Ever since he was a teenager in Mississippi, Wayland Early could count on two things - his talent for making handmade shoes, and Della Rose's love. But danger forces them to flee north to Chicago. Before they know it, nearly two decades have passed, and both Wayland and Della find themselves increasingly unable to count on anything, including their marriage. As they each contend with the weight of their spent youth and unrealized dreams, a life-altering question comes to the surface: are they still enough for each other?

Chicago Kids Company Theatre for Children (CKC) presents Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, a one-hour musical adaptation! This musical is JUST RIGHT! This show is based on the classic story of a young girl who ventures into the woods and stumbles on a cute house with 3 bowls of porridge, 3 chairs, and 3 beds. The show runs one hour with no intermission, and is targeted for kids aged 2 to 12.

Music Theater Works brings this 13-time Tony Award-nominated musical with its rich, award-winning score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens - the lyricist and composer duo behind Once on This Island and Seussical to its stage. Ragtime, based on the E. L. Doctorow, tells the unforgettable story of an upper-class wife, a determined Jewish immigrant and a young, daring Harlem musician living during the early years of the 20th century. Showcasing the great struggle that accompanies the American Dream and featuring some of the most well-known figures of the time, Ragtime tells the tale of three different individuals who desire a brighter future but must unite to achieve their goals.

An element as bright as the Roaring Twenties, radium can shrink tumors and illuminate clock dials. But as its industry grows, factory workers are dying from a gruesome disease linked to the nation's latest miracle cure. Radium Girls follows Grace Fryer and other dial painters suing for recognition from the company that made them sick. In this earnest and courageous work, the road to court is long, the clock is ticking, and Grace must decide between family or justice before it's too late. Through humor, heart, and haunting dialogue, D.W. Gregory's historical play reflects on labor rights, the commercialization of science, and the growing fixation on wealth and success, by any means.

In Queen C, a Queen pushes back against being defined by the obligations she was born to fulfill. How far will she be willing to go to get the life she desires?

Tom and Eliza are marching relentlessly towards their future together - and the end of the world. Told in one long breath, Celine Song's play offers a humorous and harrowing look at the primal and intellectual forces at the heart of one couple's relationship.

In Bradberry and Gordon's retelling, the leading character is named H.G. Wells. This Wells is a 21st century science journalist thrust into the events of an alien invasion after a meteor from the "Red Planet" Mars crashes 70 miles outside Chicago at the start of the new decade. Separated from family, friends, and everything they have ever known, the eclectic cast of Chicagoland characters must do everything in their power to survive as our world comes crashing down around them. As the Martians reveal their deadly Heat-Ray and their true intentions, whirling our characters into hair-raising chases across Chicago, one question remains: is life on Earth doomed?

The Battlefields of Clara Barton is a modern folk/rock musical about the vibrant life of Clara Barton, a Civil War nurse, a political activist, and a revered founder of the American Red Cross. In a tumultuous life that spanned almost a century, Clara fought on many battlefields: historical, political, and emotional. Brought to life by an ensemble of women playing multiple roles where age and gender are fluid, the threads of Clara's story run from past to present with seamless synchronicity, creating a rich tapestry of themes as personal and potent today as they were then.

Over the course of a parent/teacher conference, a distraught mother and an emotionally overwhelmed primary school teacher have a fraught conversation about the mother's son, Gidion. As his story is slowly revealed, the women try to reconstruct a satisfying explanation for Gidion's actions and come to terms with their culpability. Mature audiences only.

This festival of new play readings, by up-and-coming Chicago playwrights, brings contemporary theatre to the forefront with a complementary publication.

An immersive Halloween experience that brings to life in vivid technicolor the world of the cult-classic film. Just a jump to the left and you will find Rocky Horror themed performances by some of Chicago's favorite actors and drag royalty, including, Ramona Slick, Travis Fiero, and Aurora Gozmic with DJ Ca$h Era and Bonita Appleblunt spinning the tracks. Titillating burlesque and captivating pole dancing weave throughout the performances, with an appearance from Helena Handbasket never giving you a chance to catch your breath.

Porchlight's 27th season kicks off with a stop at the Double Cupp Diner for Pump Boys & Dinettes, one of the longest running shows in Chicago Theatre history and a country fried phenomenon filled with toe-tapping music on guitar, piano, bass and a kitchen utensil or two! This North Carolina dinette is your home off the highway and located just across the street from the filling station. Run by Prudie and Rhetta Cupp, beloved sisters who are always ready with a cup of Joe, a slice of pie, a homespun song and a "Welcome back!" The New York Times said "It doesn't merely celebrate the value of friendship and life's simple pleasures, it embodies them."

Long before she was Carole King, chart-topping music legend, she was Carol Klein, Brooklyn girl with passion and chutzpah. She fought her way into the record business as a teenager and, by the time she reached her twenties, had the husband of her dreams and a flourishing career writing hits for the biggest acts in rock 'n' roll. But it wasn't until her personal life began to crack that she finally managed to find her true voice. BEAUTIFUL tells the inspiring true story of King's remarkable rise to stardom, from being part of a hit songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin, to her relationship with fellow writers and best friends Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann, to becoming one of the most successful solo acts in popular music history. Along the way, she made more than beautiful music, she wrote the soundtrack to a generation.

New York City. 1863. The Civil War raged on. An extraordinary thing occurred amid the dangerous streets and crumbling tenement houses of the Five Points, the notorious 19th-century Lower Manhattan slum. Irish immigrants escaping the devastation of the Great Famine settled alongside free-born Black Americans and those who escaped slavery, arriving by means of the Underground Railroad. The Irish, relegated at that time to the lowest rung of America's social status, received a sympathetic welcome from their Black neighbors (who enjoyed only slightly better treatment in the burgeoning industrial-era city). The two communities co-existed, intermarried, raised families, and shared their cultures in this unlikeliest of neighborhoods.

An undisputed comic legend, Lenny Bruce was one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. His life and work have had an impact on poetry, politics, music, film and of course, comedy. Bruce's tempestuous personal and professional life was marked by great passion and great pain. His unwavering commitment to free speech led to numerous obscenity charges and arrests. No stranger to Chicago, Bruce was arrested for obscenity for his performance at The Gate of Horn in December 1962. Bruce fought for freedom of speech all the way to the Supreme Court. He died of an accidental overdose in 1966, while out on appeal. Bruce has not yet been surpassed at his particular brand of art and if he were around today, he would be in as much trouble as when he was alive.

Mozart's miraculous blend of the human and the supernatural, comedy and romance, draws us into a world where a prince, Tamino, and a princess, Pamina, triumph over every obstacle in their search for wisdom and enlightenment, and are finally united in love. This is a gloriously varied score, with the lovers' soulful arias, the stratospheric vocal fireworks of the villainous Queen of the Night, the subterranean depths of the formidable high priest Sarastro, and the folk-like melodies of the lovable birdcatcher, Papageno. Lyric brings you a critically acclaimed production that pays homage to the silent movies of the 1920s, praised by The Guardian as "a joyous yet profound staging in which animation takes centre stage...[taking] live video to new heights on the opera stage."

Emmy Award-winner and Academy Award-nominee David Strathairn-best known for memorable turns in films including Good Night, and Good Luck, Nomadland, and Lincoln-takes the stage in a tour-de-force performance. Meet World War II hero Jan Karski who, after surviving the devastation of his native Poland by Nazi Germany, risks his life to carry the first eyewitness reports of the Holocaust to the White House, only to be met with inaction and disbelief. Strathairn captures the remarkable life of the self-described "insignificant, little man" who spoke truth in the halls of power in a timely story of moral courage.