"In fall 2004, the Curious Theatre Branch announced its intent to abandon its theater, the former home of the No Exit Cafe on the corner of Glenwood and Lunt Avenues in Rogers Park. At the time, Curious co-founder Beau O'Reilly cited issues with the neighborhood's high crime rate. "There is a difficulty going on in the 'hood," O'Reilly told the Chicago Reader, "that seems to have increased."Well, I don't know how the No-Exit got where it is, you know, permits and all, but I know for a fact, the Curious Theatre didn't move from that location Chris Jones mentioned in his fluffy good news theatre story. The Curious was located on the northeast corner of Lunt and Glenwood. Chris Jones did shoddy research. Probably got his information from Joe Moore?
Chris Jones
Chicago Tribune
June 12, 2009
In the writer's defense. He was right about the crime part. Read the nasty details of the Curious Theatre and it's departure here. Gone...by Saturday, High Noon
PS: The spot in question is still vacant.
11 comments:
===Moore said that neighborhood residents and business owners deserved a lot of the credit for the turnaround. “Everybody banded together,” he said. “We’ve become quite the entertainment destination.”===
What about the Morse Theatre, Joe? How's the mediating going?
Why did Curious Theatre leave Craig? You only posted this because Chris Jones said something in support of Joe.
Now please tell your fair readers the 'real" story is as you believe it.
I just amended the story. Like you said, it wasn't compete.
Curious Theatre left because of the goonings and such of 2004. You know that, Charlie. You were around back then. It was a huge Reader story.
Plus, the guy, Beau O'Reilly, was too soft. He couldn't handle the neighborhood.
The No Exit was originally at the North East corner of Lunt and Glenwood, before they moved to the current location on the West side of the CTA tracks on Glenwood.
I remember the corner to a bookstore, the Curious Theatre and the Eidolon Art Studio, when it wasn't vacant.
I'm guessing that must've been before my time.
I don't know what 'before your time' is but when the No Exit Cafe first came to Rogers Park, from their original location in Evanston, they located on the NE corner of Lunt & Glenwood.
You know, I was just wondering about the Morse Theatre today as I walked by there with my dogs - what IS going on there?
i didnt even know that the cocoa bean was there....
i know about the ghost
descartes coffeeshop
which has been a ghost longer than it ever was open....
i want to open a ghost shop
that can sit empty like that.
cool beans....
duh, no wonder i didnt know about these two places,
i wasnt here yet...
not that rogers park was unknown to me, but not well known,
thats too bad that two businesses failed there, the later eidelon artstudio failed too though not sure how.
that building needs businesses.
they seem to be working on that building all the time
===i didnt even know that the cocoa bean was there....===
Not many people did. The Westgard's were poor promoters of their business. They had no plan.
Plus, just having the "Westgard" name is a Rogers Park jinx.It's doomed for failure on that premise alone.
I remember the bookstore on that NE corner (girlfriend lived down the street to the east) but that's as far back as I can go. I remember that the current No Exit was pretty vacant for the longest time. But I do remember something going on there before I moved to the are. It was featured on Wild Chicago with Ben Hollis. Maybe for a wild poetry reading night they used to have or music night or something unusual.
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