Chicago Theatre Weekend


sponsored by tdf




This long weekend in Chicago includes the following: round trip airfare, 3 nights at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel in Chicago, 3 theatre productions (Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre and Chicago Symphony Concert), daily breakfast, 2 Lunches, 1 Dinner, tours per itinerary and narrated architecture cruise.



Experience the vitality of the arts in Chicago on our annual fall weekend, when we offer tickets to three exciting events. At their Friday Night at the Movies series, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performs an orchestral score as we view the classic 1925 Lon Chaney silent film, Phantom of the Opera. At the Goodman Theatre, a driving force in the American theatre, we see the musical Purlie based on the play by Ossie Davis. At the Steppenwolf Theatre, an institution committed to ensemble collaboration and artistic risk, we have tickets for the world premiere of After the Quake by Haruki Murakami. We plan an architectural cruise and a tour of Chicago’s newest gem, Millennium Park with its exciting Frank Gehry designed bandshell. We visit Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House and the surrounding neighborhood. Highlights include a tour of the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Smart Museum at the University of Chicago. We spend three nights at the historic Palmer House Hotel, within walking distance of many sights. We provide a trolley pass to travel around the city at your own pace.






1.  Thursday, October 20     
 We depart from LaGuardia on ATA airlines at 10:20am, arriving at Chicago’s Midway Airport at 11:40am, where our local guide greets us and we begin our weekend with a panoramic overview tour of the city. Chicago is a veritable museum of modern architecture, the birthplace of the "skyscraper," and its architects have initiated several international architectural styles and movements, the most notable being the Chicago School and the Prairie School. After lunch (included) we have a walking tour which includes the new Jay Pritzker Pavilion and architect Frank Gehry's soaring outdoor music band shell in Chicago's Millennium Park. This is the latest architectural addition in a city adorned by significant buildings designed by the likes of Frank Lloyd Wright, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and other legendary architects. We end our tour at our hotel and we check-in at the Palmer House, located ideally in Chicago's Loop, right in the heart of the city's cultural core, near major museums, theaters and nightlife. The hotel features four restaurants, a pool, a fitness room, and many room amenities. There is time to freshen up and relax before our early welcome dinner at a local restaurant. Our first performance at the Goodman Theatre is the 1970 musical Purlie, music by Gary Gold, lyrics by Peter Udell and book by Ossie Davis. This Broadway gem lifts spirits with humor and a musical score incorporating many styles of Black music of the era.



2.  Friday, October 21     
Today discover forty centuries of human creativity at The Art Institute of Chicago, one of the world's leading museums. There is a permanent collection of over 7000 objects, spanning five centuries of both Western and Eastern civilizations. From ancient Chinese bronzes to the latest work by today's artists; from Rembrandt paintings to African woodcarvings, the collections include some of the finest art ever produced. On display are paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings, photographs, Asian art, art of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, textiles, decorative arts, and architectural fragments and drawings. You are free for lunch. Today you may tour Chicago at your own pace. With an all-day pass, you can ride both the Trolley and the Double Decker bus, starting at any stop on the 13-mile route to eat, shop, and see the sites. From Sears Tower to the Water Tower; from River North to Chicago's Museum Campus; from State Street to Navy Pier, your pass is all you need to discover the Windy City, past and present. Tonight we have tickets for a performance by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. For their Friday Night at the Movies Series the CSO performs a score to accompany the 1925 silent classic, Phantom of the Opera.  
    



3.  Saturday, October 22     
This morning we visit the Navy Pier where there is a new Museum of Stained Glass, encompassing this traditional art form from ancient times to contemporary designs. We take a narrated architecture cruise on the Chicago River for a different perspective on the skyline. You are free for lunch before our matinee performance of After the Quake at the Steppenwolf Theatre. In 1995, Haruki Murakami, Japan’s most highly regarded novelist, returned to his hometown of Kobe after a disastrous earthquake nearly destroyed the entire city. After the Quake, the collection of short stories inspired by this event, measures the devastation of a people after a catastrophe. This evening you are free to explore the myriad delights of a Saturday night in Chicago.



4.  Sunday, October 23     
 This morning we visit The Frederick C. Robie House regarded as the culmination of Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie style and as an icon of modern architecture. Wright designed this amazingly contemporary space almost a hundred years ago, and the current restoration is returning the building to its original splendor. After lunch (included) we continue with an exploration of the surrounding architecturally rich neighborhood and tour the David and Alfred Smart Museum on the grounds of the University of Chicago. The Smart Museum of Art houses a permanent collection of over 9,000 objects, spanning five centuries of both Western and Eastern civilizations. The scope of its permanent collections, combined with groundbreaking special exhibitions, a focus on research and teaching by University of Chicago scholars, and distinguished outreach and educational programs geared to both adults and school age children, makes the Smart one of the Midwest’s most dynamic and innovative educational institutions in the visual arts.  
    
We depart Midway airport on ATA flight at 5:15pm and arrive at LaGuardia at 7:20pm.  





This engaging experience includes:

  • Round trip airfare on ATA Airlines (LaGuardia/Midway)
  • 3 nights at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel in Chicago
  • theatre production Goodman Theatre
  • theatre production Steppenwolf
  • Chicago Symphony Concert
  • Daily breakfast, 2 Lunch, 1 Dinner
  • Art Institute of Chicago tour
  • Tour Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House
  • Smart Museum of Art at University of Chicago
  • Narrated architecture cruise
PROGRAM PRICES  
Per person (double occupancy) Program of land and air from New York ……$ 1,499.00  
(Not available after August 15)  
Land Only …………………………$1349.00  
Single supplement………$ 325.00  
Air tax (estimated)…$  50.00