Get tickets to the March 15th Miami Heat v Milwaukee Bucks game with prices starting at $20.  Tickets includes soda and one food item.   Milwaukee is a nice drive from Chicago – we’ve done it a few times to see national touring companies of Broadway shows.

Cheer on the Bucks as they face off against Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and the defending World Champion Miami Heat in Friday night basketball action at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. The Bucks are coming on strong this year under new Head Coach Jim Boylan. High-scoring guards Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings lead the Milwaukee attack, young center Larry Sanders is challenging for the shot-blocking title, and versatile forward Ersan Ilyasova has picked up steam as the season continues. They’ll face a tough test in the Heat, who have won two consecutive Eastern Conference crowns, and beat Oklahoma City to capture the 2012 title. All tickets include a free regular soda at the game, plus one food item — you can choose between a hot dog, bratwurst, regular nachos or bag of popcorn.

Goldstar is offering God of Carnage tickets starting at $5.  Yasmina Reza’s dark comedy God of Carnage reveals that while kids will be kids, adults might have only a slight grasp on maturity themselves. The play begins as two couples meet to work things out after one of their children attacks the other in the park. As the evening progresses, their behavior devolves from civilized to outrageous as each couple tries to pin the blame on the other for the incident. You’ll wonder if the parents are anything more than overgrown children, even as you laugh out loud at their antics. From acid dialogue to broad physical comedy, this play will defy your expectations at every turn, becoming more hilarious with every scene. God of Carnage won the Tony Award for Best Play in 2009 and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy in the same year.

I never bothered with this one (here or in NYC) because I thought it was a war drama!  I mean, carnage, right?  Now I’m interested!

Get FREE tickets to Julius Caesar, as performed by Babes With Blades acting troupe.  Tickets are for weekend performances in March – note that three performances are already sold out.

Back in Shakespeare’s day, his plays were performed by all-male casts. Now, Babes With Blades Theatre Company inverts that paradigm, presenting Julius Caesar with a well-armed all-female cast. A timeless tragedy of honor, conspiracy and betrayal, it tells the story of the Roman leader’s assassination, based on true events from Roman history. And this exciting production boasts what some might consider a warning but what really just makes the action all the better: This show contains realistic staged violence.

Shakespeare’s final tragedy is also among his finest. Directed by The Hypocrites company member Geoff Button, Coriolanus is a brutal, psychologically complex political thriller about Rome’s greatest warrior, whose stubborn hubris spurs him in battle but alienates him from his fellow countrymen when he becomes a politician. Raised to be a hero by his prideful mother, Coriolanus refuses to compromise, even to save his own life. Exiled from his country, the warrior returns to what he knows best, vowing to take bloody revenge on the people who rejected him.

Free tickets are available for four performances during the first week of March.  I can’t harp enough about this:  If you see a freebie you’re kinda interested in, don’t dawdle because these are VERY limited.  PITA had to think about the last deal at Jedlacka…she decided on Yes and Goldstar decided on No.  I’ve heard similar stories from other readers.

Featuring R&B star Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child and produced by Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, FELA! brings a high-energy mix of dance, theater and music to tell the true-life story of the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti. With a score featuring Kuti’s pioneering Afrobeat music — a blend of jazz, funk and African rhythm and harmonies — FELA! powerfully explores Kuti’s controversial life as an innovative artist, civil-rights champion and revolutionary musician. This acclaimed show won three 2010 Tony Awards, including Best Choreography, and has toured throughout the United States and internationally.

Tickets for performances this week start at only $22.

Tickets to A Night in Provence – a comedy being performed at Jedlicka Performing Arts Center at Morton College – are FREE, courtesy of Goldstar.  I strongly recommend that you grab Goldstar freebies ASAP, as they move fast.  And I speak from experience, because I’ve only been able to grab one or two out of all the others that beckoned to PITA and me.Das Barbecue was the last show, coincidentally at Jedlicka (a very, very nice theater and very easy to get to – just off I55).

The Jedlicka Performing Arts Center invites you to spice up a cold winter evening with a hilarious getaway to the French Riviera, where the wealthy escape to high-priced villas to soak in the sun and enjoy a life of luxury. Unfortunately for the three couples in this comedy, they’re all booked in the same room at a high-class resort, and their only choice is to take it or leave it. It’s a crazy culture clash as the French, English and Irish couples try to share the space. Add in lots of champagne and lowered inhibitions and you’ve got a recipe for delightful disaster as both marriages and international relations are strained to the limits.

One of the first mainstream books to cover sexual taboos, Peyton Place became a best-selling novel, movie, beloved soap opera and now a world premiere adaptation from City Lit Theater. This saucy tale, which John Waters called, “the first dirty book the baby boom generation ever read,” deals with three women in a respectable New England town who come to terms with their sexual identity: the emotionally distant Constance; her sensitive daughter Allison; and Allison’s friend Selena, a girl from across the tracks. Filled with twists and turns, you’ll find out why Peyton Place still resonates to this day.

Free tickets to all February and March Friday night performances of Baby Wants Candy.  The lights go down and you and the rest of the audience shout out titles of musicals that have never been performed before. Accompanied by a full band, the group of talented performers then uses one of those titles to create the name and the theme for that evening’s completely improvised one-hour musical. Using this fun and interactive approach, the hilarious comedians have consistently wowed sold-out crowds from Singapore to Edinburgh. Their shows have featured performers who’ve gone on to celebrity, including Stephnie Weir and Nicole Parker (MadTV), Rachel Dratch and Seth Meyers (SNL), and Jack McBrayer (30 Rock).

Sounds like a fun evening and with dates so far out, you’ve got plenty of time to round up a sitter.

Featuring R&B star Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child and produced by Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, FELA! brings a high-energy mix of dance, theater and music to tell the true-life story of the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti. With a score featuring Kuti’s pioneering Afrobeat music — a blend of jazz, funk and African rhythm and harmonies — FELA! powerfully explores Kuti’s controversial life as an innovative artist, civil-rights champion and revolutionary musician. This acclaimed show won three 2010 Tony Awards, including Best Choreography, and has toured throughout the United States and internationally.

Odyssey Cruises’ Luxury Dinner Cruises: Dining and Sightseeing at 7:30 pm on Friday, April 12th.  What, you thought this was a winter cruise?  Pay $85.60 instead of the usual $142.66 and don’t worry about icebergs…

Enjoy a cruise on the luxurious vessel Odyssey. Departing from festive Navy Pier, you’ll sail along the lakefront, with its fabulous views of Chicago’s mighty skyline, while you enjoy a delicious three-course dinner prepared fresh on board. Later, dance to music provided by a live band. This sophisticated getaway excursion was featured on HGTV as one of the Top Ten reasons to live in Chicago and has something for everyone, whether you’re looking forward to fresh and creative food prepared by a master chef, a fun night of music and dancing or simply relaxing and watching the beautiful scenery. Odyssey also offers a variety of fun holiday cruises as well.