Goldstar

BackStage Theatre Company presents a dark and disturbing play by writer and actor Wallace Shawn (My Dinner with Andre). In Aunt Dan and Lemon, a reclusive young woman named Lemon recounts her seemingly ordinary life story, which becomes increasingly dominated by an eccentric family friend known as Aunt Dan. The play serves as a complex meditation on compassion and morality. Learn more...

Now at the Apollo Theater after a sold-out limited engagement, the new musical Million Dollar Quartet recaptures the memorable December 4, 1956 night when legends Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins met in Memphis for an impromptu jam session. The show is loaded with rock 'n' roll hits such as "Blue Suede Shoes," "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" and "Great Balls of Fire." Learn more...

Everyone's favorite softhearted buccaneers are back, and they're in the mood for matrimony. Join the dashing Pirate King, the bumbling Sergeant of Police and the Modern Major General for a swashbuckling holiday good time. Includes the classic songs "Poor Wand'ring One," "I Am a Pirate King," "A Policeman's Lot is Not a Happy One" and "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General" played by a 26 piece orchestra. Learn more...

The Tony Award-winning Lincoln Center Theater production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific comes to the Rosemont Theatre. Set on a tropical island during World War II, the musical tells the sweeping romantic story of two couples and how their happiness is threatened by the realities of war and by their own prejudices. Learn more...

Family favorite A Christmas Carol is back at Drury Lane Oakbrook Terrace this holiday season. In Drury Lane Children's Theatre's production of this Dickens classic, an old miser has an incredible change of heart over the course of one night after being visited by ghosts from Christmas past, present and future. Learn more...

Raven Theatre presents Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman. Justly revered as one of the finest plays in American history, the story of traveling salesman Willy loman and his desperate pursuit of the American Dream remains stunningly powerful and tragic today. Learn more...

Thoroughly Modern Millie is a humorous story of a young girl from Kansas who takes New York City by storm as she flaps, taps and Charlestons her way into the Roaring '20s. Millie experiences the hustle and bustle of Jazz Age Manhattan at a time when women were just entering the workforce and rewriting society's rules. It's a funny, romantic story about following dreams and falling in love. Learn more...

Chicago Shakespeare Theatre presents Richard III. The classic story of a deformed king whose nefarious schemes lead him to the throne and threaten the safety of England was Shakespeare's first great stage success, and remains wildly popular. Helen Hayes Award-winning actor Wallace Acton plays the title role. Learn more...

Porchlight Music Theatre presents Miracle on 34th Street, a stage adaptation of the classic holiday movie. A kindly old gentleman takes a job as a department store Santa. He claims to be the genuine article, convincing a cynical divorced single mother, her somber daughter, and the entire state of New York that Santa Claus is no myth. Learn more...

In an attempt to save her small-town community center during an economic crisis, a young girl tries to convince Nick Nolte via the Internet to appear in her "celebrity" benefit holiday pageant: the story of Jesus told through the music of rock band Queen. Learn more...

Chicago's oldest cemetery is the backdrop for Graceland, the story of four lonely Chicagoans -- including a brother and sister dealing with their father's suicide -- whose lives collide one August weekend while the Blue Angels airshow is in town. This world premiere comedy-drama deals with the loneliness of family, the tenderness of strangers and the unexpected benefits of bad decisions. Learn more...

In a time of national tragedy, the world changes overnight. On September 12, 2001, Ben Harcourt finds himself in the downtown apartment of his lover, Abby Prescott. Over the course of the night, Ben and Abby explore the choices now available to them in an existence different from the one they knew just the day before. LaBute presents the brutal realities of their relationship and explores whether one can be truly opportunistic in a time of universal selflessness. Learn more...

As part of an annual holiday tradition, The Victory Gardens Theatre presents The Snow Queen. Hans Christian Andersen's beloved winter tale comes to life in a show featuring human actors alongside delightful puppetry and Michael Smith's magical, wickedly funny score. Learn more...

Remy Bumppo Theatre Co. presents Heroes. Tom Stoppard's Olivier Award-winning translation of Gerald Sibleyras's comedy tells the funny and bittersweet story of three French World War I veterans who keep each other company on the back terrace of a retired soldiers' home, exchanging quips and plotting to escape to a grand adventure in Indochina. Learn more...

The greatest "Ziggy Stardust" Christmas special that never was features singing and dancing impersonations of Mick Jagger, Annie Lennox, Iggy Pop, Marianne Faithfull, Paul Lynde, Charo and the Ghost of Freddy Mercury. But when the mysterious Bizarro Bowie appears to reveal secrets from his past, this '70s glam rock sleigh ride really gets bizarre. Learn more...

