Spotlight: Sideshow Theatre streams 2018 hit 'Tilikum'
'Tilikum' returns
Sideshow Theatre Company streams its 2018 Joseph Jefferson Award-winning production of "Tilikum," Kristiana Rae Colón's drama about the onetime king of the ocean held captive in a marine amusement park until freedom beckons again. Streamed in honor of Black Lives Matter and Juneteenth, the performance's proceeds benefit the #LetUsBreatheCollective, "an alliance of artists and activists."
7 p.m. Friday, June 19. Suggested donation is $10. Donors will receive an email link to the event. See sideshowtheatre.org/liberation.
Online magic encounter
Magician David Parr, winner on "Penn & Teller: Fool Us," invites viewers into his virtual "Sorcerer's Lair" where he shares his favorite illusions and sleight-of-hand tricks.
The livestream event begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 20. Tickets are $10. See davidparr.com.
Pride-inspired 'Wrench'
The Neo-Futurists will stream a Pride-centered version of their flagship show "The Infinite Wrench." Suited for ages 14 and older, "The Infinite Wrench Gets Prideful: 30 Queer Plays in 60 Straight Minutes" marks the debut of new ensemble members Cat Huck, Abby Pajakowski, Ale Ramirez and Annie Share who together with other ensemble members create 30 new plays from their homes. Proceeds benefit Brave Space Alliance, an African American and trans-led LGBTQ center on Chicago's South Side.
Livestreamed at 8 p.m. Thursday, June 25, on the Twitch platform. Tickets are $15. See neofuturists.org.
'Bingo' fundraiser
Nuns 4 Fun Entertainment Inc., the production company responsible for "Late Nite Catechism" and assorted spinoffs, will stream the holiday show "Christmas Bingo" as a fundraiser for the Daughters of St. Paul. The order's Michigan Avenue bookstore Pauline Books and Media was looted last month following the civil unrest sparked by the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Recorded in 2018 at the Royal George Theatre, the production features Lisa Braatz as former nun and yuletide bingo caller Mrs. Mary Margaret O'Brien.
Streaming through July 31 at nuns4fun.com.
Theater news
• Northwestern University has extended through July 19 its Imagine U Storytime series on the Wirtz Center YouTube channel. The series features family-friendly tales performed by NU faculty, alumni and students. The 15-minute videos air at 6 p.m. Sundays. The schedule is as follows: Sunday, June 21: "A Frozen Dance Lesson"; June 28: "Precious and the Book Hag" read by NU African American studies and performance studies professor E. Patrick Johnson; July 5: "Elephant and Piggy"; July 12: NU theater professor Henry Godinez and his daughter, 2018 graduate Lucy Godinez, share stories from Sandra Cisnero's "The House on Mango Street" and Matt de la Peña's "Last Stop on Market Street"; July 19: "Winnie the Pooh." Search the Wirtz Center on youtube.com.
• Otherworld Theatre has adapted several Live Action Role Play events for young people to participate in online. For ages 12 to 18, there's the wizarding-themed "With a Wave of My Hand" running from 1 to 3 p.m. June 22-26 and "Star Guards: Defending the Galaxy" from June 29-July 3. The fee is $150 per session. For ages 5 to 11, there's "Story Adventures," a reading hour from 10 to 11 a.m. The fee is $20 per session. See otherworldtheatre.org.
• Artemisia Theatre hosts podcasts with theater artists, feminist activists and advocates as well as nonprofit leaders. Artistic director Julie Proudfoot moderates the free podcasts, which are released Mondays at artemisiatheatre.org/podcast.
• Tony Award-winner and Evanston native Jessie Mueller will appear Sunday, June 21, on the Seth Concert Series, a weekly virtual series combining conversation and performances based on Sirius/XM broadcaster Seth Rudetsky's Broadway series that debuted in 2011 as "Broadway @the Art House." Tony Award-winner Lea Salonga appears on June 28, Melissa Errico appears on July 5 and multiple Tony Award-winner Audra McDonald closes out the series on July 12. Shows premiere at 7 p.m. Sundays and are rebroadcast at 2 p.m. Mondays. Tickets for the online series are $20 and $25 and are available at thesethconcertseries.com.
• The Boston ensemble Arlekin Players Theatre presents an interactive Zoom production of "State vs. Natasha Banina" at 7 p.m. Sundays, June 21 and 28. Based on contemporary Russian playwright Yaroslava Pulinovich's "Natasha's Dream," the play, about a 16-year-old orphan on trial for attempted manslaughter, casts viewers/audience members as jurors tasked with deciding Natasha's fate. Zoom registration is required. Admission is free, but donations are accepted with proceeds going toward the COVID-19 Emergency Relief and The Actors Fund. See cherryorchardfestival.org.