Cadillac Palace Tickets

Cadillac Palace
Cadillac Palace, home to pre-Broadway tours and word premiers, located at 151 West Randolph Street on the Chicago Loop area downtown, is a Chicago theatre, owned by the Nederlander Organization and operated by Broadway in Chicago.

Formerly it was the The New Palace Theatre, and it originally opened in 1926 as the New Palace Theatre. This theatre with distinctive characteristics was designed by the legendary theatre architects, the Rapp Brothers.

Their inspiration for the look and feel of the Palace Theatre came from the Fountainebleau and the Palace of Versailles, both found in France. The Cadillac Palace Theatre provides an evening out fit for tourists and natives alike. It comprises of, huge decorative mirrors, breche violet and white marble.

The walls inside are adorned with gold leafing and wood decorations, as well as and crystal chandeliers, and a series of complex arches and detailed brass ornamentation, thus, creating the look, the feel and an atmosphere of a French palace.

However, during World War II, the owners of the theatre painted all the brass white in order to trick the government so that they wouldn"t confiscate it. The brass was left this way and generally forgotten about until the recent renovation of the theater, when the paint was scraped off and the rare brass ornamentation was rediscovered and restored to its original state.

The theatre was opened as part of vaudeville's Orpheum Circuit and has housed stars such, as Jimmy Durante, Mae West, Jack Benny, Sophie Tucker, and Bob Hope. After the loss of interest in vaudeville, the theatre was converted into a movie palace in 1931.

In 1950s when the audiences preferred staying at home and watching television, the theatre managers started booking occasional Broadway shows, like, "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" starring Carol Channing, hoping to attract larger audience.

During the late 1950s, the Palace was fitted with special equipment to show films in Cinerama. During the mid-1970s, the management of the Bismarck Hotel transformed the auditorium into a banquet hall by removing the seats on the orchestra level and bringing the floor flush with the stage.

Then in 1984, the theatre was renamed the Bismarck Theatre and turned into a rock venue. Remodeled in 1999 to its current splendor, it was home to the successful nine-month run of "The Lion King".

It was renovated and renamed the Cadillac Palace Theatre after Cadillac purchased naming rights to the venue. The 2,300-seat Palace, with orchestra, dress circle and balcony, was renovated at a cost of $20 million.

The Cadillac Palace became home to pre-Broadway tours and world premieres with the opening of Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida. This was the beginning of many Broadway caliber shows to pass through the Cadillac Palace.

Mel Brooks's The Producers premiered in Chicago starring Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in February 2001. In October 2006 The Pirate Queen made its premiere. Oprah Winfrey presents The Color Purple sat down for its long-run from April 2007 to September 2007.

Currently, the theatre is hosting the event Dirty Dancing and will be hosting it till the 17th of January, 2009. Soon after that, the event Marry Poppins will be taking place at this huge venue based in Chicago in the month oh March, 2009.