Theater events: Circle stages Ethan Coen's 'Almost an Evening'

A Coen bro comedy

Circle Theatre presents “Almost an Evening,” three darkly comic plays by Ethan Coen, one half of the Academy Award-winning Coen brothers responsible for “Fargo” and the “The Big Lebowski,” among other films. J. Christopher Brown directs the trinity composed of plays that examine hell on earth and in the hereafter.

Previews begin at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 2, at 1010 Madison St., Oak Park. The show opens June 8. $24-$28. (708) 660-9540 or circle-theatre.org.

‘LawLawPalooza'

The Chicago Bar Association brings its annual musical comedy revue to the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre for one show only. Chicago-area attorneys star in this year's sendup of pop culture, politicos, celebrities and current events dubbed “LawLawPalooza.”

7:30 p.m. Sunday, June 3, at 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. $22. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com.

Eastland musical

The 1915 tragedy of the S.S. Eastland served as the inspiration for Lookingglass Theatre's world premiere, “Eastland: A New Musical.” The passenger ship rolled while tied to a dock in the Chicago River, killing more than 800. Partly inspired by Jay Bonansinga's “The Sinking of the Eastland: America's Forgotten Tragedy,” the musical features a folk-inspired score that gives voice to the victims and heroes who emerged that fateful July 25, 1915.

Previews begin Wednesday, June 6, at the Water Tower Water Works, 821 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago. The show opens June 16. $24-$68. (312) 337-0665 or lookingglasstheatre.org.

Other theater events:

• The Neo-Futurists offer students enrolled at Chicago-area colleges a $5 admission discount to their long-running “Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind: 30 Plays in 60 Minutes” on their school's dedicated weekend. Loyola University students receive the discount Friday to Sunday, June 1-3. Roosevelt University students receive the discount June 8-10. Shows are at 11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday at 5153 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago. (773) 275-5255 or neofuturists.org.

• Paramount Theatre, 8 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora, has extended its production of the jukebox musical “Route 66” featuring such 1950s and 1960s pop hits as “Fun, Fun, Fun,” “King of the Road” and “Little Old Lady From Pasadena.” The show runs through Aug. 19. (630) 896-6666 or paramountaurora.com.

• GayCo celebrates its 16th year with an all-new, adults-only sketch comedy revue beginning previews Friday, June 1 and Saturday, June 2, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The show dubbed “Swallow Your Pride” opens June 15. (773) 327-5252 or gayco.com.

• The Goodman Theatre teams up with About Face Theatre for “Immediate Family” Paul Oakley Stovall's drama about a family in Chicago's Hyde Park whose secrets are exposed during an emotional, sometimes hilarious family reunion. Previews begin Saturday, June 2, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. The play, directed by TV and Broadway star Phylicia Rashad, opens June 8. (312) 443-3800 or goodman

theatre.org.

• Steppenwolf Theatre showcases emerging Chicago area theater artists as part of its Next Up series of three plays in rotating repertory beginning Tuesday, June 5, at the Garage Theater, 1624 N. Halsted St., Chicago. Emily Campbell directs Keith Reddin's dark comedy “Life and Limb,” about a wounded Korean War veteran who returns home to a crumbling marriage and a job with a sadistic manufacturer of artificial limbs. Aaron Goldstein directs Emily Schwend's drama “South of Setting” about a couple whose lives are upended with the arrival of the wife's long lost cousin and her new husband. Laley Lippard directs Tennessee Williams' classic “The Glass Menagerie.” Performances run through June 24. (312) 335-1650 or steppenwolf.org.

• “Rock of Ages,” a love story set to the music of Journey, Styx, Foreigner and other bands, returns to Chicago for the summer. Performances begin Tuesday, June 5, at the Broadway Playhouse at 175 E. Chestnut St., Chicago. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.

• Pride Films & Plays hosts its spring benefit beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 5, at Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted St., Chicago. Titled “And the Winner Wasn't II,” the event pays tribute to those shows that didn't take home the Antoinette Perry trophy. Among those scheduled to perform are Bethany Thomas, Meghan Murphy, Chad Ryan, Michelle McKenzie-Voigt, Jon Landvick and others. Tickets are $20. (800) 838-3006 or brownpapertickets.com or pridefilmsandplays.com.

• Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, hosts the first Chicago Women's Funny Festival showcasing the comedic talents of women in sketch comedy, vaudeville, standup, improv and more. The festival runs from Wednesday, June 6, to Sunday, June 10, and features artists from around the country as well as Chicago's own Susan Messing, the Mary Kay Letourneau Players, Sherry Lasley and the Puterbaugh Sisters among others. (773) 327-5252 or stage773.com.

