Dec. 29--In 2015 ...
... "Newsies" grossed more than $2 million in a single week in Chicago last January, the highest such take in the city's showbiz history. "The Iceman Cometh," one of the greatest ensemble shows in Chicago theater history, wowed New York audiences at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, but never made it to Broadway. Steppenwolf Theater Company's "Airline Highway" did. Lyric Opera's third foray into the musicals of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II proved to be by far its most successful.
A charming lottery winner (and former monk) named Roy Cockrum pledged huge amounts of financial support to the Steppenwolf and Goodman Theatres. The Chicago-based producer Stuart Oken scored a hit on Broadway with "An American in Paris."
William Pullinsi, the inventor of dinner theater, retired from Theatre at the Center, ending a 60-year career. A new dinner theater show, "We Gotta Bingo," opened in a brand new space on Belmont Avenue. To the north and west, the new Windy City Playhouse opened on Irving Park Road, promising comfy chairs, cocktails and lively, Equity-affiliated shows. Goodman Theatre began construction on an education complex for its downtown home.
Julia Neary, a beloved Chicago actress and teacher, died of cancer in her parents' Michigan home, a day before her 50th birthday. Russ Tutterow, a beloved teacher of playwriting, died surrounded by those he nurtured. Erin Myers, a beloved Chicago actress, died of cancer after writing with moving openness about the trajectory of her condition.
PJ Paparelli, artistic director of American Theater Company, died in an accident in Scotland, leaving a huge hole in his adopted city. Talented dancer and choreographer Paul Christiano took his own life at the age of 39. And the seemingly immortal Abena Joan Brown, a passionate advocate for Chicago theater on the South Side, died at the age of 87.
The year also marked the 10th anniversary of the death of playwright August Wilson, a train that kept running. And it marked the 20th anniversary of deaths in the Chicago heat wave of 1995, deaths remembered in a play in the Steppenwolf Garage.
"Saturday Night Live" celebrated 40 years of tapping the Chicago pipeline for talent. Second City, the source of much of that talent, suffered, then recovered from, a devastating fire.
Led by the Paramount Theatre in Aurora (which topped the Joseph Jefferson Awards tally in its first year of eligibility) and buoyed by the Drury Lane Theatre's "Billy Elliot," the suburban musical houses had an exceptional year.
Gift Theatre had a spectacular 2015. So did Amy Schumer, who kept popping up in Chicago, while visiting her brother. Strawdog Theatre announced it would be leaving its longtime home at 3829 N. Broadway, and probably moving to Howard Street in Evanston.
Cirque du Soleil returned after a long absence. So did the Defiant Thomas Brothers.
The Southport Avenue bar owned by the theatrical producer Michael Cullen went out of business; it will be replaced by a cabaret joint, dubbed Venus, in 2016. The Mission Theatre, TJ and Dave's spot at iO, ceased to exist. Mary-Arrchie Theatre declared its own imminent end, after 30 years on the fringe. Signal Ensemble Theatre called it quits. Robert Falls was inducted into the American theater's Hall of Fame.
TimeLine Theatre announced a likely move to Andersonville; Northlight Theatre heralded a likely move to Evanston. Chicago Children's Theatre broke ground on a new home in the West Loop. Redmoon Theatre brought roaring flames to its fire festival on a second attempt, but the indebted company could not survive the year.
A Steppenwolf for Young Audiences show about graffiti sparked an intense, passionate and useful debate among artists and critics about the responsibility of the artist to the young; that was before the year exploded in gun violence, making the argument seem sadly quaint.
Chicago Shakespeare announced a massive festival in 2016, in honor of the 400th anniversary of the death of the Bard. But the city of Chicago cancelled the planned outdoor show by the puppet company called Royal de Luxe.
And one last thing. There was an announcement about some show called "Hamilton" coming to Chicago in 2016. People seem quite interested.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@tribpub.com
