I've been going here for the last 10 years. Every play I've seen there has been great. A lot of…read morethem are comedies. It's a local small playhouse with first come first serve seating. So you want to be there when the doors open, but the view is pretty good from any of the seats. We are now season tickets holders and look forward to every play.

We love the Marriott Theatre, and were so grateful to get complimentary tickets to watch "A Little…read moreNight Music". Our huge thanks to Yelp, our Community Manager Kesha, and the Marriott Theatre! I felt so blessed to be joined by our daughter, and my husband, who's a fellow Yelp Elite as well. All of us had a great time at this enchanting and memorable show. The Best Musical Tony Award-winning "A Little Night Music" is a witty, charming, and beautifully performed musical that perfectly balances comedy and heartfelt emotion. Set in 1900 Sweden, it follows a tangled web of love, jealousy, and second chances with sharp humor and memorable characters. Stephen Sondheim's score is outstanding, and hearing "Send in the Clowns" live alone is worth the trip. This rendition at the Marriott Theatre performed by an outstanding talented cast is very entertaining. The entire cast are just brilliant; their singing and performance are superb and very enjoyable. The Marriott Theatre's theatre-in-the-round setup ensures that there truly are no bad seats. " A Little Night Music " also creates an immersive atmosphere that brings the story to life, and makes the show feel so engaging and entertaining. "A Little Night Music" runs from June 17 through August 9, 2026. Don't miss the chance to see this phenomenal production, I highly recommend it!

I've been here twice since my last review…read more First was to see "Heartbreak Hotel" (which was cut short by a tornado warning -- more on that later), and then tonight for "A Little Night Music." Upon leaving "A Little Night Music", I texted 3 people to tell them it's maybe the best show I've ever seen (not just at Marriott, but ever). It was Incredible. I didn't know much about it coming in, and I'm not the biggest Sondheim fan (or at least I didn't think I was), but they blew me away. The direction was brilliant, the actors were insanely talented, and it was so well done. Some of the best acting I've ever seen on stage. Re: "Heartbreak Hotel" -- right before intermission everyone's phones started blaring (they were on silent, but emergency alerts cut through it). There was a tornado warning in the area, and about 2 minutes into intermission the sirens started going off. Some people left but I stuck around because I wasn't going to drive 35 minutes home during a tornado. The house manager/security ushered everyone back into the theater (the storm shelter) and they did a nice job of keeping us updated and corralled. They extended intermission to see what the storm was going to do and then ended up calling the show after an extra 10 minutes or so. The tornado sirens had stopped but it was still downpouring, and there were flood warnings and concerns the the parking lot and access roads would flood and people may not be able to easily get out if the show continued. It was the right call. I used to be a house manager at a similar sized theater that was part of a hotel, and fortunately never had to deal with this type of situation. It's stressful and they handled it well. They also told everyone to call the box office to get free tickets to another performance (I didn't do so because of scheduling conflicts, but I appreciated the gesture). All in all, great performances and a well-run house.

