Theater events: 'Heathers: The Musical' premieres at Theater Wit

'What's your damage?'

Kokandy Productions presents the Chicago-area premiere of "Heathers: The Musical," by Kevin Murphy and Laurence O'Keefe, based on the 1988 black comedy about a rich, ruthless high school clique made up of three girls named Heather and a token Veronica. Things go awry when Veronica (Courtney Mack) falls in love with a hot, homicidal new guy named J.D. (Chris Ballou) who enlists her in offing the Ohio high school's teenage elite. James Beaudry directs. Previews begin at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show opens March 4. $25, $38. (773) 975-8150 or kokandyproductions.com.

Tidying up

Steel Beam Theatre's season continues with a revival of Sarah Ruhl's "The Clean House" about physician spouses whose marriage is upended when the husband falls in love with one of his patients and whose aspiring comedian housekeeper is more interested in telling jokes than cleaning. Artistic director Marge Uhlarik-Boller directs. Opens at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, at 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. $23-$28. (630) 587-8521 or steelbeamtheatre.com.

Family time

The Kennedy Center Theater for Young Audiences brings its touring production of "Elephant & Piggie's We Are in a Play" to the McAninch Arts Center. Recommended for ages 4 and older, the musical is based on Des Plaines native Mo Willems' "Elephant and Piggie" children's books and addresses topics such as friendship and sharing. Joe Mallon and Shayna Blass star. 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, at College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn. $20 adults, $14 children. (630) 942-4000 or atthemac.org.

Other theater events

• Previews continue for Theater Wit's production of Alena Smith's comedy about youthful optimism and love titled "The New Sincerity." Set in 2011 during an Occupy-inspired protest, it's about journalist Rose who struggles to navigate her personal life even as she gets swept up in the political movement. Maura Kidwell plays Rose in director Jeremy Wechsler's production opening March 8 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 975-8150 or theaterwit.org.

• "Stomp," the theatrical spectacle that combines percussion, dance and music - whose performers use garbage cans, lighters, brooms and hubcaps as musical instruments - plays the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora, at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, and 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 27. (630) 896-6666 or paramountaurora.com.

• Chicago Theater Works hosts the return of the interactive, dinner-theater comedy "Flanagan's Wake" beginning Friday, Feb. 26, at 1113 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show, set in the fictional town of Grapplin, Ireland, centers on the memorial celebration friends are hosting for a local character named Flanagan. Also playing at Theater Works is the interactive show "We Gotta Bingo." (773) 327-3778 or chicagotheaterworks.com.

• "Medea's Got Some Issues," a parody of Euripides' tragedy by Chicago playwright Emilio Williams, seen from the perspective of a has-been actress who makes the case against her cheating husband and misogynistic Corinth, opens Friday, Feb. 26, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 327-5252 or stage773.com.

• As a child, Dana Michel draped a towel around her head to imitate her blonde schoolmates. That experience forms the basis of her solo show, "Yellow Towel," in which she examines African-American culture stereotypes. She performs Friday and Saturday, Feb. 26-27, at the Storefront Theater, 66 E. Randolph St., Chicago, as part of the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events' third annual OnEdge performance series. Also performing during the series is Jack Ferver who examines the different personas we create for ourselves in his lecture/performance "Mon, Ma, Mes" running Thursday and Friday, March 3-4, at the Chicago Cultural Center's Millennium Park Room, 78 E. Washington St., Chicago. The free performances are for adults. See cityofchicago.org/dcase.

• Emerald City Theatre presents the family-friendly "Schoolhouse Rock Live!" for ages 3 to 13 beginning Saturday, Feb. 27, at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The show is about a teacher on his first day in class who entertains his students with songs like "Conjunction Junction" and "Just a Bill." See emeraldcitytheatre.com.

