The city’s eclectic performance scene is the Silicon Valley of theatre, flourishing amid tough economic times.
Economic times
may be tough in Chicago, but you would not know it from looking at the city’s
performing arts landscape. Within the past six months, three
new theatres have opened on
the north side of town. This summer, a tented venue on the Chicago River will
expand from a temporary playhouse to the massive new Riverfront
Theater. And
attendance to live shows has remained steady since the US recession first hit
in 2008.
While other
parts of the United States keep playing the
same old tune of fine arts
falling victim to a struggling economy, Chicago’s stage culture is as strong as
ever. As tourists are discovering, this unique culture includes everything from
plays to improv shows to live radio performances to burlesque acts to concerts,
and beyond.
Chicago’s
newest additions include the Black
Ensemble Theater Cultural Center, the new home of the Black Ensemble
Theater, a company that has been telling African-American stories since the
1970s; Stage 773, the theatre hosting Sketchfest, the
Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival; UP
Comedy Club, an improv comedy establishment from the people who brought you
Second City, a powerhouse of American performance,
having pumped out such comedic talent as Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Stephen
Colbert, Jim Belushi and Joan Rivers and which celebrates its 50th
anniversary this year; and, the aforementioned Riverfront Theater, massive venue with
seating for 2,500 and featuring summer line-up musicals this celebrating the
careers of Michael Jackson, Elton John and ABBA.
Elected officials have
long supported the arts in Chicago through funding and government-run arts
programming. And even though the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs and
Special Events (DCASE) underwent a budget cut from $32.8 million in
2011 to $29.2 million in 2012, government officials pledge that this year’s government-run
arts programming will not be affected.
DCASE
spokesperson Cindy Gatziolis said this includes programming at the publicly
funded DCA Storefront Theatre, a unique
establishment that has provided free performance space, marketing resources,
event staff, inventory and equipment to small theatre companies for more than 10
years. The DCA Theater is currently playing the Improv Play,
the story of three Chicago comics trying to make it in the Windy City – an
insider’s look into the world of improv comedy which includes bits of
improvisation itself.
“The mayor is
committed to increasing our tourism and tourism dollars,” Gatziolis said,
specifying that Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s goal is to get 50 million tourists
annually by the year 2020, “[and] a lot of studies tell you that culture will
draw a lot of folks from other countries…”
Those in the
theatre community insist that it is Chicagoans themselves who make the city’s
stage culture what it is.
“Chicago audiences are
really dedicated,” said Deb Clapp, executive director of the non-profit League
of Chicago Theaters. “Theatre is not a luxury to them. It’s something that they
do as part of their daily lives.” That is, in part, due to affordable venues,
including newcomers like UP Comedy Club and the Black Ensemble Theater Cultural Center and mainstays
including Second City and the Chase
Bank Auditorium, where the popular radio quiz show Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!
(a comedy program featuring celebrity contestants), is taped before a live
audience each week.
But it goes beyond
that. “It’s in our blood,”
declared Matthew Reeder, the artistic director of the BackStage Theater Company, who
explained that his city has a long history of rich stage culture, due in part
to Chicagoans’ working-class toughness. “People here have a way to continue to
produce theatre under pretty challenging circumstances.”
Both Clapp and
Reeder contend that Chicago is a more nurturing environment for artists than
bigger cities like Los Angeles or New York; it is a more affordable place to
live and has a more collaborative working culture. “I heard someone describe it once as the ‘Silicon Valley
of theatre’,” recalled Clapp. “It’s okay to fail here and to develop and grow.”
This encouraging
atmosphere, combined with loyal audiences and a supportive government, have
made Chicago a world-class city for live performance. And this is why the
town’s stages are also finding increasing support from out-of-town visitors.
“It’s becoming one of
those places where you can’t go to Chicago and not see a show,” Clapp said.
“[Our theatres] have really kind of become attractions in their own right.”
If you find yourself
in Chicago this year, here are a few recommendations for shows to check out:
Theatre
The Marvin Gaye Story
runs11 May to 29 July at the Black Ensemble Theater Cultural Center. The much buzzed about Marvin Gaye Story was written by Black Ensemble
Theater Cultural Center founder Jackie Taylor, who worked with Gaye’s second
wife, Jan Gaye, to do justice to the Motown legend’s story. Previews for the
production begin this Friday, and the official opening is 20 May.
RENT is running now through 17 June at the American Theater Co. Jonathan Larson’s
Tony Award winning musical brought the topic of young people living with HIV to
the forefront of public discourse in the 1990s. Sadly, though, Larson would
never see the social impact or success of his creation, as he died tragically of
an aortic aneurysm the morning before the show’s off-Broadway premier. In
Chicago, a talented cast of performers interprets this celebrated play at the
American Theater Company, which prides itself on using theatre to answer the
question, “What does it mean to be American?”
Radio
Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! tickets are available
(for semi-monthly tapings) beginning 21 June at the Chase Bank Auditorium. One of Chicago’s more unique performances, Wait
Wait…Don’t Tell Me! is a hilarious weekly show on National Public Radio which
combines improvisational humour with scripted jokes, inside the format of a
quiz show about the week’s news. Tickets sell out quickly, so check the calendar
for the taping schedule; tickets for 21
June go on sale this Friday.
Music
Buddy
Guy, with Jonny Lang plays 15 September at the Chicago Theatre. If you can
catch Chicago blues phenomenon Buddy Guy when he is actually in his hometown
rather than touring the world, do it. The recent Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
inductee and owner of Buddy Guy’s Legends,
one of the very best places to hear live blues in Chi-town, will be playing
with blues guitarist Jonny Lang. For serious fans, today is the release of
Guy’s autobiography, When I Left Home,.
The Windy City Burlesque Festival runs 12 to 15 July at
Stage 773. This edgy and
artistic festival, now in its second year, harkens back to the days of
showgirls, pinup models, cabaret and vaudeville. The scintillating performances
features performers with suggestive stage names like Booty Garland and Vivacious
Miss Audacious.
