The Chicago area’s theater season falls into place this month with an intriguing New York troupe visiting the North Shore and acclaimed dramas making their local premieres.
The Old Man and the Old Moon
September 3 to November 10
PigPen Theatre Co., which created this mythological adventure in New York, is coming to Glencoe to perform it. Featuring indie-folk music and puppets, it’s the tale of a man whose job is collecting spilled light to refill the leaking moon—until he abandons his post to search for his lost love. Writers’ Theatre, 325 Tudor Ct., Glencoe, 847-242-6000
4000 Miles
September 14 to October 20
This drama by Amy Herzog (who also wrote “Belleville,” seen recently at Steppenwolf) was Timemagazine’s choice for the best play of 2012, when it played Off Broadway. That was just one of many accolades for this play about a rudderless 21-year-old seeking refuge in his elderly grandmother’s apartment. Northlight Theatre, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, 847-673-6300
Pullman Porter Blues
September 14 to October 20
Cheryl L. West’s play gives us a glimpse of the lives of African-American porters who worked on luxurious pullman train cars. It’s 1937, and three generations of one black family are on a train from Chicago to New Orleans, awaiting news of the world heavyweight championship bout between Joe Louis and James Braddock. Chuck Smith directs the Chicago premiere, featuring a band playing the blues. (Pictured top right) Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, 312-443-3800
The Wheel
September 12 to November 10
Tina Landau directs Joan Allen and other Steppenwolf ensemble members in this U.S. premiere about a woman in 19th-century Spain who unexpectedly becomes a young girl’s guardian in the midst of a war zone. Zinnie Harris’ play was originally performed by the National Theatre of Scotland at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2011. Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St., Chicago, 312-335-1650
Cyrano de Bergerac
September 24 to November 10
Harry Groener, who starred in Chicago Shakespeare’s smash hit “The Madness of King George III,” teams up again with the director of that show, Penny Metropulos. This time, they’re reviving Edmond Rostand’s famous tale of a romantic nobleman with an extraordinarily large nose. Chicago Shakespeare Theater, 800 E. Grand Ave., Chicago, 312-595-5600
Theater Guide
AMERICAN BLUES THEATER (AT GREENHOUSE)
Hank Williams: Lost Highway
September 5 to October 6
773-404-7336
BROADWAY PLAYHOUSE
To Master the Art
September 10 to October 6
312-977-1700 ext. 2250
COURT THEATRE
The Mountaintop
September 5 to October 6
773-753-4472
HOUSE THEATRE (AT THE CHOPIN)
The Crownless King
August 30 to October 20
773-769-3832
LIFELINE THEATRE
The Killer Angels
September 6 to October 27
773-761-4477
NEO-FUTURISTS
Sweet Child of Mine
September 5–21
773-878-4557
ORIENTAL THEATRE
Evita
September 17 to October 6
312-977-1700
PROFILES THEATRE
In God’s Hat
August 23 to October 13
773-549-1815
RAVEN THEATRE
The Trip to Bountiful
September 17 to November 17
773-338-2177
TIMELINE THEATRE
A Raisin in the Sun
August 20 to November 17
773-281-8463
