When bloody battles, brutal beheadings and bearded bogeymen are less the stuff of fantasy than in gentle times previous, you wouldn't think that make-believe menace would be as popular. But playgoers haunting the Chicago theater scene in search of a jolly good scream can still find plenty of ghoulish delights:
SERIOUSLY SUPERNATURAL:
Shades Of Red, Box Theatre Group at Frankie J's Methadome, 4437 Broadway (upstairs). To Oct. 29. Tales of 'horror and intrigue' by Mary Shelley, Edgar Allen Poe, Sheridan LeFanu and others, adapted for the stage. For info, phone (773) 957-5532
Wyrd Sisters, Saint Sebastian Players at St. Bonaventure's Church, 1625 West Diversey Avenue. Opens Oct. 22, plays to Nov. 14. Stephen Briggs' adaptation of Terry Pratchett's futuristic novel looks at Shakespeare's Macbeth from the perspective of the three you-know-whats. For information, phone (773) 404-7922.
The Sandman, Incurable Theater at Breadline Theatre, 1802 W. Berenice Ave. To Nov. 7. Masks and Puppets enhance this adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffman's romantic fantasy of a student on an odyssey through the dark universe of his childhood demons. For information, phone (773) 327-6096.
The Zodiac Effect, Live Bait Theatre, 3914 N. Clark St. Late-nights to Oct. 31. Paranormalist Dr. Zodiac hosts this evening of clairvoyance, prognostication, bent spoons, gruesome 'games of death' and a do-it-yourself séance. Is it smoke-and-mirrors or the genuine hocus-pocus? For information, phone (708) 268-8403
MORE GORY THAN GHOSTLY:
Sweeney Todd, Porchlight Theatre at the Theatre Building, 1225 W. Belmont Ave. To Nov. 7. The demon barber of Fleet Street shaves again, abetted by cult diva Rebecca Finnegan as the sanguine pastry chef in Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's wicked operetto that changed the course of American musical history. For information, phone (773) 327-5252
No Way To Treat A Lady, Light Opera Works at the McGaw YMCA, 1420 Maple Street in Evanston. To Nov. 14. A New York police detective beset with personal issues pursues an actor-turned-serial-killer in Douglas J. Cohen's musical adaptation of William Goldman's novel. For information, phone (847) 869-6300.
FOR LITTLE IMPS:
Bunnicula, Lifeline Theatre, 6912 N. Glenwood Ave. To Nov. 28. Could a cute little bunny rabbit actually be—gasp!—a vampire? (Don't worry—he's a vegetarian.) Now in its third revival, James Sie's adaptation of the story by Deborah and James Howe attracts as many adults as it does children. For information, phone (773) 761-4477
Seek Wonder, The Actor's Gymnasium at the Noyes Cultural Center, 927 Noyes Ave. in Evanston. To Nov. 28. Sean Masterson incorporates storytelling with sleight-of-hand for an hour of slapstick adventures and offbeat history. Come prepared to join in the fun. For information, phone (773) 769-1904
The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow, Theatre Hikes at North Park Village Nature Center, 5801 N. Pulaski Ave. To Oct. 30. Washington Irving's venerable yarn of greedy suitors and spectral justice recounted over the course of a walk through the wooded autumn landscape (if weather permitting. Held indoors if it doesn't). For info, phone (312) 744-5472
Don't Turn Out The Lights!, Corn Productions at the Cornservatory, 4210 N. Lincoln Ave. To Nov. 21. Spooky stories and curious doings on Halloween day at the Berwyn Middle School, with songs, dances and interactive pranks 'Corn Style'. For information, phone (312) 409-6435
STRICTLY GROWNUP GOBLINS:
The Midnight Hellhouse, LIVE Hellhouse productions at the Playground, 3209 N. Halsted St. Midnights to Oct. 29. A troupe of fundamentalist evangelical Pentecostal zealots—that's the show's premise, not the cast list—shows what sinners can expect in the hereafter. For info, phone (773) 728-1682
500 Clown Frankenstein, 500 Clown at the Loop Theatre, 8 East Randolph St. To Oct. 30. Acrobatics, painted faces and 'extreme physical and emotional risks' in a tiny downtown storefront with the folks who gave us last summer's 500 Clown Macbeth. For information, phone (312) 744-5667
Conrad Brünst Presents Danse Macabre, Teatro Bastardo at Donny's Skybox Studio in Piper's Alley, 1608 N. Wells St. To Oct. 30. Improv (what else?) à la Hollywood horror classics of the 1930s. For information, phone (312) 337-3992
Tales From Mom's Crypt 8: Tiff And The Haunted House Of Pancakes, Corn Productions at the Cornservatory, 4210 N. Lincoln Ave. To Oct. 31. Rob Bouwman and Todd Schaner deliver 'gore, camp and really bad dresses' in this latest installment of their inexplicably popular series. For information, phone (312) 409-6435
Shivering yet? Got your garlic, silver and wooden stake? Ready to walk with the ghosts and ghoulies and long-legged beasties?
See you on Old Hallow's Eve!