'Movin' Out' moves in to Aurora's Paramount

"Movin' Out," director/choreographer Twyla Tharp's hybrid jukebox musical and dance show, comes to Aurora's Paramount Theatre. Underscored by two dozen Billy Joel songs, the show chronicles the post-graduation lives of five high school friends.

Facts: 8 p.m. Friday, April 17, and 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, April 18, at 23 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora. (630) 896-6666 or paramountaurora.com.

Next Theatre addresses genocide

A professor with extremely bad timing uproots his family from Illinois and transplants them to Rwanda on the eve of the mass murder of Tutsis by Hutu extremists in "The Overwhelming," J.T. Rogers' examination of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Kimberly Senior directs Next Theatre's Chicago premiere of the play, which comes 15 years to the month after the attempted extermination which resulted in the deaths of 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

Facts: Previews continue through Sunday, April 19, at Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St., Evanston. The show opens Monday, April 20. (847) 475-1875, ext. 2 or nexttheatre.org.

New at the Shrine

Naperville's Comedy Shrine debuts "The Family Show," a one-hour improv set suitable for all ages. Best of all, at $10 for adults and $5 for kids, it's cheaper than many movies.

Facts: Opens Saturday, April 18, at 22 E. Chicago Ave., Naperville. (630) 355-2844 or comedyshrine.com.

What's new

•"The Me, Mom and Dad Show," in which Sweat Girls co-founder Martie Sanders invites her parents onstage to chronicle her childhood and their parental legacy, opens its brief run Friday, April 17, at the 16th Street Theater, in the Berwyn Cultural Center, 6420 16th St., Berwyn. (708) 795-6704 or 16thstreettheater.org.

•Polarity Ensemble Theatre presents "The Rivals," Richard Brinsley Sheridan's 18th century comedy of manners and satire of sentimental drama, about a young woman who longs for storybook romance and the man who tries to give it to her. The show opens Friday, April 17, at the Josephium Academy, 1500 N. Bell, Chicago. (800) 838-3006 or petheatre.com.

•A quartet of Depression-era mobsters deals with nagging wives, demanding bosses and occupational hazards like gunshot wounds in "Bad Guys in Suits," a one-hour, original musical comedy from Hobo Junction Company. The show opens Friday, April 17, at the Apollo Theater, 2540 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 935-6100 or hobojunction@sbcglobal.net.

•Latin comedy troupe Salsation Theatre Company debuts its latest sketch comedy review, "Bank of A-mattress-ca: GhettoDog Millionaire" on Saturday, April 18, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. The show looks at people struggling to stay afloat in today's waterlogged economy. (773) 598-4549 or salsation.com. Also, the ensemble participates in a comedy fundraiser for multiple sclerosis at 7 p.m. Friday, April 17, at the Chicago Center for the Performing Arts, 777 N. Green St., Chicago. See theaterland.com for information and tickets.

•New Leaf Theatre concludes its season with an ensemble-generated, theatrical collage called "The Long Count" that proposes to answer the question, "How do we build a future from a present we didn't expect?" The production opens Friday, April 17, at the Lincoln Park Cultural Center, 2045 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 516-3546 or newleaftheatre.org.

•Following a staged reading of its world premiere adaptation of Henrik Gibson's "Ghosts" in Turkey in honor of World Theatre Day, ShawChicago reprises its concert version of the play at the Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St., Chicago. The play concerns a widow whose decision to stay married to her dissolute late husband has disastrous consequences for her family. Performances begin Saturday, April 18. (312) 857-7390 or shawchicago.org.

•Steppenwolf Theatre Company hosts its annual gala to celebrate its upcoming season beginning at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, April, 18, at 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago. The evening includes a performance inspired by Steppenwolf's current production of "The Tempest," along with dinner, an auction and a performance by co-founder Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band. Call (312) 654-5682 to purchase tickets.

•Previews continue through Saturday, April 18, for Artist Home Acting Studio's "Incomplete and Random Acts of Kindness," British playwright David Eldridge's 95-minute one-act comprised of 39 of his memories. The production opens Sunday, April 19, at 3914 N. Clark St., Chicago. (866) 811-4111 or theartistichome.org.

•The Side Project hosts a festival of short works beginning Sunday, April 19, and continuing through May 17, at 1439 W. Jarvis Ave., Chicago. The festival is comprised of two programs: "Atom Smashers" running at 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays and 4:30 p.m. Sundays and "after/math" running at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays. (773) 973-2150 or thesideproject.net.

•Strawdog Theatre concludes its 21st season with Peter Barnes' Olivier Award-winning dark comedy "Red Noses," about a young priest who uses laughter to bolster the spirits of 14th century Europeans suffering through the Black Plague. The House Theatre's Matt Hawkins directs the show which opens Sunday, April 19, at 3829 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 528-9696 or strawdog.org.

•British Stage Company's inaugural production of Marc Camoletti's sex farce "Don't Dress for Dinner" concludes its five-month run at the Royal George Theatre, 1641 N. Halsted St., Chicago, on Sunday, April 19. (312) 988-9000 or dontdressfordinner.com.

•Fresh Squeezed, Victory Gardens' eclectic, late-night performance series continues with "You Are Here: The Margot Bordelon Project," in which writer/performer Bordelon chronicles her three-month, cross country road trip. Performances are Sunday, April 19, and Monday, April 20, at 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.

•"The Miracle Worker," William Gibson's play about the relationships between Helen Keller and her teacher Annie Sullivan, marks the start of Lincoln Square Theatre's ninth season. The show opens Monday, April 20 at 4754 N. Leavitt St., Chicago. See lincolnsquareartcenter.com for more information.

•Steppenwolf for Young Adults series continues with the stage adaptation of John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" featuring Keith Kupferer as Lennie and Paul D'Addario as George. The Gift Theatre's Michael Patrick Thornton directs the heartbreaking tale of friendship and the unfulfilled American dream. The production opens Tuesday, April 21 at 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago. (312) 335-1650 or Steppenwolf.org.

•Writer David Sedaris reads from his latest essay compilation, "When You Are Engulfed in Flames" 7 p.m. Thursday, April 23 at Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora. (630) 896-6666 or paramountaurora.com.

•Following on the heels of "The Screwtape Letters," Max McLean - who played the titular demon in that long-running production - stars in "Mark's Gospel," the apostle's account of Jesus' ministry. The show opens Thursday, April 23 at the Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport Ave., Chicago. (773) 325-1700 or markonstage.com.

•National Pastime Theater's adults-only interpretation of "Alice in Wonderland" is unlike any you've experienced. For its production, "Alice in the House of Carroll," National Pastime places the precocious child on the mean, volatile streets of late 19th century Chicago where she's forced to confront a rapidly changing, unstable world. The production begins previews Thursday, April 23, at 4139 N. Broadway, Chicago. The show opens Friday, April 24. (773) 327-7077 or npt2.com.

•A couple of twentysomething women discuss love, sex and life in "The Rocks," Mark A. Young's sequel to his play "New Orleans." Side Project Theatre Company's production runs through May 17 at the Side Project Theatre, 1439 W. Jarvis Ave., Chicago. (773) 973-2150 or thesideproject.net.