Theater

What do you get when you cross a time-travel storyline with 1980s hit songs and excellent performances? The answer is a world-premiere musical that's fun entertainment.

The Blackberry Polo Club will host “A Wop Bop A Loo Bop!” fundraiser in July to benefit the Marquee Youth Stage.

'Come From Away' tells the story of a group of stranded passengers who were diverted to Newfoundland on September 11, 2001.

Two strong singers who can act up a storm power Drury Lane Theatre’s current production of “Always … Patsy Cline,” based on a true story.

Among the highlights of summer in the suburbs are “Always…Patsy Cline" on stage, along with the band Asia's John Payne, folk music and blues artists, Wheaton Municipal Band, a book sale extraordinaire and walking tour.

Members of the cast of Annie Jr. rehearsed Annie Jr. on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, at the First United Methodist Church in Henry. The show will be presented July 25-27 at the River Valley Players theater in Henry.

The nationally recognized American Players Theatre delivers a comic treat just over the Illinois border in Wisconsin. "Fallen Angels" is one of the nine plays presented in repertory this summer into fall.

A talented team brings the Tony-nominated musical comedy to the Woodstock Opera House stage.

Uplifting and also down to earth, the true-story musical “42 Balloons” is flying high through June 29.

This season's performances include “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” "Buried Child" and "Miracle on 34th Street."

Rock bands take the stage as festivals and concert series unfold across the suburbs, complemented by cruise nights, Wheaton Drama's new show, a spotlight on rarely seen artworks and an antiques sale fundraiser.

The musical is based on the classic 2001 film starring Reese Witherspoon.

Festival 56 will begin its summer 2025 cabaret series Saturday, June 21, with a 7:30 p.m. performance at the Grace Theater, 316 S. Main St. in Princeton.

Event starts at 1:15 p.m. at Town & Country Days festival tent

Carolee Carmello’s performance is a tour de force in this recent Tony Award winner for Best Musical.

"True West" runs July 16-Aug. 31 at Paramount's Copley Theatre in downtown Aurora.

The Kirk Players are proud to present the season finale of their 59th season, “The Wisdom of Eve,” by Mary Orr, with performances June 20, June 21, and June 22. 

The Forest Preserve District of Will County is offering free fishing days Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Hidden Lakes Trout Farm in Bolingbrook.

The play is an adaptation of the hit movie of the same name starring Reese Witherspoon.

Country Theatre Workshop will be perform "9 to 5 the Musical" later this month.

It's time to mark calendars for three free performances on the Woodstock Square of “A Bit O’ The Bard: Something Wicked" at 6 p.m. Saturdays, July 26 and Aug. 2 and 9, plus an earlier Wisconsin show July 19.

Engle Lane Theatre in Streator will present "These Shining Lives," a drama based on the true story of the women who worked at the Radium Dial Company in Ottawa, beginning Sunday, June 15.

Dixon Stage Left Artistic Director Jimmy Ferraro will add a new twist to the community theater scene by offering a senior theater for people 55 and older.

Show dates are Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 10-12, at the Allure of Pinecrest Grove Theatre.

The Arts of Starved Rock Country Fund is set to award grants to eight organizations this spring, including a combined $6,000 to theater groups in La Salle, Streator and Princeton.

“Saturday Night Fever” is based on the 1977 movie of the same name.

'It’s Only a Play' by Terrence McNally runs until June 14.

Summer concerts in Downers Grove, farmers markets, a major art exhibition and a stage comedy gem are happening this weekend.

The 2025 Main Stage season opens in late May with "Saturday Night Fever: The Musical." The concert series begins May 3 with a tribute show to Johnny Cash.

As the theater troupe's president, Jocelyn Adamski has plans to grow ETC and elevate the excitement over its offerings.

Katherine "Kat" Glenn-Porter will be the first up this summer to perform the national anthem before audiences at the McHenry Outdoor Theater.

Downers Grove launches its Friday Night Live concert lineup, while Westmont is home to the Spring Fling Festival, Darien adds a carnival to the holiday weekend, and The Forge Lemont Quarries presents the Blues, Brews & BBQ Fest. Theater lovers are offered a trio of new offerings.

The musical features hits from the 80s and tells a new twist on a time-travel tale.

The circus-inspired concept for this production creates an exhilarating, enlightening experience that's simply purr-fect.

Trustees voted 4-1 to donate the building to the Polo Area Community Theatre following a presentation by Hart DuBois, a PACT board member, who outlined how the not-for-profit group planned to raise enough money to keep the building viable as a performance venue.

Performances include “Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley,” "Unnecessary Force" and "Birthday Candles."

Engle Lane Theatre will present The Wedding Singer, a musical comedy set in the 1980s, from Sunday, May 18, through Friday, May 23

The upcoming lineup also includes comedian Frank Caliendo this fall.

Special events range from The Morton Arboretum's Arbor Day Plant Sale and a production of "Our Town" at the MAC to live music, a showcase of jewelry artistry and an interactive exhibition on farming in DuPage County at the Elmhurst History Museum.

'Million Dollar Quartet' tells the story of the night music legends Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley held an impromptu jam session at Sun Records studio in 1956.

Elgin Theatre Company brings to the stage three unique and dysfunctional sisters attempting to move into a shabby apartment in New York City.

May Fest will bloom at Cantigny, while Wheaton separately plays host to a mac-and-cheese festival. Concerts will showcase folk and classical artists, while the game's afoot for "Miss Holmes Returns."

The Grayslake Heritage Center Foundation is hosting its second annual murder mystery dinner at 6 p.m. May 10.

The free reading is Saturday, May 17 at 1 p.m. in downtown Aurora.

Set in a senior living community, the play features comic genius and laugh-out-loud punchlines that land with precision and tenderness.

PACT will perform “The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood,” a satirical look at the classic tale of the rebel who “steals from the rich and gives to the poor.”

Polo Area Community Theatre will perform "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood” through May 10 at the former Polo City Hall theater.

Showtimes are 7 p.m. May 2 and 3 and at 2 p.m. May 4 at the Allure of Pinecrest Grove Theater at 500 Evergreen Lane in Mt. Morris.

The Performing Arts Guild will once again showcase their talents with upcoming performances of “Crimes of the Heart" this weekend in Mt. Morris.

Director Kurt Naebig has cast well and keeps the show’s pacing fluid and intense in this active and intriguingly suspenseful play.