Since what goes around comes around, theater-goers have a chance to see popular plays coming to the Windy City this fall.
Tony Award-winner Anna D. Shapiro directs a revival of Michael Frayn’s theatrical romp Noises Off (Sep. 12-Oct. 27) presented by Steppenwolf Theatre Company and Geffen Playhouse. “It’s a gift to have Anna back in the building, directing this unruly and demanding farce,” says Steppenwolf Theatre Artistic Director Glenn Davis. “I can’t wait to see what she creates with her remarkable cast.” Steppenwolf ensemble members Audrey Francis, Francis Guinan, Ora Jones and James Vincent Meredith will perform this play-within-a-play in Steppenwolf’s Downstairs Theater.
Kokandy Productions concludes its season with Into The Woods (Oct. 10-Dec. 22) at the Chopin Studio Theatre. The Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine classic includes “Giants in the Sky,” “On the Steps of the Palace,” “No One Is Alone” and other songs. “What will we find when we wander into these woods?” asks director and choreographer Derek Van Barham. “A company of players, a beloved musical and a little magic.”
Annie returns to The Chicago Theatre (Nov. 12-Dec. 1) with the backing of Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. The Tony Award-winning musical features choreography by Patricia Wilcox with orchestrations by Dan DeLange. The show is directed by Jenn Thompson, who played Pepper in the Original Broadway production when she was a child.
“Annie is a celebration of family and what can happen when you hold on to hope above all else,” says Tony Award-winning composer Charles Strouse. “Chicago audiences have always been so kind to our show, and taken its message to heart, and we’re delighted to kick off our new 2024-2025 tour at the iconic Chicago Theatre — arriving with a little ray of sunshine when we all need it most.”
The theory of evolution is challenged in a revival of Inherit The Wind in Goodman’s Albert Theatre (Sep. 23-Oct. 13). Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee’s Tony Award-winning courtroom drama features Harry Lennix as attorney Henry Drummond and Alexander Gemignani as prosecuting attorney Matthew Harrison Brady.
“Inherit The Wind is a deeply meaningful play for me, not only because it was the first professional play that I saw as a freshman in high school, but also because of the remarkable timeliness of its powerful themes and their uncanny reflection of this current moment in our nation’s history,” explains Goodman Theatre’s Resident Director Henry Godinez. “It is a great American play that I’m honored to help bring to life with some of the greatest actors in Chicago, led by my old friend, the always amazing Harry Lennix. I am beyond excited to share this thought provoking and incredibly moving play with Chicago audiences!”
Goodman will also stage a revival of Harold Pinter’s Betrayal (Feb. 8-March 16) directed by Susan V. Booth. Tickets for the drama starring Oscar winner Helen Hunt and Outer Critics Circle Award winner Ian Barford go on sale Nov. 22.