PERFORMANCES

Spring Awakening — NOW CLOSED (Apr. 23 – June 2, 2022)

The winner of eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Porchlight’s production will thrill you with a story over 130 years in the making! Set against the backdrop of a repressive and provincial late 19th-century Germany, and based on Frank Wedekind’s 1891 play that was immediately banned due to its subject matter, Spring Awakening tells the timeless story of youthful self-discovery and budding sexuality as seen through the eyes of three teenagers. Haunting and provocative, this landmark American musical celebrates a journey from adolescence to adulthood with a power, a poignancy and a passion you will never forget.

Music by Duncan Sheik

Book and lyrics by Steven Sater

Based on the 1891 German play Spring Awakening by Frank Wedekind 

Directed and Choreographed by Brenda Didier

Music Directed by Justin Akira Kono

HEAR WHAT AUDIENCES HAVE TO SAY ABOUT SPRING AWAKENING

GO BEHIND-THE-SCENES WITH THE COMPANY OF SPRING AWAKENING

PRODUCTION PHOTOS

Photos by Liz Lauren

Blues in the Night — NOW CLOSED (Feb. 9 – Mar. 20, 2022)

The Blues is one of America’s original art forms and Chicago was the home to some of the greatest Blues performers ever. Set in a history-filled hotel on Chicago’s south side one fateful night in the late 1930s, this Tony Award-nominated celebration interweaves the stories of three women who share their highs and lows of romance through the iconic songs of Bessie Smith, Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen, Alberta Hunter, Jimmy Cox, Ida Cox and others.

Conceived by Sheldon Epps

With the music of Bessie Smith, Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen, Vernon Duke, Gordon Jenkins, and Alberta Hunter and others

Directed and Choreographed by Kenny Ingram

Music Directed by David Fiorello

Associate Music Directed and Conducted by Maulty Jewell IV

Assistant Choreographed by Ariel Dorsey

BLUES IN THE NIGHT — WINNER OF 4 JEFF AWARDS

HEAR WHAT CRITICS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT BLUES IN THE NIGHT

INTERVIEWS WITH THE CAST & COMPANY OF BLUES IN THE NIGHT

BLUES IN THE NIGHT FEATURETTES

PRODUCTION PHOTOS

Photos by Anthony Robert La Penna

Pump Boys & Dinettes — NOW CLOSED (Oct. 30 – Dec. 12, 2021)

Porchlight’s 27th season kicks off with a stop at the Double Cupp Diner for Pump Boys & Dinettes, one of the longest running shows in Chicago Theatre history and a country fried phenomenon filled with toe-tapping music on guitar, piano, bass and a kitchen utensil or two! This North Carolina dinette is your home off the highway and located just across the street from the filling station. Run by Prudie and Rhetta Cupp, beloved sisters who are always ready with a cup of Joe, a slice of pie, a homespun song and a “Welcome back!” The New York Times said “It doesn’t merely celebrate the value of friendship and life’s simple pleasures, it embodies them.”

Created by John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Tony winner Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel and Jim Wann

Directed by Daryl D. Brooks

Music Directed by Robert Reddrick

Choreographed by Rueben D. Echoles

Costumes & Wigs designed by Rueben D. Echoles

HEAR WHAT AUDIENCES HAVE TO SAY ABOUT PUMP BOYS & DINETTES

MEET THE CAST & COMPANY OF PUMP BOYS & DINETTES

PRODUCTION PHOTOS

Photos by Chollette

Porchlight Revisits Passing Strange — NOW CLOSED (May 18 & May 19, 2021)

From L.A. to Amsterdam to Berlin, a young musician chases youthful dreams and spiritual clarity against a shifting backdrop of locales and acquaintances as he rebels against his conservative upbringing. This hit rock musical, loaded with soulful lyrics and passion, debuted to critical acclaim on Broadway in 2008, winning both the Tony and Drama Desk Awards and went on to be a critically acclaimed motion picture filmed by Spike Lee+ in 2009. The New York Times said about its Broadway debut, “Call it a rock concert with a story to tell … Or call it a sprawling work of performance art … I’ll just call it wonderful.”

