Theater events: One-hour Shakespeare returns to Clockwise

GayCo in the 'burbs

GayCo, a comedy ensemble whose work centers on gay and lesbian themes, brings its "50 States of Gay" revue to the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre as part of its comedy series. A tribute to gay marriage, the adults-only show includes sketches, standup, puppetry and interpretive dance. 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 8, at 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. $25. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com.

Speedy Shakespeare

Actor, author and scholar Tim Mooney returns to Clockwise Theatre in Waukegan to perform his signature Shakespeare-inspired, one-man, one-hour shows. They include "Breakneck Hamlet," which premiered at Clockwise last May, and "Shakespeare's Histories: Ten Epic Plays at a Breakneck Pace," where Mooney recounts the Bard's version of British royal history. He also performs "Shakespeare on Demand," in which he puts a comic spin on monologues suggested by the audience. Program A ("Breakneck Hamlet" and "Shakespeare on Demand") runs Jan. 8, 16 and 24. Program B ("Shakespeare's Histories" and "Shakespeare on Demand") runs Jan. 9, 17 and 22. Program C ("Shakespeare's Histories and "Breakneck Hamlet") runs Jan. 10, 15 and 23. Opens at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 8, at 221 N. Genesee St., Waukegan. $25. (847) 775-1500 or clockwisetheatre.org.

'Mutt' in the Midwest

Stage Left and Red Tape theaters collaborate for the Midwest premiere of "Mutt," Christopher Chen's satirical examination of politics and race. It's about a "mixed race" war hero and Republican presidential candidate who is more than his supporters assume. Vanessa Stalling, former Redmoon associate artistic director, directs. Previews begin at 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 9, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show opens Jan. 13. $20-$30. (773) 975-8150 or theaterwit.org, stagelefttheatre.com or redtapetheatre.org.

Other theater events

• City Lit Theatre premieres Paul Edwards' adaptation of Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner's 1873 satirical novel "The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today" about greed and corruption in post-Civil War America. Edwards' adaptation includes only the chapters Twain wrote (the collaborators alternated chapters, with Twain writing the main story and Warner writing the secondary tale). The story centers on Laura Hawkins, the daughter of a wealthy Tennessee family who travels to Washington, D.C., to con congressmen into buying her family's land. Previews begin Friday, Jan. 8, at 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Chicago. The show, directed by Adam Goldstein, opens Jan. 17. (773) 293-3682 or citylit.org.

• Previews begin Friday, Jan. 8, for The New Colony's world premiere of co-artistic director Evan Linder's racially charged domestic drama "Byhalia, Mississippi." Produced in association with Definition Theatre Company, the production is part of a "world premiere conversation" in which productions of the show open simultaneously in Chicago, Memphis and Charleston, South Carolina, the same weekend. Staged readings in other cities in the U.S. and Canada will follow. The play tells the story of self-described "proud white trash" Jim and Laurel who are expecting their first child. Turmoil ensues after the birth of the baby, who is black, the result of Laurel's affair a year earlier. The show, directed by Definition founding artistic director Tyrone Phillips, opens Jan. 11 at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. See thenewcolony.org.

• "Baby Wine," an adults-only show featuring a cast of all-gay improvisers, opens at 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 8, at The Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. Also at The Annoyance, previews begin Friday, Jan. 8, for the new musical "Pony Boy." Inspired by "The Music Man" and "Equus," it tells the story of Bud Sport, a con man with a heart of gold who heads to Ohio with fake "therapy ponies" after his latest scam goes bust. There he falls in love with the conservative mayor's anxiety-ridden, shut-in daughter. Written and directed by Andy Eninger, the show opens Jan. 15. "A Lill Annoyance Stand-Up Show," a one-hour comedy showcase hosted by Lilly Allison, runs at 9:15 p.m. Saturdays beginning Jan. 9. It is immediately followed by Annoyance Open Mic at 10:30 p.m. (773) 697-9693 or theannoyance.com.

• Griffin Theatre continues its 27th season with the Midwest premiere of the rarely produced romantic drama "London Wall." A glimpse into the lives and loves of a group of shorthand typists in 1930s London by John Van Druten, the play was lauded for its realistic depiction of office life and for focusing on women's dreams and desires. Previews begin Saturday, Jan. 9, at the Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. The show, directed by ensemble member and Joseph Jefferson Award-winner Robin Witt, opens Jan. 17. (866) 811-4111 or griffintheatre.com.

• "Freedom Train," the story of 25-year-old Harriet Tubman's escape from a Maryland plantation on the Underground Railroad and how she helped hundreds of slaves achieve their freedom, is the next production from Theatre at the Center's Theatre for Young Audiences. Performances begin Monday, Jan. 11, at 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, Indiana. (219) 836-3255 or (800) 511-1552 or theatreatthecenter.com.