I wasn't aware this place existed, as it's a bit out of my usual distance for going to events. But…read moreI saw an instagram ad for Michael Cavanaugh and couldn't pass up the opportunity to see him (Movin' Out is one of my favorite Broadway shows). The location is very convenient to the Metra, and there's free parking in the lot for the building, which is always appreciated. The venue itself is nice -- intimate and a community-based feeling (there was a community band of some sort rehearsing in a room outside the theater when I left, which is charming). The theater itself isn't elaborate, but it's a nice space. It's great for this type of event. The show itself was great -- he's a fantastic performer, and I loved the set list and how interactive he tried to be with the audience (more on that later). I also loved that I was able to get a discounted seat because I bought a single seat in between seats that had already sold, so it was half price. (I don't know if they always do this, or if it was just because there were still quite a few seats left at the time I bought my ticket 2 weeks beforehand. Regardless, my frugal self appreciated it. I wish more places did that.). There were a few times during the show that the house lights randomly came on during a song, and it didn't seem like it was intentional. Maybe it was the light board operator hitting the wrong thing, or maybe a house manager bumped a switch. It was a little odd though and it happened a few times, which kind of took me out of the performance and made me think something was going on. But oh man, the crowd itself was an interesting experience from a people-watching perspective. It must be a Lake Forest thing? 96% of the audience seemed to think they were in the waiting room of a dentist office waiting for a root canal, and about 1% of the audience thought they were at Coachella (including the three 55-65 year old women next to me, who I'm pretty sure were drinking vodka out of a water bottle because they were getting progressively more wasted during the show despite only drinking from a clear water bottle lol. No judgement. We've all been there...I just haven't been there since I was 21 and trying to sneak my own alcohol into a street festival because I was cheap and not going to pay for overpriced drinks. But hey, you do you. YOLO!). The other 3% were like myself and wanted to get into it, but because everyone else seemed like they were afraid to move, we were holding back (because we didn't want to be "those people", like the ladies next to me...although honestly they seemed like they had a GREAT time, by the way they were grooving and had their hands up in the air even though not another soul in the theater did lol. I can only hope I'm that carefree when I grow up. I'm certainly not at this stage in my life). I almost feel bad for Michael, because I assume he wanted the audience to be a bit more into it than they were. He asked people to clap along a few times and he would start it and then as soon as he put his hands back on the piano to play, people stopped clapping (then he would start clapping again to try to get people going, and they would until he went back to playing. My dudes....he wanted you to clap along to the beat during the song. That's literally how that song works). I tried to keep it going but it was awkward (and bless the people next to me...they tried to clap but the alcohol was definitely impacting their ability to find and stay on the beat. I was fighting a losing battle trying to guide them haha). Also, the crowd here could stand to learn a few things about technology to avoid annoying everyone around them. Obviously people are going to take videos and photos, which is fine. I did too. But it seems like no one knew to turn down their screen brightness in a dark theater so you don't blind the people around you. It was super distracting and headache-inducing to see super bright phone screens out of the corner of my eye every few minutes (maybe it was just the section where I was seated). It would be nice if the ushers or house manager could've said something to folks or reminded people at the beginning not to let their phones be distractions. I was a house manager out in the western suburbs for a similarly sized theater while I was in grad school, and I worked at a theater that held concerts like this in high school, so I've worked at (and attended) hundreds of concerts just like this. This was definitely the strangest experience of an audience I've ever encountered. Apparently this is par for the course, though, because I made an IG story post describing my people observations during intermission and my friend asked me if I was at Gorton Center...I asked her how she knew and she said it was because of the audience description I gave lol. I'd go back and I'm glad I went. I'd just need to prepare myself so I'm not so jarred by the bizarre audience vibes.

Great community center! I had an office here for about 10 years and ran a non profit and watched…read morethe center grow from well appointed but not fully utilized community center into a bustling hub of classes, shows, private events, parties for the town. Rents are reasonable for private events. Shows are very reasonably priced. Classes are well attended.

Here are photos of a review that I put up of LoMastro and the owner's response. I attempted to have…read morea conversation with the owner in June that I was told would happen. This was about my child being held back at the same level as the year before. I simply wanted a discussion. She then refused to speak. When there were still issues in the fall (and shame on me for not pulling my kids from the studio when warning signs came up in the spring), I again asked for a phone call to discuss difficulties my child was experiencing. She again declined. After telling the owner that she needed to get back to me or I would pull my kids from the studio and write an honest review about her studio, I did write the review. When she saw the review she kicked out my kids. She said that by telling her I would write a review, that was threatening her safety. She then said that the review tarnished her studio's reputation, even though the review was entirely honest and I have the documentation to back it up. I took down the review in a moment of desperation and love for my kids as I asked her not to take out her ill will toward me on my kids. Instead, she ignored me and threw my kids on the street, figuratively speaking. Now that she cannot hold me hostage over my kids, the truth deserves to be told. She will no doubt craft a response here that is both vague and demeaning, but in the end, the truth always wins. I hope folks do their research and put their children in a more supportive environment with a more caring human

My daughter absolutely loves this place! The faculty is amazing. I strongly recommend it!read more

We visited the Improv Playhouse as a part of Mom's Night Out. Most of us had no clue what to expect…read moreand were surprised to arrive for our showtime and realize we were the only 5 people who would be in the audience. We all had a good laugh about this (both the performers and our group) and our group quietly hoped that the performance would actually be funny as there wasn't a huge crowd to buffer with. All of that to say, we were absolutely delighted by the show. The group of performers that evening were wonderful and truly funny. You could see their connection, adaptability and ability to think on their feet. It truly was an enjoyable experience at the Improv and we were happy to have gone. They have snacks and drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) available for purchase (cash only) which was a nice offering as well.

Total scam! Not as advertised! Not worth the money! Child was very disappointed! It is NOT about…read morekids, education, or theater! ALL IT IS ABOUT PROFIT. They put 50 kids in a gym with counselors that are not of legal age themselves (14 year old children). No structure! Chaos! Selling junk food to kids. My daughter was there the first day and it will be her last time at Improv Playhouse. Our 12 year old daughter wanted to take an acting summer camp. We called Improv Playhouse, a lady explained that our daughter should register for a version of the camp called showstopper, which is intended for 4th-9th grade instead of broadway bound which is intended for 1st-3rd grade. The lady suggested that we read more about their programs. We went on the website and found the Improve Playhouse channel on YouTube. We watched the video Improv Moana Camp (Link provided), which featured a group of about fifteen 4th-9th grade children taking acting classes and putting on a Moana Production. We read the mission statement. My daughter liked it, and said that is what she wanted. The camp was $755 for 10 days (two weeks), ran at the middle school. We thought we did our homework. We were expecting 4th-9th graders, groups of about 15-20 children, and acting activities. On the first day of camp, as we are walking in, all kids walking in are kindergarten through third grade. My daughter got nervous and said all kids are little. I told her that they probably have multiple camps running. Greeting the children were very young counselors. Most counselors were 14 year olds from the same middle school. They brought all the kids into a gym where they remained the entire day (9:00 am - 3:00 pm). There were about 50 children. They did not separate the children by age, there were no acting classes/activities, kids were not even taken to the cafeteria to eat lunch, but had to eat lunch on a dusty gym floor. There were no chairs, kids had to sit on the floor the entire day. They were selling junk food and candy to children at lunch. When my wife picked up my daughter, she was very disappointed and said It was very chaotic, unstructured, and a waste of time. She said it felt like the park district camp and is not what she was expecting and what we saw on the improv playhouse channel. Right away my wife asked if we can cancel the rest of the camp and asked to talk to someone in charge. Counselors went to get someone. When my wife explained that the camp was not what my daughter expected and we would like to cancel it, Mr. James said we can but we need to email the office. My wife emailed the office right away (administrative manager, Rachel Kwiecinski), but Mrs. Kwiecinski replied that there will not be refunds given. My wife called her and explained what was going on and asked her to refund the money, but to be prorated. Mrs. Kwiecinski said she will have to talk to the bookkeeping and will try to get a prorated refund. A couple of minutes later, the Creative Director of Youth Programming, Miss O'Leary called and said that there are no refunds. My wife asked her again very nicely to double check, and that it was not what was advertised and it was not for the age group that I paid for. Later that evening, the owner David Stewar emailed my wife saying they are an accredited organization and refunds will not be given, he also accused my wife of being disrespectful. My wife was very respectful to everyone she talked to, did not raise her voice or said anything disrespectful. My wife did not even ask for the full refund, which we should totally get because it was not what was advertised. In addition, he said that the video was from a local community house even though it was on their channel and suggested by their staff. According to his email "That video was from a small Highland Park workshop held years ago at a local community house, an entirely different format, group size, and production model. Our current camp format is a full-scale 10-day performance experience." Honestly, I am not totally sure what the difference is.

My daughter has been dancing here since she was 5, she is now 12. We plan to stay with LAD all the…read moreway through high school. At LAD , the instructors stand out as true masters of ballet, blending rigorous classical technique with personalized feedback that elevates every student's progress. Their deep expertise, drawn from prestigious academies worldwide, ensures classes are both challenging and inspiring, fostering a supportive environment where dancers of all levels thrive. The quality of ballet instruction is exceptional, with meticulously structured curricula that emphasize precision, artistry, and musicality in every barre and center combination. I can't recommend LAD enough--it's the gold standard for anyone serious about ballet. Miss Kate is our personal favorite!

Lincolnshire Academy of Dance (LAD) is the best studio ever. The instructors teach excellent…read moretechnique in all styles of dance, are extremely experienced, and many of them still perform, choreograph, or direct in the industry. LAD's environment is positive and loving, and all of the instructors are personally interested in the physical and emotional well-being of all dancers, as if they are their own kids. My daughter took dance lessons for 15 years. When it came time to switch studios halfway through her career, she considered four other studios. Some taught good technique but the environment was toxic, or there was not enough focus on technique and too much focus on competitions, or they made you choose between the studio or high school activities rather than allowing both, or the dress code was not professional in the studio and on stage. Only LAD was highly recommended by one of my daughter's directors at the time. We read all of the LAD instructor bios to learn about the depth and breadth of their experience, attended a recital, and my daughter took a summer class. She was sold, switched to LAD year round, and traveled an hour roundtrip to get to/from the studio for many years. LAD was life-changing for my daughter. She found her passion and the joy of dance, thrived in a positive environment, and also made amazing memories and friendships that she'll cherish forever.