Matthew Morrison Will Headline Paramount Theatre's Annual Gala

Matthew Morrison, well known for his work on Broadway and his Golden Globe-nominated performance as Mr. Schuester on Glee, will bring his incredible talents to downtown Aurora, Illinois, one-night-only, Saturday, October 12, to perform live on Paramount Theatre's historic stage.

You'll see why Morrison was Tony-nominated for his performance in The Light in the Piazza, is known for his breakout role as Link Larkin in Hairspray, and his portrayal of Lt. Joseph Cable in the Tony award-winning revival of South Pacific.

An Evening with Matthew Morrison is a fundraising gala and concert that promises a night of live entertainment full of glitz and glamor. Gala tickets are $300 and include an exclusive pre-concert reception starting at 5 p.m. in Paramount Theatre's Grand Gallery with gourmet food stations and complimentary beverages. Formal attire encouraged.

Morrison takes the stage at 8 p.m. Concert tickets (alone) are $39-$69. Paramount Theatre is located at 23 E. Galena Ave. in downtown Aurora. For gala packages, concert tickets and information, visit ParamountAurora.com, call (630) 896-6666, or stop by the Paramount Theatre box office, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and until show time on show days.  

Proceeds from An Evening with Matthew Morrison will support programming at Paramount Theatre, a non-profit organization, the Paramount School of the Arts, and to help fund outreach programs both provide to the community to make live theater accessible to everyone. 

For updates, visit ParamountAurora.com.

About Matthew Morrison

Matthew Morrison is a versatile actor who is recognized for his work on-stage and on-screen. He has been nominated for Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe Awards. 

Morrison's most recent Broadway credit is starring as J.M Barrie in the musical Finding Neverland in 2016. Morrison received two Drama Desk nominations for his role, and won the category of Favorite Actor in a Musical in the Broadway.com Audience Awards.

In addition to his Broadway tenure in 2016, Morrison performed as a guest star on the CBS hit show The Good Wife, where he played the role of U.S. Attorney Conor Fox through the series finale. Morrison performed as a guest star throughout Season 13 and 14 of ABC's show Grey's Anatomy.

In 2015, Morrison wrapped the final season of Fox's musical comedy series Glee, where he starred as the director of the glee club, Mr. Schuester. The show was created by Ryan Murphy and received the Golden Globe award “Best Television Series – Comedy or Musical” in 2010 and 2011.

In June, 2013, Morrison released his latest studio album, “Where It All Began,” which is a Broadway standards record that was produced by the legendary Phil Ramone. Prior to this album, Morrison released his debut, self-titled album through Mercury Records in 2011, which featured an A-list lineup of guest artists including Sting, Gwyneth Paltrow and Sir Elton John.

In 2012, Morrison starred in the Lionsgate film, What to Expect When You're Expecting, which was based on the book of the same name, directed by Kirk Jones. The film also starred Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez and Dennis Quaid among others. Morrison played a famous dance show star who is faced with the unexpected demands of fatherhood. 

In March 2012, Morrison hosted and narrated the PBS special entitled Oscar Hammerstein II-Out of My Dreams, which focused on the Broadway producer's life and career. Also in March 2012, Morrison was featured in a performance of Dustin Lance Black's play, 8 – a staged reenactment of the federal trial that overturned California's Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage. The performance raised money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights. 

Morrison studied musical theater, vocal performance and dance at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He made his debut on Broadway in Footloose but his big break came when he was cast as heartthrob Link Larkin in Hairspray. Morrison was later nominated for a Tony Award for his role in The Light in the Piazza, and received a Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for 10 Million Miles. He also starred in the Tony-winning revival of South Pacific at Lincoln Center Theater in New York. 

About Paramount Theatre

Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., is the center for performing arts in Aurora, the second largest city in Illinois. The beautiful, 1,843-seat theater, graced with a strong 1930s Art Deco influence and original Venetian décor, nationally known for its high-quality productions, superb acoustics and historic grandeur, has been downtown Aurora's anchor attraction since 1931.

Since launching its own Broadway Series in 2011, Paramount has amassed more than 37,000 subscribers, making it the largest subscription house in the U.S. 

For over 50 years, the Joseph Jefferson Awards has recognized excellence in Chicago area theater. Paramount has been honored to earn 115 Jeff nominations and 29 wins over the last eight years of eligibility, including six Jeff Awards in 2022 for Kinky Boots, including Best Musical-Large, Paramount's fourth win in that category following Sweeney Todd (2017), West Side Story (2016) and Les Misérables (2015). 

Paramount Theatre is one of four live performance venues programmed and managed by the Aurora Civic Center Authority (ACCA). Paramount's newly-renovated “sister stage” is the 165-seat Copley Theatre, home to Paramount's BOLD Series, across the street in North Island Center. ACCA also programs and manages Stolp Island Theatre, an immersive theater experience opening on the Fox River in July 2024, the Paramount School of the Arts, and RiverEdge Park, downtown Aurora's 6,000-seat outdoor summer concert venue.

Paramount Theatre continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Tim Rater, President and CEO, Aurora Civic Center Authority; Jim Corti, Artistic Director, Paramount Theatre; a dedicated Board of Trustees and a devoted staff of live theater and music professionals.

For the latest updates, visit ParamountAurora.com.

To post a comment, you must register and login.