Theater events: Superheroes get radio drama treatment

Superheros onstage

Improv Playhouse ensemble members perform classic radio scripts “The Adventures of Superman!” and “The Green Hornet” as staged radio dramas at the Libertyville theater. Among the participating actors is IP executive producer David Brian Stuart, Michael Scott Blackman and George Elliott.

7:30 and 9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, at 735 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. $12.50, $17.50. Presale $10, $15. (847) 968-4529 or improvplayhouse.com.

Seasonal chills

Bohemian Theatre Ensemble opens its 10th season with “Veronica's Room,” a horror thriller by Ira Levin (“Rosemary's Baby,” “The Stepford Wives”) in which Susan, a student, agrees to impersonate Veronica, the long-dead sister of a disturbed young woman in order to comfort the woman on her deathbed. Charles Riffenburg directs.

The preview is at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, at Heartland Studio, 7016 N. Glenwood Ave., Chicago. The show opens at 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28. $20. (866) 811-4111 or bohotheatre.com.

LaBute's ‘Wrecks'

Profiles Theatre's ongoing relationship with playwright and resident artist Neil LaBute continues with the Midwest premiere of LaBute's “Wrecks,” directed by American Theater Company's Jason Gerace and featuring Chicago's John Judd. The plays centers around father and successful businessman Edward Carr (Judd) whose life is torn apart by the death of his beloved wife. This marks the 11th premiere by Profiles of a LaBute work.

Previews begin at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, at 4147 N. Broadway Ave., Chicago. The show opens Oct. 3. $20-$40. (773) 549-1818 or profilestheatre.org.

events

#376; Phoenix Rising Chicago hosts A Broadway Revue, an adults-only, burlesque-inspired cabaret showcase of contemporary musicals including #8220;Chicago,#8221; #8220;Cabaret#8221; and #8220;The Wild Party#8221; at 9 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, and 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, at Gorilla Tango Theatre, 7924 Lincoln Ave., Skokie. (847) 677-7761 or gorillatango.com.

#376; Chicago theater company Artemisia continues the second weekend of its third annual Fall Festival of Staged Readings at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, at Holy Covenant United Methodist Church, 925 W. Diversey, Chicago. It begins with Benjamin Dean's #8220;Art Appreciation,#8221; a romantic comedy about a young female artist facing her fears and insecurities. It's followed at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, by Lia Romeo's darkly comic romance #8220;Green Whales.#8221; The festival concludes at 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, with Jaki McCarrick's contemporary adventure story #8220;Belfast Girls#8221; about six women trying to escape the 1850 Belfast famine. See artemisiatheatre.org.

#376; Gorilla Tango Theatre, 7924 Lincoln Ave., Skokie, premieres its latest young artists program #8220;The Trial of Goldilocks#8221; beginning at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28. In it, Goldilocks faces charges of fraud, larceny, breaking and entering and destruction of property as the Three Bears family finally gets their day in court. (847) 677-7761 or gorillatango.com.

#376; The Midnight Circus continues its Night Out in the Parks in partnership with the Chicago Park District. The Circus performs at 2 and 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, and at 1 and 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 29, at Mount Greenwood Park, 3721 W. 111th St., Chicago. Tickets range from $5 to $20. Proceeds go to improve Chicago parks. See circusintheparks.org for tickets.

#376; The Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights, hosts its annual ladies-only fundraiser Sunday Soiree beginning at 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 29, in the Metropolis Ballroom. Tickets cost $50 per person and include hors d'oeuvres, drinks, music courtesy of Midwest Dueling Pianos and a gift bag. Tickets are available at metropolisarts.com or (847) 577-2121.

#376; The Chicago performing arts venue Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., hosts The Fun House, a fundraiser featuring a variety of entertainment including music, comedy and magic, plus food, a bar and a silent auction. Tickets range from $35 to $125. Chicago comedian Tim Soszko serves as host. (773) 327-5252 or stage773.com.

#376; Previews begin Monday, Sept. 30, for the adults-only #8220;Lanyard Skynerd #8212; The Musical,#8221; running Monday evenings through Oct. 28 at Martyrs, 3855 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. Written by Ed Furman and T.J. Shanoff (#8220;Rod Blagojevich Superstar!#8221;) and directed by Mick Napier, the show tells the story of the greatest fictional Southern rock-parody-corporate-entertainment-band in the world. (773) 404-9494 or martyrslive.com or lanyardskynerd.com.

#376; Music, food, poetry, art and an excerpt from Steppenwolf Theatre's #8220;How Long Will I Cry?#8221; will be featured as part of Rivendell Theatre Ensemble's fundraiser Rough Magic: A Celebration of Those Standing Up to Youth Violence beginning at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 30, at 5779 N. Ridge Ave., Chicago. Proceeds will go to organizations that use creativity and storytelling to address youth violence. Those organizations include: Kids Off The Block, Chicago Citizens for Change and Girl Forward. (773) 334-7728 or rivendelltheatre.org.

