A Life, Northlight Theatre, through May 2. John Mahoney brings a bittersweet depth to Hugh Leonard’s 1970s Irish drama of an exacting curmudgeon who ruefully looks back at key decisions he made as an idealistic youth. SCM
Street Scene, National Pastime Theater, through April 25. Poverty and ignorance turn their victims scary after a time—if you acknowledge that grim truth, the expressionist dimension lurking beneath Elmer Rice’s classic of American naturalism in this controversial production is but a reflection of the real world. MSB
Trust, Lookingglass Theatre through May 9. Swiftly moving and strongly acted, this tale of a teen girl and an internet predator goes far deeper than a TV movie. It’s focus isn’t the deed but the aftermath, especially the father-daughter relationship in a family crucible. JA
Will Rogers: An American Original, First Folio Theatre, Oak Brook, through May 2. Kevin McKillip radiates low-key charisma and easy-on-the-eyes genial charm in his one-man homage to country’s “Poet Lariat” Speaking of which: The rope tricks are as delightful as the homespun, slice-of-Americana storytelling.
—By Abarbanel, Barnidge,
Morgan and Sullivan