EP Theater

Always cool. Run by the hippest guys I know.
No matter what you see at the Theater, the sound is awesome. Live music is epic, plays are beautiful, and the warm butter-​rum in the winter soothes my soul.
Make sure you check out their Holiday shows!

the «mike and craig show» is the funniest thing i’ve ever seen. as if that weren’t enough to warrant five stars, the space itself is so damn cozy you’d swear elves ran it. parisian wallpaper, free wine and charming fellas?! shut. the. front. door.

We just got back from «3 by Tennessee» at the EP. The whole deal was absolutely fantastic. We got in a few minutes before the play and were warmly greeted by the people that run it. They had a great cocktail minute before the show giving us just enough time to look around the über-​cool space. The theater itself seats about 50 with tiered seating and a few stage side seats. Great setup, not a bad seat in the house! The acts were phenomenal, great acting, great directing and some great musical interludes. All in all a perfect evening and a venue we will definitely return to repeatedly.

Once we found our way to the entrance in the back we entered and realized it’s not a traditional theater… in a sense.
You walk around a corner and the stage area is right there and there’s a platform levels with regular chairs for the audience.
There’s room for about 25 – 30 people? But whats great is that I dont got to a lot of theater and didn’t know what to expect. You are right there practically in the play itself. It’s definitely a more intimate feeling than if you’re 12 rows back looking up at a huge stage.
The show I saw was The Lost Shakespere Play. About a young man who has «found» some of Shakesperes lost works. It’s a play within a play and it was so much fun. The space is pretty small but they really used it well.
I guess it’s also someone’s apartment too! It’s a great kooky space to see a show.

I didn’t know the theatre entrance was at the back of the building, so I ended up walking thru a dark and cold hallway of an apt complex and down a set of narrow stairs to get to it. Mind you, this was the first time my father has visited me in Chicago, so I think I freaked him out a bit. But, to our surprise we found a very homely and comfy waiting room.
We watched Trial by Water, a story about two Vietnamese brothers escaping Vietnam on a boat, faced with many ethical decisions which will determine their survival. It really shows humanity when faced with extreme conditions. The theatre was a fifty seater with the set not as elaborate as Raven Theater. However, I have recently watched Night of the Iguana, Killing Women, and Runaways, and I enjoyed this performance the most.
There was quite a bit of profanity and sexual innuendos, which was a little bit awkward when sitting right next to my father, but he enjoyed the show as well.