Our Story
Two decades of Black arts, culture, and community at the corner of 47th and King Drive.
The Harold Washington Cultural Center opened its doors in August 2004 and has spent every year since putting Bronzeville's artists, young people, and stories on stage. We carry the name of Chicago's first Black mayor and we stand on the ground of the historic Regal Theatre. This page is the story of how we got here, and what we are building next.
Photo: Theon Reynolds
The Ground We Stand On
Before there was a cultural center at 47th Street and King Drive, there was the Regal Theatre. The Regal was one of the great stages of Black America. Count Basie and Duke Ellington played here, and generations of Black artists made this corner of Bronzeville one of the most important addresses in American music.
The Harold Washington Cultural Center was built on that same ground. When our artists step on stage, they are performing where legends performed. That history sits underneath us, and it sets the standard for everything we present.
The Vision
The effort to build a cultural anchor for Bronzeville began in 1998, led by Alderman Dorothy Tillman and the board of Tobacco Road, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The vision was direct: a home for Black arts and culture worthy of the most storied corner in Bronzeville, built in the community it serves.
Six years of work brought that vision to life. The $19.5 million building opened and was dedicated in 2004, named for Harold Washington, Chicago's first Black mayor. Tobacco Road, Inc. operates the Center to this day.
Who Harold Washington Was
Harold Washington was Chicago's first Black mayor. The Center carries his name as a commitment: culture, education, and opportunity, delivered to the community with excellence.
The Building
Our home is a two-story limestone building of more than 40,000 square feet, designed for performance, production, and gathering. Here is what lives inside:
- The 1,000-seat theater, our mainstage
- Two-story cascading atrium and exhibition hall
- Private suites and corporate meeting rooms
- Museum space
- Recording studio (Pro Tools)
- Video editing lab
- Digital media center with computer stations
- 20-foot bronze statue of Mayor Harold Washington at the entrance
- Walk of Fame
Our Commitment
Committed to children, community, and culture.
That commitment shows up on our stage, in our classrooms, and across Bronzeville. It is carried by five core values:
Leadership
We develop leaders on stage, backstage, and in the community.
Unity
We bring generations and neighborhoods together under one roof.
Commitment Code
We show up, we follow through, and we hold each other to it.
Integrity Creed
We do the work honestly and we honor the people we serve.
Education of Excellence
We train to a professional standard, because our young people deserve nothing less.
Our Global Director
Jimalita Tillman
Global Director, Harold Washington Cultural Center
Jimalita Tillman leads the Harold Washington Cultural Center as its Global Director. Trained in Theatre Management at DePaul University, she sharpened her craft at Black Ensemble Theater and ETA.
She is a playwright and producer whose work includes Cooley High The Musical, Miracle on 47th Street, One Mic, Broadway Soul, and Policy: A Family Business. The Center's in-house company, Broadway in Bronzeville, is its flagship brand, and the "Off the Streets and On the Stage" program trains generations of young people in professional theater, from performance and production to hospitality and audience development, through paid apprentice cycles that reset every 15 weeks.
Her standard for the Center is the same one the Regal ground demands: excellence, presented with pride, for the community first.
20+ Years of Moments
Photo: Theon Reynolds
The Harold Washington Cultural Center opens and is dedicated. Roy Ayers performs at the grand-opening gala.
The Center hosts the 40th anniversary conference of the Chicago Freedom Movement.
Chicagoans gather at the Center for a memorial viewing honoring Michael Jackson.
The annual Tony Awards student trip begins, taking young people from Bronzeville to the Tony Awards.
The Center marks its 20th anniversary with a gala celebration.
Policy: A Family Business, written and directed by Jimalita Tillman, plays four sold-out Chicago Theatre Week shows in February.
Be Part of What Comes Next
The story on this page was built by this community, season by season. Come see a show, walk the building, and stand with the Center that built it.