Martin Scorsese will direct Leo's Devil in the White City adaptation
Deadline Hollywood reports that Martin Scorsese will direct a film adaptation of Erik Larson's Devil in the White City, which Leonardo DiCaprio bought the film rights to in 2010. No word on whether the movie will film here, but Chicago Film Office director Rich Moskal says that he and his staff would "go out of [their] way to make it possible."
The NFL draft is returning to Chicago
The mayor and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell today announced that the NFL draft will return to Chicago April 28 to 30, 2016. There's no official location yet, but if the event is held at the Auditorium Theatre again, it's unclear where the city will plunk the Joffrey's April 20–May 1 run of Cinderella (they moved it to the Cadillac Palace Theatre last year).
Justine Nagan is leaving Kartemquin
Justine Nagan, who's served as Kartemquin's executive director and producer since 2008, has taken a top job with American Documentary and POV, its documentary series on PBS. Nagan will split time between Kartemquin and American Documentary this fall before moving to New York for good in December. No word on a replacement at Kartemquin yet.
Opening
August 12: Things You Shouldn't Say Past Midnight: Four men and two women share three beds. Hilarity ensures. Windy City Playhouse (3014 W. Irving Park Rd.)
August 14: The Rise and Fall of Little Voice: Jim Cartwright's Oliver-winner about a shy singer turned cabaret star. Theater Wit (1229 W. Belmont)
August 14: Kafkapalooza: Eight world premiere plays from First Floor inspired by the works of Kafka. First Floor Theatre at the Flat Iron (1579 N. Milwaukee)
August 15: Patchwork Drifter: A wanderlusting youth takes a job working for a widowed shopkeeper and her two children. Babes with Blades at City Lit (1020 W. Bryn Mawr)
Open Now: Cirque du Soleil's latest traveling show, in which an alternate reality stems from frozen time. United Center (1901 W. Madison)
Open Now: Zelda at the Oasis, about F. Scott Fitzgerald's wife Zelda Sayre Oasis and her life in the shadow of his success. Genesis Theatrical Productions at the Raven Theater (6157 N. Clark)
Open Now: The Boy From Oz: A musical about the life of composer Peter Allen. Pride Films and Plays at Stage 773 (1225 W. Belmont)
Open Now: The Dueling Gentlemen: A silent production in which two vaudeville performers' long-running act falters. Silent Theatre Company at the Athenaeum (2936 N. Southport)
Open Now: Loving Repeating: A musical about Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. Kokandy Productions at Theater Wit (1229 W. Belmont)
Open Now: Stupid Fucking Bird: Sideshow's modern-day take on The Seagull returns. Victory Gardens Theater (2433 N. Lincoln)
Open Now: Fancy Nancy: A musical spin on Jane O'Connor's new-classic picture book. Emerald City Theatre at Broadway Playhouse (175 E. Chestnut)
Open Now: Men of Soul: A musical toast to Bill Withers. Black Ensemble Theater (4450 N. Clark)
Open Now: Grand Concourse: An impassioned college dropout derails a disillusioned soup kitchen manager's time-tested shift. Steppenwolf Theatre (1650 N. Halsted)
Open Now: Moby Dick: David Catlin's mondo take on a mondo book about a mondo, mondo fish. Lookingglass Theatre (821 N. Michigan)
Open Now: Game of Thongs: A Game of Thrones Burlesque. Breasteros. Yep. Gorilla Tango Theatre (1919 N. Milwaukee)
Closing
August 15: Fugue: Four improvised one-act dramedies. Pendulum Space (1803 W. Byron)
August 15: Boundaries: Drawings and Paintings by Sarah Kaiser-Amaral. MLG Gallery (1046 W. Fulton)
August 15: More Trees Please: Multimedia work by Lora Fosberg. Linda Warren Gallery. (327 N. Aberdeen)
August 15: No Exit: Thirty Years of Trucks, Icons and Weird Drawings by printmaker John Himmelfarb. Thomas McCormick Gallery (835 W. Washington)
August 15: Pro Bias: The 2014 ACRE summer residents art focuses on identity in global art. Bike Room (1109 W. North)
August 15: Roots: A group show about trees and roots. Linda Warren Gallery. (327 N. Aberdeen)
August 15: Chicago Styled: A look at the rise of fashion on Michigan Ave. Chicago History Museum (1601 N. Clark)
August 15: Move Your Body: The Evolution of House Music from 1972 to 1997. Chicago Cultural Center (78 E. Washington)
August 16: The Little Mermaid: Chicago Shakespeare Theater's shiny take on the Disney original. Chicago Shakespeare Theatre on Navy Pier (800 E. Grand)
August 16: All Our Tragic, Sean Graney's bloody 12-hour mashup of all 32 Greek tragedies. The Hypocrites at the Den Theatre (1333 N. Milwaukee)
August 16: The Diary of Anne Frank, directed by the unerring Kimberly Senior. Writers Theatre at Books on Vernon (664 Vernon, Glencoe)
August 16: Beaches: Iris Rainer Dart's Broadway–bound adaptation of her own novel, which also birthed Garry Marshall's 1988 film of the same name. Drury Lane Theatre and Conference Center (100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace)