Genesee Theatre

LouRugani on July 19, 2014 at 4:14 am

Genesee unveils grandeur of past; Cosby will open Waukegan theater (October 13, 2004, Chicago Tribune) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Comedian Bill Cosby will open the newly restored Genesee Theatre on Dec. 3, kicking off what officials hope will be a new era for Waukegan.

With its massive crystal chandeliers, lushly painted decorative plaster and state-of-the-art sound system, the Genesee was restored—at a cost of $23 million—to attract visitors to downtown.

“This will make people believe Waukegan is on its way back,” Mayor Richard Hyde said Tuesday.

And Cosby as an opening act “is like coming out of the starting blocks,” Hyde said.

City officials are banking on the 2,500-seat Genesee drawing people—and their entertainment dollars—to Waukegan and its lakefront, which the city wants to transform with shops, restaurants and homes. So far, a parking deck and some housing are under construction downtown.

“Things are happening all over the place, and it is an exciting time for Waukegan,” said city spokesman David Motley. “We’re looking at it as a catalyst for change in downtown.”

City officials gave tours Tuesday to reporters and other guests as workers installed red velvet seats and technicians tested the sound system.

“It is a first-class facility,” said David Rovine, general manager of the Genesee for SMG, the Philadelphia arena, theater and convention center manager recently hired to run the Genesee. “There are no limitations because it is so grand.”

Rovine declined to name other acts to follow Cosby or to say how many he expects to book a year.

He said the Genesee will bring something for everyone, from Broadway-style shows to concerts to comedians.

“We will really match the makeup and temperament of the people here,” he said.

In many ways the Genesee, opened in 1927 and closed in 1982, harks back to downtown Waukegan’s heyday when it was a bustling host to several grand theaters and their many patrons.

“There were lines down to Sheridan Road,” said Hyde, remembering the Genesee of the 1930s. “And it cost 15 cents to get in.”

Waukegan native Jack Benny premiered movies at the Genesee, which also put on circuses and musical acts.

But the restoration of the theater has not been without controversy. The project’s cost originally was pegged at $15 million, and it’s also opening a year later than planned.

And some residents still bring up the messy departure of Ray Shepardson, a national theater restoration expert who oversaw the project. Shepardson left earlier this year after quarreling with Friends of the Historic Genesee Theatre, a non-profit group formed to help raise funds for its operation.

Among other things, Shepardson and the non-profit disagreed on his programming strategy, which called for 200 to 300 shows a year. Some city officials and members of the Friends board called that plan unrealistic.

Illinois Sen. Terry Link (D-Vernon Hills), a member of the board, acknowledged the acrimony.

“We’ve had a lot of bumps in the road, and we have had a lot of peaks and valleys,” Link said. “But the only thing that matters is the peak of Dec. 3.”

Calling the Genesee one of the finest theaters in the country, Shepardson said he was heartbroken over what happened.

“I just think it’s very unfortunate that my approach to programming and operation of the theater has been abandoned,” he said. “Mark my words. Start counting the shows and you won’t need all of your fingers and all of your toes.”

But those thoughts were far from the minds of many who waited outside the Genesee on Tuesday afternoon for the announcement of the opening act. Tickets for Cosby will go on sale at 10 a.m. Oct. 22 through Ticketmaster. Prices haven’t been announced yet.

“Contrary to what Chicago thinks,” said Mike Pasiewicz, a local native with memories of the Genesee before it closed, “there is a Waukegan, and we are moving on up.”

BobbyS on May 27, 2015 at 2:21 am

I just heard from a friend that the Genesee management is looking for an organist to play before shows. Does anyone know if they restored the barton and it must be in working order? I see where they resumed the movie series and you can buy tickets for events in person at the box office as well as the Chicago Theater in Chicago which means MSG is the new managment I imagine.

DavidZornig on June 18, 2019 at 8:35 pm

If you scroll right from this Facebook photo, there are 500+ various renovation photos on the Waukegan Revsisted page. Pipe organ etc. All credit Dan Paul.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10205196405946669&set=g.890999334370887&type=1&theater&ifg=1

DavidZornig on May 26, 2024 at 4:46 pm

The photo added on 5/25/24 is not from May 25, 1977. The photo is from Waukegan’s Scoop The Loop car cruise, the night that footage was shot for a teaser trailer for the film “5-25-77” per the film’s writer and director Patrick Read Johnson. That marquee pictured was replaced for it’s 2004 reopening, and the Mustang pictured is an `89. “Star Wars” did not open there on that date either. It opened at the Genesee Theatre on June 15, 1977. It is also a crisper version of the below duplicate 2017 posting which should be removed.

https://cinematreasures.org/theaters/299/photos/196617

DavidZornig on December 3, 2024 at 2:30 am

The Genesee Theatre Facebook page has a recent post with 10 photos from prior to the renovation.

https://www.facebook.com/@GeneseeTheatre