Chicago Theatres: Shakespeare Theatre

In a city brimming with world-class performance arts, Chicago's Shakespeare Theatre stands out among an A-list crowd. As a permanent fixture along the Navy Pier boardwalk, the company attracts a diverse crowd of locals and tourists. Though its devotion to the catalog of its namesake remains unquestioned, the company also puts on productions from some of today's most renowned playwrights and directors from around the globe.

The history of the Shakespeare Theatre shows how quickly the company has developed. Barbara Gaines, current artistic director and frequent show director, founded the company in 1986 as the Shakespeare Workshop. Under much less auspicious conditions than it enjoys today, its first shows were held on the roof of the Red Lion Pub in Lincoln Park. In 1987, the company's name changed to the Shakespeare Repertory before acquiring the name it has today in 1999.

Since putting on its first production in 1986, the rising popularity of the Shakespeare Theatre has yet to die off. Its reputation as a cultural and civic resource grew so rapidly during its first ten years that in 1999, state, city, and private officials invited the company to build a permanent home–a $24 million dollar, multi-venue facility situated prominently on Navy Pier, one of the top tourist destinations in the Midwest.

Rising seven floors above the pier in a contemporary glass-walled structure, the facility houses two separate spaces: a 500-seat courtyard space for main stage productions and a versatile 200-seat black box space for smaller shows and revues. Drawing on state-of-the-art technology and acoustics, along with an inventive seating design that maintains proximity between actors and audience members, intimate performances are the norm, even on the larger stage. The open building design offers patrons a top-notch view of Lake Michigan and the city skyline to go along with the superior performances on either of the two stages.

In the past few years, the organization has played an integral part in the city's global cultural renaissance program, showing the works of internationally recognized theatrical companies and artists. In doing so, the Shakespeare Theatre has accommodated the American premiers of shows on more than one occasion.

Involving young audiences has long been another part of Shakespeare Theatre's mission. Team Shakespeare, the largest arts-in-education program in the state of Illinois, reaches 50,000 students annually through special matinee performances, touring programs, and discussions. The outreach team also extends to educators, offering teachers of the arts special resources and workshops.



Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. 2006. 17 November 2006. <http://chicagoshakes.com/.>

Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Wikipedia online encyclopedia. 6 October 2006. 17 November 2006. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Shakespea re_Theater.>