Elgin Art Showcase gets new home at The Lodge

Elgin Art Showcase will have a new and improved home next year.

Last week, the Elgin City Council approved a plan to move the city-run performance and visual art space to The Lodge Performing Arts Center, a recently rehabbed venue at 18 Villa Court in downtown Elgin.

“I think it’s going to be really good for our arts scene and provide a more reliable space and more usable space for our users,” council member Tish Powell said.

The Elgin Art Showcase opened in 2007 on the top floor of the Elgin Professional Building at 164 Division St. It has since served as a rental facility for artists and arts organizations.

The Showcase has hosted over 750 exhibits and performances and served more than 47,000 patrons in the past 18 years. Performances include plays, musical theater, cabaret, artist receptions, festivals, children’s programs, experimental exhibitions, and dance recitals.

The space has hosted theater groups from Arlington Heights, Des Plaines, DeKalb, Cary, Schaumburg and Chicago.

Elgin-based theater groups, including Janus Plays, Elgin Theatre Company, and IAMBE Theater, regularly perform in the space.

City Manager Rick Kozal said The Lodge offers a larger, more versatile space for performance, a more reliable elevator, better load-in/out access, easier setup of the space, a centralized box office/bar area, larger dressing rooms, improved technical equipment and capacity, and a large shop area.

Next year, rental costs for groups will increase next year by 30% to defray the higher cost for the improved facility.

“But Elgin Arts Showcase renters are excited about this new iteration of the performance space and what it means for the future of arts in Elgin,” Kozal said.

The Lodge opened this summer in the space that had served as the Elgin Elks Lodge for over 70 years. It was converted to office space when they moved out in the 1990s.

Mary Alice and Michael Benoit of Bartlett purchased the building in 2023 and undertook a massive renovation.

It now serves as the permanent home for Students on Stage, a subsidiary of Schaumburg On Stage, and point2point productions. It’s also available to other theater companies to rent throughout the year.

Elgin Art Showcase will occupy the lower level beginning Jan. 1. Seasonal reservations for 2026 stand at 70%. City officials expect that number to grow as word spreads about the new location.

Elgin Arts Showcase has a 2026 operational budget of $100,000. Roughly 93% of that money will go to renting the new space. The remainder will be spent on advertising, promotion, and technical service and equipment maintenance or upgrades.

Mayor David Kaptain said the old space had served them well, but it was time for a change.

“We’re taking things to another level, and that’s good for downtown, that’s good for everybody,” Kaptain said.