Chicago Theatre

This book is a look at the theatres, the shows and the people who produced, performed and made theatre a reality from the very founding of Chicago in 1833 until October 9th, 1871 when a massive fire swept through the city, destroying everything except the famous Water Tower on Michigan Avenue.The first professional entertainment given in Chicago where an admittance fee was charged, took place on the 18th of February, 1934, less than one year after the city was bough from American Indians. In this case, the performer, a Mr. Bowers, performed amazing feats from eating molten lead to performing ventriloquism. The first professional theatre to open in Chicago was Isherwood & McKinzie