Theatre at the Center is a professional theatre in Munster, Indiana. Established in 1991, it operates year-round as Northwest Indiana's only equity professional theater. The theatre produces a mainstage performing arts series and a children's theatre program. It is operated by the Ridgewood Arts Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and is situated approximately 35 minutes from downtownChicago.[1][2]
The mission of Ridgewood Arts Foundation, Inc.’s Theatre at the Center is to "bring to The Center for Visual and Performing Arts, disciplines of the performing arts that are at once appealing, educational, and accessible to the entire community."[3]
Theatre at the Center's main stage season offers five productions annually. More than forty[specify] of the theater's productions have been nominated for Jeff Awards, which are regional awards celebrating excellence in Chicago theatre.[3][4]
Additionally, Theatre at the Center offers Theatre for Young Audiences programming, presenting four productions annually.
Artistic Director
William Pullinsi was the founder and artistic director of Candlelight Playhouse, America's first dinner theatre which opened in Washington, D.C. in 1959 and Summit, Illinois in 1961. He has been credited with introducing theatre to a wider audience of patrons. Pullinsi is recognized as a master director among theatre professionals internationally and nationally for staging the American musical.[5]
Pullinsi has served as the artistic director at Theatre at the Center since 2005. He has directed and produced more than 400 shows in his career, receiving 18 Jeff Awards.[6] Pullinsi produced numerous shows that went on to have record-breaking multi-year runs including Fiddler on the Roof, Man of La Mancha, and Little Shop of Horrors, the latter of which transferred to the Royal George Theatre.[7] Pullinsi is well known for his high production values and creative staging.
Pullinsi made several acquisitions for the theatre, including the Broadway set of Company from Hal Prince, the off Broadway plants for Little Shop of Horrors, and the Tony Award-winning costumes from Nine.[8] He also opened the Forum Theatre in 1970 to present deeper and more thought-provoking theatre including The National Health, Robert and Elizabeth, and the world premiere of Boss. Additionally, at Candlelight Playhouse, he staged well-received productions of musicals that were historically commercial failures, such as Follies, Song & Dance, and Rags.[9]
In 1989, Pullinsi became the first American director to stage a musical in Russia with a Soviet cast and crew. He directed Man of La Mancha during a five-week visit to the Drama Theatre of Turgenev in Orel, south of Moscow.[12] Pullinsi is a lifelong member of the Actors' Equity Association and a member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.[13]
General Manager
In 2011, Theatre at the Center announced the appointment of Richard Friedman as general manager.
Friedman had served as managing director of Northlight Theatre for nine years. During that time, the theatre established their first permanent home at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, boosting subscriptions from 3,000 to 9,000 patrons. Under Friedman's management, the budget grew from $800,000 to $2.9 million. He has produced commercial shows including Always...Patsy Cline at the Apollo Theater Chicago, The Guys at the Lakeshore Theater featuring Jeremy Piven, Joan Cusack, and Daniel J. Travanti and Jim Post's Heart of Christmas also at the Lakeshore Theatre.
Friedman has consulted on performing arts management with companies including Deeply Rooted Dance Theatre and Mordine and Company Dance. He served as the executive director of Arts Resources and Teaching (A.R.T.), as well as the managing director of Organic Theater Company. During his time with Organic, he oversaw the renovation of the building on Clark Street. He produced shows like the revival of Bleacher Bums, directed by Joe Mantegna and Do The White Thing with Aaron Freeman and Rob Kolson.
Friedman was a founder of the Illinois Arts Alliance, chairing its first statewide conference on advocacy for the arts. He is a former member of the League of Chicago Theatres and currently serves as secretary of the board of CAN-TV, Chicago's public access cable television organization. Friedman is a co-founder and former director of Yellow Press, a literary publisher, and the author of two books of poetry. Additionally, Friedman is a recipient of the Illinois Theatre Association's Annual Award of Excellence for his work at Northlight Theatre. Friedman is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago.[14]
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