Arts & Entertainment
Chicago’s Cultural Venues Adapt to a Changing Landscape
Music, art and movies are woven into Chicago’s history. For years, Chicagoans have been able to experience the arts in neighborhoods across the city.
But the city’s cultural landscape is constantly evolving. Many well-known institutions have undergone changes — from sales to renovations to closures — with a number of spaces trying to stay afloat.
DePaul University recently announced its art museum would close this year. A new operator announced plans in 2025 to reopen the 400 Theater in Rogers Park. And a new owner took over the storied music and event venue The Hideout just two weeks ago.
The leaders of these venues joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss changes, challenges and their personal connections to their jobs. Excerpts from the conversation are below.
On cultural importance:
Laura-Caroline de Lara, director of the DePaul Art Museum: “Our cultural organizations shape our city. It’s a reason for people to come visit, it’s a reason for students to come learn in our city. … Being able to provide a platform, particularly for those artists that aren’t generally shown in some of the larger museums, this is a really important space.”
Teri O’Brien, owner of The Hideout: “Small music venues are the heart and soul of the city. You get more culture, and you get more of the Chicago experience from small music venues. … The Hideout is like a community hall, it’s so much more than music. It’s comedy, it’s community, it’s conversation, and it’s a really cool legacy that the four owners started 30 years ago.”
Jordan Stancil, operator of the 400 Theater: “(Independent theaters can offer) lower prices, I think is the obvious answer. Besides the community commitment and the experience you have when you’re there. It’s just not the cookie-cutter experience.”
On personal connections:
De Lara: “I was married in a museum, I’ve been raising my kids in a museum. … I have been there for so long that I’ve seen our collection grow in incredible ways.”
O’Brien: “I worked (at the Hideout) from 2015 to 2017, first as ‘the intern’ and then as ‘the door girl.’ That was mostly hospitality, welcoming the bands, paying out the bands. … It really is (a full circle moment).”
Stancil: “I started with my family’s single-screen theater in Grayling, Michigan, which my great-grandfather founded in 1915. I worked there as a kid, then came back after college. … When I was in my late 30s and started running it, I realized there were other theater locations that you could do something similar, which is provide that kind of community space.”
On future plans and community support:
De Lara: “I will say, having been at the museum over the last 10 years, we knew that we had built up a really incredible community on- and off-campus. … I’m pleased to say that the university will actually be keeping the collection. There are not plans to sell it, there are no plans to sell the building, and (the university is) planning on really upholding the best standards and practices for caring for that collection and using it for educational purposes.”
O’Brien: “I want to continue the legacy that (the original owners) built. It’s going to be much of the same, but I also have more of a national perspective. … I’ve seen a lot of small music venues, I’ve fallen in love with them, and I feel like I can bring musicians and comedians from all over the country.”
Stancil: “I think it’s a very viable theater, I think Rogers Park is going to support it for sure.”
WTTW News arts coverage is supported by the JCS Arts, Health & Education Fund of the DuPage Foundation.
