Downtown Aurora, Illinois is gonna be “All Shook Up” this summer, as tickets to a new live, immersive staging of Million Dollar Quartet, the debut production in Paramount Theatre’s new Stolp Island Theatre, are flying off the shelf.
Earlier this month, Paramount offered its subscribers first dibs on tickets, and talk about popular demand: the first four weeks of shows sold out in 30 minutes. The first eight weeks sold out in less than 48 hours.
When tickets went on sale to the general public on Friday, May 17, Paramount officials announced an immediate extension through the end of the year, December 30, 2024.
Million Dollar Quartet is the opening production for Paramount’s new Stolp Island Theatre. Conceptual renderings of the the theater's Sun Studio performance space by Jeffrey D. Kmiec.
Stolp Island Theatre, Paramount’s third live theater venue in downtown Aurora, is now under construction at 5 E. Downer Place, Suite G. At just 98 seats, this unique new space is specifically designed for experiential live theater, meaning Million Dollar Quartet will be presented in such a way that the audience will feel they are part of the show.
As soon as audiences step inside Stolp Island Theatre, they’ll feel like they’ve stepped back in time to December 5, 1956, inside the Sun Records recording studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where music legends Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins came together and recorded one of the most historic jam sessions in rock and roll history.
Nominated for three Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Million Dollar Quartet features some of the biggest and best songs of all time, including “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “I Walk the Line,” “Hound Dog” and “Great Balls of Fire.”
Conceptual renderings of Stolp Island Theatre's downtown Memphis lobby streetscape that welcomes audiences into the Sun Studio storefront. Renderings by Jeffrey D. Kmiec.
“Our 2017 Broadway staging of Million Dollar Quartet remains an audience favorite, and has always been one of our top requested shows to ‘bring back,’” said Jim Corti, Paramount Artistic Director and co-director of Million Dollar Quartet. “Not only are we bringing it back, but this new production will be staged in a whole new way, where audiences are going to feel surrounded by amazing musical talent and the dazzling production values they’ve come to expect from Paramount.”
Creg Sclavi, who is both the project manager supervising construction of Stolp Island Theatre, and co-directing Million Dollar Quartet with Corti, added, “When audiences walk inside Stolp Island Theatre, they’ll encounter dramaturgical displays about the history behind one of the most seminal nights in music history. Making their way through a 1950s downtown Memphis streetscape, they will then step inside a theatrical recreation of Sun Studio, with seats all around. It will feel like Elvis, Jerry Lee, Johnny and Carl are treating them to a personal, intimate, one-of-a-kind live music experience.”
“Downtown Aurora is already a destination for Broadway-caliber musicals in our beautiful Paramount Theatre, thought-provoking works in our intimate Copley Theatre, and live outdoor concerts at RiverEdge Park,” said Tim Rater, President and CEO, Aurora Civic Center Authority. “Now, we’re adding a new, immersive theater experience, right on the Fox River. With Paramount’s commitment to doing more and better, and the City of Aurora’s commitment to the arts and downtown, we are becoming the model that others can look to as to how the performing arts can revitalize a community.”
Conceptual rendering of the Stolp Island Theatre floor plan by Jeffrey D. Kmiec.
Previews start July 10. Opening Weekend is July 19-21. Show times are Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., Thursday at 7 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., Sunday at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. though December 30, 2024.
Single tickets to Million Dollar Quartet are $65. For tickets and information, 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.
Stolp Island Theatre is located at 5 E. Downer Place, facing the Fox River in downtown Aurora. It’s just a block and a half from Paramount Theatre, the 1,888-seat Art Deco palace, home to Paramount’s blockbuster Broadway Series, not to mention the largest subscription base in the nation, and the 165-seat Copley Theatre, where Paramount presents its BOLD Series of more intimate works.
Stay tuned for a full cast and company announcement in June. For updates, follow @ParamountAurora on Facebook, Instagram and @paramountarts on LinkedIn.
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.
Also coming soon to Paramount Theatre
Paramount has a blockbuster, four-show line-up for its 13th Broadway Series, launching this fall with The Full Monty (August 21-October 6, 2024), followed by two highly anticipated Regional Premieres – Disney’s Frozen (October 30, 2024-January 19, 2025) and Waitress (February 12-March 30, 2025) – climaxing with a revival of Cats (April 30-June 15, 2025). Broadway packages start as low as $56.
Paramount’s third BOLD Series – right across the street in Paramount’s intimate Copley Theatre – will present three fresh, exciting works in 2024-25: Peter and the Starcatcher (July 24-September 1, 2024), An Act of God (October 2-November 10, 2024) and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (March 12-April 27, 2025). BOLD packages start at just $75.
For subscriptions, tickets and information, visit ParamountAurora.com, call (630) 896-6666, or visit the Paramount box office, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and until show time on show days.
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 37,000 subscribers, making it the largest subscription house in the U.S.
For over 50 years, the Joseph Jefferson Awards has recognized excellence in Chicago area theater. Paramount has been honored to earn 115 Jeff nominations and 29 wins over the last eight years of eligibility, including six Jeff Awards in 2022 for Kinky Boots, including Best Musical-Large, Paramount’s fourth win in that category following Sweeney Todd (2017), West Side Story (2016) and Les Misérables (2015).
Paramount Theatre is one of four live performance venues programmed and managed by the Aurora Civic Center Authority (ACCA). Paramount’s newly-renovated “sister stage” is the 165-seat Copley Theatre, home to Paramount’s BOLD Series, across the street in North Island Center. ACCA also programs and manages Stolp Island Theatre, an immersive theater experience opening on the Fox River in July 2024, the Paramount School of the Arts, and RiverEdge Park, downtown Aurora’s 6,000-seat outdoor summer concert venue.
Paramount Theatre continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of 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 updates, follow @ParamountAurora on Facebook, Instagram and @paramountarts on LinkedIn.