This ambitious showcase of experimental theater, performance, and music from Chicago’s fringe began as part of the Bucktown Arts Fest. Now it’s produced by the Curious Theatre Branch; in addition to the Curious folks, participating artists this year include John Starrs, Julie Caffey, Michael K. Meyers, Michael Martin, and many other ensembles and soloists. Taking its name from surrealist painter Salvador Dali’s use of the term “rhinocerontic” (it means real big), the 13th annual Rhino Fest runs through October 13. Performances take place at the Lunar Cabaret, 2827 N. Lincoln, and at Prop Thtr, 4225 N. Lincoln. Admission is $10 or “pay what you can”; for information and reservations, call 773-327-6666.
This one-woman play, written by Teresa Weed and performed by Lisa Wagner, examines the experiences of dying patients and their caregivers. Lunar Cabaret, 7 PM.
“In KellyAnn Corcoran’s witty homage to Waiting for Godot, two women in white satin gloves (Corcoran and Elaine Ellis) are driving somewhere. We don’t know where they came from or where they’re going; we don’t know who they are or what their relationship is. Perhaps one is a mother; perhaps one is a murderess. What we do know is that they share a long history but can’t communicate what they’re really thinking or feeling. Instead they bicker about semantics and the meaning of dreams, trapped in the car out of a sense of obligation–but we’re not sure to what. . . . Corcoran manages to make the conversation funny, character revealing, slightly tragic, and intellectually intriguing. . . . The underlying themes are a little murky: is this about (mis)communication between women, the entrapment of middle-class women in the cage of children and marriage, or something else? . . . Corcoran’s vivid imagery and Gregory Werstler’s fast-paced staging keep the play rolling even when the characters are stuck in traffic,” says Reader critic Jennifer Vanasco. Lunar Cabaret, 7 PM.
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Buster Keaton’s Stroll and The Penny Jar
“Julie Caffey’s Underwater Football uses the biblical story of Jonah and the whale as a metaphor for her father’s fall from grace, which she and her brother must confront after their parents’ divorce. But every minute Caffey spends with her face submerged in a bowl of water or dallying with the multimedia elements of her piece obscures her dark sense of humor,” said Reader critic Nick Green when he reviewed this piece as part of Tellin’ Tales Theatre’s “Sibling Revelry” earlier this year. Susan Nussbaum directs. Prop Thtr, 9 PM.
