Lifeline Theatre

we are season subscribers. However, «Midnight Cowboy» was just more graphic than was acceptable. I have read the book and am sure there must have been better ways to convey sex scenes than what we saw during the performance.

I love local theater and this one is particularly awesome. The theater is tucked away on Glenwood Ave. right next to the red line tracks. The interior has a real industrial vibe with exposed ducts and pipes. One of the employees said it was formerly a ComEd substation. The space inside is very dark, moody and shadowy, yet colorful at the same time. You get the feeling that whatever production you’re seeing something creative is happening. I actually came today for a children’s production called, The One and Only Ivan. I could go on about how they tenderly and smartly adapted a weighty and sad story, and made it child-​friendly without diluting the message. The acting was engaging and the show alternated between sadness and comic relief. The theater seats around 100 people. There’s quite a high slope to the stadium style seats so even in the back row there’s a clear view of the stage. Afterward the actors greeted guests and signed autographs for little theater goers. The entire staff person made us feel right at home. Can’t wait to see what’s next at Lifeline Theater.

A few months ago, it’s my first time to watch a show at lifeline in Chicago with my husband. The show was Jane Eyre, very impressive acting. Yesterday we went there again for «one came home» and enjoyed it very much! It’s a very small theater with small stage, but seems to be managed very well, and the actors are amazing! Will go back for more shows for sure:)

We have been subscribers for the regular plays and the kids series for over 10 years. The excellent writers and book adaptors prepare scripts that really catch the excitement. The many fine cast members that show up at Lifeline are from all over with tons of professional experience. When a fine actor comes to Chicago they would do well to come to Lifeline to create a character. Monstrous Regiment, a novel from fantasy writer Terry Pratchett’s Discworld is now playing, and the adaptation may easily become popular around the world… Lifeline is the essence of Chicago theater. Get a subscription and start taking your whole family, especially the kids who will thrill to be in such close quarters with REAL actors. You could pay 4 times as much and get much less fun else where.

What a find Lifeline was for us! Unbelievable acting and production quality– better than what we have seen at twice the price and scope at other theater companies in the US. We saw A Tale of Two Cities and it was brilliant. The ambiance and staff and well, everything was picture perfect. We are coming back here again and again.

What a cool idea: adapt popular/​famous/​great books that everyone likes into plays. We saw China Meiville’s superb «City in the City», which to anyone who has read it is totally bizarre and sounds impossible to adapt. But they did it, quite well, too. The space is very intimate, they give blankets to every seat, and really the experience is just all around very nice.

I have been to Lifeline Theater twice as part of the Dorothy Sayers Series. It is part of a 4 part series Lifeline is putting on. Rather than plays, they are concert readings.
I have really enjoyed the first two parts so far. The concert readings are quiet entertaining. It’s surprisingly fun to see the actors reactions to the actors on stage. I have never seen concert readings before, but I would go see more.
The staff here is really great. The actors/​writers are outstanding and put on a great show. But the theater staff are also really nice and helpful.
The theater has a parking lot that is about a mile away. I have only been here in the winter, so I definitely did not walk. The theater provides a shuttle, but it can take a while to get into the shuttle after the show.

I may have finally found my favorite Chicago storefront/​small-​scale theater.
Lifeline specializes in literary adaptations, so as a book lover, their shows are doubly attractive to me. In the last five months, I have seen them present two of my favorite books – Watership Down and The Count of Monte Cristo.
Both shows were emotionally compelling as well as superficially enjoyable. That is quite high praise coming from someone with a fervent, decades-​long admiration of the source novels. In both cases, the playwrights made significant structural and/​or thematic changes, but I have to admit that the adjustments made sense even if I happen to prefer the original works.
The acting is consistently strong. Chris Hainsworth as the eponymous Count was a standout in the recent show. I found the lead character Hazel in Watership to be moderately miscast, but it didn’t significantly diminish my appreciation of the play.
The company also seems to excel at set design, making both cleverly utilitarian and richly evocative use of the small space and central-​aisle staircase entrance.
I’m very sorry to arrive so late to the Lifeline party. I lived barely a mile away for almost a decade and just look at what I’ve missed: Neverwhere, Sirens of Titan, Mrs Caliban, Far From the Madding Crowd, The Killer Angels, Treasure Island, all three Lord of the Rings volumes, and – best of all – Lyle, Lyle Crocodile (look it up if your childhood was so sadly deprived).
I will be paying VERY close attention to their season schedules from now on.

Hands down one of the best theatres I’ve ever been to. I’ve never been disappointed by a single performnce I’ve seen from this company.

Arnie the Doughnut was a great family experience for my 4 y.o. son, his parents and his grandparents. THANKYOU live theatre!!!

