Lillian Marcie Center

01

A reinvigorated Bronzeville community

02

A more culturally connected Chicago

03

A more artistically equitable world

Chicago is more than just its Northside

Black people produce an asset that is wholly rehabilitative and restorative. It is not acceptable when black people do not have a place to develop and engage with that asset in their own community, and it is not enough to just perform art in white neighborhoods. If we want to care for communities across Chicago, then we cannot ignore the role arts play in shaping healthy, peaceful, and successful communities. Instead we must invest in the spaces and resources black artists and communities need to flourish.

WHY NOW?

Although the creativity of Black artists in America has stirred, inspired, and persevered for centuries, the outlets for its expression—even today—have remained limited and underfunded.

WHAT IS THE LILLIAN MARCIE VISION?

The physical aspects of our plan are bold and carefully considered: a modern theatre complex featuring a 350-seat multi-level, flexible performance stage; a second more intimate 100-seat boutique theater; and related areas, such as rehearsal spaces, dressing rooms, offices, and outdoor gathering spaces. 

Our mission is to restore and secure the artistic legacy of Bronzville. 

The Lillian Marcie Center is the physical manifestation of African American cultural aesthetic . By aesthetic we mean the collective artistic soul trust of the Black experience in the Americas.  The Lillian Marcie Center is a functioning time machine that preserves the sanctity of the past and present to propel the legacy of Black excellence into the future.

Critical Spacial Theory: Revitalizing Cultural Infrastructure | Harry Lennix | TEDxWrigleyville

A reinvigorated Bronzeville community

The past, present, and future of black performance art and cultural life flourishes.

A more culturally connected Chicago

People on the southside will have better access to arts, while people on the northside can have more engagement with performance on the southside.

A more artistically equitable world

The outlets for creative expression for black performers aren’t limited by the far away realms of Hollywood. Instead they are right down the street, woven into the community’s fabric and fortified with the resources needed to make dreams a reality.

WHAT INVESTMENT IS NEEDED?

WHO IS DRIVING THE LILLIAN MARCIE PROJECT?

PEOPLE

The Lillian Marcie Center project is led by a talented group of artists, community members, and professionals who are dedicated to seeing the project through to completion and success. Below are the key individuals, partnering firms, and organizations involved.
Harry Lennix will be in charge of running the theatre’s first year of operations and will be involved in curating and organizing Lillian Marcie Theatre’s programming. With a life dedicated to the arts, Harry is the co-founder of AAMPA and Legacy Productions and a board member of Congo Square Theatre (CST)
Harry Lennix “
Harry Lennix Co-founder of Legacy Productions and AAMPA
Keith Giles, principal of K Giles LLC, is leading the development. He is a veteran Chicago real estate developer who has been active in the city of Chicago since 1987, with a focus on Chicago’s South Loop, developing over 20 residential projects.
Keith Giles “
Keith Giles Principal of K Giles LLC
TaRon Patton is the Executive Director of AAMPA, which will be the anchor tenant of the Lillian Marcie Center and will provide artistic residencies as a community partner to source additional productions. (Though the Artistic Director will be the primary programmer of content at LMC.)
TaRon Patton “
TaRon Patton Executive Director of AAMPA
Dwain Perry will be the Artistic Director. He will be responsible for maintaining the consistency of the content that fills the theaters and performance spaces, and will direct a minimum of one production a year at the Lillian Marcie. He is an actor and director who has worked under the direction of Harry Lennix in shows including Julius Caesar and The Five Heartbeats.
Dwain Perry “
Dwain Perry Artistic Director of the Lillian Marcie Center
Juan Ramirez is operating as the Building Manager. Juan brings decades of expertise as a producer, director, builder, and performer. He will assist with staffing the building in terms of engineers, maintenance workers, etc.
Juan Ramirez “
Juan Ramirez Building Manager
Mike Wordlaw — who is the Founder of Legacy Finish work, a longtime investor, and a resident of the Bronzeville community for over ten years—identified and negotiated a price for the current site. He has also met extensively with community members and organizations in Bronzeville both to gauge support and to deepen understanding around the project’s alignment with the community’s history and interests.
Mike Wordlaw “
Mike Wordlaw founder of Legacy Finish work