Sturges Center For the Fine Arts

I don’t normally write reviews, but I felt the need to write this one. My husband and I had purchased tickets to go see Chicago The Musical. I was very excited about it.
However, as soon as we got off the 210 freeway, we both immediately became very uncomfortable. Our navigation system lead us through what appeared to be very ghetto neighborhoods. Once we turned onto a main street, there were three hookers walking up and down the street. I was so shocked! Then we turned onto the street where Sturges is located, and there was a guy smoking what appeared to be a crack pipe on the corner of the street.
The whole way from the 210 freeway to Sturges had a very eerie feeling and look to it, like a ghost town almost. Not one cop in sight! Lighting on the streets was very dim.
Sturges stood out like a diamond in the rough. It is a cute, vintage-​looking building from the outside. There were numerous people lined up outside, and they looked decent.
Parking was filling up fast. We found a parking spot. As soon as we looked around, there were some shady-​looking guys staring at the parking lot.
At this point, we were no longer comfortable & couldn’t wait to get the hell out of there! On the way back to the freeway, there was a man on the sidewalk appearing to be snorting something up his nose! This whole incident was like a scene from a movie of the ghetto with hookers and drug dealers walking around everywhere! We were both in disbelief!
So we headed to the movie theater instead and watched Silver Linings, which we enjoyed.
Chicago the Musical will be performing at the Hollywood Bowl this summer, and I will just go see it there.
Had it not been in the horrible neighborhood that Sturges is located in, I’m sure it would’ve been a fine show to watch. What a shame.

Keep in mind this review is for the actual theater. Very grand, an old girl that has been lovingly cared for. I saw a performance of Chicago which was fair, at most. Being a big fan of vintage anything, the building itself is a gem. The sound system is great and I enjoyed going there. Some commented that the neighborhood is sketchy… well, you gotta remember that when this place was built, the neighborhood was completely different. I would go back again. Hint: Take cash with you. While they do sell refreshments, it is a cash only basis.

Cute venue. The show I saw was very amateur. Incredibly out of the way for me and honestly I thought I was going to get car jacked from the moment we got off 210East til we got to the venue.
But lots of parking and cute theater!