Chicago will continue to produce some of the most exciting work in the country this Fall. Offerings from the city’s more than 250 producing theatres include a wide variety of plays and musicals, as well as comedy, dance, festivals, and more.
For a comprehensive list of Chicago productions including a Fall Theatre Guide, visit the League of Chicago Theatres website, ChicagoPlays.com. Additionally, many fall shows will be available at Hot Tix (HotTix.org), Chicago’s local, half-price ticketing service. As always, here at ChiILLiveShows.com and ChiILMama.com we've been covering Chicago's theatre scene since 2008. Check back with us early and often for original reviews, giveaways, entertainment news, interviews, and more.
The following is a selection of notable work playing in Chicago this Fall:
New works and adaptations include:
Chicago Shakespeare Theater presents The Notebook, a world premiere musical based on the bestselling novel that inspired the iconic film. Multi-Platinum singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson and Bekah Brunstetter (writer and producer for NBC’s This Is Us) create a deeply moving portrait of the enduring power of love. September 6 - October 16.
Luminaire, a new immersive variety dinner show from Cabaret ZaZou makes its worldwide debut in a vintage Spiegeltent on the 14th floor of the Cambria Hotel. Opens September 7.
Teatro Vista presents Enough to Let the Light In, a psychological thriller about love, truth, and the ghosts that won't let us go. Part of Destinos, Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, September 21 – October 23.
Bull dealt drugs, got caught, and served his time. After he is released, he is eager to resume life with his family, only to discover how much has moved on without him. Paramount Theatre presents the new work Bull: a love story, October 5 – November 20. Part of Destinos, Chicago International Latino Theater Festival.
Playwright Brett Neveu returns with The Malignant Ampersands, a very unofficial sequel to Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons, at A Red Orchid Theatre, October 6 – November 27.
Routes, Remy Bumppo Theatre Company’s urgent new play looks through the eyes of immigrants, refugees, and children in conflict with the law as they fight to get home through an impossibly complex system designed to keep them out. October 12 – November 20 at Theater Wit.
In 1939, two young friends huddled in a Bronx apartment and created a legend, a hero who represents an enduring chapter in the tale of the American comic book. Experience the legacy of The Mark of Kane, October 21 – December 4 at City Lit Theater.
The Gift Theatre presents The Locusts, October 20 – November 19. When a serial killer frightens Ella’s small hometown in Florida, she’s called down from FBI headquarters in D.C. to come help.
American Blues Theater will produce Alma, Benjamin Benne’s new play exploring the immigrant generation and their first-generation children at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, September 22 – October 22, 2022.
Musicals include:
Kokandy Productions presents Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at the Chopin Theatre September 8 – November 6. Sweeney Todd, an unjustly exiled barber, returns to 19th century London seeking vengeance against the lecherous judge who framed him and ravaged his young wife.
Metropolis Performing Arts Centre presents Cabaret, Kander and Ebb’s legendary musical masterpiece, September 15 – October 22.
Experience a Fiddler on the Roof like no other, with the full power of the Lyric Opera Orchestra and a production that is both grand in scale and intimate in its power to bring you directly to the heart of the village of Anatevka. September 17 – October 7 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
MadKap Productions presents Falling for Make Believe, a new musical that tells the behind-the-scenes story of lyricist Lorenz Hart, September 9 – October 16 at the Skokie Theatre.
Wicked, the untold true story of the Witches of Oz, returns to Broadway in Chicago September 28 – December 4.
Marriott Theatre presents Hello, Dolly!, a musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder's hit play The Matchmaker that bursts with humor, romance, and some of the greatest songs in musical theatre history. Through October 16.
Enjoy the music of blues legends Big Momma Thornton, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and Stevie Ray Vaughn and B.B. King with Black Ensemble Theater’s Blue Heaven, October 22 – November 27.
Porchlight Music Theatre presents RENT, the Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning cultural phenomenon, October 29 – November 27 at the Ruth Page Theater.
Notable comedies include:
Creating the perfect sandwich is the shared quest of this formerly incarcerated kitchen staff in Goodman Theatre’s comedy Clyde’s, September 10 – October 9.
Mercury Theater Chicago presents Clue, October 13 – January 1. Based on the iconic 1985 Paramount movie which was inspired by the classic Hasbro board game, Clue is the comedy whodunit that will leave both cult fans and newcomers in stitches as they try to figure out… who did it, where, and with what!
Join The HOA for some wholesome fun that is sure to make you laugh and give you the heebie jeebies, September 9 – October 22 at The Factory Theater.
When two wildly different essential workers are thrown together, they discover there’s more thatbinds them than taking out the trash, in Northlight Theatre’s off-beat buddy comedy The Garbologists, through October 2.
Miss Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Dorothy Watson are back on the case in Miss Holmes Returns. Through October 16 at Lifeline Theatre.
