Surprising no one, American Theater Company said today it will produce the Chicago premiere of Stephen Karam's Pulitzer Prize finalist Sons of the Prophet in early 2014. The company also announced Kelly O'Sullivan and Tyler Ravelson as new members of its ensemble.

ATC has a close relationship with Karam, a rising young playwright. Artistic director PJ Paparelli co-wrote columbinus with Karam before arriving at ATC, and made his Chicago directing debut in 2008 with Karam's Speech & Debate. ATC produced a revised and expanded version of columbinus earlier this year, which it now says will tour to Boston's ArtsEmerson in September with O'Sullivan and Ravelson in the cast. A remount of Speech & Debate is set to open at ATC next week. Sons of the Prophet, about a Lebanese-American family, will run January 31–March 9.

ATC's season will also include the perennial It's a Wonderful Life: The Radio Play (November 22–December 9), a subscriber-only radio-play version of The Wizard of Oz (November 8–10) and the previously announced "revised and restored" production of the musical Hair (April 25–June 9). Paparelli will direct all four shows in the season.

Teatro Vista also announced its two-show season, its first in residence at Victory Gardens. Eddie Torres will helm the world premiere of White Tie Ball by Martín Zimmerman, who joins the company as a playwright in residence. Ensemble members Marvin Quijada and Gabriel Ruiz will appear in the piece about a pair of brothers (September 6–October 13).

In a departure from Teatro Vista's tendency toward new plays, Ron OJ Parson will direct an all-Latino cast in Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge (April 11–May 18), featuring artistic director Ricardo Gutierrez as Eddie and company members Christina Nieves as Catherine and Sandra Marquez as Beatrice. Both shows will be mounted in Victory Gardens's upstairs Richard Christiansen Theater.

Hearing that Gary Coleman will be the focus of a major Chicago museum exhibit this summer called to my mind the Diff'rent Strokes star's famous catchphrase of utterly adorable incredulousness: Whatchoo talkin' 'bout?! 

"The Life & Times of Gary Coleman" at the Museum of Broadcast Communications will run from June 26 to September 14, "chronicling Coleman’s popularity and his impact on pop culture in the 1980s" and displaying personal ephemera donated by the late actor's parents. William and Sue Coleman also are scheduled to make an appearance during a seminar at the River North museum July 20 to discuss their adopted son, who died in 2010 at the age of 42 after suffering a brain hemorrhage.

1. The Comedy Evening
This Lincoln Park stand-up night, one of our favorite new rooms of last year, has settled into a new home at Wise Fools Pub. The lineup is varied and often full of surprises, and the musical intros by DJ Nate Burrows are a nice touch. Wise Fools Pub. Mon 9pm. Free.

2. Entertaining Julia
The Puterbaugh Sisters host this longstanding (and free!) weekly favorite. Town Hall Pub. Sun 9:30pm. Free.

3. Closing Time and The Imminent Future
Two dark scripted comedies originally developed as part of the Annoyance's Triple Feature graduate to a double bill. Closing Time is a noirish piece set in a pizza parlor, while The Imminent Future takes place in a post-apocalyptic landscape. Annoyance Theatre. Sun 8pm. $12, students $8.

4. Solitaire: A Night of Female Solo Comedy
The performers at this solo showcase have a few things in common: They're all funny women. Performers include Chelsea Devantez, Ashley Black, Christine Tawfik, Jo Feldman, Claire Mulaney, Emily Walker, Sarah Shook, Punam Patel, Blair Beekan and Maria Randazzo. The Public House Theater. Wed 8pm. $10.

5. pHusion
The latest from pH Productions welcomes guest artists from Chicago's theater, dance, music and lit communities to present work that in turn inspires an improv set by pH's cast. pH Comedy Theater. Thu 8pm. $10, students $5.

"There's a lot of people here, you look like trees," Bill Callahan wryly remarked before beginning his set at the Garfield Park Conservatory on Monday night. Flanked by a pair of palm trees and backed by planters overflowing with ivy, the verdant setting stood in stark contrast to Callahan's dusty balladry. The majority of the songs from his 2011 release Apocalypse bring to mind sun-baked plains strewn with tumbleweeds—a far cry from the lush confines of the Horticulture Hall where this performance took place.

Ever since he ditched his Smog moniker, Callahan has seemingly given himself to the role of country troubadour.  Harnessing his gravely, soothing baritone, he channels the distinctly American music of Johnny Cash and the late George Jones (to whom he paid tribute with a heartfelt cover of "Old Blue"). Callahan exudes an authenticity that makes you want to believe his cowboy tales, tempered with a subtle sense of humor that leaves you anticipating the punchline. 

Nestled amid the foliage, Callahan was accompanied by a guitarist and a bassist as he made his way through a set that focused on material from his past two records. Easing into the delicate strum of tracks like "Universal Applicant" and "Baby's Breath," Callahan let his band flesh out each song while he delivered lyrics with a deep, gentle roar and punctuated refrains with blasts of harmonica. The dynamic pulse of "Drover" allowed guitarist Matt Kinsey to fill the venue with mournful crescendos of feedback while Callahan sang earnestly about "this wild, wild country." Reaching back into his Smog catalog, a rendition of "Our Anniversary" epitomized the raw, humanistic lyrical approach that defines much of Callahan's work.

"A security guard tonight asked me if there would be any 'Justin Bieber action,' " Callahan quipped midway through the night. The combination of his hypnotizing compositions and a serene setting resulted in a crowd so reverent that it only made its presence known with the rounds of applause that concluded each song. Coaxed back onstage for an encore after a particularly enthusiastic bout of cheers, Callahan closed out the evening with "Riding For the Feeling." "So rarely do we see another one / So close and so long," he sang, outwardly acknowledging that intimate performances like this one are truly few and far between.