The Cherry Orchard, Steppenwolf, through March 5, 2005. In times of social change, some look to the future and others lament the past. If all Chekhov translations were as accessible as this one by Curt Columbus, we’d have discovered this much sooner. MSB
One Arm, About Face at Steppenwolf, through Dec. 19. Moises Kaufman creates a visceral portrait of a hustler that is both moving and provocative. Based on a short story and screenplay by Tennessee Williams, and it shows. RR
Santaland Diaries, Theater Wit at Raven, 6157 N. Clark, through Jan. 8. Joe Foust gets David Sedaris’ sardonic Macy’s elf just right in this sugar-free, and hilarious, adaptation of the piece that launched Sedaris to fame and fortune (adapted by Joe Mantello). RR
This Happy Breed, TimeLine Theatre, through Dec. 19. Meticulous acting graces Noel Coward’s well-crafted 1943 drama about 20 years in the lives of an ordinary London family. Nothing happens, yet everything happens in this warm WWII buck-em-up. JA
— By Abarbanel, Barnidge and Reed