While I'm sure there's a lot of drama involved with the operation of this facility due the corrupt ward politics here in Chicago, no one can deny just how nice this facility actually is. It's a shame that the ward actually wants to close it - there's really a lot ways to utilize this facility to make it beneficial for members of the community. I saw a performance of "A Bronzeville Nutcracker" here, written by the dance department head at my school, Lisa Willingham. I'm not sure what the other reviewers are talking about when they say the waited outside in line forever - the box office was run entirely by our students' parent volunteers, not employees of the cultural center. We stood in line for a bit waiting for our will call tickets, but there were a lot of people waiting and there was one parent volunteer who probably hasn't worked in a box office before. Not a big deal. The foyer of the center is large and has a lot of space for mingling. If you were so inclined, you could set up tables for cocktails and appetizers - it's be quite delightful, if you ask me. The actual auditorium is large and beautiful. I think it was great that the performers were able to utilize such a great space to put on a performance. Tons of seating, huge stage and great acoustics. The performance itself was really great and I'm glad everyone had an opportunity to do a big pavilion performance. Again, it's a shame that they want to close this place down. There's a lot of opportunity for private rental of this facility for weddings, private parties, performances, etc. Also a great space for after school programs for kids in the area. I'd come here before they close it down - it really is a wonderful facility. read more

My husband and I attended the Play Claudine The Musical last Friday excited because Claudine was truly a Classic , Well it was anything but a Musical and the play was less than expected the theatre has not been kept up and it was one of the worse plays I have seen in a long time and we attend plays on a regular basis. Ms Tillman announced they were a non for profit organization but could not find that to be the case ( my husband did check) no where to be found. I know The Late Harold Washington is turning over in his grave to think his name is used to get people there but not even close to his standards. I will not be returning there again. People don't waste your time or money. SMH!!! NO STARS NOT EVEN ONE!!! Had to give a star to post!! read more

I love going to the theater and supporting local/neighbor venues. I'm glad we have the Harold Washington Cultural Center in Bronzeville and I have been there several times for various events. The performance facility itself is very nice and has plenty of seating. Seats are comfortable and I do not think there is a bad seat! If are hungry they do have concession tables which are independent vendors. A concession booth would be nice, but it works! I know the neighbor so parking on the street is never a problem, but I do believe they might have valet parking as well! Box office opens an hour before an event and extremely unorganized. I paid cash and I didn't get a ticket I got a wrist band and no receipt. They didn't even have a playbill (which is the first for me here and I was quite surprised). I keep all my playbills and tickets and was extremely disappointed. There was only one line for will call and ticket purchases. The line is outside and always long, thank goodness it was a nice evening. A separate will call would have made the line go much quicker, especially since you only have one hour to get your tickets and find a seat. That being said, I strongly recommend that despite being some what unorganized, the HWCC provides excellent plays, musicals and concerts and worth checking out and supporting. Once inside you forget all about the ordeal at the box office. Upon leaving your production, you think to yourself I would definitely come back to the HWCC. Last night I had the wonderful opportunity to see one of my favorite movies being brought to life on stage, "Imitation of Life" and was very pleased with the overall production. The vision of the director to bring this 1959 film to the stage (original movie was in 1934 and based from the book with the same title) was to say the least a very good adaptation. Kudos to him, his team and cast for putting this together in 30 days! The musical score, the nine piece live band, set design, choreography, casting, costume design and well written play made for a good evening at the theater. I enjoyed all the actors, dancers and singers, but especially enjoy watching the actresses who played Bea Pullman and Delilah Johnson (I would love to say their names, but since there was no playbill can't give proper credit). It was a nice touch for the director to introduce the behind the scene staff afterwards. When you see a production like this you know it takes a full team to make it happen! There is one more week for this production and each night has sold out. You can purchase $60 or $40 tickets online at www.ticketweb.com (don't forget to add the $6 service charge per ticket). You can also go to the box office. Please check out their site www.broadwayinbronzeville.com for their upcoming productions. read more

