Get half-price tickets to Oklahoma! with Broadway stars and a full orchestra performed on the Lyric Opera stage with performance dates over two weeks in May. Why is a full orchestra such an important point? Well, those Broadway producers have been making some nasty, tightwad cuts over the past years, reducing what used to be full orchestras to where you’ve got a couple of guys playing kazoos and tissue-paper combs. Sad, unless you think West Side Story backed by all-kazoos is a selling point…

You may know the songs — “People Will Say We’re In Love,” “The Surrey with the Fringe on Top,” “I Cain’t Say No,” — but you have never seen a production of Oklahoma! like this. Lyric Opera of Chicago has pulled out all the stops to mount a landmark production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece. Two of Broadway’s brightest stars — John Cudia (“Phantom” from The Phantom of the Opera) and Ashley Brown (“Mary Poppins” from Mary Poppins) — star as Curly and Laurey in this epic tale of cowboys versus farmers in the Oklahoma Territory. Experience the original, thrilling choreography by Agnes de Mille as 37 members of the renowned Lyric Orchestra play Richard Rodgers’ music with a depth and richness rarely heard in any theater, anywhere. Lavish sets, gorgeous costumes and the combined power of Lyric Opera’s orchestra, chorus and cast all contribute to this historic theatrical event.

The Abbey Pub: Live Concerts and More and you can get FREE tickets through Goldstar.

For more than 30 years, this Northwest neighborhood hangout has been serving up great live music, along with nightly drink and pub grub specials, to an appreciative Chicago crowd. Whether it’s folk, rock, rap, traditional Irish bands or beyond, their stage has hosted up-and-comers and legends alike, from Nickel Creek to Neko Case and Wilco to Wiz Khalifa. Mumford & Sons and Florence & The Machine both played The Abbey on their way up the charts, among dozens of others. See the full event description for the upcoming lineup of exciting acts.

Only a couple of the FREE performances of In a Garden at A Red Orchid Theatre are still available.

Andrew Hackett is an up-and-coming architect who is looking for his big break when he learns about the Middle Eastern country of Aquaat, whose wealthy leader is importing architects for projects to beautify the country. He signs on immediately and is assigned to the care of the Minister of Culture, who is more than vague about what exactly they want Hackett to do. Discussion plans and drawings turn to debates about politics, personal life and pop culture as political tides shift, cultures clash and world views are turned upside down.

Goldstar currently has 20 more comp shows available, but that number is rather fluid.

Four FREE performance dates are still available for the Chicago premiere of Rabbit.

Nina Raine — winner of both of England’s “most promising playwright” awards — is leading a one-woman British Invasion of the American theater. After winning last year’s Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play, her latest work, Tribes, is slated for Steppenwolf’s next season.  But why wait until December to discover the work of this witty, utterly honest writer?  Stage Left Theatre introduces Raine’s first play and breakout hit, Rabbit, to Chicago audiences.  Rabbit unravels the birthday party of 29-year-old Bella, a wild night at the bar where friends can’t stand each other, ex-lovers can’t let go and only one person knows that the birthday girl’s father is dying.  Fellow Brit Elly Green directs this compelling battle-of-the-sexes comedy.

Get tickets to Oliver! at Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace for $21.50 during the first week of April (previews).  Based on Dickens’ beloved character from the novel Oliver Twist, this boisterous musical follows young orphan Oliver from the dreary surroundings of a workhouse to the streets of Victorian London, where he unwittingly falls in with a gang of pickpockets. Featuring memorable songs like “Food, Glorious Food,” “Consider Yourself,” “Where Is Love?” and “As Long as He Needs Me,” the endearing tale tackles relatable themes: the search for love, the triumph of right over wrong, the hope for a better world, and the belief that life is worth living. Oliver! premiered in London’s West End in 1960, debuted on Broadway in 1963, and was made into a musical film in 1968.

Some of the Goldstar freebies posted earlier in the week are still available – click on the link above and check out the comp section.

Worlds collide in the drama Augusta and Noble when Gabi, who has lived in a vibrant Latino community in the West Town neighborhood of Chicago, begins high school across the city at Northside College Prep, where she is exposed to new people and a spectrum of possibilities. As Gabi begins to explore her heritage, and discover the truth about her parents’ arrival in America, she must figure out exactly where she belongs. Presented in English with Spanish supertitles during weekend performances, Augusta and Noble celebrates the rich history and bright futures of the immigrants who call the Windy City home.

The magic of storytelling is on full display in this Midwest premiere of The Electric Baby. The winner of a Women in Arts and Media Coalition’s Collaboration Award, The Electric Baby was written by Brooklyn-based playwright Stefanie Zadravec (Honey Brown Eyes, Save Me). Steeped in folk tales and lore, this modern drama sees a young man killed in a car accident and a group of fractured souls coming together to look after a magical, glowing baby. Rivendell Theatre Ensemble Artistic Director Tara Mallen directs this thoughtful, moving show of sad endings and strange beginnings.

Many, many new offers over on Goldstar – I counted 24!  And there’s still the freebies and deals previously posted.   Forever Plaid is one musical I hear on Sirius/XM all the time.