A young advertising executive reaches the breaking point and decides to disappear. He turns to an expert for a detailed lesson in the art of escape. The mission? To dispose of everything that defined his former self. How to Disappear... is an adrenaline-charged play that won the 38th Arts Council John Whiting Award for New Theatre Writing and a 2007 Peter Brook Award. Learn more...

Based on an extraordinary true story, Calls to Blood tells the darkly comic tragedy of the perfect American couple and their seemingly impenetrable happiness even as they struggle to conceive the child they want so desperately. But in trying to find a solution to this continual failure, they unearth the one truth that can destroy everything upon which their perfect lives have been built. Learn more...

American Blues Theater presents a live radio-style performance of Frank Capra's holiday masterpiece on stage at the Biograph Theater. Complete with live sound effects and an original score, It's a Wonderful Life recreates a 1940s-era radio broadcast of this heartwarming tale of troubled George Bailey's Christmas Eve journey through his life history. Learn more...

You Can't Take It With You follows the clash between a conservative family and the more eccentric Sycamore-Vanderhof household. Full of fast pacing and witty one-liners, the play, written by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, has entertained audiences for over 70 years. It's a classic comedy that is as fresh as ever. Learn more...

Noble Fool presents a holiday-themed sequel to the musical hit Forever Plaid. Thanks to a heavenly phone call from Rosemary Clooney, the four Plaid men return to harmonize on songs from the 1930s, '40s and '50s in their own hilarious tribute to the classic Ed Sullivan Christmas Spectaculars. Learn more...

Come see the acclaimed Chicago theater mainstay Tony n' Tina's Wedding as it celebrates 15 years on stage. Be a guest at this hysterical satirical Italian-American wedding, where you won't just see a show--you'll be a part of it! Tony n' Tina's Wedding includes a pre-wedding cocktail cash bar, a ceremony full of mishaps and madcap comedy, and an evening of dinner, music and dancing. Learn more...

With buoyant music by Stephen Flaherty and a bawdy book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime and Once on this Island), The Glorious Ones mixes the pratfalls of commedia dell'arte and classic American musical comedy in a show about the life of a clown troupe in 16th century Italy and how they captured the public's adoration. Learn more...

This timeless Nutcracker tale comes alive on horseback. This unique production features a dreamy young girl, a magic prince, a mysterious old man, and a cast of beautiful horses. The Nutcracker on Horseback captures the whimsy and magic of Tchaikovsky's original. Learn more...

It doesn't matter what denomination you are, anyone can enjoy Burlesque Is More, a holiday-themed version of the popular Late Night Tit Bits. Featuring acts by seven stimulating ladies, you'll get to know the girls as they tackle a problem based on a suggestion from the audience, with assistance from their ever-helpful Club Owner, Nick Divencenzo. Learn more...

Written by rock journalist Mark Guarino and featuring the music and artwork of Bloodshot Records recording artist Jon Langford, this phantasmic journey into the mind of a fictional country music legend is what an episode of Howdy Doody might look like if it were directed by David Lynch. Learn more...

While a father tries to move dope, his son tries to find his voice. Nuyorican playwright Reinaldo Povod's explosive drama, Cuba and His Teddy Bear, features a dynamic ensemble of award winning, nominated actors and exciting newcomers. Journey back to the mid 1980s and experience New York's Lower East Side like never before; a world where love, drugs, family and faith are everything. Learn more...

Factory Theater's 1985 imagines an Orwellian Chicago where disavowing oneself from team loyalty isn't easy and might just be impossible. Winston Smith is sick of losing. The major sports teams in Chicago let him down time and time again. He's done. Or is he? If the Bears win, what will be the cost? On the heels of Chicago's failed Olympic bid, 1985 examines the culture and heart of a city that demands victory, but rarely achieves it. Learn more...

Join Jack the Bird and LeeLee the Christmas Tree as they set out on an adventure to find Holli the Snow Princess to save Christmas. This musical for families continues Li'l Buds' tradition of casting professional actors and children together to create a high quality theatrical experience that speaks to kid and adult audiences alike. Learn more...

The Steins are having an identity crisis: Mom has been "born again" and spends all day chatting with Jesus in the kitchen; Dad hasn't gotten out of his pajamas in weeks and is starting to smell; and 16 year old Rachel is coping by going "goth." Who will save this family? Jesus? Stephen Hawking? Or Rachel's awkward new classmate who shows up at their door in his Elvis jumpsuit? Learn more...

Laugh Out Loud Theater presents Instant Musical, a night of improvised comedy set to music. The theater's rteam of hilarious improvisers will create songs on the spot based on audience suggestions, ranging from love ballads to blues numbers and rap. Then, they'll unite to create a completely improvised Broadway-style musical. Learn more...