• Grammy Award-winning gospel artist Karen Clark Sheard performs in "Bronzeville The Musical," which chronicles the experiences of African-Americans living in that Chicago neighborhood. The performance is at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 27, at the Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State St., Chicago. (800) 745-3000 or thechicagotheatre.com.

• The Chicago Fringe Festival hosts its annual lottery party at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 27, at Fannie's 5040 W. Montrose Ave., Chicago. The random drawing that takes place during the party determines participants in the 2016 festival, which takes place Aug. 31 to Sept. 11 in Chicago's Jefferson Park. See chicagofringe.org.

• The NightBlue Performing Arts Company presents "Mary Poppins," the musical by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman based on P.L. Travers' stories and the Walt Disney film. The creative team includes music director Austin Cook, choreographer Kevin Bellie and NightBlue artistic director David E. Walters. Previews begin Sunday, Feb. 28, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show opens Wednesday, March 2. (773) 327-5252 or nightbluetheater.com.

• Porchlight Music Theatre continues its series showcasing rarely performed musicals staged concert style with "Applause." Inspired by the film "All About Eve," the show by composer Charles Strouse and lyricist Lee Adams, with a book by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, is about an aspiring young actress who maneuvers her way into the good graces of a successful but aging film star intending to usurp her. Joseph Jefferson Award-winner Heidi Kettenring makes her Porchlight debut in the production directed by Christopher Pazdernik. Performances run Tuesday through Thursday, March 1-3, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 327-5252or porchlightmusictheatre.org.

• Filter Theatre, in association with the Royal Shakespeare Company, brings its 90-minute production of William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" to the Chicago Shakespeare Theater as part of the Shakespeare 400 Chicago celebration. The show, described as part rock concert and part improv sketch show, runs Tuesday, March 1, through March 13 at Navy Pier, 800 E. Grand Ave., Chicago. (312) 595-5600 or chicagoshakes.com.

• Performances begin Tuesday, March 2, for Irish Theatre of Chicago's Midwest premiere of "In a Little World of Our Own," a psychological thriller by Irish playwright Gary Mitchell, directed by associate artistic director Jeri Frederickson. It's about three brothers, one of whom must pay for a violent crime. The production runs through April 10 at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. See irishtheatreofchicago.org.

• Lookingglass Theatre Company's season continues with "Blood Wedding," Federico Garcia Lorca's drama about passion, love, deception and revenge, translated by Michael Dewell and Carmen Zapata and directed by ensemble member Daniel Ostling. Previews begin Wednesday, March 2, at Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago. The show opens March 12. (312) 337-0665 or lookingglasstheatre.org.

• After a tragedy, a woman walks away from her husband and family to pursue a relationship with a younger man in Norwegian playwright Arne Lygre's contemporary ghost story "Nothing of Me." The question is, is she building a new life or ensuring her own destruction? Akvavit Theatre presents the U.S. premiere of the play, which begins previews Thursday, March 3, at Signal Ensemble Theatre, 1802 W. Berenice Ave., Chicago. It opens March 5. See akvavittheatre.org.

• The Gift Theatre and Steppenwolf Theatre collaborate on William Shakespeare's "Richard III," staged at Steppenwolf's Garage Theatre, 1624 N. Halsted St., Chicago. Gift Theatre co-founder and artistic director Michael Patrick Thornton stars as the ruthless monarch in director Jessica Thebus' production, which is part of the Shakespeare 400 Chicago celebration. Previews begin Thursday, March 3. The show opens March 7. (773) 283-7071 or steppenwolf.org or thegifttheatre.org.

• Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson investigate the death of Holmes' friend, whose family was believed to be under the curse of a supernatural hellhound, in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Hound of the Baskervilles." Idle Muse Theatre Company's adaptation by Steve Pickering and Shanghai Low Theatricals stars Joel Thompson as Holmes and Nathan Pease as Watson. Previews begin Thursday, March 3, at Edge Theater, 5451 N. Broadway Ave., Chicago. The show opens March 5. (773) 340-9438 or idlemuse.org.

