It may finally be spring, but this month’s noteworthy plays have a dark tinge.
Death will come dancing at Writers Theatre, while the past disturbs a young man at Next. Elsewhere, a sea captain’s obsessive quest will drive him toward destruction. But it won’t be all doom and gloom—hope springs eternal at the theater.
Road Show
Through May 4
“Gypsy” has bowed out, but Gary Griffin’s double feature of Stephen Sondheim isn’t over. Griffin is also directing “Road Show,” a lesser-known Sondheim musical, in the intimate space at this Navy Pier theater. Michael Aaron Lindner and Andrew Rothenberg play the charismatic Mizner brothers, who wheel and deal their way from the Alaskan gold rush of the late 1800s to the Florida real estate boom of the 1920s. Chicago Shakespeare Theater, 800 E. Grand Ave., Chicago, 312-595-5600 (pictured)
The Great God Pan
Through May 11
Two years ago, Kimberly Senior directed playwright Amy Herzog’s “After the Revolution” for this Evanston company. Now, she’s staging this Midwest premiere of another drama by Herzog, who explores the mysterious nature of human memory and how it shapes us in the present moment. The protagonist of “The Great God Pan” has a beautiful girlfriend, a new job and loving parents, but his life is shaken when a possible childhood trauma comes to light. Next Theatre, 927 Noyes St., Evanston, 847-475-1875
The Dance of Death
Through July 20
The title of Swedish playwright August Strindberg’s 1900 drama about a crumbling marriage is a dead giveaway: This isn’t going to be a lightweight frolic. This new version is by Conor McPherson, the masterful Irish author of plays including “Port Authority,” which Writers Theatre staged this past winter. When McPherson’s version of Strindberg’s “Dance” hit the London stage in 2012, a critic for the Telegraph called it “spectacularly bleak yet curiously bracing.” Now, Henry Wishcamper (the guiding force behind Goodman Theatre shows including “Animal Crackers”) is directing the U.S. premiere—quite a coup for this Glencoe company. Writers Theatre at Books on Vernon, 664 Vernon Ave., Glencoe, 847-242-6000
Moby Dick
April 25–May 4
Northwestern University productions star talented students, but they’re also worthwhile because experienced and innovative faculty members are at the helm. Visiting assistant professor David Catlin, a Lookingglass ensemble member who recently directed “The Little Prince” at that theater, is staging his new adaptation of Herman Melville’s classic novel about Captain Ahab and his maniacal quest for that elusive white whale. And he’s doing it with help from Evanston’s Actors Gymnasium, taking advantage of their high-flying aerial acrobatics and physical style of storytelling. Northwestern University’s Ethel M. Barber Theater, 30 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston, 847-491-7282
Theater Guide
BANK OF AMERICA THEATRE
Peter and the Starcatcher
April 2–13
312-977-1700
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATRE
Tristan & Yseult
Through April 13
Henry V
April 29–June 15
312-595-5600
GIFT THEATRE
Thinner Than Water
Through May 25
773-283-7071
GOODMAN THEATRE
God’s Work
April 4–19
312-443-3800
LOOKINGGLASS THEATRE
In The Garden: A Darwinian Love Story
April 16–June 15
312-337-0665
MARRIOTT THEATRE
Cats
Through May 25
847-634-0200
MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
33 rpm and a few seconds
April 10–12
312-397-4010
ORIENTAL THEATRE
Motown the Musical
April 22–July 13
312-977-1700
PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE (AT STAGE 773)
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
April 26–June 1
773-327-5252
A RED ORCHID THEATRE
Mud Blue Sky
April 9–May 25
312-943-8722
REMY BUMPPO THEATRE (AT GREENHOUSE)
Our Class
Through May 11
773-244-8119
SHATTERED GLOBE THEATRE (AT THEATER WIT)
Mill Fire
April 24–June 7
773-975-8150
STEEP THEATRE
If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet
April 17–May 24
866-811-4111
STEPPENWOLF THEATRE
The Way West
Through June 8
312-335-1650
TEATRO VISTA (AT VICTORY GARDENS RICHARD CHRISTIANSEN THEATER)
A View From the Bridge
April 11–May 18
773-599-9280
TIMELINE THEATRE
Juno
April 23–July 27
773-281-8463
Photo by Michael Brosilow
