Great Theatre in Odd Places – The Michael and Mona Heath Fund

Chicago theatre artists can be very inventive when seeking venues for their shows, as indicated in a 2017 Mary Shen Barnidge quote: “British director Peter Brook once declared the necessities for theater to be a performer, an audience and an empty space. Here in Chicago, we brag that any empty space bigger than a bathroom stall will soon be a theater (spaces smaller than a bathroom stall typically host poetry readings) …” To celebrate theatre companies’ resourcefulness in finding spaces in which to perform, here’s our tribute to some great shows in off-beat spaces.

(in alphabetical order by play, within categories)

No Set Needed

Scenes from Arcadia by Tom Stoppard, New Leaf Theatre in the Lincoln Park Cultural Center, 2012 — *Arcadia* by Tom Stoppard, New Leaf Theatre 2012 in the Lincoln Park Cultural Center (photos by Tom McGrath)

The pool at Truman College where Pegasus Players performed The Frogs by Stephen Sondheim in 2007 — The Truman College pool where Pegasus Players in 2007 staged *The Frogs* by Stephen Sondheim (minus lane dividers)

Scenes from Gaslight Ensemble Theatre’s An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde, in the Berger Park North Mansion 2018 — *An Ideal Husband* by Oscar Wilde, Gaslight Ensemble Theatre Co. 2018 in the Berger Park North Mansion (photos by Maria Burnham)

Scenes from Refuge Theatre Project’s 2018 The Last Session, in a recording studio in Ravenswood — *The Last Session* by Schalchlin and Brochu, Refuge Theatre Project 2018 in a recording studio in Ravenswood (photos by Rob Riddle)

Scenes from Refuge Theatre Project’s Spitfire Grill in 2018, at the Windy City Cafe in West Town — *Spitfire Grill* by Valq and Alley, Refuge Theatre Project 2018 in the Windy City Cafe in West Town (photos by Zeke Dolezalek)

Church Spaces

Scenes from Cosmic Events Are Upon Us by Waltzing Mechanics in 2016, in a church auditorium — *Cosmic Events Are Upon Us* by Keely Leonard, Waltzing Mechanics 2016 in a church auditorium (photos by Tyler Core; shadow puppet design by Myra Su)

Photograph 51 by Anna Ziegler, produced by 20% Theatre Company in 2016 in the basement of a church — *Photograph 51* by Anna Ziegler, 20% Theatre Company 2016 in the basement of a church (production photo by Ashley Ann Woods)

Scenes from Halcyon Theatre’s 2017 production of The River Bride in an Albany Park church — *The River Bride* by Marisela Treviño Orta, Halcyon Theatre 2017 in an Albany Park church (photo by Tom McGrath)

Indoors in the Park

Hell in a Handbag’s 2013 production of The Birds by David Cerda and Pauline Pang, in the Berger Park Coach House, where audience members saw (frighteningly realistic) bird puppets trying to get in the windows and doors — *The Birds* by David Cerda and Pauline Pang, Hell in a Handbag Productions 2013 in the Berger Park Coach House, where audience members saw (frighteningly realistic) bird puppets trying to get in the windows and doors (production photo by Rick Aguilar)

Several of the shows we’ve mentioned on this page are also written up in other “favorites lists” on our website:

Arcadia (New Leaf Theatre): Life-Changing Theatre
The Birds (Hell in a Handbag Productions): Guilty Pleasures
Cosmic Events Are Upon Us (Waltzing Mechanics): Surprises
The Frogs (Pegasus Players): Sondheim Musicals
Photograph 51 (20% Theatre Company): Biographical Plays

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