Visited today for the stage play Annie and previously for Imitation of Life and they were WONDERFUL. The venue does not have a bad seat you can see perfectly from each area. There is lots of parking in the area and valet parking is also available at the venue. I will be going back to see more productions. read more

I bought the tickets for ANNIE thinking it's downtown. Then later I realized the location is on the south side, and I already past the refund dead line for the LivingSocial deal, so had to go down there yesterday - thinking I am taking a hugh risk. It's turn out all fine! We got there 20 minutes before the show started at 5pm, the line in the front is not long at all. My wife exchanged the vouchers for tickets within 5 minutes after I dropped them off. It's still daylight when I picked them back up at 7:30pm. They really like the show, all the performers did a excellent job, very professional. And it does have all the back drop backgrounds like you would see at broadway. The girls keep talking about the show for the whole evening after the show! read more

I've been to many many events at this venue. I'm not sure if its the promoters or the venue itself. I'm all for supporting neighborhood businesses. But I expect adequate service and attention, just bc we aren't downtown or in the suburbs doesn't mean things should be sloppy. Last night i went to a cd release concert here. The weather was horrible! On the plus side the line kept moving and we weren't outside in the drizzle long at all. However we purchased our tickets online so when we get to the front of the line its confusion as to where the people that actually have tickets in hand and those with emailed receipts should go. This was irritating but they got it straight and we walked right in. The balcony was kinda blocked and we asked was it open or not and the guy and the door tells us go on up, well we move this huge sign blocking the stairs and start heading up, then all of a sudden someone yells the balcony is closed..can we say IRRITATED!!!!! These people really need to communicate better bc all the while trying to get to the balcony streams of ppl are coming in, therefore we have to get behind them to get main floor seating. We ended up way in the BACK...ugh. At this point i am not a happy girl. However i try to get my act together and have a good time anyway. Well the main floor is elevated so you can actually get a good view from the back :) :) This made me happy, I need to see and hear good or i might as well stay home. Another thing, this venue has the crappiest audio system in the world. Every single event i've been to, the microphones/amps always either go out completely or malfunction in so form or fashion...SERIOUSLY I am not exaggerating. From the very start they were having mic problems and it continued ALLLLLL night until like the last 30 minutes. The only good thing was that the crowd was great and we all were trying to hear so everyone was quiet and cool so that we could still catch what was going on even though the mics/ amps were a mess. I much prefer events at the Dusable Museum than the HWCultural Center. read more

I really liked this venue. It's a really beautiful space, has a decent amount of seating, we were in the back and still had a great view. The ticket window was run really poorly. We stood in line for almost a half hour waiting to pick up tickets at will call because the people working only had one window open (for both pick up and purchase) even though there are two ticket windows. It was really annoying and unpleasant that no one seemed to know what they were doing and moved really slowly for no reason. Once we were inside though, it was a decent time. read more

I was hopeful after seeing the gala in November. I went to see Annie. It was a flop. I wonder if the girls are actually being directed with the acting. The singing was mediocre and the sweet little cutie who sang ( the littlest one) was flat. I would not recomend the show or the theeatre because the tickets I bought off groupon didn't seem like what was advertised. What I saw was NOT "BRoadway" in Bronzeville. It was low budget community theater. Try harder. Black people we have to do better. read more

I attended the Paul Mooney 9pm show on Sat July 20. I must say it was horrible. They didn't have enough seats so the had to bring out folding chairs. In the middle of his show the director and another man walked up and stopped the show to say he had to stop so people could take photos and do the meet and greet. It was very unorganized and just sad. People left pissed and so did I. Unless it is free I will never return. Just FYI Paul Was Hilarious until they ruined his flow... read more

