Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Dance Center-Columbia College Chicago
Columbia College, a
liberal-arts institution specializing in the arts and media, has been growing by
leaps and bounds in recent years. Its Dance Center—the hub of Chicago's mod-
ern dance milieu—features an intimate “black box” 275-seat performance space
with stadium seating and marvelous sight lines. The center hosts at least a dozen
performances a year by both international and national touring groups and
homegrown choreographers.
1306 S. Michigan Ave.
&
312/344-8300.
www.dancecenter.
org. Tickets $10-$25. Bus: 151. Subway/El: Red Line to Roosevelt.
Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
If you're going to see just one dance per-
formance while you're in town, make it Hubbard Street. Chicago's best-known
dance troupe mixes jazz, modern, ballet, and theater dance into an exhilarating
experience. Sometimes whimsical, sometimes romantic, the crowd-pleasing 22-
member ensemble incorporates a range of dance traditions, from Kevin O'Day
to Twyla Tharp, who has choreographed pieces exclusively for Hubbard Street.
Although the troupe spends most of the year touring, it has regular 2- to 3-week
Chicago engagements in the fall and spring. In the summer, the dancers often
perform at Ravinia Festival, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's lovely outdoor
pavilion in north-suburban Highland Park (p. 207).
Offices at 1147 W. Jackson Blvd.
&
312/850-9744.
www.hubbardstreetdance.com. Tickets $20-$50.
Joffrey Ballet of Chicago
While this major classical company concentrates
on touring, the Joffrey schedules about 6 weeks of performances a year in its
hometown. Led by co-founder and artistic director Gerald Arpino, the company
is committed to the classic works of the 20th century. Its repertoire extends from
the ballets of Arpino, Robert Joffrey, Balanchine, and Jerome Robbins to the
cutting-edge works of Alonzo King and Chicago choreographer Randy Duncan.
The Joffrey continues to draw crowds to its popular rock ballet,
Billboards,
which is set to the music of Prince and tours internationally. The company is
usually in town in the spring (Mar or Apr), fall (Sept or Oct), and December,
when it stages a popular rendition of the holiday favorite
The Nutcracker.
Offices
at 70 E. Lake St.
&
312/739-0120.
www.joffrey.com. Tickets $15-$80.
Muntu Dance Theatre of Chicago
The tribal costumes, drumming, and
energetic moves of this widely touring group, which focuses on both traditional
and contemporary African and African-American dance, are always a hit with
audiences. The company performs at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance
in December and the spring (Apr or May).
Offices at 6800 S. Wentworth Ave.
&
773/
602-1135.
www.muntu.com. Tickets $20-$30.
River North Dance Company
Chicago can be a brutal testing ground for
start-up dance companies, who have to struggle to find performance space and
grab publicity. But the odds didn't buckle the well-oiled knees of the River North
Dance Company. This talented jazz dance ensemble performs programs of short,
Broadway-style numbers by established and emerging choreographers. You never
know where they'll pop up next, though, so call for information on upcoming
shows.
Offices at 1016 N. Dearborn St.
&
312/944-2888.
www.rivernorthchicago.com. Tickets
$25-$45.
THEATER
Ever since the Steppenwolf Theatre Company burst onto the national radar in
the 1970s and early 1980s with gritty, in-your-face productions of Sam Shep-
ard's
True West
and Lanford Wilson's
Balm in Gilead,
Chicago has been known
as a theater town. As Broadway produced a steady stream of bloated, big-budget
Finds
