Auditorium Theatre Celebrates 130th Birthday

The Auditorium Theatre, a National Historic Landmark, commemorates its 130th birthday on Monday, December 9, 2019, by opening its doors to all with free daytime tours and a free Open House in the evening.

"When the Auditorium Theatre was built, its founders hoped that it would serve as a place for all of Chicago and beyond to experience music, dance, theatre, speakers, and beautiful architecture," says Rich Regan, Auditorium Theatre CEO. "130 years later, we are honored to continue fulfilling this vision. Whether you've seen a performance here in the past year, haven't been through our doors since that one rock show, or have never visited the Auditorium, we invite you to come and celebrate with us on this momentous occasion."

The birthday celebration begins with the theatre's two regularly-scheduled tours at 10:30AM and noon, offered free on December 9 with pre-registration. The Open House is from 4PM-7PM, and all are welcome to come in and enjoy the splendor and architectural innovation of Chicago's oldest major performing arts venue. At 6PM, Auditorium Theatre CEO Regan will lead a birthday toast with champagne and a special birthday cake, created just for the Auditorium Theatre by Eli's Cheesecake.

Guided theatre tours are offered throughout the evening. Visitors can also go on self-guided tours, with photo opportunities and scavenger hunt clues to be found along the way; capture the fun at a photo booth with an Auditorium Theatre-themed backdrop; sketch the theatre from the second-floor Dress Circle; bring the kids for free popcorn and to color pictures of the theatre; grab a drink at the bar (pre-registrants receive one free drink); and enter a raffle for a chance to win free tickets to a future Auditorium Theatre performance. Photographs, program books, and posters from the theatre's archives will also be on display.

"It is very fitting that this landmark anniversary for the Auditorium Theatre takes place as we wind down 2019's Year of Chicago Theatre," says Mark Kelly, Commissioner of the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. "The Auditorium Theatre played an integral role in establishing Chicago as the cultural destination that it is today, and it is a breathtaking place to be in, 130 years after it first opened."

The Auditorium Theatre was conceived by real estate tycoon Ferdinand Peck, who envisioned the theatre as a democratic venue that could serve as a place for all of Chicago to experience the performing arts. Peck contracted the architectural firm of Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan to design the theatre, which is world-renowned for its perfect acoustics, excellent sightlines, and beautiful arches, illuminated by hundreds of golden carbon filament light bulbs. The opening night performance on December 9, 1889, was attended by President Benjamin Harrison, Vice President Levi Morton, and many other prominent figures of the day. Frank Lloyd Wright, who worked on the Auditorium as an employee of Adler and Sullivan's firm, called the theatre "the greatest room for music and opera in the world - bar none." The theatre was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1975 and was named the Outstanding Historic Theatre of 2019 by the League of Historic American Theatres.

In its early years, the theatre hosted speakers including President Theodore Roosevelt and Booker T. Washington; dance companies and artists including Sergei Diaghilev's Ballet Russes, Isadora Duncan, and Anna Pavlova; and musicians and performers such as Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sarah Bernhardt, John Philip Sousa, and the theatrical revue Ziegfeld Follies. The Auditorium also served as the original home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Civic Opera.

In the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, performers including Bruce Springsteen, Prince, Aretha Franklin, Pink Floyd, Miles Davis, and Joni Mitchell, among many others, all graced the theatre's stage, beginning a musical legacy that continues today. The Auditorium also has hosted numerous Broadway productions, including the long-running Les Misérables and Phantom of the Opera in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and more recently The Color Purple and Jersey Boys.

Since 2014, when the theatre celebrated its 125th anniversary, the theatre has hosted the NFL Draft; speakers including Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Sedaris, and Eric Holder; and musicians and singers such as Kathleen Battle, Bernadette Peters, Neil Young, Death Cab for Cutie, Chance the Rapper, and David Byrne. The theatre's Visiting Resident Companies are Ailey American Dance Theater and American Ballet Theatre, and also presents dance companies including Ballet Folklórico de México, Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg, Giordano Dance Chicago, and the Bolshoi Ballet, returning to Chicago for the first time in 16 years in June 2020.

Daytime tours at 10:30AM and noon are free. Tickets may be reserved online or by phone at 312.341.2300. Space is limited.

The Open House event is free and does not require a ticket. Attendees who pre-register for the event online or by phone at 312.341.2300 receive a free drink (wine, beer, soda, or water).

Photo by Carlos Rosas

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