David Byrne decided this must be the place, when he had a chance to bring a recurring show to Chicago’s historic Reid Murdoch building.
Landlord Albert Friedman is welcoming the Talking Heads frontman into the 325,000-square-foot riverfront landmark at 333 North LaSalle Street to make the Windy City the second host to “Theater of the Mind,” an immersive theatrical experience co-created by Byrne and writer Mala Gaonkar.
The show is occupying 19,000 square feet in the building and will feature 140 performances per week, with the goal of attracting 100,000 visitors in its first year.
Friedman, nicknamed the “Mayor of River North” for his extensive real estate holdings in the neighborhood, is often credited with helping to transform the area from its 1970s working-class roots into the economic powerhouse it is today, in large part by bringing on art galleries as tenants at first, then later, restaurants, hotels and posh apartment buildings.
The Reid Murdoch building is one of several historic assets in Friedman’s portfolio. He also owns the Medinah Temple, home of Chicago’s first casino with the temporary Bally’s location, and Court House Place, the seven-story, 107,000-square-foot office property built in 1893 at 54 West Hubbard Place; it was a criminal courthouse until 1929.
Older office buildings without modern amenities have been frequently denigrated since the pandemic as demand consolidates into the newest office towers, but Friedman has pushed back on the narrative. He recently told The Real Deal his office buildings are outperforming the downtown Chicago average vacancy rate, which is over 25 percent.
He said the dynamic of the River North neighborhood — with its mix of uses, eateries and retailers — is the main draw for his tenants, as well as his company’s hands-on approach to managing properties and ensuring safety in the area. That environment is set to be enhanced by Byrne’s show.
Denver was the first host to a “Theater of the Mind” run, starting in 2022. The show is a blend of neuroscience with storytelling and is meant to take audiences through self-exploration and discovery by using the creators’ life experiences as well as historical and current lab research. Attendees engage in sensory experiments that challenge perceptions and reveal some of the mysterious ways in which the human brain functions.
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