UChicago opens Green Line Performing Arts Center in Washington Park

The University of Chicago announced on Nov. 2 the opening of the Green Line Performing Arts Center , providing a vital new theater venue and rehearsal space to support the arts in the Washington Park neighborhood and across Chicago's South Side. The center establishes a new professional theater space on the South Side, providing support to performing artists and theater ensembles, along with programming to train residents with interests in theater design and production. Building on the rich history of performing arts organizations on the South Side, the Center will be the first new theater to open in the Hyde Park / Washington Park / Woodlawn communities in more than a generation, providing a much-needed collaborative space for the performing arts. Designed by Morris Architects Planners in collaboration with Theaster Gates, a UChicago faculty member, artist, and founder and former director of Arts + Public Life , the center continues the growth of the Arts Block, a vibrant collection of cultural and commercial spaces on historic Garfield Boulevard across from the Green Line's Garfield stop in Washington Park. The center is part of UChicago's ambitious Arts + Public Life initiative, which is creating a distinct approach for how colleges and universities can work with local artists and neighboring communities. Arts + Public Life has established and strengthened mutually beneficial connections between the cultural landscape of the South Side and UChicago's network of resident and visiting artists and academics.