The Schiller Theater Building was designed by

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...

and

Dankmar Adler Dankmar Adler (July 3, 1844 – April 16, 1900) was a German-born American architect and civil engineer. He is best known for his fifteen-year partnership with Louis Sullivan, during which they designed influential skyscrapers that boldly addr ...

of the firm

Adler & Sullivan Adler & Sullivan was an architectural firm founded by Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan in Chicago. Among its projects was the multi-purpose Auditorium Building in Chicago and the Wainwright Building skyscraper in St Louis. In 1883 Louis Sullivan was ...

for the German Opera Company. At the time of its construction, it was among the tallest buildings in Chicago. Its centerpiece was a 1300-seat theater, which is considered by architectural historians to be one of the greatest collaborations between Adler and Sullivan.

History

Establishment

Opened in 1891, the Schiller Theater was originally funded by former ''

Illinois Staats-Zeitung ''Illinois Staats-Zeitung'' (''Illinois State Newspaper'') was one of the most well-known German-language newspapers of the United States; it was published in Chicago from 1848 until 1922. Along with the ''Westliche Post'' and ''Anzeiger des West ...

'' publisher

Anton C. Hesing Anton Caspar Hesing (1823–1895), known as "Boss Hesing", was a German-American newspaper publisher and political boss who became a prominent figure in Chicago during the second half of the 19th Century. The long-time publisher of the ''Illino ...

(1823-1895) and other German investors and was projected to be used for German-language operas and cultural events."Anton C. Hesing Dead: Demise Due to a Second Stroke of Paralysis"
''The Daily Inter Ocean''. (Chicago). vol. 24, no. 8 (April 1, 1895). pp. 1, 3. One of the more tangible references to its German heritage was a series of

terra cotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

busts of prominent German figures on the second story arcade. A portion of this arcade is now integrated into the façade of

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise and is the oldest ongoing improvisational theater troupe to be continually based in Chicago, with training programs and live theatres in Toronto and Los Angeles. The Second City Theatre op ...

's theater in Chicago.

Name changes

The theater changed its name and duties over the following decades. It was briefly known as the Dearborn Theater from 1898 to 1903, until finally settling on the name Garrick Theater. After German investors backed out of the project in the late 1890s, it ceased its German performances, and exhibited touring stage shows. In the 1930s the theater was acquired by

Balaban & Katz Balaban and Katz Theater Corporation, or B&K, was a theatre corporation which owned a chain of motion picture theaters in Chicago and surrounding areas. It was founded by Barney Balaban (later long-time President of Paramount Pictures), his six ...

who converted it into a movie theater. It became a

television studio A television studio, also called a television production studio, is an installation room in which video productions take place, either for the production of live television and its recording onto video tape or other media such as SSDs, or for t ...

in 1950 and returned to screening movies in 1957.

Demise

After a long decline that began in the 1930s, the Garrick was razed early in 1961 and replaced with a parking structure. The demolition instigated a large outcry and is considered to be one of the first wide scale preservation efforts in Chicago. Photographer and historical preservationist Richard Nickel was able to salvage hundreds of artifacts and ornaments from the building before and during its demolition, as well as record extensive notes, diagrams, and photographs of the structure.

History

Establishment

Name changes

Demise

Footnotes

Further reading