I visited the venue on July 20, 2013 for the 9pm Paul Mooney show and the facility is very disorganized. We paid for premium seating and two people in our party were not given VIP wrist bands. There were no ushers to direct you so people sat where they wished. Persons who paid for the VIP seats had to sit in the back of the theater. After performing about 30 minutes, Ms. Tillman interrupted the show and told Mr. Mooney to rap it up because he had a meet and greet to do. He performed about 10 minutes longer and left the stage. Unlimited champagne and a meet and greet with Mr. Mooney were included in the price of our tickets. We did not have champagne they ran out before the show was over, the photo with Mr. Mooney never happened because people were standing everywhere. The staff did not direct the patrons to a specific area to line up therefore, we could not tell where the line started or ended. The customer service at the Harold Washington Cultural Center is horrible. I have read previous reviews and hoped the issues were resolved. I experienced similar problems and will not return. read more

I will never patronage this place again. I went for the first time to see imitation of life and to say it was disorganized is an understatement. There were people in a long line and people walking through the doors. I went to the will call window and was told there was no will call. I walked in and it was chaos and no employees. I went back outside to see if I could get some assistance. After getting none I went back inside and I was told to wait in a certain area and someone would assist me with my groupon deal. Then another lady came and told us to sit down. So I walked in off the street and sat down! I tried to redeem my groupon but there was no one to redeem them. the problem is that if the groupon is not redeemed, I'm not sure if the center gets paid. Who knows. Then I enter the theatre and I'm looking for assistance with my VIP seats. Well, people have entire rows sectioned off and there is not a usher to be found! Finally I sit near the back highly irritated. One of announcers makes a lame joke about your link card being stolen in the dark and the peanut gallery laughed but for the most part it didn't go over well. Intermission, ok I could use a drink. I go to the lobby and into more chaos!! There was bottleneck after bottle neck for food and drinks. There is a guy with a list but others just going around him and getting a plate. What was served at this fine establishment? Fried chicken, hotdogs, nachos, and chips!!! A bottle of water later I decide to check out the vendors. If you weren't trying to buy knock-offs you were out of luck. How can this place allow these vendors to sell illegal goods?! They kept saying you don't have to go downtown for a good time. Who were they fooling. Maybe downtown there will be ushers. In fact downtown I bet there will be assigned seating and it won't be allowed to save entires rows of seats. It looks like I will have to go downtown to escape disorganization, black markets products, and greasy snacks. I assure you that in the Cadillac Theatre, they are not selling knock off Michael Kors and eating fried chicken. Never again and I will strongly encourage others not to patronage. read more

I have been here a few times over the years. I will start with the positives. The productions I have seen have always been 5 star proformances. Very creative and entertaining for sure. But the customer service of the theatre leaves a lot to be desired. It has been a while since I have been here because of the lack of theatre etiquette by the management staff. I am not expecting perfect but average would be nice. I keep current subscriptions at Chicago's theaters and I try to support African American theatres. I have tickets for the Cooley High Reunion for Sunday February 17, 2019. I have been calling the number given to ask some questions since Monday February 11th. It is now February 16th and still NO answer and you can't leave a message. Really!?? Very sad indeed and that is why this theatre can't get support without offering Groupons. Until the management brings up the quality of customer service the theatre will never be a first rate experience for theatre goer's. read more

Unimpressed. We stood outside for an hour. Once inside no one was there to let us know which way to go to our seats. The chairs were comfortable. Not a bad seat in the house. Oh I forgot to mention Dorothy Tillman was coming out of the Center and got in her chromed out Escalade. Things that make you go hmmmmmm. read more