Adventure Stage Chicago presents Gossamer. Based on a book by Newbery Medal-winning author Lois Lowry, Gossamer tells an inspiring story of the magical creatures who create dreams. A young Dream-Giver struggles to heal the hearts of an abused young boy and those around him in this powerful story, told with the aid of colorful projections and enchanting puppetry. Learn more...

Eclipse Theatre Company presents Romulus Linney's historical drama Democracy. In the potitical society of 1870s Washington, two beautiful women must decide whether to marry two men. This scathingly funny, insightful play, based on two novels by Henry Adams, is set against the backdrop of Ulysses S. Grant's scandal-plagued administration. Learn more...

Douglas Post's Murder in Green Meadows is a psychological thriller about two couples living in a quiet suburban neighborhood, where their middle-American exteriors hide a diabolical plot of deception, sex, murder and mind games. Learn more...

Piccolo presents Perseus & Medusa: Or It's All Greek to Me! as its 7th-annual holiday Panto. A story of monsters, gods and true love, Perseus & Medusa takes audiences on a wild ride through the world of Greek mythology. Learn more...

Phèdra is cursed by the gods to love her step-son, Hippolytus, who hides a secret love affair of his own. Emotional, turbulent and sexy, Phèdra is a mythical soap opera for the contemporary audience. Based on ancient myths, this tragedy examines how love and unabated passions can destroy us all. Learn more...

Two actors take on innumerable dramatis personae in Charles Ludlam's high-camp quick-change act. Vep satirizes all that is ridiculous in Gothic horror, Victorian melodrama, classic film, and conventional theater--and it's also a contender for the funniest American play of the last quarter-century. Learn more...

Bear Down, a new comedy from The Pub Theater, asks Bears fans, "Have you accepted Jay Cutler as your personal savior?" This over-the-top comedy tells the story of a group of die-hard Bears fans who anticipate great things for the franchise's new quarterback. But when the Bears lose yet another receiver to injury, one fan takes it upon himself to lead the team to glory. Learn more...

Like their heroes Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, it's wee lads Mojo and Mickybo against the world in this bittersweet tale of innocence lost. Two actors play seventeen characters in Owen McCafferty's rollicking and poignant thrill ride through 1970 Belfast where the gritty urban landscape is transformed by the exuberant artistry of the boys' imaginations. Learn more...

If the Postone family can rely on anything, they can rely on their summers in Maine. They spend every summer in a cottage by the sea and nothing ever changed...until this summer. With a divorce on the horizon, a daughter on the brink of sexual awakening, and a veteran of the current war keeping watch from across the bay, after this summer nothing will ever be the same. Learn more...

The Royal George Theatre presents Will Clinger's solo comedy about a self-help guru and infomercial celebrity who claims to have the answers to a better way of life. Clinger plays Dr. Harlon Stewart as well as ten of the doctor's devotees, who have chosen to follow his dubious advice. Learn more...

Set in the dank, gray moors of Scotland, this fantastical excursion follows a lovable American woman named Christine and her obsessive quest to be close to her favorite author, Ingrid. While narrating with the fervor of an aspiring writer, the humorously skittish Christine attempts to appropriate Ingrid's character, and in the process is forced to deconstruct her own illusions of love and happiness. Learn more...

Chemically Imbalanced Comedy presents their Comedy Showcase, featuring local improv and sketch comedy groups performing on stage. Each show features three groups drawn from Chicago's legendary improv comedy scene. Learn more...

The creator of the hit Late Nite Catechism is back with another satirical look at religion. In the audience-participation comedy Saints & Sinners, Mother Superior hits upon a fundraising scheme to save her parish: sell a calendar of famous saints and sinners. The audience will have a chance to vote, ask questions, and win prizes in a trivia contest. Learn more...

Factory Theater's new comic thriller is set in Haneyville, Texas, in 1975 -- a time and place when life was easier, and the good life meant something good on the television, a fresh meal and a warm house. But in Hunky Dory, that quest for the good life goes crazily awry. Learn more...

On the heels of the government's apology to African-Americans for slavery, the Reparations Movement and a new America is born. Roosevelt, a soldier duty-bound to protect the new world order must negotiate his obligations to his lover, his family, and his government. Learn more...

Tales & Times presents the works of renowned American editorialist, journalist, short-story writer and satirist Ambrose Bierce adapted for the stage. Nine new adaptations of his seldom staged work demonstrate why his lean stories of war, fantasy and horror still resonate nearly a century after the enigmatic author mysteriously disappeared into the Mexican desert. Learn more...