West Loop in Chicago is now home to Actor Equity Association

Actors Equity Association's Lonergan Library

In addition to being just around the corner from Left Bank at K Station, Chicago’s West Loop is known for it’s art galleries, dining scene and history. Now it’s also home to the Actor’s Equity Association, the professional actors and stage manager’s union.

The union set up shop in the city’s downtown neighborhood, a historical locale that dates back to 1855 and orginally served as a wholesale flour dealer. The building itself survived The Great Chicago Fire of 1871. It is four stories tall and 22,000 square feet.

According to a feature on WBEZ.org, this is the only bricks and mortar establishment the union owns anywhere. It represents union members in 13 states of its Central Region.

Equity itself will occupy most of the building with offices, a members’ service center, the Lonergan library and audition rooms although some office space is available for rent. Founded in 1913, Actors Equity Association has 49,000 members nationwide heavily clustered in New York and Los Angeles. The entire Central Region has 4,600 members of whom about 1,500 live in Chicago. With fewer than 10% of the membership, the Central Region nonetheless accounts year after year for more than 14% of the union’s total workweeks nationwide.

In Chicago alone, 58 theaters operate on Equity contracts which cover everything from Broadway shows at the big Loop theaters to small storefront playhouses in the neighborhoods. The most lucrative contract is the Production Contract covering cast members and stage managers in Broadway shows, but the most important contract to Chicago is the Chicago Area Theatre “CAT” contract which covers the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Victory Gardens Theater, Writers’ Theatre, Next Theatre Company, Lookingglass Theatre and several dozen smaller companies.

This fall season there are plenty of reasons to get out and see a show in Chicago, showing your support of Equity actors. Do you have any theatre tickets on your must-see list? Tell us about it.

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This entry was posted on November 9, 2010 at 9:11 am and is filed under Arts & Culture, Downtown Chicago, West Loop. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.