About the Theatre
The Center’s vision is to bring together diverse artists and audiences to create experiences and memories that activate compassion and transform the world.
The Center for Performing Arts was founded in 1995, culminating a 10-year quest to bring a world-class performing arts facility to the Chicago Southland. Since its inception, the Center has served over 1.5 million individuals, introduced over 300,000 schoolchildren to arts-in-education experiences, and welcomed over 8,000 artists and touring companies; presenting dozens of local, national and world premieres. The Center annually serves over 50,000 residents from Cook, Will, and Kankakee counties in Northeast Illinois and Lake County in Northwest Indiana. In 2012, guided by the vision of creating an “arts infused university”, the Center became a unit of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Our state-of-the art facility seats 1,165 patrons and is located at a vibrant and dynamic university setting that also houses an on-site Visual Arts Gallery and The Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park (theNate), offering unique opportunities for pre- and post-show activities and gatherings.
With free parking, a convenient location accessible to major highways and presentations ranging from opera to family programs, our venue has served as a vibrant cultural destination in the southland community since 1995.
EVERY BRILLIANT THING Comes To The CENTER's Black Box
by Stephi Wild - September 02, 2025
The CENTER for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck will continue its Black Box series with Every Brilliant Thing, a one-person play written by Duncan Macmillan with Jonny Donahoe that finds light and laughter even in life's darkest corners....
Past Shows
Take a ride on the "Midnight Train to Georgia" over "River Deep, Mountain High" while award-winning vocalist CeCe Teneal delivers you the "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" you deserve ...
The Center welcomes the king of camp, John Waters, for an unforgettable Halloween night of cult cinema and twisted storytelling. Expect an endless bag of ...
Feel the antici…pation! One of the highlights of the Halloween season, The Rocky Horror Picture Show with live shadow cast returns to The Center’s stage ...
Ballet 5:8, Chicago’s premiere female and minority-led ballet company, presents its critically acclaimed production La Llorona . This powerful performance reframes the legend of "La ...
Experience the magic of musical theatre in The Center Southland Spotlight—a showcase of the best Southland community theatres and their 2025–26 season selections. The afternoon ...
Kick off The Center’s 30th Anniversary Season with the electrifying artistry of South Chicago Dance Theatre (SCDT), one of Chicago’s most dynamic dance companies. In ...
Governors State University’s Center for Performing Arts, 1 University Parkway, is proud to begin its 30th season with South Chicago Dance Theatre, Saturday, Sept. 27 ...
Spanning Broadway to Classical and Opera, celebrate Mother’s Day with this mimosa-fueled, musical extravaganza!
DOG SEES GOD
4/3
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4/6/2025
An "unauthorized continuation," this play reimagines characters from the popular comic strip Peanuts as degenerate teenagers.
An electrifying female-fronted retrospective tribute to the first ten years (1954-1964) of Rock & Roll.
The Electrifying Art & Music Circus!
From New York City, the epicenter of contemporary Pop and Soul, Uptown is a group of men who combine the smooth stylings of R&B with ...
Join us for an exceptional dance showcase that celebrates the beauty of dreaming.
DRUMLine Live! embodies the soulful, high-stepping style of the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) marching band experience.
The Silhouettes® acclaimed show, “LOVE Happens” is an entertaining, family-friendly shadow dance story filled with the types of love that fill our world.
An evening of arias, songs, and serenades.
Featuring Original choreography by Ruth Page Additional choreography by Larry Long, Dolores Long, and Birute Barodicaite Directed by Victor Alexander This beloved holiday family classic ...
Written and Directed by Quenna Barrett What happens when a class of young Black women and non-binary folx of color take a trip to 1776? ...
Accomplished singer and stage actor Lisa McClowry stars as Cher.
with a Live Shadow Cast and Audience Partici…pation! CONTAINS MATURE THEMES AND STRONG LANGUAGE. NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PATRONS UNDER AGE 17. PATRONS UNDER THE AGE ...
Just in time for Halloween, the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra returns to the Center, in partnership with the Jeff Award-winning Kokandy Productions , to perform Stephen ...
Headed by lead singer Dr. Cherise Joy Stone-Thompson “Joy Storm”, the Rock & Soul Band pays tribute to the women who revolutionized classic rock and ...
BOOM X is an explosive solo performance that documents the music, culture, and politics that shaped Gen X. Starting at Woodstock in August of ‘69, ...
Dates: Monday, August 5-9, 2024, 9am – 4pm Fee: $275 Final showcase: Friday, August 9 at 7pm, approximately 50 minutes Tickets to the Showcase are ...
Annie KIDS
6/17
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6/28/2024
Dates : Monday, June 17-21*, and June 24-28, 2024, 9am – 3pm, *No camp on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, in observance of the Juneteenth holiday. Young ...
Dates : Monday, June 10-14, 2024, 9am – 3pm Fee : $270 (includes 2 tickets to final show) Final showcase : Friday, June 14 at ...
Rehearsals : Tuesdays, January 16 – April 30, 2024; 5-7pm (no rehearsal/class on March 26) Cost : $360, includes 2 tickets to the final show ...
Composed by Orbert Davis, “Soul Migration” is a powerful, soul-stirring, musical tribute inspired by the stories of the 6 million African Americans who fled the ...
The Exonerated
4/4
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4/7/2024
The Exonerated combines first-person narrative with letters, transcripts, case files, and legal records to tell the stories of six wrongfully convicted survivors of death row: ...
Thursday, March 28 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 30 at 2:30 p.m. The GSU Dance Company presents a cultural Kaleidoscope of movement. From traditional cultural ...
A high-octane show entirely created, designed, and performed by the fearlessly funny women of world-famous comedy mecca The Second City, She the People is a mimosas-and-madness-fueled ...
10 a.m. and 12 noon* (*Sensory-Inclusive Performance with ASL Interpreter) Christina and Andrés can’t find their friend Juana, and their only clue is that she’s ...
Muntu Dance Theatre performs authentic and progressive interpretations of contemporary and ancient African and African-American dance, music, and folklore. Their highly innovative repertory preserves traditional ...
ON STAGE CABERET SEATING Franz Schubert’s song cycle Die Winterreise is a stunning musical journey through the bitter winter landscape of the human heart. Composed for ...
Back by popular demand! This Billboard charting quartet returns to win your hearts once again with their ethereal and emotionally stirring interpretations of pop music, ...
The Nutcracker
12/8
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12/10/2023
The Original San Jose Nutcracker will capture your imagination and transport you to a magical world of brave toy soldiers & dancing snowflakes. For ...
Saturday, December 9 at 1:00 p.m. & 4:00 p.m. Follow the story of a young bird named Max and his family, as they begin their ...
Friday, December 1 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, December 2 at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, December 3 at 2:30 p.m. Limited On Stage Tiered Seating A special ...
Thursday, November 2 at 7:30 p.m. Friday, November 3 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, November 4 at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, November 5 at 2:30 p.m. Performed ...
Let’s do the Time Warp again! with a Live Shadow Cast and Audience Partici...pation! One of the oddest cult films ever made, this kinky, rock'n'roll, science ...
This group made up of former members of the New Power Generation (NPG) have built a reputation for playing as if their famous boss was ...
SUGAR SKULL! A Día de Muertos Musical Adventure is a touring bilingual/bicultural musical for young audiences and families that uses traditional regional music and dance ...
ON STAGE CABARET SEATING Life is Short: Opera is Long. Not sure where to start on Wagner’s Ring Cycle? This is a chance to hear ...