| TheatreTown Chicago Chicago, Illinois Sure, you can go to the big Chicago theaters in the Loop and see the latest Broadway touring productions. Wicked, Jersey Boys, Phantom of the Opera and the like will always play the Oriental Theater Chicago, Cadillac Palace, Auditorium and other major downtown venues. But this is Chicago, arguably the most vibrant theater town in the United States. Sure, you can try to get tickets for the latest offerings at the Goodman and Steppenwolf; they're two of the nation's most important regional theaters and their shows are always top notch and technically splendid. But this is Chicago, where hundreds of fresh young actors flock each week to find work, get involved, form a company, and put on their first show. This is a theater town for adventurers. Pick up the latest Time Out, Chicago Reader or New City. You'll find literally hundreds of productions listed in all shapes and sizes. They're being done in well-established store fronts, restaurants and bars, church halls, and outdoors in the parks. Put together your own tour from the smorgasbord of venues described here. Between matinee, evening, and late-night shows, you could spend an entire weekend stage-hopping. Use our route planner to find hotels for your next trip. |  | |||||||||
BEST OF THE ROAD:
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| The Hypocrites Chicago, IL 60657 Call (773) 472-7352  |  | Sometimes called the avant-garde darlings of the off-Loop scene, The Hypocrites continue to produce a unique brand of visually arresting and emotionally draining works of theatre. Absurdist, expressionist and deeply human, their hits have included "Rhinoceros", "Machinal", "Death of a Salesman", "4:48 Psychosis", and "Our Town". The Hypocrites can often be seen at the Chopin Theatre, 1543 West Division Street. | | |||||||
| The Neo-Futurarium 5153 N Ashland Chicago, IL 60640 Call (773) 275-5255 |  | One of Chicago's great late-night theater traditions, "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind", a lickety-split rendition of 30 ever-changing mini-plays in just 60 minutes, has been playing since 1988 and shows no signs of going away. The Neo-Futurists, who invented this lively, anarchic evening, perform other original works as well. "Too Much Light" plays Friday and Saturday nights at 11:30pm and Sundays at 7pm. | | |||||||
| Raven Theatre 6157 N Clark St Chicago, IL 60660 Call (773) 338-2177 | | If you're looking for solid productions of classic American works from the last 50 years, you can do no better than Raven Theatre. The attractively renovated building which the company has occupied since 2003 includes a 160-seat main stage and a 70-seat studio space. Their award-winning productions have included "Golden Boy", "You Can't Take It With You", and "A Street Car Named Desire". Designed for youngsters aged 3-10, the company's original adaptations of works by Aesop, Hans Christian Andersen and others are performed on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. | | |||||||
| Lifeline Theatre 6912 N Glenwood Chicago, IL 60626 Call (773) 761-4477 | | Lifeline Theatre's productions are frequently aimed at the child, teenage and young adult audience. "Johnny Tremain", "Stuart Little", and Kipling's "Just So" Stories are among their recent adaptations of the best in historic and imaginative literature. | ||||||||
| Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co. 735 W Sheridan Rd Chicago, IL 60613 Call (773) 871-0442 | | Expect gritty realism when you head upstairs to the Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company's well-worn space at Angel Island. From Eugene O'Neill ("The Hairy Ape") to Sam Shepard ("Buried Child"), the company specializes in down beat plays of down beaten Americana. The annual Abbie Hoffman Festival in August presents three-days of non-stop, round-the-clock entertainment at a very moderate price of admission. | ||||||||
| Theatre Building Chicago 1225 W Belmont Chicago, IL 60657 Call (773) 327-5252 | | The three medium-sized performance spaces in the Theatre Building are likely to hold anything and everything. The city's many itinerant theater companies (those with good funding anyway) rent space here for comedies, dramas, musicals and children's shows. You can expect an eclectic crowd to be meeting in the lobby before the curtain goes up. The box office is closed on Mondays. | ||||||||
| Griffin Theatre 3711 N Ravenswood Chicago, IL 60613 Call (773) 769-2228 | | The Griffin Theatre is in the process of finalizing a move to the Edgewater neighborhood since it vacated its Andersonville space. The company's signature adaptations of young adult literature as well as productions of lesser-known classics like J.B. Priestley's "Time and the Conways" are for now likely to be found at the Theatre Building on Belmont. | ||||||||
| Bailiwick Repertory 1229 W Belmont Chicago, IL 60657 Call (773) 883-1090 | | With the annual Pride Series and long-running hits like "Naked Boys Singing", Bailiwick Repertory has established itself as Chicago's most reliable producer of theater with gay and lesbian themes. With three performance spaces, Bailiwick also hosts and collaborates with many of the city's otherwise homeless theater companies. | ||||||||
| Shattered Globe Theatre 2936 N. Southport Ave. Suite 210 Chicago, IL 60657 Call (773) 770-0333 | | Having long abandoned the over-sized closet they once called home, Shattered Globe now performs at the studio space at the Victory Gardens Theatre, 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue. These high-quality productions feature the same exceptional ensemble acting that their loyal patrons have come to expect. Recent productions have included award-winners like "Coyote on a Fence", "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf", and "Judgment at Nuremberg". | ||||||||
| Steppenwolf Theatre Company 1650 N Halsted Chicago, IL 60614 Call (312) 335-1650 | | Steppenwolf is the most successful of all basement theaters and the model for what many young companies aspire to become. The virtually unlimited technical capacity of the multimillion dollar facility they opened in 1991 is a far cry from the suburban church space where the company began its life in the mid-1970s. While Steppenwolf made a name for itself performing down-and-dirty productions of works by Sam Shepard and Lanford Wilson, today you might see anything from medieval morality plays to the latest works of British and American authors. The company's big-name stars such as Gary Sinise, John Malkovich, Laurie Metcalf, and John Mahoney frequently return to perform or direct. Steppenwolf shows tend to be popular and often sell out. Box office hours are 11am-5pm Monday thru Saturday, and 1pm-5pm on Sunday. | ||||||||
| Chicago Shakespeare 800 E Grand Chicago, IL 60611 Call (312) 595-5656 | | Fans of the Bard of Avon will find his works being performed in handsomely mounted productions by Chicago Shakes at its stunning home on Navy Pier. Four plays are staged each season, drawing from both the familiar and lesser-known Shakespearean canon. The theatre also hosts limited runs of productions by major companies from around the world. The "Short Shakespeare" series gives Navy Pier visitors a chance to catch up on culture between shopping and dining. | ||||||||
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