Tag / Rialto Square Theatre

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Travelling The 50 States – Illinois

Over my 47 years, I’ve done my fair share of travelling across these United States.  I thought it would be an interesting experiment go look back at those trips to each of the 31 states I have visited (62% isn’t bad, is it?) and see if, and when, I may be returning.  Working in alphabetical order, we continue today with the 21st state to be added to the Union: Illinois.

State: Illinois
Joined the Union: 1818
Visits: 16,000+

How do you track how often you’ve been in the state you’ve lived in your entire life, save for your time away at college?  My first “visit” came nearly 48 years ago on the day I was born at Mercy Hospital on the south side of Chicago.

I’ve managed to do 18 of the Bicentennial Bucket List: 200 Things To Do In Illinois, published by the Chicago Tribune in 2018 to celebrate the best the state has to offer in history, food, architecture, culture, sports, nature, drink, and oddities.  Among the places I visited were Water Tower, Morton Arboretum, Route 66, United Center, Skydeck at Willis Tower, the former Arlington International Racecourse, Rialto Square Theatre, Lake Michigan, The Second City, Chicago Sports Museum, and the Superman statue in downstate Metropolis.

I’ve seen baseball games at Wrigley Field, Comiskey Park, and Guaranteed Rate Field.  I’ve seen football games at Soldier Field, Memorial Stadium, Ryan Field, and Wrigley Field.  I’ve seen basketball games at the United Center, Welsh-Ryan Arena, State Farm Center, and Allstate Arena.  I’ve seen hockey games at the United Center.  I’ve seen both the White Sox and the Cubs win the World Series.  I’ve seen the Bears win a Super Bowl.  I’ve seen the Bulls win 6 NBA Championships.  I’ve even seen the Blackhawks win a Stanley Cup or two.

I’ve seen concerts at Wrigley Field, City Winery, Ravinia, the Riviera Theatre, Abbey Pub, Metro, the Chicago Theatre, United Center, Charter One Pavilion, Allstate Arena, The Vic Theatre, House of Blues, World Music Theatre, Soldier Field, and Mabel’s,

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200 Things To Do In Illinois – Rialto Square Theatre

Illinois celebrated its bicentennial as a state in December of 2018.  To celebrate, the Chicago Tribune published the Bicentennial Bucket List: 200 Things To Do In Illinois, celebrating the best the state has to offer in history, food, architecture, culture, sports, nature, drink, and oddities.  With the state shutting down tonight due to the corona virus outbreak, I figured this was the second-best time to look through this collection and cover the ones I’ve done/eaten/seen.

We kick things off with one of the entries from the Culture category: Rialto Square Theatre, from Joliet, IL.

Putting on more than 150 events a year, this Jewel of Joliet evokes a bygone era with its Greek, Roman and Byzantine architecture.

Afternoon tours are offered most Tuesdays.  The nearly century-old theater gets especially festive at the end of the year with its monthlong Home for the Holidays programming, with movies, concerts and other special events.

My one and only trip to the Rialto Square Theatre came in 2015 to see Craig Ferguson during his Hot & Grumpy tour.  To be honest, I don’t remember much about the theater itself, so I can’t say that it left much of an impression.  I certainly would be willing to go back if something interesting was coming to town.