Last column of the year—and what a year it’s been.

Christmas isn’t really about resurrection, but as Chris Jones reported at “The Theater Loop” on December 7, there is a welcome rebirth to close out the year. Pegasus Players , which has been disturbingly silent since closing Dael Orlandersmith’s The Gimmick in March, has resurfaced and will move from its longtime home at Truman College into the Beacon Street Theatre after Black Ensemble Theater vacates that space to move into their new facility on Clark Street in fall of 2011. Jones also reported that the Apollo Theater , which has been in foreclosure since last April, will go on the auction block in January. According to Rob Kolson, who has been running the space, the long-running hit production of Million Dollar Quartet won’t be affected by the pending sale.

Goodman Theatre announced a couple of changes in artistic personnel. Playwright Rebecca Gilman joins the artistic collective, while Frank Galati steps down. Galati remains a member of the ensemble for Steppenwolf Theatre . Goodman presents its eighth annual “New Stages” festival of new work January 14-23, with readings of brand-new pieces by Leslye Headland; Danai Gurira (who co-wrote In the Continuum, which appeared at Goodman in 2007); Christopher Shinn; Dael Orlandersmith (whose solo Stoop Stories appeared in the Goodman’s Owen space in fall of 2009); Seth Bockley, recipient of the Goodman’s 2009 Ofner Prize, who comes in with an adaptation of the George Saunders story Comm Comm (Bockley won raves for his last Saunders staging, Jon, presented by Collaboraction in 2008); and Kathleen Tolan.

In Steppenwolf news, ensemble member Martha Plimpton will be honored at the 2nd annual “Women in the Arts” fundraiser on Tuesday, March 15, at the W Chicago – City Center hotel, 172 W. Adams. Plimpton, who last appeared at Steppenwolf in Hedda Gabler back in 2001 (which is still far more recent a sighting on Halsted than last year’s honoree, Joan Allen), will join Steppenwolf artistic director Martha Lavey in an “Inside the Actors Studio”-type conversation, beginning at noon. Tickets begin at $200, and information is available at www.steppenwolf.org/luncheon, by e-mailing This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or by phoning 312/654-5632.

Wildclaw Theatre announces the winner of this year’s “Bloody Axe” award in the annual “DeathScribe” radio play competition, held on Monday, December 6 at the Mayne Stage. David Schmidt took top honors for The Change in Buckett County, directed by Carolyn Klein and starring John Ferrick and Anderson Lawfer.

On December 7, the Midwest Independent Film Festival hosted its annual “Best of the Midwest” Awards. The BMA winners this year included Michael Matzdorff’s Feed the Fish as best feature; Ron Lazzeretti’s screenplay and David Pasquesi’s performance in Something Better Somewhere Else, directed by Lazzeretti; Steve James’ direction of No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson; and Olivia Walby’s performance in Annabelle & Bear. For a complete list of winners, visit http://www.midwestfilm.com/pages/who_won_at_the_bmas_/485.php.

Chicago Dramatists plans a makeover for the New Year, and Harrington College of Design is helping out. Current student Matthew McGrane and alumna Sarah Kuchar won a competition to refurbish the Dramatists lobby and entry. The two split a cash prize of $750 and will have their names on a plaque in the lobby. (The prize was funded through a grant from Chicago Community Trust.) Interior construction should be done by the time Dramatists opens Aline Lathrop’s Bordello in February. (We’ll hope that the show’s title doesn’t influence the final look!) The exterior will be wrapped up by the time that Marisa Wegrzyn’s Hickorydickory (which won the Wasserstein Prize last year—the one that caused such a commotion this year—opens in May. The budget for the improvements is about $13,500.

Want “Glee” for the holidays? Oxygen Media hosts auditions this weekend for its new series, “The Glee Project,” in which competitors vie for a guest spot on the popular Fox television show. The casting call runs 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Chicago Academy for the Arts, 1010 W. Chicago Avenue. For information and eligibility requirements, go to http://thegleeproject.oxygen.com.

Strawdog Theatre hosts a year-end holiday party this Sunday, December 19, 7-11 p.m. in Hugen Hall. For $5 and a donation to the Lakeview Pantry, you get drink specials and performances from the ensemble. RSVP at 773/528-9696 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Strawdog artistic director Nic Dimond announced that he’ll be stepping down from that post at the end of the current season, in part to concentrate on his upcoming nuptials to Amanda Delheimer. (Not to be confused, as I did initially in a conversation with Dimond, with Amanda Dehnert of Lookingglass Theatre . Dimond told me that, ironically enough, he did attend high school with the latter Amanda.) And perhaps fittingly, Dimond made this announcement in an exclusive interview with Strawdog’s Anderson Lawfer and Eric Roach on their website.

ComedySportz hosts the annual College Improv Tournament, January 22-23. The regional teams competing this year are from Loyola University, DePaul, University of Chicago, Saint Xavier University, Columbia College Chicago, Wheaton College, Elmhurst College, University of Illinois-Chicago, and Northwestern University. The complete schedule is available at the company’s website.