• A group of fading super heroes try to reinvent themselves as a not-for-profit think tank for do-gooders in Lucky Plush Productions' "SuperStrip," a new dance-theater work combining comic book graphics, video, dance and improvisation. The show premieres Thursday, March 3, at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph St., Chicago. (312) 334-7777 or harristheaterchicago.org or luckyplush.com.

• The League of Chicago Theatres hosts a Theatre Thursday event at Lifeline Theatre, 6912 N. Glenwood Ave., Chicago, at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, March 3. Participants will attend a performance and get a behind-the-scenes look at the company's stage adaptation of "Midnight Cowboy," from Jame Leo Herlihy's 1965 novel. See chicagoplays.com.

• The Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, has extended "Generals," in which a Chicago-area actor performs two of his/her favorite monologues followed by Antoine McKay and Christy Bonstell improvising a scene based on the monologue. Performances run at 8 p.m. Sundays through April 3. Annoyance also announced the return of "Nervous Breakdown," a mash up of improvised sketches and standup comedy, to the theater. The show runs at 8 p.m. Tuesdays through March 29. (773) 697-9693 or theannoyance.com.

• The House Theatre of Chicago has extended its run of "The Last Defender," an interactive, live-action game/theater performance set during the Cold War. The show runs through March 27 at the Chopin Theater, 1543 W. Division St., Chicago. (773) 769-3832 or thehousetheatre.com.

• Trap Door Theatre extended its production of "The Duchess of Malfi," John Webster's drama about a wealthy young widow who remarries a servant over the objections of her brothers who are determined to control her fortune and her body. Performances run through Feb. 27 at 1655 W. Cortland St., Chicago. (773) 384-0494 or trapdoortheatre.com.

• Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, has extended The Inoffensive Theatre Series comprised of family-friendly performances at 2 p.m. on select Saturdays and Sundays. Productions have included the silent comedy "BRI-KO," the fairy-tale-inspired "Mass St.: Kids" and "The Adventures of Tapman," about a tap dancing superhero. (773) 327-5252 or stage773.com. Also Stage 773 is accepting submissions for its fifth annual Chicago Women's Funny Festival taking place June 16-19 and featuring women from around the world performing everything from vaudeville and standup to sketch comedy. Applications are due April 15. They're available online at chicagowomensfunnyfestival.com.

• TimeLine Theatre Company recently named director Ron OJ Parson, director of TimeLine's current production "Sunset Baby," and actor Behzad Dabu new company members. "Ron and Behzad have exemplified tremendous leadership at TimeLine, representing our mission, vision and values through their work on productions along with providing valuable input on company activities," said artistic director PJ Powers in a prepared statement. The company also welcomed new artistic associates Mike Nussbaum and Andre Pluess, along with Tyla Abercrumbie, Wardell Julius Clark, Charles Gardner, Megan Geigner, Dennis William Grimes, Jerod Haynes, Kymberly Mellen, Chris Rickett and Demetrios Troy.

• American Theater Company named director/choreographer Will Davis as its new artistic director. Davis replaces PJ Paparelli who died following a car accident last May. The appointment marks a return to Chicago for the DePaul University graduate who will direct Jaclyn Backhaus' "Men on Boats" off Broadway this summer. "His passion, artistic excellence and creative vision align perfectly with our goal of producing cutting-edge work that both challenges and entertains," said ATC board president Art Cunningham in a prepared statement.

• Six theater ensembles were among the 14 Chicago arts organizations that received MacArthur Foundation awards this year. The award recognizes institutions "that demonstrate exceptional creativity and effectiveness" and help strengthen the community's cultural life. The monetary awards, which ranged from $200,000 to $1 million, went to: A Red Orchid Theatre, the Albany Park Theater Project, Lookingglass Theatre, Lucky Plush Productions, The Hypocrites and TimeLine Theatre.