Steppenwolf Theatre Company, the nation’s premier ensemble theatre, broke ground on the next phase of its multi-year campus expansion on Halsted Street in Chicago’s Lincoln Park. The company unveiled plans for its new state-of-the-art theater building, which will embody the distinct vision of Steppenwolf as a Chicago theatre that is home to America’s ensemble. Designed by world-renowned architect Gordon Gill of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, and London-based theater design team Charcoalblue (led by John Owens with theatre designer Ben Hanson and acoustic designer Byron Harrison), and built by Chicago-based Norcon Construction (led by Jeff Jozwiak), Steppenwolf’s new facility will change the way Chicagoans experience the company’s cutting-edge theatre. Slated to open in the summer of 2021, the new 50,000 sq. ft building will feature an intimate 400-seat In-the-Round Theatre only six rows deep—the only one of its kind in Chicago—that puts the actor at the center and brings the audience closer than ever before; a dedicated education floor, tripling the reach and impact of Steppenwolf’s nationally recognized education work; a bright and open two-story atrium lobby, and a wine bar and a sidewalk lounge, increasing the social gathering spaces where artists and audiences converge.

Rendering by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture
Photo Credit: Steppenwolf Theatre