MCA Theatre

40 minutes to leave parking garage b/​c theater staff screwed up their parking validation.

Excellent programming! Probably the most high-​end eclectic and contemporary programming in the city, always an adventure and mind opening experience (even if unexpected or different that you want, always educational and mind opening). Go to as many shows as you can. Best of all it is intimate with a sharp slope so you don’t get a blocked view, and the aisles are so wide that you can easily walk over people without squashing them. The sounds is good everywhere and it is silly to pay more to sit up front when it all sounds and looks good everywhere. Thanks to all who run the series here

The programming at the MCA theater has been so great that I became a member of the museum. I’ve seen all sorts of things there, plays, performance art, puppet theater, film and video screenings… almost everything I’ve seen has been excellent. Most events I’ve attended have finished with at least a Q&A or a full on talk hosted by the museum, I love the extra insight that those conversations provide.
The theater itself is a black box, which is great for the range of events they’re hosting. The seats are comfortable, and well spaced (both in legroom and view – and that’s coming from a girl with extra long legs). They provide a surprising selection of treats for longer productions and there’s a free coat check. Staff has always been pleasant and on top of it, even when the line gets long.
Depending on the show, your tickets get you a discount or free admission to the galleries upstairs too – how can you beat that?

I am a big fan of the MCA Theatre for a variety of reasons.
1^st — there isn’t a bad seat in the house. It isn’t a large theater, so no matter where you are siting you have a good view of the performance.
2^nd — the acoustics are excellent, and make a large difference when you see a piece that involves music.
3^rd — they do a wonderful job of programming excellent performances.
4^th — ticket prices are not expensive and are a great value. If you are a member you get a discount on almost all shows.
5^th — the lobby is a cozy space to wait for the doors to open up to your show. And the bathrooms are nice, clean and modern. Some old theaters have disgusting bathrooms with one stall. Blech!
6^th — great location. There are lots of restaurants and bars close by.
I would like to see them improve their drink selection that they offer primarily. It can be a bit of a hassle to get there if you are driving, but the bus drops you off very close by, and there is a subway stop about 6 blocks away. Prepare to pay a lot of money to park if you intend on driving.

I was lucky enough to score tickets to the new Banksy movie via Time Out and excellently, the MCA folks were on top of their games. They opened up 45 minutes early to let us into the main space which was super cool considering it was getting into the upper 30s outside.
There’s not a bad seat in the house, but the seats themselves are bad as they are minimal and pretty uncomfortable. The leg room is decent and there’s enough pitch to the space that you will never have someone’s head blocking your view. The sound is good, the acoustics are good. Overall, a very decent spot to see a show, movie, band, what have you.

So I went here to see a New York based play called The Shipment, The play was not what I expected and neither was the MCA. I was expecting a «traditional» play akin to August Wilson in a traditional theatre like the Goodman. The MCA instead reminds me of one of the cool laid back off broad way alternative spaces in New York, this one is just attached to a museum and smack dab in the mist of the wretched Mag Mile. But the MCA was totally suited for a deep abstract «straight no chaser» dark play by Young Jean Lee and they have a full bar.

You’re here for the performance, not the venue. Which is good, because it’s not much of a venue. What you see on stage will be your total experience. Everything else here is crowded and minimalist. Which is fine. Not every venue can be The Auditorium Theatre.