Spotlight: Anna and the King return as Drury Lane revives Rodgers and Hammerstein classic

Return of the 'King'

Winnetka native Betsy Morgan plays British tutor Anna Leonowens and Adam Jacobs plays the King of Siam, whose children she's hired to teach, in Drury Lane Theatre's "The King and I." Alan Paul directs the revival, which reframes the Rodgers and Hammerstein tuner to focus on how people from different parts of the world bridge their differences.

Previews at 8 p.m. Friday, April 1; 3 and 8 p.m. Saturday, April 2; 2 and 6 p.m. Sunday, April 3; 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 6, at 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace. The show opens at 8 p.m. Thursday, April 7. $64-$79. COVID-19 precautions: masking not required. (630) 530-0111 or drurylanetheatre.com.

Short play fest

Steel Beam Theatre hosts "Hilarity Ensues," made up of one-act comedies helmed by favorite Steel Beam directors Sean Hargadon, of Elgin's Janus Theatre, as well as Paul Anderson, Catie Early, Annie Slivinski and John Westby.

Performances are at 8 p.m. Friday, April 1, 8 and 15; Saturday, April 2, 9 and 16, and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 3 and 10, at 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. $23-$28. COVID-19 precautions: masking required. (630) 587-8521 or steelbeamtheatre.com.

'HYPROV' on stage

Improv + hypnosis equals comedy when master improviser Colin Mochrie ("Whose Line Is It, Anyway?") and master hypnotist Asad Mecci team up for "HYPROV: Improv Under Hypnosis." As part of the show, Mecci hypnotizes 20 audience volunteers, five of which are selected to join Mochrie in improvising scenes.

7 p.m. Saturday, April 2, at Elgin Community College Arts Center, 1700 Spartan Drive, Building H, Elgin. $42-$49. COVID-19 precautions: proof of vaccination or negative test and masking required. (847) 622-0300 or elgin.edu/arts-center/events.

Glen Campbell tribute

Singer/actor/producer Michael Ingersoll, co-founder of Artists Lounge Live which showcases musical theater veterans in concert and cabaret settings, brings his show "Southern Nights: Michael Ingersoll Sings the Music of Glen Campbell" to the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre. The "Jersey Boys" and Under the Streetlamp veteran performs "Galveston," "Gentle on My Mind" and "Rhinestone Cowboy" among other Campbell favorites.

3 p.m. Sunday, April 3, at 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. $45, $50. COVID-19 precautions: proof of vaccination and masking required. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com.

In other news

Check with venues regarding COVID-19 precautions.

• First Folio Theatre in Oak Brook announced the cancellation of its production of Jane Austen's "Emma." Canceled due to unforeseen circumstances, the production will not be rescheduled. Ticket holders have the option to receive a refund or apply the ticket amount to a future purchase. (630) 986-8067 or firstfolio.org.

• "Six," the supercharged rock and hip-hop musical about the six wives of Henry VIII, which had its U.S. premiere in 2019 at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater before moving to Broadway, returns for an extended run. Previews continue through April 10 at the CIBC Theatre, 18 W. Monroe St., Chicago. The show opens April 12. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and masking required. (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.com.

• The Curious Theatre Branch hosts A Hint of Rhino: Rhinoceros Theatre Festival 2022 from Friday, April 1, through May 1, in cooperation with Pride Arts Center, Jimmy Beans Cabaret, Prop Thtr and Labyrinth Arts. The festival consists of new plays, music, spoken word, drag and variety events. Performances run Thursday to Sunday, at Jimmy Beans Coffee, 2553 W. Fullerton Ave., second floor, Chicago, and at Pride Arts Center, 4139 N. Broadway Ave., Chicago. The May 1 performances at Pride Arts Center celebrates Matt Rieger, Curious Theatre's longtime managing director who died suddenly in October 2021 and whose final play, "Jimmy and the Nickels," will run Sunday afternoons and Thursday evenings at Pride Arts. Tickets are $20 or pay-what-you-can. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and masking required. See rhinofest.com.

• Cirque us presents "RagTag: A Circus in Stitches" - featuring aerialists, acrobats, jugglers and musicians - on Friday, April 1, and Saturday, April 2, at Aloft Circus Arts, 3324 W. Wrightwood Ave., Chicago. See thecirqueus.com.

• Folks Operetta, in cooperation with the University of Chicago, hosts the Korngold Festival celebrating 20th century composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold, from April 1 through April 10 at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, 915 E. 60th St., Chicago. In addition to instrumental performances and a three-day symposium, the festival includes the U.S. premiere of Korngold's 1937 opera "Die Kathrin," which tells the story of a German woman in love with a Belgian soldier in the occupied Rhineland during 1933. See korngoldfestival.org.

• Victory Gardens Theater, in association with The National New Play Network, presents the rolling premiere of "In Every Generation," by Ali Viterbi. Winner of the 2019 National Jewish Playwriting Contest, "In Every Generation" unfolds during Passover as the Levi-Katz family struggles with questions of race, religion and the future. Previews begin Saturday, April 2, at 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago. The show opens on April 8. (773) 871-3000 or victorygardens.org.

• Chicago Magic Lounge artist-in-residence Sean Masterson, who's performed in Chicago since 1992, combines magic and storytelling in his new show "Message in a Bottle," premiering Wednesday, April 6, at 5050 N. Clark St., Chicago. Masterson performs at 7 p.m. Wednesdays through June 29. Tickets are $45 and $50. (312) 366-4500 or chicagomagiclounge.com.

• Nuns 4 Fun Entertainment, which produces such shows as "Late Nite Catechism" and "Bible Bingo," established a fund to aid Ukrainian and Polish nuns assisting Ukrainian refugees. Vicki Quade, president of Nuns 4 Fun and co-creator of "Late Nite Catechism," is partnering with the Des Plaines-based Sisters of the Holy Nazareth to raise funds for the refugees. Theatergoers attending "Late Nite Catechism" and "Bible Bingo" at Victory Gardens Theater, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, can donate to the fund post-performance. According to Kathy Barth, the local order's development director, seven nuns from the order have taken refuge in a church basement where they pray and care for nearly 100 people who fled their homes in the wake of the invasion. "Our nuns in Ukraine are hiding in basements," said Barth in a prepared statement. "They tell us they can hear the gunfire. They sent us a photo where you can see them huddling with others. They are eating canned peaches because that is what they were able to get." To donate directly, go to nazarethcsfn.org.

• Broadway legend Chita Rivera has joined Porchlight Music Theatre's artistic advisory board, the company announced. The Tony Award-winning actress received Porchlight's Icon Award in 2021. She joins theater artists E. Faye Butler, Joel Grey, William Finn, Dominic Missimi, Hollis Resnik, Chuck Smith and others as a Porchlight board member. In a prepared statement, artistic director Michael Weber said "anyone who has had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Rivera knows of her dedication to the arts, specifically music theater. On behalf of Porchlight, I welcome her to our advisory board and look forward to her participation."

- Barbara Vitello