The Auditorium Theatre Launches 'Made in Chicago' Series Today

Celebrating a milestone 125th Anniversary, the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University kicks off its inaugural "Made in Chicago" performance series highlighting the city's best homegrown music and dance artists and ensembles. Launching in November, the robust series will present three Windy City mainstays including "On Stage With... Susan Werner" (today, November 8); the perennially popular Orbert Davis' Chicago Jazz Philharmonic with "CJP @ Ten" (November 14); and the award-winning Thodos Dance Chicago (November 29).

"Chicago boasts one of the most prosperous, innovative, and highly influential arts scenes in the world," said Auditorium Theatre Executive Director Brett Batterson. "When we conceived of the 'Made in Chicago' performance series, it was our intention to celebrate the local artists that continue to shape our city's rich cultural foundation and reputation. These three performances represent a diverse range of talent and tradition, and we look forward to presenting them during such a historic season at the Auditorium."

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"On Stage With...Susan Werner"

Tonight, November 8, 2014 | 7:30 p.m. | $50 ($75 sold out)

Susan Werner, an Auditorium Theatre favorite and "one of the most innovative songwriters working today" ("Chicago Tribune"), returns for an intimate "On Stage With..." performance, allowing audiences to experience the show while sitting on the theatre's landmark stage. The quick-witted songstress brings her energetic and compelling presentation to the Auditorium on the heels of the successful 2014 musical debut of "Bull Durham," an adaptation of the popular 1988 film featuring Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon, for which Werner served as composer and lyricist. Werner's latest album, 2013's "Hayseed," draws upon characters from Werner's farm heritage in Iowa, and explores issues in food and agriculture today with affection and humor. With Adam Chaffins on bass, and Johnny Rodgers on piano.

Support for Susan Werner provided by Mel and Renee Katten.

Orbert Davis' Chicago Jazz Philharmonic - "CJP @ Ten"

Friday, November 14, 2014 | 7:30 p.m. | $27 - $72

Celebrating its 10th Anniversary in 2014, Orbert Davis' Chicago Jazz Philharmonic (CJP) heads back to the Auditorium Theatre with "CJP @ Ten," a montage of favorite moments from past performances. Led by Artistic Director and Emmy Award winner Orbert Davis, the 60-piece orchestra, along with special guests Dee Alexander, Terisa Griffin, Maggie Brown, Bobbi Wilsyn, Ari Brown, Mwata Bowden, and Howard Levy, will perform Davis' acclaimed arrangements and compositions showcasing CJP's signature style of effortlessly combining classical music and jazz. Works on the program include selections from "Collective Creativity," an eight-movement suite tracing the African Diaspora to the Americas; "Do you Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans," featuring the Grammy Award-winning Levy on harmonica; selections from the Great American Songbook honoring Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughn; and a final piece to be unveiled during the performance, as determined by CJP's online fan poll. Fans can go to chijazzphil.org/vote and choose from among five pieces that have been featured in CJP's programming of the past 10 years.

Thodos Dance Chicago

Saturday, November 29, 2014 | 7:30 p.m. | $27 - $67

November concludes with a remount of Thodos Dance Chicago's critically-acclaimed "The White City: Chicago's Columbian Exposition of 1893," based on the extraordinary events of the Columbian Exposition (as depicted in the best-selling book, "Devil in the White City," by author Erik Larsen). Named Best Dance Performance (2011) by the "Chicago Sun-Times," the 50-minute contemporary story ballet -- a collaboration between Thodos Dance Chicago Founder and Artistic Director Melissa Thodos and Tony Award-winner Ann Reinking -- features12 dancers and a score composed by Bruce Wolosoff. Thodos Dance Chicago will also bring new life to three works created by Chicago dance icon and modern dance pioneer Sybil Shearer. Two selections from Shearer's "Salute to Old Friends" will make their stage-premiere alongside a revival of Shearer's masterful work "Time Longs for Eternity" (1961). Completing the program are "Tsuru" by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Rehearsal Director Lucas Crandall, and "Lullaby" by independent choreographer Brian Enos.

Tickets are available online at AuditoriumTheatre.org, by calling (800) 982-ARTS (2787) or in-person at Auditorium Theatre's Box Office (50 E Congress Pkwy). Discounted tickets for groups of 10 or more are available at (312) 341-2357 or sales@auditoriumtheatre.org.

Thodos Dance Chicago is part of the "Made in Chicago" Dance subscription that also includes Giordano Dance Chicago, River North Dance Chicago, and "Chicago Rhythm Fest." "On Stage With...Susan Werner" and Chicago Jazz Philharmonic are part of a "Made in Chicago" Music subscription that also includes "Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah" and "His Way." Both subscription packages are available at a 30% discount at (312) 341-2357 or AuditoriumTheatre.org. For more information on the Auditorium Theatre's 125th Anniversary Season, visit AuditoriumTheatre.org/125.

About the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University - The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, located at 50 E Congress Pkwy, is an Illinois, not- for-profit organization committed to presenting the finest in international, cultural, community and educational programming to Chicago, and to the continued restoration and preservation of the National Historic Landmark Auditorium Theatre. In September of 2014, the Auditorium Theatre was awarded the inaugural Fifth Star Award by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.

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