Where do I begin? My girlfriend and I attended the "This Business is Murder" dinner theater show on November 7th, 2014. It was the VIP tickets. Pros: Very nice theater and lobby area. Clean and the people there were very nice. Cons: The show was absolutely terrible. Poorly written and acted. I know it isn't professional theater, but it seemed as if the actors were *just* started rehearsing that morning. But, I realize that is subjective. There were other cons. Part of the deal consisted of getting a cast photo, a drink and a snack (even though it was advertised as a dinner theater), and a "red carpet" photo. The snack was a mini, bite sized cupcake and the drink was a dixie cup of apple juice mixed with ginger ale. The cast photo was a piece of paper printed from a desk jet printer (it also featured only three or four of the cast members who actually appeared in the show - the rest were people who were probably replaced). On the other hand, the red carpet photo was nice. Perhaps it was a case of misplaced expectations, but considering the ticket price was $60, what you got in return was severely lacking. Full disclosure, I did get a groupon deal, so I didn't end up paying full price. I could only imagine my outrage if I did. To add to matters, on the HWCC website and Groupon, it said the show was to begin at 6pm with doors opening at 5. Turns out, the show started at 7pm with doors opening at 6. The lady in charge claimed it was Groupon's screw up even though I double checked it on the HWCC site. All of that aside, here is the real kicker. The show lasted a surprisingly short 35 minutes. The rest of the time was devoted to a motivational speaker who was there promoting some even the Culture Center was having the next day. NOWHERE was this listed as a part of the evening's events on either Groupon or the Center's website. This was a blatant bait and switch. Even his motivational speaking was incredibly generic (he was a super-rich guy who told us we had to find our passion). This was a lousy evening, but is funny in hindsight at how terrible everything was put together. They have a lovely space, but the people in charge really need to get their stuff in gear. read more

What a truly beautiful venue. I have attended many performances and concerts here. I am completely blown away by the staff every time. Very professional staff and what an exceptional location in Bronzeville. read more

I think it is Horrible & a damn shame that businesses such as this one is ran So Lousy! I dropped my daughter off to a concert and called the # that They hav postd in their window & the person answers the phone like hes at home... "Yeah Hello". I wanted info about who was running the place and " Grimes" (thats what he said whn I askd his name) told me " The Same Person"???? WTF. Who is that I ask. He then tells me Tillman, Dorothy Tillman. I ask for a way to contact her then he informs me he in charge... Answering the phone like that??? read more

Not sure what other reviewers experienced, since it was nothing like what we experienced. Went to see Annie on a Friday. We were late due to Chicago traffic. We had a groupon and were meeting 4 others there. My wife forwarded the email to them and they were able to get tickets with no hassle. Since we were late they left tickets out front for us. When we got there they had the tickets ready and quickly ushered us in. Theater was not crowded so we sat quickly to avoid causing an issue. Valet parking was a breeze. When we first got there the valet waived us over and explained the pick up procedure. Was so easy read more

Attended the Paul Mooney Show! Enjoyed him! Enjoyed the comedians before him, the dancers,the drill team & the singer. I appreciated former Alderwoman Dorothy Tillman personally trying to assist people! Nope, the sound system isn't the best but I'm willing to return! read more

Just saw Annie with two of my little ones at the Harold Washington Cultural Center. We all loved it! We drove down from the far North Burbs on a Sunday, well worth the drive. The production had plenty of sass and the children in it were great. Daddy Warbucks seemed like a nice man but he clearly wasn't comfortable with singing. I wouldn't pay $60/ticket but we got discounted tickets online and I actually felt like we underpaid for such a nice production. Solution: we donated in the envelopes they handed out at the end of the production. Normally, I would be put off by a donation basket after I paid for tickets but this theatre is a gem that has been in danger of being closed. They have a great mission of providing kids a FREE opportunity for after-school activities and they don't get government funding. Not sure why there are reviews about long lines or diorganization. True, it's a little more lax than some theatres but we had no troubles. As for concessions, I like that local vendors get a chance to bring in their foods & gifts. It's obviously different than other venues but I preferred it, better options than at other theatres IMHO. Will definitely return for another production. read more

1. The theatre/stage area looks like a high school auditorium. Just plain and pretty ugly. 2. I saw three great performers, show was to start at 8pm didn't come on stage until 1030ish. They were saying sound was off, sounded fine to me but the barely dj'd before the show. Pretty much sat there with a dull beat in the background. Sound may not have been perfect but you could play some music while we waited. 3. NO AIR CONDITIONING IN THE MAIN WAITING AREA WHERE WE STOOD WAITING an hour before being able to sit in the theatre area. I drank beer and relaxed thankfully I like heat. 4. Drinks. They had a plastic table put up with juice vodka and beer sitting on it. Hardly a bar tender, pretty much should have said the concert was BYOB. Once we were seated I went to get another beer, waited in line 30 mins to be told they needed to make a store run, 15 mins they'd return. Got the guy to sell me 4 beers, wanted 2 but he didn't have change, so I took 4 and ran off, meanwhile my sister waiting on me thought I left her and went backstage or something, not quite. Parking is fine on the street. Not happy with standing in that hot a$$ line waiting for a drink but the belly wrap detox people are trying to push their Instagram junk on me. If it weren't for the artists I went to see, I would have walked out. Terrible venue. Seating is ok due to it being a HS auditorium, not a bad seat in the place. At least I can say that. read more

