"Welcome to Glee-ville," a tuxedo-wearing guest said to his companion at the Goodman Theatre's gala on Saturday night. Kicking off with an hour-long performance from the TV show's star, Matthew Morrison, the event drew 850 guests and raised $1 million for the theater's education and community programs.
This year's performance took place at the Goodman Theatre itself, and was followed by dinner and dancing at the Fairmont Chicago Hotel. "In previous years the entire event has taken place at the Fairmont Hotel," said woman's board president Joan Clifford, who worked with co-chairs Swati Mehta and Margaret M. Janus to plan the gala. "We changed the event this year to host the show in the theater, in honor of the Goodman Theatre’s 10th anniversary on Dearborn Street in the Loop."
After Morrison's performance, guests lined up outside of the theater to hop on American Sightseeing Company buses, which took them to the after-party. "I was worried about the logistics of transporting more than 800 people across the city on a Saturday night in May, but it turned out to be a flawless evening," Clifford said. "We moved onto the Fairmont in a very timely matter."
Kehoe Designs handled decor, using bright hues and sparkly touches to underscore the gala's "One Enchanted Decade" theme. "The room glistened in the colors of hot pink, orange and gold," Clifford said. The festive mood extended to the dance floor, which "was full from start to finish" as the Al Sofia Orchestra played upbeat tunes such as the Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling."
