First outdoor dining, and now outdoor theater? On the heels of the popular Arlington Alfresco that closed downtown Arlington Heights streets in 2020 -- and is set to start again this Friday -- the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre plans to stage productions this spring and summer just blocks away under a tent.
Theater and village officials have proposed closing Eastman Avenue from Arlington Heights Road to Evergreen Street -- right in-between North School Park and a village-owned parking garage -- where a 40-by-90-foot tent would play host to two theater productions from May through September. The structure -- with tent flaps open on the west and south sides -- would have room for at least 80 socially-distanced, masked theatergoers. The stage would be situated 60 feet east of Evergreen and face Arlington Heights Road, with the nearest residences some 200 feet away in the other direction at the Hancock Square apartments. Metropolis officials say the tent will be lined with small speakers that face inward, and volume will be regulated, in an effort to be good neighbors.