Paramount Theatre’s smash hit musical Million Dollar Quartet has a lot to boast about.
But of late, two handsome and talented new actor/musicians have stepped into the roles of rock music icons Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley, and they’re making quite a buzz.
Corey McKinney from Jacksonville, Florida, has taken the throne as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll, wowing audiences with blistering renditions of Elvis Presley classics like “Hound Dog” and “Long Tall Sally.”
Corey McKinney is Elvis Presley (credit: Sloane Johnson)
Michael Potter has portrayed Johnny Cash in many shows over the years, including Ring of Fire at Drury Lane Theatre and Million Dollar Quartet for Norwegian Cruise Lines. Potter plays Cash through November 2nd, when Paramount’s original Man in Black, Bill Scott Sheets, direct from Folsom Prison, returns to the show through the end of the year.
Michael Potter is Johnny Cash (through November 2, credit: Sloane Johnson)
And “That’s All Right,” mama. Don’t you worry, babe. Because the electrifying Garrett “Great Balls of Fire” Forrestal as Jerry Lee Lewis, and Matt McClure as rocker Carl Perkins, aren’t going anywhere.
Garrett Forrestal plays Jerry Lee Lewis (credit: Liz Lauren)
and Matt McClure is Carl Perkins in Paramount’s immersive Million Dollar Quartet, playing now through January 4, 2026, at Stolp Island Theatre. (credit: Brett Beiner)
Paramount’s Million Dollar Quartet is like none before. Both the theater and the show were custom built as an immersive experience inside a replica of the original Sun Records studio in Memphis, Tennessee. There, on December 4, 1956, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins came together and recorded one of the most historic jam sessions in rock ‘n’ roll history. This fall in downtown Aurora, sold out houses at Stolp Island Theatre are still the norm, with wildly satisfied audiences feeling like they just sat in on one of the most historic jam sessions in rock ‘n’ roll history.
Paramount’s Stolp Island Theatre is located at 5 E. Downer Place, Suite G, in downtown Aurora. The performance schedule now through November 2 is Wednesday at 1:30 p.m., Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., Sunday at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., plus an added 7 p.m. performance, rotating weekly on either Wednesday or Thursday evening (check the website for alternating dates). Starting November 5, the performance schedule expands to Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., Thursday at 7 p.m., Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., through January 4, 2026.
Tickets to Million Dollar Quartet start at $66. Bonus: downtown Aurora boasts easy, affordable parking and lots of new restaurants near the theater. For tickets, information, parking and dining options, visit ParamountAurora.com, call (630) 896-6666, or stop by the Paramount Theatre box office, 23 E. Galena Blvd., Monday–Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and until show time on show days.
Audiences feel like they’ve stepped back in time to December 4, 1956, outside Sun Records in Memphis at Million Dollar Quartet at Paramount Theatre’s new Stolp Island Theatre, 5 E. Downer Place, Suite G, in downtown Aurora. Credit: Amy Nelson
Matt McClure (left) plays rock legend Carl Perkins and Garrett Forrestal is Jerry Lee Lewis in Paramount Theatre’s immersive production of Million Dollar Quartet. Credit: Brett Beiner Photography
The famous photo from the historic 1956 Sun Studios jam session that inspired Million Dollar Quartet.
Stolp Island Theatre received a multi-year funding commitment from Verano, a leading multi-state cannabis company that operates Zen Leaf Aurora, located at 740 Illinois Route 59, and nine additional Zen Leaf dispensaries across Chicagoland.
About Paramount Theatre
Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd., is the center for performing arts in Aurora, the second largest city in Illinois. The beautiful, 1,843-seat theater, graced with a strong 1930s Art Deco influence and original Venetian décor, nationally known for its high-quality productions, superb acoustics and historic grandeur, has been downtown Aurora’s anchor attraction since 1931.
Since launching its own Broadway Series in 2011, Paramount has amassed more than 40,000 subscribers, making it the largest subscription house in the U.S.
Paramount Theatre is one of five live performance venues overseen by the Aurora Civic Center Authority (ACCA) in downtown Aurora. ACCA also programs and manages Stolp Island Theatre, 5 E. Downer Place, Suite G, where its wildly acclaimed immersive production of Million Dollar Quartet has been running for more than a year; the 165-seat Copley Theatre, at 8 E. Galena in the North Island Center; the Paramount School of the Arts; and RiverEdge Park, 360 N. Broadway, downtown Aurora’s outdoor summer concert venue and home to Christkindlmarket Aurora.
Paramount Theatre is overseen by Tim Rater, President and CEO, Aurora Civic Center Authority; Jim Corti, Artistic Director, Paramount Theatre; a dedicated Board of Trustees and a devoted staff of live theater and music professionals.
For the latest updates, visit ParamountAurora.com or follow @paramountaurora on Facebook and Instagram, and Paramount Theatre on LinkedIn.