Last night we celebrated my wife's birthday. We went out for a seafood dinner, watched a bit of the Superbowl at Kasey's on Dearborn, then we went to see "The Producers" at the Auditorium.
Well, I've lived in NYC on and off for a few years and I've seen my share of Broadway plays. I've also seen lots of theaters. The Auditorium ranks highly, if not excels over any I've seen there. Even if I thought the play was "just OK", I just loved going to check out Sullivan and Adler's masterpiece.
We sat in the nosebleed section. (I see no point in spending a lot to see a play...as (to be honest, I usually fall asleep), my logic is the same for 1st class versus coach on a plane: you get the to the same place (and see the same play).
The acoustics were phenomenal. Yes, every song was amplified. But, since it was superbowl Sunday, the upper decks had quite a few empty seats. I walked into some of the galleries just to hear how the different locations affected the acoustics...perfection. I have to think that the amplification was not significant. This building was dedicated by president Benjamin Harrison in 1889, which makes it doubly impressive. The wood carvings on the faux fireplaces, the murals, etc. make this a fantastic place just to virtually go back in time.
And for the Chicago as "superior" thread...if Las Vegas tries to emulate Broadway...there is NO WAY that anything now constructed (especially in Las vegas) would ever match theaters like the Auditorium, Cadillac, Lyric Opera, Oriental, Chicago, etc.
It is only sad that more of the great theaters didn't survive the ill thought crap like destroying Block 37, or being turned into a parking lot like the McVickers.
I would love to see the equivalent of LA's Dorothy Chandler pavilion be constructed or implemented here in Chicago: an Arts Center for Drama...but on a bigger scale than the new Goodman.
I've got the perfect location and it is still the largest theater in the United States in terms of seats: the Uptown Theater!> |
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