In an ideal world, an evening at the theater would mean a stroll to the playhouse, dressed and fed, the children/pets bedded down for the night, the day's cares put aside, and nothing to occupy our minds for the next few hours but a playwright's vision made manifest.
Nowadays, however, a show is likely to be only one stop on the itinerary, escalating theater owners' awareness of their immediate surroundings. A building with limited lobby space needs, at minimum, a shelter from snow or rain where early arrivals can wait for the doors to open. More sites with favorable venues are flanked by a nearby restaurant/bar/coffeehouse providing patrons sustenance as well as refuge.
Luckiest of all are the theaters adjoining hotel concourses offering food, drink, shopping and comfortable chairs for napping. But though cozy bed-and-breakfasts can be found tucked away in many Chicago neighborhoods, you don't have to be a tourist on an expense account to enjoy a leisurely urban excursion that includes a play among its other activities. Check out some of these one-stop entertainment centers:
—Mary's Attic, 5400 N. Clark: This cabaret space in fashionable Andersonville, located upstairs from Hamburger Mary's, welcomes Bailiwick Repertory's Bombs Away! Pictured: Bombs Away. Photo courtesy of David Zak
, opening June 4. The new musical revue by Larry Bortniker and Sally Deering ( authors of the hit biomusical, Dr. Sex ) is premised on a fictional collection of Broadway melodies that never made it to the stage—among them, A Chorus Line's discarded "Too Fat To Dance," Mamma Mia's rejected "See Ya In IKEA" and the title song, which you will not hear in The Sound of Music.
"Mary's Attic was my first choice," declared Bailiwick Artistic Director David Zak. "It's an intimate space with a great reputation for hosting small productions and cabaret acts. The neighborhood is bustling, the restaurant is thriving, you can eat and drink during the show—I think it's the perfect combination of the right show in the right location."
—The Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted: Now in its 21st year, Bailiwick's Pride Series festival of plays addressing gay issues runs July 10-Aug. 23 at the Hoover-Leppen Auditorium in the Boystown community center. The 2009 line-up pairs The Cousins Grimm, a fractured fairy-tale musical from the award-winning team of Dan Martin and Michael Biello, with Two Spoons, Peter Mercurio's lighthearted exploration of same-sex marriage and the American Way. Do your grocery shopping at the Whole Foods on the ground floor, eat your deli-purchased supper in the lounge ( or on the deck, with its panoramic vista of Homo Heights ) and then take the elevator to the play.
For information on shows in both venues, phone 773-883-1090 or log onto www.bailiwick.org .
—The Coach House, 6205 N. Sheridan: Located right on the Granville Street beach behind the Berger Park mansion, the cozy Waterfront Café, formerly known as The Dawg House, has expanded its menu from sand-and-sports grub to encompass daintier fare, accompanied by beer or wine. Audiences will also appreciate the adjacent Coach House Theater's relaxed dress codes for Snoopy! The Musical—a sequel to the popular You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, opening June 26. Produced by The Journeymen and featuring alumni of the Gallery 37 Advanced Theater Program, this 80-minute family-friendly show provides a quiet-down time for nephews and nieces after a busy day of sunshine and volleyball.
"An advantage to working with the Park District—besides keeping our ticket prices low—is that it provides a home for our classes with the After School Matters outreach program," said Frank Pullen, artistic director of the Journeymen. "There's also the community connections—the school across the street offers our patrons parking and the café offers us opportunities to host group events like birthday parties. Oh, and the view! Did I mention the view?"
For information, phone 773-857-5395 or log onto www.thejourneymen.org .
—Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee: Inaugurated in 2006, this Bucktown storefront is unique among Chicago theaters in that it houses no resident company, but instead is a purely rental facility. What this means is that its almost non-stop entertainment ranges from family fare on weekend afternoons, to classic dramas in the evenings, to raucous late-nite drinking-game comedies. Though its tiny vestibule boasts no in-house dining facility, you can eat or drink at the pub two doors north or the tea shop two doors south, and finish in time to make a curtain.
"We often have people call us and ask 'what's playing tonight?" said Kelly Williams, Gorilla Tango's marketing co-ordinator, with a laugh. "Playgoers can choose from a variety of shows produced by a variety of companies, all in one space. You can't always have a single show draw big audiences for a long time, so we encourage shorter runs, which are more likely to sell out without our having to set ticket prices too high."
For information and listings, phone 773-598-4549 or log onto www.gorillatango.com .
In August, Theo Ubique's cabaret dinner-theater in the No Exit Café, cloistered in Rogers Park's picturesque Glenwood Avenue district, presents The Taming Of The Shrew. But meanwhile, leave your shopping bags and take-home trays with the box office personnel and take advantage of the long summer evenings to enjoy a play.