#376; Theatre Seven of Chicago brings together nine Chicago-area playwrights who will commemorate the 100th anniversary of female suffrage in Illinois with the world premiere of #8220;Unwilling and Hostile Instruments: 100 Years of Extraordinary Chicago Women.#8221; The writers wove together the stories of extraordinary Chicago women like Jane Addams, Mavis Staples, Cora Strayer and Ida B. Wells among others to create a full-length play beginning previews on Tuesday Oct. 1, at American Theater Company 1909 W. Byron St., Chicago. See theatreseven.org.

#376; Previews begin Tuesday, Oct. 1, for The National Pastime Theater's Chicago premiere of #8220;Lydia#8221; by Octavio Solis. The story centers on an undocumented immigrant/nurse named Cecilia who cares for a family's seriously injured daughter. Cecilia Keenan directs. The site-specific venue is at 941 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago.

#376; Redtwist Theatre presents Bruce Norris' Pulitzer Prize-winning #8220;Clybourne Park,#8221; inspired by Lorraine Hansberry's #8220;A Raisin in the Sun.#8221; Act I centers on the fallout when a black family moves into an all-white Chicago neighborhood. Act II takes place at the same house 50 years later when a white couple purchases it and sparks a neighborhood gentrification. (773) 728-7529 or redtwist.org.

#376; Remy Bumppo Theatre presents the U.S. premiere of Jane Austen's #8220;Northanger Abbey#8221; adapted by Tim Luscombe and beginning previews on Wednesday, Oct. 2, at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. Sarah Price's Catherine Morland is a voracious reader who embarks on a trip with the colorful Mrs. Allen (Annabel Armour) and meets the dashing Henry (Greg Matthew Anderson). (773) 404-7336 or remybumppo.org.

#376; Porchlight Music Theatre presents a limited run of the audience interactive show #8220;Best Musical! A Completely Improvised Musical Comedy#8221; as part of Off the Porch, a new musical development program. Performances begin Wednesday, Oct. 2, at UP Comedy Club, 230 W. North Ave., Chicago. (312) 662-4562 or upcomedyclub.com.

#376; Holocaust survivors will recount their experiences during a post-show question-and-answer session at Victory Gardens Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, following a performance of #8220;Signs of Life.#8221; The play centers on the Nazis' attempts to portray the Theresienstadt ghetto as a success story in propaganda films even as the inmates try to expose the truth through music and art. The post-show chats take place Oct. 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23 and 27. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org or signsoflifethemusical.com.

#376; Performances begin Thursday, Oct. 3, at Saint Luke's Lutheran Church of Logan Square, 2649 N. Francisco Ave., Chicago, for Theatre Y's world premiere of Evan Hill's #8220;The Binding,#8221; a play inspired by the Testament of Abraham, a second century Jewish legend that chronicles the death of Abraham, the arrival of archangel Michael and of Death himself. Theatre Y's world premiere is directed by Melissa Lorraine and Kevlyn Hayes of Found Objects Theater. See theatre-y.com.

#376; Lucky Plush Productions performs two works, #8220;Cinderbox 2.0,#8221; which blurs the line between observer and observed, and #8220;The Better Half,#8221; a dance theater spin on the psychological thriller #8220;Gaslight,#8221; running in repertory at Links Hall, 3111 N. Western Ave., Chicago. #8220;Cinderbox. 2.0#8221; runs Oct. 3-13. #8220;The Better Half#8221; will be performed beginning Oct. 5. (773) 281-0824 or linkshall.org or luckyplush.com.

#376; The Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, presents the Argentine theater company Timbre 4, which brings its show #8220;Tercer Cuerpo (Third Wing)#8221; to the MCA Stage Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 3-5. Written and directed by Claudio Toilcachir, the dark comedy is about a group of forgotten office employees in an abandoned office building who seek meaning in obsolete tasks. (312) 397-4010 or mcachicago.org.

#376; #8220;Funny Old Broads,#8221; a comedy and music show at Gorilla Tango Skokie Theatre, 7924 Lincoln Ave., Skokie, has been extended. Performances continue through Oct. 31. (847) 677-7761 or gorillatango.com.

#376; Mercury Theater Chicago, 3745 N. Southport Ave., Chicago, offers theatergoers a complimentary dinner for two at Cullen's Irish Pub with the purchase of two tickets to Mercury's production of #8220;The Color Purple.#8221; The offer is available on Wednesdays and Thursdays through Oct. 24. (312) 423-6612 or mercurytheatrechicago.com.

#376; About Face Theatre marked the beginning of its 18th season with the appointment of three members in key leadership roles. Corinne Neal has been named managing director. Cara Thaxton has been tapped as About Face's development director. Ali Hoefnagel takes over as the company's education and outreach director.

#376; Jonny Stax, who recently concluded a term as interim artistic director at About Face Theatre, has joined Chicago Children's Theatre as its new director of external affairs, responsible for growing the company and developing new revenue strategies.

#376; Pride Films Plays named Gail Hackston the winner of its 2013 Women's Work Contest for her play #8220;The Green Door,#8221; about a woman who has an affair with a tomboy during 1960s London and is then forbidden by her family of seeing the woman again.

#376; #8220;Murder for Two,#8221; the two-hander musical developed at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, will transfer later this fall to the New World Stages in New York City. Performances begin Oct 23.