I am saddened that I have to rate the Harold Washington Cultural Center with only 1 star. I truly want the center to succeed. I blame management . I purchased 2 VIP tickets which guaranteed seating in first 7 rows, 2 drinks and an appetizer. I received none of these. We arrived at 4:25 and line to get in was around the building. Took 25 minutes to get inside. we were directed to go to balcony for seats , since 1st fl was full. No VIP seats left, we were told we should have been here before 5 . Told Gloria Tillman that we were her way b4 5. walked up to balcony no seats left, Ms Tillman again repeated we should have been here before 5. Even though no seats were available they were still letting people in . Went back to balcony and which was pitch black since play had already started. People were sitting in the aisles and stairs. This is dangerous and illegal. We sat on stairs, lots of people left after about 10 minutes. I should have done the right thing and called the Fire Department. The play was Imitation of Life. Terrible, worst play I have ever seen. Hard to believe this in non-profit. Lots of tickets sold. over 100 people without a seat. I hope the proper people are reading my review and take charge . Otherwise this will be another abandoned building on the South Side. read more

I visited the theater for the performance of DREAM GIRLS. It was excellent. The cast was awesome and director, John Ruffin, was amazing. I would highly recommend it. So, the stars are reflection of the Venue not the actual event. Venue: Excellent venue, great seating, plenty of room! Great to have access to theater close to home. Atmosphere: For the most part, everyone is pleasant and very helpful! Bathrooms: Typical of most facilities, women's restrooms are limited. Line to get in the restrooms. Not unusual of other places. But, for newer facilities, you would think they would get the bathrooms right!! Amenities/Concession Stands: Privately-owned businesses have booths/tables lined up in the hallway of the facility. It's nice to support local business owners, but it would be nicer just to have a concession stand. TWO would be ideal for performance night. The line to get food was long. The area to get alcoholic drinks was not even open when promised. When it did open, of course, the line was out of control. TIP: Eat before you go and bring your own snack. Parking/Valet: Valet was the worse experience. Thus the 3 stars. They really need assistance in being able to handle the entry and exit of participants. It was over an hour wait to get our car. Toward the end, audience members were walking to the parking lot to get their own cars. I don't blame the valet service. They were doing their best. But, there has to be a better way of handling the parking/valet. You can park on the street. Good luck! Bottom line: Yes, I would come back again. But, I would eat before going and take a cab. (may not get a cab back) Or, park on the street. read more

After learning that Harold Washington Cultural Center is allowing Paul Mooney to play there, I can see no reason to go there again. Not long ago, Mooney gave an act where he said it was "fine that white people were in hurt in the Boston bombings." The Levity Club even refunded all of the people's money when they started walking out. Furthermore, the next evening's proceeds were refunded too and his act cancelled. But what is the difference between Mooney's actions and Paula Deen's? As far as I am concerned, if you really hate white people, especially for being white, Mooney is the act to see. I'm sure the people of the Harold Washington Cultural Center are aware of his comments (see youtube) at The Levity Club. But hey, it just gives them another chance to take a swipe at "whitey" right? read more

The valet parking system was just terrible. My friend and I were literally the last car - we waited nearly an hour. Several people waiting with us were elderly and had difficulty with the lengthly standing time. I've never experienced valet parking where the cars were brought around, based on the number on the claim ticket, not on the person ready and waiting for a car. It was a very random system. Altho we had gotten to the venue early, our claim # was 342 and we WAITED!! read more