by Colin S. Smith and adapted and directed by Provision founder Timothy Gregory, the play is about the thief who died on the cross a few feet away from Jesus, who looks back from heaven on the day that changed his afterlife. That's followed by "Tuesdays With Morrie" (Feb. 10-March 20, 2016), based on Mitch Albom's autobiographical tale of his weekly visits with his former college professor - played by Jeff Award winner Bradley Armacost - who is battling Lou Gehrig's disease. The main stage season concludes April 27, 2016, with the world premiere of Mark St. Germain's "Best of Enemies" starring Tony Award nominee Felicia P. Fields in the true story of civil rights activist Ann Atwater, who develops a relationship with C.P. Ellis, a Ku Klux Klan leader, during the 1970s. Performances take place at 1001 Roosevelt Road, Chicago. Season subscriptions are $75 for the three main stage shows, $80 for the three shows plus the young audiences production of "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." (312) 455-0066 or provisiontheater.org.

• Silk Road Rising inaugurated its 2015-2016 season with its current production of Puja Mohindra's "A Great Dive," continuing through Aug. 16. That's followed by "Yellow Dress" (Oct. 1-4), a show written and performed by Marissa Lichwick about her experiences as a Korean adoptee growing up in a large family in upstate New York. "My American Cousin" (Nov. 19-22) is writer/actress Jameeleh Shelo's one-woman show about how she, as an Arab-American Muslim woman, has navigated challenges ranging from arranged marriages to the fallout from the attacks of Sept. 11. Writer/performer Ronnie Malley performs his show "Ziryab, The Songbird of Andalusia" about Ziryab, the 9th-century slave turned influential musician. The season concludes with Silk Road's world premiere of "Mosque Alert" (March 24-May 1, 2016). Written by founding artistic director Jamil Khoury and inspired by the so-called "ground zero Mosque" controversy in New York City, it centers on three fictional families living in Naperville whose lives are affected by the proposed center. Performances take place at the Historic Chicago Temple Building, 77 W. Washington St., Chicago. Flexible season subscriptions are available for $95 for five plays and allow patrons to choose the show dates. They're available online at silkroadrising.org.

• The New Colony announced its 20th season will begin Jan. 8, 2016, with the world premiere of "Byhalia, Mississippi." Written by co-artistic director Evan Linder and directed by Tyrone Phillips, this co-production with Definition Theatre Company is about a "proud white trash" couple whose first baby is African-American. The result of an affair wife Laurel had the previous year, the baby sparks turmoil in the small Southern town. Another world premiere begins previews April 8, 2016. Chelsea Marcantel's "Even Longer and Farther Away" is set in a tiny Appalachian town where the keeper of local lore - who is dying - sends out a messenger to bring her ever-youthful sister home. The season concludes with William Glick's "Kin Folk" (July-Aug. 14, 2016) about a recently orphaned girl whose revelation to her family that she is a dragon forces her to choose between her family and her new community. Performances take place at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. Tickets will go on sale at a later date. See thenewcolony.org. Additionally The New Colony announced Monica M. Brown, Sarah Collogne and Chris Fowler have joined the ensemble.