Babes With Blades announces the “Joining Sword and Pen” playwriting competition for 2011-12. The theme is “Erinyes,” inspired by an image by Chicago artist Victoria Szilagyi at http://www.babeswithblades.org/competition.htm. In order to qualify, the winning script must incorporate the image. Deadline for submissions is February 28, 2011, and the winner will be announced on April 1 (unless that’s a big joke, of course). The selected playwright gets $1,000 and a production with Babes With Blades in spring of 2012.

The Chicago Short Comedy Video and Film Festival and the Chicago Comedy TV Pilot Competition seek submissions for their events, with deadlines of March 14 and March 4, respectively. The festivals are in July of 2011, and entries are limited to Chicago-area filmmakers. Entries should be under 10 minutes for the shorts festival and 20-30 minutes (sitcom format) for the pilots. More information at the website or by calling 312/642-2156.

They’re short, they’re sweet, they’re perfect to repeat. Collaboraction debuts “Sketchbook Reverb” February 10-March 27 at their new home in the Flat Iron Arts Building, 1579 N. Milwaukee Avenue. The compilation of the best of the last decade of the company’s annual short-works “Sketchbook” festival includes pieces by writers who have logged impressive credits with full-length plays, such as Keith Huff (A Steady Rain), Ellen Fairey (Graceland), and Lisa Dillman (The Walls). As usual, DJs will spin and multimedia will abound. Visit www.collaboraction.org or call 312/226-9633 for information.

Profiles Theatre continues its lovefest for all things LaBute with “An Evening with Neil LaBute” on Saturday, January 8. The man himself will be at Profiles for selected readings from his work and a post-show discussion. (If Caitlin Parrish, the former Time Out Chicago critic LaBute went after last year, should happen to show up, it will really be a party!). Profiles opens LaBute’s reasons to be pretty (we don’t know why he’s doing the e.e. cummings thing, either) on January 27.

And somehow, this next segue makes sense to us: Annoyance Theatre expands its long-running hit Co-Ed Prison Sluts to Friday and Saturday nights at 10:01 p.m.

And this segue just amuses us (as does referring to ourselves in first person plural): Theo Ubique extends its production of Cats, directed and choreographed by Brenda Didier, through February 20.

A Red Orchid Theatre keeps its rave-winning all-girl production of Craig Wright’s The Iliad up through January 2.

Openings of note: Trap Door Theatre brings back director Max Truax, who has one of the most arresting visual styles in town, for a revival of Heiner Muller’s deconstructionist Hamletmachine, running January 6-February 12. Composer Jonathan Guillen created an original score, turning Muller’s text into a modern opera. TUTA Theatre Chicago remounts their histrionically hilarious production of Bertolt Brecht’s The Wedding February 3-March 6 at the Chopin. On New Year’s Eve, TUTA hosts a bash at their warehouse at 2032 W. Fulton Street, 9 p.m. to the wee small hours. $10 gets you live music from the house band, beer is a buck apiece, and there’s sure to be all the artsy-Euro conviviality you can handle.

Of course, after that, you may be in need of the hair of the dog. The Drinking and Writing Brewery presents To Cure a Hangover at their new home in the Haymarket Pub & Brewery, 123 N. Halsted Street. (See, that’s a smart address to have if you’re doing shows for chronic drinkers.) The show runs every Saturday from January 1 through February 5 at 4 p.m. Visit the website for information and tickets.

Top Ten Lists abound this month, but Richard Zoglin of Time gave special notice to three of Chicago’s favorites in his top-10 theatre list for 2010. David Cromer’s staging of Andrew Bovell’s When the Rain Stops Falling at Lincoln Center, Rebecca Gilman’s A True History of the Johnstown Flood at the Goodman, and Craig Wright’s Mistakes Were Made at the Barrow Street Theatre in New York (starring Michael Shannon, Mierka Girten, and puppeteer Sam Deutsch, all reprising their roles under Dexter Bullard’s direction from the world premiere last fall at A Red Orchid Theatre ) all won plaudits from Zoglin.

And some passings to note at the end of what has been a roller-coaster year for so many. Kent Foreman, a longtime poet, actor, lyricist, and mentor to many other artists across several generations passed away on November 29 at age 75. From the Beats to Def Poetry Jam, Foreman’s work spanned some of the most high-profile movements in the last 50 years, and his list of collaborators includes such fellow luminaries as Oscar Brown Jr., Amiri Baraka, Maya Angelou, Max Roach, and Allen Ginsberg. A memorial is planned for January 16 at the Little Black Pearl, 2-4:30 p.m.

And we extend our condolences to John Gawlik, artistic director of Noble Fool Theatricals (soon to be known as Fox Valley Repertory) and ensemble member with The Gift Theatre Company , whose father, Jerry, passed away earlier this week.

I thank all of you for the news, notes, and wonderful shows in 2010, and I send good wishes to you and yours for good health, happiness, and much inspiration in 2011.

Send glad tidings for the New Year to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .