We love the Marriott Theatre, and were so grateful to receive complimentary tickets from Yelp to…read moresee the musical "Come from Away"! Our huge thanks to Yelp, our Community Manager Kesha, and the Marriott Theatre for this wonderful opportunity. My husband, who is also a fellow Yelp Elite, was my plus-one. We were deeply touched by this powerful yet entertaining musical. "Come from Away" is based on the true story of what happened after the U.S. airspace was closed on September 11, 2001, following the attacks. 38 planes carrying thousands of passengers from around the world were diverted to the small town of Gander, Newfoundland. For 5 days, this close-knit community generously welcomed the stranded passengers with open arms, providing shelter, food, clothing, an open bar, and most importantly, compassion and kindness. We watched "Come from Away" on the evening of September 12, just after the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. The timing made the experience especially poignant. I had goosebumps throughout this 100-minute production, brought to life by the incredibly talented cast of the Marriott Theatre. The heartbreaking moments were skillfully interwoven with laugh-out-loud humor, creating an emotional roller coaster that never felt heavy-handed. This award-winning musical beautifully celebrates the triumph of humanity and reminds us that, despite our differences, we are all part of a global family. By the end, what stayed with me was a profound sense of love, resilience, friendship, romance, and gratitude. The Marriott Theatre's theatre-in-the-round setup is perfect for this production that there truly are no bad seats! The rotating stage creates an immersive atmosphere that brings the story to life and makes the audience feel completely connected to the action. I also loved the witty costume design, which helps the actors transform quickly between characters. The same talented cast portrays both the Ganderites and the stranded passengers, and their versatility is remarkable. "Come from Away" runs from August 26 through October 18, 2026. Don't miss the chance to see this phenomenal production, I highly recommend it!

Marriott Theatre continues to prove why it's one of the best regional theaters around. The theater…read morein the round design makes every seat feel intimate, and with its 360 degree layout, there really isn't a bad seat in the house. The scenic design, lighting, and costumes beautifully transformed the space into a dreamy turn of the century Swedish countryside. A Little Night Music was such an interesting production! It had a little bit of everything including romance, humor, scandal, suspense, and plenty of unexpected plot twists. At times, it was a bit challenging to keep up with all of the intertwining storylines and relationships, but once everything started coming together, it made for a fun and entertaining experience. Even if you're not familiar with A Little Night Music, the witty humor, romance, and tangled relationships keep the story engaging from start to finish. The cast did an incredible job balancing comedy and emotion, delivering plenty of laugh out loud moments alongside heartfelt scenes. As always, Marriott Theatre made for a wonderful night out. Parking is free, the venue is comfortable, and the staff is welcoming, friendly, and organized. If you're looking for a great date night or simply love live theater, this production is absolutely worth the trip to Lincolnshire. A special shoutout to Kesha, our Community Manager, and the incredible Marriott Theatre staff. My husband recently fractured his foot and is currently using a knee scooter. They graciously accommodated us with an aisle seat at the last minute, and the staff went above and beyond by helping transport his scooter to and from our seats. That level of kindness and customer service truly made our evening stress free, and we're so grateful for their thoughtfulness.

My friend surprised me with tickets to see Ruthless! at the Citadel Theatre, and I didn't even know…read morethis hidden gem existed! There was ample parking when we arrived, and the entrance to the theatre was clearly marked. We were immediately greeted by a gentleman at the ticket counter who was absolutely wonderful. I wish I had remembered his name--he was so warm and welcoming and made us feel genuinely happy to be there. The seats were very comfortable, and I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of legroom. I really appreciated not feeling cramped, as I often do in many other theatres. The live music, lighting, sound, acting, and singing were all top-notch. I was incredibly impressed by my experience here and can't wait to return for another show!

We have been patrons of the Citadel Theatre for a couple of years now and their shows never…read moredisappoint! As a patron of the arts, I am privileged enough to see a variety of shows in a variety of spaces and the Citadel is one that I can say is consistently great and offers a variety of shows at very reasonable prices. The theatre space is not huge, but for me, that means there is never a bad seat in the house! They have a reasonably priced concession stand and have a wonderful staff in the lobby that is always friendly and helpful. Bonus points for them always have little touches that reflect the current show--for example, today's show revolved around college admissions and there were all of these college pennants adorning the walls. There are clean bathrooms, an accessible bathroom, and there is plenty of parking. The seats are comfortable, well-spaced, and the sound system is great. My grandmother is a little hard of hearing and she can hear most everything the actors have to say! I always look forward to my evenings planned at the Citadel Theatre!