• A former member of the Black Power movement returns to his Brooklyn home to repair his relationship with his estranged daughter in "Sunset Baby," a domestic drama by Dominique Morisseau ("Detroit '67," "Paradise Blue") in which old wounds and grievances are revealed and uncomfortable truths brought to light. TimeLine Theatre's Chicago-area premiere begins previews Wednesday, Jan. 13, at 615 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago. The show, directed by Ron OJ Parson ("A Raisin in the Sun"), opens Jan. 21. (773) 281-8463 or timelinetheatre.com.

• Raven Theatre Company, in collaboration with The Yard, a Senn Arts High School youth theater company, presents "Milk Like Sugar," about a teenage girl struggling to make opportunities for a better life who enters into a pregnancy pact with a couple of friends then has second thoughts. Performances run from Wednesday, Jan. 13, through Saturday, Jan. 23, at 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago. Directors Mechelle Moe and Joel Ewing, both Hypocrites ensemble members, helm the production featuring professional and student actors. (773) 338-2177 or raventheatre.com or the-yard.org.

• Pivot Arts' new entertainment series Pivot@63, a monthly interview and performance showcase, returns at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 13, at Bar 63, 6341 N. Broadway Ave., Chicago. Katy Carolina Collins hosts the event during which performers address the topic of broken New Year's resolutions. See pivotarts.org.

• Shattered Globe Theatre continues its 25th anniversary season with Rajiv Joseph's love story "Animals Out of Paper," in which a concerned teacher convinces a world-renowned origami artist to mentor a troubled teenage prodigy. "'Animals Out of Paper' excites me because it is about unlikely friendships and how sometimes the person who can help us most, is the person we least expect," said director Devon de Mayo in a prepared statement. Previews begin Thursday, Jan. 14, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show opens Jan. 17. (773) 975-8150 or theaterwit.org or shatteredglobe.org.

• Collaboraction returns with its 15th and final Sketchbook Festival to the Chopin Theatre, where the vaunted short play festival originated. The festival reunites Collaboraction artistic director and Sketchbook co-curator Anthony Moseley with painter and original Sketchbook collaborator Wesley Kimler. Previews begin Thursday, Jan. 14, at 1543 W. Division St., Chicago. The fest opens Jan. 16 and runs through Jan. 24. It consists of 16 world-premiere theater pieces running seven minutes or less. Among them is the latest by Beth Henley ("Crimes of the Heart") who unveils "Seven Minutes" directed by John Cabrera ("The Gilmore Girls"); "When Bachelors Come Out of the Brush" by Anne Washburn ("Mr. Burns, a post-electric play"); "I<3 Juliet," the latest by The Q Brothers; and Benno Nelson and Ethan Dubin's "Trump International Tower," inspired by a promotional video for the Chicago hotel and residence. Artists scheduled to perform include David Dastmalchian ("Ant-Man," "The Dark Knight") who stars opposite Sandra Delgado in "Blink" by Moseley, and video designer Liviu Pasare. The shows are grouped into two programs "Death" and "Life," each of which runs under two hours, with doubleheaders on Saturdays and on Jan. 24. There are also live musical performances, after-parties and special events. Tickets are $30. (312) 226-9633 or collaboraction.org.

• A Red Orchid Theatre ensemble members Lance Baker, Jennifer Engstrom, Mierka Girten, Steve Haggard, Shade Murray, Doug Vickers and Natalie West star in the company's revival of Tennessee Williams' infrequently staged play "The Mutilated," which begins previews Thursday, Jan. 14, at 1531 N. Wells St., Chicago. Ensemble member Dado directs the 1966 one-act comedy about a pair of down-and-out women - Trinket Dugan and her recently paroled friend Celeste - who hole up in a seedy New Orleans bar on Christmas Eve. The show opens Jan. 18. (312) 943-8722 or aredorchidtheatre.org.

• Trap Door Theatre revives "The Duchess of Malfi," John Webster's 17th-century tragedy about a young, recently widowed duchess who secretly marries her servant, despite her brothers' demands that she remain a widow so they can control her fortune and her body. Christopher Marino directs the play, known for its violence, dark themes (including incest) and characters' Machiavellian behavior. Performances begin Thursday, Jan. 14, at 1655 W. Cortland Ave., Chicago. (773) 384-0494 or trapdoortheatre.com.

• Chicago newcomer Cor Theater recently announced its two-play 2016 season, which begins in the spring with the U.S. premiere of "Christina, The Girl King," a 2012 play containing nudity, violence and mature subject matter by French playwright Michel Marc Bouchard, translated by Linda Gaboriau. The play is based on the true story of Queen Christina of Sweden, a 17th-century monarch, intellectual and proto-feminist. Performances run March 17 to April 9 at the Frontier Theatre, 1106 W. Thorndale, Chicago. That's followed by Tony Kushner's translation of Bertolt Brecht's parable of good and evil, "The Good Person of Szechwan." Ensemble member Will Von Vogt directs the production featuring nontraditional casting and starring Ernie Nolan as the titular character, a prostitute who offers three disguised gods shelter. Their rewards upend her life, threaten her business and her relationships. The show runs Aug. 11 to Sept. 11 at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 N. Wells St., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or cortheatre.org.