Lyrics and Book by Stew

Music by Heidi Rodewald and Stew

Directed by Donterrio

Music Directed by Bryan McCaffrey

Choreographed by Terri K Woodall

PRODUCTION PHOTOS

Photos by Lobo Tate

Porchlight Revisits Nunsense — NOW CLOSED (Nov. 17 & Nov. 18, 2021)

Porchlight Revisits launches its 2021-2022 season with this heaven-sent musical. Join the Little Sisters of Hoboken for a wholesome variety show to raise emergency funds for the convent. After 52 of the nuns met an untimely end from Sister Julia, Child of God’s vichyssoise, the surviving sisters need to throw the fundraiser to pay for their burials. This funny foray has blessed theatregoers worldwide for more than 30 years and has had six sequels, three spin-offs and a TV special starring “Golden Girl” Rue McClanahan as “Mother Superior!”

Book, music and lyrics by Dan Goggin

Directed by Michelle Lauto

Music Directed by Kailey Rockwell

Choreographed by Jenna Schoepe

PRODUCTION PHOTOS

Photos by Justin Kocher

Broadway in your Backyard 2021

Playing to packed crowds across Chicagoland parks in 2021 and 2022, Porchlight Music Theatre’s free concert series Broadway in your Backyard is part of Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks series, supported by the Mayor’s Office and Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. Broadway in your Backyard is performed at a number of different parks in the Chicagoland area and features a rotating company performing favorite songs from RENT, Hello, Dolly!, The Music Man, Grease, Six, The Little Mermaid, Hair, West Side Story, Mamma Mia! and MORE. Photos below by Lobo Tate and Oni Wright.

Learn more about Broadway in your Backyard

SPECIAL EVENTS

ICONS Gala 2022 —Sept. 23, 2022 at the Ritz-Carlton

Chaired by Joe Higgins and Scott Hoesman and honoring ICON Donna McKechnie*, who received a Tony Award for her performance as “Cassie” in the original company of A Chorus Line, “the most entertaining gala in town” welcomed performing arts lovers and advocates from across the region to gather in the Ritz-Carlton’s beautiful 12th-floor ballroom overlooking the city.

Honoring ICONS Award Recipient Donna McKechnie
with Luminary Award recipient Dan Ratner

Directed by Artistic Director Michael Weber

Co-directed and choreographed by Jenna Schoppe

Additional choreography by Christopher Chase Carter, Kelly Felthous and Reneisha Jenkins

Music Directed by Linda Madonia

PHOTOS OF ICONS GALA 2022

Photos by Chollette

Chicago Sings Stephen Sondheim — May 23, 2022 at the Museum of Contemporary Art

Chicago Sings is Porchlight’s signature fundraising concert, featuring a lineup of Chicago’s best and brightest music theatre and cabaret favorites. In 2022, our annual celebration revolved around the incomparable Stephen Sondheim and his legacy as a titan of American music theatre with a concert experience that shines a spotlight on all of his most beloved songs and some hidden gems. The evening also included the presentation of the Guy Adkins Award for Excellence in the Advancement of Music Theatre in Chicago.

All Chicago Sings proceeds benefit our youth education, artistic and community outreach programs — support that advances Porchlight’s resilience and commitment to illuminating the past, present and future of music theatre.

LEARN MORE ABOUT CHICAGO SINGS STEPHEN SONDHEIM

PHOTOS OF CHICAGO SINGS STEPHEN SONDHEIM

Photos by Chollette

EDUCATION

PMT EDUCATION (2021 – 2022)

Our Youth Programs serve ages 4-17 years and are grounded in the power of the American art form of music theatre to tell stories and inspire confidence and a love of the arts. Our Engagement Programs deepen audience connection to the art, artists and the community. Have a question? Reach out to Education Director Rebeccah Singer* at rebeccah@porchlightmusictheatre.org.

LEARN MORE ABOUT PMT EDUCATION

LEARN MORE ABOUT SPRING & SUMMER CLASSES

JOIN PORCHLIGHT’S SUMMER CAMP

‘TOP OF THEIR CLASS’: A CLASS FOR THEATRE ENTHUSIASTS