Looking for laughs? Try Schaumburg's Laugh Out Loud and Chicago's Goodman Theatre
Summer laughs
Laugh Out Loud Theater invites patrons to chill out with "Hot Laugh Summer," a weekly sketch and improv showcase featuring members of the theater's main stage cast. Also at LOL, the ensemble Down in Front riffs on B-movies on Thursdays as part of the improv show "Down in Front: B-minus."
"Hot Laugh Summer" is at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 31, $20. "Down in Front: B-minus" is at 8 p.m. Thursdays, Aug. 5-26, $15. Performances take place at 601 N. Martingale Road, Schaumburg. (847) 240-0386 or laughoutloudtheater.com.
'School Girls' reopens
Goodman Theatre's COVID-19 delayed, live, in-person Chicago premiere of "School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play," directed by Joseph Jefferson Award-winner Lili-Anne Brown, reopens this week. Jocelyn Bioh's comedy is about the queen bee at a girls boarding school in Ghana whose status is jeopardized by the arrival of a newcomer from Ohio.
Previews at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, July 30-31, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 1, at 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago. The production opens at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 2. Previews cost $15-$30; regular run is $20-$45. (312) 443-3800 or goodmantheatre.org.
Livestream reading
A young widow, a lonely call center worker and her estranged grandmother - all coming to terms with ghosts from their past - find their lives are more intertwined than they imagined in "Outbound," an examination of loneliness, loss and resilience by Caitlin Collins. Redtwist theatre's staged Zoom reading marks the theater company's last livestreamed event of its season.
Streams on Zoom at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 6, 7, 13 and 14 and 3 p.m. Aug. 8. $20. See redtwist.org for Zoom links.
In other news
• Improv Playhouse's Theatre for Young Audiences presents the interactive, educational tale "Ranger Tales: True Stories From America's National Parks" using music and puppetry to share tales from the Great Smoky Mountains, Yellowstone National Park, Everglades National Park and Mammoth Cave National Park. "I love that 'Ranger Tales' is engaging for both audience and actor," said cast member Anna Mae Durham in a prepared statement. "This show does a great job in making these topics fun and digestible for everyone." Performances begin at 1 p.m. Saturday, July 31, at 735 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. $5 for children, $10 for adults, $20 for a family of four. (847) 968-4529 or improvplayhouse.com.
• Victory Gardens Theater artistic director Ken-Matt Martin hosts a town hall meeting titled "Ask Me Anything With Ken-Matt Martin" at 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 2, on Zoom. Participants will have a chance to ask Martin questions, hear his vision for the future and meet VGT artists. Admission is free. RSVP at victorygardens.org/event/summer-town-halls. "During the first weeks of my tenure at Victory Gardens, I embarked on a 'listening tour' to connect with Chicago artists who have been deeply connected to the Chicago theater community, in order to talk about the history, celebrate the artistry and craft a new future," said Martin in a prepared statement. "These town halls will welcome people together, including those who already love Victory Gardens and any new or curious patrons and artists to express their thoughts, to ask questions and to learn what is in store."
• PlayMakers Laboratory celebrates the 20th anniversary of its sketch show "That's Weird, Grandma" with a digital special from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 5. The in-person viewing party takes place at The Annoyance Theatre, 851 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago. Proof of vaccination is required. Viewers can also stream the show on Facebook Live. The show consists of 20 digitally produced stories from the last 20 years performed by current and emeritus ensemble members. "That's Weird, Grandma" is comprised of stories by Chicago schoolchildren adapted for the stage by ensemble members. Reservations are required. Donations are accepted. See playmakerslab.org/events.
• Goodman Theatre and the Chicago Park District's Night Out in the Parks partner for the family-friendly "Zulema" to be performed in various Chicago parks from Thursday, Aug. 5, through Sept. 2. Accompanied by music from the ensemble Sones de Mexico, "Zulema" tells the story of a young girl who travels from her home in Chiapas, Mexico, to Chicago. Admission is free. See goodmantheatre.org.
• Veterans of the shuttered ShawChicago have united to form Misalliance Repertory Theatre, a group dedicated to the plays of George Bernard Shaw and his contemporaries. The group's first production, an audio version of George Bernard Shaw's one-act "The Music Cure," is streaming at misalliancerepertory.org. A satire on fad cures and government scandals, the play is about a British politician involved in a financial scandal coping with stress for which a famous pianist provides the cure. Associate artistic director Gary Alexander helms the comedy, which features Matt Gall, Doug MacKechnie and Kate Young with musical accompaniment by Tom Bachtell and sound effects/audio editing by George Zahora.