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If you're even mildly interested in the performing arts, Chicago has the means to put you in your seat—be it floor, mezzanine, or balcony. Just pick your preference (theater, dance, or symphony orchestra), and let an impressive body of artists do the rest. From critically acclaimed big names to fringe groups that specialize in experimental work, there truly is a performance art for everyone.
Ticket prices vary wildly, depending on whether you're seeing a high-profile group or venturing into more obscure territory. Chicago Symphony tickets range from $15 to $200, the Lyric Opera from $30 to $180 (if you can get them). Smaller choruses and orchestras charge from $10 to $30; watch the listings for free performances. Commercial theater tickets cost between $15 and $75; smaller experimental ensembles might charge $5, $10, or pay-what-you-can. Movie prices range from $11 for first-run houses to as low as $1.50 at some suburban second-run houses.
Chicago's oldest folk-music school has served as folk central in the city since it opened in 1957. The welcoming spot in Lincoln Square hosts outstanding performances by national and local acts in an intimate-feeling, 420-seat concert hall that has excellent acoustics. A major expansion in 2012 added a new, environment-friendly facility across the street, with a 150-seat performance hall and acoustically engineered classrooms.
The venerable Chicago Symphony Orchestra made generational waves when it chose a successor to longtime music director Riccardo Muti; the Finnish conductor and cellist Klaus Mäkelä, just 28 years old at the time of his appointment in April 2024, is the youngest leader in the CSO's 133-year history. The orchestra's impressive roster includes regular concerts as well as special themed series dedicated to classical, chamber, and children's concerts. The season runs from September through June. Tickets are sometimes scarce, but they do become available.
Mandel Hall is one of the largest performing arts and events venues on the University of Chicago campus—the Victorian performance space can accommodate nearly 1,000 audience members. Over the years, it's hosted big names, from the likes of Igor Stravinsky to Joni Mitchell. Today, it's home to the university's symphony orchestra and annual international folk festival.
Rewind time with one of the Midwest's leading music ensembles. Specializing in baroque and early classical music, it mounts about eight programs a year, mostly at Millennium Park's Harris Theater.
Head to the stately Newberry Library for performances by the Newberry Consort, an early-music chamber group, and other ensembles in Ruggles Hall.
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