This annual showcase of experimental theater, performance, and music from Chicago’s fringe, coproduced by Curious Theatre Branch and Prop Thtr, runs through 11/4. This year features two full-length trilogies, “The Madelyn Trilogy” by Beau O’Reilly and the “Danger Face Trilogy” by Idris Goodwin. Admission is $15 or “pay what you can,” except where noted. Performances take place at the Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston, and the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport, and elsewhere as noted below. An installation by Jamie Rey, Reconciliation, will be up in the Prop’s lobby for the course of the festival, along with a display of memorabilia of early off-Loop theater curated by Rick Paul. For information and reservations, call 773-539-7838 or visit rhinofest.com.
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Danger Face Idris Goodwin’s “Danger Face Trilogy” kicks off with this tale of two outlaws storming into a coffeehouse. a Thu 10/11, 9 PM, Prop Thtr, south theater, $15, $20 for the full trilogy.
Danger Face 2: The Slow Burn The outlaws take refuge in an art gallery in this second part of the “Danger Face Trilogy.” a Fri 10/12, 9 PM, Prop Thtr, south theater, $15, $20 for the full trilogy.
The Great Cicada Letdown and Other Natural Disruptions That coyote in Quizno’s and other collisions between nature and the city are explored in this series of monologues and songs from the Magpies. a Fri-Sat 10/19-10/20, 9:30 PM, Athenaeum Theatre.
RThe McGuffins Run the 440 “The Madelyn Trilogy” continues the tale of the McGuffin siblings. This spare, efficient play is nearly perfect. I can’t recall a more satisfying two and a half hours I’ve spent in the theater. (JHa) a Sat 10/20 and 10/27, 7 PM, Athenaeum Theatre. $15, $20 for the full trilogy.
Railroad Backward Kestutis Nakas’s play is about a Chicago man’s bizarre trek through frontier Illinois. Nakas creates a playful but puzzling journey that often wanders too far from a discernible path. Yet his handful of well-placed references to Vietnam and Iraq do create a sense of the United States’ robust history of ruthless profiteering. (JHa) a Sat 10/13, 3 PM, Athenaeum Theatre.