Watched «Watership Down» and I was a bit skeptical at first. Its a 300 page book about rabbits, their history and so much more. However, this troop did an amazing job! Great use of stage, sound, and physical expressions. Surprisingly enough, they stayed very true to the book.
The theater itself is snuggled into a side street off Morse (a couple blocks from the red line). We ordered our tickets online and they were available when we got there — front row! Yes! The staff were pleasant, professional, and friendly. They also have a (FREE) mini shuttle service where you can park your car about 5 blocks away, and there is a van that takes you to and from (both before and after the show).
Inside, you see the amazing work these guys have done over the years. Some small snacks are drinks are available (no alcohol which disappointed me but not enough to drop them a star) at very reasonable prices (I think $ 1 each).
They also do a series of productions geared for children. I am not sure if they use child actors or not but if you have kids, its something worth looking into.
Feedback from the audience about the theater and experience is requested via surveys (nice that they care what their patrons think). I am anxiously waiting their next performance (yup — now on the mailing list). If you have a chance to catch «Watership Down» before it closes — DO IT! otherwise, give this gem a glance next time you are in the area!

I saw Neverwhere (Neil Gaiman) yesterday, and it was awesome. I plan on reading the book afterwards. I was a little worried that I may not be able to follow so I read the synopsis on Wikipedia before watching the play. The actors were so good! I loved the props they used and they did an excellent job with the small space they had.
The theater itself is small. As I understand it, they have one main stage. The female restroom looked clean. You can purchase drinks if you’d like before going into the theater. I think I saw that they sell alcohol… But my memory of that may have been faulty since I didn’t actually purchase anything from this theater. The tickets to Neverwhere were $ 20 a piece.

Just came back from seeing Neverwhere in preview.
First, the theater. It’s a typical small Chicago converted warehouse place in a neighborhood that is, while not truly bad, you’re a bit unsure about leaving your car unattended. However, the theater has a free shuttle lot about 6 blocks away and a comfortable shuttle van to bring you back and forth. Our driver was a friendly young man who also works on props. Next door is Dukes bar which has its own Unilocal reviews. We stopped in for a pre-​show drink and it’s everything the Unilocalers claimed.
Neverwhere is an excellent adaptation of the Gaiman book (and BBC mini-​series). We were amazed that they managed to get in all the major plot points and characters (who were all well-​realized) into 2 ½ hours. Since hubby and I had read the book we had no trouble following. I was worried those who had not read it might have trouble, but the people we rode back on the shuttle with said they enjoyed it and had no trouble following it. They said they now planned to read the book.
The acting is really good, the staging is excellent and the script is great. Go see it!

Intimate theatre that performs literary works. Well-​selected pieces that are performed by terrifically talented actors, many of whom are regular performers at the theatre.
BookClub saw the Picture of Dorian Gray, and we were amazed at the caliber of talent. At that moment we vowed to see more small theatre in Chicago and not just Steppenwolf.
There are so many talented performers in this city.
We went to the hippie Heartland café afterwards. Cheap drinks. Patchouli. Earthly Fun.
I believe Lifeline also does children’s productions as well.

I visited Lifeline Theater on a gorgeous Sunday to see a preview performance of Busman’s Honeymoon. I’ll admit that I was already regretting deciding to see a play because I’d rather have been playing outside, but I did not enjoy this performance at all. I’m all for dry humor, but this play was tremendously boring and at 2 and ½ hours, over long. I actually debated leaving at the intermission, which I’ve never done before.
I will say the performance was well acted and aside from a minor snafu with my seat assignment the theater itself was quite nice. It was easy to find free parking on a side street for this matinée. I’ll definitely give Lifeline another shot — based on the other reviews it seems they put on quality productions — but unless they significantly overhaul Busman’s Honeymoon I’d give this particular play a miss.

On a recent visit, I happened to see Marietta in Ecstacy at this theater. Initially, I was shocked at the small stage; however, the set and how they utilized the space created an unexpected depth. Not only was the play really good but I loved the intimate vibe!

A small black-​boxish theatre. I also saw Dorian Gray and was blown away by how good it was. An excellent little theatre in the super duper north Chicago.

I came here to see The Picture of Dorian Gray the weekend before last. What an excellent performance for the price at this tiny little theater! The house was packed. The actors were talented and the set design was lovely. Here is one small theater I will know not to avoid :)

I just went here for the first time to see The Island of Dr. Moreau and was very impressed. It was scarier than the movie! Will definitely be checking out all their performances. Really nice theatre, and especially convenient since it’s in my hood.
I walked there but I noticed they had an attendant out front telling people about parking which is great since it’s often a struggle in Rogers Park.

So I’m somewhat biased because I work here from time to time, but for my money Lifeline produces some of the best small house theater in Chicago. They specialize in original stage adaptations of literary works and run two sets of shows each season — one for young audiences during the mornings and one for adults in the evening. The kids shows are great because they don’t talk down to kids; they just tell excellent stories in 60 minutes or less. The adult shows are a fascinating range of works from small, character driven dramas to large scale adventures and mysteries. Their hallmarks include inventive use of their small (and slightly odd) space and great performances by actors tapped to play multiple roles in each show.