Theater spotlight: Gilbert Gottfried takes over Comedy Shrine's NYE shows
NYE at Comedy Shrine
Gilbert Gottfried headlines two New Year's Eve shows at the Comedy Shrine in Aurora. Gottfried ("Aladdin," "The Aristocrats") replaces the previously announced Judy Tenuta.
8 and 10 p.m. Monday, Dec. 31, at 4034 Fox Valley Center Drive, Aurora. $40 for the early show; $45 for the late show (includes champagne toast). (630) 585-0300 or comedyshrine.com.
Stand-up guy
Stand-up comedian Michael Palascak headlines Chicago-area Zanies clubs this weekend. A veteran of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and "The Late, Late Show with James Corden," Palascak trained in sketch comedy and improv at The Second City, iO Chicago and The Annoyance. He played Chicago's Just for Laughs Comedy Festival and a solo show, "Pursuing Happiness," about young adults moving away from home, getting a job and getting married. The late-night New Year's Eve show includes hats, party favors and a champagne toast.
8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 27; 8 and 10:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 28; and 7:30 and 10:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 31, at Parkway Bank Park, 5437 Park Place, Rosemont. $25-$40 plus a two-item minimum. (847) 813-0484. Palascak also performs at 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 29, at Pheasant Run Resort, 4051 E. Main St., St. Charles. $25 plus a two-item minimum. (630) 524-0001. He performs at 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 30, at 1548 N. Wells St., Chicago. $25 plus a two-item minimum. (312) 337-4027. See zanies.com.
'Gothic' remount
Windy City Playhouse remounts its hit show "Southern Gothic," recipient of three 2018 Joseph Jefferson Equity Awards, in an open-ended run at the company's second performance space in Chicago's South Loop. Set in Georgia during the 1960s, this intimate (the audience numbers no more than 30), immersive theater piece by Leslie Liautaud and Carl Menninger unfolds at a cocktail party during which guests reveal unsettling secrets.
7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Jan. 2-3; 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 4; 4 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 5; 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 6, through Jan. 27 at 2229 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago. $65-$100. (773) 891-8985 or windycityplayhouse.com.