As if getting an audience during the Superbowl wasn’t hard enough…

Extra challenges this weekend for those going to the main drag of the Chicago Theatre District: Randolph St. The Oriental and Goodman theatres are experiencing difficulties getting patrons to their buildings due to construction in the Randolph/Dearborn intersection.

Buses and other vehicles for the Oriental’s production of “Wicked” are unable to get in front of the theatre, and are probably unloading on State St.

Goodman patrons for “Shining City” and “Talking Pictures” can’t get vehicles near the theatre or the “Theatre District Parking Garage” across the street.

The Palace Theatre does not have a production this week, so it is not affected.

The construction is to tie-in utilities to the new Block 37 building, on the site of what used to be the Apollo Theatre (later known as the United Artists’ Theatre).

Then:

Now:

For those not familiar with Chicago, this block was completely razed in the 80’s for new development that never materialized. It sat completely vacant (with the exception of the Com-Ed substation) for nearly twenty years. Only in the last 2 years has construction finally begun.

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 3rd, 2008 at 4:19 pm and is filed under Chicago, General, audience. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.