ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar
PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE ANNOUNCES
CHICAGO SINGS BROADWAY POP,
MONDAY, MARCH 27, 2023 AT HOUSE OF BLUES CHICAGO
Tickets for the Annual Fundraising Concert go on Sale
Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023 at 12 p.m.
Porchlight Music Theatre is proud to announce Chicago Sings Broadway Pop, its annual fundraising concert, Monday, March 27, 2023 at the House of Blues Chicago, 329 N Dearborn St, directed by Porchlight’s Artistic Director Michael Weber+. This concert includes live performances by Chicago music theatre’s best loved artists, the presentation of the 2023 Guy Adkins Award for Excellence in the Advancement of Music Theatre in Chicago and more. Chicago Sings Broadway Pop offers attendees two ways for patrons to participate in this unforgettable night: the “One Night Only” Experience, which includes seating on the main floor or in the boxes of the House of Blues and access to the VIP cocktail hour before the performance and the “Oh, What a Night” Experience, hosted by the Porchlight Young Professionals, which includes seating in the balconies of the venue. Tickets and sponsorships will be available for beginning Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023 at 12 p.m. CST at PorchlightMusicTheatre.org.
Since its earliest days, songs that have appeared on Broadway have crossed over to the music charts and popular songs heard on the radio have found their way to Broadway stages. In 2023, Chicago Sings Broadway Pop celebrates these Broadway musicals with an eclectic night of songs from such shows as Chess, Dreamgirls, Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia!, 9 to 5 and others.
A performance from CHICAGO SINGS STEPHEN SONDHEIM presented by Porchlight Music Theatre, May 23, 2022 at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Photo by Chollette
ABOUT THE GUY ADKINS AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN THE ADVANCEMENT OF MUSIC THEATRE IN CHICAGO
For more than 10 years, Porchlight Music Theatre celebrates an individual who has made an exceptional and lasting contribution to the state of the art of Chicago music theatre, with the prestigious Guy Adkins Award. Guy Adkins was an award-winning Chicago actor who passed away in 2010. Among his significant stage credits were Oklahoma! Windy City and A Funny Thing Happened… at Marriott Theatre; The Taming of the Shrew at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre; Pericles, Twelfth Night, The Invention of Love and the title role in Hamlet at Court Theatre; The Time of Your Life at Steppenwolf and the world premieres of the musicals The Return of Martin Guerre and The Visit, both at The Goodman Theatre. The Chicago Sun-Timescalled Adkins, “…a smart and invariably graceful actor” and The New York Times called him “outrageously talented” for his turn at “Puck” in A Midsummer Night’s Dream' at the McCarter Theatre in New Jersey. Porchlight commemorates Adkins’ spirit and life with this annual award and celebrates the many gifts he shared with our theatre community and the world.
Past recipients include:
Jim Corti+, 2022
Felicia P. Fields*, 2021
Gary Griffin+, 2019
Brenda Didier*, 2018
Rachel Rockwell*, 2017
E. Faye Butler*, 2016
Dominic Missimi+, 2015
Paula Scrofano*, 2014
Douglas Peck+, 2013
Hollis Resnik*, 2012 and
L. Walter Sterns+, 2011.
Pronoun Key: + (he/him/his); * (she/her/hers); ^ (they, them, theirs). = (any with respect)
ABOUT PORCHLIGHT MUSIC THEATRE
Porchlight Music Theatre, now in its 28th season, is the award-winning center for music theatre in Chicago. Through live performance, youth education and community outreach, we impact thousands of lives each season, bringing the magic of musicals to our theatre home at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts in the Gold Coast and to neighborhoods across the city. Porchlight has built a national reputation for boldly reimagining classic musicals, supporting new works and young performers, and showcasing Chicago’s most notable music theatre artists, all through the intimate and powerful theatrical lens of the “Chicago Style.”
Porchlight's history over the last 27 years includes more than 70 mainstage works with 15 Chicago premieres and five world premieres. Porchlight’s commitment to the past, present and future of music theatre led the company to develop the Porchlight Revisits and New Faces Sing Broadway program series, both quickly becoming audience favorites.
Porchlight's education and outreach programs serve schools, youth of all ages and skill levels and community organizations, most notably the ongoing collaboration with Chicago Youth Centers. Porchlight annually awards dozens of full scholarships and hundreds of free tickets to ensure accessibility and real engagement with this uniquely American art form.
Students from Porchlight Music Theatre’s music classes (L to R) Mateo Martinez, Gabriel Lockhart and Celeste Kaplan join teaching artists (L to R) Becky Keeshin, Nik Kmiecik and Frankie Leo Bennett for a performance at CHICAGO SINGS STEPHEN SONDHEIM presented by Porchlight Music Theatre, May 23, 2022 at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Photo by Chollette
The company’s many honors include 178 Joseph Jefferson Award (Jeff) nominations and 49 Jeff awards, as well as 44 Black Theatre Alliance (BTA) nominations and 15 BTA awards. In 2019, Porchlight graduated to the Large Theatre tier of the Equity Jeff Awards and has been honored with seven awards in this tier to date including Best Ensemble for Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (2019) and Best Production-Revue for Blues in the Night (2022).
Through the global pandemic, Porchlight emerged as one of Chicago’s leaders in virtual programming, quickly launching a host of free offerings like Sondheim @ 90 Roundtables, Movie Musical Mondays, Porchlight by Request: Command Performances and WPMT: Classic Musicals from the Golden Age of Radio. In 2021, Porchlight launched its annual summer series, Broadway in your Backyard, performing at parks and venues throughout the city.
(L to R) Porchlight Young Professionals Chair Rosie Schultz and Emeritus Chair Cody Czmyr at CHICAGO SINGS STEPHEN SONDHEIM presented by Porchlight Music Theatre, May 23, 2022 at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Photo By Chollette
The season program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, a state agency, and by a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events.
Porchlight Music Theatre wishes to thank members of the Matching Gift Corporate Program including Abbvie; Allstate; Lloyd A. Fry Foundation; Peoples Gas; Pepsico; Polk Bros Foundation and The Saints.
(L to R) Mackenzie Maples, Eilish Morse-O'Rourke and Claire McConnell in the Color and Light Lounge at CHICAGO SINGS STEPHEN SONDHEIM presented by Porchlight Music Theatre, May 23 at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Photo by Chollette