Leave your worries at the door and come laugh yourself into euphoria at the things we have in common, navigating relationships, code-switching, and even high school on TV, with Do the Right Thing, No Worries If Not at The Second City Mainstage.
Take a peek at what’s under Barbra’s underground mall – Babs’ secret laboratory, in Frankenstreisand, presented by Hell in a Handbag Productions at Redline VR, September 29 – October 31.
Dramatic works include:
First Floor Theater presents Botticelli in the Fire, Jordan Tannahill’s hot-blooded queering of Renaissance Italy that questions the value of art at the collapse of society, September 22 – November 5 at the Den Theatre.
Described as a play-pageant-ritual-homegoing celebration, What to Send Up When It Goes Down responds to the gratuitous loss of Black lives and interrupts discourses that enable the ubiquity of racialized violence in our society. Presented by Congo Square Theatre Company at Lookingglass Theatre, September 24 – October 16.
Drury Lane Theatre presents Murder on the Orient Express, the play adaptation of Agatha Christie’s famous murder mystery, through October 23.
The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington takes us deep into the uncomfortable and horrific ramifications of this country’s original sin, through October 9 at Steppenwolf Theatre Company.
With just 45 audience members per performance, Southern Gothic, Windy City Playhouse’s immersive production welcomes audience members to wander about the “set” and act as a fly on the wall, overseeing all the juicy drama unfold. Through November 30 at Petterino’s.
On stage at a Broadway theater in NYC in the mid-1950s tensions flair between a Black actress in the starring role, and her white director in Trouble in Mind. November 2 – December 18 at TimeLine Theatre Company.
In Court Theatre’s The Island, political prisoners on South Africa’s infamous Robben Island, spend their days toiling at grueling tasks in the prison’s quarry, while secretly rehearsing a version of Antigone at night, November 11 – December 4.
Other notable works include:
Chicago Children’s Theatre presents Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster September 10- October 16. Adapted from the beloved children’s books by Mo Willems, and realized through mind-bending projection, DIY cinema, music, and immersive sound by Manual Cinema. Recommended for ages 5 and up.
Destinos: 5th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, Chicago’s annual citywide festival that brings together and showcases Latino theater artists and companies from Chicago, the U.S., and Latin America, September 14 – October 16.
From an underground utopian dance party, to a cyberpunk rock opera, to a seven-hour Electric Slide marathon, the MCA Stage debuts its annual festival Chicago Performs September 15-16.
Amidst a greater struggle and rising tensions, Kyiv City Ballet has stood as the “voice of resistance” on a global stage, bringing light and joy in the darkness to audiences worldwide. For one weekend, see the magnificent classically trained dancers and support the artists who are risking it all to bring culture to their communities. September 24 – 25 at the Auditorium Theatre.
Tiger Style! uproariously tackles the immigrant experience, cultural stereotypes, and what it really means to feel successful—and at home. September 29 – October 30 at Writers Theatre.
The Joffrey Ballet presents Beyond Borders, a mixed program that celebrates the magnetic, lyrical talent of friends of the past and present, including Joffrey icon and co-founder Gerald Arpino, choreographer Liam Scarlett, and choreographer Chanel DaSilva, October 12 – 23 at the Lyric Opera House.
Refuge weaves passionate and driving original music with the charm of artistic puppetry to share a bilingual tale of determination, grit, and hope. Presented by Theo Ubique, October 7 – November 13.
The largest event of its kind in the country, the IVP 2022 Festival introduces Chicago audiences to some of the most exciting voices in the international theatre scene. September 12 – 28 at Instituto Cervantes.
Acknowledged by audiences and critics alike as one of the most magnificent achievements in the history of opera, Don Carlos masterfully reveals the private turmoil of very public personalities. Presented by Lyric Opera of Chicago, November 9 – 25.
For a comprehensive list of Chicago productions, visit the League of Chicago Theatres website, ChicagoPlays.com. Available half-price tickets will be listed at HotTix.org.
Chicago theatres prioritize safely gathering. Patrons are encouraged to confirm current protocols at each theatre. Shows and protocols are subject to change.
About Chicago theatre
Chicago theatre is the leader in the U.S. with more than 250 theatres throughout Chicagoland, comprising a rich and varied community ranging from storefront, non-union theatres to the most renowned resident theatres in the country, including 6 which have been honored with Regional Tony Awards, and the largest touring Broadway organization in the nation. Chicago’s theatres serve 5 million audience members annually and have a combined budget of more than $250 million. Chicago produces and/or presents more world premieres annually than any other city in the nation. Each year Chicago theatres send new work to resident theatres across the country, to Broadway, and around the world. For more information, visit www.chicagoplays.com.
The League of Chicago Theatres’ Mission Statement
Theatre is essential to the life of a great city and to its citizens. The League of Chicago Theatres is an alliance of theatres, which leverages its collective strength to support, promote and advocate for Chicago’s theatre industry. Through our work, we ensure that theatre continues to thrive in our city.
