Northlight Theatre’s return to Evanston will take a few more years, Executive Director Tim Evans told the RoundTable, as construction on the new theatre is expected to finish in the third quarter of 2026.

Over 100 individuals representing a broad range of Evanston businesses attended Northlight Theatre’s community event at Five & Dime on March 13.

Northlight Theatre officials persuaded Evanston’s Land Use Commission Wednesday night to recommend approval of changes to the planned building’s front façade — citing soaring costs for building materials as the reason for the change.

The partnerships, the plays, the people – along with the purpose, passion and progress – were all part of the celebration Thursday, as hundreds of Evanstonians gathered at the Theater on the Lake in Chicago for its annual gala.

After five years in the works, plans seem to be falling together… But new construction is hardly the only building driving Northlight’s Evanston-based endeavors. The theater’s teaching artists and educators have spent years building connections with Evanston, tending the theater’s local roots even as its brick-and-mortar presence remained out of town.

Northlight Theatre announces the next phase in realizing its new theatre in downtown Evanston at 1012-16 Church Street. Staging for the demolition of the current building began June 27 and demolition is expected to begin July 11, 2022 for the property purchased by Northlight last July.

Evanston’s Economic Development Committee Wednesday recommended City Council approval of funding for four major projects.

Northlight Theatre would receive $2 million toward its $25 million project to relocate from Skokie to a new theater to be built at 1012-16 Church St. downtown.