Chicago News Desk - Page 7

Torben Betts' The Unconquered is a fast-moving satirical portrait of patriarchy, political indolence and over-reaction. The laughs begin when the 're-liberation' knocks on the door of your average upper-middle class family after aggressive revolutionaries have overthrown the government. Strange and unsettling, their new found freedom provokes the parents to reminisce about the comfort of life under the previous aristocracy while their spirited daughter criticizes her parent's banal and conforming attitudes with great, yet impotent, ferocity. The piece is a reflection of war's long-reaching effects on the domestic front, demonstrating the encompassing ambiguity of a public out of touch with reality. With great wit, poetics and charm, Betts sketches the self-hypocrisy that materializes during times of opaque identity and societal partition.

Court Theatre continues its 2008/09 season with SITI Company's Radio Macbeth adapted from the play by Shakespeare and co-directed by SITI Company Artistic Director Anne Bogart and Darron L. West. The production will run November 6, 2008 - December 7, 2008 at Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis Avenue. The press opening will be Saturday, November 8, 2008 at 8:00 p.m.

The first 50 people to arrive at The Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport, to see the acclaimed drama THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS on Friday, October 31 at 8 p.m. will receive a festive goody bag filled with fall treats from Wrigleyville's gourmet candy shop Candyality.

Broadway In Chicago encourages all Chicagoans to vote and then celebrate the election of the 44th President by offering theater patrons $44 tickets on Election Day, November 4, 2008, to the international stage hits DIRTY DANCING, Jersey Boys and WICKED. Election returns will be announced during intermission and at the close of the show.

Artistic Director BJ Jones and Executive Director Timothy J. Evans announce the Chicago premiere of the Tony Award-winning musical Grey Gardens, book by Doug Wright, lyrics by Michael Korie and music by Scott Frankel. The production, directed by BJ Jones with musical direction by Doug Peck, choreography by Marla Lampert and featuring Hollis Resnik, Tempe Thomas and Ann Whitney, has already been extended and will now run November 12-December 28, 2008, at Northlight Theatre, 9501 Skokie Blvd in Skokie.

'Rosie! A Tribute' is a loving and well-told musical adventure spanning the 40 year career of the great Girl Singer, Rosemary Clooney. Heather Moran has deftly created a musical tapestry from the colorful life of Clooney, spanning from her birth in Maysville, Kentucky, through her nervous breakdown in the late 1960's, her mid 1970's comeback, all the way to her death in 2002.

Profiles Theatre continues its 20th Anniversary Season with the OBIE Award-winning dark comedy The Thugs by Adam Bock, directed by Profiles Artistic Director Joe Jahraus. The production runs October 29-December 14, 2008, at Profiles Theatre, 4147 N. Broadway. The play will run in repertory with Profiles' production of Men of Tortuga, playing through December 7, 2008. The press opening for The Thugs is Wednesday, October 29, 2008, at 8:00 p.m.

Philadelphia wants to build its new American Museum of Liberty on the grounds of George Washington's home and slave quarters. Soon a conservative academic star and a liberal political activist are confronting each other with polarizing questions of African-American identity and legacy. Elegantly juxtaposed with this contemporary conflict is the true story of one of Washington's slaves as she contemplates escape. The result is a thought-provoking drama that asks vital questions about race in America, both where we've been and where we go next.

'MARTIAN INVASION! DECODING THE WAR OF THE WORLDS,' a special live edition of the cult sensation Radio Lab, will take place at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue, on Sunday, October 26 and Monday, October 27 at 7:30 pm. This special event, ideal for getting into the Halloween spirit, is presented as part of Victory Gardens' new Fresh Squeezed series of late night shows, out-of-the-box performances and edgy social events showcasing fresh talent from Chicago and around the country, targeting younger, culturally adventurous audiences.

The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, in association with Michigan Opera Theatre (MOT), presents the Chicago premiere of Margaret Garner, a new American opera based on one of the most significant and controversial fugitive slave stories in pre-Civil War America. The opera will be directed by Kenny Leon, whose recent Broadway credits include the Tony Award-winning A Raisin in the Sun; Gem of the Ocean and Radio Golf. Margaret Garner features music by Grammy Award-winning composer Richard Danielpour and a libretto by Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, a novelist noted for her poetically charged and richly expressive depictions of the African American experience.

It's time to act like adults again, and Victory Gardens Theater's Family Saturday series makes it easy.

Join Village Players as national storyteller Megan Wells treats audiences to a one-woman performance of the original Dracula! Called 'the Kate Hepburn of storytelling,' Megan gives audiences a dramatic and heart-pounding mix of myth and theater, adapted from Bram Stoker's famous novel.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company continues its 2008-2009 season, an exploration of the imagination, with a special engagement of Dublin Carol, by Conor McPherson, directed by ensemble member Amy Morton. The production, featuring Stephen Louis Grush, William Petersen and Nicole Wiesner, runs November 6 - December 21, 2008 in Steppenwolf's Upstairs Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St. The press performance is Sunday, November 16 at 3:00 p.m.

'Rosie! A Tribute…' is a loving musical adventure spanning the 40 year career of the great Girl Singer, Rosemary Clooney. Heather Moran has deftly created a musical tapestry from the colorful life of Clooney, spanning from her birth in Maysville, Kentucky, through her setbacks in the late 1960's, her mid 1970's comeback, all the way to her death in 2002. Heather has assembled some of Chicago's hottest jazz musicians and guest performers to round out engaging evening of stories and song. Please visit Heather Moran's website at www.heathermoran.com to learn more about her career and upcoming schedule.

The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University will host an unforgettable gala on Sunday, Nov. 2 to celebrate the Chicago premiere of Margaret Garner, a new American opera based on one of the most significant and controversial fugitive slave stories in pre-Civil War America.

Just in time for the Halloween season Hell in a Handbag kicks off it's 2008-2009 season with a spine-tingling, horror comedy parody under the big top. HAYWIRE!

Steppenwolf Theatre Company launches its Steppenwolf for Young Adults 2008-2009 Season with The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, directed by ensemble member Yasen Peyankov. A unique production of Tennessee Williams' classic 'memory play' featuring an all African-American cast

The exhilarating Broadway musical 'ALL SHOOK UP', featuring the songs of the legendary Elvis Presley, previews September 24th, opens October 1st, and runs through December 7th at the Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive. Led by Chicago's favorite Director and Choreographer Marc Robin, ALL SHOOK UP will have you dancing in your seats!

American Theater Company (ATC) continues its ambitious Season 24 with the Chicago Premiere of 'Celebrity Row' written by Itamar Moses and directed by David Cromer. The production will run October 16- November 9, 2008 at American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron St, Chicago.

Lifeline Theatre KidSeries presents the world premiere musical adaptation 'Duck for President,' showing both the heady and headachey sides of politics just in time for the election, based on the popular bestseller by Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Betsy Lewin, adapted by ensemble member James E. Grote, music and lyrics by George Howe, and directed by ensemble member Shole Milos (the same team that brought the recent kids' hit Click, Clack, Moo).