Under the stars: Outdoor productions bring live theater back to the 'burbs
As Illinois progresses through the "Bridge Phase," summer theater has resumed albeit in a somewhat altered form. For the first time, the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre in Arlington Heights is staging productions outdoors. So is Glenview's Oil Lamp Theatre.
Northlight Theatre and the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts team up to showcase Chicago-area theater artists in concert in its parking lot, while Naperville's BrightSide Theatre salutes Rodgers and Hammerstein during a concert series in the park. And in Spring Green, Wisconsin, American Players Theatre will produce six plays in its outdoor and indoor venues.
It's far from a typical summer season, but for fans, some theater is better than none. Here's a look at what some ensembles have in store.
Metropolis outdoors
As Chicago-area theaters prepare to resume live, in-person performances, Metropolis Performing Arts Centre leads the way. Last month, the Arlington Heights theater established an outdoor performance space under a tent at the intersection of Eastman Avenue and Evergreen Street, a few blocks north of the Campbell Street main stage. Metropolis' revival of the cult horror musical "Little Shop of Horrors" runs through June 19. It's followed later this summer by a musical tribute to Frank Sinatra.
Info: Capacity is limited and masks are required for the socially distanced performances. "Little Shop of Horrors" runs through June 19; "My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra" runs July 15 through Aug. 28 at Metropolis Performing Arts Centre outdoor venue at Eastman Avenue and Evergreen Street, Arlington Heights. Tickets are $35 and $40. (847) 577-5982, ext. 239, email customerservice@metropolisarts.com or metropolisarts.com
Oil Lamp under the stars
Oil Lamp Theater resumes live, in-person performances outside, under the stars. The mini-season commences with Lanford Wilson's "Talley's Folly," the Pulitzer Prize-winning two-hander about two people taking their first, tentative steps to spending a lifetime together. It's followed by "Shipwrecked! An Entertainment," Donald Margulies' based-on-fact play about Louis de Rougemont, a 19th-century Swiss explorer who claimed to have had adventures on the high seas but who may have been a con man.
Info: Masks required for the socially distanced performances. Contactless check-in. Cashless purchase at the door. "Talley's Folly" runs June 17 through July 18; "Shipwrecked! An Entertainment" runs July 29 through Aug. 29 at Oil Lamp Theater's outdoor space, on the lawn at Saint David's Episcopal Church, 2410 Glenview Road, Glenview. Tickets are $45 for adults, $28 for children. (847) 834-0738 or oillamptheater.org
Summer in the parks
BrightSide Theatre teams up with the Naperville Park District for a new summer concert series devoted to the music of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein. The free hourlong concerts will include music from "Cinderella," "The King and I," "South Pacific," "Oklahoma!" and "The Sound of Music," among other musicals.
Info: Capacity is limited for the socially distanced concerts. Face coverings are required for anyone over age 2 who has not been fully vaccinated and can tolerate a mask. 7 p.m. June 30, July 21 and Aug. 11 at the Wagner Family Pavilion at the 95th Street Community Plaza, 3109 Cedar Glade Drive, Naperville. (630) 848-5000 or napervilleparks.org
Let the good times roll
North Shore Center for the Performing Arts and Northlight Theatre welcome Joseph Jefferson Award-winners E. Fay Butler and Felicia P. Fields to its outdoor stage as part of the Skokie venue's outdoor performance series. Butler and Fields will perform jazz, blues and gospel music, as well as Broadway tunes for which they are well-known.
Info: Capacity is limited and masks are required for the socially distanced concert. North Shore Center follows Centers for Disease Control, Illinois Department of Health and Skokie Health Department COVID-19 guidelines. Concertgoers should bring their own chairs or blankets. 7:30 p.m. July 9 and 10 (rain date July 11) at the 31,000-square-foot parking space located behind the North Shore Center at 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie. Tickets range from $35 to $45. (847) 673-6300 or northshorecenter.org
Wisconsin bound
American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin, attracts not only Illinois audiences but accomplished theater artists from the Chicago area. This year's abbreviated summer and fall season includes Katori Hall's "The Mountaintop." Directed by Ron OJ Parson, an associate artist at Writers Theatre and resident artist at Court Theatre, Hall's play is a fictionalized account of Dr. Martin Luther King's conversation with a hotel housekeeper on the night before his assassination. Writers, Drury Lane, Marriott and Goodman Theatre veteran William Brown helms Tom Stoppard's seafaring comedy "Rough Crossing." Gift Theatre ensemble member and Victory Gardens Theater veteran Marti Lyons co-adapted and directs William Shakespeare's "Cymbeline." Keira Fromm, a fixture on the Chicago storefront scene, helms "A Phoenix Too Frequent," Christopher Fry's comedy set in ancient Greece where a wife grieving the death of her husband has locked herself into his tomb with her servant who is unhappy with the plan.
Info: Capacity is limited and masks are required for the socially distanced performances and on the grounds. Backstage talks and talkbacks will be virtual. Limited access to gift shops and concessions. Performances continue through Oct. 3, at The Hill Theatre, APT's outdoor space, and The Touchstone Theatre, the indoor space, at 5950 Golf Course Road, Spring Green, Wisconsin. Tickets range from $56 to $96. (608) 588-2361 or americanplayers.org