In this hit musical-comedy revue, a 1950s male pop quartet that perished in a car crash on their way to their first big stage gig returns to Earth for one night only to perform the concert of a lifetime. In between their boyish squabbling and overzealous execution of their complicated choreography, the Plaids show off their close-harmony singing with some of the greatest hits of the ’50s, including “Catch a Falling Star,” “Sixteen Tons,” “Chain Gang,” “Magic Moments” and “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing.” A long-time audience favorite, the show’s musical arrangements were originally done by the late James Raitt, a cousin of rocker Bonnie and Broadway star John Raitt.

Free tickets for the March 30th show. The nationally-touring group Badfish plays the greatest hits of California ska-punk band Sublime at the House of Blues. Hailing from Providence, Rhode Island, Badfish has become one of the biggest tribute bands working today with their high-energy renditions of “What I Got,” “Santeria,” “Wrong Way” and other tunes by the late, great Bradley Nowell and his band. They play more than a hundred shows across America yearly, from the East Coast and the Midwest to Sublime’s home territory in Southern California and beyond.

Free tickets to the April 4th performance. Reggae pioneers Toots and the Maytals have been making music together for so long that they actually started playing before reggae even existed. The group, fronted by singer-guitarist Frederick “Toots” Hibbert, got its start playing ska and rocksteady — Jamaican music’s precursors to reggae. In fact, Toots and co. are frequently credited with coining the term “reggae” thanks to their 1968 single “Do the Reggay.” Massively influential singles like “Pressure Drop” and “Monkey Man” followed, cementing Toots and the Maytals’ place in the genre’s legend. In 2005, they won a Grammy for the album True Love, and received a nomination for 2008’s Light Your Light.

April 13th performance. Touring behind their brand-spanking new 2013 release Repeat After Me, Los Amigos Invisibles are more than ready to reveal their signature dance sound at the House of Blues Chicago. This Venezuelan pop band is famed for their blowing the roof off their live shows, which they’ve performed in more than 60 countries over the course of their amazing 20-year career. They’re also Latin Grammy winners for their ground-breaking 2009 crossover album Commercial and nabbed a nomination for Best Latin Pop Rock or Urban Album at the 2012 Grammys with their outtake EP Not So Commercial.

April 21st performance.  Death to All is a musical tribute to legendary metal guitarist and frontman Chuck Schuldiner, featuring former members of Schuldiner’s band Death. Often referred to as “The Father of Death Metal,” Chuck Schuldiner was a major force in the history of metal, a talented singer, songwriter and guitarist who found success with the bands Death and Control Denied before succumbing to complications of brain cancer. Featuring Death’s amazing musicians as well as special guests, this concert at the House of Blues is in celebration of the life and music of Chuck Schuldiner and the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, a charity that provides financial assistance to career musicians faced with illness, disability or age-related problems. Also performing are prog-metal rockers Anciients.

April 26th performance. French band Dirtyphonics bring their North American tour to the House of Blues in Chicago. Putting together a gritty mixture of electro, drum and bass and dubstep, Dirtyphonics are best known for their remixes and collaborations with artists like Marilyn Manson and Skrillex. Now they’ve released their first full-length album, Irreverence and are touring the country in support of their first release. While their music makes a great listen at home, it’s best experienced in a club where you can dive right into the pure energy of Dirtyphonics’ genre-busting sound. You’ll be screaming “Dirty!” along with the crowd and dancing as hard as you can to the bass explosion that is Dirtyphonics. Opening for Dirtyphonics are DJ Dylan Eiland’s electronic dance project Le Castle Vania and L.A.-based house artist ETC! ETC!.

Dominican University Performing Arts Center (River Forest) presents Luigi Pirandello’s metatheatrical masterpiece, Six Characters in Search of an Author. This satirical tragicomedy opens on a theater company’s rehearsal, which is interrupted when six fictional characters show up looking for an author to present their stories. The lines between reality and fiction become blurred as the characters interact with the “real people” in this play within a play (sort of). The actors of the original play become the audience for the characters, entering into a theatrical hall of mirrors, where the stage becomes more real than the world itself.

Lots of freebies from Chemically Imbalance Theater  –  a few prior freebies are still available:  The Vampire Diaries Official Convention;  International Gem and Jewelry Show; Meditate for Non-Violence With Sri Sri Ravi Shankar;  Chicago Red Stars women’s soccer.

Magician Ivan Amodel is performing his Intimate Illusions at the Ritz-Carlton and Goldstar has tickets for up to 66% off!

Master illusionist Ivan Amodei brings his acclaimed show Intimate Illusions to a luxurious candlelit suite at the Ritz-Carlton. With live musical accompaniment by a talented concert cellist, this intimate, one hour and 30-minute performance cleverly combines world-class sleight-of-hand, fantastic storytelling and audience participation with razor-sharp wit and an entertaining theatrical twist. You’ll witness Amodei manipulating time, discovering a spectator’s destiny and even controlling a random audience member’s fate — might it be you? The Los Angeles Times named Intimate Illusions a Top Pick and BroadwayWorld called it “Spectacular!” Amodei himself has won six People’s Choice Awards for Best Entertainer.