I have been a patron of Metropolis for as long as I can remember, starting with the influence of my…read moregrandpa and grandma taking me to the children's shows. The quaint theater doesn't really have a "bad" seat in the house! They have programming that spans improv, musicals, classic plays, children's theatre, educational concerts, a capella, etc. They also have a performing arts school in which my daughter has taken classes and summer camps at. One star off because I wish they would do more accessible tickets e.g. rush tickets or lotteries. One of shows of the children from the school of the performing arts was, like, $20/person. Also, the Play that Goes Wrong was $50. I can see a Broadway in Chicago show for that price if you go about it utilizing the proper channels. I do not utilize the bar during shows, but they sell snacks, which are not allowed in the theater, and drinks, which are allowed in the theater.

Very disappointed we paid for seats and then was told first come first serve. So nit happy we…read morewaited in lobby thinking we had a say section 3 seat 7-8. So our seats we 3-4 , 5-6, 7-8. For three couples. Instead seat were saved and not together. Every one in this row thought the same. It was awful and birthday party like ours and they had to divide up as some couple sat between them. I see plays on the regular and not sure I would come back here. They cast only performed to the middle section. So it was not worth what we paid. I plan to take my friends to another venue next time.

I had a ton of fun watching a cover band here. Don't expect a mosh pit, the crowd runs a bit…read moreolder - ha. But everyone was in to it and having fun. The staff there were nice and knew what they were doing. I heard there was a speakeasy there but I didn't go upstairs to see it

This is a pretty nice venue! They've put in lots of work to restore this old theater and it shows…read more Seats are comfortable, decent leg room. Plenty of food and beverages to choose from. The service is fast and friendly too. Prices are not too bad either. About on par with other similar venues. There's a speakeasy two floors up, but we didn't check it out yet. I feel the sound could be better, but I know that's subjective and could be due to many variables. Anyway, check this place out! I think you'll like it.

I came here for the first time to see my colleague perform in a play, so I wasn't sure what to…read moreexpect. I was pleasantly surprised. The theater was spacious, the seats were comfortable, and there was plenty of legroom. I also appreciated that the seats were staggered, giving everyone a clear view of the stage. The set design was impressive and professional, the lighting and sound were excellent, and, most importantly, the performers were outstanding. The actors in the lead roles had incredible voices--they could easily be on Broadway! The entire production was truly a class act!

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.

Hv some interesting programming. Some good movies…read moreDevil loves prada 2 Best popcorn ever!

Wayfarer Theater is an absolute blessing to Highland Park! Honestly, it deserves total commitment…read moreand support from everyone here, and from everyone living in all the adjacent cities, too.It is super clean, and the theaters themselves are just great. They play such great, interesting movies, and the inside is really pretty with a great community feel. Plus, they have excellent concessions and very reasonable prices.

I have been fortunate enough to see two Seanachai Theatre Company productions: DANCING AT LUGHNASA…read morein the spring, and more recently, THE WEIR. Seanachai's plays are all Irish-centric, from the playwrights to the settings, and fittingly, their home is the Irish American Heritage Center - the perfect venue for them. Not surprisingly, their productions are compelling in subject matter. Don't go expecting a "light" play; they tackle very thought-provoking material. Having said that, both plays I've seen are shot through with humor that the Irish are also known for. Most importantly, the artists of Seanachai are master craftsmen of character and storytelling, and their passion comes through strongly in THE WEIR. Set in modern-day Ireland, about rural barflies and a big-city visitor to their backwater "local," this production is a compact masterpiece of characters drawn and stories told (literally; each character but one tells a gripping tale) that does not end at all like one is led to believe. It's truly an ensemble piece with no weak links; you will find yourself wanting to reach for a beverage next to you, so strongly do you feel a part of this intimate pub evening on a blustery Irish heath. I look forward to attending many more productions in the future.If you enjoy live theater or are into Gaelic storytelling, do yourself a favor and check them out. If you go on a Friday or Saturday night, you can stop for "a small one" after the show in the Fifth Province - the Irish pub on the first floor of the IAHC, and perhaps share your own stories with a cast member or two.

While you guys were all getting wasted at Yelp Summerfest '10, I was lucky enough to meet some of…read morethe cast members of the Seanachai Theater Company. Intrigued by the description of their latest play, The Weir, I decided to go back to the Irish American Heritage Center to see a preview performance. Oh, you didn't know there was a theater in the IAHC? Well, there is! It's very intimate and you feel like you're on the stage with Seanachai's talented ensemble cast. One of my biggest complaints about theater in Chicago is that it's so darn expensive. We don't have "off-broadway", or even "off, off-broadway." We have overpriced Ticketmaster fees and venues so big that you can barely tell if you're watching an actor or a muppet perform. The tickets to see Seanachai are extremely affordable and, on the particular night that I was there, included a Q & A with the director and cast. Since I went to a preview performance, I am interested in going back in a few weeks to see how the play has progressed and also plan on attending future performances.