Auditorium Theater (Chicago, Ill.)

Downtown Chicago theater and National Historic Landmark.

Ferdinand Peck, Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler began plans for the Auditorium Building in 1886 and on October 5, 1887, the cornerstone was laid. The Auditorium Theater opened in 1889 and was immediately acclaimed as one of the most beautiful and functional theaters in the world. Its architectural integrity and perfect acoustics were internationally recognized. It was often referred to as the eighth wonder of the world. For several years, the Auditorium Theater, hotel and office block were used and profitable. The theater was the first home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Civic Opera Company. Concerts, recitals, lectures, charity balls, social gatherings and sporting events took place in the theater. In 1893 new hotels were built all over the city for the guests of the World's Fair. Many of these new hotels included bathrooms in every room, making the Auditorium Hotel one of the last European-Style hotels built in the city. The common bathroom made the Auditorium Hotel less desirable to the elite guests. In 1904 the Symphony moved to a new smaller home, Orchestra Hall, and the Chicago Opera Company moved to the Civic Opera House in 1929. In the early 1930s, estimates were taken to demolish the building, but the cost of the demolition was more than the land was worth. [Source: Auditorium Theater website, August 2009] The Auditorium Theater is currently owned by Roosevelt University.