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Chicago Cultural Center

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Chicago Cultural Center
78 E Washington St, Chicago, IL 60602
+1 312 744 6630
site: Chicago Cultural Center
#132 of 1180 things to do rated by Real Travelers

More information on Chicago Cultural Center

Built in 1897 as the city's public library and transformed into a showplace for visual and performing arts in 1991, the Chicago Cultural Center is an overlooked civic treasure. Its basic Beaux Arts exterior conceals a sumptuous interior of rare marble, fine hardwood, stained glass, polished brass, and mosaics of Favrile glass, colored stone, and mother-of-pearl inlaid in white marble. The crowning centerpiece is Preston Bradley Hall's majestic Tiffany dome, said to be the largest of its kind in the world.The building also houses one of the Chicago Office of Tourism's visitor centers, which makes it an ideal place to kick-start your visit. If you stop in to pick up tourist information and take a quick look around, your visit won't take longer than half an hour. But the Cultural Center also schedules an array of art exhibitions, concerts, films, lectures, and other special events (many free), which might convince you to extend your time here. A long-standing tradition is the 12:15pm Dame Myra Hess Memorial classical concert every Wednesday in the Preston Bradley Hall.Guided architectural tours of the Cultural Center run on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday at 1:15pm. For information, call tel. 312/744-8032. Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

Price

Free admission

Credit Cards Accepted

none accepted

Directions

Bus: 3, 4, 20, 56, 145, 146, 147, 151, or 157. Subway/El: Brown, Green, Orange, or Purple line to Randolph, or Red Line to Washington/State

Hours

Mon-Thurs 10am-7pm; Fri 10am-6pm; Sat 10am-5pm; Sun 11am-5pm

Information by Frommers

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