Court Theatre

COURT HAS A MISSION

Winner of the 2022 Regional Theatre Tony Award, Court Theatre reimagines classic theatre to illuminate our current times. In residence at the University of Chicago and on Chicago’s historic South Side, we engage our audiences with intimate and provocative experiences that inspire deeper exploration of the enduring questions that confront humanity and connect us as people.

Court Theatre defines classic theatre as texts from any culture, tradition, or era that resonate throughout time and speak to our present moment.

COURT IS THE CENTER FOR CLASSIC THEATRE

Now in its 71st season, Court Theatre was founded in 1955 as an amateur outdoor summer theatre at the University of Chicago. In 1971, classics professor Nicholas Rudall assumed the role of director and conceived Court’s tradition of translating and adapting classic texts for contemporary audiences; the theatre was then established as a professional company with Actors’ Equity Association in 1975. In 1981, Court built its current home, the intimate, 251-seat Abelson Auditorium, and in 1983 the theatre incorporated as an independent nonprofit organization. Charles Newell led the theatre as Marilyn F. Vitale Artistic Director from 1994 through June 2024. In July 2025, the Office of the Provost at the University of Chicago appointed Avery Willis Hoffman the next Artistic Director of Court Theatre.

In 2013, Court established the Center for Classic Theatre at the University of Chicago to deeply explore what it means for a professional theatre to be in residence at a major university. Court is dedicated to the curation of large-scale, interdisciplinary theatrical experiences that fully access the amazing intellectual resources that surround the theatre at the University of Chicago.