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Civic Opera House This
imposing Art Deco building is largely devoted to performances by the
Lyric Opera. Each year (September through March), the company stages
work by everyone from Wagner to Gilbert and Sullivan. Touring classical
dance troops and musicals fill the off-season bill. Symphony Center While
visiting orchestras, lecturers, and jazz artists feature on its
program, this center is first and foremost the home of the Chicago
Symphony Orchestra. The complex holds a main stage, recital hall, and a
bar-restaurant named Rhapsody. Steppenwolf Theatre Co. Founded
in 1974 in a church basement, Steppenwolf has gained acclaim based on
the fame of its ensemble, which includes actor John Malkovich. Though
the company has moved upscale to a specially built theater in Lincoln
Park, it is still distinguished by raw emotion and edgy productions. Goodman Theatre One
of Chicago’s leading theater companies, the Goodman frequently spins
off productions to Broadway in New York and has earned a Tony award, the
theater community’s highest, for its efforts. Noted productions include
dramas by Eugene O’Neill and August Wilson and an annual version of
Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Chicago Shakespeare Theater This
Navy Pier venue presents a dynamic space for Shakespeare’s repertory.
The 510-seat courtyard design is inspired by the original layout in
traditional playhouses of the Bard’s day. Visiting non-Shakespeare
productions take over after the company’s September-to-April season. Second City Since
1959, Chicago’s famed Second City comedy troupe has launched such comic
lights as John Belushi, Mike Myers, and Bill Murray. Actors improvize
their lines in a series of skits connected by a current events theme on
the cabaret-style main stage. Reservations are a must. Court Theatre This
theater traces its roots to three Molière productions performed at the
University of Chicago in 1955. The Court still mounts many classics, but
it varies its seasons with musicals like Guys and Dolls and literary adaptations such as James Joyce’s The Dead. Old Town School of Folk Music Since
the 1950s the Old Town School has brought world and homegrown folk
music performers to Chicago. Its new home in Lincoln Square opened in
1998 with a concert by Joni Mitchell, though you’re more likely to catch
a women’s ensemble from Mali and contemporary folkies such as Patty
Larkin. Lookingglass Theatre In
1988, eight Northwestern University students founded Lookingglass, a
bold company incorporating dance, circus arts, and live music in its
original theatrical productions. Celebrity membership (including Friends actor David Schwimmer) and Broadway bound, award-winning shows have furthered this company’s stardom. Gene Siskel Film Center Tiny
by cineplex standards, the Gene Siskel Film Center screens films from
the silent era onwards. Cineastes will rave about the cushy rocking
chairs, excellent sightlines, and art gallery as well as foreign,
independent and experimental films rarely shown elsewhere.
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