Rialto Square Theatre marks 100 years as Joliet cultural anchor

The Rialto Square Theatre is celebrating a century of performances in downtown Joliet, and executives, volunteers and preservation advocates used a recorded centennial program to outline the venue’s past, present and a busy slate of events for 2026.

“My name is Wade Welsh. I’m the executive director here at the Rialto Square Theatre,” said Wade Welsh, who has led the venue since June 2022 and said the theatre has been operated by Venue Works since 2017. Welsh said Venue Works brings “about 25 shows annually” to the 2,000-seat house and helps book a mix of national and regional acts for Joliet.

The program emphasized the theatre’s economic and civic role. Jack Erickson, the Rialto’s sales and sponsorships director, credited corporate and individual sponsors with helping the venue survive a financially perilous period and said research has shown the Rialto’s impact on downtown restaurants and small businesses. “Whether we have a show that’s bringing in 500 people or 1,900 people, if you don’t have a reservation at one of the restaurants, you’re probably not going to get in,” Erickson said.

Volunteers emerged as a central theme. Leanne Hoffridge, manager of event services, said volunteers staff ticketing and ushering, run in-house fundraising and return money to the theatre: “Since about 1988, they’ve given back over a million dollars to the theater,” Hoffridge said. She reported roughly 168 volunteers are currently active, down from a pre-pandemic high of about 350.

Long-serving ushers told personal stories about the Rialto’s community role. Carmen Ferris, a volunteer for 43 years, and Eva Paris, a volunteer for 42 years, described how volunteering became part of their lives and how traditions such as balcony duty and holiday decorating bind volunteers and patrons to the building.

Behind the scenes, stage crew members also traced long ties to the theatre. Loren Lynch, part of the stage crew and a longtime union member, described the crew’s responsibility for unloading, lighting and protecting original features such as trap doors and an original Barton Grand theater pipe organ.

Fundraising and centennial programming were also highlighted. Steve Randich, president of the Rialto Square Foundation, said the foundation has raised more than $1.5 million for upkeep and maintenance and outlined four centennial events planned for 2026, including a senior organ concert and a free public open-house in May.

Authority leadership detailed recent and upcoming capital work. Bob Fillotto, chair of the Rialto Square Theater Authority board, said the authority has replaced the roof at a cost of about $4 million and expanded restrooms at “just under a million dollars.” He said the theatre will close for roughly three and a half months beginning in June 2026 for an HVAC overhaul estimated at $9–10 million.

Those projects are part of a larger preservation narrative recounted by former staffer J.L. Evans, who traced the Save the Rialto effort in the 1970s, the theater’s listing on the National Register of Historic Places, legislative and local funding mechanisms and early grassroots organizing that secured the venue’s long-term survival.

The centennial program closed with appeals to the community to continue supporting the Rialto’s operations, preservation and programming as it heads into its second century.