Kris Vire, timeoutchicago.com/arts-cultureTime Out Chicago Theater editor, has his top picks for must see productions.
Measure for Measure Goodman Theatre, 170 N Dearborn St (312-443-3800, goodmantheatre.org). $25–$86. Through Apr 14. Robert Falls sets Shakespeare's dark comedy not in Vienna but in a grungy, gaudy 1970s New York.
Othello: The Remix Chicago Shakespeare Theater, 800 E Grand Ave (312-595-5600, chicagoshakes.com). $20–$35. Through Apr 28. The Q Brothers translate the Bard's tragedy into hip-hop, recasting Othello as a superstar MC.
columbinus American Theater Company, 1909 W Byron Ave (773-409-4125, atcweb.org). $38–$43. Through Apr 7. PJ Paparelli and Stephen Karam's excavation of the 1999 school shooting at Colorado's Columbine High School is presented at ATC in a newly revised and expanded edition. This version adds a third act, following up with survivors, parents and other residents of Littleton.
Completeness Theater Wit, 1229 W Belmont Ave (773-975-8150, theaterwit.org). $18–$36. Through May 4. Itamar Moses's academic romcom deftly blends relationships with research, tracking a romance between two commitment-shy graduate students. If you don't find math and science sexy, Completeness might change your mind.
Everything Is Illuminated Next Theatre Company, 927 Noyes St, Evanston (847-475-1875, nexttheatre.org). $30–$40. Through Apr 14. Jonathan Safran Foer's debut novel, in which a young American writer visits the Ukraine in pursuit of his Jewish family's pre-Holocaust history, is remarkably moving in a stage adaptation by British playwright Simon Block, making its U.S. premiere in Evanston.
Priscilla Queen of the Desert Auditorium Theatre, 50 E Congress Pkwy (800-775-2000, broadwayinchicago.com). $28–$85. Through Mar 30. Fill the bus with gas and get ready for a road trip across the Outback with two rowdy drag queens and a transsexual. The musical adaptation of the 1994 Australian film comes to Chicago.