• Hell in a Handbag Productions hosts a special 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 6, performance of its musical comedy “Sexy Baby” to benefit the Friends of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame, an organization that highlights the contribution of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals to the city. The performance is at Mary's Attic, 5400 N. Clark St., Chicago. Additionally, “Sexy Baby” has been extended. Performances run weekends through July 27. (800) 838-3006 or brownpapertickets.com or handbagproductions.org.

• Lifeline Theatre hosts its 29th anniversary benefit from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, June 6, at the Woman's Club of Evanston, 1702 Chicago Ave., Evanston. Titled “An Austen Soiree: Readings, Music and Games of Jane's World,” the event is inspired by Lifeline's current production of “Pride and Prejudice” and includes a Regency inspired dinner, performances from Austen novels, a live auction and raffle. Tickets are $100 in advance, $125 at the door. (773) 761-4477 or lifelinetheatre.com.

• The 2012 recipient of the League of Chicago Theatre's emerging theater award, Theatre Seven of Chicago presents Lauren Gunderson's revenge comedy “Exit, Pursued by a Bear” about a woman who finally leaves her abusive husband but not before subjecting him to some humiliating and possibly dangerous scenarios. Previews begin Thursday, June 7, at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The show opens June 11. (773) 404-7336 or theatreseven.org.

• Theater Wit has extended its production of the dark comedy “Tigers Be Still” about a young woman trying to get her life on track. Performances continue through June 16 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. (773) 975-8150 or theaterwit.org.

• “Weirdos Presents: Strange Tales,” a family-friendly puppet show, has been extended at the Annoyance Theatre. The 2:30 p.m. Sunday performances continue through July 22 at 4830 N. Broadway, Chicago. (773) 561-4665 or theannoyance.com.

• A-Squared Theatre Workshop, an Asian theater ensemble, has extended its production of “My Asian Mom,” consisting of one-act plays examining Asian mothers. Performances continue at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through July 7 at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago. See a-stw.org for more information.

• “Freud's Last Session,” at 3745 N. Southport Ave., Chicago, will host a Sigmund Freud look-a-like contest. Participants can upload photos to the production's Facebook page and have friends “like” the images. The three contestants with the most “likes” will be selected on June 15 for the 100th performance to be held on June 22. The best look-a-like receives four complimentary tickets, a meet and greet with the cast and a $100 gift certificate to Deleece Restaurant. Also “Freud's Last Session,” starring Mike Nussbaum and Coburn Goss, has been extended to Sept. 2. (312) 423-6612 or freudslastsession.com.

• The Hypocrites will remount their acclaimed production of “Pirates of Penzance” as part of their recently announced 16th season, opening Aug. 14, with Sean Graney's world premiere adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's “The Fall of the House of Usher.” Graney directs the all-female cast in Poe's short story about a sickly woman wasting away in a haunted house. The Gilbert & Sullivan operettas “Pirates of Penzance” and “The Mikado” will be presented in repertory from Nov. 20 to Jan. 13, 2013. Next up is Shakespeare's rarely staged “Coriolanus” about a general whose venture into politics proves disastrous. Adapted and directed by company member Geoff Button, it runs from March 26 to May 11, 2013. The season concludes with a new work whose working title is “Stealing a Ferris Wheel,” about a couple of people paying penance for their lives of ill repute. Performances take place at the Chopin Theater, 1543 W. Division St., Chicago. Season tickets available at the-hypocrites.com.

• Stage Left Theatre has announced its 31st season, its first since moving into its new home at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. The season opens Sept. 1, with the world premiere of “Impenetrable,” Mia McCullough's drama developed in 2010 through the company's Downstage Left Residency, about a billboard ad placed by a local spa, depicting a bikini-clad woman with arrows pointing to her “problems” and offering “solutions.” That's followed by a collaboration with Bohemian Theatre Ensemble in a revival of George Bernard Shaw's “Pygmalion,” about a dialect expert who bets he can pass off a Cockney flower girl as a proper lady (Jan. 5 to Feb. 10, 2013). Next up is the Chicago area premiere of Nina Raine's “Rabbit” (April 20 to May 26, 2013) a dark comedy set on the night of Bella's 29th birthday party attended by frenemies and brokenhearted former lovers. The season concludes in summer 2013 with Stage Left's annual LeapFest showcasing new works. Subscriptions are available (773) 883-8830 or stagelefttheatre.com.

• Northlight Theatre announced it will take its award-winning world premiere of Bruce Graham's “The Outgoing Tide” to the Galway Arts Festival in Galway, Ireland, from July 17 to 21. Original cast members John Mahoney, Rondi Reed and Thomas J. Cox will reprise their roles under Northlight artistic director BJ Jones.