Oscar winner Al Pacino was on the red carpet Thursday night to promote a film, but he talked more about his great desire to be on the stage here.

“When I think of Chicago,” he told the Sun-Times, “the first thing I think of is theater, David Mamet and how great a theater town Chicago is.”

While at the Harris Theater to boost his “Stand Up Guys” — opening the 48th annual Chicago International Film Festival — Pacino made a pitch to act at the Goodman, Steppenwolf “or anyone who would have me.” He admitted he has “toyed with the idea of doing a revival of ‘Hughie’ [the Eugene O’Neill play done at the Goodman with Brian Dennehy in 2004], or Shakespeare or Mamet,” as he recently has been doing on Broadway with the revival of “Glengarry Glen Ross.”

One “Stand Up Guys” co-star, Julianna Margulies was a no-show, but Alan Arkin was on the red carpet in the city where “it all started for me,” he said. “This was the beginning, thanks to Second City.” Even today, Arkin said, he has “many, many friends in Chicago.”